Anyone play a Collings MT or MT2? Are they considered entry level mandos? I currently play a Kentucky KM-150 and I’m considering an upgrade.
Collings MT / MT2
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I have an MT. I love it. It is not an entry level instrument by any means. It is certainly less adorned than most instruments of that level. When I bought mine, it compared favorably in tone and feel to F models costing 3 times as much. I’ll put it this way, if Ben needed to borrow an instrument for a gig, I would proudly hand him my MT.
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I don’t own one but judging from their price I would not consider them entry level.
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Sweet. That’s what I’ve heard about MTs. I like A’s better anyway, no matter what the purists say
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To me, there is something more elegant and traditional about the A style. I have a tab book of sea shanties for mando, and somehow the A style seems at home in that genre, more so than the F. I know this is completely subjective.
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I could be wrong but I think all Collings instruments are professional level. At least I’ve never seen a bad or cheap one!
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Your question got me thinking about when I got the MT. This was before Ben had his shop so I went up to Nashville to go to Gruhn’s who had a great variety of interesting mandolins at the time. They knew I was coming, and I didn’t have a set target price, so a guy who I had bought from before (Billy) pulled out a pretty awesome array for me to try. I got down to blind comparisons and the only one that was head and shoulders above anything I was playing (I didn’t include high end vintage stuff) was a Gilchrist F5. It was just magical, but it had a price tag to match. I don’t remember the exact number, but I remember thinking it was close to what my truck was new. Anyway, the MT stood up proudly in terms of tone and playability against the rest of them. There were some I liked a little better in various ways, but the MT was the only one anywhere near it’s price point. For the instruments I was playing that day, it was a no-brainer as the value winner.
If I were in the market for something similar, I’d want to play the Northfield mandos that Ben is getting. They sound phenomenal and the pricing seems like an outstanding value. I just went looked now and he has an A5 with specs similar to the MT with a gorgeous back, side and neck wood for under $3k.
https://store.banjobenclark.com/collections/mandolins/products/northfield-m-model-a5-a-style-mandolin-with-case
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Gotta say, I love my Northfield! But… at one cabin camp, “Wild Bill” and I traded mandos for a while. He played my North & I got to play his Collings. (Note both were F’s not A’s) “what a great mandolin!” said both of us regarding both of the instruments. No complaints on either side of the coin. They were very comperable.
I also got to play a Northfield A5 Special from Ben’s GS in TX, and almost took it home. What an awesome sounding & playing mandolin! The thing was, I’d have had to trade my current North, and it has sentimental value & just couldn’t part with it! I’m not partial to either F or A - I like them both.
Shopping for a new mando, especially if you’re going to be dropping that kind of cash into one, something to take note of is - pay attention to what neck shape you do best with. For me, thinner/more v shaped works best. Play as many as you can get your hands on to see what you like/do the best with. I literally spent hours in Carter’s playing all kinds, only to discover I did best with the thin style & was very lucky when I bought the North (a year prior) with the thinner neck because at the time I didn’t know any better 
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Here’s a reference to what im rambling on about:
Best wishes on your quest! 
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Great point Simone! Neck shape, thickness and radius makes a huge difference from person to person.
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