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Thread: Mando Tone Experiment (picks/strings) with YouTube video

  1. #1
    Traveling Tracks Traveling Tracks's Avatar
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    Default Mando Tone Experiment (picks/strings) with YouTube video

    Two years ago, I had to sell my beloved Collings MT2V mandolin. I did not touch a mandolin for two years until this weekend after I fell and broke my ankle. Finding myself with nothing to do but sit here, I dusted off my first mandolin which is a Morgan Monroe Rocky Top MM-100 that is probably 10 years old. After selling my Collings I found it too painful to even play this Rocky Top so I just didn't play mandolin...but revisited acoustic guitar, violin, and baritone ukulele.

    Fast forward to this weekend.....now that I can't move about freely with this broken ankle, I decided I'd force myself to play the Rocky Top. So this video is my effort to wrangle the best possible tone out of this $350 entry level instrument.

    So this is a comparison of me playing two different pieces of music on the Rocky Top with two different sets of strings and three different picks. (again, after not playing for two years and only playing for the past few days)

    Note: it's better to view/listen on youtube than directly here.....on the youtube page you can jump between the pieces to directly compare using the timings

    Collings MF

  2. #2
    Registered User Frankdolin's Avatar
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    Default Re: Mando Tone Experiment (picks/strings) with YouTube video

    If nothing else I think you showed the shortcomings of YT audio. I could hardly hear a diff. in picks where at home the diff. between a BC and anything else is very noticeable. And to me the Thomas's sounded muted and the D'Addario much more to my taste. Your Rocky sounded like a mandolin, so no problem there. Good playing also, keep at it.

  3. #3
    Traveling Tracks Traveling Tracks's Avatar
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    Default Re: Mando Tone Experiment (picks/strings) with YouTube video

    Thanks for listening and yes, that is basically my conclusion.....and yes, in person the difference is drastic but on the recorded sound it's not as apparent. But again, I'm using very good mic's, pre's and convertors to do the recording. And yes, I'm pretty surprised that with a $35 pick and $54 strings I could make this $350 instrument actually sound somewhat decent. But I do think you can tell how "thin" the Fender sounds on both sets of strings....in person it's cringeworthy.
    Collings MF

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