Taming a very bright mandolin

[Al Haley]

Hi mandopickers,
I've had a Sawchyn A-5 for the past 12 years. It's a beauty. However, I finally have to admit it's too bright for my taste. I use heavy Wegen picks and heavy strings (Newtones or J75s) to try to tame the treble. I pick around the 15th fret and hit the strings with the flattest part of the pick.
It's still too bright. I'm looking for a warmer tone, with less snap.
Any thoughts? Is there a different direction I can go with strings?
Thanks,
Al

[Andy Miller]

You could try some flatwound strings, but that would only affect the wound strings.

[Randi Gormley]

Thomastiks are a less bright brand of strings. They're expensive, but it's a thought.

[dan in va]

Here's what's worked for me:

* firm grip on pick with realxed wrist
* Pro Plec trianular 1.5mm
* Golden Gate with blunt tip reshaped like the Pro Plec triangular

The above with the J75's oughta do the trick. Otherwise, it might be as you say...a bright mandolin. Hope something good works out for you....dan

[Steve Ostrander]

Al,
I tried Elixir strings on my MT and don't like them because they had no brightness in the unwound strings. They don't work for me, but might be what you are looking for. They're kind of expensive but last a long time.

[pops1]

If you have played it for 12 years you might consider having the bridge refit. If the fit is not good it will be brighter and thinner. With age the top will settle in and having the bridge refit will help. I have had one mandolin that i did not like the sound of the G string and refit the bridge to no avail, and finally sold it, before i let it go i decided to make a new saddle as i had inlayed bone for the G string to brighten it up. When i made the new saddle the mandolin sounded GREAT unfortunately it was sold. Sometimes the wood will make a difference. Good luck, but strings are basically the same in the plain strings with nearly all brands.

[walt33]

I always thought my Kentucky was too bright, but I think it sounds better with Gibson Sam Bush monel strings. And a heavy pick.

[Fretbear]

GHS Silk and Bronze

[Brent Hutto]

I'm with the comment that pointed out the treble strings are the same in every set...plain steel. If the A and E strings are too bright you can make a little second-order difference in sympathetic vibration by changing the wound strings but basically, strings ain't gonna fix that.

If you can't do it with strings, you've done the best you can with picks and picking technique that leaves the mandolin itself and the bridge as about 99.9% of what remains for you to change, brightness-wise. Have you considered going to a lighter/heavier/different bridge entirely?

[mandolirius]

Sawchyn's, in my experience, are bright-sounding mandolins. Every one I've played has had that characteristic. I think they must be voiced that way. Check out Jesse Zubot of Zubot & Dawson. His has the typical Sawchyn sound.

[jasona]

Getting an oval hole mandolin would fix your problem, if all else fails.

[JeffD]

I find the Red Bear Tortis (Style C Heavy with speed bevel) picks darken and mellow the sound quite well, as does the Blue Chip (TAD 60). My third go to pick is the Wegen TF140. It is the brightest of the bunch however.

[Mattg]

Yup, Wegen's are generally too bright for my taste. I second the idea of using a Proplec, Dawg, or Golden Gate. Very cheap and quick experiment. If you are still not satisfied, then try the string suggestions.

[Willie Poole]

Al, there has been some discussion on this and one fellow covered most or all of the treble side F hole to cut down on the shrillness of his mandolin, there was some pic posted of this on the Cafe back a few months ago....I have tried this on one of my mandolins that seemed to be shrill but I only covered the largest round part of the F hole and it did make a difference so I now have it covered permently....I also find that by striking the strings closer to the fret board tends to take the shrillness out of a mandolin, in other words play farther away from the bridge....If the mandolin don`t have it there isn`t too much you can do to get that desired tone....I have also found that mandolins do change the more they are played, I assume the wood "opens" up and allows more vibration and that will change the tone so play the heck out of it and play it hard, don`t baby it....Good luck.....Willie

[i-vibe]

another pick recommendation...John Pearse Rosewood Sarod picks.

[Cheryl Watson]

I second the GHS silk and bronze and the Elixers. For a mellower tone I LOVE the thick ivoroid picks--I think Greg Boyd still sells them.

[George R. Lane]

Al,
If you can put up with a very slight loss in volume go with the TI heavies. Both of my Webers always seemed to bright for me and the TI's took care of the brightness. They now have a very deep woody soundm which is perfect for my playing. I occasionally play with a group jam at local nursing homes so volume is all that neccessary.

[Canadian Dave]

Striking the strings on a 30 degree angle or so , will take some of the "zing" from the tone. The pick in line with the string will give a much harsher tone.