Do you use a Tone Gard?

[addamr]

After hearing all the discussion here on the Cafe and seeing a lot of the top pros using them I decided to give one a try. Tried it for a while and then removed it. It spent a good while laying on the shelf. I decided to try it again a while back, so I put it back on, but removed it after a short while. Although there was a perceived difference in sound, I just never liked the feel of it on the mandolin. I prefer the light delicate feel of a nice mandolin.

Adam

[Bob Buckingham]

I have not seen the need for a tone gard on anything but a mandolin. I started that back when I played wearing bib overalls in a band. Got used to it and find I don't notice it anymore. The ones for open back banjo seem ridiculous and the one for guitar looks uncomfortable. Just my opinion. It does seem to help a bit, a few high overtones seem to ring longer.

[maxr]

I got two mandolins and two ToneGuards. Not sure whether I'd use one on a thin shirt gig, I guess they might be a bit scratchy. Sounds better to me with them on, stops button rash on the back. If you hold your mando straight out not touching your chest, then I can't see how it would improve the sound, but I guess you still have the question of whether it balances better with one on.

[mbruno]

I have them on both of my main acoustic mandolins. I mostly use them because I feel when I stand up to play, there's little I can do to keep the instrument off my body. I've seen many folks play while holding the mandolin away from their body, but to me that just seems like extra effort and concentration that I'd rather not have to deal with. Using the ToneGard, I don't have to worry about how the mandolin touches my body etc - I can just play. It's easier.

To each their own - but seriously, I don't understand those that don't have one.

[Jeff Mando]

Hi,

I was just thinking of my personal favourites, David Grisman, Andy Statman, Chris Thile, Mike Marshall and John Reischman. They all use them, but you’re right I’m sure there are some top players that don’t. Each to their own.

Regards,

Those players represent musicians who are currently touring/recording. A list from a previous generation -- Monroe, McReynolds, Apollon, etc., would not.

Agree with Nashville, wood feels better to me than metal.

From an artistic/beauty point of view....luthiers choose attractive woods and finishes. It would seem wrong or at least disrespectful to cover the back with a large bracket, IMHO. I think most of us like looking at a highly figured back.

[tuhker]

I did for a while but likely due to user error, the little rubber tips had a tendency to come off and the metal scratched my instrument so I got rid of it. It certainly projects the sound a little better in certain situations but my instruments have a lot of oomph so I don't find I need it. In situations where I need more volume, using a different pick with more of a point gets me what I need. To each his own for sure.

[rodeoryan]

If I was to get one it would be because I was planning on standing up and playing, which I don't really do. Most of my time with my instruments is spent sitting so I hold the mandolin away from my body naturally, letting it reverberate. Now if I was gigging a bunch on stages I would buy one. Till then, I'll stay seated!

[keith.rogers]

I have them on my mandolins, but I'm still pretty new to the instrument, and when I got the Eastman about a year and a half ago, it needed a lot of attention, so I got *everything* for it I saw mentioned here. Once it had the harmonic-suppressing grommets and leather strip, armrest, braided strap and a couple dozen picks, the Tone Gard was about all that was left . Oh, and it does actually help with the balance of the instrument when standing (not that I do a lot of that). Having gone whole hog on the Eastman, I had no choice but to do the same with the Northfield!

But, it really does let the instrument sound more freely, and having had a few years wrestling with a fiddle some decades ago, I knew I much preferred the sound (and feel) of one with a should rest, so this wasn't much of a mental tug-of-war for me. Just last night, in fact, I was in a small jam and because of space I had the mando angled almost sideways when I usually have it pretty square in front of me. I was surprised, if not a little bothered, by the constant "buzz" (like a silenced phone) I felt against my middle because just the upper half of the back was actually against me instead of the Tone Gard's cage. I adjusted my posture once I realized what was going on .

But, I'm not dogmatic about anything. Someday I might have a mandolin that I decide doesn't need one, or whatever. I do think they're worth investigating, and for some folks, actually solve a problem.

