Maybe you’re not entirely sure if you’re going to keep up with it, so you’re looking for a discount mandolin, right?

After all, who knows if you’ll still be interested in playing the thing a few months for now. There’s no point in spending hundreds of dollars on what’s basically an experiment.

Sorry, but that might be a bit short-sighted.

With a discount mandolin, you get what you pay for

Sure, I fully understand the desire to avoid committment. But remember that a good, mid-range mandolin holds a significant fraction of its purchase price when you’re talking about resale value. A used discount mandolin isn’t going to appeal to anyone.

Cheaply-made discount mandolins come from China

While most of the new sub-$1000 dollar mandolins are made overseas, you can be sure that a cheap mandolin is made in near slave-labor conditions by illiterate peasants somewhere in China.

So what, you might ask?

Well, if you care about mandolins (and string instruments in general), and you want to help advance the state of the art, it’s a good idea to patronize companies and makers that share your concerns and passions.

Chinese mandolin makers don’t learn skills, refine their craft, or innovate. Instead, they just do the same thing over and over, ripping off the folks who actually took the risks necessary to develop new and improved mandolin styles.

In the long run, cheap labor that works at slave-labor prices hurts us all.

Plywood mandolins

Low-cost mandolins fall apart easily

While this doesn’t automatically mean it sounds bad, it’s just not the sort of instrument a serious player wants. Check out What’s the best wood for a mandolin’s top for some more thoughts on the subject.

Are discount mandolins holding back your playing skill?

There’s no doubt about it. A low-quality instrument doesn’t perform as well as a properly-made one.

• It’s harder to tune and keep in tune
• It’s harder to set up when you change string gauge
• The neck isn’t as stable
• Frets are not set as accurately
• Ends of the frets are not dressed as nicely
• Sound quality — you get the picture

In another article — are cheap mandolins worth it — you can find a more in-depth discussion about the worth of a discount mandolin.

So while it seems like a good idea to test the waters without spending too much, if you really want to give your mandolin experiment a chance to succeed, I think you should get an instrument that’s playable. And that means spending over $100 at a minimum.

Lots of folks want to get their hands on a mandolin, cheaply, without paying a premium for an instrument that they’re not sure they’ll use. The idea of owning and playing a mandolin appeals to them, but they don’t want to commit to it fully until they’re sure about it.

So if you want an inexpensive mandolin, you have two choices: get a great deal on a used mandolin, or find and buy a new mandolin cheap!

Find a used mandolin for sale

There are a lot of used mandolins collecting dust in peoples’ closets and attics. You can find them for sale at online classifides listings like CraigsList, or at auction sites like eBay.

Bowl-Back (Neopolitan) Mandolin.

Due to the intricacy of the workmanship and the high-quality materials (like ivory tuning pegs and inlaid top plates), people assume that these instruments are worth quite a bit more than they actually are. In fact, these old mandolins are a glut on the market, and it’s difficult to get rid of them for what seems to be a fair price.

So, you could probably buy one of these old bowl-back mandolins in any highly-populated area quite easily. But I think you’d be disappointed with your purchase. These style mandolins just don’t have the same sort of playability of a modern F-Style mandolin. Furthermore, they’re unsuitable for playing in an ensemble becasue they’re not loud enough.

So, getting a mandolin cheap is possible if you go the used instrument route, but you’ll probably get one that you’re not really satisfied with. And that brings us to the cheap, new instruments:

Get a new, cheap mandolin

There are brand-new mandolins being sold these days for less than $75 dollars, delivered. These cheap mandolins are lacking in just about every area, but if you just want to dip your toe in and test the waters, they’re definitely the way to go.

If you want a halfway decent instrument that’s still under $200 dollars, check out the Rogue RM100F; it delivers a good blend of performance and economy.

The Rogue RM100F F-Style Mandolin is a popular entry-level instrument for folks who are just starting out learning the mandolin. It’s one of the best-selling low-end mandolins because it offers a good balance between economy and quality.

