The mandolin that I ordered from Folk Musician.com should be delivered tomorrow!!!! I'm so pumped! This is what I ordered: http://www.folkmusician.com/Kentucky...ctinfo/KM-171/
Nice!!!!!! My first mandolin was a KM505 which looked just like this one. It was an awesome mandolin, and I regret having sold it when I got my F-Style. I can't wait to hear it!!
I've seen you playing some really nice mandolins, Tony! How many do you have?
Ben, I had the KM505 A-style and the KM1000 F-Style to start off with. The I got rid of the KM505 (kick myself in the butt for doing it!). A few months ago I heard the Mid Missouri, started asking questions, and ran into one on ebay. They are really nice and fairly inexpensive. I also have four guitars and two ukuleles...jeje! Oh, and a 3-row diatonic accordion!
Oh wow! That sounds great Tony. You have a lot more manolin (country mandolin pronunciation!) money than me! Those sound real nice. Do you play the accordion? I love Cajun music, of which accordion is a big part.
Congrats, Ben!! I bet you are going to enjoy your new mandolin SO much! I am excited, too...my new guitar is being delivered today, and I'm beginning to search for an F model mandolin that is within budget constraints...lol..as if..lol Have fun, Ben!!
Kristibob, Hey thanks! I love it. I has that "mandolin sound" that I hear in my head when I think, "Now that is what a mandolin should sound like!"
Look forward to hearing your playing!
I can't wait to hear you playing that thing!!... My new guitar is awesome!!..Not one of those fancy names..an Oscar Schmidt OF2, but it's wonderful! The action is perfect..no work at all to play..and NO shoulder pain at all, like I would get playing my OG4. The instrument is gorgeous..and SO easy to play..and sounds crisp, clear..very bright, but not a bit brassy..the low notes are very solid and it doesn't lose anything at all, anywhere in the neck. I tuned it up, then let it rest about an hour, then went back to it to see if it had slipped at all, like new strings might..but it hadn't lost a penny...I am very pleased with it. My Oscar Schmidt OG4 had wonderful sound, but it was just too darn big now..and this OF2 is way better than I thought it would be. The size is perfect and she sounds terrific. I will use my "Flatpicking Guitar for the Complete Ignoramus" book and learn a new way to play guitar. I bought an Oscar Schmidt OM40 F model today. I know..it's not one of those big names..but I don't need a big name. If I was a professional musician, and could afford it, I would have one of those "big" names, but I'm not..and I can't..and I am very pleased with the purchase. I love, love, love my guitars, and I have no reason to think that an Oscar Schmidt mandolin won't be just as nice for me. I wanted a solid top, but couldn't afford one. I read alot, including a bunch of stuff here in the Cafe about laminates..and, after that, I decided on the one I wanted. If I don't like it...I can send it back, but I feel really good about it. I didn't need an f model..just wanted one..and I love the brand..some do, some don't...but it's been a great relationship for me..and I will have this mandolin professionally set up. Even expensive stuff can sound bad if the set-up isn't right. I have a bit of extra moolah left from the car insurance money..so I'll get it set-up by someone who is supposed to know what they are doing..lol. Off of the mandolin stuff for a sec...the folks who did the work on my car were great! They replaced the broken tail-light cover, took care of the shallow dent the way I asked them to, cleaned up my fogged-over headlight covers (they look brand new) and, on top of that, they washed and waxed my car!!! She looks brand new!..and they didn't charge an arm and a leg for all of that! If anyone around where I live needs a body shop..I know just where to send them.
Ben - Yes, I have played the 3-row diatonic accordion conjunto style, since I am originally from San Antonio Texas. I have been toying with the idea of buying a 5-row chromatic accordion, but haven't made a final decision yet. I have enough toys and not enough time as it is! Kristi - What guitar model did you get?
Tony, Can you play Jolie Blonde? Oh please say yes. LOL!
I gotta say something. When I first took the mandolin out of the box...I was happy with how it looked, but I didn't like how it sounded or played. If I played at a music store like that, I would not have bought it. I swapped the strings out with a set of Ernie Ball Light Guage Strings and VOILA! It sounded and played like a dream. Something still didn't sound right though. So I tried a bunch of picks to see which one sounded best. The one that sounds best on my Epiphone Fhole mandolin was NOT the onethat sounded the best on my Kentucky. The best sounding one is the yellow dunlop tortex that I used a pair of cutting pliers to make the point sharp on. It sounds fantastic and is super easy to play now. Lesson learned. Match your pick to your mandolin and that a mandolin at the store that you think is hard to play and not for you actually might be really great for you with the right setup, picks and strings. They did a great setup on this thing at Folkmusician.com. I should have paid to have them put some light strings on!
In case y'all wonder why I post so late, I work the night shift! I'm not some pervert surfing the net for porn in the middle of the night! hahhahha!
So again, I'm not a pervert, and I LOVE THIS MANDOLIN! I have to give thanks to everyone on the board that recommended it and folkmusician.com. What a difference a good setup makes. I'd be playing right now if my wonderful wife wasn't asleep. Maybe I'll test how much she loves me........the mandolin keeps calling my name......
Tony, I got an Oscar Schmidt OF2...a folk-size guitar, gorgeous wood, beautiful inlay...great tone.
Kristibob, that sounds like a fun guitar to play. The folk size/style guitars usually sound great for fanger pickin. Do you do any of that? I usually prefer guitar to mandolin for backing up my singing. I love the sound of a good acoustic! Congrats on getting one that you love!
