Let's just start this review off with a spoiler, shall we? When I told my friend, after he had a chance to play it for a bit, that the Bedell MB-17-G Orchestra Acoustic Guitar was made in China, he remarked, Remember when that used to be considered a bad thing?"

Without delving into what that bodes for the future of the beleaguered American manufacturing sector, what Bedell Guitars is able to achieve in a guitar that streets for a grand (a price which includes a premium, hydrometer-equipped hard case) is great news for the working guitarist looking for a high-quality acoustic instrument.

Bedell Who?
For a brand that's technically only a little over a year old, Bedell Guitars has a history that goes back decades. Based in Colorado, Bedell is the namesake company of Tom Bedell; the first Bedell-branded guitars were born in Spirit Lake, IA, where a 14-year-old Tom bought guitars from Japan, stamped them with his family name, and sold them locally—call him an early adopter. The new Bedell line of original-design instruments could be considered the house brand of Two Old Hippies, the musical instrument store in Aspen that Tom runs with his wife Molly (the store's name before Tom and Molly became the owners, Great Divide, is now the brand name of TOH's ultra-affordable line of import acoustics).

Bedell Guitars are designed by Tom and company in Colorado, hand-built in China, then shipped back to TOH for final inspection before heading off to retailers. They offer four body shapes—Dreadnought, Orchestra, Parlor, and Jumbo—and a variety of hand-selected tonewood options.

Craftsman-Style Craftsmanship
The Bedell MB-17-G is a non-cutaway, Orchestra-body style with a AAA Canadian red cedar solid top and sepele (similar to mahogany) neck, back and sides. The fingerboard and bridge are ebony, as is the headstock cap. Bedell doesn't use any laminates in their guitar construction, a point made multiple times on their website and in other promotional material, and underscored by the all-wood inlay work on the MB-17-G. The stylized peace sign on the headstock and the vaguely art deco rosette are both done in contrasting-color woods; even the binding is multi-ply maple and ebony (Fig.1). Subtle touches like a maple heel cap (Fig.2), wood position markers and a single strip of contrasting maple binding along the edges of the ebony fingerboard complete a look that's unique, cohesive, and classy. The tuners are gold-plated, covered-gear Grovers: smooth and stable.

The guitar's interior construction features extremely clean-looking scalloped bracing and a dovetail neck joint. A twenty-fret neck meets the body at the 14th, and the frets are large and well polished, though the kerfs could have been a little smoother. The guitar is finished in a high-gloss polyurethane that's generally well-applied, though I found an uneven spot on the back of the MB-17-G. Still, overall I'd rate the guitar's craftsmanship as top-notch and certainly above average for the appointments successfully executed in this price range.

Fig.1: Nicest woodwork outside the Yankee Workshop.

Sounds Like A Bedell
Laudable, all-solid wood construction on the Bedell yields some extremely satisfying tones. The Orchestra body shape is one that typically produces less volume than the more popular dreadnought shape, but the MB-17-G still produces a lot of sound, easily keeping pace with my friend's Taylor 310 (a dreadnought). Some of that volume is due to the use of solid red cedar as the top wood; in addition to added projection, the use of solid cedar lends this guitar a midrange presence bump and extended low-end (to say nothing of its distinctive amber hue). When pushed, the Bedell sounds like it's compressing notes, and there's an exciting, percussive quality to forte playing. Fittingly for a guitar produced by Two Old Hippies, exuberant folk-strumming sounds sublime on the MB-17-G.

Fig.2: High-class heel.

Switching over to plectrum-and-fingers Travis picking unearthed more earthy tones from the Bedell. Muting the picked root strings and finger-picking three-note chords exhibited this instrument's wide frequency rage, with the tic-tac bass notes reaching deep and the higher notes ringing out richly. Oh yeah, sustain on this guitar is awesome, too; twelfth-fret harmonics last for days and days. The deep voice of the Bedell Performance Orchestra guitar makes it extremely well-suited to open tunings, as well. Which is not to say that the overall tonal character is dark. I definitely wouldn't call it bright, either, but to simply call it balanced would do this guitar a disservice.

Nor does this guitar sound like other major acoustics on the market. It's neither a larger-than-life Taylor, a mellow Gibson, nor a woody Martin. The Bedell MB-17-G simply has a voice all it's own, and that may be this acoustic's biggest selling point.

The body shape and tonewood combination makes for a great recording guitar, too. Played through a Shure SM81 plugged into a Universal Audio Solo 610 preamp, picked lines sounded authoritative, with the low-mid note attack satisfyingly percussive. Strummed rhythm work into an Audio-Technica AT4080 ribbon mic and the same preamp was even and detailed, and close-mic fingerstyle through a CAD E100S large diaphragm condenser was delicate and rich. In a mix, the Bedell MB-17-G needed very little EQing to sound full and present.

You'll Like How You Feel, In Bedell
Playability-wise, the Bedell isn't quite as lightning fast as a Taylor or Takamine acoustic, but the neck dimensions and setup lend themselves to easy-playing of a variety of styles. The medium-depth neck profile on the MB-17-G is comfortable, and a flat-radius fingerboard and slightly wide string-spacing at the nut (1.7") is well-suited to fingerstyle and complex chordal work. The action on this guitar was low and the frets were generally even, though the playing at the 14th and 15th revealed some note-deadening buzz—not that you'll be doing much high-fret work on a non-cutaway axe like the MB-17-G, but the buzzing stood out on this otherwise expertly-built instrument.

First Class Portage
The hardshell case in which the Bedell MB-17-G ships (Fig.3) is one I'd expect to cost a quarter of the guitar's overall price. The latches and hinges feel extremely trustworthy, the crushed-velvet-lined interior fits the guitar snugly, and like I said, there's a freakin' hydrometer built-in. Inside the internal compartment is the guitar's literature, including a little care and maintenance brochure the title of which made me snicker ("Partnering with Your Guitar").

Fig.3: Can you spot the freakin' hydrometer?

Dude, You're Getting A Bedell!
Taking a look at other guitars in this price range, Taylor's 3-series are all-solid wood, ship with a case, feature comparatively spartan aesthetics, and street for a only $50 - $150 more than the MB-17-G. The Martin 00015M goes for about $1,150 at stores, is all solid mahogany, and comes with a case. At the exact same price is the Breedlove American series, which on paper may have a leg up on the Bedell in that they're solid wood guitars built entirely in Bend, OR (I have yet to hear and play one in person).

So while the Bedell isn't the uncontested acoustic champion at the near-$1,000 price mark, it's a very strong contender, and it's unique tonal character and look might give it an edge against the field, albeit a subjective one.

Apart from the high-register fret buzz and that one uneven patch of poly-gloss finish, I couldn't find much negative to say about the Bedell MB-17-G. It plays great, is very well constructed, and has a look and sound that's all its own. I wish Tom and Molly Bedell continued success and prosperity in the acoustic guitar business, mainly for guitarists' sakes.

Pros: Versatile, unique tonal character. Loud for its size and body style. Handsome all-wood appointments. Above-average build quality. Great playability. Good price for a solid-wood acoustic. Price includes excellent hardshell case.

Cons: Uneven finish work. Some inconsistent fretwork.

Owen O'Malley is a writer / musician / former gravedigger living in Chicago.