Is the top wood on these models sitka? Can those of you that have/had one of these chime in as to what you think of them? I a/b'd one against a MF-5 and I did not see a whole lot of difference in tone... at least between these 2 particular mandolins that I played. Thanks!

I don't think any Collings mandolins have sitka tops. If I remember right, the MT is engleman and the Fs are usually red spruce.

doc's right. only the MT has an engelmann top. all others are red spruce. i don't know why sitka is never used on mandolins. you may not find a whole lot of difference in tone between an MF and MF-5. the best bluegrass collings mandolin i've heard was a blackface MF. a real cannon. on the other hand, i'm very partial to my varnished MT-2... a more balanced sound to my ear. the red spruce top really delivers when you ask it to.

That's what I thought about Collings and sitka for mando tops. But the guys at Mass St. Music were pretty sure it was sitka and they usually no what they're talking about. I'll give Collings a call and double check. Thanks for all of your responses!

check the other threads here concerning this. there is a quote from an e-mail from Alex at Collings. MT is engelmann and the MF is adi unless you ask for something different.

i ordered an amber (light shade top) MF with tortoise binding in engelmann last week. sort of an experiment. i love that big throaty growl of the MT and i am not a bluegrass player per se. but i like the balanced feel of the F style instruments (must be the guitar player in me).

marymary - are you going to keep your MT once you get the MF? Can you tell me more about the sound differences between the MT and MF? Thanks!

hopefully i will have two mt's to compare it with when it comes. my blonde MT is due any day now, or so they say.

I had a great 2004 MT while I was waiting for my Heiden lefty artist. Paul Shelasky the fiddle player from Lost Highway offerred to buy it from me when I had had it for just one day. A month or so later I played it in a small jam with 2 MF5 and they all sounded great. Apart from the normal nuances from one instrument to another, and the players attack....they all went head to head and sounded very similar. I think the MT is a great instrument and certainly the best bang for your buck mando out there.

i have to say, the mt's are pretty consistent (not so with some of the other models- at least from my experience) although i played an mt2 from 2004 that was on consignment at acoustic outfitters in nh that was tempting.