Intermediate Upgrade

[Army of Sheep]

Not sure if anyone is interested in what I would up deciding. But I thought I'd come back and report. I bought a The Loar LM 600 VS from Folkmusician.com. it was a blem model and Robert was kind enough to post some pictures. The only thing wrong was some discoloration under the finish on the binding along the neck. Otherwise it looked perfect. I'm is otherwise a mandolin outside my budget, but the Blem was right at it. Got a featherweight case and it's in the mail. I keep checking the USPS tracking number, hoping that maybe our fine postmen will get the hint and get it here sooner. I'll report back again when I have it in hand.

[Eric F.]

We always want to know how it turns out.

Congrats and enjoy!

[Br1ck]

I started on a blem Eastman. It's a great way to go. You will enjoy it.

[OneChordTrick]

Enjoy. If it doesn’t have a blemish when you buy it will soon after if you play it enough.

[LadysSolo]

I started put on a used the Loar LM 220, still have it as it isn't a bad mandolin, just not as good as my others. And if I travel, it is the one that will go with me. Enjoy your new mandolin!

[gtani7]

I started on a The Loar 300 A style. That's a great choice, and FM.com is a great dealer and great source of info.

So ... great! and keep us posted.

[Army of Sheep]

The package came last week and the cardboard box was quite beat up. The mandolin was in the featherweight case and it held up perfectly. The mandolin was perfectly set up and is gorgeous. The Blem on the neck and some rough finish in the scroll are the only issues I've seen. Any suggestions on how to clean up the finish in the scroll? I have a nulon rope woven through an old belt for a strap and the finish catches really bad on the cord. I'm thinking of taking some fine grit sandpaper and smoothing it out, but if there is a better way I'd like to know.

As to how it sounds, it is awesome. I was playing it in the bedroom the other morning before I went to work and my wife called from down the hall and said, "wow, I can hear it clearly all the way down here!" I wasn't playing that loud either. It has a more open sound than I was expecting, and some nice over tones. The first thing I noticed was the sustain. The notes ring out forever! I got out my plywood Johnson for a bit, just to get a good comparison and it sounded flat (tonally, not musically). It doesn't really have any overtones at all and almost no sustain. I am very happy with The Loar LM600 VS. My mother in law loves the flower pot inlay, my wife is happy that I'm happy, and my toddlers love daddy's new violin (I know. I've got some work to do. My wife is a classically trained violinist, so it looks like that to them). Thanks for all the comments! I am amazed at this community.

[treidm]

What price point are you considering "intermediate"?

[Br1ck]

A Loat LM 600 apparently. This is a huge sliding scale. If you have a Rogue and aspire someday to have a Weber Galatin, your idea of intermediate will be different than if you own a Gallatin and aspire to a Gilchrist. One will think an Eastman 500, another an Ellis F5.

A Km 150 can be intermediate if you are playing a yard sale special.

[treidm]

So true!
My thoughts about intermediate would be like in the 1.5k-3k range
Many here might consider 5k-7k intermediate or more etc..

[pheffernan]

My thoughts about intermediate would be like in the 1.5k-3k range

So how is Black #9 working out for you? Is it intermediate? Is it an upgrade?

[Br1ck]

I've played quite a few mandolins now, and my take on intermediate is a Kentucky 900 or above at the low end and Collings MT, entry Pavas, and Girouards on the high. That is for A styles. For F you have the Galatins and Northfield F5 S.

Intermediate should satisfy the serious amateur or semi pro forever. But it's completely subjective. I like to leave a middle ground and not lump $1000 and up in the pro category.

[treidm]

So how is Black #9 working out for you? Is it intermediate? Is it an upgrade?

You can't see the first one on my list, and it's long gone, but you can see the next two that I've had for long time on my signature list, and then the Black, which is very new

You tell me if you think it was lateral or vertical move....

Yes, I personally would say it's upper intermediate to me
But my definition of what that means might be greatly different from another

I didn't think I was getting a Nugget or Gilchrist, but am VERY happy with the Black
Very high quality instrument, and nice maker, even though I bought it used, he's talked to me like I ordered it from him.

Many might consider it super high end, and I wouldn't fault them for that. It has a good darkness to it, well balanced, and is plenty loud. not a canon, but can hold it's own

[kurth83]

I have the 305 and 605, they are, other than setups and strings, more or less identical tone-wise. As I have put care into them, they have leap-frogged each other a bit in terms of which one sounds better.

