sudden change :

[300win]

Ya'll ever had while playing your mandolin an almost sudden change in the tone, volume ? maybe I'm crazy, or just had a good night, or the room I was playing in had supieror acoustics. But tonight my mandolin just seemed to "pop" louder than ever. Granted I've noticed since getting it, that it has been getting louder with a deeper, woodier tone, but it seemed tonight it went up about 3 notches in volume and tone all of a sudden. Just wandered if this has happened to others. You have to realize also that this is the best mandolin I've ever owned, and possibly the best sounding one I've ever played. It is a gem, although just a plain jane Gibson F-5 jammaster. Was just 1 year old a few days ago. I've never experienced this before, but I never owned a really great instrumnt before. Is this a common thing that happens with really good mandolins ? Maybe some of you guys who have owned many can give some insight into this.

[Lachlan]

Oh, no, not this again... :popcorn: Did it "open up," "bloom" (my favorite) or did it finally "wake up?" :grin: Was it all rubbery and more flexible, or did it get really stiff and fully cured? :disbelief:

[Ivan Kelsall]

300 - that chances are that it simply 'warmed up' literally !. It's happened to me many,many time with both mine. On the other hand,when they get cold,the tone goes to pot & it becomes thin & tinny,
Ivan

[jim_n_virginia]

Yeah your mandolin must have popped open and had a random spurt of spontaneous opening up! :grin:

[billkilpatrick]

happens all the time - a case of a multitude of minute factors (acoustics, ambience, warm-up, strings, mood ... to say nothing of that all-important, single malt effect) combining to produce an enormous grin.

[Bertram Henze]

Don't feel like being kidded, 300win - everybody knows this effect, but everybody has a different explanation for it and there have been so many discussions without conclusive result.
Some attribute it to the instrument, some to the player. I have come to pay more attention to the pick (new pick, different pick, used pick reaching a critical stadium of wear, player subconsciously changing the pick angle?). These days I have compared two picks most would consider identical: Clayton Ultem 0.80 and Dunlop Ultex 0.88; they do sound almost identical alone at home, but in the noise of a pub session the Clayton has turned out to be audibly cutting and the Dunlop to be inaudibly mumbling.
Bottom line: the slightest difference may have a tremendous effect.

[John Kinn]

This is an experience many of us have had many times. Then there are several different explanations to why it happens. Those who attributes it to imagination are dead wrong.

[Bertram Henze]

One thing Bill already mentioned: acoustics. New room you play in? Or same room but different chair? Or same chair, but has there always been someone with a sweater sitting between you and the reflecting wall who is missing today? Less people in the room than usual? A door always open but closed today?
Or: "why you should never do your soundcheck in front of rows of empty chairs".
So many options, so little time to experiment...

[AlanN]

I agree about warming up, but a good mandolin will always sound good.

[Bill James]

As the humidity rises at the beginning of summer my instruments tend to open up slightly. I've always thought they sounded better during the summer months. No evidence, purely a "seat of the pants" judgement. YMMV

[tree]

The times I've had that experience were those rare and fleeting times when I found myself "in the zone": suddenly the fretboard seems simple and obvious, the mandolin responds to the slightest touch, my physical attitude is relaxed yet in my head it feels like almost anything is possible. Only happens about once every third blue moon, unfortunately.

[Kevin K]

Warm temp, a high humidity, and some playing time always makes a positive difference with mine. During the winter months, it used to sound terrible, thin, starting using a humidifier and monitoring it and temp and that helps a great deal. Seems like if you keep the mandolin around the same temp and humidity it was built in, that's it optimum sound environment or at least that is my experience.

[journeybear]

Maybe I'm reading it wrong, but I think the OP was asking about a sudden change while playing, not how an instrument reacts to environmental or other factors having a longer time frame - an interesting topic but different one.

I can't say Ive really experienced this, but if you think of player and instrument as a synergistic unit, I have at times noticed an inexplicable improvement in the performance, which I usually attribute to something like what tree described, being in a zone. Maybe there is something going on there, as if a combination of factors possibly including pick grip, string pressure, mike angle, etc, are working together to produce something approaching the optimum. I've done very litttle analysis, as I'm just so grateful it's happened at all, ;) and of course it's fleeting and so is the music, gotta keep going. But I have noticed the expressions on my band mates' faces, something between delight and amazement, so I know something's going on. As I said, I can't be sure if it's my playing or the sound of the instrument - maybe the instrument sounding better inspires my playing, like a feedback loop (the good kind) - but something is going just right ... so why not accept it? Lord knows I will make enough clunkers during the course of the evening, so it evens out. ;)

[farmerjones]

Seems like i always play harder after watching Grisman or Sammy Bush. :) Whuppin it like a gu'ment mule, seems to light it up sooner. Takes about 30 minutes of good hard beating to light it up. So little noodling sessions never seems to help the box, but they're more for my joints anyway.

Y'know old Bill must've had some powerfull paws, because he could play quickly, and deftly, but that thang would ring too. The quicker i play, i have to really lighten up to get to where i need to be.

Y'know, the late Dale "Bygod" Hopkins used to blame opening up on sinuses and how they connect to the ear. "sometimes a fellar can just hear better."

[Bertram Henze]

the late Dale "Bygod" Hopkins used to blame opening up on sinuses and how they connect to the ear. "sometimes a fellar can just hear better."

Should be easy to find out: tilting your head to either side can change the world...

