Red alert!

[judith]

There's a 10 string Sobell in the Classifieds. What lucky person has the dough? If I had a chunk of extra change, I'd probably want to check it out, but I don't feel disappointed because I continue to be very happy with my Arches OM. Judith

[PseudoCelt]

Does anyone know how these earlier Sobells stack up to more recent ones? Did Sobell nail "that sound" (if there is such a thing) early on, or did it take while to develop?

Patrick

[Bob DeVellis]

I have the exceptionally good fortune of having access to both an early Sobell large-body mandolin and a more recent small-body mandolin. The sound of the older one is appreciably different from the more recent one. People sometimes talk about the "old sound" and the "new sound." His earlier labels specify "Turf House" as the construction location and the later ones are "Old School." Thus, the older sound is also sometimes referred to as the Turf House sound. I can't honestly say if this nomenclature is in wide use or is just the way the people I've had contact with who are Sobell owners refer to the various periods. I'd say the old mandolins have more of a "small cittern" sound. That is, there a bit more jangly-sounding; the newer ones are a bit more refined -- very hard to describe but immediately obvious when you hear an old beside a new. In mandolins, cedar tops and rosewood backs are pretty common in the earlier period whereas the more recent ones are more often spruce over maple. I'd be hard pressed to say which is better. Each has its virtues. As for the citterns, I don't have any experience. My sense from conversations with Stefan about his instruments in general is that he wanted to get a different sound from his mandolins as time progressed but that he didn't necessarily feel that way about the citterns. Again, this is an impression and shouldn't be considered as a hard fact or a direct quote. Stefan seems to have established a very much sought-after sound for his citterns pretty early on. While their might be a difference between the sound of early vs. later citterns, or between citterns using different woods, I strongly suspect that they all sound great, if not in exactly the same way.

Although I'm no expert, if I had the dough, I'd be taking a very serious look at that instrument.

[delsbrother]

Um... Where? Gone already? How much was it?

[EdSherry]

The seller got so many offers that he decided to withdraw it from sale via the classifieds. He's put it up for auction on a Dutch website.