Andrew Marlin's F

[Demetrius]

Hey whats that F Andrew Marlin in picking on these days?
Im still trying to decide if I like it more than his Givens.
I had a chance to play this F that he's using last summer, but I can rem
what he said it was. I think maybe a Sullivan? If anyone knows about
the make year and model, and it would also be cool to know how he came upon this instrument. What inspired the switch? I think I read somewhere that he intended to find an A version of this mandolin but this is the one he ran into and he loved it.
I could totally be mixing up stories here so correct me if Im incorrect.
I just love to geek out on stuff like that.

[Perilous Deep]

It is a Sullivan, though I'm not sure what year. I believe the story I heard was that he heard Caleb Klauder playing his Sullivan in the Foghorn Stringband and set out of a quest to find one. The one that appeared was this one, which he picked up from someone in Portland last summer, if I recall.

Hearing him play it live, I thought it seemed like a more powerful instrument than his Kimble or Givens. The recordings from this spring's Mando Mania give a good opportunity to hear it played in the context of other fine mandolins. Not that the sound quality is stellar or anything, but it's enough to hear the character of the instrument versus others:

[Demetrius]

Yes very cool! and thanks for posting that...

[Josh Levine]

Living in the Portland Area, I am definitely hoping to find a Sullivan at some point. His instruments are great and rare birds. And ya, Caleb's has the ancient tone. Andrew's sounds great too and that is in a line up of killer mandos.

[Demetrius]

How much do they run? they aren't being made anymore so Id assume thats
had a effect on market value. Honestly I don't even think Ive ever seen one for sale.

[Josh Levine]

Somewhere in the 10k range for an F5. Not sure. There was a black topped A that sold about a year ago for somewhere in the 4k range. Someone at one of the jams I regularly attend found an F5 from a local guy about a year ago. Haven't asked what she paid for it.

[Atlanta Mando Mike]

Tonally, I liked his Givens more than the Kimble. That Givens just had an old sound to it. Pleasing to the ear. The Kimble was new, I'm sure louder, but still pretty green and bright. Heard a bit more metal than wood IMO. The Sullivan, from hearing these few samples, sounds a little in between. Always the hunt...

[Denman John]

My son got to jam with Andrew and his Sullivan a few weeks ago up here at a festival. Really nice guy and while jamming, they traded mandolins and Tai got to play his Sullivan. Really nice sounding and playing instrument. He said he still had his Kimble but brought the Sullivan on tour for the summer. If I remember correctly, Sullivan was written on the truss rod cover, but not on the headstock. Very nice mandolin!

[Demetrius]

I definitely like his Givens more than his Kimble.

[Josh Levine]

Sullivan typically doesn't put his name on the headstock. Usually a flower pot, but I've seen some other headstock inlay designs. I saw an A a couple weekends ago that had something like an onion flower or something.

[Demetrius]

What year is the one that Andrew bought?
Or maybe even what decade ? 70's? 80's? 90's?

[Dave LaBoone]

I'm thrilled there is this much chatter about Andrew's mandolin! He and Emily are an outstanding duo and I look forward to seeing them again this fall. Continue to spread the word about Mandolin Orange!!

[Denny Gies]

Great post, thank you.

[Daily Bills]

John Sullivan was a good friend and a great builder and he really knew wood. He built me an amazing F model, an archtop guitar and I bought the blacktop A model that was for sale a little while back. I remember playing and listening to that blacktop as John was working on it. If I could figure out how to post pictures, I have some nice ones of my Sullivan instruments. It's cool that Andrew Marlin is playing a Sullivan. I'll post pics if I figure out how but if you'd like to check some out, I'm happy to email some.

RIP and Peace Out to my friend, John!

Have a great day,

Dale Inskeep
Coos Bay, OR

[Demetrius]

I just saw in a few of Mandolin Orange's latest youtube videos that Andrew is playing an F Duff... Perhaps he got the one from Tony Williamson?
Maybe his Sullivan is in the shop?

[Perilous Deep]

From elsewhere in their social media presence, it looks like he's playing them both and still figuring out their different characters.
https://twitter.com/Mandolin_Orange/...62809780117504

I heard the Duff at a show of theirs week after last, and it's a very fine mandolin.

[Demetrius]

Haha! great twitter catch thanks for posting that link!

[Perilous Deep]

Searching for the sound, just like the rest of us...

[Demetrius]

I loved his givens... Had a good mid range, and seemed to have great sustain.

The Kimble is a good mandolin but I literally thought it clashed against their style.

