Welcome to the website of Nick Benjamin, maker of acoustic
guitars.
©
Lewes, East Sussex, England, UK.
Luthier Nick Benjamin produces small numbers of handmade steel
string acoustic guitars, mostly
to custom order, owners include; Eric Roche, Stuart Ryan, Thomas Leeb and
Newton Faulkner.
Pickup fitting for all acoustic guitars is also a speciality.
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| Jumbo | Jumbo Orchestra Model (JOM) | Orchestra Model (OM) |
| Treble 0 (12 fret) | Double 0 (14 fret) | Terz (high tuned) |
| Baritone Models | Nylon-String Models coming soon! | New & Future Models |
*Latest News 8th May 2008*
Watch out for STUART RYAN'S contribution to the Saturday
Guardian
and Sunday Observer's guitar supplements this weekend!
10th/11th May
FOR SALE
'Pre-loved' Treble-0 slot-head in Alpine Spruce and Flamed Maple
with Paua Abalone soundboard edgings for sale.
See Stock page for details.
(This guitar is for sale via its current owner, not through me.)
New guitar for CLIVE CARROLL now underway:
Orchestra Model in Sitka and Honduras Rosewood with neck and
tonal response to Clive's detailed specifications!
ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC 'SLANT' MODEL
Mock-up picture and details now up on 'New Models'
page
of my new offset body stage guitar.
ORDERS & WAITING TIME
I am now taking orders for spring 2009 to be completed late 2009 -
TWO SPACES LEFT.
This means that WAITING TIME is now about 18 TO 20 MONTHS.
2008/2009 PRICES now up for these last spaces.
Orders after these last places for 2009 will be at new 2009/2010
prices.
Several new decoration schemes will be available including my new 'Double
Bound' style
with extra back and side purflings and my 'Double Bound Plus' with neck and
head bindings.
Watch out for details soon; new 2009/2010 prices will start at £3000
with several extras at
new lower prices, including most LR Baggs pickups fitted at time of making.
Act quickly for the last few spaces at the old prices!
CURRENT BATCH PROGRESS REPORT
Includes; two Jumbos (cocobolo/lutz & camatillo rosewood/lutz), one Jumbo
Baritone (indian rosewood/redwood),
one Orchestra model (black walnut/lutz), one Double 0 model (ziricote/redwood)
and one new 'Mini-Jumbo'
(macassar ebony/lutz) guitar being made for an exhibition.
All the guitars are now now completed - they all have strings on and are settling
in before
collection by their new owners.
PICTURES up now!
CURRENT BATCH
GALLERY
See some images of work in progress.
New images 8th May '08.
New Wood Specials page.
WOODGALLERY
Choose the wood for your guitar!
Check back for regular updates of all my latest finds.
and.....GALLERY OF PAST AND PRESENT GUITARS
Come and say hello on my new MYSPACE!
www.myspace.com/benjaminguitars
REPAIRS
I am not doing any repair work at the moment but am still happy to do some
pickup fitting.
Please get in touch with my good friend Richard Osborne at www.osborneguitars.co.uk
for general repairs.
K&K Pure Western Mini pickup systems now in stock.
Full range of LR Baggs pickups and preamps always available to order, as well as the D-Tar range.
HEADWAY SHIRE KING acoustic
amps now available from Benjamin Guitars.
The best amps I've tried - warm and clear at the same time with a
great dynamic range.
Have a look at my Pickups page for details of the
SK120 and SK60.
BENJAMIN GUITARS GOES WIND POWERED!
I have recently switched to ECOTRICITY
New guitar for CLIVE CARROLL now underway. After
many years of
subtle and not so subtle offers of a guitar Clive has finally asked me to
make him a new instrument which will hopefully make a nice contrast
and companion to his beloved Bown. Details were finalised recently and
we settled on an Orchestra Model in Sitka and Honduras Rosewood
with a neck to Clive's normal specifications and construction to allow
the super low action Clive likes and give a familiar but expanded tonal
response.
Benjamin
guitar player NEWTON FAULKNER has gone from strength to strength in the last
few months with his debut album 'Hand Built by Robots' going to number one
in the British charts this summer. He has now also be nominated for a Brits
music award!
www.newtonfaulkner.com
www.myspace.com/newtonfaulkner
Newton's original Benjamin guitar is a JOM in Sitka spruce and mahogany with an old Baggs Double-Barrel pickup system.