There are some construction differences that can matter however:

505 and up vs 305:
- better tuners (not much better IMHO).
- ivoroid bound fretboard (this is an appearance item)
- cast tailpiece (instead of stamped), this can in theory, affect sound, but is also mostly an appearance item.

If you want to upgrade a 305 to be almost a 505, change the tailpiece and tuners, then to a 605, add a pickup, the OEM pickup is great, and probably makes it easier to sell to use a known-good pickup.

You can't change to a bound fretboard, that one you are stuck with on the lower model.

Also highly recommend the grover tuners in my sig (they used to be cheap at $45, now they are $80 on amazon, not a cheap upgrade any longer). They have a higher ratio, and so make tuning easier. The Eastman tuners are all the same ratio, which is why the 'bettter' ones on the 505 and up, really aren't much better. Since the 505 tuners are still crummy, its actually cheaper to start with a 305 and do the upgrades, the only thing you will miss is the ivoroid bound fretboard.

The main reasons I bought a 605 were I wanted a pickup and the sunburst finish. I still had to change the tuners. It was also my first, I didn't know how to do all those upgrades at the beginning. If I had it to do again, yes, I would buy the sunburst, and do all the upgrades sooner.

My biggest complaint about the Eastmans are the tiny frets, a refret is $300 USD in my area, kinda steep for a $500 instrument, but did turn night into day on the 605 (seemed more reasonable for a $900 instrument). But to me, it is the price of owning an Eastman. They come with Dunlop #6310 fretwire, .031 height, for masochists IMHO. I prefer closer to .050 in height, and refret to .048. The playability improvement is simply amazing, so I can't push this enough, and it isn't something people will normally warn you about, although it does come up here from time to time.

Many people put a Cumberland bridge on it, also improving tone and power. Other than the tailpiece, this is the only one I haven't done, as it requires careful setup (sanding) to put on, I am happy with the tone and power as is.

You can see how upgrades add up, and eventually, just buying a better instrument to start with would have been better off. But that is primarily from a resale perspective, as upgrades command little to no resale value (and can be negative). Save the stock parts and put them back on if selling. But if it's a keeper, then you've made it yours, for better or for worse. :-)

[Dave Fultz]

I am quite happy with my Kentucky 272 one holer.
I get a lot of compliments on it. I don’t get the commentary on the the Loar.
I’ve also a Johnson. It’s my campfire mando. Or when I get called to outdoors in the cold.

[illinoisfiddler]

The Kentucky mandos, despite being Asian imports. are quite good. My KM-1000 has really come into its own after a full summer of performing. I am surprised!

[pheffernan]

You tell me if you think it was lateral or vertical move....

Well, I haven't played #9. In fact, I've never had my hands on one of Mike's A5's. But I do own #34 and #7, and I temporarily housed #20 for a friend; in my experience, Mike builds a mighty fine mandolin.

[Don Grieser]

I've played #9. Definitely a vertical move.

[treidm]

Thanks Don & pheffernan for the kind words...
When I first played it, I knew it was special.
And besides all the great volume, tone & balance, He makes a REALLY sweet varnish finish!
Not only sounds great, but looks great. Love the Rubner Tuners
It's the best mandolin I've ever personally owned....

To the OP, congratulations on your choice!
If you give it lots of attention, I'm sure it will give you back lots of joy!
Hopefully the setup will be good for you, from the start...

[Leslie4197]

It's so funny I stumbled across this thread today...I have been seriously considering upgrading to the Eastman 305 (a birthday present to myself). I am glad to see all the great endorsements, and will be ordering soon! I thought I could hold out on my current Ibanez 510 but it's pretty crappy. Thanks!

[Army of Sheep]

What price point are you considering "intermediate"?

For me it made it in the$700 range. I think probably the most expensive I will ever go is the 2k range. At some point I want to get into building them, but that will probably have to wait until I'm out of the service. My father builds dreadnaught guitars as a hobby and I built mine together with him. So one day you may see some with my name on them in the classifieds. Likely years away.

[Mike Arakelian]

Congratulations on your new mandolin. Enjoy it in good health, and thanks for your service.

Mike...