The Sullivan cuts through really nicely. Sounds like it has something extra special going on in terms of complexity, and not over bassy. I have played that mandolin of his and I'll say it had some loar stuff happening.

The Duff sounds good with their songs. Solid pure but not as mid rangy to me. To me personally it was a close 2nd to the Sullivan.

Verdict. Apologize in advance for this horrific analogy, but hey I think you all know what to expect from me by now...
That Duff he's playing is like a hot girl with a good personality, but not very deep or mature yet.

That Sullivan is a hot mature women that still looks great and can have a very interesting conversation. Pretty much whenever you want to.

Don't get me wrong I love Duffs. I'll probably buy one of those too oneday. Along with a Sullivan, a monteleone, and whatever else I become obsessed with from MAS.

[BrianWilliam]

From elsewhere in their social media presence, it looks like he's playing them both and still figuring out their different characters.
https://twitter.com/Mandolin_Orange/...62809780117504

I heard the Duff at a show of theirs week after last, and it's a very fine mandolin.

Ah! That mandolin on the floor freaks me out....

[pheffernan]

The Sullivan cuts through really nicely. Sounds like it has something extra special going on in terms of complexity, and not over bassy. I have played that mandolin of his and I'll say it had some loar stuff happening. The Duff sounds good with their songs. Solid pure but not as mid rangy to me. To me personally it was a close 2nd to the Sullivan.

I wouldn't think that cut would be his priority playing primarily in a duo and with their repertoire. I do find it interesting, however, that he has picked up another F-style. It seemed that his first scroll was explained as a byproduct of the scarcity of Sullivan mandolins generally. There should be no such dearth of Duff A-styles.

[Demetrius]

I just wonder if he owns both those mandolins now, or if he's testing out the Duff and deciding wether to keep that instead of the Sullivan... I just like knowing other people are as insane as I am.... ok maybe not AS insane but certainly slightly tortured by it.

[Will Kimble]

Just a couple thoughts from someone who has played most of these mandolins:

In my humble opinion the Givens is not much of a mandolin, you are hearing the genius of Andrew Marlin come through despite its limitations. He always called it a Givens, but I think it is actually a kit made by Givens and assembled by an unknown maker. I would say it sounds old, that is about the best compliment I could come up with for it.

If I recall correctly the Kimble A was about a month old when they recorded "Such Jubilee." I am proud of how it sounds and proud to be associated with their music - I am a big fan. Gotta chuckle when I read the dismissive comments...

The Sullivan is very dry sounding and REALLY loud. Has a little crispiness on the high end that I usually associate with a lacquer finish. And it is an F!!! Andrew went through a serious case of scroll envy, he really wanted an F. Unfortunately I couldn't get one to him in time and he found the Sullivan.

I don't know anything about the Duff, but as you can see it is an F! Andrew is good friends with Tony Williamson, and Tony is one of Paul Duff's biggest champions. I love Paul's mandolins and expect I would prefer it to the Sullivan.

When the day is done, I am happy I had a chance to work with Andrew and happy my mandolin made it onto one of their albums. I preferred my A to the Sullivan, but as always it is different strokes for different folks. I am just glad Mandolin Orange keeps making great music and their fan base keeps growing.

Will Kimble
www.kimblemandolins.com

[FLATROCK HILL]

I heard the Duff at a show of theirs week after last, and it's a very fine mandolin.

Wouldn't that be...this week?

[Perilous Deep]

Wouldn't that be...this week?

Indeed! Whoops. Week before last I should have said. It was the show in Chicago on 8/18. The Duff sounded good, but it was amplified in a large venue. Hard to be too confident in my opinion for that reason, much less in judging based on youtube clips recorded on audience iPhones...

To the point though: I heard the Kimble in small venues at least 3 times, and I always thought it sounded great with their music. Strong fundamental tone, classic, woody voice. I thought it was a wonderful complement to the guitar in small ensemble arrangements. I got to play it one time, as well, and it was an eye-opening experience. A Kimble's been on my wish list ever since.

The Sullivan, by contrast, is louder for sure. To my ear, though, there's something a little in-your-face about its tone and volume in the small ensemble setting. I only saw one show where he played it, but it was at times a little overpowering on the breaks. It may have to do with the evolution of Andrew's playing too. He's playing with a lot of all-downstroke picking these days on breaks, really whippin' that mule, so to speak. The Sullivan certainly responds to that kind of playing, but it may be that it's got the cut and voice for a full-on bluegrass group more than it does for delicate duet numbers. Then again, it sounds great on their quieter material when picked less aggressively.