I am not a singing bowl expert. I have a limited experience with bowls of various types and sizes and this is my second "large" bowl. I received this bowl 2 months ago. This is my first bowl from Thomann.
The sound is awesome! Reminiscent of a church bell attacked with the mallet provided and much deeper overtones emerge when hit with heavier and softer mallets. Can be played in a wide range of soundscapes. Very sensitive and can be played with very small mallets quietly, while hitting hard with large mallets, it resonates through my entire body when standing or sitting in it. Has a long sustain.
Mine weighs 12.05 kg, a diameter of 55 cm with a ~27 cm flat bottom, height 22–23 cm, rim width 10–11 mm, wall thickness ~4 mm 44 mm below the rim. The entire bowl is very well polished. This allows stroking it with a wooden wand (including the handle of the wand provided with the gong) without too much of the unintended noise of friction.
Looks beautiful, shiny bronze.
The mallet is lightweight, hard, providing a very clear sound, probably about the high-pitch end of the bowl. I also use a mallet Thomann provides for medium gongs such as the Thomann Wind Gong 90. This mallet is heavier, softer, and evokes a very deep bass from the bowl I can not hear otherwise. The hardwood handle is probably made of beech, well-polished (I like it rougher), but still does not slip in the hand. The head is covered with white fleece, with probably a hard rubber core underneath. The hole at the end of the handle you can see on the webpage is missing. The quality is perfect. Dimensions [mm]: Head diameter ~80, Height ~45; Total length ~345; Handle length ~295, diameter 20–22. Weighs 175 g.
The wand excites the bowl easily, provides a deep bass, barely audible. I rather feel than hear the vibrations, quite a new, powerful experience for me. There are a few cracks in the hardwood body I filled with wood glue to seal it. The rough touch of the handle is very good and the wood grain is still spectacular. It would nice from Thomann to disclose the wood species it is made of. There are a few accidental cuts in the leather cover. There were some sawdust stuck in the cover, but I could easily remove it with cello tape. Dimensions [mm]: Head diameter ~96, Height ~94; Total length ~250; Handle length ~140, diameter 39–45. Weighs 675 g.
Weighing 600 g, diameter 40 cm, 8 cm thick, the cushion is filled with a material that feels strong enough to bear the weight of the bowl, hopefully for a long time. The fabric is non-slipping, holds also smaller bowls ~500 g without slipping off. The thickness allows playing the bowl on hard surfaces such as parquet without interfering with the sound quality.
Overall, the accessories are adequate for the purpose and provide a very useful starting kit for the bowl. They also fit in my set of mallets and wands and can be used with other instruments. The entire set is aesthetically pleasing. Of course, the real thing is the bowl, and that is simply amazing.
The packaging is careful, provided me with a lot of material to cushion everything I need to move without crashing for some time.
Excellent service: though I could not visit their headquarters, the Thomann team assisted me online to select the bowl I really wanted, in a professional and pleasant way.
If you can afford, go for it.
