anyone own one of the carbon fiber Mix A mandos?

[darylcrisp]

saw this in the classifieds, contacted Jason the owner and he sent me a soundclip and its a real nice sound on this mando.
http://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/95448#95448

i've played a couple CF instruments in the past(guitar) and they can be stellar instruments-and somewhat care free, while yet providing an excellent playing/sounding instrument.

I've also watched all the youtube vids of Peter as he demo's a lot of different mandos, and the guy can most definitely play and i like the ones he typcially likes(you can tell which ones he prefers). So i figure if he builds something, its going to sound good to please himself.

If anyone has owned/owns one, love to hear your comments and how its been living with it.
I assume they do not have adjustable truss rods-how have you found the setup(relief).
That would be a sticking point for me as i like having that adjustment.

thanks
d

[bones12]

I love my Mix F4. It has been wonderful since I got it new. You can play it in almost any weather (fretboard is wood so be careful in rain) and it stays in tune frightfully well. You cannot go wrong with the A. I also like the sound. Doug in Vermont

[lenf12]

I don't own a Mix CF mandolin but did get to play some of them a few years ago on a visit to New England. Peter had his new mandolins in tow and I got to sample them. My initial impression was amazement at how "wooden" they sound, in a very good way.

I think you could get used to the lack of a truss rod. The neck is not going anywhere as it's quite substantial like a teens Gibson neck, which I like a lot. The setups were all spot on and all you have to do set the bridge height to your preference. I believe the Mix fingerboards are radiused and you really only want to have some relief on a flat fingerboard. All in all, they're great sounding and playing and nearly indestructible mandolins. Did I say that I like them?

Len B.
Clearwater, FL

[Treblemaker]

I own a Mix F5 which I purchased via the Cafe Classifieds from Will Kimble.

It's a great mandolin that gets more use by me at live gigs as of late than my go-to Lawrence Smart F5.

It has great tone that's both glassy and barky and is especially good sounding (IMHO) when amplified in a house PA via a preamp and the use of a mic.

My usual preamp is a Sans Amp Paradriver but I've also put this to use with an LR Baggs PADI or a Fishman Platinum Pro.

I love this thing for use at odd weather gigs - cold, hot whatever.

I even took it to the Big Island last March and had no worries about leaving it in the trunk of a rented black Camaro.

The best thing about this purchase was that I felt positive about buying a mandolin I had never played because it came from Will Kimble who's reputation is stellar.... I was not dissapointed.

The only gripe I have is, I wish the instrument had a radiused fretboard. But it's a minor quibble.

I dig this thing heavily.

YMMV

[Treblemaker]

[Treblemaker]

Not the best shot of my Mix F5 but here I am playing it at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, last weekend with my band, Belle Monroe & Her Brewglass Boys...

[tiltman]

I've got Mix A5 no. 10. Bought it new over 10 years ago. It's my travel mando - I'm mando-fortunate - and I love it. I took it to China,Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and all over the south. I don't believe it ever goes out of tune. I also use it for home recording - the built in pickup is handy.

Kirk Miller
Portland, OR

[Steve-o]

Not the best shot of my Mix F5 but here I am playing it at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, last weekend with my band, Belle Monroe & Her Brewglass Boys...

Clever band name.

[Treblemaker]

A better shot of my Mix F5 from my recent gig at the Great American Music Hall in SF, CA - Feb 12.

[SWS]

I somewhat remember reading on this site about a decade ago, that the A models had/have a beefier neck, it was an unintentional outcome when developing the mold. The F models have a smaller neck because certain measures were taken into account as a result of the A models. I have no clue about the neck shape, i.e. V, C, U?

I have never played any of the Mix New-MAD mandolins, but I've always thought I needed one.

Some days I think you are trying to get me in trouble.

[John Flynn]

I had an "A" on loan from Peter Mix for about a month. He asked me to write a review on it, which I did. The instrument had a burgundy-colored weave and had no pickup. I went to some jams with it and got a few really good local players to try it out. The reactions I got ran from "just OK, not worth the money" to "hey this is pretty cool, l like it." I think some of the not-so-good reactions were partially influenced by a traditional mindset that couldn't warm up to an instrument not made of wood. I got Curtis Buckhannon to try it out on a couple of tunes at gig and he really liked it. But then he could play strings stretched over a 2x4 and make it sound good!

I don't think the truss rod thing is an issue. I own three wooden mandolins, a Parsons, a Rigel and an Old Wave and all three have solid, non-adjustable rods. I have had them in a range of 10-15 years and I have never had a neck problem. I would think a CF instrument would be even more stable.

My memory of the Mix A is that it was very light-weight and the back was very "lively," by which I mean you could really feel the vibration of the instrument on your stomach. I think it would be a great candidate for a Tone Gard. If I lost the three mandolins I have, I think I would buy one of their F's and have that as my one mandolin. I would get the F because of what I've heard about it having a better neck. The A neck was a bit clunky.

[Treblemaker]

The neck on my Mix F is very comfortable and easy to get around on.
The back is lively as noted by John Flynn.
Lack of Truss Rod not an issue.

Still - my only quibble is non-radiused fret board....

[tiltman]

The A neck was a bit clunky.

It's a beefier neck (some might call it "manly" ) but that is actually what I like most about it. It's a wider neck - have not measured it - rounded profile which combined with the radiused fretboard makes it really comfortable.
YMMV so I think you should try it for yourself if you can.

Kirk

[Eddie Sheehy]

I used to own this one. The only instrument I regret selling...

[imrie3]

What is the going price for a used Mix New Millennium A5 in very good condition ? Thinking about parting with mine, have not seen any for sale recently, thanks.