Anyone ever play a mandolin?

I have a great love for classic instruments of all types, and one particular area of interest is anything pertaining to the Renaissance period. I have a dulcimer that has such sounds, but it's limited in that it is fretted in a major scale, so you can't play in certain modes. I have always wanted to have a mandolin to play with, since (besides bluegrass) they make me think of Irish/Celtic music.

I see them on eBay for around $40, and I am literally inches from pulling the trigger on one.

mandolins have no sustain ... or at least maybe just i never played a good one. it just ssems like its more of the plucking sound than tone. i think the sound is awesome if used correctly ... the battle of evermore comes to mind (awesome!) ... then loosing my religion comes second to mind and makes me wanna never hear that sound again.

my fingers are too fat and sausagey to play a mando anyway.

bummer eric ... i just gave a mando away a year or so ago. it was a student instrument, but playable none the less. it was dusty and rusty and just needed some t.l.c. i wudda given it to you.

i really dig and always wanted to experiment with ......

harp, harpsicord, sitar, cello, theramin and trumpet.

trumpet would probably be next ... but we definately gotta get a house first ... really loud.

actually, i am really open to experimenting with anything that makes sound. we're a curious bunch here. everyone get some chops on a really weird instrument and we'll do some on line collaborations ... eric on the mando, me on a trumpet, we need someone on the jamacian metal drums, ... ooh! someone on kazoo and someone on theramin. what would that come out like???

Dude I want to learn mando so badly. I might get the Eastwood Mandocaster. Its a solid body 8 string electric mandolin. Its kinda sorta not really based on the old Fender Mandocaster (even though they look nothing like each other, and the Fender only had 1 pickup, and had 4 strings instead of 8 ). They seem pretty nice and they're only $300.

And imagine what would happen if you replaced the pickups (strat sized single coils) with strat sized humbuckers and then ran it through distortion. You'd have a Shred-olin! Actually, you could just replace the bridge pickup and keep the neck pickup stock. Soloing the neck pickup will get you closest to an acoustic mandolin sound anyway.

Heres a demo:




Edit: And to answer your question, yes, my neighbor has this old acoustic one and I've played it a couple times. Its pretty fun actually.

Yeah, I built a cheap campfire mandolin about half a year ago. The frets need a bit of work still though. For me, the scale length is just way too short to play. I say go for the ebay one if you want to experiment! It's a very neat instrument. I'm actually planning on building an octave mandolin sometime in the not too distant future.

Oh great....now I'm really jonesing for one!

MadMike, I am SO with you on this. I definitely lean towards The Battle Of Evermore, and so don't with Losing My Religion in terms of the mandolin in rock music.

Led Zeppelin and mandolin = awesome.

REM and mandolin (or, a lot of things, for that matter) = not so good.

Forgive me if I've offended any REM fans. I can admit that they have contributed a lot to the music scene in general, but they really are not my cup of tea....or battery acid....for that matter.

The Epiphone Mandobird is cool as well. I have regular 8 string one at home but just do not use it.

^ Those are cool too. I saw the 4 string version in a guitar store once, but didn't play it. Looked pretty nice, for a $250 instrument. What are they like?

Electric only

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwCkEHpjG8U

Been tipping away with one for a few years now, got a great deal on a handcarved one, as you mentioned Eric, for the 'ol Irish/Celtic schizz....

That is exactly what appeals to me about them, Bill. I love Irish/Celtic music, and I have always wanted to be able to create it on some level, even if it wouldn't be all that expert.

Man, its not about being expert, not for me anyway, its about just rattling out a few tunes, and having a good time doing it!

How would a mandolin sound if you played it with your fingers instead of a pick? I'm curious...

Chowderboots wrote:

How would a mandolin sound if you played it with your fingers instead of a pick? I'm curious...

Quiter with a fuller tone, sounds great for recording, and has a much sweeter strummed tone this way.

My opinion only, of course.

Yeah that's what I figured. When you play one with a pick or your nails, there's all that bite that's most of what you hear.

Chowderboots wrote:

Yeah that's what I figured. When you play one with a pick or your nails, there's all that bite that's most of what you hear.

Yup, a lot of that is because its a dual course instrument, not to mention how high its tuned.

And how small it is for a stringed instrument. Not a lot of stuff that can vibrate, you know?

I'd love to have one electrified with full-on blazing distortion going. I once dropped a pickup into my beloved dulcimer (beloved, because it was a gift from my grandparents), and that thing sang with glorious feedback when I pumped it through an amplifier.

dulcimer death metal!

gotta hear that.

You know, I might actually have a tape of me doing this floating around somewhere.

Hah! Nice!! Was it a lap (mountain) dulcimer? My mom has one of those. Very Appalachian.

I've got a Bouzouki from my dad sitting in the garage. Put half a P bass pickup in it and bashta.

Chowderboots wrote:

And how small it is for a stringed instrument. Not a lot of stuff that can vibrate, you know?

Its tiny(its whole body/neck headstock goes from the but end of my Fender to the 10th fret), but takes very little bracing, compared to a guitar, so the whole thing pretty much vibrates, my one has a internal chamber to make the tone fuller too.

Trust me, lot of vibration, hit a chord, then place your hand across the body, you'll feel thr vibrations, until you choke 'em off.

About Mandoshredding...

Combine this tone:


With this playing:


THAT would be awesome

Darkstrike wrote:

Chowderboots wrote:

And how small it is for a stringed instrument. Not a lot of stuff that can vibrate, you know?

Its tiny(its whole body/neck headstock goes from the but end of my Fender to the 10th fret), but takes very little bracing, compared to a guitar, so the whole thing pretty much vibrates, my one has a internal chamber to make the tone fuller too.

Trust me, lot of vibration, hit a chord, then place your hand across the body, you'll feel thr vibrations, until you choke 'em off.

Maybe I've just played really crappy mandolins...and I probably haven't played them well, either.

Kugelspot wrote:

THAT would be awesome

Honestly..... it would just sound like an electric guitar.

A small, 8-stringed, hollowbody electric guitar.

Chowderboots wrote:

A small, 8-stringed, hollowbody electric guitar.

Not exactly, that electric mandolin is a solid body,

Just sound like shredding up high on a 12 string electric guitar.

Honestly, i think the acoustic mando vid is perfect the way it is.

Darkstrike wrote:

Chowderboots wrote:

A small, 8-stringed, hollowbody electric guitar.

Not exactly, that electric mandolin is a solid body,

Just sound like shredding up high on a 12 string electric guitar.

Honestly, i think the acoustic mando vid is perfect the way it is.

Ah si, segnor. Touche.

Here's an interesting combination of 2 recent discussions (plus my own obsession with aluminum instruments): apparently there was a company called Merrill that made aluminum bodied mandolins in the late 90's (1890's that is). Even though they're over a century old, ones in decent condition can go for $200-300 on eBay. this is the only pic I could find:



I wish I could find a picture of the front. I so want one now.

I promise if I get one I'll take a bunch of pics and maybe even do a demo on youtube

Hah! Sweet! That would probably sound great...

So I borrowed my neighbors mandolin yesterday. Its missing both E strings, and was very out of tune, but I know I want to learn mandolin now.

I think I'll ask for one for my birthday, or maybe money for one, so I can choose my own (I'll probably be getting it off Craigslist or Ebay)

Mandolins are fun instruments. I think my mom's looking into buying one.

When I think of buying instruments, my gut reaction is sadly "does Ibanez/Tama make those?" And I think they did...in the 70s. Never seen a Tama mandolin on eBay, though.