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#1
12-18-2021, 06:16 PM
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Octave Mandolin from KR Strings
I received my Octolindo/Mandolindo that I’d ordered from Kilin last month. FedEx actually delivered it on schedule with no damage….other than to the pickguard. More on that in a bit.
Spruce top, Rosewood back and sides and what appears to be Koa binding. Finish is excellent, the only nit being a small white flake under the finish on the butt end, adjacent to the end pin. I’ll preface my comments regarding how it sounds by saying I’ve never seen an octave mandolin in the flesh, much less played one. So, I don’t know what one is “supposed” to sound like. For that matter, I bought my first mandolin a couple of months ago without having the opportunity to play other examples, so I have to assume mine (Collings MF Deluxe) sounds satisfactory. In any case, I love the sound of the Mandolindo. If I were use one word to describe it I would say resonant. I can feel the neck vibrate in the palm of my hand when I play chords, which is a good thing in my book. And, a really nice, prolonged sustain. A very sweet woody tone and quite loud. It does not sound like a guitar as I think some do based on YouTube videos. It has a unique tone of its own. Neither mandolin nor guitar. The action is set up perfectly. No buzz and with perfect intonation. The action is easy, of course, due to the relatively low string tension resulting from the shorter scale length…21.5” IIRC. The G string feels a bit “floppy” for lack of a better term, also due to the string tension, I suppose. I’m not real fond of the pickguard to be honest. It’s huge and requires a bracket with a post screwed into the side of the instrument. It was a custom addition I’d asked for. I only specified I wanted a floating pickguard. If I’d known how it would look and that it required an extra hole in the instrument, I would have passed on it. Moral of the story, ask lots of questions of your luthier before committing to custom additions. In fairness to Kilin, his pickguard design is based on the Gibson L5 as is the OM, itself. So, it’s on me if I don’t like it. The outer edge of the pickguard is cracked. The case is a bit shallow and the pickguard has a slight upward warp to it as it projects outward from the neck. So, it rides a bit high and even a slight jostle during shipping would have caused the damage. I’ve communicated with Kilin and will be returning it for repair/modification after the holidays. At some point in the near future, I’ll record and post some sound samples. When I do so, keep in mind my inexperience. In other words, focus on the sound of the instrument, not my playing.  Here are a few pictures (lots of reflections).     
Last edited by K20C; 12-19-2021 at 12:29 PM. 
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#4
12-18-2021, 10:01 PM
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Great looking instrument. The bracket holding the pickguard would not bother me in the least. A very common feature of archtop guitars.
How wide is it across the lower bout? For me, a 21" to 21.5" scale length is ideal for an octave mando. Shorter than that is easier to play, but the strings get floppy. Longer than that and the stretches in first position get too long for fast single note playing.
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#6
12-19-2021, 06:27 AM
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#7
12-19-2021, 06:32 AM
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#8
12-19-2021, 08:15 AM
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