Re: The inferior mandolin
Originally Posted by
Br1ck
The fact was I had a good time with my import. Only after retrieving the Arches and playing them side by side did the MKs shortcomings stick out.
A buddy of mine, when first getting into wine, had found what was for him a sweet spot in Australian Shiraz available for $12 a bottle. As a splurge, one night he decided to try a $25 bottle instead and was floored by it. “The problem with a 90” he said, referring to wine ratings, “is that it ruins you for 88’s.”
I think a number of us have a similar experience as we progress through gear, from mandolin-shaped objects and decent starters through upgrades and midlevel boxes to professional grade instruments and independent builds. And like my buddy, we find at each step that it costs roughly twice as much money to achieve that 2% difference.
In the process, you hopefully also achieve something of an education as to your own preferences. And the result of that education is the recognition that there is still pleasure to be found in a simple $12 bottle.
1924 Gibson A Snakehead
2005 National RM-1
2007 Hester A5
2009 Passernig A5
2015 Black A2-z
2010 Black GBOM
2017 Poe Scout
2014 Smart F-Style Mandola
2018 Vessel TM5
2019 Hogan F5
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