Breedloves- fancier= better tone?

[JGWoods]

I like just about everything about my Breedlove Quartz OO model. It has impeccable construction, excellent design, great looks- in a spartan sort of way- and tone and volume that, well, are about 80% of what I hope for in a great mandolin.
Tone is pretty subjective- I'll call it...clear, plain, nice.
I wish it was- more sophisticated, complex, louder for a given attack, and like that.

If I bought an Oregon model, or a Columbia, or other model of the "premier" line would it sound different, or just look different? Are there any owners out there who have moved up the Breedlove line, trading or otherwise going from Quartz series to Premier?

I sure like my mando. I sure would like a fancier one- but I wouldn't do it if it sounded just the same.

[BlueMountain]

I've just sold my Breedlove Quartz KF--not because it wasn't a wonderful mandolin with a distinctive sound, but because I MAS pretty bad right now and have bought six handmade mandolins in the past couple months, and they have to be paid for. First come, first go. Anyway, there's a Breedlove dealer near my house who has the whole range on the walls, and I've played a number of them. Your analysis of the Quartz sound is accurate: clear, plain, nice. My favorite Breedlove is the McKenzie, the top of the line with X-bracing, which goes for $3,500 to $4,000 on the street. It is a magnificent instrument, and --Sophisticated, Complex, Louder-- as you request, fits it well. It is NOT a bluegrass mandolin. It has a wonderfully rich, full, complex, sophisticated sound, not woody, not buzzy. For THAT SOUND, I've never played anything better (but there are lots of other great sounds). Apart from the bracing, binding, finish, inlay, A-level of the stripes, the Quartz and the McKenzie are essentially the same mandolin, made in the same shop by the same people. No reason why the Quartz can't sound just as good as the Oregon or Columbia (which don't have x-bracing).

The McKenzie comes with gold Schaller tuners. I put on gold Grovers (but I'd say put on Schallers, so you don't have to redrill). The McKenzie comes with a cast bronze Monteleone tailpiece. I put one on. HUGE difference in the Quartz. (I'd say, go to FQMS throught the cafe home page and buy, instead, an Allen tailpiece that doesn't require redrilling the holes. I had to redrill the tailpiece holes with the Monteleone style.) Third, I added a ToneGard from Elderly. I also bought a hard maple bridge blank from Tourtelotte and fitted it to the mandolin. Total investment, about $225. Result: MASSIVE increase in richness and complexity of tone, moving the Quartz from a good instrument to a wonderful instrument. Is sound as rich and complex as the x-braced McKenzie? About 90%, maybe, is my estimate. Is it as rich and complex as the other top Breedloves with tone bars. I'd say yes, very hard to tell them apart. By the way, I love the looks of the K shaped Breedloves, but there should be little difference in sound between the O and the K--just easier to build. So I'd say put the effort and expense into souping it up, and I think you will think it a VERY good investment. If you decide to move up, if you describe your mandolin well in an eBay ad and talk about what you did to it and how it improved it, you should be able to get your money back, or at least get what you paid for the instrument new.

[JGWoods]

Well that about answers everything, thanks Bluemountain. I am in favor of tinkering so a tailpiece change might be the next thing to try as per your suggestions.
best
jgwoods

[otterly2k]

jg-
I'd also recommend trying different string sets. I have a Quartz OO also and love the way it sounds with Labella flatwound strings. I also like they way they feel. So whether it's the quality of the strings themselves, or a by-product of the way that the feel of them affects my playing technique... I don't know... but I like 'em. YMMV of course... but different strings certainly feel and sound different and is another variable you can play with relatively inexpensively-- when you find the ones you really like, you'll know it.

[JGWoods]

Otterly did you get the LaBellas from Jazzmando- i.e. Ted? and if no then where?
I think I'll try them and/or some Thomastic mittels, and I put an Allen TP on my Christmas list.
Also the mandolin seems to be opening up a bit, or I am just getting used to playing it. It is louder now than before, and a sweet player for sure.

thanks,
jgwoods

[otterly2k]

I got my LaBellas from someone else who advertised them via the Classifieds (a retailer). There are 3 different flatwound sets... I know TEd carries the jazz ones (and I'm sure they're fine for other styles as well) but I don't know if he carries the others. Of the other two, one of them has a wound A and the other has a steel A. I think International Violin also carries them. If you're not sure whether you'd like flats, you might want to try one of the LaBella sets before springing for the TI's just cuz they're about 1/2 the price. If you do, let us know what you think.

[glauber]

Ted's set is a mix of the 2 Labella sets. I believe it's the "light" set except for the G string, which comes from the "medium" set. Ted's set has a plain (not wound) A.

[RolandTumble]

I posted this elsewhere, but it's topical here, so....

My Vega flat back is very happy wearing TI's, but when I tried them on my Flatiron pancake, the intonation of the A was horribly off, even though the rest of the strings were acceptable. Put on a set of Ted's Labellas, and everything's fine now. May have to do with the wound A in the TI set--if so, I'm glad I didn't get a wound-A Labella set. I love TI's, but I'm also very pleased with this set of Labellas, especially given the price difference....

[JGWoods]

I ordered the flatwound LaBellas from Juststrings- backordered for now- looking forward to trying them.
Also ordered an Allen A-2 tailpiece and a Husky Acoustics ebony/ivory bridge saddle for the Breedlove Quartz OO so I have a number of avenues to explore soon. I hope I can keep to one change at a time and not get carried away.
thanks for all the advice- I'll report back
best
jgwoods

[hip]

I have a Quartz OO and love it, but it is definitely a couch mando. I tried to put Schallers on but had a problem. All the holes lined up except one end. Since I wasn't having any problems with the original tuners, I decide it wasn't worth breaking out the drill and just left them.

Installing a Allen tailpiece went alot better and a holes lined up. Well one is about a millimeter off, but again not worth redrilling. And I'm very happy with the results.

One thing I am curious about is the FOTW website has a Mystic West tailpiece that claims to be "designed to fit the unique screw pattern of all Breedloves", anyone know what that's all about?

[jasona]

I've found the Quartzes to be somewhat hit or miss for me--perhaps old strings, sitting around in the shop, whatever. The Cascades do definitely seem to be a step up--all were good, and a couple outstanding. I've never played a top of the line Breedlove.

[JGWoods]

Well I made the first change to my Breedlove Quartz OO.
I changed the bridge saddle out and put in a Husky Acoustics fossilized walrus tusk and ebony saddle.
It went ok as swaps go- Husky sent me the saddle drilled 1/8" and this Breedlove has 9/64 posts so I had to hog out the holes a bit which went ok using a small Starret machinists rattail file.
I can tell there is an improvement. Kurt at Husky says wait 3 days before you evaluate but I can already tell it has a little more clarity and note definition- i.e. it is a little less muddy, also a little louder I think.

I recorded the original set up. Now I am going to record after each change so I can see how far I have come in changing for the better. So far so good I think. I made the saddle change without removing the strings- just loosened them, so I can re-record with only one change- same strings, pick, tune, different bridge saddle.

that's all for now