@WillCoop. I started playing mandolin about 5 years ago and I bought a Fender FM-52E, an A style. It has been a good basic mandolin to learn on. Now, when I am playing with circle jams , I often have trouble hearing myself play, so was hoping to upgrade to something with a louder sound, without using amplifier. So Jake and I emailed back and forth quite a bit over the time span of a month. I asked about neck size of various mandolins, because I have some arthritis and my fingers have difficulty forming G chord formation. I also asked if an F style had better balance than A style. I stand when I play and the A style slides across my chest quite a bit. I also wanted a mandolin with a hard case not a gig bag, because I travel by air. I had quite a few moments of apprehension buying without a test run, it is a big investment for me ( I am retired on a pension, blah, blah) So I also listened to the videos that Ben offers, and looked closely at the mandolins, and picked one that I thought I liked the deep tones and overall sound, but of course Ben doesn’t miss a note like I do. The descriptions on the store page also sounded very close to what I was looking for. I was going to pick it up at Camp next week, and save myself some shipping charges, but It arrived by Fed Ex and I am very happy with my new Eastman MD515V. Now having fun adjusting to the size and shape. It is much lighter weight than my original mandolin, except the head tuner end. I was surprised how heavy that is balance wise. I bought a mando with a distressed finish, looks nice. But the sound is magical compared to my old mandolin. There is no comparison. I actually sound like I know what I am doing. Overall a good experience.
You also asked for a photo. I have no idea how to add a photo here.