View Full Version : Who has tried?
banjo1
Dec-23-2005, 6:01am
I just ran across his web site and saw that Mr. Perry do a voicing job on mandolins.
Has any body have any experience with this type of work?
He did the process on both of my Eastmans and while I didn't play them before the process, they sure sound nice. You might want to call Steve and ask about it. He's a real nice guy...Maybe others could chime in on the specfics of the process, but since Steve is the one who does it...
Golman8
Dec-23-2005, 10:14am
Steve did his magic on my new Eastman 915 and I am sold on his prcess! It arrived sounding great! I think you would be pleased. He obivously has a great understanding of what it takes to get the maximum from a mandooin. I think he can also "tweak it" to your taste to some degree. G.B.
mythicfish
Dec-23-2005, 10:48am
Steve shared some information concerning the "shaving" of tone bars. I tried it on a ten year old mandolin
and got positive results in both tone and volume.
Curt
johnwalser
Dec-23-2005, 11:12am
I recently had Steve's expert assistance with an instrument and have started the "Steve Perry Fan Club". Money spent with Steve is certainly more cost effective that dumping an instrument and buying the next step up (which is probably what your present instrument would sound like after he takes in through his shop process).
John
gnelson651
Dec-23-2005, 11:52am
I'm hoping to save up enough money to send my MK Legacy Deluxe to Steve for his voodoo magic. I would like to salvage this instrument in that it I bought it when Musicians Friend sold them for $299. I hate to sell it since I doubt I would get another chance at getting an F style for this price. #Right now, I am not impress with the MK sound.
I figure, even if I spent the money for Voodoo, it would be less than the $699 price that MF now wants for the MK Legacy. If it doesn't work, I could still get my money back with a little more besides by selling it.
mandolinconspiracy
Dec-23-2005, 11:58am
Add me to the list of the Steve Perry fan club. Recently purchased an Eastman 515 from him,after a long telephone conversation...He knows his mandolins (and violins too of course)Steve: Do that mandovoodoo, that you do, so well.
Charlie
2005 Eastman 515 (on the way)
steve in tampa
Dec-23-2005, 12:24pm
Sounds like a lot of thumbs up for the Eastmans purchased with the treatment. What if I sent in a what I think is good sounding Gibson or MK? Like to hear from those with that kind of experience.
banjo1
Dec-23-2005, 2:41pm
Steve wrote me off and said most mandolin were voiced by him before that owner recieved the mandolin. So most do not get a chance to hear the mandolin before.
All folks seem to be very happy with the after though.
More testamonies please
Merry Christmas
banjo1
Dec-23-2005, 2:42pm
I meant to say that Steve wrote me via-email:p
JEStanek
Dec-23-2005, 3:02pm
I'm a fan. He builds nice violins and applies those skills to the mandos very well. My mando was set up by him (Voodooed before he named it such)before I played it. Between the knowledge he shares here, and my satisfaction with my mandolin I definately would recomend sending him a mando to look over and set up.
Jamie
Jason Kessler
Dec-23-2005, 3:34pm
I'm afraid I, too, bought my Eastman direct from Steve, so it arrived with the VoodooŽ already done. Thus, I can't provide you with a good "before-and-after" comparison. I will say that the instrument arrived perfectly set up, and that I have not even a glimmer of a complaint. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif
bluegrassjack2
Dec-23-2005, 4:05pm
Hey banjo1, What is Mr. Perry's email adr and where is he located.
Thanks
banjo1
Dec-23-2005, 4:09pm
Here ya go
www.gianniviolin.com or www.gianniviolins.com I think
bluegrassjack2
Dec-23-2005, 4:40pm
Hmm, neither of those seemed to work. Hope I did it right.
bluegrassjack2
Dec-23-2005, 4:45pm
I found it - http://www.giannaviolins.com/
EastmanGordon
Dec-23-2005, 4:52pm
It's giannaviolins.com with an A.
You should give him a call though, it's easier, and you just might get the chance to talk with the lovely Gianna (Steve's wife)if she answers the phone. 865-986-9966
I was honestly quite skeptical when Steve first told me about this process however, I have seen him do his magic many times and it's amazing. He was with us at the booth at IBMA and there was a steady stream of mando players turning up to shake his hand and thank him for the work he did on their instruments. He is the real thing. Now if I could only get him to tell me exactly what he does and how he does it.........
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
Gordon
Stephen Perry
Dec-23-2005, 11:06pm
steve@giannaviolins.com Blush.
banjo1
Dec-24-2005, 12:21am
Sorry for the type OOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Steve.Thats what I get for typing in the dark.
banjo1
Dec-24-2005, 12:24am
Hey Steve .............What the turn around time for a complete mandovoodoo job?
My mandos great but if it can be better, Im a thinkin.
Stephen Perry
Dec-24-2005, 12:25am
Couple of days.
metalmandolin
Dec-24-2005, 10:44am
Hi,
Steve "voodooed" my Eastman 815 and 615. I believe my 615 may have been one of his first. The guy knows so much about violins that mandolins have just come natural to him. He's kind of like the mandolin "whisperer"!
As far as I can tell, his technique improves any mando, but especially the ones that have any amount of potential. He pulls out more of what's there, and is able to bring balance between highs, mids, and lows.
He has a Morgan Monroe (some kind of A model) that he did this to. It is still not really loud, but I loved the tone when he finished it. I know of Webers he has opened up also.
Some will be skeptical, but hey, if you like your mandolin the way it is, your battle is over..mandovoodoo is for everyone else. I can't wait to get my 814 to him soon.
