• inspiring starter

  
  As reviewed by thanatoi on 7/3/2007

  playing guitar for years left a desire to try something new. not wanting to risk big bucks on an experiment, this pack was just right. it plays well enough to allow me to learn and inspire me to do more and be better. i am currently looking at picking up a higher end model to continue growing as a mando player. i'd would say this is a good start though. the instument is fine but nothing special. the bag is handy. the tuner...is a tuner. the strap is kind of lame; just a nylon thing with fender written all over it. the book isnt the best. plan on spending some $ on books, cds, dvds or lessons. it did the trick for me though. i would recommend it for others who have played stringed instruments and want to check out the mando world without breaking the bank. btw - this is a lot easier to pack at festivals, camping, in the car etc than a guitar. it is usually what goes with me now.

  29 of 32 people found this review helpful.
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• Short lived...

  
  As reviewed by C.M. Ham on 7/16/2007

  I purchased this instrument on a limited budget. It comes with a tuner, gig bag, strap and an instruction booklet. The bridge and string alignment is terrible, strings are set too far apart and the bridge is set back too far. It wouldn't be cost efficient to have it professionally tuned. Vibrations are unerving, especially on the G string. Somewhat frustrating to play unless you are extremly careful with finger placement. I can now play proficiently, but I have quickly outgrown this instrument. It's an inexpensive way to find out if you will enjoy playing a mandolin, except for when you do realize you enjoy it and have to purchase another.

  23 of 31 people found this review helpful.
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• Buy a better mandolin

  
  As reviewed by Allen on 1/8/2007

  It's a decent instrument, and I got about the cheapest deal I could since I was just starting, but I quickly got to the point that I wished I had bought a little bit better mandolin. The whole body is laminated rather than having any real wood showing, and that sacrifices sound quality a little bit. After playing a while, I realized that a buzzing sound was caused by one of the frets being set slightly too low, so I had to adjust the bridge to compensate. On a better note, I just replaced the strings and am very pleased with the new sound (DR Strings), so the instrument is capable of sounding pretty nice. Basically, it's not a bad deal, but do really think about getting something a little bit better if you look forward to playing more than just every now and then.

  25 of 28 people found this review helpful.
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