J. bovier f5

[DMosher]

I just got my new J Bovier F5 Tradition today from Jeff at Mandolins & More, and I could not be more pleased! #Jeff took the time to ask me exactly what I wanted, and it came set up perfectly for me, right out of the box. #He sent it in a Travelite case, and I was absolutely amazed -- I opened it up and it was in perfect tune. #

I had done a lot of research, much of it on this website, and I thank you all for the help.

I was able to play a few Eastmans, and I liked them, but the neck seemed a tad bit "thick" to me. #After hearing about J Bovier, reading all those various threads, a couple email inquiries, and then talking to Jeff, I decided to go with this, and I am very glad that I did.

I know I have a long way to go acquiring the skills I'll need to play it, but I know that this mandolin will take me there. #I almost feel like I could be a marine: #"This is my mandolin. #There are many like it, but this one is mine. #My mandolin is my best friend. #It is my life. #I must master it as I must master my life. #Without me, my mandolin is useless. #Without my mandolin I am useless..."

One other viepoint (my wife's): #She would be inclined to say I'm useless WITH it. #She hates MAS... #Thank goodness (and J Bovier) that mine is cured for the time being.

[DryBones]

welcome to the club. what brand should we move to next? #Already been to MK,Mid-Mo and Eastman. probably should do a custom built someday.

[USCGMandolin]

I'm with you man! I got a Fender for Christmas and instantly got MAS, then bought a J. Bovier Vine and have been ecstatic with it. Over the last five months it has really blossomed. I pick-up the Fender every once in a while and can hardly believe I once thought it was a great instrument. I performed at an event for the first time last Friday and received numerous compliments about its sound and looks.

Matt

[manicmando]

im going to look at a couple a5's tommarrow i have a Eastman 615 sounds great but the fret wire is too thin i like to be different so i want a nice A mando, usally the guy at the local jams playing an A is the beginer i want to be the guy ripping on the A not an F ill let you know what i get

[DryBones]

A5 or A4? thought you were looking for an oval hole?

[manicmando]

i am but if im buying a mandolin that nice its going to have f holes ill play it three times as much as a O hole mando i still want a O hole but more less just to have ... crazy i know

[DryBones]

not crazy at all. I have been thinking of trying a JB A4 too. Don't tell my wife I said that!

[manicmando]

ha i havent told my wife either its easier to ask forgiveness than permission

[weleetkaoutlaws]

Preach it! I'm still diggin' my F5-Vine. It has opened up nicely over the past six months. As far as bang for buck, I don't know if you can beat it.

[piknleft]

Has anyone offered up a soundclip of their Bovier? Sure like to hear one. Thanks, Mike

[DryBones]

well that would mean I would have to know how to play it!

[Mordred]

I really like the J. Bovier's too. #I tried them all at the Bean Blossom festival in Indiana last Sept. #I did notice one thing about them. #The gloss finish mandos were much louder than the satin finish ones. Huge difference. Also, every mando sounded different. #Not just subtle differences...a lot of difference...so much so that even my tone def mother could tell a difference. I highly suggest that if you are going to get one of these mandos, that you get it in person so you can get the right one.
I'm getting the F5 Dorado (gloss) in Jan.!

[Rick Cadger]

I'm waiting for a JBovier octave mando to come out!

My Tradition has been thrashed over the last few weeks - except for last week when I went to Ireland for a holiday. I took the Gloucester for sessions there! The Bovier will benefit from some customisation I have in mind, but it's a fine mando for a great price.

I have a Cumberland bridge on order from Steve as I want the spacing of the pairs of strings in each course a bit closer. I'm also in the process of hacking a new bone nut for it. Again, mostly to get the string spacing exactly as I like it.

I may actually thin the gloss finish on mine to see how it affects the tone. It looks a little thicker than the finish on the Gloucester, so I'm thinking of attacking it (gently) with steel wool.

That's the joy of a good, inexpensive mando. You can tweak and experiment without too much terror.

