Bouzouki or OM?

[Kemu]

Hello!

Two years ago I bought myself a Hora Irish zouk and it's time I got an upgrade. The Hora has served me well considering how cheap it was, but the neck has bent quite a bit with no truss rod, and the tuning pegs were giving me trouble as well.

I'm looking at the Portuguese APC instruments now, but I'm wondering if I should forego another bouzouki and instead go for an octave mandolin.
The bouzouki scale length did give me some problems, I was rarely playing without a capo unless it was easy tunes in ADAD. But I'm wary of sacrifing the bouzouki's sustain and tonality just for that benefit.

Does anyone have any experience playing the APC octave mando's, or can recommend other OM's with good sustain?

[OneChordTrick]

I had a Hora (the Thomann branded version) Octave Mandola and now have an Ashbury. The Hora OM looks very similar to their bouzouki but with a shorter scale and had good sustain.

The Ashbury has a shorter scale again, but the sustain is as good, if not better.

[multidon]

My OM has plenty of sustain, and it is a very short scale. Made by the same Korean factory that made Trinity College before production moved to China. I don't think you sacrifice anything. Sustain is more of a product of the woods used and design than it is the scale length. I consider the OM a much more versatile instrument than the bouzouki, which to me is somewhat of a one trick pony. Please, bouzouki fans, do not throw rocks! It's just my opinion. it is possible to string the bottom courses in octaves like a bouzouki, if you wish, given the right string gauges. Some people even call their OM a short scale bouzouki.

Don't know anything about APC instruments, but others have given them good reviews here. For the record, I would not buy a long necked string instrument that did not include an adjustable truss rod.

There are various scale lengths in the octave mandolin realm. Everything from as short as 19 inches to as much as 23 inches. This is why there is really no "standard" set of OM strings. Most of us end up using a string calculator to come up with a custom set for our specific instrument. Perhaps if going too short is a concern for you, you should consider a longer scale model. The old Flatirons were 23 inch scale, and the were advertised as being both an OM and a bouzouki. Weber (out of your price range, I know) has both 20 inch and 22 inch versions. Some folks prefer the short, others the long. Longer scale is supposed to be superior tone, shorter better playability. For those who want both an octave mandolin and a bouzouki, 22 1/2 to 23 inches seems a good compromise scale.

[Sothoth]

Depending on what strings you use, the bouzouki may also have pairs of octaves for two of the string pairings, which gives it a very rich tone. This thread (below) gives a good basic description of the difference between the bouzouki and mandolin so it's not exactly what you're asking but has good info.

To me it's a question of scale length, string pairings, and tuning/tension. Seems like you could tune either one to be the other.

https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/s...in-Vs-Bouzouki

[danb]

Generally bouzoukis are longer scale length than OMs

Bouzoukis get some nicer resonance on the lows and are preferred for backing/chord instruments, the OM will be easier to play melodies/leads on with finger positions almost the same as mandolin.

[Kemu]

Thanks for the responses!
I ended up getting the OM, ordered it from Kieran Moloney's shop so it had a pickup and was set up alright, and I couldn't be happier.
It has as much sustain as my old Hora bouzouki, and the shorter scale length is perfect for me.

Don't know what tuning I'll mainly be playing, I used to predominantly use ADAD but I guess GDAD and GDAE are more versatile and with the OM I'll be able to reach those hard notes and chords.