Ratcliff Silverangel A #552 arrived

[Snakum]

So after falling in love with the mandolin in November I wanted to buy a good USA build. Heard about SAs here I called Ken to see about an A-model build. I missed the Econo A that was for sale here by a week. I asked about a simple build with no neck binding (I love my Les Paul Tributes with top binding only and sanded neck), plain varnished wood with no color nor distressing, but with good tuners and tailpiece. And he goes "I have exactly what you asked for that just came off the bench". My wife bought it for me for a late Xmas present.

So I have #552 with plain varnished wood, one piece sugar maple back and sides, Euro spruce top, upgraded tuners and engraved James tailpiece. It's gorgeous, love the board's radius, and the tone is perfect for what I want to do. Deep bass tone but still enough mids for chopping BG. It was a little more than an Econo but still an amazing value.

If I had an image hosting service I'd post pics. I'm pretty impressed so far.

[Snakum]

Tried to post images 50 ways. Gave up. Link works to the album, though.

https://imgbox.com/JspaiT30

[addamr]

Very sharp looking mandolin. Hope you enjoy it.
Adam

[William Smith]

I love it, it's somewhat simple but yet very gorgeous. Great looking finish and wood

[pheffernan]

Tried to post images 50 ways. Gave up. Link works to the album, though.

https://imgbox.com/JspaiT30

Let’s see if this works:

[Snakum]

The volume is kind of amazing when I dig in. And it has plenty of mids but is never harsh. My wife has hyperacusis and high-pitched noise kills her. She doesn't like my F model MK. But she's asked me to play the Ratcliff in the living room all night and loves the tone. But it still cuts thru. Kinda awesome.

Forgot to mention he build it with a pickup, which I definitely need. Sounds great with my Nocture pre thru the various amps we have at home.

It's already set up for the way I play and is very smooth. I really like the feel.

[soliver]

Congrats! Yours is very similar looking in shape to mine; major differences being that mine is cedar topped and has an 'antique violin' burst ... Ken makes amazing sounding mandolins, and you're definitely right about the volume!

I like to play mine with a Wegen 140 or a BC TAD60.

Congrats and enjoy it!

[stevo58]

Congrats! I have #438 (an Econo A) with a red spruce top (“Old Red”) and a sunburst finish. Mandolin is not my main instrument, but for the last six months I’ve been playing it constantly, and it really opened up. I’m not a bluegrass player - I’m more in the blues corner - and the SilverAngel with its smooth highs and clear bass works well there, especially since I put monels on it. Ken is an absolute straight-ahead guy to deal with, too.

St3ven

[Caleb]

That is a beautiful mandolin! I love the flame on the headstock in particular. Play it in good health!

[ccravens]

Congrats! Looks amazing!

[Snakum]

I got to compare it this morning to a few others and take a closer look at it.

I expected an A model to be quieter than an F, especially a cross-braced A. And it is, even though it's louder than I expected. My MK F-style absolutely crushes it in raw volume, as it has every A and many Fs I've compared it to. My lowly Korean made MK Legacy Plus is actually a pretty stout little box and a tough act to follow. But the SA has that smooth, bassy tone everyone talks about. Very sweet. I'm sure the tone of the SA will change as it gets played and all the notes are eventually inserted into it. Will be interesting to see how it cuts in a jam. The action is the lowest I've even seen, and I thought I liked low action. I might have a nut recut for it to raise it up some and more closely match the board, and higher action may increase to overall volume if mandos are anything like guitars. I just don't want to screw up the excellent feel or the sweetness of the tone.

Myself and a friend have poured over it. I've read about Ken leaving "maker's marks" on some models. On 552 there is a small ding under the varnish on the headstock. Only thing I've seen. I can tell it was made by a human and not a CNC production line, but it's definitely not roughly finished.

I still need to go thru the setup as soon as I get some more strings. And I have to file the nut a tiny bit on the treble side as it sticks past the fretboard enough to irritate my index finger. But the frets feel great and I really like the feel of the board. It has a much more radiused board than my MK.

So far ... me likee. A very different tone and feel from my F-model. And for the price it really is amazing.

