Eastman MDO305 Classic Octave Mandolin

What We Say

Is it twice the fun? Eight times the fun? We never were that good at maths... so, what we have here is an octave version of Eastman's best selling 305 mandolin, so it's tuned with the top string the same as a guitar rather than a violin and has a 21" scale length. It sounds immense, very full and resonant and it's a wonderful solo instrument. 

The 300 series is Eastmans most affordable mandolin series and great value for anyone wanting a professional sounding mandolin on a tight budget. They use the same all solid, carved construction - no Eastman mandolin uses the common practice of pressing thin sheets of wood into shape and calling them solid - but they save money with minimal cosmetic flourishes, less figured maple, a satin rather than high gloss finish and a gig bag rather than a hard case. There's really no compromise at all in tone and a 300 series mandolin can easy hold its own against a more expensive model when it comes to sound. For an American style mandolin at this price it's pretty much perfect.

There are plenty of profession demos of people who can play the octave mandolin on Youtube, but we thought it might be more fun to let one of our Instrument Dept loose on it:

What They Say

• Neck Material:Maple
• Fingerboard:Ebony
• Fingerboard Radius:12"
• Nut:1 3/8"
• Fretwire:23 Jescar FW37053
• Scale Length:21"
• Body Style:A-style w/ S-Holes
• Body Dimensions:12" x 15 5/8" x 1 27/32"
• Body Top:Solid Spruce
• Body Back/Sides:Solid Maple
• Truss Rod:Single Acting
• Binding:Top
• Binding Material:Ivoroid
• Logo:Maple Headstock
• Inlay:Pearl Dots
• Side Dot Color:Black
• Finish:Matte Nitrocellulose
• Hardware Color:Nickel
• Tailpiece:Stamped Chrome Brass
• Bridge:Ebony
• Nut Height:0.018"
• Pickup:Optional K&K Mandolin Twin ($200)
• Tuners:Quality Geared Tuners
• Strap Peg:Ebony
• Strings:D'Addario J80
• Action Height:0.060"/0.050"
• Case:Padded Gig Bag