Here's an almost proper NUD for my newest baby, the Barron River Cypress Tenor!
It all started when Laura posted a NUD for her Barron River Cocnert. I just loved the body shape, and as she had mentioned the favorable exchange rate, I went to look at Allen's web site. I didn't really (really!) mean to buy anything, just a little window shopping.
But fate decided differently. As it happened, Allen McFarlen of Barron River had a pre-built instrument ready for sale. I had been a fan of flamenco guitars, as well as flamenco in general, so when I saw the cypress tenor, it called out to me. I just had to have it, even though I neither needed another tenor nor did (and do) I feel my current level of skill really does an instrument of this caliber any justice.
I inquired about a few details and a couple days later the tenor was en route from Australia to Germany. It arrived at the airport in about five days, crossing a distance of about 14500 kilometers. Unexpectedly, it would take another full month until it would complete the final 100 kilometers from the airport to me.
That was a really trying time, I'll tell you. The initial reason for the delay was the strike of the German Post (DHL). The claim was that express packages would not be affected, but that was clearly not the case, because this was an express shipment and it got stuck.
For a while, it even seemed to be MIA. When it surfaced, it was in form of the customs office that was extremely difficult to work with; they insisted on even applying customs feet and VAT to the shipping and insurance costs, which led to another delay. Then, because of the strike's aftermath (it had ended now) and the resulting backlog, it took another ten days for the parcel to get to me.
But in spite of the frustration (Laura and Dave kindly let me vent my worries a little), it was totally worth it, because the instrument is nothing short of gorgeous, with a brilliant sound. It's a real treasure, and answered my question what the difference between a $200-300 ukulele and a hand-built one is, at least in this case.
Here are the specs:
Body : Monterey Cypress
Neck: Brazilian Mahogany
Bindings, fret board, bridge, headplate: Indian Rosewood
Tuners: Grover Sta-Tites 14:1 ratio
Nut, Saddle: Bone
Rosette: Spalted Mango
Fret markers: Gold MOP
Finish: Nitro lacquer
Strings: Worth Browns
I unfortunately don't have a good camera, and instead of buying one just for this occasion (I nearly did!), I used my iPad Air 2 to take two quick photos. They aren't good, a little grainy and poor lightning, but they show "it happened". They are attached below.
Allen took professional photos of the instrument, so for good quality pictures please see here: http://www.brguitars.com/gallery/tenor/cypress_tenor/
What I don't have are sound samples, because I don't feel confident enough in my playing yet to share any. I do promise that within about a year's time I'll deliver those. This instrument has a lovely voice and it deserves to be heard. (I do wish Jon/HD had had a chance to record it while it was still in Australia.)
Impressions? I love it! The high gloss finish gives it a particularly precious look, though it also intimidates me a little! I did spot a tiny dent in the finish on the back (only visible when the light comes from the side), which I'm not sure how it got there, but that is really the only flaw of an instrument that exceeded any expectations I had.
The Worth Browns seem to be a good match and I'll keep those on it for now, though I'll eventually experiment with others. Intonation is perfect up the neck. It's just a very lovely instrument, and leagues ahead of my other tenor (shown in the attachment together with a soprano). It's also louder than the acacia, with a bell-like sound (but not plinck-y at all, it does have amazing lows with great sustain).
Looking at the "group photo", you'll notice that the scale is the same as the acacia tenor (from the same factory that builds KPKs, same as the mahogany soprano in the photo), but that it's 12 frets to the body. This is fairly uncommon, and whether or not I'll miss the cutaway will take some time to find out -- I'm just not at a point where I frequently play so far up the neck.
It's also a very light instrument. I didn't weigh it, but it's noticeably lighter than the acacia tenor (which I still love, too!). The neck's a bit thinner also, and the action is comfortably low. It plays like butter. Hard to describe and I only have one other tenor to compare it to, it just plays extremely comfortable. Really a joy to hold, hear, and play. It also came with a good, lockable hard case (and a note from Allen as well as a microfiber cloth! ).
Well, that's it! All I can say is that this is a major boost to my motivation to improve, and that it completely satisfies my UAS for tenors.
