Northfield Big Mon: A Dealer's Guide

The Big Mon is one of Northfield's flagship F-style mandolins, alongside the F5S. Its defining feature is a slightly enlarged body that gives it more volume and low end than a standard F-style body. It also has more highly figured wood and a fuller set of appointments.

What "Big Mon" means

The name comes from Bill Monroe, called "Big Mon," and the model is voiced for that hard-driving bluegrass sound.

Northfield has built the Big Mon since 2009, which makes it one of their oldest models after the F5S. It has been a professional's instrument from the start, used on albums and on tour.

The Big Mon body size

The Big Mon body is 5mm wider than a standard F5 at its widest point and adjusts the sides to match, so the whole box is a little larger. The recurve in the top is extended a bit, and the top is thinned toward the edges.

Compared to a standard F-style mandolin body the difference is subtle, and many players don't notice until they see a Big Mon next to a standard F5.

The sound is where the Big Mon's body size is most apparent. The larger body moves more air, so you get more midrange and bass, more volume, and projection. It's a quality that you can feel as much as hear.

Adirondack or Engelmann

The Big Mon is offered with an Adirondack spruce or Engelmann spruce top.

Adirondack spruce is denser and stiffer. It has more headroom and stronger projection when you dig in, with a bold, focused sound that holds its note definition when played hard. It cuts through in a jam or a band. Players who want volume and clarity tend to go this way.

Engelmann is lighter, with tight, even grain. It responds to a light touch and stays clear under a moderate attack. The tone is balanced across the range, a little warmer and more complex, without favoring any one part of the spectrum. That balance makes it an easy fit across different styles.

Northfield's own Adi/Engelmann comparison is the best way to hear it.

Appointments

Beyond the wider body, the Big Mon has a fuller set of appointments.

The back, sides, and neck use highly figured maple and the body is fully bound, with a mother-of-pearl scroll inlay on the headstock.

Other standard features include the engraved Gilchrist/Northfield tailpiece, Gotoh tuners, a radiused ebony fingerboard, and twin tone-bar bracing, finished in Northfield's high-gloss hybrid varnish.

Specs

Top: Adirondack red spruce or Engelmann spruce
Back, sides, neck: Highly figured maple
Bracing: Twin tone-bar
Fingerboard: Radiused ebony
Bridge: Ebony
Nut: 1-1/8" (28mm) standard, 1-3/16" wide nut available (wide nut guide)
Scale length: 13-7/8" (approx. 14")
Tuners: Gotoh
Tailpiece: Nickel-plated engraved Gilchrist/Northfield
Pickguard: Ivoroid-bound phenolic
Binding: Fully bound (top, back, points, fingerboard, headstock)
Headstock: Mother-of-pearl scroll inlay (torch inlay available, $300)
Finish: High-gloss hybrid varnish
Colors: Sunburst (standard), Black Top with sunburst back and sides, Icelandic Brown, or Amber
Strings: Northfield Medium phosphor bronze, 11-40 gauge
Case: Slate Grey Airloom "Recurve"
Pickup: Optional factory-installed K&K Mandolin Twin ($200) (K&K guide)
Price: $5,695

Big Mon and Big Mon Limited

Northfield also builds a Big Mon Limited. It came out as a 15th-anniversary version of the Big Mon and is a notch above the standard model.

The Limited includes a handful of upgrades over the standard Big Mon: a "stash"-level single-piece figured maple back, triple-ply ivoroid binding, the new Astrafell wire-and-pearl inlay, deluxe Gotoh tuners, and a hand-burnished Antique Cremona finish over the standard gloss. It retails at $6,995.

The two share the same design and construction, so there shouldn't be much tonal difference between them. The Limited is for players who want the Big Mon sound with top-tier wood and appointments.

Big Mon vs. F5S

Both the Big Mon and the F5S share the core build: a solid spruce top, figured maple back and sides, a radiused ebony fingerboard, and Gotoh tuners.

The differences come down to size, materials, and trim:

Body: Standard F5 width on the F5S, 5mm wider on the Big Mon
Maple: Figured on the F5S, highly figured on the Big Mon
Binding: Top only on the F5S, fully bound on the Big Mon (including fingerboard, headstock, and points)
Headstock inlay: Northfield logo on the F5S, logo plus mother-of-pearl scroll inlay on the Big Mon
Tailpiece: Northfield cast on the F5S, engraved Gilchrist/Northfield on the Big Mon
Finish: Matte nitrocellulose lacquer on the F5S, high-gloss hybrid varnish on the Big Mon

The craftsmanship is top-tier on both models--the differences come down to Body Size and appointments.

Tonally, I feel they share the same core voice, but the Big Mon simply gives you more of it: more low end, more projection, more volume. Playing the Big Mon, you'll notice that it has a presence you can feel as much as hear.

The F5S is $3,995 and the Big Mon is $5,695, a $1,700 difference.