Construction of the Rogue RM100F

The RM100F is made from real wood, not plywood like you’ll find on cheap mandolins. The top is spruce, and the back and sides are made of maple. To keep costs down, the top plate isn’t carved by a luthier; rather, it’s pressed into shape on a jig using heat and steam. This isn’t a traditional method of manufacture, but it’s quickly gaining in popularity because it results in a strong, mass-produced top plate that keeps its shape.

Rogue RM100F Mandolin

Since this is an F-Style mandolin, it is somewhat more complicated to manufacture than a less-ornate A-Style mandolin. But the use of pressed wood and computer-controlled routing machines keeps the cost down. These are not hand-crafted instruments, but they’re good entry-level mandolins that perform very well for the price.

The tuners are nickle, rather than chrome-plated cast metal like you’ll find on cheaper instruments. Nickle tuners don’t rust, and more importantly, they require less lubrication than cheaper styles, and this means less chance of making a mess.

Another nice feature of the RM100F is the ebony fingerboard. Lots of inexpensive mandolins use a maple fingerboard which is dyed black. Real ebony is better because there’s no dye to collect under your fingernails as you play. And, ebony keeps its color as it wears, unlike dyed maple which quickly reveals itself as wear sets in.

Who makes Rogue mandolins?

Rogue RM100F Mandolin

They distribute over 70,000 music-related items, and employ over 1000 people in Oregon and other parts of the US. Through their subsidiary Rogue, they produce and distribute low-cost, entry-level instruments all throughout America and the world.

Click here to get your hands on the Rogue RM100F F-Style Mandolin, or to see additional pictures, reviews, and specs.

Makers of cheap mandolins do their best to disguise the materials used to construct their mandolins. High-end luthiers, on the other hand, often overwhelm you with a deluge of details about the wood type(s) used in their hand-crafted masterpieces.

But is the type of wood used in a mandolin really important?

Best wood for the mandolin soundboard

I can’t claim to know the best mandolin wood. But general consensus seems to anoint spruce as the wood of choice for the top plate on the world’s best mandolins.

Spruce is both light and strong: the perfect combination when it comes to making a soundboard that’s expected to resonate and vibrate, but also stand up to the strain of 8 steel strings all trying to pull the instrument out of whack. The high strength to weight ratio, coupled with the knot-free grain, is prized by instrument makers everywhere.

Some makers use cedar (which, like spruce, is an even-grained conifer). Good spruce is increasingly difficult to find. In fact, the sitka spruce used by many modern luthiers grows in areas which are gradually becoming overforested.

Laminated mandolin soundboards

Inexpensive mandolins often feature plywood tops.

Although these laminated tops are strong, they may not sound as good as spruce. However, there’s quite a bit less time and expense involved in their manufacture, so it may be the best choice for certain folks.

Pressed or carved mandolin tops?

There are three common ways to make the top of a mandolin:

1. Flat top mandolin — Like a guitar, this type of mandolin has a flat top, usually of quartersawn, bookmatched spruce, but sometimes made of mahogany. It is a fairly inexpensive style of instrument.
2. Carved top mandolin — These mandolins are not mass produced. Or, at least, not until the development and introduction of computer-controlled carving machines. The very best mandolins are hand-carved by luthiers who shape the mandolin top until it’s the perfect blend of strength and tone.
3. Pressed tops — All plywood tops (and some others) are given their arch shape by pressing the wood into shape with steam and pressure. This is a perfectly acceptable way of forming arches and curves in plywood, but it may not result in a mandolin whose tone is as perfect as one carved by a master luthier.

So, let expense be your guide; but don’t forget about tone. As long as you’re ultimately satisfied with your mandolin, the choice of wood used for the soundboard is secondary to your enjoyment.

The problem with stringed instruments like mandolins and guitars is that they’re awkward to store. If you put them in a case, it inhibits spontaneous practice. But if you lean it against a wall or put it on a shelf, it’ll only be a matter of time before it falls and gets damaged.