[300win]

ain't the pick, I've had the same BC 60 since I got the mandolin. And what happened did happen as I was playing. I was in the middle os a break and of a sudden it sounded like I had the mando miked, "BOOM !"and it was there, and was much louder the rest of the night. The chops were tremendous. All the other guys I was picking with heard it also. I don't think it's my picking, because I've always thumped one pretty hard every time I play. So who knows ? It was fun, I'll say that. thanks for the info, and the humor.

[swinginmandolins]

I've heard the same thing several times, but then again I was just hearing things.

[Bill Auld]

Well, 300win, I experienced the same thing - last night around 9:30. Started playing and just a few minutes into it, the mandolin (older Collings MF5) sounded really great (so I knew it wasn't me). Everything just seemed to be popping and louder (and I noticed my wife was edging up the volume on the TV). My mandolin usually sounds very good but this was even better (and, yes, it's happened before). Can't chalk it up to it warming up because I hadn't been playing that long ... I actually wondered (and have before) whether it had something to do with the weather ... Since you and I aren't that far apart geographically, perhaps it has something to do with that ... BTW - using the same pick as usual - although picks do make a good deal of difference on my mandolin.

[300win]

Well, 300win, I experienced the same thing - last night around 9:30. Started playing and just a few minutes into it, the mandolin (older Collings MF5) sounded really great (so I knew it wasn't me). Everything just seemed to be popping and louder (and I noticed my wife was edging up the volume on the TV). My mandolin usually sounds very good but this was even better (and, yes, it's happened before). Can't chalk it up to it warming up because I hadn't been playing that long ... I actually wondered (and have before) whether it had something to do with the weather ... Since you and I aren't that far apart geographically, perhaps it has something to do with that ... BTW - using the same pick as usual - although picks do make a good deal of difference on my mandolin.
Yea Bill, picks do make a differance on mine also. But since I got my first Bluechip, I gave al my other picks away, most to other cafe members. the BC is all I'll use from now on, I can't see it being improved upon. But my mandolin which was very, very, good from day 1, became something extra last night. Like I said in the middle of a break, and then it was like I had it miked , and sounded that way for the next hour & 1/2 of play. My good old friend the banjo picker has a very good Gibson RB-4
, and after that happened to my mando I actually lightened up a bit on my chops during his breaks. First time thats ever happened to me playing against a banjo, and he was sitting to my right. Like I said it was fun. I said to myself when it happened, wow !

[Willie Poole]

Sometime when just jamming we just tune to where ever the guitar is tuned, which sometimes isn`t standard and a mandolin will sound different when it is not tuned to a standard tuning...Some (most) of the oldtime bluegrass bands tuned one step high because they thought it sounded better...Could it be that you weren`t tuned to a electronic tuner?....Willie

[300win]

Sometime when just jamming we just tune to where ever the guitar is tuned, which sometimes isn`t standard and a mandolin will sound different when it is not tuned to a standard tuning...Some (most) of the oldtime bluegrass bands tuned one step high because they thought it sounded better...Could it be that you weren`t tuned to a electronic tuner?....Willie

No Willie, have always tuned to standartd for the past 45 years, on every instrument I've ever owned. I can't explain what happened, but happen it did, and it was like instant, cutting on a light switch change. Again I got my mandolin last year for me birthday, a present from the dear wife. My mando was built, and tested by Dave Harvey on May 15, 2009. So it's still green, but from what happened last night, I can only imagine what it will sound like in say 5 years from now. Since day 1, it always had a lot of volume and a sweet, dry tone, and that has continued over time to improve. I pick it an average of 2 hours per day every day. This mandolin sounds like it is already 50 years old. As a matter of fact since getting it I HAVE LET SOME OTHER PICKERS PLAY IY THAT OWN OLD gIBSON f-5'S, and they all have commented about it's dry tone. I was a lucky guy when I got it. The day I got it I played every model Gibson that they make in the store, mine sounded better than any of them, not only to myself, but also my wife, and the salesman who is also a acommplished acoustic guitar player. He was actually astounded, as he had not head the same things played on all the mandolins at one sitting. I stayed in there 1 & 1/2 hours. Picked everything from my Jammaster, a F-5G, a F-9, an A-9, a F-5 Goldrush, a F-5 Alan Bibey, a F-5 Doyle Lawson, a F-5G with wider neck, an A-5L, a F-5 Master Model, and an F-5 Distressed Mater Model. I had the funds to buy up to the F-5G wide neck, but even if I had been able to spend money to get the DMM, I would still have gotten my F-5 JM that day. It was far beyond any of the other mandolins. I have been told by another cafe member that was relling Mr. Harvey about my mandolin, that he commented that he remembered that mandolin, so to me that says something about it's sound seeing as how he signs every one that Gibson makes. Mine was the 5th one built in the Jam-master line. It has fairly decent curly maple, on the back, rims, and neck, but not what I would call pretty. The top has a lot of silking in the grain. As far as looks, it is a homely looking instrument, but the sound it has is fantastic. Like I said I guess luck was with me and I got one of the exceptional ones that comes along every now and then. I have a A-9 that is going on 4 years old, and although a very good mando, it is not in the same ball park as my F-5JM. I would suggest to any of you who want a good mandolin, but maybe have a limit to what you want to put in one, or not, to not forget to try out these cheapest Gibsons. You might luck up and find another like I did.