Cumberland Acoustic Bridge and Good Karma
A couple of weeks ago I posted about good serveice I received from The Mandolin Store and Saga Musical Instruments and the small favor I did for a seller here on the classifieds. I always heard that if you do a good turn for someone something good would happen to you. Well, I think that that must be true.
I have had an Eastman 815V for a couple of years. I have never been quite happy with the way the instrument sounded. It just wasn't open or loud enough. Sort of like it had a sock in it, muffled a bit. It was sure better than my old Km-250 and even some The Loars I tried out, but nothing like the better ($2,000 to $3,000) mandolins I had looked at at Carter's and Gruhn's. I read here and elsewhere that Cumberland Acoustic bridges had made tremendous difference in some members' mandolins, but I was afraid that I didn't have the skills to properly install one. I read on the Cumberland site that they would install one of their bridges and do a complete set-up on a new The Loar bought from them for about $150.00 extra. I emailed and asked about doing an "outside" mandolin, and Steve Smith emailed back and told me they would do one for $160.00. That sounded good to me. The bridge is $65.00 so that made installation and set up a steal in my opinion.
I had a trip to Nashville planned so I made arrangements to drop the mando off on Thurday to pick up on Monday. Pretty quick turn-around. Every thing worked like clockwork and my Eastman was ready on Monday. So far this is just what you would expect from any business. However, this isn't just any business.
Steve Smith met my wife and I on Thursday and spent well over an hour with us explaining what he thought he could do for my mandolin, showing us around the shop, showing instruments he had in progress, and just getting to know us. We talked about kids, the music business, his time at Gibson, and just general stuff. What a nice, cool guy.
When I picked up my mandolin, Steve spent another hour and a half letting me try it out and also try some of his RedlineAcoustic mandolins that he makes right there. (These are one of the best little known deals on super quality mandolins I've ever seen) Again, just a really nice person, who happens to be a mandolin whisperer, that we thoroughly enjoyed getting to know.
The results? I spent a little money and took a chance to try and improve my Eastman, but I had been shopping for a replacement just in case. Steve has saved me a couple of thousand bucks because I'm not shopping anymore. I couldn't and still can't believe how much of an improvement this CA bridge has made. The muffled sound is gone, the clarity is now there from note to note and the volume is just outstanding. This mando is now a definite keeper. Its not just me. My pickin' buddies (the guys that can really play) are floored like I am at the improvement. I think it will hold it's own with those $3,000 mandolins now.
The good Karma? My mando is reborn, and I feel like I've made a new friend in Steve. My wife and I have think we'll invite him to the next family reunion. I'm not kidding, just a super cool guy.
Steve won't promise you miracles (he didn't promise me one), but if you are like me and don't have a real luthier close at home, and if you have a good mandolin that hasn't ever been properly set up and you'd like to get the most out of it, I can't recommend Steve and Cumberland Acoustics highly enough. Shipping isn't too bad on a mandolin, and Nashville is a great place for a vacation.
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