Newbie wants to step up.

[timacn]

Hello all. #I am new to this board. #I have played guitar and banjo for a long time and have very nice instruments. #I have been fooling around with mando for three years now and the bug is really starting to bite. Those eight strings just sound so goood.

I began with a used Kentucky KM 150s and traded up for a Kentucky 380s a year later. #I just got it set up by my local luthier here in Lancaster PA. and it plays and sounds much better. #But I am intrigued by the Flat Irons, Webers, Breedloves, Rigels as well as the old Gibsons, #Martins, and Stradolins that I keep reading and hearing about. (But there aren't many around to actually listen to.)

My question is this: #when I make my next jump up in mando quality, do I go to something like a Mike Kelly or Mid Mo or go up to a used Flat Iron, Weber, etc.

Are the premium brand mandolins really THAT much better than my KM 380s or is it one of those "marginal return" things where you pay a whole lot more money for a very modest increase in sound quality?



Thanks for your help.

[Markelberry]

You can wind up paying more,you need to get out whenever possible and play different instruments. I think youll see and here for yourself sometimes you get what you pay for. And different mandolins give you different tonal qualities for different styles of music. Have fun looking!!

[stevem]

Hi and welcome to the Cafe! Here's my 2 cents...

Buy used, if possible, so you can sell for a similar price when you decide to upgrade. If you buy online, request a 48 hour approval (unless you really trust the source) so that you can have some time to check it over. The classifieds here are a great source for mandos. I've had 5 or 6 great transactions through them. Of course, be cautious and get to know the seller a bit (give them call, have them play some songs for you, etc.)

MK's (and Kentucky's) get mixed reports. Some are great, some are duds. If you're ok staying with a pac-rim import, Eastmans have a great reputation at a great price.

A Midmo is an excellent mandolin. I've owned 2 M-4's and they were both perfect. You couldn't ask for more in a flat-top, oval hole mandolin. The sound on a Midmo is loud with a long, smooth sustain; similar to a guitar. Great for old-time, fiddle tunes, Irish music, and an all around good time. Top notch service from Midmo as well. They're priced $250-$550 used, depending on the model. (Midmo's can be tough to find used, but buying new isn't a bad way to go).

But eventually I wanted a carved top, f-hole mandolin, so I bought a Flatiron Performer A (and then another). The sound is very different and more traditional for the bluegrass sound: a quick, explosive burst of brilliance that fades relatively quickly. More like a "Pow!" sound. Flatiron Performer and Festival A's are great mandos and sell for $800-$1150, depending on condition and the seller.

Other options for $650-$1100 that I've played in shops and would recommend: Gibson A9's or any of several Webers.

Should you switch? The top reasons to get a higher quality mando in my opinion are 1)better tone and 2)better playability. A well constructed instrument is just more rewarding to play. If your's sounds good and is easy to play, I'd hold onto it until you're really sure.
-Steve

[John Flynn]

There is no definitive, universal answer. The answer is only in the eye (and ear, and fingers) of the beholder. If you have played guitar and banjo for a while and have nice instruments, you already know to what extent a more expensive guitar or banjo is worth the extra money, for you. Mandos are no different. Obviously a lot of people think they are worth it or expensive mandos would never sell like they do. The Kentucky 380S, well set up, is a nice mando and you can play any kind of mando music you want on it. #

I have an instructor who has been a guitar flatpicker for about 12 years, has a Martin D-28 and is renowned in the area on that instrument. He took up the mandolin three years ago. Now he is already teaching advanced mandolin students and playing in a couple of great bands with the mando as his primary instrument. He will probably be a professional bluegrass musician in the near future. In his three years on the mando, he started on a Kentucky, moved up to a Gibson A-9 and then just recently moved up to a Collings MT. He works as a substitute teacher during the day, so I imagine he has to really budget to buy instruments, but he had no question it was worth it.

Personally, I would wait until I could take a trip somewhere I could try out a bunch of higher end mandos and see for yourself. I live in an area where I can play a lot of different mandos and IMHO, I would hold fast until I could get a Collings MT and still keep the Kentucky as a second mando. But that is just me.

[Eric F.]

Tim, welcome. You asked a big question! The short answer is yes. And no.

The solid, carved Kentuckys can sound pretty good. I have a Kentucky 250 that's a few years old. It's had random hippie sanding to the back to remove some of the thick laquer, a good setup and a new, better bridge. It sounds pretty good and it's plenty loud, especially with Gibson Sam Bush strings. I've played mandolins that cost a grand more that didn't impress me any more than the 250.

But ... there's something missing. If it were a wine, I'd say something like, "It has a pleasant bouquet and is easy-drinking but lacks complexity." It's like a $6.99 bottle of mass-produced Australian shiraz.

When I play the Kentucky, I enjoy it for what it is, just as I enjoy the $6.99 bottle of wine for what it is. But when I play my Arches, I hear tones that I just don't get from the Kentucky. Back to the wine analogy, it's a bottle of Penfolds Grange. Still an Australian red, just one that's full of complexity and power.

Or if you're a beer person, it's a Bud as opposed to a Chimay ale.

While MKs have their proponents, I just don't see on as being a step up from a KM380. A Mid-Mo is a very different instrument because of its flat top. It will have a different - not worse, just different - sound. I think they are very good instruments, but very different from the others you mentioned.

The others you mentioned can all be worthy mandolins, although I don't think a Stradolin is your best bet unless you stumble onto an exceptional one. Anyhow, I always think people should get the best instrument they can afford without sacrificing too much. You're not too far from Philadelphia, why don't you go to Vintage Instruments and play some old Gibsons and Martins and whatever else they have in stock and see what you think?

[Greenmando]

The mandolin you will want to upgrade to is one you like. Go for the sound first within your budget. Try as many as you can get your hands on.

Yes, they are better.
But the skill has to be there in your hands to pull it out. I do not have the ability to coax the sound my mandos are capable of.