I love lowdens! You know what’s even nicer than these guitars - its the folks who make them, they’re really down to earth and care so much about making wonderful things for the player!
I'm the proud owner of an 023C and it's awesome. It makes me smile every time I see it let alone play it. The build quality is second to none and the sound........
Love the emotion from 9:40 (after paying the F35) - I'm always amazed at how one can connect with a guitar like that. I cried the first time I was alone with my O22C.
Coincidentally, I took delivery of an O23 this afternoon, about 3 hours before you posted this review! This is my second Lowden, I bought my first, an O32, about 30 years ago and it is still going strong. Fabulous guitars, not cheap but you get value for money.
Mr. Johnson, I’d like to order a Lowden for myself but I have no chance to check it out live. Could you help me with some questions? Why do you prefer O over F body size? I am choosing between O32 and F32. Is O32 good for fingerstyle playing or does size of the body provide some problems? What’s your impressions about difference between O23 and O32?
@@AntonGorodetsky_12 for fingerstyle I'd choose the S shape: small-ish body, but with very bright mids and highs (I find the O and F too bassy for finger work)
Best acoustics on the planet. And yes, Martin and Taylor, that includes you. I tried several, and settled on an S35-12 fret. An amazing sound, with harp-like overtones.
My main guitars are a 1989 0-32C (14-fret) and a 2019 F-35C (12-fret). Truly amazing instruments. I have my eyes peeled and Google alerts setup for a used Lowden nylon. It's probably a good thing Lowden's aren't that easy to find in my area or my bank account would suffer even more than it already does. Great video, as always Ben and Pete!
About a year after this comment, I found a fantastic 22 year-old S25J at a tiny shop in Telluride, Colorado. It's my main nylon, and has so much character. Really, go find yourself a Lowden!
Absolutely fabulous guitars, amongst the very best. I saved for an age to buy an 032 16 yrs ago. It exceeded every expectation and is better now than new. I would never part with it.
I do not know if you said F or S35. Anyway...that first strum just WOOOOOW!!! Beautifull resonens. I have the Lowden G7 with the Ovangcol back and sides. I bought it at the old MUG Guitar Shop in Gothenberg Sweden, I believe it was 1979, I think it was made in Japan. Love this guitar.
I've really, really, really wanted a Lowden since around 2002, when I played those owned by all the best folkey acoustic guitarists I knew/gigged with/went to watch around that time. Never did get one, never will, now that I only really play as a hobby and also have more responsibilities!
@@iannicholls7476 everyone likes different things, but having played one (as opposed to hearing one played) I sold both my martin and my Taylor and bought an S35-12. Sooooooo much brighter, livelier, more resonant, more sustain etc....
Thanks guys for bringing up the Lowdens, I love my D10 (George doesn't make D's anymore) cedar-mahogany up to this day - is has the recognizable Lowden-sound, they are light and loud and rich in tone. No sound-system will do them justice... just a great mic like you just did at Andertons works best.
Lowden guitars are just awesome! If you somehow manage to get hold of a WL-25 in the stage edition (like Ed Sheeran uses it, the thin one) I will buy it immediately!
years ago , I bought a scruffy old lowden for £20 from a yard sale - someone had done a runner from a rental house and the landlord flogged his stuff off. couldn't deal with the wide flat neck and flogged it for £1200, sounded great.
O = original (jumbo), F = for flat pickers (smaller body, same scale length as O), S = small (and shorter scale), WL = wee Lowden (parlour size body, even shorter scale). Prices have gone up considerably since lockdown; in late 2020 there were new Lowdens selling for well below £3,000. I've always said that they have a gap in their market between the most expensive Sheeran and the cheapest Lowden that is literally the entire 'standard' guitar market -- everything from a Furch Blue to a Martin D-28 is in that gap.
Hang on a sec... Were we listening to the 32-SE through the pickup only? Because that sounded amazing. If yes, surely there was some post-processing going on... compression, at the very least. But wow...
@@kippsguitar6539 Oh for sure, I dont doubt Ben isnt any less than Pete, just that I've been watching a lot more videos with Lee and Pete together and Pete's playing always looks so smooth. This is actually my first time seeing Ben haha
The company who built Lowden Guitars between 1989 and 2003 took George Lowden's original designs and improved them to develop the range that have been Avalon Guitars since 2003. The Avalon is a better guitar in my opinion.
