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(More customer reviews)Howdy folks. Nice to see you can buy one of these top-end mandolins off Amazon these days, but I do have some extended comments:
I'm a professional economist and a mandolin player of over 20 years' experience.
Lemme talk about economics first. There's something in microeconomics called "price discrimination." This means that producers use sneaky means to find out which of their customers might be willing to pay a higher price for essentially the same good, so that they can charge those guys more.
A good example of this would be the difference between the home version of Windows and the professional version. I think there's very few people who could state how exactly the professional version differs from the standard home version, but still, when you've got money to spend and you're setting up your new computer, you wanna buy "the best."
Now let's talk about Breedlove mandos.
Breedlove is widely regarded as the best American-based manufacturer of mandolins currently in mass production. They're fine instruments, of that there is no doubt.
But the question at hand is whether one should one plop down thousands for their higher-end, "Master Class" models (such as the one on this page, the Breedlove Alpine), or whether the Breedlove Quartz OF Mandolin, Made in U.S.A., for example, is enough for you? Nobody wants to spend a ton of money unnecessarily, even if you are loaded.
Now, I had been aching to play a Breedlove Alpine ever since reading the supremely mando-knowledgeable "Mickey" at Folk of the Wood (in New Mexico) declare it to be the best mandolin currently being produced (in a post I cannot currently locate).
But worried about paying too much for a difference that really wouldn't be worth it, I emailed the company with my question. I wanted to know what justified the huge difference in price between their lower-end but still excellent models, and their higher-end models.
I wrote: "I've had my eye on a Breedlove for some time now. But there's something I'd like a straight answer on. Breedlove has what they call a "Master Class" of mandolin, such as their Alpine. I've been wanting a really nice mandolin, but didn't buy an Alpine because I want to avoid the bright tone of the f-models. I need something a little more full and haunting for Celtic music. Anyhow . . . what I don't understand is what exactly is meant by "Master Class." Is that just a bunch of fancy gold trimmings and stuff on the headstock, or is there a significant difference in the wood, the finishing, the playability, etc. of the instrument? I'm looking for a comfortable, playable instrument but don't really care what it looks like as there's certainly no one out here to watch me play. So is Breedlove's "Master Class" just a cosmetic thing?"
This is from their snarky reply: "The finest woods, appointments and attention to detail goes into our Master Class models. IE: out of 500 pieces of wood we might find 50 that will make it to a Quartz Series Mandolin. Of that 50, only 2 or 3 will be Master Class Quality. Does that make sense to you?"
I was not satisfied with this reply, as I don't believe the phrase "the finest woods" can quite justify four grand (or whatever). But I remained determined to own a Breedlove.
Months passed. Then, one August, I found myself in a mandolin speciality store that I learned had a Breedlove as well as one of their "lesser" models -- a Quartz KO.
Wrapping a bandana over my head, I took the Pepsi challenge. I had a friend bring me both mandolins, which I played blindfolded for about 15 minutes, not knowing which was which. The point was to see if I could tell the difference from the sound alone.
Folks, for the life of me, I was not able to tell the difference. Remember I've been playing for a couple of decades.
Sure, when I took the blindfold off, the Alpine immediately struck me as more visually elegant, but in terms of the sound, I was not able to discern a difference in timbre, tone, resonance, clarity, etc. Admittedly, once the blindfold was off, the Alpine suddenly "sounded" better, but I had demonstrated this was just my mind playing tricks with me.
I know they say when you're buying an instrument you should splurge for the best you can afford.
But I am the proud and happy owner of one of their "lesser" jobs: the Quartz. It's all I need.
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Breedlove Alpine OF Master Class Mandolin, Made in U.S.A.
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