Micheal Kelly or Morgan Monore??!!

[Wingfan]

What one is a better F style mandolin? MK or MM Please help!
thank you! I have a "Austin "(what ever that is) A style that I got from a Pawn shop last year. Now I want to up grade to a nicer F style, but dont know what one is a better mandolin.:confused:

[eight8strgs]

If you want a good F model,go for "The Loar" LM-600-VS. Great Mandolin for the money! More time and care is taken in construction. I've had Morgan Monroe and Kelley,they don't hold a candle to my 600!

[earthsave]

What one is a better F style mandolin? MK or MM Please help!
thank you! I have a "Austin "(what ever that is) A style that I got from a Pawn shop last year. Now I want to up grade to a nicer F style, but dont know what one is a better mandolin.:confused:

The one that you like the best when you play it. MK and MM are a mixed bag in my opinion. I've hear ok ones of each. Main thing is you get one that is playable up the neck, feels good in your hand, and sounds good to your ear.

[mandolinbill1949]

mk is better sounding than mm in my opinion

[Folkmusician.com]

You can get a pretty nice mandolin with either of these brands. A lot of it will depend on which models you are comparing. :) Both brands have their strong points. While I don't think one should choose a mandolin solely based on features, there are so many options these days that you should be able to get what you are after without too many compromises. A good example is a flat or radiused fingerboard. If you want a radiused board you will be looking at the Michael Kelly's or the Morgan Monroe MMR-1 or 2 series. These are the only MM mandos with a radiused fingerboard. Once you get the list narrowed down, and hit a certain price point, you may find the choice has been made for you. :) Just don't go by features alone.

[Jim Kirkland]

There is a MK in the classified. Great price and the top of the line for MK. I have an 04 MK Evolution. I have worked on it a bit, but I like the sound and it is easy to play. I have other mandos, but I sorta like this one. I just recently took the finish off. I set it up in the white and it sounds a lot better. I used the same strings so I could compare the sound. This thing sure had a lot of finish on it and it is pretty light now. I plan on some dye and tru oil. Would of already had it finished, but have enjoyed the sound as it is.

[MikeEdgerton]

Are you buying them locally or online? If local play them and take a long a friend that plays if possible so you can hear wheat it sounds like in someone else hands as well. If you're buying it online then it's a different story.

[f5loar]

That's a real toss the coin. Some good , some not on both brands. Why not throw a low end Eastman in the bag? Then you wouldn't need a coin toss.

[GTG]

I'm sorry to say that I've never seen anything nice with a Morgan Monroe label on it. Some Mk's are also pretty poor, but some are quite decent. As others have said, try to play them before buying. Some Kentuckys in this price range are also quite nice.

[Mike Bunting]

For the record MichAEl Kelly. :)
Yours truly
Michael Bunting

[Man of Wax]

Some Kentuckys in this price range are also quite nice.

Is that like Waverlys? No, no, I won't go there...

Another vote for Eastman.

[Ransome]

Being new, but I have now played a few friends mandolins... I can say that I really like my MK FSE. After owning it now for about 3 weeks and working into three songs in our set, it holds up very well live. Granted this is not Newgrass/Bluegrass, folk or anything; we are more of a roots band with upright bass, etc.

I have also gone back and recorded a few new takes on older tracks mic'd only and it sounds very full to my ear.

If I may recommend Dean Johnson in Florida, he has them listen on eBay and you can get blems or seconds from him at a killer price. I chose to speak with him by phone and let him know what I was looking for, he recommended a few models and set mine up before it was sent to me.

I don't work for him, I just got great service and support small businesses!

Bill

[man dough nollij]

Is that like Waverlys? No, no, I won't go there...




We covered that. Every now knows that it's Waverlieses'.

[Dan_dolin]

I have 2 Morgans. MM-2 and MM-8. I've had to replace the tuners on the MM-2. The MM-8 is the one I've experimented with setup. New bridge, placements, etc. I actually lean toward the sound of the MM-2, but the MM-8 is more playable to my hands, considering that I do have smaller hands. The MM-2 was a gift, so I wouldn't part with it. The MM-8, I wish I'd have been a little more patient before purchase. I've played several since I bought the MM-8 and wish I had the dollars now to reinvest in something different. But I will say that I enjoy playing them both on occasion....as with any other mando I can stick in my hand and have time to play!

