GUITAR BOARD

cor blimey no - theyd shoot you at dawn on the Lowden group for saying
that !
the story is long and tortuous (not to mention very very different
depending on if you are hearing it from George Lowden or Steve
McIlwrath (of Avalon) - suffice to say that the facility and luthiers
which used to build Lowdens now bear the Avalon name and produce the
Avalon Legacy series (not to be confused with their cheaper
Korean-made range) - the fine detail of wether or not the designs are
exactly the same as the Lowdens is buried in legal wranglings (as is
wether or not this even matters).

George Lowden is now producing guitars himself again (the waiting list
is as long as your arm and then some) but there are yet more legal
wranglings as to wether he is even allowed to use the Lowden
trademark.

All of this is extremely important if your finances are caught up in
it, but not at all important if you are just worried about the
instrument. I absolutely love the Avalon Legacys I have played and
IMVHO they are the equal of the Lowdens I have played.

Tim