Discounting for the lack of musical ability/skill, are some brands of mandolins harder to play than other brands? If so, is this because of how they are made or set up? I am asking this as an “off-and-on” beginner and not as an excuse to buy a new mandolin (I’ve been down that “upgrade your mandolin and you will play better” road and it didn’t work for me). Thanks,
Are Some Mandolins Harder To Play?
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This is a good question and fun to discuss. IMHO, I would say generally, across all instrument manufacturers, they have high end / low end models. And also, high end / low end manufacturers. My experience with Guitar and Banjo, upgrading did make playing easier. I can’t make a F Chord on a Taylor 224 (toward the lower end of Taylor), but I can on an Eastman E10D (higher end of Eastman). Same with Banjo. I went from a Samick to a Gold Tone and the GT was significantly easier to play, and sounded immensely better.
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I think the vast majority of difference is in the setup of the instrument. I have played plenty of cheaper instruments that play just as nicely as high end instruments. If a cheap instrument is solid with decent string spacing, neck alignment and all those little details, it can be made to play almost as well as a better made instrument. I say almost as well because the basic design has an impact on playability and much of those differences are personal preference. For instance some prefer a radiused fretboard, some flat. Some prefer a wider neck or a narrower. Neck shape itself varies greatly.
All that said: Let’s say for the sake of conversation that a nice, full setup with fret levelling will cost about $100 (I may be way off, I haven’t paid for one in a very long time). You aren’t likely to get a quality setup built in to an instrument that costs a couple hundred bucks. On the other hand, most folks won’t shell out thousands for a new instrument that is poorly setup. I am not just plugging the general store because I like Ben, but I have bought several lower ukuleles from them and they all came nicely setup. I have bought more expensive instruments that came setup (and even tweaked to my preferences). I think they setup everything they sell, even the lower end models. If buying new, getting a good setup is a must have.
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Mainly a set up difference. Sometimes a cheap mandolin will be so badly built that it’s impossible to set up well, but that’s fairly rare. Even most higher end mandolins might need a set up when you buy them, unless the store gives it one before you buy it
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Perhaps Ben spoke about this in his lessons on buying a mandolin, but will the mandolin need periodic set up adjustments because of age and/or amount of time playing or once it is set up nothing more needs to be done?
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Any stringed instrument is going to need occasional work to keep it in top playing order. In my experience, it is mainly due to fret wear. On a guitar, I get saddle wear as well, but both saddle and fret wear happen slowly. Some folks set action ultra low and need to tweak it a bit during dryer months, but I don’t have that issue. Also over very long time frames (typically multiple decades), some instruments will need work due to changes in neck angle or other slow structural changes. In my experience, get a great setup, treat an instrument like a baby (don’t leave it in a car in hot or cold weather) and keep it reasonably humidified and maintenance is extremely minimal.
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@Mike_R gave perfect advice for this. I will have to adjust my saddle height on my mandolins a few times per year as the season changes, but that’s largely due to my humidity not remaining as steady as it should.
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Would nut width and string spacing vary greatly brand to brand and affect playability?
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I don’t notice much of a variance from brand to brand, except when a company advertises a wide-nut model like Northfield offers. But there are other factors like radius that affect playability.
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Sounds like I am at a point where I need to make confession. I purchased a new J Bovier mandolin about 12 years ago. There have been weeks when I consistently played this mandolin and there has been times where the mandolin was consistently in the case untouched for months. Mike R mentioned minimal maintenance, my mandolin still the original strings and I’m not brave enough to try adjusting the bridge. It is starting to sound like my lack of proper care and inconsistent practice is what makes my mandolin “hard” to play. Who do I see for forgiveness?
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