Morgan Monroe on craigslist

[thegreenmandolin]

Found a new Morgan Monroe MAM-750 on craigslist (see mandolin hut link below) for $300. Seems like an awesome deal, but maybe there's something I don't know about this particular model? I'll play before I buy too, but I have to drive a bit to get to the guitar shop where it's being sold, so it'd be nice to know if anyone has any knowledge on this beauty.

http://www.themandolinhut.com/morgan..._mandolin.html

[mandobassman]

Opinions differ but most here on the Cafe don't think very highly of Morgan Monroe. I have yet to hear one that is even close to decent. Generally, they're very pretty but have a very bright and thin tone, with little volume. The reason the one on the Mandolin Hut is more expensive is because it comes with a DVD, book, hard case, picks, etc...
For $300 you can do much better.

[thegreenmandolin]

Interesting. What would you recommend for a (mostly) beginner in that price range? I've been jamming on my friend's terrible Stagg for the past few months and know I want to put 200 or 300 bucks into a first mandolin.

[allenhopkins]

Morgan Monroe specs say the MAM-750 has a maple top, back and sides, walnut finish, all solid woods but heat-pressed rather than carved. It goes on Amazon for $537 with a hardshell case (and a free Skype lesson).

Now, if MM is right about the maple top, that's a bit weird; usually tops are spruce, sometimes mahogany, but a maple top is definitely unusual. On the other hand, the specs may be wrong; who knows?

For your $300 I'd suggest the Kentucky KM-150, which is available around that price. This mandolin is a Cafe´favorite as a first instrument. You can buy it cheaper at Amazon or Musician's Friend, but it won't be set up, so you may have to either pay for that, or learn to do an adequate set-up yourself. Elderly, the Mandolin Store, and folkmusician.com are well-recommended on-line sellers, if you can't find one at a "dealer near you." (I advocate shopping at local dealers, but I know not everyone has a local store with a decent mandolin selection.)

[onassis]

if MM is right about the maple top

Mando Hut specs it as a spruce top in their description.

And, agree, KM 150 is a much safer bet in that price range. I started out on $200 Washburn that I thought was just fine, but that's totally the luck of the draw. Sometimes you get a decent one. Kentucky's are almost always a decent one.

[Dick Hutchings]

It's a crying shame that you can't go into a store and try them. When I was trying out violins last year, I was able to bring 2 home at a time to try for a week. Same with bows. There are certain instruments I've bought blind and had good results with, a custom banjo from Janet Davis and a D28 from Elderly. I wouldn't purchase a mandolin this way though. Especially in the low range you're looking at. I consider anything under $2K to be low range. With That said, take it with a grain of salt because I haven't been out there testing these instruments.

I've always believed that you need the best instrument possible and not be wishing for and wondering why you can't make your low end one sound like the what you hear on DVDs and such. Of course, you'll find that out on your own over time. Good luck on your search and keep it in mind to get the best sounding and playing instrument you possibly can. You absolutely won't regret it.

[Northwest Steve]

Do a search there is lots of info on beginner or budget mandolins. I have a Kentucky 150 for a back-up mandolin and think it would be hard to beat for the money. If you buy from a new on from a site sponsor it should be well set-up and set-up is very important as well.

[thegreenmandolin]

If you buy from a new on from a site sponsor it should be well set-up and set-up is very important as well.

This thread has pretty much sold me on the 150, so my only question is: which online store has the best setup? I already have a clip-on tuner and I don't need the extras that some sites bundle with, I just want a well set-up mandolin.

[mandobassman]

Sorry. I guess I shouldn't say you can do better without giving you some suggestions. I would also recommend what Alan did. The Kentucky Km150 is considered one of the great starter instruments. If you were to buy from one of the fine Cafe sponsors such as FolkMusician or the Mandolin Store, you can be guaranteed a great setup, as well as first rate customer service. Many will recommend buying used from the Classifieds, but I would be careful. You can get some great instruments from the Classifieds but without a solid knowledge of what to look for you could end up with something that needs work or is not setup properly and can't do much about it. I would stick with something that is covered by a reputable dealer.

Another mandolin to look at is The Loar Grassroots LM-170. This is right at the same $300 price of the Morgan Monroe. I would be willing to bet that it is a much better mandolin than the Morgan. Below is a link from FolkMusician.

http://www.folkmusician.com/The-Loar...M%2D170%2DVSM/

[kkmm]

You could try this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kentucky-KM1...item35ee82c6fe

or this (for between 100$-130$, not the crazy 680$)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/KENTUCKY-MAN...item27d7c910a9

I bought an exact one for around 115$ and it sound great, loud and warm (equivalent to the KM-150 which I sold as I do not need two sounding about the same). Of course for 300$, you could choose better Kentucky models (used).

[allenhopkins]

OK, you can get a bargain on eBay, but you're at the mercy of whatever set-up the previous owner had: could be perfect, could be not-so-perfect, you don't know. This is the case with any private sale of a used instrument, as Larry H points out in Post #9. As a somewhat experienced mandolinist, I feel comfortable buying used and either tweaking set-up myself, or getting it done by one of the local stores I frequent. You're buying your first, might make sense to play it safe.

As to set-up of a KM-150, two Cafe´sponsor dealers who consistently get high marks are Folkmusician.com in Nevada, and the Mandolin Store in Arizona. Were I buying from a "remote" dealer, these are places I'd be likely to go.

[thegreenmandolin]

What about The Loar LM-170? I know that's a big name and the same price, but since only one of y'all has suggested it, I'm guessing there might be a reason it hasn't been mentioned.

[CES]

Loar, Eastman, Kentucky, and J Bovier all make good instruments, but in their entry level mandolins exhibit variability from instrument to instrument. Some are very good, esp for their price point, some may be lacking. In general, most are perfectly acceptable with a few outliers in the better and worse departments. More important than the brand in this range is the set up. I'd call one of the dealers mentioned above (and would throw Janet Davis Music in there as well), tell them what you're shopping for, and ask them to pick you a good one. They're typically happy to play some for you as well so that you can participate in that process.

I really don't think there's a "best" mandolin in this range, but there are some surprisingly good ones among all of the brands listed above!