K-MA1B Mandolin, Sunburst

I decided I wanted to learn mandolin and I looked into a few of the beginner or starter mandolins. This one was super cheap for a musical instrument, and it had very good reviews, so I decided to give it a try. I'm very very happy that I did.My big concern when I bought this was "Is it going to sound like a $65 instrument?" The price, and the fact that, as of this writing, the person who wrote the description doesn't even know how many strings a mandolin has, had me a little bit nervous.Once I got the package those fears were put to rest. The mandolin was packaged well, inside of the gig bag, with the bridge already set up and strings on and very near to being in tune, so I could tell that someone tuned it up before they shipped it. I had a mandolin before, that cost about 4 times what this one did, and this one sounds the same and stays in tune better. It's a good-looking instrument, as well. Playability is excellent, and the sound is bright but not harsh or sharp.Basically, if you want to learn mandolin and don't want to break the bank, then the good news is that you don't have to. This instrument is a ridiculous value, it sounds damn good and it's a blast to play.

I got this Mandolin a few days ago and I have to say I am really impressed with this little fella. I have played guitar for over 30 years and have wanted to dabble with the mandolin for a while now so based upon the other reviews I took a chance on this one and do not regret it for one minute.The quality is really very good for the money, nice tuners that have just the right amount of torque for their purpose, the finish is excellent and the case it comes with is way better than some guitar bags I have seen.Once I got it tuned ( about 15 -20 minutes for them to settle down ) it stayed in tune like a champ. I can't see a fault with the finish, it's a beautiful sunburst tobacco and is flawless. This mandolin looks way more expensive than it's price of $67, it's a down right steal and I have no problem recommending this to anyone.As for the tone, it's not bad but what do you want for this price, like I said, I only got it to satisfy my curiosity and without doubt I have been pleasantly surprised.

I have 4 guitars, and have always wanted a Mandolin, but didn't want to spend a lot on my first one. I bought this after looking at several others, and am very pleased. I know the strings aren't always the best, so I also bought a set of J-74'sto restring it with. I was really surprised in what showed up. Out of the box, there was not a single scratch, and this finish is beautiful. If someone told me this was a $300 mandolin, I would believe them. I set the bridge and tuned it, and although the strings it comes with came out of tune fairly fast, not a bad sound. I waited until I learned some basics before putting the D'Addario strings on, but the difference in sound was incredible! If you want a great instrument at a great price, you can't go wrong with this. Oh yeah, and the gig bag is a nice bonus.

Great instrument for the money..Take the time to setup correctly and place a decent set of strings on it and you will be pleased.I have owned mandolins costing 10 times as much as this one, they don't sound 10 times better. Great value and decent sound from such an inexpensive mandolin. Plus a gig bag to go with it... Plays as well or better than most $300 mandolins... Buy it!My only beef with it is the bridge. To get a setup of 1.5mm - 2mm on the 12th fret you have to sand and drop the adjustable bridge alot.....Other than that. Fit- Finish and quality is excellent for such an instrument. Looks to be maple back and sides and laminated 3 ply top maybe, but still has an excellent sound.

this item never came with its padded bag, an im disappointed with the service its a great mandolin but now i have no way of bringing it anywhere because i did not get my moneys worth

Seems like it would be a great beginner mandolin. Bought for my son for fun after we saw some mandolin players while on vacation. My son plays (a very expensive) violin so knows how to take care of his instruments. We had this hanging on the Hardwood Home & Studio Ukulele / Mandolin Hanger..and my son just didn't have time to use it (hence the dust;). So I don't know if lack of use caused it to break..but one day it actually spontaneously snapped :( We glued it back together and gave it to our local HS for a prop :)

I researched which mandolin to buy for over a month. While I put some in my cart, many were removed and this one stayed. Well worth it. Actually it's prob worth 50 bucks more. I went to music stores and looked also. There were some good ones out there but they were 5 times more. Of any in the sub 200 range this has to be one of the best.I played it for hours after receiving it. It tuned up very fast. I just noticed that Amazon is out of stock so I guess others must agree with me. The only drawback if any is that the metal plate at the bottom can touch the strings. All you do is take it off and angle it up some or u can remove it completely. Nice case and it's all in good shape. Thanks!

I am giving 5 stars not because it's a perfect instrument in every way but because it's a very decent instrument for its cost.If you the knowledge on how to set up the bridge for intonation, the instrument is very playable after around 15-20mins of setting up. The string action is decent not too high or low. No dead notes. Nut height was appropriate. The supplied Allen wrench suggests the presence of a truss rod for neck relief adjustments, however I have not removed the headstock plate to confirm this yet. The instrument looks rather cheap and the paint job is mediocre but plays and sounds rather nice. My instrument had a slight paint blemish within the sunburst, but I am overlooking this issue considering its price.If you are looking for a cheap beginners instrument or a guitarist looking to noodle around on an alternative instrument without breaking the bank, I highly recommend this instrument.