Alden mandocaster v epi mando bird

[Cliff D]

Hi - new kid to the cafe. Am UK based guitarist who purchased a Crafter Ovation type copy a year back -love it (except 4 the difference in course response volumes when amplified!). Have vintage Marshall & think an electric mando would sound gorgeous. At the cheapo end of the electric market the choice seems to be between the Alden Mandocaster (through Amazon)or the Epi Mandobird. Could those who have experienced either of these types advise?

[jefflester]

Here's one direct comparison (the Eastwood is the same as the Alden).

[Cliff D]

Noted, but could you spell out for me why/how Alden = Eastwood? Interestingly the Alden seems cheaper than the Mandobird, although I have tracked down only one European supplier of each (Thomann for the Mandobird, Amazon for the Alden). Since initially posting this I have watched some Eastwoods being played on U Tube, & they do look identical to the Aldens. The demonstrator made a decent job of playing one & the sound is what I'm after (as much as u can tell from an MP3 clip!), although the intonation sounded a little out further on up the neck. The criticisms of the Eastwood largely seem to be of the initial set up, rather than
sound, playability etc & I have yet to purchase a stringed instrument that has not needed a little "tweaking".

[jefflester]

I don't know if we've actually seen anything official about Alden=Eastwood, but it certainly just looks like a re-branding of the same instrument for the UK/European market. No doubt they're made in the same factory in Asia somewhere.

Alden colors topic
emando Alden entry
Eastwood site

[Cliff D]

Sir, I thank you for your endeavors, & my own researches reach almost the same conclusion, however, I am something of a nit picker when it comes to detail. The scale of the Alden is given as 348cm, whereas the Eastwood is 14" (ie approx 356cm). What also is very different is the price for the UK, this is circa £160.00 plus £13.00 delivery as against £300 & free delivery for the Eastwood (The Mando bird 8 comes in at circa 200.00!).

Oh, colours presently are black, off white, tobacco sunburst, translucent blue & Tennessee orange!

[Martin Jonas]

That's 300 Dollars for the Eastwood, not Pounds. Thus, the price for the Eastwood mandocaster in the US is more or less the same as for the Alden in the UK.

Martin

[jefflester]

The scale of the Alden is given as 348cm, whereas the Eastwood is 14" (ie approx 356cm).

You been reading this thread ? #

[Cliff D]

Martin, I've just checked again, & the price of the Eastwood is quoted as £299.00, definitely sterling, although I have only seen the price quoted by one vendor on line. I do not dispute the Eastwoods may be on sale for less in the states!

As for the scale lengths, yes, I am an idiot, that should be 34.8 cm and 35.6 cm. I see little escapes your attention Jeff.('')

I have another more general question which I tried to post under misc, but the system prevented me: why do mando fret boards have a marker dot behind the 10th fret & not the 9th like a guitar?

[Martin Jonas]

Cliff: I was referring to the link for the Eastwood posted by jefflester above. #If you follow that link, you'll see a price of $299 quoted. #If you have found a UK vendor quoting 299 Pounds for the Eastwood, that would be fairly unsurprising as the Eastwood is not "officially" distributed in the UK -- the UK market is covered by Alden. #I really don't think there is any significant difference between these, except that Alden asked the Chinese makers for a different colour range than Eastwood. As an aside, the Alden is available from a wide range of UK vendors, including several always listed on Ebay.

About fretmarkers: no particular reason, just tradition. #The mandolin family evolved parallel to the guitar, not after it, and mandolin makers settled on a different consensus that guitar makers.

Martin

[Cliff D]

Thank you for that. well it looks like I will risk ordering the Alden (the tobacco sunburst flavour - if I have to sell it will probably shift more easily).

You may feel I am perverse in favouring this for trial over the Mandobird, but my reasoning is as follows:

1) Shape is more ergonomic/player friendly than the mandobird.

2) Dual pick ups should give a little more variation in tone.
The main amplifier I have is similar to an old Vox AC30, so it gives a subtle distortion largely from the power amp valves & the neck pick up should suit this best (it also has the vintage tremolo featured in the Eastwood demonstration).

I will continue to post as things pan out, if folk consider it to be of value.

[Ted Eschliman]

I don't know if I'd agree that the Mandobird isn't ergonomic. I also think it has a lot of sonic potential, too.

