Baranik OOm Manchinga photos

[Trevor M]

I expect when Mike is back home he will explain.

[DamianL]

Indeed...

Or I could even catch the train down to Brighton and have a close-up look myself!



Damian

[Trevor M]

It would be worth the trip.

[KolayaGuitars]

Originally Posted by harvl

After Mike turned me onto Manchinga I bought a couple sets, beautiful stuff!! Haven't had the chance to build with it yet, I'll be interested to hear what it sounds like... if it sounds half as good as it looks it'll be a winner

Harv

I bent the sides for it and it bent very similar to maple...low temp, real easy. I'm suspecting it will have a maple-like tone...Trevor, any thoughts?

Brad

[Trevor M]

Hi Brad,

Who's maple? I have come to the conclusion over more than ten years of selling hand made guitars that the maker has a bigger influence on sound than the woods.. and there are also so many other variables that often make generalisations difficult to justify. For instance I have a Kent Hamblin GC in sitka and maple that I always hand to people who say maple sounds thin etc., etc., It has the warmest, richest bass and mids I have heard.

This would be a good choice to compare with Mike's OOm - both have sitka tops and similar body sizes - BUT Mike's has a soundport, Kent's doesn't, the OOm is still acclimatising after a six thousand mile flight.. etc.

This is why I think it is important to play guitars first.. and why I keep so many in stock.

To compare them, as usual each quality can be seen as good or bad depending on whether or not that is what you are looking for. The Hamblin is warmer/less well defined, the Baranik has more clarity/less resonance.

[geordie]

if ever a guitar deserved to be pictured in black and white
missed USP ?

[Thomas Rein]

Originally Posted by DamianL

Although i am aware that other builders also do not use an elevated board...like this adjustable neck Thomas Rein:



But it beats me how it's done!

Maybe somebody can chip in with an answer?

Damian,
Since you were kind enough to post a pic of one of my guitars with my RJN neck I can fill you in a bit on how it works. I am not trying to hijack the thread of a cool Baranik guitar:
First of all, it is a proprietary design that took me awhile to figure out. Some folks have told me I should patent my design, but spending many thousands of dollars for the patent and tens of thousands defending the patent is not a savory scenario.
I can tell you that the neck is let into a mortise where the sides come together. There is a large area wood-to-wood contact point which allows the neck to pivot and is the heart of my design. The end of the fingerboard is supported by an extension of the neck and is let into a corresponding mortise in the top. Early on in the design process I made a version that resembled a Stauffer (or violin for that matter) and the critiques I got back from players indicated it was difficult to get used to the different wrist position for fingerstyle, especially if the pinky is planted on the soundboard for reference.
The tension of the strings basically holds the neck on the guitar. If you were to take the strings off one of my RJN guitars and unscrew the adjusting screw entirely from the pivoting nut that stays with the guitar, the neck would be off the guitar! Sounds drastic, but the ability to dial in the desired action depending on the humidity that day, the freedom from ever having to worry about a neck reset, and leaving the saddle height set for the best tone all add up to a very liberating guitar playing experience.

[Welshboy]

I've had the great pleasure of playing this guitar. I absolutely loved it. Tonally, it bore some resemblance to maple, but had a little more going on. The sound was less two-dimensional than I've come to expect from maple guitars (though Trevor also has a maple Hamblin GC in stock that I think is the best maple guitar I've ever played). Definition and separation are good, but there's a little more warmth and depth to the bass and low mids than I generally associate with maple guitars (new ones, at least). The trebles are sweet and although there are fewer overtones than one would have with, say, rosewood, it's not bland or colourless. To me, it was somewhere between mahogany and maple, reminding me a little of a couple of the myrtle guitars I've played. Of course, it's very difficult to separate woods from maker in assessing the sound of a guitar, so all the usual caveats apply. The 00M has plenty of volume too. On the evidence of this guitar I'd say that Mike is going from strength to strength in his guitar design and building.

[Coke_zero]

Woah that thing sold fast .

[Trevor M]

It did. Another is due in Sacha rosewood in a few weeks then another in manchinga.

[albertdacosta]

Trevor-
I tried to get up to see Mike before he sent this guitar your way.
Probably better I didn't...
Might have tried to steal the guitar and tie up Mike with used guitar strings...
I played the prototype and fell in love...
I hear he is sending you another in a few weeks, so I plan to...
Never mind, better no one knows...
Kindly,
Al