IbanezM510 - Dark Violin Sunburst High Gloss

This is a fantastic mandolin for a beginner. I’ve played the guitar and other string instruments for almost 20 years but I’ve just started to take up the mandolin. The build quality is excellent. Tone is good. Initial setup is required, so if you don’t know how you’ll need to do some research or take it into a music shop. I only really had to look up videos about bridge placement— the action was fairly well set, and I haven’t had any intonation problems after my setup. The tuners feel solid and hold correct pitch without much issue. I was set up and playing fiddle tunes in barely any time at all. It’s a fairly no-frills basic A-style mandolin, but I was impressed at the instrument I got for the price I paid.

This is my first mandolin so I am by no means an expert, but it is a beauty. Flawless finish, the neck is nice and flat, and after resetting the location of the bridge it intonated perfectly. One thing that I will say though is that the piece of foam that they put under the bridge is going to be a pain for someone that doesnt know how to set up a stringed instrument. You have to loosen the strings so much to remove that piece of foam, the bridge is going to move and you will have to reset it. I've heard people complain about the strings that Ibanez puts on these msndolins but they seemed fine to me. After playing it for a day I learned a few songs and was feeling pretty confident so replaced them with some DiDarrio midweight strings. They do sound better but they are too heavy for me. Takes a whole lot more pressure to push down strings on the first fret. Immediately ordered a set of lightweight strings for it. Can't wait to get them so I can get back to really enjoying my new mandolin!

My experience was consistent with other reviews in that it badly needed to be setup, but once put in order, really fun and great sounding instrument.Setup:Arrived sounding terrible, stock strings really bad and the tailpiece top part was installed incorrectly so the strings were buzzing against it. Was extremely difficult and painful to remove the tailpiece plate for restringing.Bridge was not even remotely fit to the top.Fretboard was dry as a bone and grey looking. There was also a chip / splinter high up in the fretboard that was disappointing but ultimately not a big deal.One pleasant surprise was the nut was fit very nicely, which is rare. No filing was needed (YMMV!)After new strings, sanding the bridge to fit, and a little mineral oil on the fretboard, all was well.Not to spec: Ibanez lists this as a wide nut, and it was absolutely not wide. Narrow traditional nut. Gloss finish unlike photos here.Frets: Smallest, shortest frets I’ve ever seen. Very traditional mandolin frets. Considerably smaller than my Eastman (known for small frets), by comparison. I think smaller than the photos. Not an issue for me but for this reason alone upgrading to a Loar (larger frets) for a beginner might be a good idea, especially if the player is a child and/or doesn’t have a lot of experience with fretted instruments.Now the good news. The instrument is beautiful and sounds shockingly good once setup properly. Loud, bold, dry classic mandolin tone. I couldn’t believe how good the tone was considering the price.Conclusion: Good value, great sounding instrument, but you better feel comfortable setting up a mandolin.I can’t recommend for a child or beginner due to the tiny frets. I also suspect that you won’t really know what you’re getting until it shows up at your door, since it wasn’t even close to spec on multiple fronts. You may receive a totally different instrument than what I got.Great beater / 2nd mando / campfire instrument for non-beginner or entry for a more seasoned fretted instrument player venturing into mando on a budget.

I've always loved the sound of the mandolin and still would love to learn to play one some day. That being said, I couldn't get the fingering right and kept pressing against the adjacent strings, since my hands are a bit large. I decided, ultimately, to return the unit I bought, but that was only because I figured I'd learn the guitar first. All in all, I felt the mandolin I received was fantastic in quality and if you're looking to jump in and learn to play I don't think you'll be disappointed.

I bought this for a friend. Can't say we have had many mandolins to compare it to, but it sounds nice and it's comfortable to the fingers.

Why would they put the bridge over a piece of foam that cannot be removed? This is lazy in my opinion. The instrument is pretty and plays well once it’s tuned but this plastic under the bridge is just ugly and can’t be easily removed.

I play guitar, ukulele, banjo and more, but had never tried a mandolin. Buying one online is a little scary, but I trusted the reviews and they appear to be justified. I received mine a few days ago and have gone through the steps to setup the bridge/saddle for intonation and string action. All good there! I will replace the factory strings very shortly as I'm mostly curious to see the difference. Quality and workmanship are truly excellent in a product at this price point or even higher. I'll almost certainly opt for a more expensive mandolin at some point, but for me to learn if I like it and how to play, this one fits the bill very nicely.

At 50 I decided I wanted to play an instrument. I have always loved the sound of the Mandolin so I went for it. After reading tons of reviews I went to a low priced version of a brand I knew.So far I have really been happy with the quality, appearance, and sound of this Mandolin. It holds a tune very well. Easy and comfortable to play, I read about string height and this seems to have a low profile. I did compare it to a friend’s 4K Mandolin and could hear the difference in sound but not enough to change my impression.If you are starting out and want a solid instrument for not a lot of money, I highly recommend this one.