[trevor]

Octave mandos, and dolas, bouzoukis and 'folk' mandolin due soon. I will be having TAMCO versions in different woods... I will be away from Sat for two weeks so updates from me after that.

[Rick Cadger]

Any hint on pricing, Trevor?

[trevor]

Very approximately £450 - £650, octaves £500 - £600 ish...

[Rick Cadger]

Ta

[Kbone]

I just got my new J Bovier F5 Tradition today from Jeff at Mandolins & More, and I could not be more pleased! #Jeff took the time to ask me exactly what I wanted, and it came set up perfectly for me, right out of the box. #He sent it in a Travelite case, and I was absolutely amazed -- I opened it up and it was in perfect tune. #

I had done a lot of research, much of it on this website, and I thank you all for the help.

I was able to play a few Eastmans, and I liked them, but the neck seemed a tad bit "thick" to me. #After hearing about J Bovier, reading all those various threads, a couple email inquiries, and then talking to Jeff, I decided to go with this, and I am very glad that I did.

I know I have a long way to go acquiring the skills I'll need to play it, but I know that this mandolin will take me there. #I almost feel like I could be a marine: #"This is my mandolin. #There are many like it, but this one is mine. #My mandolin is my best friend. #It is my life. #I must master it as I must master my life. #Without me, my mandolin is useless. #Without my mandolin I am useless..."

One other viepoint (my wife's): #She would be inclined to say I'm useless WITH it. #She hates MAS... #Thank goodness (and J Bovier) that mine is cured for the time being.

Ditto, received mine today & the best $800 I've ever spent. These mandos are the real deal, & like others have said, Jeff at ' Mandolins & More" is great to deal with & a great set up to boot.

[JTMartin]

Does anyone know where you can see pics of J Bovier mandos for sale? The link from Mandolins and more just directs you to J bovier website and they don't even show pics of the backs. Plan to buy an Eastman soon but leaving my options open.

[homeslice]

I'd love to hear a clip also if anyone has one. I've read so much positive stuff about these that my curiosity is peaked. The ones I've seen (in pictures) all look really good to. Don't be shy folks......

[Rick Cadger]

This may horrify some...

I got a gloss Bovier from Trevor. I liked it from the start, with a bit of a tweak to the set-up which had gone a bit skewiff in transit, it was pretty loud (which was what I needed most of all at the time), and sounded great for a cheapie. Well, being a bit of a tinkerer, and noticing that the finish seemed a tad thick around the f holes, I took some sandpaper to my Tradition, back and top, and took the finish down pretty thin then buffed back to semi-gloss.

The mando has had an hour or two playing every day since I got it, and has been played hard at sessions and a few acoustic gigs. This thing is sounding really good now. I'm almost sorry to say that as it improves with playing (and probably due partly to the finish sanding) it now leaves my beloved Fullerton Gloucester some way behind, and it loves J75 strings too - which lets me get some real oomph out of it.

One thing I will say, I wish the Bovier sounded its best straight out of the case, but it seems to doze off a bit even in the space of a day, and it can take half an hour to start firing on all cylinders. Also, the tuner shafts and gears are in a different over/under arrangement from the Fullerton and, although the tuners are fine, I don't find that that arrangement works quite as smoothly.

A fantastic value mando though, and like many of the cheapies, gets better with a bit of DIY.

[Kbone]

Does anyone know where you can see pics of J Bovier mandos for sale? The link from Mandolins and more just directs you to J bovier website and they don't even show pics of the backs. Plan to buy an Eastman soon but leaving my options open.

Just call Jeff at ' Mandolins & More" and he'll send you pics as he did for me. He also picked out a good one for me and played some over the phone. This BTW is *not* a cheapo mandolin, just in price - It has potential written all over it.

[Austin Koerner]

I also have a Jbovier tradition, it's great. One of the loudest mandolins I've ever played, and the tone is good also. Jeff is great to deal with.

I might be able to post a sound clip, but I'm not sure