I love lowdens! You know what’s even nicer than these guitars - its the folks who make them, they’re really down to earth and care so much about making wonderful things for the player!
I'm the proud owner of an 023C and it's awesome. It makes me smile every time I see it let alone play it. The build quality is second to none and the sound........
Love the emotion from 9:40 (after paying the F35) - I'm always amazed at how one can connect with a guitar like that. I cried the first time I was alone with my O22C.
Coincidentally, I took delivery of an O23 this afternoon, about 3 hours before you posted this review! This is my second Lowden, I bought my first, an O32, about 30 years ago and it is still going strong. Fabulous guitars, not cheap but you get value for money.
My O32 is about 16 yrs old and is fabulous!
Mr. Johnson, I’d like to order a Lowden for myself but I have no chance to check it out live. Could you help me with some questions? Why do you prefer O over F body size? I am choosing between O32 and F32. Is O32 good for fingerstyle playing or does size of the body provide some problems? What’s your impressions about difference between O23 and O32?
BobJJ9999, maybe you too could share your thoughts on O32 for fingerstyle?
@@AntonGorodetsky_12 for fingerstyle I'd choose the S shape: small-ish body, but with very bright mids and highs (I find the O and F too bassy for finger work)
WOW !!!!!! Greetings from Estonia .
The best guitars in the world. I live right next to the Lowden workshop
Agree
Bro, I just love your energy while playing these guitars.
Best acoustics on the planet. And yes, Martin and Taylor, that includes you.
I tried several, and settled on an S35-12 fret. An amazing sound, with harp-like overtones.
Couldn't agree more
Another co-sign on this!
Absolutely the best acoustic guitars I ever had the chance and privilege of playing
That F-35 is sweet. Thank you for playing it so well.
My main guitars are a 1989 0-32C (14-fret) and a 2019 F-35C (12-fret). Truly amazing instruments. I have my eyes peeled and Google alerts setup for a used Lowden nylon. It's probably a good thing Lowden's aren't that easy to find in my area or my bank account would suffer even more than it already does. Great video, as always Ben and Pete!
About a year after this comment, I found a fantastic 22 year-old S25J at a tiny shop in Telluride, Colorado. It's my main nylon, and has so much character. Really, go find yourself a Lowden!
Lowden are up there with the boutique acoustics. I got my S27F in 1983 for 300 quid and I will not be parted from it.
Absolutely fabulous guitars, amongst the very best. I saved for an age to buy an 032 16 yrs ago. It exceeded every expectation and is better now than new. I would never part with it.
Disagree,.not amongst the best, they ARE the best
Definitely Beautiful Guitars and The Best Musician to Demo them And Pete Rocked Them Quite Well. 👍👍🎶🎶🎸
I do not know if you said F or S35. Anyway...that first strum just WOOOOOW!!! Beautifull resonens.
I have the Lowden G7 with the Ovangcol back and sides. I bought it at the old MUG Guitar Shop in Gothenberg Sweden, I believe it was 1979, I think it was made in Japan.
Love this guitar.
I've really, really, really wanted a Lowden since around 2002, when I played those owned by all the best folkey acoustic guitarists I knew/gigged with/went to watch around that time. Never did get one, never will, now that I only really play as a hobby and also have more responsibilities!
I have an S10/12 12-string from 1990.... Unbeatable
Top playing Ben, like the way parlours drag the blues shuffles out of you. 😂🥃👍Respect and stay healthy all.
My 032c is a work of art 🎸 😊
I play a Sheeran S02. Would love to have the money for a Lowden one day: they're incredible guitars for finger picking and I love that sound.
Hope you got one Alex
They all have quite a Celtic sound. Not at all like the American (Martin/Gibson) tone we're used to, but super smooth.
That’s right. I can’t make up my mind if I like that sound or not.
@@iannicholls7476 everyone likes different things, but having played one (as opposed to hearing one played) I sold both my martin and my Taylor and bought an S35-12. Sooooooo much brighter, livelier, more resonant, more sustain etc....
@@iannicholls7476 tone deaf
@@digitalchris6681 far better than Martin
@@kippsguitar6539 Sigma till I die!
Thanks guys for bringing up the Lowdens, I love my D10 (George doesn't make D's anymore) cedar-mahogany up to this day - is has the recognizable Lowden-sound, they are light and loud and rich in tone. No sound-system will do them justice... just a great mic like you just did at Andertons works best.