Best of luck.

[Tobin]

I was debating between the two when I purchased my first mandolin as well. Here's what swung me toward the MK over the MM:

Morgan Monroe: made in China
Michael Kelly: made in South Korea

I've bought enough Chinese-made garbage in my life to want to avoid it as much as possible. I'm not saying this automatically makes all Morgan Monroe mandolins garbage, but I wasn't going to take any chances. I've had all I can stand of Chinese-made products, and for various reasons, didn't want to send any more money to China.

[Man of Wax]

I was debating between the two when I purchased my first mandolin as well. Here's what swung me toward the MK over the MM:

Morgan Monroe: made in China
Michael Kelly: made in South Korea

I've bought enough Chinese-made garbage in my life to want to avoid it as much as possible. I'm not saying this automatically makes all Morgan Monroe mandolins garbage, but I wasn't going to take any chances. I've had all I can stand of Chinese-made products, and for various reasons, didn't want to send any more money to China.

This doesn't seem reasonable. There are perfectly adequate Chinese makers. I can vouch for Eastman (as many users on this site will), and The Loar has already been mentioned in this thread. Apparently Jade are solid as well, though they are difficult to find right now. The fact that something is assembled on the Chinese landmass doesn't necessitate that it's garbage. Nor does being made in South Korea assure that it isn't. Ever driven a Daewoo?

VVV Point taken. I apologize for missing your disclaimer.

[Tobin]

I didn't mean to imply that all Chinese made mandolins are of lesser quality (and I even posted a disclaimer stating that). But "all other things being equal", so to speak, I personally chose to support South Korea over China, for reasons I won't go into here. I wouldn't knock anyone's decision to choose a mandolin of any origin; I was just stating one of my factors that helped me decide, in case it might help Wingfan make his decision. For a lot of people, country of origin is important. If it's not important to him, then he can safely disregard my post. :)

[allenhopkins]

Uh-oh, Politics!!! Hit that lockdown button, moderator...!

And here I thought, with names like "Michael Kelly" and "Morgan Monroe," they must be made in Ireland or Kentucky or somewhere like that. Silly me.

[Tobin]

Uh-oh, Politics!!! Hit that lockdown button, moderator...!
Heh, no, I wasn't trying to "go there"...

After thinking overnight about my post, I wanted to offer a bit more explanation. And again, I certainly don't want to imply that all Chinese-made instruments are junk. But when buying sight-unseen, there's always the risk. The reason I have a bad taste in my mouth for Chinese-made instruments stems from a Washburn Rover I bought last year. I was looking for a decent travel-size classical guitar and it looked like a good deal. I ordered it online, sight unseen, under the assumption that I was buying a decent quality instrument. Washburn has always been a good name, right? Well, when I received it and opened up the shipping package, the first thing I saw was "made in China" on the box. The thing looked like it was put together by monkeys. It was by far the poorest quality and craftsmanship I've ever seen. It was unplayable. I sent it back, disappointed.

So I admit it may be unfair to project that onto other brands or to all Chinese-made instruments. But it was definitely a factor for me when I was looking for a first mandolin. I did not want a repeat of the Washburn indicent.

While we're on the subject, does anyone know anything about Morgan Monroe's fabrication facility in China? Do they employ competent luthiers or at least semi-skilled workers? Or is it like most other Chinese factories where they make a whole bunch of different products in one place with a focus strictly on meeting demand?

I've done quite a bit of research on Chinese production methods, mainly with respect to the famous (or infamous) Norinco SKS rifles, which have been made there since 1956. There are hundreds of different factories that produced them, some of which were little more than grass huts with unskilled laborers using crude tools. They would get an order to make rifles, then they would switch to making typewriters, then switch to making cooking pots, etc. The point is that their focus was on meeting demand, not on developing tooling or skills or quality fabrication methods for one specific product. And it shows in the end product. Some are beautifully made and high quality. Some are crude and poorly fitted. There is no quality standard that they have to meet.

I don't know if modern China uses the same old-school production mindset for everything, or if they do indeed have a small custom shop that specifically makes Morgan Monroe (and/or other brand) mandolins. I'd be curious to know if anyone has information on where, how, and by whom they are made. Because judging by the Washburn Rover I sent back, it seems that at least some of the musical instruments coming from China may still be made in grass huts by unskilled laborers.