[Cliff D]

Thank you for the demo - not quite my type of music, but I admire the fluidity & skill of the playing. The four string sound does not personally hit the spot for me (I fear I would resort to a guitar if I were to attempt a similar piece!) & for the present it is definitely an 8 string that I covet. I note the position of the pickup on the Mandobird near the neck, & possibly it could be played reasonably comfortably when seated - though it still looks a little awkward & poorly balanced. Would that when I last trawled London's Denmark St music stores there were some of these instruments for me to have a noodle with & find out for myself, but not a single solid bodied mando did I find.

[Jim MacDaniel]

Hi Cliff,

I previously confirmed off-line with Alden USA that the Alden and Eastwood are importing the same instrument, they just branded differently -- that plus Alden offers more interesting colors IMHO. That said, you should be able to read all of the reviews on the Eastwood here in the forums, and apply them to the Alden. (I suspect that the difference in measurements you noted are conversion errors in the descriptions, rather than actual differences in their scales.)

Also, I just found a few youtube vids featuring the Eastwood, which should give you a feel for their sound: http://youtube.com/results....h_type=

BTW, for those in the states, Alden USA plans to import the Seafoam green and Butterscotch colors eventually.

[Cliff D]

Thanks Jim: I have viewed these demos, & top of the list one has somewhat swayed me towards taking a chance on the Alden.

[Jim MacDaniel]

Hi CLiff -- there is some detailed firsthand feedback from thistle3585 in this thread that may prove helpful.

[thistle3585]

The pickups are the same and too close together to get any sound variance with the switch. You have three options. 1) Change one of the pickups, 2) use a switch that changes one to out of phase or 3) solder a resistor in line with one of the pickups.

[LesTele]

Cliff D

Re price of Mandobird VIII. I picked one up in Glasgow for £169.00.

The shop, Guitar Guitar, does mail order.

http://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/mandolins.asp

I am very happy with the Epi and have no weak e string issues. I am using it through a Fender Champion 600 with occasional #Marshall Boost/Distortion Pedal (Bluesbreaker II).

[Cliff D]

Thank you Les very much for the link - Glasgow seems more mando orientated than London!

I note that you are happy to use a distortion pedal with your mandobird. not sure I will be going quite that far, but it is very interesting to encounter all the different perspectives folk have around the whole subject.

My sincere thanks to every one who has posted to date.



Cliff

[Christian McKee]

Heheh, "quite that far..." I won't bother counting effects beyond distortion that I use on my mandolin, for fear of alarming you . Effects are a *ton* of fun, and learning to use them well, in a musically appropriate manner can be just as fun as learning to play an instrument.

Christian

[Cliff D]

Ah, if mandolin were my first instrument then I would possibly be heading off down that road! To my ear having too much distortion on a mandolin makes it sound like an electric guitar, & I have a few guitars with which I can produce distorted wails already.

You have probably come across all the debates as to what constitutes "good" distortion, & I see little point in my attempting to unpack that tub here.

For me the mandolin has a delicate quality that I suspect may benefit from a bit of edge & sustain which is the territory I hope to be shortly exploring for myself.

I fully agree effects are indeed a lot of fun & a dollop of chorus/delay/reverb can spice things up a bit, but the trade off is you loose something in the delivery: that vibrato technique that you have maybe spent years developing can soon be lost in the sonic effects maze, & you cannot hear what you are doing so easily. I need to be listening to my intonation pretty much the whole of the time when I'm playing a stringed instrument (particularly say violin)& if the level of effects masks things too much my playing suffers. So that's just where I find myself at the moment!

[Cliff D]

Well, now have the Alden/Eastwood. Sounds great thru my Marshall 1974x, but I did run foul of one bug others have commented on. On initially setting up, I found the G course a tad sharp vis a vis the other courses. When I inspected the bridge I noted that the greater amount of compensation distance was on the treble side. After dissembling, rotating & re-fixing all is now spot on. I speculate that quality control may be missing a trick here. I have now drilled out the holes at the tail-piece to allow more lateral movement of the adjuster screws: this has fully nailed the bug of the string courses sliding off to bass side when the bridge is angled (for correct intonation). A shame to have to take a power tool to a new instrument, & the mandobird bridge setup has to be superior.

Sounds gorgeous when played with a slide: I may buy another, & optimize it for slide playing.

The scale is dead on 14" measuring the G course!