loar: golden age LM 500 v.s handcarved LM 600

[billkilpatrick]

mas is upon me ... my resistance is low (so's the where-with-all) ...

ebay germany has these two mandolins up for auction at the moment: LM 500 and LM 600 - both a good prices; the latter costing about €130 more. i assume this is due to its being handcarved but both look wonderful.

has anyone had an opportunity to compare these two and would be willing to offer an opinion as to difference in sound - if indeed, there is any?

i've drooled over photos on the loar site and seen the LM 600 video on youtube. to my oval-sound-hole-loving ears it sounded a bit sharp but i imagine it would mellow a bit with age and use.

grazie mille - bill*

[Mike Crater]

2 weeks ago, I got an LM 500 to use as a backup while my Gibson is in the shop. I was so impressed that I put James tailpiece on it and upgraded the tuners with some Grovers I already had. It sounds great. Good treble tone. It's a great mando for a backup. I wish these were out when I first started.

[mandozilla]

I bought an LM 500 when I first got back into playing...I didn't want to spend a lot until I was sure I was going to stick with it this time. Got a really good deal, around $450 US with a HSC and shipping. :)

It's a pretty little thing and decently playable but (mine anyway) is a bit lacking in volume which I attribute to not having 'opened up' yet. I pretty much stopped playing it when I got a real mandolin. :))

About a month ago I was at a jam campout and one of my b***o picking buddies had just bought a shiny new LM600 to fool around on. I gotta tell you, the LM 600 hadn't opened up yet either but it was already much louder and had much better tone than my '500. I believe he paid somewhere around $650 US...$200 more than I paid. :grin:

If I were you and had my heart set on a 'The Loar', I'd go for the '600. For not much more money I think you'd be much happier. ;)

:mandosmiley:

[Michael Eck]

You definitely want to go for the LM 600 VS. The Loar is constantly improving their products, and the 600 series is a bigs tep up from the 500, just as the new 700 series is getting a great response from players.

The 600 is an all hand carved instrument, and a real bargain.

[Rob Powell]

I haven't played either but I do own a 700. The 500 is all solid woods but the top is pressed. The 600 and 700 are hand carved. My understanding, which is entirely hearsay, is that the 500's are luck of the draw. You might get a real good one, you might not whereas I've heard that the 600's are consistently good.

Two caveats...it's a flat fretboard and the neck profile is much thicker than many mandolins. Neither of those may matter to you. I found I like the neck profile but I think I may have the fretboard radiused.

Short version, I'd go for the 600. ;)

[Folkmusician.com]

These two instruments have nothing at all in common aside from the brand name. They are made at different places and are entirely different grades of instrument. The LM-500-VS is a nice mando, but the LM-600-VS is an outstanding Mando.

[Perry Babasin]

I have been playing my LM-500 with reckless abandon for nearly 2 years now. I play very hard and very regular, with a mid-week rehearsal and two services on Sunday, not to mention daily practice. I did some "things" to it like a cast tailpiece and better bridge. It always had sweet tone and was very playable with great action and over time it has definitely opened-up and gained volume and punch. I love it and am inclined to look at the LM-600 if I decide to upgrade. My Avatar is the back of my LM-500. The fit and finish are absolutely beautiful. Just to clarify something the back and face are partially pressed however the scroll area is carved, and quite nice.

Thanks....... Perry

[Big Joe]

Yep. The 600 is certainly the way to go for the little difference in price. The 600 is one of the best mandolin bargains available today.