Epiphone mandobirds

[Daniel Nestlerode]

I'm not so sure that the stock pickup is at fault for being a little weak on the high E string. That string is so light that it moves the electromagnetic field only slightly in relation to the other strings.
I turned my Mandobird into a Mandolabird and got great results from the stock pickup. Of course, now I need to move the whole bridge back a little to get the proper intonation on the C string.

Regarding the usefulness of a mandobird, I use it as much as possible. I think of it as a lead instrument, and almost never try to play rhythm on it.

Daniel

[rhetoric]

I used to have a Mandobird IV. Sold it cause the neck was so narrow I couldn't push just one string. Anybody have a measurement, by the way? It's got to be narrower than 1 1/8. True?

[mandroid]

the warehouse store types are suitable for electronics, but for instruments , It's probably better to shop at a dealer that opens the carton, and does a bit of inspection, and adjustment , before sending it on to the customer.

[Tbone]

Hi guys -

I just bought a mandobird off the classifieds for the grand total of $100 (including shipping!). I'm totally new to electronics. Can someone tell me what a pot is?

I assume you're not talking about the stuff you smoke!

What is the stock pot on a mandobird? I'd like a nice warm, clean, jazzy tone. Should I put a 250k on there, like thistle3585 suggests? Also, any specfic pickup I should use for the aforementioned tone?

Thanks!

[thistle3585]

Pot is short for potentiometer. Most likely you will have three components, other than the pickup, to consider. The tone pot, the volume pot and the capacitor. I would suggest replacing those first then look for a new pickup if you still aren't where you want to be. Don't just unsolder the old pots and put new in. Replace the wiring too. I would suggest using 500K pots and a .022 capacitor. If you're new to wiring and instrument electronics there are a variety of sites you can check out that have good FAQ sections about electronics. Try www.guitarelectronics.com.