$100 vs $500 vs $10,000 Mandolin

They sure cost different, but can you tell the difference in sound between these 3 mandolins?

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ABOUT ME:
My name is David, and I play the mandolin. I've played with multiple award-winning bluegrass bands across the world including Missy Raines, Mile Twelve, Cup O’Joe, and The Foreign Landers, and I curate the weekly mandolin video series #mandolinmondays hosted by the Mandolin Cafe. But most of all, I love sharing my love of the mandolin with others. I run an online mandolin learning community on Patreon, and I also make videos to share my thoughts, ideas, and general mandolin enthusiasm with other mando aficionados. Find out more at the links below:

*Just a little disclaimer that I’m endorsed by some of the companies represented here, and a few of my "weapon of choice" links above are affiliate links that bring in a small percentage of revenue for the channel.

[timrussell]

Purchased a like new mandolin for 20 bucks at a local goodwill store(list price on this model new was around130) It will suit me just fine till i learn how to play the thing and decide whether or not it's even an instrument i want to persue. Fellow mandolin newbies may want to consider the el cheapo goodwill/pawnshop route as well

[rudolphpyatt]

I should add that if you’re not looking to play bluegrass, you can get a pro quality flattop for an extremely competitive price.

[catnip]

I believe the skill of your playing covers up the cheaper instruments.
You really make all of them sound good.
But like you said play ability of the cheaper instruments makes it harder to do some harder songs perhaps.
Great video!!! 👍

[letmeooze]

There are 4 things I think don't translate well in videos like this:
Playability/comfort, volume/projection, body resonance, and tuning stability. In the case of 1-3, what you hear and feel as a player matters just as much as what the person in front of your mandolin hears. Some cheaper mandolins project outwards well, but don't vibrate or send volume back to the players ear that well for some reason. This can lead to playing with too much volume in quiet settings, or in loud jams it can lead to not being able to hear yourself at all. I don't know why this happens, but my Northfield is significantly louder than my Eastman to my ears in a jam, but standing in front of them while someone else plays them, the difference in volume is much more subtle.
My friend also noticed a similar thing with Collings dreadnoughts we tried. They were the loudest guitars in the store if you're standing in front of them while someone else was playing them, but other guitars seemed louder to the person that was playing them then the Collings dreads did
Interesting stuff.

[MikeontheMandolin]

This video proves that it’s all about the player and less about the mandolin. It’s honestly really subtle in the differences, due to your extremely high skill level! :)

[rudolphpyatt]

You can hear the difference. But to its credit, the cheapest sounds like an instrument you can get started with.

[robtsologtr]

Rather than fast melodies, tone (good & bad) is more easily judged with long tones - where it’s easier to judge such factors as overtones (richness, “color” & “character.” Also, balance in response becomes more obvious. Test double stops - can you clearly hear each voice, or does it sound like a turtle farting into the mud?

[d_and_]

Im poor polish high school student but recently I’ve spent almost all of my money for a mandolin. (I won’t eat lunch for next few months but it was worth it lol)

[TheCurtainLift]

I always say go for what ever feels best to play that’s within your budget

[Cailean_MacCoinnich]

I picked up a secondhand Westfield A-style for £70.00 (about $90.00). It's solid Spruce top and as new condition but I know why. The poor thing needed some tlc, but after slightly deepening the nut groves for the E strings (it was buzzing like a pissed off bee on the first fret), then sorting out and repositioning the bridge, Putting some decent strings on, it plays beautifully.
Anyone who doesn't have club hands but does have a little patience can make a £100/$100 mandolin play pretty well.

[WoodyMcKenzie]

This is very informative and probably confirms what others have said about the importance of who is playing the instrument. I'm mainly a fiddler, and with fiddlers what matters most is the "nut at the end of the bow". I have been humbled by trying to compare different violins in blind situations. It's very easy to just face away from the player and then have them play different instruments to see whether you can tell them apart or even describe their tonal differences. People tend to hear with their eyes. As a player, it really matters how well the instrument responds, how easy it plays and what it sounds like to you, but if you are playing in a band on stage to an audience, then nearly all of your listeners aren't going to be able to tell whether you are playing a fine luthier built mandolin or just a decent factory model. I believe there can be a lot of variability among mandolins of the same model. I also believe that once in awhile a luthier will build a mandolin that is better than his average. Several years ago, I had a friend who owned what he called the Golden Gilchrist. It was an A5 model made of birdseye maple. it was one of those mandolins. We were camping at a festival with a road about 50 yards from our camp. He would chop a chord on it and people walking along the road would immediately turn their heads toward the sound. This was with all kinds of other background noise going on.

[paulrieker]

How can the speakers (cell phone), and compression of YouTube really allow us to know the difference. Maybe that's more reason they sound alike. ... Making the point, how do $30, 000 B&W speakers sound on a cell phone for comparison?

[petermichaelmoore]

As beautiful as the custom 11K mandolin is, I actually prefer the Kentucky in terms of sound. Thank you. Definitely going to go with that for my first mandolin

[IntertemporalTraveler]

Unless it's a mid range Eastman mandolin. The best mandolin I ever owned was an Eastman F-Style that was retail $750 and on sale for like $650. Still miss that mandolin, never should have parted with it.

[MrJDNJ]

No chop chord comparisons? I think that's where a lot of the sound difference lies. I went to a music store last week and played a bunch of them ($300-$600 range) and it was surprising to see how many did not have the bridge properly sanded to the top. It's good to learn about the construction and setup details so you can evaluate before buying.

[Bikesdavebikes]

The more expensive to my ear has a warmer, clear tone, however is it wroth the price tag? I don't think so.

[DJ]

I closed my eyes and listened and I could hear very little differences. Discomfort and set up playability issues can be easily compensated for by a person such as yourself. I think you may notice it but the listeners would be clueless while your playing would be uninterrupted by issues from a bad set up.. I have a "like new" older F model Fullerton, a little string buzz and maybe some tone dullness overall. But finding a quality luthier is becoming very difficult.

[jeremiahu]

Excellent video and comparison. I would love to see something in the middle, such as a comparison between $500, $3, 000 and $10, 000. I seem to remember that you used to own a flat iron which is about the $3K mark. Could that be a potential future video?

[thorwaldspangenberg]

I am very happy with my Eastman 505. I do hear that more expensive mandolins have more nuances in tone. Maybe one day I can afford a more expensive mandolin. But at my mandolin now does everything what I need :-)

[dustincover]

I just picked up one of the cheapos marketed as a Rover, I'm a guitar player but at the price it was like yep, grab it and play. I can visually see where things fall short like on the built quality but honestly it's staying in tune reasonably and I kinda like the sound. I think cheap instruments are a blast because it's about playing the music. And I think a lot of poeple forget that.