And again, I'm not trying to knock all Chinese instruments or get into political talk. But I think quality of production (and consistency of that quality) is very pertinent to the discussion.

[bflat]

i've played a couple very decent sounding MM's in a local shop. i think it has alot to do with the setup. find one with a good setup and you'll be fine. not sure there's alot of difference otherwise. a friend tears up Big Mon's tunes as good as you want on a kentucky 675.

[allenhopkins]

There are a wide range of Chinese-made instruments; some are junk, and some are excellent products. Brands like Eastman, Jade, The Loar, Recording King, Blueridge, Kentucky, etc. have good track records, as multiple Cafe threads will attest. Not everyone likes every brand or model, but I haven't heard a single poster here describe them as being made in "grass huts." (However, Soares'y guitars, imported from Portugal, are described by their importer as "made in dimly-lit caverns by elves"...but I digress...)

You can (and did) get misled by the export of defunct American nameplates to Asia, or at least to importers of Asian instruments. The "Washburn" that had "always been a good name" when it was the trademark of a Chicago manufacturer, has nothing to do with the "Washburn" that gets stuck on a variety of Asian-made instruments by importer US Music Co., current owner of the trademark. Better to disregard the history of the nameplate entirely. "Morgan Monroe" and "Michael Kelly" likewise have no relation to any particular builder, luthier or designer, as far as I can tell.

But dismissing all Chinese-made instruments on the basis of one unfortunate cheap guitar, is depriving yourself of a broad spectrum of possible choices. Excellent American designer/manufacturers have licensed their designs to Asian manufacturers for production of less-expensive lines of instruments; Rigel mandolins and Beard resonator guitars are examples. Given the globalization of the world instrument market, it is almost impossible to avoid Asian-made instruments at the introductory and mid-price level. Exercising discrimination among the wide range of available instruments means getting information here on the Cafe and elsewhere, trying a variety of possibilities in music stores, at jams, etc., and finding a well-made, affordable instrument regardless of country of origin.

[Tim2723]

I own two MK acoustic-electric models. I have no complaints about them, but being AE mandolins, I had no unrealistic expectations of their acoustic tone. They sound like a mandolin with a piezo pickup. That's all I can say. I purchased both sight-unseen, and would do so again. While they do not represent the pinnacle of the luthier's art, they were obviously not made by starving children in a sweatshop. Their quality, materials, and workmanship are commensurate with a mandolin in their price range, IMO.

I would not personally purchase an MK sight-unseen from the used market, as my understanding is that there are certain early examples of MKs that are seriously flawed, and that many of these still populate the used market. I have yet to read or hear anything that changes that opinion. My experience suggests that their current production may have corrected these shortcomings. Were I to buy used, I would insist on a first hand inspection.

If my choice were between a new, current production MK or MM, sight-unseen, I would be led to the MK.

[Wingfan]

:grin:Thanks for all the help!! Looks like I'm gonna buy a Eastman 614 right here on mandolincafe!!!!!

[Greg H.]

Now that's and EXCELLENT choice. Sure there's always an off chance you could be getting a bad one, but in general these have been thought of VERY highly for the price.

[allenhopkins]

So he asked if he should get a ham sandwich or a corned beef sandwich, and we talked him into tuna salad. With sprouts.

Probably a good thing, in this case...

[earthsave]

Either way he'll get something tasty to eat. Maybe even tastier.

[300win]

Don't know about the "Kelly" but the MM ,I have owned 3 the past 6 years, and although nice looking mandolins, they lacked projection, and real tone. I think the top plates are carved to thick, possibly the back also, and in all 3 that I owned all differant "F" models, they each had the tone bars that were not consistant with each other. I think you could do better trying to locate maybe a A-9 Gibson, or similar A model used. Trust me I've had mostly junk to pick the past 44 years. Only really had 2 good mandolins, first was by a independent luthier, 2nd was the Gibson A-9 I have now. I only wished that 5-6 years ago when I was trying to save some money and get a cheaper mandolin, I had added a little more to my funds and got a good one. In the long run you will be happier, and have something that does have a sweet tone and will last, and only get better with age.

[mandozilla]

Crickets chirping...

Yo! Wingfan! So, did you get that 614 or what? Oh, and are you sure you want an oval sound hole? :disbelief:

~o):mandosmiley: