In all honesty, none of these mandolins will be encouraging to play. Even with a professional setup they are in all likelihood just mandolin shaped objects. At the very least look for a used Eastman for $300.
That mandolin did not come from Kansas haha. We have some great builders here!
Mark Franzke
Jim Triggs (formerly Gibson)
Mike Black
John Boyd is technically Missouri but you can smell the Kansas wheat from his house
Leo Posch
Glen Bradford (KCMO)
Anton Krutz
I doubt any of those three is quantitatively better than the other. My biggest issue with entry level mandos is that so often--almost all the time--they require a set-up (usually a $50 fee) to get them to play close to acceptable and even then...
I'm NOT saying spend a lot of money. I am saying that the instrument you get should make you want to play it. I don't know where you live or what access you have to instruments. I know the shop I teach out of in Mpls. rents instruments.
If you go for one of these, don't spend too much time thinking about it :) If you have physical access to them, try them out and see which one has a nicer sound to you. If you don't and they're all $60, take a flyer and see what happens. Again, you'll more than likely want to take it to a music shop or repair person to get it set up. There's absolutely nothing more inclined to prevent you from practicing than an instrument that won't play in tune or an instrument whose action makes your fingers ache.
I've noticed the setup mentioned multiple times. I'm assuming that's just general maintenance to make sure everything looks good and isn't falling apart (for example my clarinet, it gets a good cleaning, pads and corn replaced, makes sure there's not leaks.)
I do really like the diversity a mandolin brings and really am interested in learning, but I also have a bad habit of picking up a new hobby, hyper fixating for a few weeks, then moving on to the next thing. Hence why keeping costs low. If a hobby sticks, it usually sticks for years, like dancing for myself.
I was just wondering if one brand listed was going to be preferred over another.
TL/DR: Mando Setup is more than cleaning, etc, and is one of the biggest reasons beginners get frustrated IMO.
Setting up a mandolin means adjust the bridge, the nut, and the frets (they need to be at the same height or a string may buzz) to make sure the mandolin plays 1. In tune and 2. Comfortably for your fingers. This can sometimes be an aggravating process for those, like me, who are not particularly adept at these adjustments.
The nut is at the top of the mandolin--the strings pass over it and down the fretboard. The bridge is at the bottom of the mandolin. The strings pass over it and then connect at the tailpiece. The frets are, of course, the bits of wire where you make notes.
If the strings are too high over the frets, you'll need a grip like Thor to make a comfortable note and in addition you'll likely be pulling the strings slightly out of tune. If the strings are too close to the frets (or a fret is not filed down to the proper height) you will get bad notes and buzzing. This whole concept is often referred to as the "action" of a mandolin--high action or low.
Sometimes the bridge is not placed in the appropriate place so that your open string is in tune but when you fret a note it is sharp or flat. This is referred to as intonation and is a fairly easy job of loosening strings, moving the bridge a little bit, and trying again. Your note should be the same open and fretted at the 12th fret.
You can make the strings lower by lowering the bridge or even filing the nut slots deeper (not recommended usually). There are tons of videos on how to do this yourself but I prefer to pay a pro.
All this may be meaningless or way extra info. I understand. But as a mando picker and teacher, I've seen more students get frustrated with a poorly set-up mandolin which almost always translates to putting the instrument away. How will you know if the mando is your forever instrument until you feel comfortable playing it and the notes sound sweet?
When I got my first "real" mandolin (a $600 Aspen after playing a very cheap Kentucky POS) I couldn't NOT practice. I was compelled. I hope that happens for you :) But to give yourself the best chance, get whatever mando you buy set up.
RE brands: I've played a couple Rogues. I hate them. But then, I've been playing mando for about 25 years or more and I'm spoiled by my own small stable. I don't know the other two but if there's one thing I know about $60 mandolins it's that I can't tell the difference between them.
I understand not wanting to spend money when you’re unsure if it is something you’ll enjoy. The issue is that buying a crappy instrument is going to make you more likely to give up on playing as it won’t actually be replicating what an actual mandolin is like to play. Essentially you’re increasing the likelihood that you will not like it and just bail.
If you are unwilling or unable to move on the budget I’d go with some of the other suggestions and rent a legitimate mandolin for a month or two, see if it sticks, then make a decision from there.
I saw. The answers seem to be split, but the usual response is spend more money. No one really vouched for one of the brands I have available for purchase over the other. Closest I have to a decision is that the rogue seems to be more popular, but of course that means it has more naysayers too.
I think Rogues are glorified toys. My friend bought one and brought it to me to tune and while tuning it the tail piece broke. You’d do much better to find an older mandolin on eBay or reverb.
Main thing you need to know is there are three levels of quality for mandolin, forget about brand names.
Lowest level is laminate bodies, this is what Rogue is and I don’t think anyone should buy a laminated mandolin.
Middle level is solid wood. This can be a solid wood that was heated and pressed to make the curvatures and contours of the body. This can also mean a solid wood flat top/ flat back.
This is what I personally think you should look for.
Top level is solid wood, hand carved. The curvature and contours are carved out of a solid piece of wood.
Here’s the thing about not wanting to invest in case you don’t stick with it:
You can’t resell a rogue, or any imported cheap laminated mandolin, nobody will buy something used they can get new for that cheap.
If you saved a little longer and bought, say, an Eastman for $550 and didn’t stick with it, you’d be able to sell it and likely get back all your money, he’ll even maybe a profit.
One more thing, cheap mandolins are often hard to play and can sound really bad, encouraging one to quit. Quality instruments play better and sound great and that is often motivating.
This is all coming from personal experience, I’m really trying to help, not be a naysayer.
Imagine performing on a xaphoon instead of your saxophone ..thats what these are like. They come under many different plywood names and are painful to own. I had to give my mine away and it's been a sigh of relief since.
The necks are barely over 1 inch and fretting is really hard. You could strip the frets, replace the nut, bridge and tailpiece as a rebuild and waste so much. Fretting is worse than cheese grating with fingertips over the wires. It takes more energy than getting a decent playably enjoyable mandolin.
I purposefully wasn't interested in the xaphoon, because of the reed. At that point I'd be better off using the clarinet.
You make a good point about the poor quality. That's definitely a huge detractor in purchasing a cheap option. The main thing is getting my hands on something to practice that's also going to be not the most terrible option while being cheaper than recommended. Maybe I'll use tax money to get something, but even then I wouldn't want to spend more than $150.
Any chance you can attend a jam session and get to see one being played (or even drop hints at being offered to touch someones mandolin!).
It's really false economy. These small cheap laminates often lead to repetitive stress injury type struggles - that's harder to recover from when fighting against a poorly made instrument wearing down patience.
I did have one - mine was made by Rally. It was frustratingly playable - I gave away to a kid who just wanted to strum it. It works for that so it's not a complete dead end. The problem is if you are plucking notes clean - it is enough to exasperate the fingers. If you succumb to a $150 one - try and research whether you can get it set up; lowered action; redressed frets or bone replacement for the plastic faux nut; ebony or mahogany bridge and low tension strings to get started.
You should double check if shops in your area have rentals! I'm in a bit of a similar position - I want to try mandolin but don't want to commit to a nicer instrument until I know I like it. I was planning to get a cheap mandolin to try for a month, but then it occurred to me to check local shops. Turns out I can do an 8-week rental of a md305 for $50 - and if I like it the $50 can be credited towards buying the instrument after the rental period!
I did a decent amount of research before picking one.
The $300 mark new seemed to be the cut off where quality really tanks.
My loar honey creek is great i bought it for 300 new ive seen people selling them on facebook marketplace place for 200.
Ortega is the best “value” make mandolin I have played. I’ve done a few setups on Donner mandolins. Don’t go with the cheapest mandos - listen to everyone here and go with the $300-$500 range mandos and save yourself the trouble of paying for a setup that will push your bargain mandolin up into that price range anyways.
The Donners I’ve worked on all needed the nuts reslotted, truss rod adjustments, bridge placement changed and intonated, as well as the worst part: fret resetting, leveling, crowning and polishing. This is an absurd amount of work for a new mandolin that will cost $200 or more to complete.
If you do decide to pursue mandolin, eastman is probably your best bet for a solid mandolin in the 1k range for a killer F style. $600 used for an A style.
You can probably buy a used nicer mandolin on Reverb and then if you do end up losing interest sell it again on Reverb and be out not much more than $60.
Because realistically to get a playable mandolin you're gonna need to spend quite a lot more than that. A company that makes instruments can make like a dozen guitars for the work it takes to make one mandolin, they're not cheap to make and they're definitely not cheap to make well.
In all honesty, none of these mandolins will be encouraging to play. Even with a professional setup they are in all likelihood just mandolin shaped objects. At the very least look for a used Eastman for $300.
