X-braced mandolins

[bahed]

Still auto-strumming.... I am now looking at taking back my mando to the music store that I bought it from 3 months ago and get an instrument that has a little bark right off the shelf. I took a bit of a flyer on a new builder... oh well.

..anyway, I played the best they have in-house and it is a Weber Yellowstone. It sounded pretty good, but I didn't have my other (dingo - as in non-barking) mando with me to do a side-by-side, but it sounded really much better, and I even played it in a large room that they use for small concerts with no other instruments around. This instrument is X-braced.

Any comments on X-bracing in general, or as it relates to Webers and of course... the dreaded break-in potential ?

Thanks

[Chip Booth]

The general word seems to be that they take less time to break in but may not develop as much as tone bars will over a long time. If it's good out of the box then go for it. I have found that you can improve an X braced Yellowstone (or other Weber F hole model) with a traditional style bridge rather than the Brekke they often ship with.

I have played many X braced mandos and own at least one, and it sounds great, has lots of bark and a powerful chop. No worries there.

Chip

[woodwiz]

I've gotten the same impression as Chip. X braces faster to break in, but don't develop as much. If I were buying a tone bar mandolin of decent quality, I would make a lot more allowance for break-in imrovement tahn I would with an X braced one.

I'm curious to know who made the mandolin you're not entirely happy with. Also, have you tried recording it, or getting an independent listener? Some mandos and fiddles sound a lot louder to the listener than they do to the player.

[Grandude]

I am the original owner of a '95 Flatiron Signature Series A-5 (sign by Bruce Weber) that is X-braced with a Sitka spruce top. It got everyone's attention when I bought it, and now it is the loudest thing around. I don't recall when it developed the volume and the "pop" in the chop - it definitely stands out in a parking lot pickin croud now. I can tell you that 30 minutes into the jamming it sounds ten times better than when it's cold - all mandolins do. When trying one out to purchase it's important to spend enough time banging on it to open it up, and best if you have someone play it in your general direction after it's warm to see what potential it really has. If you can't, then play into a corner or against a wall to better hear the sound. Each mandolin has it's own character, and it's not unsual to find lower cost Webers that sound better than Fern models.

[pathfinder]

Geez bahed, don't trade in that unspecified mando for a Weber! #A couple more weeks and that battery-powered dremel could've given you some mandolin lessons! #That is, if it could pry you away from your camera, your power tools and your computer keyboard! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif