Bowl Back (Tater Bug) Mandolin vs. Oval Hole vs. F Hole Mandolin

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[@josephbiancorosso3179]

They all sound great but the original bowl back style seems to have the fullest and the most roundest tone. I enjoyed your video. Thank you.

[@patriciathomas9669]

My uncle was 1st generation American. His parents were from Sicily. He had a bowl back mandolin that he would play. His youngest sin has it now. It is a beautiful instrument.

[@WC_Beer_Reviews]

I always love comparison videos! So much attention is given to F-hole mandolins. Its nice to see oval holes and bowlbacks getting some love.👍

[@kevinbaker3616]

My favorite mandolin is my bowl back. I bought it in Italy and it sounds great.

[@anubispup4760]

I found mine in the back of a pawn shop covered in dust. I am SO glad I bought it. I enjoy sitting on our roof when I'm feeling depressed and playing it.

[@Sophia-vx8gj]

@Kevin Baker how much did this cost you in Italy? And what city did you buy it in?

[@mr.grantsartexplorations1014]

To me, it seems like the oval hole mandolin will be great for playing by yourself, it has more bass to it that resonates. The F hole sounds like it would be better mixed with other instruments to have a more cutting sound with a band and more professional play. That’s just my thoughts right now.

[@aaronw447]

I like how your bowlback also has a bottle opener built in.

[@WithStringedInstruments]

I was surprised that I liked the sound of the bowlback best.

[@Gelsenbury]

They all sound great in your hands, of course.

[@RyanAlexanderBloom]

I like the oval Gibson. The strings sounded nice when played together instead of sounding like 4 individuals competing with each other. It had a better blend on chords.

[@douglaspeters6990]

Really cool editing! Those old oval gibsons are my favorite

[@fallingarrows1401]

Me too! So rich and resonant.

[@PoulHansenDK]

Damn. I fast forwarded to the soundtest and couldn't see the head, so I assumed the first was the Gibson aso. But I liked the second mandolin best and now I find out it's the Gibson, the most expensive and unobtainable of them all. Impressive that the Gibson still has some sustain at the very highest note!

[@jbcarseiii]

Check the prices on Reverb. They are surprisingly affordable compared to other modern American factory made instruments. Unless you are looking at F models. Those are as expensive as a house!

[@monkeytennis7477]

I'm here today because I found a bowlback mandolin at a thrift store, and wanted to hear what it might sound like 😀 I'm quite impressed with how bright the tone is! Mine is an antique George Bauer from Pa. It ended up in Florida with me, today 11-04-23.

[@timothkeyyprice]

Great job. I have the 1920s oval hole. Never heard a tater back but love it’s mellowness. 👏🏻

[@eugeneross6624]

Great job splicing together tunes around 7:00. Kept the beat in sync, very impressive.

[@neilfromclearwaterfl81]

I liked the second mandolin and the bowl back the best. Surprised by the bass and sustain on the bowl back despite the light strings and now better understand why classical musicians prefer them. Could be in part to the bowl back limiting body contact that allows it to do that. Sadly many rate the bowl back by the cheap tourist trade/mass market discount store models which are little more than mandolin shaped objects and not master class instruments. Best!

[@Iceland874]

All three have beautiful voices. The variety in the three is wonderful. Thank you for the great video. I wish had each one’s twin. Your playing is so enjoyable!

[@DisHammerhand]

All sound beautiful. The oval hole is my favorite because it sounds fuller to me. The tater bug has a beautiful sweetness in the upper register. Your videos helped me decide to get an oval hole. I have a Kentucky KM272 coming.

[@empireentertainmentevents1353]

Bowl Back sounded the best. more gentle and warmer tone.

[@stepno]

When Gibson started selling their carved-top-and-back mandolins more than 120 years ago, they advertised with cartoons showing the insects called "potato ("'tater") bugs" being smashed and driven away. The name stuck. The new shallower violin-influenced Gibson carved-back designs and flat-back models from Vega, Martin , and other companies, were easier to play standing up... and later, standing at a microphone. An artist-expert made carved-top-and-back mandolin can sound rich, full and loud without needing as much body as a bowl-back... which is more comfortable to play seated. Check youtube for videos of oldtime player Kenny Hall (1923-2013), who had a unique style of holding his bowl-back mandolin almost vertically.

[@gemo6856]

Bowl back, takes me back to my childhood, listening to my grandfather.

[@xeno_phobik]

Thank you for this! I just got back into playing and got an F hole, but I prefer Irish style folk music and heard the difference. I'm definitely getting an oval hole next time around!

[@spitfirekid1]

That may be the best “tater bug” I’ve ever heard!

[@bebefreed]

Very useful comparison, thank you! I live next door to Italy where nice bowl back mandolins are easy to come by, but flat back style and oval holes of good quality are really hard to find. I though I needed to take a great risk and order on-line, but I think I will try out a nice bowl back until I can get to Ireland or the US--where I can sit is a store and try out an instrument for a while before I buy it.

[@faronsquare]

Just got a mandolin for Christmas, and thanks to your videos I can play the heck out of the G, C and D chords already! Thanks for the free information and lessons! As a guitar player, it's very different, but also very familiar and with your help I'm picking it up fairly quickly. Thanks again, and happy new year!

[@geoffwhitemusic]

At least on the recording, the A-5 (F-hole) mandolin seems to have the most punch and power. It may be the mic used or the proximity, but surprisingly the F-hole mandolin sounds the sweetest to me.

[@thornprick2645]

Definitely agree!

[@schiavone244]

Nice comparison. I play a 1917 Gibson A style Mandocello with a mandolin orchestra. The instrument doesn't have the growl and volume that the F style mandocellos have. We have all kinds of mandolins in the group including a couple of mando basses. The colors produced can differ even among similar shaped instruments. In the end it's all about what you hear.

[@Mrsadams1]

Wow. Best comparison technique ever. Thank you! 😁

[@n.proctor5917]

Interesting. I like the sound of your Gibson best. Sounds fuller to me - but it could be these cheap computer speakers not doing justice to the other two :).

[@johnjriggsarchery2457]

I remember when you could walk into Elderly Instruments when they were on Grand River, and pick up a Tater Bug for $75.00.

[@Road_Rash]

I love my old tater bug, but the neck has developed a crack at the base & I need to get it repaired...also, you left out the F body mando...also a very popular style, if not the most popular...people love the art deco styling on them...

[@JackieMatthews610318]

I love this comparison so much!

[@robertshorthill4153]

Love that Pig's Foot tune -- great tune to play for sound comparison, so thanks for that, buddy Bob

[@bethstevenson5582]

Im actually looking to buy a new mandolin today. I love the bowl sound so thatll probly be my pick!

[@paulallen3557]

Thanks so much for your demonstration. You're a likeable, smart fellar and your videos are a pleasure to watch.

[@marklozano8388]

I have the 24 snakehead and just got a Vega bowlback but unless I fall into a pit full of dubloons I'll have to survive without the Ellis

[@blairgilligan3649]

Very well done! Thoroughly enjoyed this video.

[@waynebagley]

Interesting video. I have always wanted a bowl back mandolin so I enjoyed the video.

[@jmack619]

great video! To the half naked ear, they sound close!! I have a 1900's bowl back and a newer oval hole, gotta get to work!!

[@robertshorthill4153]

Baron, Jerry Rosa calls it a "chili dipper" and has work on a few, I believe. Not his favorite mando to work on, I'm sure. Beautiful as they are, they are not as strong as modern Mandolins. Your chili dipper sounds really good. I've messed around with a couple of them only as a had an Italian friend a long time ago that got them from his grandpa. He took damned good care of them too. They didn't have the strong sound like modern mandos -- kinda weak and insipid, but he didn't play any Vivaldi or anything classical. Just played it for fun and a few notes once in a while. It was a treasure to hold an old instrument like that, even though I couldn't play very well myself at the time, not that I can now either, but have an outstanding appreciation of anything mandolin, instruments or tunes. Cheers, my friend and Happy New Year .... Bob in Montana

[@luckysevenairammo1217]

I have a 1920's Oscar Schmidt 12 string Chilli dipper and the thing will damn near wake the dead. It's extremely loud and bright. Much louder then a standard flat back F or oval.

[@ludmillabahari2098]

Thanks a lot of this video. I play a bowl back mandolin in little orkester in Holland. My mandolin is Ibanez and sounds great. We play classic and pop music. I'd like to learn another style of mando and I've orderd an Epiphone f-holes mandolin, but because Kovid-19 this item is not yet arrived. Every body Happy New Year en enjoy you music!