[Doug Edwards]

Absolutely. It’s a great playing accessory. Plus it reduces belly sweat by 25%. An armrest used with a Tone-Gard makes it even better. Both the back and the top are allowed to vibrate freely.

[Kevin Winn]

I had one for my older Weber Bitterroot F with the mahogany body. It definitely helped with projection for that instrument.

No such issues with the Kimble or F5S, so I haven't had one for those.

[T.D.Nydn]

I don’t think I need one,the things loud enough as it is..

[Lucy Lindblom]

Yes I do and highly recommend them. I've probably said this on here before... I really like how it evens out the weight of the headstock and the body making it much easier to play without supporting the neck with the left hand. It also helps the sound be more full.

[JeffD]

Very true. And a tone gard is a heck of a lot easier to implement between now and the jam next week than is losing 50 pounds.

[JeffD]

Those players represent musicians who are currently touring/recording. A list from a previous generation -- Monroe, McReynolds, Apollon, etc., would not.

Agree with Nashville, wood feels better to me than metal.

From an artistic/beauty point of view....luthiers choose attractive woods and finishes. It would seem wrong or at least disrespectful to cover the back with a large bracket, IMHO. I think most of us like looking at a highly figured back.

I tend to agree with me, they make me sound better on the instrument, and protect all those attractive finishes from my belt buckle.

At a jam I will sound louder more comfortably, and with no diminution in tone quality as i tire out lean the instrument against my body more often.

[HoGo]

I learned to hold mandolin so the back won't contact my body early on (decades before TG) and my belly so far haven't grown to girth that would prevent that. I also like the light weight of mandolin so I'm not considering adding a piece of metal to the back. I find it rather ugly too.
BTW, I've had a Krishot mandolin for setup that has OEM "built-in" tonegard in form of a wooden strip across back at an angle shaped to follow arch and held by two tiny screws to the back. It acts just like the TG but without any noticeable weight and the wood matches the instrument back better than metal. You could probably do similar without screws similarly to violin shoulderrest (or using strong magnets...).

[Jeff Mando]

We seem to be talking about belly/gut size here a lot. I suspect it's the reason men of a certain age have adopted untucked shirts and/or vests as stage clothing. Maybe instead of putting the mandolin in a "corset" we should put ourselves in one!

[DavidKOS]

I don't use tone guards.

Reason 1 - I don't own ANY archtop carved mandolins

Reason 2 - my lightweight instruments sound better without any heavy objects attached

Reason 3 - It's plenty loud enough as is!

[milli857]

I like the improvement in clarity of sound they provide. I also like that they weight the body of the mandolin a bit, helps the balance in my opinion.

I only have one and it's on my main mandolin.

[Eric Platt]

Yes, because my sweat has been known to hurt instruments as well as the shirt in between.

But I don't use one on my Strad-O-Lin, don't notice a difference or either of my flat top mandolins.

[Mark Gunter]

Nope. Simply haven’t splurged on one of those yet. Hasn’t hurt my playing or gigging to not have one, or at the least, I don’t know that it has since I don’t have one.

[pops1]

Used one for a few years, but haven't in a couple years now. I don't notice the difference and can still hear my mandolin in a jam just fine. I like how the back vibrates against my stomach when I play a low note, it tickles and I smile.

[thesecretmandolinist]

Don't see the need for it. The mandolin back doesn't touch my body when I play so I can't imagine it would make any difference.

[Dave Hanson]

You can't even buy a toneguard here in the UK.#

Dave H

[tiltman]

I like them and keep them on at least two of my mandolins at all times.
- I like the feel and I like not having to think about whether or not I'm holding it in a way that mutes the sound. And the mandolin feels more stable with it.
- I honestly don't really care what the back of my mandolin looks like (who ever sees it?!?). One of my Givens mandolins has a VERY plain back - lumber grade. But it sounds very good. (maybe the tone-gard makes it look better)

As with all things mandolin and on the internet - YMMV.

Kirk

[Alex Orr]

I use one. It makes a significant difference on both my low-end Kentucky A-model beater and my Brentrup F5. That being said, I think the differences may be more profound on the cheaper mando. Tone-Gards give you more volume - plain and simple.