Merry Christmas!!!
Richard Russell
Dec-24-2005, 12:15pm
I have often wondered how the process might improve an already good sounding mandolin. #For example, Flatirons, Gibsons and others. #Maybe they are "tweaked" better at the factory, maybe not. #I'm always open to tone enhancements!
banjo1
Dec-24-2005, 6:10pm
If you read on Steve's web site about the process that he does to get all there is in a mandolin, out, you will see that knowone does this kind of tweeking to a mandolin.Thats just the parts of the mandovoodoo that Steve is willing to share.:;):
red7flag
Dec-27-2005, 12:12pm
I took my Weber Bitterroot to Steve to replace the Brekke with a Cumberland Accoustics bridge and do his voodoo thing. When I got home, I was not sure I did the right thing and it sounded kind of dead. After about a week of playing it "woke up". I think the bridge needed to settle in and get some vibrations into it. Now the Bitterroot sounds better than it ever did and by a lot. The tone has filled out, yet still has a sweet tone. Steve did a great job. I went to the shop and had a great day with Steve and his family. I watched him do some of his "voodoo" and be danged if I could tell you what he did. I will tell you this, when I get my new Pomeroy, I will take another trip to Friendville and have him voodoo it.
Tony
bluegrassjack2
Dec-31-2005, 7:26am
I sent Steve an email about working on my mandolin and he talked like he was covered up and gave me the name of another place/person to send it to. I need frets and new bridge too.
Stephen Perry
Dec-31-2005, 9:15am
That's right. The work I usually do on mandolins is new mandolin setup and acoustic work. I'm all set up for that. Replacing frets takes getting a different work area set up, getting the right frets if I don't have them, and so on. An entirely different job that generally takes me longer to get to, in a work area currently filled with several custom violins. I like to give a 2 day turnaround on mandolins, which isn't going to happen on a refret when I'm covered up with violins.
However, I'll accept a refret, new bridge type job if you'll be willing to wait until I can get it done efficiently. No big deal. Send the mandolin, I'll get it back to you when I can!
Jim Garber
Dec-31-2005, 11:39am
Here's another strange question... Can you (or would you) apply these set up techniques to bowlbacks? I know they are applicable to carved instruments but would they work on flat topped ones?
Jim
Stephen Perry
Dec-31-2005, 5:54pm
Hmm. I have some idea how this would be done, but haven't tested it. No charge if it doesn't work.
montgomeryi
Jan-07-2006, 8:27pm
Steve, is it better to have a mando that's "come into its own" before sending it to you. I guess I can answer that question myself since you do this to brand new Eastmans, but was just curious if age of the mando affects the job you end up doing. Or, in your opinion is the whole concept of mandolins sort of "breaking in" a bunch of malarkee?
Stephen Perry
Jan-08-2006, 7:01am
Mandolins break in. Working on them after some break in seems more effective to me. As does retweeking them every once and a while. But I'm always retweeking everything!
newblue
Jan-09-2006, 3:11pm
OK question no one has asked, but everyone is thinking. price for this magic?
also does this require removing the top of the mandolin?
Jim Garber
Jan-09-2006, 3:55pm
OK question no one has asked, but everyone is thinking. price for this magic?
also does this require removing the top of the mandolin?
The price is on this page (http://www.mandovoodoo.com/):
Optimized performance for mandolins
through subtle acoustic blueprinting.
$100
100% guarantee
Jim
Stephen Perry
Jan-09-2006, 4:59pm
OK question no one has asked, but everyone is thinking. price for this magic?
also does this require removing the top of the mandolin?
No removal of top, back, or any other components!
Looks like most (all?) of the testamonials in this thread so far have be regarding f hole instruments. As the owner of an Oval hole, I'm wondering if there are any Oval owners with mandovoodoo experiences to share?
Steve, would you say the voodoo process is neting you equally good results on Oval hole instruments, or does the difference in bracing, and how you work with scraping, leave more room for improvement on the F hole instruments? I'd be curious to know if you've voodood any Breedlove Quartz OO's specifically, and how you felt about the results.
Thanks.
Stephen Perry
Feb-12-2006, 2:59pm
I routinely do oval hole instruments. Cleans up the tone nicely, usually sweetens the tone a bit. I've done parallel and X braced ovals without noticing any trouble.
I've only gone through one Breedlove, an F hole model. It improved, not as strikingly as some instruments, but pretty obvious.
Kevin Briggs
Feb-13-2006, 5:15pm
I'm sure the voodoo does good things to instruments, because Steve is well-respected, and stuff would fly if it was a crock.
Just make sure you check with STE before sending Weber's, only because they are great to work with and will do a lot to make sure you get the tone you want. Seems like a logical step to me.
red7flag
Feb-13-2006, 6:15pm
He did great things to my Bitterroot Custom. The sound is sweeter and fuller. I stand by Steve.
Tony
Kevin Briggs
Feb-13-2006, 7:31pm
Oh, sure. I believe Steve is a qualified individual who knows his stuff. I'm just saying it seems smart to tell STE what you're looking for before giving it to Steve.
Bruce and Co. can surely doctor tone for you too.
I'm just talking as a first resort.
JEStanek
Feb-14-2006, 8:35am
Steve did the set up on my Eastman oval hole, that I purchased through him. I didn't have it before so I can't A-B it. However, this mando has great tone (to my and some real players ears), easy playability. I would have no qualms to send it back for a little preventative maintenance in a year or so.
Jamie