[@billastell3753]

I have played/own f hole mandos that are just as mellow and sweet as A holes. And... I have an oval hole that has all the volume anyone would need in acoustic.

[@CarolinaGrass64]

I play bluegrass mandolin, so the F hole mandolins are for me. Sound wise and looks.

[@karinberryman2009]

Makes such a difference!

[@paulsullivan931]

Fantastic they all sound great 👍😃

[@wo8e]

First off, thanks for the work you put into this, I picked up a fender electro acoustic off craigslist a couple weeks ago and have been going through your videos trying to teach myself. Second: what's the first tune you are riffing on? I recognize the second one as 'Shove that pigs foot closer to the fire', but can't place the first one.

[@MUSEDR00L]

Of the three, I think the oval gibson has the best overall sound, more rich bass and more ring. The bowl back is similar but not quite as much ring but very similar bass. The modern mandolin has no bass whatsoever but does have the flat sound that modern mandolin pieces prefer. My father played mandolin and had two of the bowl backs and one modern f hole mandolin. I still have one of the bowl backs (my brother who actually plays some has the other two). Nice comparison and nice playing. Thank you.

[@scronx]

That is an especially lovely Vega you've got there.

[@wyatthundley4960]

I love the songs, have you done lessons on them and where can I find it?

[@jeannine8400]

I was thinking about a mandolin, but I've been learning ukulele for a bit now, but I don't think I know enough of the ukulele to then go on to do something else, but I love the sound of the mandolin. I'm still thinking on it.

[@JJ_TheGreat]

Me, too! I have never played a stringed instrument, but I just love the sound of the mandolin. I was thinking about the ukulele, too. It has a nice sound (not as nice as the mandolin, imo) and it is supposedly easier to learn to play… We’ll see.

[@jaytuckertravis5110]

Excellent thank you

[@NtaGot]

check the cretan mandolin. its a bit bigger than the flat mandolin

[@MasterYourGlass]

Great video. I am just starting here and considering playing a bowl back because that was what my father played. A few questions, would you consider a ball back closer to an a style or F style? If that comparison is even a thing. Also, if you have a bowl back can you convert it to a left-hand play? Thank you!

[@crtv1337]

Turns out, the least cool looking one, the flat back one sound way better than others. And F-shape just sounds like a toy instrument in comparison. I never believed how sound would physically get to those decorative holes, and this video proves to me that i was right when i bought an oval hole, flat back mandolin.

[@crtv1337]

Though bowl back mandolin has richer sound, it's huge gap between lows and highs sort of breaks the sound for me, especially when compared to flat back with it's more compressed sound, which feels like one whole instrument, not like 1.5

[@AyumiTenshi]

I got lost in the edit of the three together and just enjoyed them all singing beautifully together. Oops. 😅

[@doctormock1]

One possible variant between instruments that you didn't mention is scale length or the distance from the nut to the bridge. I have a bowlback and an oval hole A model and the scale length on the bowlback is about an inch shorter than the oval hole. Is the scale length the same on all three of these instruments? I believe that if there is a difference that can affect the tone of the instruments.

[@jtelevenoyd1571]

Between these three, the Gibson oval hole is the sweet spot for me although the tater bug sound is nicely complex. I have a couple of F-hole mandolins myself, but I've never 100% warmed up to them. I think they sound rather one-dimensional compared to their oval hole counterparts. (My main mando is an oval hole F-style by Northfield; my secondary is an A5 style from Eastman.) Then again, if bluegrass were my focus I suspect that my mandolin preferences would be practically the opposite of what they are. Horses for courses and all that.

[@HEADLINEZOO]

The smaller F hole opening produces a higher definition of tone in much the same way a smaller aperture on a camera or a squinting of the eyes produces a clearer more hi-def picture. I bet you could get a combo of both within the same mandolin. The F hole one sounds to my ear like it’s 3 times as pricey as the O hole one based on sound quality. The O is far more muddled.

[@jalcruces]

The bowl back definitely has a better, more solid sound and resonance. I've had one for decades (built in the 1800s). But that awful back is so very hard to hold in place. I hate that about it. :( Secondarily, the Gibson sounded good. I thought the f hole was the worst.

