MAS Therapy

[JeffD]

Wow can be had at various price points. Max wow need not correlate with max bucks. Wow is also personal. Not everyone is going to agree on the wow factor. Some go for volume alone, some want tone alone. And in tone some want a Gibson vintage vibe, others want a note by note crystal clarity, others want a blended warm sound, some want amazing projection, others don't want to have to aim. Its all very personal.

I think you are right, play as many mandolins as you can, get a feeling for what you like.

But if you think by doing that you will get the last mandolin you will ever want, well, keep the posting to look at later (again and again) with a grin.

[DataNick]

Wow can be had at various price points. Max wow need not correlate with max bucks. Wow is also personal. Not everyone is going to agree on the wow factor. Some go for volume alone, some want tone alone. And in tone some want a Gibson vintage vibe, others want a note by note crystal clarity, others want a blended warm sound, some want amazing projection, others don't want to have to aim. Its all very personal.

I think you are right, play as many mandolins as you can, get a feeling for what you like.

But if you think by doing that you will get the last mandolin you will ever want, well, keep the posting to look at later (again and again) with a grin.

Well said!

That's why I guess it's a disorder (MAD)...

[Bertram Henze]

Where MAS comes in is the contemplation that, now that I have a mandolin, I am never again to feel that rush again? Am I never going to have the thrill of chasing down and acquiring a new instrument again? Never? Ever?.

One way out is to drown that thrill in another thrill: Same mandolin, but a new audience every night out (instead of playing for the same dog or cat on a new mandolin every week).
What is that girl in the first row smiling at me for? Why does that old lady hold a basket with tomatoes? Will the fat guy over there ever stop talking to his mobile? Will channel 3 on the mixer fail again tonight? etc.
Bottom line: when you have MAS you've run out of problems and start to make your own.

[rb3868]

I have played two Weber Bighorns. the first certainly didn't wow me, I preferred the tone and playability of my Eastman. the second did wow me. I think it had different fret wire, it had a lower action, the low end was richer sounding while the high end was brighter and it had more sustain. Both had tone guards. I think the second one also had a Brekke bridge.

[Tom Sanderson]

The brands you list are quality mandolins but I don't consider them to be on the very "TOP" shelf.

[JeffD]

One way out is to drown that thrill in another thrill:.

Well, yes. But in my experience one thrill never seems to satisfy my urge for the other thrill. (If they did, I would have no social life.)

But I understand.

You know, if it wasn't for lack of discipline and scant impulse control my life would be much much different.

[Denny Gies]

My MAS or MAD was cured, completely, when my wife told me I could ask Randy Wood to built me an F5. Have had no symptoms since I got it in 1993.

[JeffD]

...but you had to post that video, didn't you...LOL
I'm in full relapse now and I WANT that mando!...

That video has probably sold as many Weber mandolins as anything else Weber does. I know it has fueled many a MAS attack.

So here is a joke:

A fellow comes up to me to borrow $5000.00. "I need it really badly, its my mother, she has to have a procedure done to save her life and it costs 5K. Please you have to help me."

"No way, buddy. Look, I know you. This isn't the first time. You are going to just turn around and buy another mandolin with that money. "

"No, seriously, I need it. Its for my mother, I swear. Besides, I already have $5000 set aside for a new mandolin."

[DataNick]

The brands you list are quality mandolins but I don't consider them to be on the very "TOP" shelf.

Probably should have re-structured the description...perhaps "Pro" Level would be more accurate...

[DataNick]

That video has probably sold as many Weber mandolins as anything else Weber does. I know it has fueled many a MAS attack.

So here is a joke:

A fellow comes up to me to borrow $5000.00. "I need it really badly, its my mother, she has to have a procedure done to save her life and it costs 5K. Please you have to help me."

"No way, buddy. Look, I know you. This isn't the first time. You are going to just turn around and buy another mandolin with that money. "

"No, seriously, I need it. Its for my mother, I swear. Besides, I already have $5000 set aside for a new mandolin."

I like it...

[stevedenver]

well in reading this post , there is brilliance in JeffD's post-it certainly speaks to a part of me- ihave more guitars and amps than fingers and toes-and i love em all)
and which, over the years , i have tamed by ...practicing more and playing out a lot more-put things into perspective

but i love instruments,

as for the OP, i read this simply as a subjective value statement. The 'WOW" factor simply is another way of saying its not worth it TO ME.

I understand this, and at the same time, i understand too, begrudgingly , sometimes you simply have to pay a lot more than you think you ought to to get something even incrementally better. Works this way in wine, cars, clothing, furniture, professional services, etc etc.

I venture to say that , one can teach one's self not to want that which one cannot reasonably afford, and that there is wisdom in that as well. With no disrepsect, i see similar statements frequently given many guitar sites, and the bemoaning of why is such and such so pricey , its not that different than the entry level model, etc.

I suggest that perhaps perspective is skewed , perhaps the OP has a good sense of value and commonsense. But< thinking more in the way of market, versus 'inherent value' i too sometimes wonder why mandos are so pricey, but, i have resolved myself to saving up and looking for a very pricey one that makes me really smile. However, it does give me serious pause when a mando is 10% the price of a top end BMW-reallly does give me pause.

[DataNick]

well in reading this post , there is brilliance in JeffD's post-it certainly speaks to a part of me
and which, over the years , i have tamed by ...practicing more and playing out a lot more-put things into perspective

but i love instruments,

as for the OP, i read this simply as a value statement. The 'WOW" factor simply is another way of saying its not worth it TO ME.
I understand this, and at the same time, i understand too, sometimes you simply have to pay a lot more than you think you ought to to get something even incrementally better. Works this way in wine, cars, clothing, furniture, etc.

