The 18″ Super stands as the largest and most commanding instrument in the Brown Guitars lineup, serving as the ultimate expression of archtop guitar craftsmanship and design. This flagship model is designed for players who seek the utmost in power, projection, and tonal richness, all within a well-balanced and meticulously crafted package.
The 18″ Super is engineered to harness the full potential of a larger archtop guitar while avoiding the pitfalls of excessive size. Historically, archtops even larger than 18″ have been created, but these often suffer from tonal imbalance and unwieldy playability. The 18″ Super carefully navigates this terrain, delivering a guitar that is powerful yet controlled, resonant yet focused. While sharing many features with the impressive 17″, the 18″ Super takes things a step further with a slightly larger body and a longer scale length, without compromising playability or tonal balance.
Optimized Body Depth: While the 18″ Super boasts an impressive body size, it also incorporates a slightly reduced side depth. This design choice prevents the guitar from becoming overly boomy, maintaining a balanced and clear tone across all registers. The result is a guitar that delivers both power and precision, making it equally at home in a jazz ensemble or as a solo instrument.
Scale Length and String Tension: To drive such a large instrument, the 18″ Super features a slightly longer scale length, which provides the string tension necessary to drive the larger size body with medium-gauge strings effectively. This ensures that the guitar’s tone projects with authority across a room.
Dual Pickup System: The 18″ Super, like the Big Red, features an innovative dual pickup system that offers unparalleled versatility and tonal range. Ultratonic Soundboard Transducer: This state-of-the-art pickup captures the full acoustic character of the guitar with exceptional clarity. Custom-installed into the archtop, the Ultratonic transducer allows the 18″ Super to shine in both acoustic and amplified settings, delivering a sound that is rich, detailed, and true to the instrument’s natural voice.
1950s-Style P-90 Pickup by Ron Ellis: Complementing the Ultratonic system is a full-size classic 1950s-style P-90 pickup, handcrafted by boutique pickup maker Ron Ellis. This pickup, custom mounted floating on the fingerrest, offers a warm, vintage tone that is both rich and responsive, providing the perfect balance to the acoustic tones captured by the Ultratonic. Together, these pickups offer a dynamic range of sounds that can suit any musical context.
Craftsmanship and Materials: The 18″ Super is built with the same meticulous attention to detail and quality materials that define all of Tad’s instruments. Premium Tonewoods: The body of the 18″ Super is crafted from the finest solid tonewoods, with a red spruce top and stunning flame maple back and sides. These materials contribute to the guitar’s powerful yet nuanced tone, ensuring that it sounds as good as it looks.
Ergonomics: Despite its size, the 18″ Super is designed for comfortable play. The neck and body feature the same ergonomic contours found in all Brown guitars, including subtle arm and rib bevels. These design elements make the guitar easy to handle, even during long playing sessions.
Vintage California Blonde Finish: Finished in a stunning vintage blonde, the 18″ Super exudes timeless elegance, highlighting the exquisite grain of the premium tonewoods used in its construction. The vintage California blonde finish, reminiscent of classic archtops from the golden era of jazz, adds a layer of sophistication and vintage appeal to this modern masterpiece.
The 18″ Super is not just about size; it is about achieving a perfect balance between power, tone, and playability. This guitar resists the temptation to become oversized and unwieldy, instead focusing on delivering a resonant and commanding sound that is still precise and controlled. For musicians who demand the very best, the 18″ Super offers an unparalleled combination of bold design, exceptional craftsmanship, and a tonal palette that is both vast and versatile.
As the flagship model in the Brown Guitars lineup, the 18″ Super is a testament to what a modern archtop guitar can achieve when designed with both tradition and innovation in mind. It is the perfect choice for players who want the biggest sound without sacrificing balance or comfort, all wrapped in the timeless beauty of a vintage California blonde finish.
Tad, the 18 arrived about 30 minutes ago. I’m speechless with how beautiful the craftsmanship, and perfect the workmanship and the sound. It already has an incredible dynamic range. Single notes, double stops, and close-voiced triads ring out with amazing clarity — no doubt in part due to the Stitka resonating with such a strong fundamental.
Can’t wait to see how loud this guitar will be once the wood really opens up after being played a few hundred hours. The size is perfect for me too. I’m a big guy at 6′,4″ tall and about 200 pounds. With a vintage style Pinegrove leather strap, the guitar sits on my lap in a way very similar to how Freddie Green held his 18 inch Stromberg.
With your cutaway and fingerrest design, my pinky can reach Bb5 with no obstruction.Truth be told, I’ve been intimidated by big curvaceous California blondes for my entire life. Not so with this beauty, she is very kind and accommodating! 😀
The Ron Ellis pick up is staggering from a audio/tone viewpoint. I just auditioned it (both of them blended) through a Henriksen Bud 10. I’ve also played a little bit through a Raezer’s Edge Centari hybrid (one tube in the preamp, spring reverb, and solid-state power section). The Ron Ellis sounds incredible there as well, and especially the James May Ultratonic pickup into the Grace Felix 2.
I’m in the midst of deconstructing/rebuilding a significant amount of my overall musicianship, and my Jazz guitar approach in particular. This instrument will teach me much! Hopefully you’ll build more 18″ guitars! Due to their size, they are, of course, not as popular, but they really resonate with the jazz and orchestral guitar tradition. Thank you so much for your master craftsmanship on my instruments Tad! I am super blessed to own them, learn from them, and hopefully make good music for and with others using them. They are so unique relative to my other archtops.
B.B.