[Snakum]

I forgot to mention the full contact bridge. Seems to have already been sanded to match the top. Will check when I change strings and go thru my setup routine. It doesn't dig into my hand like the MK. Very comfortable.

Sweet Jesus ... I can't figure out how to post a #@%$ image in this forum to save my life. Sad thing is I was a software developer (VB and C#) for 18 years. A TBI ain't no joke. I can't remember how to get home sometimes.

[pops1]

Sweet Jesus ... I can't figure out how to post a #@%$ image in this forum to save my life.

When you are writing a reply there will be a line of letters and pictures above where you are typing. The third from the right, click on it and if the pic is in your computer click on browse and find the pic you want to send and click on it. If you hold your cursor on the images it will say "Insert Image" then you know you have the right one.

[Snakum]

When you are writing a reply there will be a line of letters and pictures above where you are typing. The third from the right, click on it and if the pic is in your computer click on browse and find the pic you want to send and click on it. If you hold your cursor on the images it will say "Insert Image" then you know you have the right one.

Will try that on a laptop. On my phone there's no way to insert the image, that I can tell. Been trying to attach it via URL.

[milli857]

I don't believe there's a way to do it on the mobile site. Some phone browsers do have a "show desktop site" option that you could use though.

[Snakum]

Didn't t think of that. Thanks!

I just wanted to upload some detailed pics of the build for anyone searching later. It seems a lot of the SA posts are distressed models and I wanted to show what a standard build might look like. When I was researching before the upgrade I poured over all the new mando day threads.

Finally figured it out.

[Snakum]

So the guy who Ken initially built 552 for msg me here. It wasn't his jam, so he took advantage of the 48 hr trial period. I got a heckuva deal on it and am really liking the tone. Once I get a new nut and set it up for me I'm sure it'll be a perfect fit.

[Snakum]

So I got to do a couple tracks this weekend with 'Molly'. The guy on the board thought the sweet, full SA tone was perfect. My F model barks like a p@#$ed off Rotwieller. He said "leave it in the case".

Gonna get a new nut cut and raise the action closer to what I'm used to on Tuesday. Really digging it so far.

[Eric Hanson]

FWIW
You might want to consider NOT raising the action. It may change the sweet tone to one closer to your Barking F. The higher tension has a way of focussing the tone.

[Snakum]

Hmmm ... didn't think about that. On my six strings action height definitely affects volume. But I bought an SA specifically for that soft, bassy, sweet thing they do. Don't wanna screw that up.

I'll tell him to save the nut, just in case.

[Snakum]

So Ron (local guy) is just going to build up the nut on two courses and refill them to get the height I'm used to, and do a full setup. He thinks I just need to get used to the radius. Which makes sense. Should have her back on Saturday.

[CES]

Congratulations! That's a beautiful mandolin, and I'm a big fan of Ken's work. I remember when I first got my Econo my wife said, "It's pretty, but how is it different from the other one (a Kentucky 675-S)?" To which I replied, "just listen." "Oh, yeah, good call," she said, lol. Mine was well played in and, though it had the SA bass response and sweetness, there was no lack of volume, so I suspect yours will improve as it's played as well. The key is it's already good, so any maturation in tone or volume is just icing on the cake.

[Snakum]

It really is a different tone, at least the A models. It's the sweetest mandolin I've heard. Ronnie looked it over and commented on the back's shape and bracing that gives it the bass-heavy response. I doubt I'll spend much time on my F model once it's set up for the way I play. I am going with my usual J74s though. I can play the 75s that Ken prefers. But I play so many different instruments in an average day my poor arthritic fingers need the softest feel I can get.

[Snakum]

Just got my baby back after a few days away (withdrawals). Ronnie Hatley in Stanfield, NC did a full set-up, lubed and adjusted the tuners, and cut a new nut that mirrors the one on my MK. Plays smooth as silk, and with a very noticeable increase in volume without losing the low-end and sweetness. Loving this little thing. Ken does awesome work.

[A-board]

Welcome to Silverangel world. I’m a big fan of the sound.