Octave Mandolin: Why Not?

[29er]

Many years ago I tried to get serious about the mandolin but found it just too small and cramped to deal with. I love the instruments but it actually caused me pain to play the thing. So I am about to take the plunge with an Octave mandolin. I have not played one but it sure seems like the larger instrument and scale length will be much friendlier to my old & arthritic hands. Any thoughts or advise? I just want something to change things up and make my brain work.

[neilca]

Check the nut width. Many octaves have the same string spacing as the mandolin. Some do have wider nuts, depends on the maker.

[Mandobart]

I've been playing octave mandolin for about 12 years now. I really like the 21.5" scale of my Cricketfiddle F4.

I've found you can do a lot with an octave mandolin, pretty much anything I can do on a guitar I can do on my octave.

[29er]

I bought a used Eastman MDO-305 today and I think I'll enjoy it a lot. It's a 21" scale with a 1 3/8" nut width. As usual, Eastman has provided a very nice instrument at a good price. Looking forward to stretching my brain and learning a new instrument!

[JMFingerstyle]

Originally Posted by 29er

Many years ago I tried to get serious about the mandolin but found it just too small and cramped to deal with. I love the instruments but it actually caused me pain to play the thing. So I am about to take the plunge with an Octave mandolin. I have not played one but it sure seems like the larger instrument and scale length will be much friendlier to my old & arthritic hands. Any thoughts or advise? I just want something to change things up and make my brain work.

Funny, I went through the same thing. My cheapo Johnson mandolin eventually just became a wall hanging. A few months ago, I decided I wanted to try again, and purchased an Eastman MDO-305 Octave Mandolin, and I love it. So much so that a short time after purchasing it, I wound up also buying an Eastman MD-305. What a world of difference from the cheap mandolin I had been playing. I'm now able to play either quite comfortably, and really enjoy them as a change of pace from the guitar.

Good luck with your MDO-305. It's a great instrument. If you like it, look into upgrading the tuning machines at some point, that's the only thing they skimped a bit on.

[Rudy4]

I have an octave mando I made by adding a take-0ff Taylor GS Mini neck to an old Kay archtop body I already had. It's a great instrument, but the 23-1/2" scale length is a bit too much for those with smaller hands.



Many of the current octave players go for the shorter scale lengths of around 21-1/2" as found on Fletcher Brock's standard guitar-bodied mandos.

http://www.fletcherbrock.com/Octaves.html

Go for it, as octave mando is a great instrument. As far as a regular mando producing hand pain, you'll find a good setup (as well as a good instrument) makes a lot of difference in how comfortable a standard mandolin can be. The small neck, double coursed strings, and high string tension all make it critical that the instrument is set up correctly.

[rsmillbern]

Eastmans are nice. I’ve an Eastman Mandoline.
I am tempted from time to time by an octave mandolin, but what I really like is the mandocello! Even if I can’t really play it :-)

[Shuksan]

I play guitar and mandolin and added octave mando to the mix a couple years ago. The octave mando is a really interesting middle ground between the mandolin and the guitar. I like octave mandolin a lot.

Octave mandolin scale lengths come in a wide range of lengths from 19" up to 23". This is an important consideration depending on what sort of music you might want to play on it. If you want to play fast single note lines (particularly in the first seven frets) then shorter scale lengths like 19" to 21" make life easier. If you mainly want to play chord accompaniment then the longer scale lengths are ok, but the shorter scale lengths are still easier to play. The tuning in fifths makes for long stretches to reach all the notes in one position and the longer scale lengths make that more challenging. If you are able to get your hands on a few octave mandos with different scale lengths to try out, that would be best, but, if not, going with one that has a scale length in the range of 20" to 21" is a pretty safe bet for all around playing.

I would like to second Ruvy4's comment above about the importance of a good setup. One of the octave mandos I have is a mediocre Michael Kelly F-style. Whoever made the nut that it came with did an awful job which made it much harder to play than it should have been. The nut slots weren't cut low enough so it took a lot of pressure to get the strings down onto the frets and the spacing of the strings was all over the map. I made a new nut that fixed those problems and it played much easier and the intonation was better. Given what you said about having arthritic hands, this is doubly important.

One other comment about the F-style Michael Kelly octave mando. The ergonomics of its large F-style body are awful for playing while sitting down unless you are willing to use a strap even while sitting. It works for playing while standing, but it's a PITA for sitting. The octave mandos that have a guitar style body work well for playing while sitting down.

[CarolD]

I strangely found myself wanting an octave mandolin. And I can’t even play guitar yet...lol. Love the sound of these!

[martinedwards]

when I took the tip off my middle finger on a circular saw (ouch!) I couldnt play guitar, but I COULD play mando because of fewer courses.

I built a guitar bodied bouzouki based on a Stefan Sobell and strung it up as an octave mando

same scale as a guitar, and from a distance looks just the same.

8 or 9 years later, I still have it and play it regularly, but guitar will always be the go to instrument

[RoyBoy]

Originally Posted by 29er

I bought a used Eastman MDO-305 today and I think I'll enjoy it a lot. It's a 21" scale with a 1 3/8" nut width. As usual, Eastman has provided a very nice instrument at a good price. Looking forward to stretching my brain and learning a new instrument!

Enjoy your Eastman (I have one of their guitars)! They are as good as it gets for entry level. You can find Sierra Hull doing some amazing things on OM on YouTube.

I can't help but wonder if your first experience with mandolin was on one that wasn't set up properly, most aren't, especially inexpensive ones. String tension on a regular mandolin is so high that if the nut slots are too high, it will be brutally painful to play in first position (which is where beginners are playing). First fret action on a properly set up mandolin will be around 0.005" (2 sheets of typing paper) on the top 3 strings. Obviously, a skilled luthier/tech is required to dial in a mandolin.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by 29er

I bought a used Eastman MDO-305 today and I think I'll enjoy it a lot. It's a 21" scale with a 1 3/8" nut width. As usual, Eastman has provided a very nice instrument at a good price. Looking forward to stretching my brain and learning a new instrument!

I was going to suggest the Trinity College octave mandolin but the Eastman looks nice. I own the TC version and also own a few mandolins and a bouzouki. I don't necessarily find an octave mandolin to be easier to play. It's the opposite for me. Playing jigs for example requires more stretching of the hands so I do get fatigue a bit more. Still, I love my OM.

[29er]

Excellent responses. Thanks to all. My goal with the OM is simply to make my brain work and enjoy making music on a different stringed instrument. I am enjoying it so far.

[emsparks]

I have built nine instruments, including electric guitars and basses and my next build is going to be an octave mandolin. I only build for myself for gigging and recording, not to sell. I did build an eight string guitar a long time ago. It is similar to a 12 string without the Low E and A courses. But, this time I want octave mando tuning and the strings are very different than on a guitar. Seeing what you all have said has inspired me to get it started! Thanks!

[29er]

That's a cool looking instrument! I'm still enjoying my new OM, so much so that I just bought another variant, an Eastman mandocello. It arrives next week and I'm pretty excited.