Melobro

Elderly Instuments has a Melobro in stock, and we have two in stock including the one pictured below; both available for $1950 including a hardshell case. Call or email us for more information. If you are interested in electronics, we now offer the Fishman Spider-bridge Pickup available as a custom option for $250. The bridge works great with the new Fishman Jerry Douglas Aura Pedal. Read more about the Melobro in the text below the picture.

The idea for the Melobro dates back to the late 60's and early 70's when Walt Smith (founder of Melobar) worked with Ed and Rudy Dobyera (founders of the Dobro company) on a fiberglass body resonator. The idea fell to the wayside until Walt's son Ted took up the project in the early 1990's. The Melobro has been continually designed through the years, and in June, we will release the 18th version of the instrument.

Only a handful of the previous versions of the instrument were ever sold, but the reviews from the players were over the top. And the new Melobro is the best yet. This instrument redefines the sonic capabilities of the resonator guitar.

Why fiberglass? Resonator guitars require a massive internal structure to support the resonator cone and the string tension. This is why most resonator guitars use plywood for the top. They also have a large ring of wood inside the body to hold the cone in place. The problem is the sound inside the guitar body gets lost, and only the cone sound is heard. Others manufacturers have found some ways around this dilema, but these instruments cost from well over $3000 to over $7500, and still can't match the incredible tone of the Melobro.

Fiberglass allows us to build an instrument with no internal ring or support allowing the sound to reverberate through the body. The hard sides of the fiberglass reflect the sound better than wood bodies that absorb the sound. We then attache wood baffles in the body to redirect the internal sounds out of the soundholes on the upper bout. The vibration of the wood baffles give the Melobro a more wood like sound than we've heard on any other resonator. The volume is also much louder (some bluegrass players have jokingly referred to the Melobro as the "banjo killer").

We will be introducing both a square neck and round neck resonator. The retail price for the Melobro is $2600. To help get production rolling, we are making an introductory offer of $1950 for the first production batch. You can reserve yours today with a $500 deposit.

Stay tuned to this page for developments as we will add pictures and sound files in the next month.