[@murph_mustela]

Really helpful, thanks. Funny enough although I play trad I like the oval-hole least. Sounds too similar to the guitar, so I reckon, what's the point?

[@benelkins9206]

I am a huge fan of your channel and need advice on buying a mandolin... I am really taken by classical music and would like to buy an instrument.. where should I look and what’s a good price for a beginner ??

[@thornprick2645]

Love the f style!

[@thornprick2645]

Learning on an A style/oval hole and I love it so much!

[@karlschulte9231]

The deeper resonant chamber natural frequency allows netter g string redonance/sustain and tone. On chops tone is of little importance; rhythem more than tone. The larger/darker a type sounded best overall. But Napoli had it on deeper notes to me. Very nice test.

[@handiman5]

Thank you for your dedication & hard work! Would an 'F-Style' Mandolin have made a more deeper, or mellow sound?

[@HEADLINEZOO]

The F style is just different cosmetically most people say, though some claim it offers more sustain. It’s more traditional and popular with professionals.

[@chiron14pl]

I like the oval hole mandolins

[@delbomb3131]

Saw some pictures of Taylor swift with an oval hole mandolin and was baffled by it because looking up mandolins the f hole ones seem most prevalent. Thanks for the comparison. Friend said hers was a lute but I'm pretty sure it's the oval hole mandolin. Tho there is older pics of her with a lute

[@vibehigh5280]

which one is good for classical music?

[@ritupabankotoky]

Nice, I can see one Harmonium there, How did you get it ? is Indian.

[@boriscat1999]

I have a bowl back made in Asia that I got pretty cheaply. I think it sounds great, but I have a hard time holding it. With the flatter mandolins I can steady it by pushing it again myself, but this habit leads to the bowlback spinning around. And tips on holding one?

[@SkiSurfManlyBch]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/o53RhnqBjc-KgKc

[@JJ_TheGreat]

1:33 What about the difference between A style mandolins and F style mandolins? Thanks.

[@karlschulte9231]

Try tremolo like o solo mio or celeste aida by Verdi. The Naapolitan is best. Bluegrass not as much. Big hall vs chamber music.

[@alibaimchen7494]

Can you help how to buy those Mandolin ?

[@evanhovis9126]

I want a quality oval hole really bad. But i dont want to spend a fortune. I also would like an oval hole built to where the body didnt come up so far on the neck, like those gibsons, to make high fret notes easier to chord

[@boriscat1999]

Ovation has a mandolin (Celebrity Ovation) that has round holes in the upper corner. It's an unusual design and looks like a tiny version of their guitars. Doesn't exactly sound like an A style mandolin when play acoustic, but amplified it has a lot of the same qualities. You can get a very playable one for not a lot of money.

[@shineisle2263]

ලස්සනයි 🌹❤🇱🇰👍

[@neomandan64]

Is the bowl back a Lyon and Healy from 1920 or so? That's what I have

[@marklozano8388]

I believe it's a Vega

[@billastell3753]

I was really surprised that the bowl back had a decent sound on the G & D strings. Any I've played were OK on the A & E strings but not good on the lower strings.

[@markpx]

I have a 12-string bowl back. Each pitch has 3 strings. Is this rare?

[@ised-5239]

Classic italian mando vs us mandos

[@speedflash9347]

Anyone know what tune that is? Thanks.

[@zbigniewstrozynski766]

Super. Mam 200 letnią włoską. Wypukłą. Dosiego Roku 2021.

[@JonathanSchlackman]

do you use the same kind of strings for the bowlback as the others?

[@PeterEvans_music]

The bowl back has lights rather than medium or medium heavy

[@aaronflinner6431]

I am fairly poor, and can only afford a value priced instrument. That said, I would still like to purchase as good a mandolin as I can. What is your opinion of the Epiphone MM 30S? For $200 it looks pretty and has a solid top, so I am considering it.

[@lowtone9]

Betsy, i advise you to find the best Eastman you can afford. Those are inexpensive and always well built.

[@keddyphotoeclecticphotogra6120]

Thank you

[@svavargarri]

nice one

[@andrewthompson4068]

bowlback, but my speakers are naff

[@nicolasbruno829]

Can we use a respectable name for the Neapolitan Mandolin please? Calling the others by formal names and then calling the Traditional Mandolin a 'tater bug' just makes it sound less respected.

