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Thread: New york pro

  1. #1

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    Anyone have any opinions on New York Pro Mandolins? I just got an MA-007 JUBILEE on Ebay. It will be my first mandolin so what are some opinions on this for a beginner? I read some of the reviews here on the 70-90 dollar Johnson beginner models but could find nothing in the archives regarding anything "new york pro".

  2. #2

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    uhh-oh I just found a thread about these from way back. Might have made a mistake.

  3. #3
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    Hey, you know, it's not hard to find someone to dump on any axe you can think of, particularly one at the affordable end of the market.

    Take all opinion with a grain of salt. Yes, most instruments are something short of perfection. Well, so are you and I. I'm not going to let some opinionated j*rk I don't know sour me on an instrument I've just acquired. Even if I later come to decide he was right all along; I've never be able to afford a 'perfect' instrument of any kind, and rarely have I ever owned an instrument that was any online community's consensus of 'adequate.

    That hasn't stopped me from learning to play a number of different instruments and having a lot of joy (and frustration) along the way.
    And now there was no doubt that the trees were really moving - moving in and out through one another as if in a complicated country dance. ('And I suppose,' thought Lucy, 'when trees dance, it must be a very, very country dance indeed.')

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  4. #4

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    Very true, I guess I shouldn't really care at this point, this is just a starter instrument.

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    As long as it doesn't leave blood (yours) on the fingerboard, just do what you can do.
    My first instrument was an old oval-hole made completely of mahogany - given to me by my wife as a birthday present.
    Now - many years later - it hangs on the wall. My wife is still here too. But not on the wall ... maybe the mall.
    I wish you joy and success.

    Curt

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    Registered User Eric F.'s Avatar
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    Pay a competent person to set it up properly for you so that it plays as easily as possible. Many people buy low end mandos that come with all sorts of little problems that make playing a chore. Consequently, playing is unrewarding and they give up. So, make sure thaty doesn't happen to you. Then play it and enjoy it.

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    mando-evangelist August Watters's Avatar
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    I'll second what Eric said. Lots of folks give up before they figure out the problem was with the instrument, not them. And it's the RULE, not the exception, that mandolins in this price range arrive without the setup work needed to make them playable.
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    Registered User bradeinhorn's Avatar
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    to play a slight devils advocate - i actually purchased one of these on ebay and immediately took it in for a set-up where it was discovered the one of the braces was pulling off...My repairman mentioned this is a common problem with many of these as are broken truss rods. In those cases-definately get it replaced or returned.
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    I'll second the thought about getting a pro setup; that'll never hurt.

    The mandolin I play the most I paid $35 for as a stripped wallhanger, and paid $100 for a good setup, a bridge and a cheap tailpiece.

    It's been worth every penny.
    And now there was no doubt that the trees were really moving - moving in and out through one another as if in a complicated country dance. ('And I suppose,' thought Lucy, 'when trees dance, it must be a very, very country dance indeed.')

    C.S. Lewis

  10. #10

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    Thanks for the encouraging words guys. I've played guitar for many years now and understand the importance of keeping my guitars set up, and I do understand a mandolin is a different instrument, but I'll search the archives here on setups and see if I can do it myself. I think being able to maintain your instrument is one of the more valuable talents to acquire when learning to actually play the darn thing.

    Mind you all this talk is pre my owning of this mandolin. I just won it on Ebay monday. But the waiting is the hardest part.

    Thanks again everyone.

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    I'll add my voice to the choir. I bought a Surf City oval-hole mandolin on EBay for about $69 and then paid someone to set it up. While it is not going to set the world on fire, it is a nice playing mandolin for under $200.

    I think a lot of these low-end instruments vary from one to another. I have seen several instruments with the same make and model go from junk to pretty good. With any luck, and a good set-ip, you'll have a good mandolin to get started on.
    Gary Blanchard
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    Moderator JEStanek's Avatar
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    For expert set up advice and do it yourself go to Frets dot Com!

    Welcome to the cafe' and enjoy your new mandolin.
    Jamie
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  13. #13

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    Where is the New York Pro made?
    Bob

  14. #14
    Registered User Bill Snyder's Avatar
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    I believe that would be China.
    Bill Snyder

  15. #15

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    China is right.

    I've had it for about 4 days now. Lot a fun this here mandolin!




  16. #16
    Registered User Bruce Clausen's Avatar
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    Default Re: New york pro

    I never heard of this brand until one turned up recently for sale used in my town. I needed an electric for "certain situations", and went for it. Another old Cafe discussion summed these up in one word: Ick. And I must agree that it isn't a serious mandolin by any stretch. Heavy, uncomfortable to play, volume and tone controls don't really work. But the acoustic sound is surprisingly robust, and what comes through the amp is just fine in my current playing environment. It's better now than when I got it, thanks to the local repair shop— still not exactly fun to play, but I'm enjoying it. Reminds me of the bad guitars I played in my teens.

    Label states: New York Pro Guitar [sic] model NY-5 RD8. Made in China. I have no idea when it was made or if they're still being produced.

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  17. #17

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    I had a New York Pro telecaster copy that my friend gave me with a broken truss rod. Nice looking guitar, but I couldn't fix it, made a nice boat anchor...................heavy, heavy......

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    Registered User Dave Fultz's Avatar
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    Default Re: New york pro

    Looks a lot like my Johnson (mandolin,that is...)
    Now being made as a Savanna

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    Default Re: New york pro

    Send a PM to Rob Meldrum on this forum for a free set up guide for mandolin.
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    Default Re: New york pro

    I nominate “New York Pro” as the most ironic instrument brand name in the music industry.

    A true professional musician working in New York City wouldn’t be caught dead playing one of those things.

    But methinks they are probably made in the same huge factory in China that manufactures hundreds of other brand names. Hey, if you order enough instruments from them, they’ll put whatever you want in the headstock. Maybe I’ll start selling a line called “The Multidon”.
    Don

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  23. #21
    Registered User DavidKOS's Avatar
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    Default Re: New york pro

    Quote Originally Posted by multidon View Post
    I nominate “New York Pro” as the most ironic instrument brand name in the music industry.

    A true professional musician working in New York City wouldn’t be caught dead playing one of those things.

    But methinks they are probably made in the same huge factory in China that manufactures hundreds of other brand names. Hey, if you order enough instruments from them, they’ll put whatever you want in the headstock. Maybe I’ll start selling a line called “The Multidon”.
    They definitely are. I'd seen some OK instruments with that brand, but these mandolins are on the low end.

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    Default Re: New york pro

    I realize that this is a 12-year old thread . . . but for my whole life I have been a day late and dollar short, so why break up the pattern now?

    Anyhow - I have never seen a New York Pro mandolin, but my son (who plays a myriad of Gibson's, Rickenbacker's and other 'top brands') swears by his New York Pro hollow-body guitar. In this day and age 'inexpensive' guitars aren't the automatic trash that they were a few decades ago - if you play a bunch of them you just may find a gem.

  25. #23

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    For certain, having any mandolin is better than not having one.

    Yes, people do disparage cheap instruments, but from what I've seen it is out of a desire to point those starting out with no knowledge in a direction that will prove rewarding. The neophyte can easily be lured to by an instrument on looks alone, when the same money might get a much nicer mandolin. Heck, to a beginner it's important to know what they are buying, that a $100 mandolin will have serious pitfalls.

    So we tend to want a beginner to start with something at least the quality of a KM 150. But a Rogue can be made playable. But with the dropout rate as high as it is anyway, I'd bet the success rate is significantly greater for those buying a KM150. And since we are hear to promote more players, at least most of us wish that, I will always advise for better instruments.
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