Sound posts?

[farkle_30]

I just bought a johnson f style mandolin off muscians friend. I never own an f style but I did have an a style I sold for beer money in college and a cheap Kay mando and neither of them had sound posts. Where is the proper place for them, under the bridge like a fiddle? or are they even necessary. I would guess they are since they are there.
Yes, I know it is a cheap chineese mando...but I also heard with proper setup it's not bad for an amature like me.
Any comments welcome...glad to be a part of the cafe

[Eugene]

Sound posts are not typical to mandolins, and I believe for good reason. Do a quick search of the board (button to the top right) and much will be revealed.

[Stephen Perry]

No soundpost. Pulse input, not a bowed continuous input.

[farkle_30]

I wonder why they are in there. I wonder if it's just for shipping. I will remove them promptly

[cooper4205]

Do you have a pic?

[Bill Snyder]

Was this a new instrument? If it were used I would be concerned that it was someones home remedy for a sinking top, but if is new I have no idea why it would be there. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[farkle_30]

Yes it is new its a johnson f-style form muscians friend I tried to look it up on their website but they don't have it there anymore...I wonder if I bought the last one! There were two wooden dowels in the instrument under the bridge. Sure it's a cheapo but I have other cheap mandolins and none of them had this

[earthsave]

Maybe it's a way to ship them so the tops dont cave or something?

[Hans]

Mark, soundposts do not belong in mandolins, however I would not remove these. Undoubtedly, they are in there under the bridge to keep the top from caving in...a sign that the top is too thin. I would return the instrument and get something without all the frills that is built solidly. A used Mid Missouri or a new Big Muddy will suit you much better than a cheap F-style with all the binding fru-fru and mother of toilet seat imitation inlay gobbledy-gook. Check the classifieds on Cafe.

[RobAlan]

Sound Advice Hans!

[Dave Cowles]

Just as Hans has said, that instrument was put together to come apart. Between top thickness and lack of proper bracing and construction, the only way they could get it into the unwary buyer's hands is to use posts to keep the top from caving in. Send it back. You can do much, much better for a starter mando.

Dave

[Bill Snyder]

The Johnson mandolin that I owned certainly did not have any soundposts in it and I do not think the top would collapse if you stood on it. Of course mine was plywood.

[farkle_30]

I guess I will send it back...I think I want an oval hole mando anyway. I need it to be under $200.00 though I have a wife and kids to support. I have played Mid-Missouri and I really like the no frills look (and not just because I live in Missouri) but I just can't afford it. Is there a similar import?

[arbarnhart]

Look for the Washburn M1SDL; I used to have one and I really liked it. It's a solid spruce top oval at right around $200 (sometimes there are $100 blems on eBay). Search here and you will see that all owners seem to feel that way.

[farkle_30]

That washburn looks ok, but most people only have the blue one, I don't know about you, but blue? no thanks. Anyone know about the mandolins from lark in the morning? they have some europen and mexican mandos that look intresting.

[arbarnhart]

I had the grand piano black Washburn. Kentucky has a new low end oval out that I have heard good things about, but they were hard to find when I last looked. They look a lot more traditional. I have heard mostly bad reports on the cheaper Lark stuff.

[Bill Snyder]

My impression of Lark in the Morning is that most of their offerings are just so-so instruments at best and no bargains on price. That is a generalization and there may some exceptions as they offer many instruments.

[Folkmusician.com]

The Kentucky Oval holes are nice. They are above the $200 range though and there may not be enough out there yet to get a good deal on a used one.

[arbarnhart]

The Kentucky M-174 is going for $280 including shipping at the massive conglomerate; looks like the supply may have caught up now. It's a little over $300 at places that look inside the boxes and set up instruments before shipping.

[farkle_30]

I may just get the rover rm 50 b from Elderly...It's all solid and elderly does the setting up before they ship. So I guess it will make do until I can afford a mid missouri or a big muddy.

[Red Henry]

Soundposts in mandolins are not unknown. A good friend of mine put a post into his Martin mandolin when the top began sinking, and not only did the sound improve, but the top stopped sinking with that extra support.

At the same time, I put a soundpost in my own mandolin, a Gibson A-50 with Epiphone on the peghead (when Epi's were made by Gibson). The sound improved in that mandolin too.

My friend's Martin mandolin held together for years with the soundpost in it. Then he sold it to someone else, and that person took it to a repairman who took the post out of it. The mandolin collapsed shortly afterwards.

The moral of the story is: No morals here. But he should have left the soundpost in that mandolin!


Red.

[allenhopkins]

My impression of Lark in the Morning is that most of their offerings are just so-so instruments at best and no bargains on price. That is a generalization and there may some exceptions as they offer many instruments.
They make and sell a decent bowed psaltery. If you want to play the bowed psaltery.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Red,that's an interesting point. I posted a question re.sound posts in Mandolins many months back & the general opinion was that they either don't work or they are not really required. The idea of a sound post in a violin is to transmit the vibrations from the top to the back of the instrument to reinforce the sound.I suppose that because most Mandolins are held fairly tight against the body,that the sound post idea seems not to have any practical use. I can however see that in certain Mandolins,a soundpost could
help to reinforce the sound,
Saska

[Red Henry]

Saska, that opens up another subject for discussion. When playing good mandolins I feel a lot of vibration in the mandolin's back, and as I normally hold the mandolin angling away from my body, I think the back can contribute significantly to the overall sound. (And it certainly contributes to my musical experience, as I'm sensing the mandolin's vibrations.) Anybody else like to feel the resonance of a good mandolin in your hands?

Red.

[farkle_30]

Well I returned the mandolin to MUFRI...the couldn't be more helpful, very good customer service....I then broke down and bought a used Mid Missouri which is what I wanted in the first place. Not only I supporting my local mom and pop music shop I am buying a locally made (same state) product. I feel better now.
No only if I could play the dang thing.
I will post pictures in that thread soon, but we all know what a midmo looks like

[Chip Booth]

farkle_30, I think that was a very wise choice. Sounds like you now have a nice instrument to get going on!

Chip

[Hans]

Yes, a wise choice. You won't look like a rock star, but the Mid-Mo is going to help you learn easier as it undoubtedly sounds better. The added benefit as you say is you are buying American...something that's pretty dang hard to do these days. Congratulations!

Get to work! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[farkle_30]

I will be playing at a catholic mass so an f style would be a little flashy anyway. I always thought the MidMo was the best looking mando even before I began playing. I am also a fan of the Gibson Army/Navy. The simple things are beautyful

[Ivan Kelsall]

Red,i think that we're pretty much on the same wavelength here,along with many others i suspect. I do tend to hold the neck end of my Mandolin away from my body when i play to allow whatever resonance is coming through to 'get out'. There's nothing like the feel of an instrument sort of 'coming alive' when you play it,
Saska

[farkle_30]

not that it matters anymore since I returned it but the people at Johnson (or whatever the parent company is called) sent me this email:
Hi Mark,
Thanks for choosing a Johnson mandolin. Some of our mandolins may have soundposts for extra top structural support. Thanks again

Best Regards

So at least they answer their email.