[@grandpawshepdog2942]

The Bow Back mandolins usually hang on a wall as a talking piece. They are hard to hold without them rolling around. That is why a bluegrass, or folk / square dance picker goes with the old C and F model mandolins. He old American Appalachian folks called those mandolins tater bugs because they resembled potato bugs. Like I said, if you find these bow-back mandolins they are usually hanging on a wall, dusty, cracked and kept as a conversation piece. No one wants to play them because they roll on you. I’ve rebuilt 5 of them. I’ve resold them to old people that remember them as Tater bugs. So bud feel lucky we even give them recognition at all.

[@PaulusCaesar]

@@grandpawshepdog2942 Maybe some people have too big a tummy to hold it! The bowl-back is indeed the original mandolin shape, harder to make and it does sound fuller and sweeter. The repertoire for classical mandolin was written on that instrument, well before the irish and then the americans started to play their three-chords dancing pieces on the pan-shaped ones. Vivaldi and Paganini played and composed on them, Calace perfected it. So it's called the Neapolitan Mandolin. Sorry for the rant, I do believe all three kind have their place and I do own an f-holes, but history is important

[@marykatherinegoode2773]

@@PaulusCaesar I disagree. Strongly, in fact. The ONE THING that NONE of those composers could do was make the mandolin the star of the show! It had a nice tone, but no ability to project that tone. The bowlback was an invention of the 18th century but then nobody touched it again for almost 200 years. People got complacent. In fact, nobody has done a thing with the bowlback in a donkey's age. They don't even experiment with new materials. Most in Italy only associate the flat mando with bluegrass and country but don't understand _how_ to use the other body type or apply it properly to traditiona or just plain older music. A skilled flattop or archtop player does not have to beat the dickens out of the strings to get a sound: he does not have to. In fact, most Italians don't know that a lighter pluck will be juust enough to shush it down. He does not have to use the tremolo technique when more modern methods take care of sustaining the note for him. And best of all, he can switch up how he plucks the strings and get a greater variety of results. Try the Gibson on a traditional ballad, a love song, and add a guitar. (I nominate Con Te Partiró.) Let the guitar take the bottom and the mandolin take the top. Play with the arrangement a teeny tiny bit so they harmonize. It will sound like two lovers if done correctly, the guitar, the man, the woman, the mandolin. A guitar would normally drown out the bowlback and make this impossible. Now, switch it up again. Give the flat mandolin room and adjust the mic if you have to. Get some plastic buckets of different sizes-they will do for now, so long as you have drumsticks. Go outside. Play for the people. It is time for George Harrison. "Here Comes The Sun" would be a composition the non-bowlback mandolin would shine brightly on. Others would include "Space Oddity" by Bowie, "Man Who Sold the World," also by Bowie, "Rolling In the Deep" by Adele, and if you add a fiddle, "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson. (Making the mandolin and the fiddle duel will just triple underline it!) Switch again. Just the mandolin this time. Try to tackle "Rondo Alla Turca" by Mozart, then switch to Handel, the hornpipe section of his Water Music. And last, Vivaldi. Winter, first movement. If you know someone who knows how to pick banjo style, let him play with those glissandos at the beginning. He will have a blast. The Red Priest intended that part of his Four Seasons to be a violinist's playground. The Red Priest was active over 200 years too early to meet Earl Scruggs or Doc Boggs. He would have lost his mind watching either have their fingers fly over the banjo strings.

[@datsunlambchops4624]

@Grandpaw Shepdog Recognition. I play an Italian mandolin. I have some really nice custom mandolins. However, i play my bowlback mandolin the most when at home. The only reason i don't play it for gigs or jams is not a projection, but the fact it doesn't have very dynamic chord tones. But for melodies it is fantastic.

[@nicolasbruno829]

@@romeohio19 You might want to check out the definition of objective. It is not 'inferior', it is simply a different timbre and your dislike is simply a preference. It is not outdated either, it is still used in southern Italy (which is where the mandolin was created) and is a staple in Neapolitan music.

[@infledermaus]

It should really be called a Neopolitan or Roman mandolin and NEVER a tater bug. It is an evolution of the lute, not an insect.

[@PieterJanNotebaart]

Way too many instruments...