darylcrisp
Jan-26-2015, 7:51pm
i had recently been in contact with NF regarding the A style M they are building in the states-unfortunately at this time the only nut width offered is 1 1/8".
i had been looking for something different vs the tones of the Collings MT and Weber BitterRoot that reside at home. a friend emailed right about the time i got the message from NF regarding the M, and said there was a stellar NF FS5 at Tejonmusic. I like working with Sean and John(son and father)(this is where my amazing Collings MT came from, and its what everything gets compared to). called them up and had it sent my way.
i had previously played two older NF F5's and while good mandolins, neither did it for me.
This one has the wider nut width at 1 3/16", a one piece back, and has a well balanced warm punchy tone. Adi top and i'm not sure of the maple on the back. The fretboard has the "modern" setup with radius and larger fretwire.
A few things i really like about this mandolin:
The feel. I'm a diehard satin body type person, i like the looks and feel of a satin finish.
The tuners(schaller is what is listed) are silky smooth with zero binding and no sense of loading up as you reach tune-they work and hold tune just right.
The tailpiece. This is the best tailpiece i've changed strings on. The posts are angled slightly back, have a small detent area in the back, and the string loop slides easily down and latch onto the post. The strings pull thru each hole easily and handily. It looks good too IMO.
The action came low and buzz free. I adjusted(removed) some relief(comes with a truss rod tool!) and found the truss rod nut area had excellent access for the tool-nut turned smoothly and adjusted instantly).
The build quality is very very near perfect. I consider Collings the top tier in build quality and cleanliness. This NF is just about there. Only a few small finish areas under the elevated fretboard region draws the rating down. The finish thru out the top/back/sides is beautiful and without blemish.
Came with a nice TKL hardshell case.
The mandolin begs to be played. That says a lot right there. You want to have it in hand all the time. The notes are thick and rich, and very clear. And it plays so easy.
Thanks to Peter and team at NF for such a wonderful mandolin.
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07336.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07336.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07332.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07332.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07341.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07341.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07316.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07316.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07314.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07314.jpg.html)
i had been looking for something different vs the tones of the Collings MT and Weber BitterRoot that reside at home. a friend emailed right about the time i got the message from NF regarding the M, and said there was a stellar NF FS5 at Tejonmusic. I like working with Sean and John(son and father)(this is where my amazing Collings MT came from, and its what everything gets compared to). called them up and had it sent my way.
i had previously played two older NF F5's and while good mandolins, neither did it for me.
This one has the wider nut width at 1 3/16", a one piece back, and has a well balanced warm punchy tone. Adi top and i'm not sure of the maple on the back. The fretboard has the "modern" setup with radius and larger fretwire.
A few things i really like about this mandolin:
The feel. I'm a diehard satin body type person, i like the looks and feel of a satin finish.
The tuners(schaller is what is listed) are silky smooth with zero binding and no sense of loading up as you reach tune-they work and hold tune just right.
The tailpiece. This is the best tailpiece i've changed strings on. The posts are angled slightly back, have a small detent area in the back, and the string loop slides easily down and latch onto the post. The strings pull thru each hole easily and handily. It looks good too IMO.
The action came low and buzz free. I adjusted(removed) some relief(comes with a truss rod tool!) and found the truss rod nut area had excellent access for the tool-nut turned smoothly and adjusted instantly).
The build quality is very very near perfect. I consider Collings the top tier in build quality and cleanliness. This NF is just about there. Only a few small finish areas under the elevated fretboard region draws the rating down. The finish thru out the top/back/sides is beautiful and without blemish.
Came with a nice TKL hardshell case.
The mandolin begs to be played. That says a lot right there. You want to have it in hand all the time. The notes are thick and rich, and very clear. And it plays so easy.
Thanks to Peter and team at NF for such a wonderful mandolin.
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07336.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07336.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07332.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07332.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07341.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07341.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07316.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07316.jpg.html)
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/darylcrisp/DSC07314.jpg (http://s299.photobucket.com/user/darylcrisp/media/DSC07314.jpg.html)