Love the wee lowden
The one thing that makes lowden better than every other brand is the string-through bridge
Takamine do have a very similar design, but they are not as good as
Lowden. I suspect there a lot more to them.
Agree. I hate pegs.
Lowden guitars are just awesome! If you somehow manage to get hold of a WL-25 in the stage edition (like Ed Sheeran uses it, the thin one) I will buy it immediately!
Apart from the ed Sheeran bit, they are awesome
I had three Lowdens all at the same time, O22, O32, O35, couldn’t get any volume out of them and so they’ve gone, the best about them was their looks.
Bought my F32 20 yrs ago for just over £1000. Quite a bargain for such a wonderful guitar which go for £3k + now!
Worth every penny.
years ago , I bought a scruffy old lowden for £20 from a yard sale - someone had done a runner from a rental house and the landlord flogged his stuff off. couldn't deal with the wide flat neck and flogged it for £1200, sounded great.
O = original (jumbo), F = for flat pickers (smaller body, same scale length as O), S = small (and shorter scale), WL = wee Lowden (parlour size body, even shorter scale).
Prices have gone up considerably since lockdown; in late 2020 there were new Lowdens selling for well below £3,000. I've always said that they have a gap in their market between the most expensive Sheeran and the cheapest Lowden that is literally the entire 'standard' guitar market -- everything from a Furch Blue to a Martin D-28 is in that gap.
That's a shockingly good sounding piezo pickup
Hang on a sec... Were we listening to the 32-SE through the pickup only? Because that sounded amazing. If yes, surely there was some post-processing going on... compression, at the very least. But wow...
Guitar no 1 LOWden.
Nice nice,
What strings do they come strung with?
Watching Pete play is always a treat
Ben is way better and a specialist acoustic player
@@kippsguitar6539 Oh for sure, I dont doubt Ben isnt any less than Pete, just that I've been watching a lot more videos with Lee and Pete together and Pete's playing always looks so smooth. This is actually my first time seeing Ben haha
I think I bought the first new one from Andertons. Paul W was great helping me choose.
It’s an O-25
Yo Ben! EAT A SANDWICH DUDE!!!
Being a fan of Damien Rice and Snow Patrol I’ve always been drawn to these but the prices are just waaay too high for me. Beautiful guitars.
Ben really is a very good player!
By the looks of them all, I’m pretty sure the fretboards are ebony fretboards instead of rosewood.
Excellent! Now get some Furch guitars in and you’ll have all the guitar you’ll ever need!
The 032 MY GOD!!! Lower than a Gibson, but it is better!!!
Great music song playing guitar. So sound audio
06:19 - You said it Lowdens have a rosewood fingerboard. Ebony surely?
Huh. . . no bridge pins. It took almost the entire video but I finally figured out what was looking out of place.
For sustain
I hate bridge pins.
11:40
Black or White - Michael Jackson?
You forgot to mention the F-35's most important feature...
It's ability to operate from a carrier or makeshift airfield.
Well said. Best comment on here!
👏👏👏👏🤣🤣
Ben could make a bargain basement department store sound good.👍
Be the kind of father who'd crush his own thumb to support his son's hobby.
Even if that thumb is the key to 100% of your income!
3:11 That's what she said.
I can’t believe it Andertons 30 years to stock Lowden guitars.
Well they don't exactly fly off the shelves....V. expensive but worth it if you have the $$.
Ben is on Atkins
No, these are Lowdens... ;-)
The company who built Lowden Guitars between 1989 and 2003 took George Lowden's original designs and improved them to develop the range that have been Avalon Guitars since 2003. The Avalon is a better guitar in my opinion.
They sound great but those prices are way too high!
Just for correctness I think they all have ebony fingerboards.
Ebony fingerboard, not Rosewood.
WL stand for Wee Lowden.
8:40 “It is £6000 quid.
Could have led with that pal, could have saved 8 minutes of viewing time 😂
It's a special instrument
Why the thin necks? A Lowden should have a tree trunk, not a skinny neck!
Anyone who has ever played one gets it.
Needs finger style to articulate the sounds.
Autolike!
Worst thing I ever did was sell my s23
Beautiful but pricey.
Except for the Sheeran- that's overrated crap.
Should never have done the "Sheeran". Even he doesn't use it.
Sorry overrated and overpriced