Epiphone mandobird vs kentucky km-300

[Dori]

I'm looking for an electric mandolin...nothing fancy (though I don't want a piece of junk, either), just something I can play around the house with my kids who play electric guitar and electric bass.

I think I want an 8-string because I want something that can double as a second mandolin...and I know the Kentucky is a 4-string. Are there reasons why I might want a 4-string?

What other advantages/disadvantages are there to the mandobird and the Kentucky? Are there any other choices in that price range?

FWIW, I play mostly classical, celtic, old fiddle tunes, Medieval/Renaissance music.

[Martin Jonas]

There are quite a few discussions of the Mandobird here on the Cafe, and there are quite a few Youtube videos that you can check out. The KM-300E is much rarer, but there's a useful discussion here, including a link to a nice video by Tenorbanjoguy here.

I have recently bought a KM300E and think it's great fun. Good tone, good playability, good workmanship. I like the looks, too. However, I haven't played a Mandobird, so I can't compare.

A third option in a similar price range is the Eastwood Mandocaster (sold in Europe under the "Alden" brand), which is made only as an 8-string and looks like a scaled-down Telecaster with some Strat-ish elements thrown in.

In the end it's personal preference -- the Kentucky appealed to me most and I'm happy with that.

When it comes to deciding between 4-string and 8-string, you should appreciate that a solid-body mandolin with a magnetic pickup is a very different beast to an amplified acoustic mandolin. Really, these are short-scale electric guitars and by-and-large that's what they sound like, even if they have eight strings. You'll find that you'll want to adapt your picking technique quite a bit to get the best out of them. One advantage of the four-string models is that you can bend strings, just like you would on an electric guitar. That's much more difficult on an eight string. You're unlikely to do much tremolo, either, which is where the double strings really come into their own -- the longer sustain of an electric makes tremolo both unnecessary and ineffective.

If you're just looking for an amplified sound of an acoustic mandolin, rather than actively wanting the tone of a solid-body electric, you may also want to consider just fitting a pickup in your existing mando. That'll allow you to match your kids' volume by plugging in, but still sounding like a mando.

Martin

[John L]

In an 8 string electric a Godin is another option. I wish they built a 4 or 5 string...

[northfolk]

I have owned and played both the Mandobird and the Kentucky 300E; I prefer the Kentucky 300E. As for 8 string or 4 string? On an electric mandolin I don't think it matters much; 4 strings, less strain on the neck and you get 2 sets of strings for the price of one?

[Dori]

I realize it's a personal preference, but can you articulate why you prefer the Kentucky 300E over the Mandobird, northfolk?

[Cliff D]

I was contemplating my first electric mando purchase earlier this year & comments from members were extremely helpful. My big difficulty was that as a UK resident there are few opportunities to try before you buy. That said, as time passes what one expects from an instrument changes. I opted for the Alden, which I still think was better value for money than the Risa tenor I purchased three or so months later. Yes I did have to make some modifications to the Alden to improve the intonation on the G string, but having now seen oodles of pictures of mandolins I suspect most other players are not as finicky as I in regards this (& although the Risa has independently adjustable saddles, after snipping the slug spring to approx 3 turns & putting a spacer in to shorten the adjusting screw I am still verging on sharp on the C string as I head up the neck) - but I digress. Decide what features are most important to you & then make a purchase based on those criterea. And what ever you ultimately opt for (certainly if you heed advice given) you are unlikely to loose out financially, & you could find yourself very quickly savouring something discovered by, I presume, every contributor to this particular forum: an electric mandolin is one fun piece of kit!

[Ken Olmstead]

This LINK has videos of some mandobirds in action. I owned a Godin but it did not make the cut. It was not bad but I don't think I was ready for it at the time. I do like the 4/5 string units for electric but I have very little experience beyond the KM300E and a Mann 5 string. I am still very satisfied with this unit. Good luck!

[northfolk]

I realize it's a personal preference, but can you articulate why you prefer the Kentucky 300E over the Mandobird, northfolk?

I like the looks of the Kentucky 300E and the sound seems to be a little better, especially on the high end.

[jajo]

I went over to the dark side of the Mandolin from the guitar world. I still play my strat and Carvin, but I bought an acoustic Mandolin last year, and an electric a month or so ago.

I really like my Mandobird. It's beautifully finished (see my post about mandobird strings for a picture). Sounds pretty good too; especially after upgrading the strings.

As for the issue I state in the other post about the nut set up. A decent guitar tech can remedy the problem quickly, and it's a good reason to restring it with jazzmando strings too.

Either way you go, you'll be happy you tried the electric route.