F-33 is finally here!

[Riverbend]

Anyone who's ever bought an instrument sight unseen/played will understand that moment of anticipation as the box opens, then the case. The mandolin is gorgeous, absolutely a beautiful piece of work. It was exactly as described, and one touch to the strings and I immediately knew the strings were loosened for shipping, so I took the time to tune it before really measuring the sound quality. But oh, I could tell. This mandolin just sings! Very nice woody and open voice with a whole bunch of character. Perfect intonation, frets very easily, she'll bark when you want her to and chop like a charm. I absolutely love this thing! I've played a few mandolins in my years, including some limited time on a few really top end ones. This F-33 will hold her own. I'm feeling exceptionally fortunate. Thank you JCL and crew for another great instrument!   

[Riverbend]

A few more pictures of the gorgeous spruce and maple used on this F-33. The fit and finish are impeccable. The tone is amazing.

[ST]

Hi Riverbend.

That's a beauty!

Congratulations.

A few more pictures of the gorgeous spruce and maple used on this F-33. The fit and finish are impeccable. The tone is amazing.

[Riverbend]

Hi Riverbend.

That's a beauty!

Congratulations.

Thanks ST! It sure sounds amazing, as well. And I luckily averted a major disaster yesterday. During a practice session I put a strap on it for the first time and when I slung it over my shoulder the end pin came out. It had been held in by the slightest friction from a wrap of painter's tape. A guitar might not have been so lucky due to size and weight, but I was able to catch it before it crashed into the low stool I'd been sitting on. Yikes!

[Silence Dogood]

Wow, what a nice find!

[Riverbend]

Wow, what a nice find!

Thanks...still kind of in shock it's in my home. My fingertips are shiny and flat.

[Silence Dogood]

Thanks...still kind of in shock it's in my home. My fingertips are shiny and flat.

I look for these from time to time on Reverb.  I play a Collings A-style and don't need another mandolin, but for the right price I'd probably buy a Larrivee.     How is your mandolin playing coming along?

[Riverbend]

I look for these from time to time on Reverb.  I play a Collings A-style and don't need another mandolin, but for the right price I'd probably buy a Larrivee.     How is your mandolin playing coming along?

Happy New Year SD! I've got to say that I really love my F33. I find it to be an exceptional instrument. Very well built and the tones it's capable of are, to my ear, way above it's price range. As for my playing, well, I'll never be mistaken for Sam Bush. I'd fooled around on mandolin in the past but never took it seriously until buying the F33. Now I play it daily and meet weekly with an old guitar buddy (friends since the 70's in high school) and a new friend who's a great guitar and dobro player. What a difference this has made as now there's a weekly mission for practicing. What I find particularly amazing, and difficult, are the subtle differences between guitar and mandolin as far as what and when you're playing. Weaving those notes in and around main melodies is fascinating. Great example is a song we've been working on, When You Say Nothing At All, the Allison K version, and the way that mandolin runs around in the second verse. Wow...that took me weeks of practice to be able to just hit the proper timing, let alone the proper note sequence. Sure am having fun though, and we're being joined by a bass player (my son, great guitarist, natural it seems on bass, as well) in the near future. So I'm learning my way around the mandolin neck, loving the interval patterns, wishing I'd started younger, and with arthritis free and straight fingers. Turning 64 in a few weeks and no plans to slow down.           

[Queequeg]

That's a real beauty, Riverbend, for sure. 
I do love the mandolin. 
This thread caused me to listen to some David Grisman today.
And, tangentially, I awoke to an interview and music of Sister Sadie on the radio this morning. Holy smoke!
Nice way to start the new year. 

[Silence Dogood]

Happy New Year SD! I've got to say that I really love my F33. I find it to be an exceptional instrument. Very well built and the tones it's capable of are, to my ear, way above it's price range. As for my playing, well, I'll never be mistaken for Sam Bush. I'd fooled around on mandolin in the past but never took it seriously until buying the F33. Now I play it daily and meet weekly with an old guitar buddy (friends since the 70's in high school) and a new friend who's a great guitar and dobro player. What a difference this has made as now there's a weekly mission for practicing. What I find particularly amazing, and difficult, are the subtle differences between guitar and mandolin as far as what and when you're playing. Weaving those notes in and around main melodies is fascinating. Great example is a song we've been working on, When You Say Nothing At All, the Allison K version, and the way that mandolin runs around in the second verse. Wow...that took me weeks of practice to be able to just hit the proper timing, let alone the proper note sequence. Sure am having fun though, and we're being joined by a bass player (my son, great guitarist, natural it seems on bass, as well) in the near future. So I'm learning my way around the mandolin neck, loving the interval patterns, wishing I'd started younger, and with arthritis free and straight fingers. Turning 64 in a few weeks and no plans to slow down.           

That sounds fun, and I'd not worry about starting mandolin later in the game.  I have found that the things I've started later on tend to have a lot more meaning, mainly because I REALLY wanted to do them.   And it surely is harder to get good and consistent tone from a mandolin vs guitar.  I find the mandolin a lot less forgiving but so much fun, and when things are dialed in just right, there's nothing else like it.

[flatlander]

Mandolins are wonderful! And yes the interval patterns are a big part of it.  The open chords are easy too if your not stuck on getting a bluegrass chop all the time.

[Riverbend]

Mandolins are wonderful! And yes the interval patterns are a big part of it.  The open chords are easy too if your not stuck on getting a bluegrass chop all the time.

It's funny how the brain works, or at least mine, in this mandolin metamorphosis of sorts. A few months ago, my fingers were still wanting to mimicking guitar chord shapes to some degree when following a guitar player learning new music. There was a hesitation at least where my old and addled mind was a half beat behind as my fingers sort of transcribed the new shapes and shape choices depending on where I needed to be on the neck. That's getting a whole lot easier nowadays. Makes my appreciation of multi-instrumentalists that much greater.   

[Silence Dogood]

I understand about wanting to mimic the guitar, etc. I did this for a long time, but at some point I developed a separate mandolin brain that really is disconnected from my guitar brain.  I think this came from learning specific tunes that I didn't know and had never played on guitar.  In fact, my guitar life and mandolin life are very far apart indeed; on guitar I usually play and sing songs, where on mandolin I play tunes and pieces of music that I'd not know how to play on guitar.  It seems to me that as long as someone is treating the mandolin like a little guitar, this will never happen.  

[Riverbend]

Well, the F33 is a very fine mandolin, and much like their guitars, very well built and very well voiced. I'm enjoying it and the process immensely.