The best way to store a mandolin that you play regularly is to keep it in a mandolin floor stand. It’ll be both accessible and protected.

Although guitar stands are easy to find, getting a stand for a mandolin is trickier. But don’t worry, they are available. The only real difference is, of course, size. Most are suitable for either a mandolin or a ukulele (or even a violin/viola).

These mandolin stands work perfectly for all styles of mandolin. They fold for easy storage and transport (as shown in the picture from Amazon). The “fork” that holds the neck is adjustable up and down, and the cradle that holds the soundbox is perfect for any of the smaller sized stringed instruments, including mandos.

So, don’t put the mandolin away in a closet every time you’re done playing; pop it into a floor stand and it’ll be waiting there for you whenever you feel like playing!

These days, you can buy a mandolin for less than $100.

But you get what you pay for, right?

How can a mandolin be so inexpensive?

Here’s how you go about making a cheap mandolin:

• Overseas production in places like China where workers are paid subsistence wages. No need for skilled workers, because they do the same task day in and day out with no change in their routine. Assembly-line mandolin making.
• Low-quality components: pressed-metal tuning machines (instead of machined parts), poorly-made frets, one-size-fits-all bridges and nut.
• Plywood tops that require less bracing than normal mandolin tops.
• No carving to shape the top. It’s simply pressed and bent under heat and moisture. No carving for the other parts either; they’re just routed.
• Lower-quality finish, very few coats of finish.
• Plastic components
• Dyed wood to simulate ebony and/or rosewood
• Most cheap mandolins are A-model mandolins rather than F-Style Mandolins, because there is less detail work needed to turn out the simpler model

If the mandolin is your main instrument, or one of your main instruments, you won’t be satisfied with a sub-$100 mandolin:

• Frets will be be uneven, causing intonation problems
• Edges of frets will be rough and uncomfortable
• Instrument won’t be “set up” very well, and the “action” will be less than ideal
• The tuning machines will be difficult to operate
• The dye used to make the fingerboard look like high-quality hardwood will come off on your fingernails. Eventually, you’ll have worn spots that are easy to see
• The sound…

But if you just want to have a mandolin to experiment with, why not try one out? You don’t have much to lose at those prices.

The Gibson F-style mandolin is the gold standard. After all, the Gibson company invented the F-style mandolin. I’d go as far as to say that, without Gibson, the mandolin would be an obscure instrument with very few modern adherents.

But thankfully, history played itself out in a favorable way, and mandolin players are not only still going strong, but their numbers are increasing as more and more people recognize the merits of this wonderful instrument.

Gibson mandolins are top of the line

If you want the highest quality instrument and you’re not willing to pay a luthier to craft you a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, you really have no other choice but Gibson. However, quality comes dear. Gibson F-style mandolins cost thousands of dollars, so only serious buyers need apply.

I’ve heard people jump to the mistaken conclusion that F-style mandolins are so named because of the f-holes in the soundboard.

In a similar vein, I read a mandolin article whose author claimed that the scroll somehow resembled part of a stylized, lower-case “F”.

Neither of these guesses, though somewhat plausible, are correct.

The “F” in F-style mandolin stands for “Florentine”.

In fact, some folks always refer to this design by the full name: Florentine-style mandolin (or Florentine mandolin). Are they just being pretentious, or do they believe in accuracy above all else? Who knows; at least they’re knowledgeable.

The Gibson guitar company invented the F-style mandolin. (Incidentally, Gibson invented the A-style at approximately the same time.) Although it’s widely accepted that the letter designation stands for “Florentine”, it’s not as clear-cut what the “A” represents. Some say it stands for “Artist”.

Since the traditional mandolin shape is a bowl-backed form known as the “Neopolitan”, it stands to reason that Gibson would find it appropriate to give his new design an Italian name.

In any event, don’t be surprised if someone calles your F-style mandolin a “Florentine”.