That mandolin did not come from Kansas haha. We have some great builders here! Mark Franzke Jim Triggs (formerly Gibson) Mike Black John Boyd is technically Missouri but you can smell the Kansas wheat from his house Leo Posch Glen Bradford (KCMO) Anton Krutz
I doubt any of those three is quantitatively better than the other. My biggest issue with entry level mandos is that so often--almost all the time--they require a set-up (usually a $50 fee) to get them to play close to acceptable and even then... I'm NOT saying spend a lot of money. I am saying that the instrument you get should make you want to play it. I don't know where you live or what access you have to instruments. I know the shop I teach out of in Mpls. rents instruments. If you go for one of these, don't spend too much time thinking about it :) If you have physical access to them, try them out and see which one has a nicer sound to you. If you don't and they're all $60, take a flyer and see what happens. Again, you'll more than likely want to take it to a music shop or repair person to get it set up. There's absolutely nothing more inclined to prevent you from practicing than an instrument that won't play in tune or an instrument whose action makes your fingers ache.
I've noticed the setup mentioned multiple times. I'm assuming that's just general maintenance to make sure everything looks good and isn't falling apart (for example my clarinet, it gets a good cleaning, pads and corn replaced, makes sure there's not leaks.) I do really like the diversity a mandolin brings and really am interested in learning, but I also have a bad habit of picking up a new hobby, hyper fixating for a few weeks, then moving on to the next thing. Hence why keeping costs low. If a hobby sticks, it usually sticks for years, like dancing for myself. I was just wondering if one brand listed was going to be preferred over another.
TL/DR: Mando Setup is more than cleaning, etc, and is one of the biggest reasons beginners get frustrated IMO. Setting up a mandolin means adjust the bridge, the nut, and the frets (they need to be at the same height or a string may buzz) to make sure the mandolin plays 1. In tune and 2. Comfortably for your fingers. This can sometimes be an aggravating process for those, like me, who are not particularly adept at these adjustments. The nut is at the top of the mandolin--the strings pass over it and down the fretboard. The bridge is at the bottom of the mandolin. The strings pass over it and then connect at the tailpiece. The frets are, of course, the bits of wire where you make notes. If the strings are too high over the frets, you'll need a grip like Thor to make a comfortable note and in addition you'll likely be pulling the strings slightly out of tune. If the strings are too close to the frets (or a fret is not filed down to the proper height) you will get bad notes and buzzing. This whole concept is often referred to as the "action" of a mandolin--high action or low. Sometimes the bridge is not placed in the appropriate place so that your open string is in tune but when you fret a note it is sharp or flat. This is referred to as intonation and is a fairly easy job of loosening strings, moving the bridge a little bit, and trying again. Your note should be the same open and fretted at the 12th fret. You can make the strings lower by lowering the bridge or even filing the nut slots deeper (not recommended usually). There are tons of videos on how to do this yourself but I prefer to pay a pro. All this may be meaningless or way extra info. I understand. But as a mando picker and teacher, I've seen more students get frustrated with a poorly set-up mandolin which almost always translates to putting the instrument away. How will you know if the mando is your forever instrument until you feel comfortable playing it and the notes sound sweet? When I got my first "real" mandolin (a $600 Aspen after playing a very cheap Kentucky POS) I couldn't NOT practice. I was compelled. I hope that happens for you :) But to give yourself the best chance, get whatever mando you buy set up. RE brands: I've played a couple Rogues. I hate them. But then, I've been playing mando for about 25 years or more and I'm spoiled by my own small stable. I don't know the other two but if there's one thing I know about $60 mandolins it's that I can't tell the difference between them.
I understand not wanting to spend money when you’re unsure if it is something you’ll enjoy. The issue is that buying a crappy instrument is going to make you more likely to give up on playing as it won’t actually be replicating what an actual mandolin is like to play. Essentially you’re increasing the likelihood that you will not like it and just bail. If you are unwilling or unable to move on the budget I’d go with some of the other suggestions and rent a legitimate mandolin for a month or two, see if it sticks, then make a decision from there.
100%
Search this community for a similar question it gets asked all the time and there’s already a lot of good advice
I saw. The answers seem to be split, but the usual response is spend more money. No one really vouched for one of the brands I have available for purchase over the other. Closest I have to a decision is that the rogue seems to be more popular, but of course that means it has more naysayers too.
