Tuning Problems on New Mandolin

[allenhopkins]

Kudos to John H for his modest and understanding post.

It's a "brand new" mandolin, with bugs that need to be worked out. The builder has some obligation to diagnose the problem and try to fix it. The owner might be well-advised to learn as much as possible about troubleshooting mandolin set-ups, assuming that (s)he will be owning it for the long term, not wanting to have to take it back to it's builder every time a tweak is needed.

Remember, diagnosing possible set-up and/or construction issues by reading posts on a computer screen, is an iffy proposition. Could be a buncha things we don't know or are missing. IMHO next stop should be at the builder's.

[Ron McMillan]

It strikes me that there might be two sides to the tale, neither of which reflects well on the builder. In one, he/she isn't capable of doing a good set-up (in which case I question the wisdom of ever sending any building work their way - though of course we often find such things out after it is too late); and in the other, he/she isn't bothered enough about the quality of their work that bears their name - so sends it out when it still has glaring shortcomings. From what other experts say here, the first case is certainly credible, and I know from personal experience that sadly, the second most definitely does occur.

[bart mcneil]

.. double post...

[bart mcneil]

i kind of don't agree that set up is personal. My objection is that when I buy a mando I want it playable and able to play up the neck without it going sharp or flat and without getting blisters on my fingertips from too high an action. Of course some like a higher action or low action but so many instruments are sold out of the box with ridiculously high action that they really ought to have a warning label. As a naive beginner i bought a $500 instrument after being told on the phone it was set up for playing. Within a week my fingertips were so sore they were bleeding. The instrument was totally un-set up and I realized that thousands of buyers were getting these on the assumption that they are playable. Instead of a bargain they were getting screwed by the seller. A basic set up costs roughly $50 to $70. Either you pay for it in the original price from a dealer, or you pay for it yourself after buying it from a discount seller, but pay for it you will. Beginners should know this, but most don't.

[High Lonesome Valley]

If you are building the instrument it should be playable. Since that is the intention of instrument unless you have bought it and intended not to play it, which is highly unlikely. I don't think it should leave the luthiers if it cant stay in tune. He should offer to have it setup and I think the luthier should make the choice of the setup person.

Just my 2 cents worth

I never played a new Martin guitar that was set up properly. Really. And I've played hundreds, if not more than a thousand.

When I worked retail, the owner asked me to setup the new guitars, MIA Fenders, Martins, Gibsons, both acoustic and electric.

The first thing I recommend for anyone who has bought a new instrument is to take it to a setup specialist.

[Tavy]

i kind of don't agree that set up is personal. My objection is that when I buy a mando I want it playable and able to play up the neck without it going sharp or flat and without getting blisters on my fingertips from too high an action. Of course some like a higher action or low action but so many instruments are sold out of the box with ridiculously high action that they really ought to have a warning label. As a naive beginner i bought a $500 instrument after being told on the phone it was set up for playing. Within a week my fingertips were so sore they were bleeding. The instrument was totally un-set up and I realized that thousands of buyers were getting these on the assumption that they are playable. Instead of a bargain they were getting screwed by the seller. A basic set up costs roughly $50 to $70. Either you pay for it in the original price from a dealer, or you pay for it yourself after buying it from a discount seller, but pay for it you will. Beginners should know this, but most don't.

You also often see mandolins for sale advertised with "a low easy action of X" where "X" is some crazy high number, like 3 or 4mm. Acceptible on a cheese slicer, not on a mandolin. I can only presume these folks have never seen a properly set up instrument!

[Ivan Kelsall]

It does give one pause for thought that some builders can't set up their own instruments to make it easily tuneable & playable.You'd really expect them to be THE person who could set them up - apparently not,so praise the Good Lord for those who can,
Ivan

[bart mcneil]

.... on second thought.....

[Pete Jenner]

...thought is good... second thought is twice as good...

[bart mcneil]

???Huh???

[High Lonesome Valley]

It does give one pause for thought that some builders can't set up their own instruments to make it easily tuneable & playable.You'd really expect them to be THE person who could set them up - apparently not,so praise the Good Lord for those who can,
Ivan

Back to my well-worn example of the old hill folk from North Carolina.

Higher setup is just fine for them. I'm talking about those fantastic players that have been able to burn us all since they were knee high. They substitute guy wire for strings and scoff at the idea of "setup".

Selling a production instrument to THEM setup like WE want it would require a new nut and higher bridge/saddle, etc.

So I think it's fairly kosher for production makers to have a higher setup from the outset. Err on the side of caution and all that.

Now, I'm sure any maker wouldn't mind sitting down with us personally and customizing setup for, let's say $250, which their time per 1/2 hour is probably worth.

[Folkmusician.com]

If setup is something a builder does not do a lot of, being good at it would be the exception rather than the rule. Obviously, most of the elite builders are good at setup, but once you get out of that pool of top builders, setup quality can be all over the place.

I picked up on setup fairly quick and it still took a few hundred setups to be just ok at it. It took thousands to be good and into the tens of thousands I am still improving. I agree that it is a different skill set than carving, graduating, finishing, etc...