I venture to say that , one can teach one's self not to want that which one cannot reasonably afford, and that there is wisdom in that as well. With no disrepsect, i see similar statements frequently given many guitar sites, and the bemoaning of why is such and such so pricey , its not that different than the entry level model, etc.

I suggest that perhaps perspective is skewed , perhaps the OP has a good sense of value and commonsense. But< thinking more in the way of market, versus 'inherent value' i too sometimes wonder why mandos are so pricey, but, i have resolved myself to saving up and looking for a very pricey one that makes me really smile.

Uh-Oh! an aah-haah moment...there are sub-strains of MAD: collectible (meaning the need to collect) and ultimate instrument acquisition...LOL

[Jim Garber]

MAS has many aspects... some of it is, as Jeff notes, the freshness of experiencing something new. You also have to factor in that these forums do feed MAS since there are many reports of new acquisitions. And there is the keeping up with the Joneses aspect. Those of us who either have a stash of trading fodder or wads of cash to throw around can afford this expensive habit. Others have to be content with what they have.

I can admit tho, that as long as I live, there will always be one more mandolin, fiddle, banjo, dobro, guitar, out there that will call to me. Whether or not i heed that call, is something else. In the meantime, I do actually play this instrument or attempt to do so.

[Mike Bunting]

Probably should have re-structured the description...perhaps "Pro" Level would be more accurate...

That would be a moot point.

[stevedenver]

oh come on, we all need a back up mando, right?!

[JeffD]

There are several threads about why a mandolin costs about twice what a comparable quality of guitar would cost, but the bottom line is that it is what it is.

I am not one to feel taken advantage of, really. If I buy something and find I could have gotten it cheaper, oh well. I would never go about finding out, after a purchase, if I could have done better. Never. That said, I have an eye for a good price, and have not done too terribly bad.

I was told by a quality hat maker in Bisbee Arizona that the most expensive hat is the one you buy and don't wear. That never happens to me.

[DataNick]

oh come on, we all need a back up mando right!

The inside joke amongst acoustic musicians here in San Diego County, you can substitute for the instrument of your choice:

How many mandolins does a mandolin picker need?

Just one...........................more!

[greg_tsam]

Rod's video is great and it's fun to watch him get all excited. I checked out his website and it has an instrument page and this Weber is not among them. I wonder... MAS strikes again.

[fatt-dad]

as a (former) sufferer of MAS, I'll offer a few observations:

It's easier to engage in forum discussions about instruments and their nuance than your ambitions/struggles in learning.
It's actually easier to be a skilled mandolin trader than a skilled mandolin player.
Many seemingly low-end mandolins are just great for making music and the long-haul of learning.
Many top-end instruments sound/play different. With enough patience, most of them have a voice that's useful. Will you take the time to find that voice?
I'm (finally) so happy with my go-to mandolin that I could sell all the rest. Yeah, I love my Cohen A5 (redwood/walnut).

One of the ways I cured MAS was to order a custom mandolin. When you have to wait 1-1/2 to 2 years, it gives you a lot of time to think and it's hard to justify too much more buying/selling/trading, etc. It makes you figure it's time to learn.

If any of this affects your married life, household finances, rearing of children, making mortgage payments or runs you to debt, listen to your wife, 'cause it's really has become a disorder.

Set aside $50 or $100/mo as a mandolin fund. Just make incremental deposits into a mutual fund account. Watch it grow, see it become a big nut of money, protect it. . . Then decide if your mandolin purchase is worthy of liquidating your mandolin fund. I started incremental savings in my mandolin fund about 10 years ago. It's quickly become my new car fund and I'm actually unlikely to buy a mandolin with the money. Thankfully I do have an instrument that I love though.

f-d

p.s., I do kind of want a Rigel A+ though. There is some latent side to MAS, I guess. . .

[dcoventry]

as a (former) sufferer of MAS, I'll offer a few observations:

f-d

p.s., I do kind of want a Rigel A+ though. There is some latent side to MAS, I guess. . .

F-D,

Oh yeah, you really do NEED a Rigel A+, and heck it'd only make a small "dent" in the car fund.

[stevedenver]

mhhmmm....

you were sounding mighty rational there for a while

glad we didnt lose you LOL

[DataNick]

mhhmmm....

you were sounding mighty rational there for a while

glad we didnt lose you LOL

Yeah,
I forgot to mention too that I've had an F model Country Boy mando on order from Audey Ratliff since Sep 2012...good thing I don't have a wife, kids, mortgage, and have a decent IT job.

My girlfriend is the sanity checker, and she knows how to put the brakes on me...however the Country Boy was ordered before we started going out, or else I probably wouldn't have gotten away with it! She already has the eye roll down per when I purchased my Flatiron Performer A that "I had to have"...LOL

[JeffD]

I practice coffee can economics. I keep a virtual coffee can and toss money into it. I have one for the car, for the house etc., and one for mandolin and music. Whenever I see a mandolin that I "might could" fall in love with, I toss money into the coffee can, and hang tight.

I once had to rob Peter to pay Paul, when a 6 or more years of dreaming mandolin came within striking distance. But it wasn't a serious dent, just a sort of re-arrangement of priorities. And I really love the mandolin.

[fatt-dad]

enablers. . . all of you!

f-d

p.s., I do like the coffee can analogy. I use one of those (literally) for my pocket change.

[rico mando]

I have noticed t IRS plays a interesting role in reversing some people of their mandolin acquisition disorder during this time of year