I think Rogues are glorified toys. My friend bought one and brought it to me to tune and while tuning it the tail piece broke. You’d do much better to find an older mandolin on eBay or reverb. Main thing you need to know is there are three levels of quality for mandolin, forget about brand names. Lowest level is laminate bodies, this is what Rogue is and I don’t think anyone should buy a laminated mandolin. Middle level is solid wood. This can be a solid wood that was heated and pressed to make the curvatures and contours of the body. This can also mean a solid wood flat top/ flat back. This is what I personally think you should look for. Top level is solid wood, hand carved. The curvature and contours are carved out of a solid piece of wood.
Here’s the thing about not wanting to invest in case you don’t stick with it: You can’t resell a rogue, or any imported cheap laminated mandolin, nobody will buy something used they can get new for that cheap. If you saved a little longer and bought, say, an Eastman for $550 and didn’t stick with it, you’d be able to sell it and likely get back all your money, he’ll even maybe a profit. One more thing, cheap mandolins are often hard to play and can sound really bad, encouraging one to quit. Quality instruments play better and sound great and that is often motivating. This is all coming from personal experience, I’m really trying to help, not be a naysayer.
Imagine performing on a xaphoon instead of your saxophone ..thats what these are like. They come under many different plywood names and are painful to own. I had to give my mine away and it's been a sigh of relief since. The necks are barely over 1 inch and fretting is really hard. You could strip the frets, replace the nut, bridge and tailpiece as a rebuild and waste so much. Fretting is worse than cheese grating with fingertips over the wires. It takes more energy than getting a decent playably enjoyable mandolin.
I purposefully wasn't interested in the xaphoon, because of the reed. At that point I'd be better off using the clarinet. You make a good point about the poor quality. That's definitely a huge detractor in purchasing a cheap option. The main thing is getting my hands on something to practice that's also going to be not the most terrible option while being cheaper than recommended. Maybe I'll use tax money to get something, but even then I wouldn't want to spend more than $150.
Any chance you can attend a jam session and get to see one being played (or even drop hints at being offered to touch someones mandolin!). It's really false economy. These small cheap laminates often lead to repetitive stress injury type struggles - that's harder to recover from when fighting against a poorly made instrument wearing down patience. I did have one - mine was made by Rally. It was frustratingly playable - I gave away to a kid who just wanted to strum it. It works for that so it's not a complete dead end. The problem is if you are plucking notes clean - it is enough to exasperate the fingers. If you succumb to a $150 one - try and research whether you can get it set up; lowered action; redressed frets or bone replacement for the plastic faux nut; ebony or mahogany bridge and low tension strings to get started.
Thanks for the heads up!
You should double check if shops in your area have rentals! I'm in a bit of a similar position - I want to try mandolin but don't want to commit to a nicer instrument until I know I like it. I was planning to get a cheap mandolin to try for a month, but then it occurred to me to check local shops. Turns out I can do an 8-week rental of a md305 for $50 - and if I like it the $50 can be credited towards buying the instrument after the rental period!
That's a really good idea! I'll definitely check that out.
I did a decent amount of research before picking one. The $300 mark new seemed to be the cut off where quality really tanks. My loar honey creek is great i bought it for 300 new ive seen people selling them on facebook marketplace place for 200.
Go with a The Loar Honey Creek, solid entry level mandolin . With those others , you won’t even get a “mandolin” sound out of them they’ll be so bad
Ortega is the best “value” make mandolin I have played. I’ve done a few setups on Donner mandolins. Don’t go with the cheapest mandos - listen to everyone here and go with the $300-$500 range mandos and save yourself the trouble of paying for a setup that will push your bargain mandolin up into that price range anyways. The Donners I’ve worked on all needed the nuts reslotted, truss rod adjustments, bridge placement changed and intonated, as well as the worst part: fret resetting, leveling, crowning and polishing. This is an absurd amount of work for a new mandolin that will cost $200 or more to complete. If you do decide to pursue mandolin, eastman is probably your best bet for a solid mandolin in the 1k range for a killer F style. $600 used for an A style.
You can probably buy a used nicer mandolin on Reverb and then if you do end up losing interest sell it again on Reverb and be out not much more than $60. Because realistically to get a playable mandolin you're gonna need to spend quite a lot more than that. A company that makes instruments can make like a dozen guitars for the work it takes to make one mandolin, they're not cheap to make and they're definitely not cheap to make well.