RECORD WEIGHTS
Explore our award-winning collection
MPINGO SPECS
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Weight: 460 grams / 16.2oz (+/- 10%)
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Size: Approx 6.35cm / 2.5”tall x 7.62cm / 2.8”wide
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​Price: $995 (may include free shipping)
Prime Reference Mpingo (Mark II)
How to describe mpingo using human parlance. That's an interesting proposition.
For a wood this sexy and rare using banal hyperbole would seem, um... banal. Yet the wood is so deserving of glorious adjectives like heaviest, hardest, none more black, and most valuable are four such terms that do really apply when furnishing a description.
In the Olympics of tone woods mpingo may win the gold medal for the smoothest sounding wood and a silver for control over bass. Saying that, mpingo has a very fast attack and quick decay. A wood that was contributory in usurping ebony from its throne. Instrument makers, Swahili furniture producers, and hifi nerds all agree upon and realize its magic. At the completion of every batch I wonder, "Is this the last batch? When can can I get more?"
Unrestrained with endless ambitions. Seems to get better with time.
Redefines what a record weight can be.
COCOBOLO SPECS
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Weight: 420 grams / 14.8oz (+/- 10%)
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Size: Approx 6.35cm / 2.5" tall x 7.62 / 2.8" wide
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​Price: $995 (may include free shipping)
Cocobolo
The Massif Cocobolo weight embodies the perfect fusion of heft and elegance. Slightly lighter than the Prime Reference but equally minimalist.
It's crafted with meticulous attention to detail. Difficult to work with and equally difficult to obtain.
Similar improvements in bass detail as heard with the Prime Reference but with a greater emphasis on image focus, instrument separation and blacker blacks.
LIGNUM VITAE SPECS
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Weight: 500 grams / 17.6oz (+/- 10%)
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Size: Approx 6.35cm / 2.5" tall x 7.62 / 2.8" wide
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​Price: $1,595
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LIMITED QUANTITIES (APPROX 20 AVAILABLE)
Lignum Vitae (Only 20 available)
In some circles Lignum vitae (guaiacum officinale) is known as either Holy wood or Bastard Greenheart, a safe assumption as to why might be its penchant for ruining tools.
Make no mistake, it offers up no apologies. Often referred to as the true iron wood, it's also a damn fine tone wood. Its beauty and scarcity certainly make this a sought after wood.
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Lignum vitae can bless well recorded LPs with much improved tonality, the ability to convey the timbre of various instruments. Highs seem to possess a smoother, more liquid (if that even makes sense) presentation. Noise floor falls dramatically, lower octaves and notes tighten up considerably. Pianos prescribe attention and enter the room commanding eyes widened.
BRAZILIAN ROSEWOOD SPECS
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Weight: 500 grams / 17.6oz (+/- 10%)
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Size: Approx 6.35cm / 2.5" tall x 7.62 / 2.8" wide
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​Price: $1,395
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EXTREMELY LIMITED (APPROX 15 AVAILABLE)
Brazilian Rosewood
Extremely limited. Brazilian Rosewood might be the most exotic, elusive and sought after of any tone wood. When I come across some BRW I try and grab it all. The last time that I was fortunate enough to buy some was 2016. Gibson guitars has a limited supply of legal and certified BRW that they save for their custom guitars. I'm following that same path.
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Brazilian Rosewood aka dalbergia negra can range in colours from reds and pinks with streaks of orange to almost black. Most commonly (at least for me) it's found in a deep maroon with a hint of purple. It usually has darker grains called spider webbing that actually look more like a seismograph.
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Similar to cocobolo and mpingo, which are also rosewoods, it can have a profound effect on bass response. Tighter, deeper with more urgency, a greater 3D image, more pronounced and focused sound stage. Not just the bass though. There's total improvement across the board. Silkier highs, smoother mids and vocals come across as even more 'there' than before. It literally does everything well.
I don't even really have to wax about these much, Brazilian rosewood is one of those precious exotics where "if you know, you know..."