mandolin catagory's

[mandolin tony]

how do you put mandolins in categories. such as a Kentucky km 150 & a Eastman md 305 & call them beginner mando's and call Eastman & Kentucky 505 intermediates ?. should it just be based on the dollar amount or how an instrument sounds that makes it go up the food chain.I've been reading here that there are plenty of Eastman MD 305 that sound just as good as 505. an at what price point do you reach the Apex of the mandolin food chain.

[gspiess]

When I owned a KM 150, it was called a "beginner" model. I now own an MD 305, and have seen it referred to as a "student" model. I think the Apex entails a model slightly better than what my wife will let me buy.

[UsuallyPickin]

Beginner , Student, Professional, Collectible .......... These are the four descriptive terms I read most often. R/

[Tobin]

I dislike the use of terms like "beginner", "student", etc. There's no reason a beginner has to start on a low-end mandolin, just as there's no reason a good player can't play a low-end mandolin. If we feel the need to categorize mandolins, we should do so by their style/type, quality, sound, and price, without any reference to what level of player is expected to buy it.

[JeffD]

You get the very best you can afford, and start playing the potatoes out of it.

At some point you decide you can justify spending more, based on how much over the top fun you are having.

At the apex, you sell your house to buy a signed Loar and live in your car.

[Louise NM]

With any musical instrument, the relationship between price and tone is sketchy at best. As you get into progressively more expensive instruments, when and where they were built, who built them, etc., all comes into play.

The goal is to get the best instrument you can find in your price range, regardless of what arbitrary category someone else puts it in. That will be an individual's apex. If you have the money to play in the antiques market, have fun. If a custom built axe spins your wheels, live it up. Even with those, price and sound may not increase in lockstep.

[allenhopkins]

...at what price point do you reach the Apex of the mandolin food chain...

As good an "Apex" as any.