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Most days, it seems my mandolin needs a robot PLAYER!

Not necessarily. I've played in pretty high energy Bluegrass bands for the last 40 years and have been using flatwound strings for 19 years now. I know quite a few people who use flat wound strings...

I have a friend who plays that way. He is a fantastic guitar player as well as mandolin. I also believe that Elizabeth Cotton of "Freight Train" fame played that way as well.

...

Here's a recent test drive video of my newly acquired Silverangel with Adirondack top. This mandolin has a James tailpiece and Rubner tuners. I was playing with a BlueChip TP 50 pick. This...

not the top, but still plenty intense


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2n8Kdw2qNY

Maybe I'm being becoming a curmudgeonly old git, but don't you just hate it when someone comes onto the forums asking for advice about XYZ issue, and then just disappears!

No follow up, no...

That was one of the "most unique" things I wish I never had seen.

If you close your eyes though, it's easy to remember 1978 . . .

change that word "sound" to "noise"....bet they`ll get booked on a Bluegrass festival somewhere before long though....

Like the old krazyglue and baking soda trick, it's a very temporary fix. It seems to work at first, then you realize it's not working very well anymore at all. Better to do a real substantial remedy...

That depends on your taste and what situations you need to use a beater mandolin.

If you are talking about festivals like Wintergrass, etc., then you'd be best using a good case and bringing your...

I'm reminded of a discussion that took place in a physics class at a university in Nashville in the early 1970s. The professor (a sho' nuff captured WWII German physicist) was working with Yamaha to...

Actually, no, the problem is not (just) one of directionality, and of focusing the radiated sound field. The problem is that the energy in a vibrating string couples only very weakly to the air...

A single string vibrating in air creates a sound wave that is omnidirectional. As a result, the sound dissipates quite quickly over distance (i.e. it's soft unless you're next to it). A hollow body...

You can order an Ellis oval hole A model directly from Tom, I have one, I play it every day. Very pure tone, great sustain, much different than my Ellis A5. I was told he's only made three since the...

If you relate the sound to a speaker cabinet a closed back cabinet will take more power to achieve a level of sound than say a ported cabinet. The sound hole, like markscarts I believe, allows air...

In line with Brian's comment above, I generally refrain from the procedure some call milling and crowning, because you bring all the frets down to the level of the lowest divot in one of the worn...

Back to the OP.
One thing that came to my mind when seeing the mismatch of the angle was one older thread when someone's tailpiece screw kept being pulled out of the block because of this. If there...

The problem is that you asked. It's easier to get forgiveness than permission.

Dr. Cohen my changes had nothing to do with sustain, but it was a noticeable volume change and to me a little less muffled sound. Cleaner on the G string most noticeably. I went back and forth in two...

Well this does keep getting more interesting. I was doing a little work on my Brentrup A when I thought of this thread. Now the Brentrup has a very nice gold (brass, maybe bronze) tailpiece that...

Dave Cohen already answered that when he said:
"The breakover angle of the strings over the bridge results in a static down force on the bridge and in turn on the top plate. What sets the top plate...

The Cafe has always been such a good resource for information and I have always appreciated everyone's willingness to help others. I have been using flat wound strings for 19 years now and it's one...

I would like to use this thread to thank Larry and Mike E. and the many other members who have consistently recommended FW74 strings.
I use them on both A and F mandolins for all types of music and...

D'Addario EJ74 are a good starting point. But you should just try different strings every couple of months to see what you like. Try coated bronze strings. Try silk and bronze, silk and steel, FW74...

Perhaps due to it's current girth I can suggest a new name and logo?
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