Thank you, Ben I was, frankly, amazed at the sound of this guitar. It's very pure..know what I mean? It's so darned easy to play, too...with my OG4, which is also a great instrument, I had to push so hard for chords and notes. The action was great for me years ago when my hands were stronger..I could play the thing all day if I'd wanted to when I first got it..before it went to live in the closet. With my puny fingers now, this OF2 is great. I was always a fingerpicker, Ben..I just figured out a way to do it that worked for me, and sounded good. I've never had a guitar lesson, outside of all of the stuff Dad helped me with..so..I think that qualifies as lessons..sheesh..sharp as a barrel of hair today but no lessons from an instructor I wasn't related to..lol. I loved fingerpicking, and it would work fine on this guitar, better than the OG4, because this guitar "sings" better than the bigger one. However, I really do want to learn to flatpick, and my "Ignoramus" book makes learning it really easy. It's not necessarily easy for me to do..just presented in a way that makes it easy for me to learn. I really love Wayne Erbsen's books..and the fact that he is so approachable. He lives about three and a half hours from me..a great reason for a road trip..lol..if things get desperate for me on guitar or mandolin. Speaking of...my mandolin shipped today. I contacted my music fella who does really nice set-ups, according to lots of other people. When I get my F model, I'll get it out of the box and take it right to his music store and leave it there for a couple of days...will cost me $50 for him to make the instrument just right for me. I'm excited about that! Now..I'm getting off of my computer and getting on my guitar...I practiced rest stops and scales for a couple of hours on Minna earlier today..now it's guitar practice time.!
Enjoy your new mando. It's a great instrument that you should be happy with for a good while.
I got my F model today! She is Minna B., and she is SO pretty! I know...pretty doesn't make an instrument play any better, but it's nice..lol. I will be taking her to my instrument guru as soon as the lunchtime traffic clears some. I know she's not a Kentucky, or a Loar, or any of those more expensive instruments, but I think she is perfect for me. I could afford her, which is really important to me. It would have been so easy to get a more expensive instrument, just to have the name...but I got an instrument that I think will be great for me..the casual picker..playing at home..and I have a wonderful relationship with Oscar Schmidt instruments. It will be hard waiting a couple of days to get her back, though, and, with the holiday...could be Saturday before I get her back, but I thought the good set-up would get as much out of her as possible.
Congratulations Kristi! You are better disciplined that I am. I would have waited until next Monday before taking it to the technician. I would go nuts going through a holiday waiting for it!
Thanks, Tony! I just got back from the music store. The fella that looked at my mandolin has been doing set-ups forever..that's why I chose him..and he looked at my mandolin from top to bottom...really looked at her...and he asked me if the seller had said that a "technician" would set her up prior to shipping. I said yes. He told me, and he's been doing this for more than 40 years, that she was set up really well and all I needed to do was tune her up and play her!! He told me that if, for some reason, the intonation wasn't what I wanted it to be, to bring her back, but he told me I should be really happy with it. So..now I will tune her..did buy a new tuner..a Snark SN5..because my cheap little tuner did fine but wouldn't catch the e string consistently. Strings were on sale, too, so I bought two sets. Now, I'm going to find out how to use the tuner and get Minna B. tuned up!
That's great Kristi! Not all technicians are that honest. I bought mine from The Mandolin store and both came setup up already. Have fun!
I'll tell you something, Tony...I know we all take a big risk buying anything at ebay..and a HUGE risk buying something like a musical instrument. Sellers can, and do, tell you anything to get you to bite, and it was a tough search to find someone I felt okay with. I am not an experienced ebay buyer, and I have read boatloads of stuff about people getting screwed over by sellers, and I sure didn't want to be another one of those folks. I finally found the one I used and I knew my mandolin was new, but a B...because of a tiny..and I do mean tiny..scuff on the pickguard..and there is an itty-bitty-bitty mess on the extended part of the fretboard..it's on the inner edge of the thing and doesn't show AT ALL...none of this stuff makes a bit of difference in the way Minna B. sounds. The seller didn't downplay the tiny flaws...but it had to be sold as a B..not an A, because of those things. The seller said the instrument came with a "deluxe hard case". We all know we have our own definition of deluxe...lol..but the case that was shown is the case I got, and it's very, very nice. I have done an inital tune-up on Minna B. and she is resting for a bit, to see how much I lose, then I'll tune her again, and I'm sure she will hold a tune just fine. My new Snark tuner worked very well, and I can also use it on my guitar. I have a great Korg tuner for my guitar, but I think I'll use the Snark, instead. Everyone in here has been SO nice to me...I know I ramble when I get in here..lol...and everyone's patience has been stellar. I'm anxious to get started on this month's tune, but not until Minna B is just the way I want her to be. I really love playing, Minna, too...does anyone in here play more than one of their mandolins everyday..or am I just being a doofus..lol?
YOU R JUST BEIN' A DOOFUS!! Nah, Kristi. If I had two mandos I'm sure I'd be playin ' both of them everyday. I'm pretty much obsessed too. Glad you have your new mando ready to rock! Good deal! Karon
You know, Karon, people think that being a doofus is easy, but it's not!..lol I work hard at being a doofus and practice doofusness on a daily basis. I feel I'm good enough at it that I've considered doing, "So.You Want to be a Doofus?" videos on youtube... Being a good doofus requires consistent practice in order to polish the subleties of doofusness. Many don't realize that doofusness doesn't come to everyone. Some say it's genetic..some say it's something one learns a little at a time. For me, being a doofus came almost naturally. I know..it's a blessing most people just can't possess, and that's a shame, as being a doofus makes life SO much easier! When I make a silly mistake with something, people just shake their heads and mutter, "Geez..what a doofus!", or, "She can't help it..she's such a doofus!". Both of those statements mean that people just don't expect too much of me, so, when I do succeed, it's such an awesome ( and unexpected ) thing that many rejoice that a simple doofus can attain such greatness...LOL...now, I'm a doofus with two mandolins...I'm a double doofus!! Let's just see if anyone else can claim something like that!