Newton is also using the second prototype guitar I made for Eric Roche. It seemed like the most appropriate thing to do with it, I felt it should be out there being used and Newton, as one of Eric's pupils, playing with similar techniques, seemed like the best person to have it. The guitar is a specially reinforced cedar and mahogany Jumbo with a Baggs M1 Dual-Source pickup system and an RMC synth pickup system.
Newton now has a third Benjamin to complete his on-stage arsenal which can be seen in the picture being used for a BBC Radio One session only days after he picked it up. It is a JOM Scoop in Lutz spruce and Palo Escrito rosewood with a Baggs Dual-Source pickup system.
Newton is using all three of his Benjamin Guitars
for all the current touring.
On
the 12th November '05 STUART RYAN, acoustic columnist for Guitar Techniques
magazine and all round top fingerstyle wizard, came down to collect his new
Double-0 guitar. Check the Players page for details.
We were both very pleased with the guitar!
Stuart will also be having a new JOM next year!
Right; Stuart Ryan in the old workshop.
THOMAS
LEEB visited the workshop this spring ('07) to pick up guitar #77, my 'Percussion'
prototype. The guitar has been built to survive body percussion and work well
for low tunings, tapping and slapped harmonics and is also the first guitar
to feature my new 'Scoop' cutaway. It has a meaty tone with a quick response
to give a full but well defined sound when pushed hard. I was very pleased
with the tone in Thomas's hands and he was already thinking through which
pieces it might suit. I forgot to take any photos of the handover due to my
absorption in listening to Thomas play but I hope to get some pictures soon!
The guitar is on loan to Thomas for testing of the new construction and I'm
sure he will really put it through it's paces.
Right; Thomas' guitar.
*LATEST* Thomas has just used the guitar to record part of his amazing new album 'Desert Pirate' which is now available via his website. You can hear #77 on 'Jebuda', 'No Woman No Cry' and 'Oft Geht Bled'.
Special Wood News
Beautiful BRAZILIAN ROSEWOOD with several different
looks to choose from,
from the classic to the extraordinary!
Heavenly HONDURAS ROSEWOOD with beautiful fine
grain,
some of the best back & side timber I've ever had.
Astounding ADIRONDACK SPRUCE now in stock and ready for use, smooth, punchy vintage heaven!
Zany ZIRICOTE now in stock. This African timber
is extraordinary looking, with dark
spider-webbing like classic Brazilian and a lizard skin like grey-green colouration.
Tonally it is
somewhat like Ebony, producing a smooth, clear and carrying voice.
Magnificent MEXICAN ROSEWOOD (Palo Escrito) back
and sides now in stock. A light, stiff rosewood
with a quick response and a paler colour for a much stronger grain
pattern than most other rosewoods.
Amazing AMAZON ROSEWOOD now in stock, incredibly
straight and true;
tonally very similar to Brazilian Rosewood without the breathtaking price!
Corking COCOBOLO rosewood back and sides now in
stock, ideal Brazilian substitute,
with beautiful dark chocolate lines and rich oranges, one of the most striking
woods around.
Mighty MACASSAR EBONY back and side sets plus matching
fingerboards, bridges, headfacings
and bindings. This subtly stripy wood combines the best properties of ebony
and rosewood.
Balmy BUBINGA with over the top deep quilt figure
and intricate wine red grain lines.
Sometimes known as 'African Rosewood'.
Sumptuous QUILTED SAPELE available in very small
quantities.
Almost unnaturally extra deep quilt in this african mahogany.
Lovely LUTZ SPRUCE now ready. This hybrid sitka species
is some of the best cut and most
beautiful spruce I've ever had, should make some astounding guitars. Very
lively and dynamic!
Ravishing REDWOOD soundboards now in, tonally
very similar to
extra nice cedar but with and extra 'ring' and a deep wine red colour.
Wonderful WALNUT (Claro) beautifully consistent deep figure with great tone.
*CLICK BELOW TO ENTER THIS SITE'S OTHER PAGES*
| Jumbo | Jumbo Orchestra Model (JOM) | Orchestra Model (OM) |
| Treble 0 (12 fret) | Double 0 (14 fret) | Terz (high tuned) |
| Baritone Models | Nylon-String Models coming soon! | New & Future Models |