Allen McFarlen has been great throughout all this, very responsive, very friendly and communicative. I can only recommend him to anyone looking a custom ukulele, especially right now with the Australian dollar being fairly weak vs. both the US dollar and the Euro. Check out his site at http://www.brguitars.com/
It all started when Laura posted a NUD for her Barron River Cocnert. I just loved the body shape, and as she had mentioned the favorable exchange rate, I went to look at Allen's web site. I didn't really (really!) mean to buy anything, just a little window shopping.
But fate decided differently. As it happened, Allen McFarlen of Barron River had a pre-built instrument ready for sale. I had been a fan of flamenco guitars, as well as flamenco in general, so when I saw the cypress tenor, it called out to me. I just had to have it, even though I neither needed another tenor nor did (and do) I feel my current level of skill really does an instrument of this caliber any justice.
I inquired about a few details and a couple days later the tenor was en route from Australia to Germany. It arrived at the airport in about five days, crossing a distance of about 14500 kilometers. Unexpectedly, it would take another full month until it would complete the final 100 kilometers from the airport to me.
That was a really trying time, I'll tell you. The initial reason for the delay was the strike of the German Post (DHL). The claim was that express packages would not be affected, but that was clearly not the case, because this was an express shipment and it got stuck.
For a while, it even seemed to be MIA. When it surfaced, it was in form of the customs office that was extremely difficult to work with; they insisted on even applying customs feet and VAT to the shipping and insurance costs, which led to another delay. Then, because of the strike's aftermath (it had ended now) and the resulting backlog, it took another ten days for the parcel to get to me.
But in spite of the frustration (Laura and Dave kindly let me vent my worries a little), it was totally worth it, because the instrument is nothing short of gorgeous, with a brilliant sound. It's a real treasure, and answered my question what the difference between a $200-300 ukulele and a hand-built one is, at least in this case.
Here are the specs:
Body : Monterey Cypress
Neck: Brazilian Mahogany
Bindings, fret board, bridge, headplate: Indian Rosewood
Tuners: Grover Sta-Tites 14:1 ratio
Nut, Saddle: Bone
Rosette: Spalted Mango
Fret markers: Gold MOP
Finish: Nitro lacquer
Strings: Worth Browns
I unfortunately don't have a good camera, and instead of buying one just for this occasion (I nearly did!), I used my iPad Air 2 to take two quick photos. They aren't good, a little grainy and poor lightning, but they show "it happened". They are attached below.
Allen took professional photos of the instrument, so for good quality pictures please see here: http://www.brguitars.com/gallery/tenor/cypress_tenor/
What I don't have are sound samples, because I don't feel confident enough in my playing yet to share any. I do promise that within about a year's time I'll deliver those. This instrument has a lovely voice and it deserves to be heard. (I do wish Jon/HD had had a chance to record it while it was still in Australia.)
Impressions? I love it! The high gloss finish gives it a particularly precious look, though it also intimidates me a little! I did spot a tiny dent in the finish on the back (only visible when the light comes from the side), which I'm not sure how it got there, but that is really the only flaw of an instrument that exceeded any expectations I had.
The Worth Browns seem to be a good match and I'll keep those on it for now, though I'll eventually experiment with others. Intonation is perfect up the neck. It's just a very lovely instrument, and leagues ahead of my other tenor (shown in the attachment together with a soprano). It's also louder than the acacia, with a bell-like sound (but not plinck-y at all, it does have amazing lows with great sustain).
Looking at the "group photo", you'll notice that the scale is the same as the acacia tenor (from the same factory that builds KPKs, same as the mahogany soprano in the photo), but that it's 12 frets to the body. This is fairly uncommon, and whether or not I'll miss the cutaway will take some time to find out -- I'm just not at a point where I frequently play so far up the neck.
It's also a very light instrument. I didn't weigh it, but it's noticeably lighter than the acacia tenor (which I still love, too!). The neck's a bit thinner also, and the action is comfortably low. It plays like butter. Hard to describe and I only have one other tenor to compare it to, it just plays extremely comfortable. Really a joy to hold, hear, and play. It also came with a good, lockable hard case (and a note from Allen as well as a microfiber cloth! ).
Well, that's it! All I can say is that this is a major boost to my motivation to improve, and that it completely satisfies my UAS for tenors.
Allen McFarlen has been great throughout all this, very responsive, very friendly and communicative. I can only recommend him to anyone looking a custom ukulele, especially right now with the Australian dollar being fairly weak vs. both the US dollar and the Euro. Check out his site at http://www.brguitars.com/