Who knows the difference!.

[newmando7]

What are the major differences in buying a more expensive Mandolin in comparison to buying a more inexpensive Mandolin.I have a Kentucky KM-250 and have been enjoying it very much.I have learned some songs and continue to work on notes,scales,songs,and other types of learning.But as I have always known,you get what you pay for and the Kentucky is good but not great by any means.My main question is what is it I am getting for,such and such dollars.Is having a better Mandolin going to make me a better player in the future.I do know that practice helps but you cannot replace good sound verse poor sound.Help

[Bruce Evans]

My advice is as long as you can't tell the difference, stick with what you have. But keep playing all those better instruments in the music store. Perhaps one day you'll play a mando that you just have to own, and then you won't need an explanation or justification.

[Michael H Geimer]

I'm an advocate of 'stepping up', though a Kentucky 250 certainly isn't a 'bad' mandolin. I appreaciate what Tocotodo says about waiting until you hear the difference, but even he suggests playing the higher end models when you can. I think developing an ear for the subtler qualities of instruments is part of learning to play them ... or perhaps I should say, learning how they want to be played.

There really is a difference beyond the simple overview of "they sound better, they look better", but for my purposes, both cosmetics and the subjective aspects of 'tone' can be ignored.

I just think that the better quality instruments are more responsive to the player's technique, so they offer clearer feedback to the player, and encourage better articulation. A lot of that has to do with the simple ability to project more volume. Regardless of the subjective qualities of 'tone', a naturally louder instrument gives the player more dynamic control. Sometimes this makes the player 'sound better' by allowing existing techinque to really come across. Othertimes a better quality instrument will expose weakness the player never noticed before, but can now isolate and improve upon.

For instance ... I used to chop across all four courses in order to get a chord 'out there' and be heard. Now, with a better, louder axe, I often just play the bottom two or three courses. Since I don't need to fight so much to be heard, I can choose notes that provided better 'color'. I might never have started exploring these 'colors' were I still picking on my Epi rather than my Weber.

YMMV

- Benig

[MikeB]

I think Benignus hit it right on the head. In short, getting a better mandolin will likely make you a better player.

It will also relieve you of some of that excess money that has been burdening you. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[duuuude]

Yeah, what he says. I recently moved up from a lower-end mando to a quality instrument and it really does make alot of difference. Most notable thing was I didn't have to attack it to get decent volume, it was already there, and for the reasons listed above whatever I played sounded just a little bit better, very encouraging. Plus there seems to be a wider range of tones and colors available that just weren't there with the other.

Try it out yourself, go play a higher-end mando that is set-up & tuned proper at a music store or something and see if you don't sound better with less effort. Not that what you have already doesn't sound fine, just something to try. Enjoy.

[Rob Powell]

Like Benig said, more responsive. When an instrument is easier to play, your playing gets better and sounds better. When that happens, you get more excited and play more simply because you can and the feedback you get is more pleasing.

That said, there is a point of going beyond what is necessary or even reasonable. Moving from the 250 to a Master model would be a case in point. You'll pay a lot and while it's worth the money overall, it's probably not going to give you much more feedback than moving up to a less expensive <insert fine quality mando here>

I agree with playing a bunch of different mandos. Decide how much you want to spend, play a bunch of mandos in that price range and a few above it. Only playing them will tell you if the difference is justified.

I've done just that and I'm saving up cuz what I played that I like, I can't afford. Probably because I'm not that good, I didn't find the higher priced mandos felt or sounded any better.

There is a difference in sound and that kind of thing and somtimes a big difference! But like me i dont really care so get what ever you can afford!

[jlb]

Like everyone else has said, you gotta try a bunch out. I've found even in the higher end, there are a whole lot of duds out there, even when comparing Model A to Model A, one will sound like a bell at the gates, the other like a dying dog. In my experience, I've come to the conclusion that a good mando must be hard to build, and luck plays a pretty big factor from the lowest to the highest end.

On top of that, most music stores do not know how to (or don't bother) to set mandos up properly. This is a huge problem when trying out mandos, maybe an understandable one because the mando-market is fairly small when compared to the acoustic and electric guitar markets, so there is little financial incentive to become an expert at mando setup. Also might not be as big a financial incentrive to keep fresh strings on instruments that don't move as quick.

[peterbc]

I do know that practice helps but you cannot replace good sound verse poor sound.

I normally think of the reverse! Good instruments are nice, but it doesn't replace practice. However, it can inspire you to practice more. I had an import guitar, the top was bellying big time so the action was really bad. It hurt to play and didn't sound too great. Them I bought a Martin D-18 which plays like butter and sounds like... more butter. As a result I really enjoy playing it often. I think playability is a big difference between a cheap and expensive mandolin.

[newmando7]

Hey everybody thank you very much for the replies!.I bought the BLUEGRASS JOURNEY DVD and it is very cool,but I did notice while watching these awsome guys play their Mandolins they barely have to touch the string to make it ring.So maybe it does pay to have a better and properly set up mando.Tim O`brien,Ron McCoury,ChrisThile playing bluegrass stomp together you get a real good look at their fingering and man these guys barely touch the strings.