In this guide, we’ll explore some of the best The Loar mandolins you can find currently on the market. The Loar is a young company that has already caught the attention of many mandolin players with their high-grade hand-carved instruments.
I’m a mandolin enthusiast and music composer with several years of experience creating rock, folk, and blues albums, as well as several soundtracks and jingles.
Quick Look: Best The Loar Mandolins
★ #1 Best The Loar Mandolin Overall: The Loar LM-520-VS Performer ★
- Best Cheap The Loar Mandolin: The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek
- Best The Loar Mandolin Under $1,000: The Loar LM-600 F-model
- Best The Loar Mandolin Under $500: The Loar LM-310F-BRB Honey
- Best A-Style The Loar Mandolin: The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek
- Best F-Style The Loar Mandolin: The Loar LM-700 F-model Mandolin
Join me to take a look at some of the best models made by The Loar and what makes them so special in the eyes of their fans.
About The Loar Mandolins
The Loar is a Chinese brand that takes the modern approach and blends it with old classic ways of creating unique and beautiful instruments. Most models made by The Loar have a similar design to the old classics like the Gibson F-5.
The general idea behind The Loar is to create a small range of high-grade instruments that could satisfy any intermediate or even professional player. Made of hand-carved solid wood, most models made by this brand are very well-respected and can compete with even Kentucky mandolins and Eastman mandolins.
Things to Consider When Choosing The Loar Mandolins
There are several factors to have in mind if you’re looking for the right mandolin. The Loar offers consistent quality, but each model has a different type of wood and sound quality. Size, overall sound, and price are some of the characteristics we’ll explore below.
Size
The Loar mandolins are quite big overall, as they imitate the general design of the Gibson F-5. This offers a great sustain and projection for almost every model made by The Loar.
The Overall Tone & Sound
The Loar mandolins offer a clean and bright tonality, but this might vary depending on the model. The overall sound of The Loar could be defined as versatile, as it could easily adapt to almost any musical style.
Price
Most mandolins made by The Loar are somewhat expensive, as most of them are hand-carved and solid top.
Types of The Loar Mandolins
This brand doesn’t experiment too much with their design, and their mandolins have F-style and A-style shapes.
A-Style The Loar Mandolins
A-style is a simple pear-shaped design, which is quite comfortable to play. A-Style mandolins are generally cheaper than their F-style counterparts but offer a better sustain and projection.
F-Style The Loar Mandolins
F-style mandolins are the most sophisticated of the bunch. This style, made popular by Gibson, has a sharp and bright tonality, which is why this style is the most common in bluegrass and country music.
5 Best The Loar Mandolins
In this section, we’ll dive deeper into each model made by The Loar. Here we’ll go from the cheapest models to the most expensive and professional ones.
The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek A-Style Mandolin
- Size: 25.75 x 9.75 x 2 inches
- Weight: 2.79 pounds
- Material & finish: Hand-carved solid spruce top, maple back and sides, satin brown burst finish
- Sound: Clean and warm
- Best for: Beginners
The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek A-Style Mandolin is a budget-friendly A-style mandolin made by The Loar with surprisingly high-quality wood for this price tag. This model has a beautiful finish and a great projection all around the spectrum.
✅ Hand-carved
✅ Comfortable to play
✅ Beautiful finish
✅ Sturdy construction
❌ Requires setup to play
Why I Recommend It
This is probably one of the best budget-friendly mandolins currently on the market. If you’re looking for a great beginner mandolin, this model is an excellent choice.
The Loar LM-310F-BRB Honey Creek F-Style Mandolin
- Size: 27.5 x 10 x 2 inches
- Weight: 4 pounds
- Material & finish: Hand-carved solid spruce top, maple back and sides, satin brown burst finish
- Sound: Bright and clean
- Best for: Beginners and intermediate
The Loar LM-310F-BRB Honey Creek F-Style Mandolin is a great F-style with a very low price. It’s probably the cheapest F-style currently on the market. But the construction is anything but cheap, as this model has a high-grade hand-carved wood that offers a great tonality and fast action.
✅ Hand-carved
✅ Robust build
✅ Comfortable to play
✅ Beautiful design
❌ Low-quality strings
Why I Recommend It
This model is a great and affordable F-style made with great attention to detail. I personally played this mandolin several times, and I consider this F-style as one of the best at this price range.
The Loar LM-520-VS Performer F-Style Mandolin
- Size: 26.9 x 10.5 x 1.75 inches
- Weight: 2.9 pounds
- Material & finish: Solid hand-carved fully graduated spruce top, solid hand-carved fully graduated maple back and sides, vintage sunburst finish
- Sound: Bright and clean
- Best for: Intermediate players
The Loar LM-520-VS Performer F-Style Mandolin is a considerable step up from the LM-310 and LM-110 series, as this model offers better wood quality and overall better projection and tone. This mandolin has a solid hand-carved body, which is certainly a big point in favor of this model.
✅ Hand-carved
✅ Fast action
✅ Comfortable to play
✅ Adjustable ebony bridge
❌ Requires some setup
Why I Recommend It
The LM-520 is probably the most popular model made by The Loar. I had an opportunity to play this mandolin a few years ago. It’s a great instrument for an acceptable price tag that will satisfy even the most demanding mandolin players.
The Loar LM-600 F-Model Mandolin
The Loar LM-600 F-Model Mandolin- Size: 27 x 10 x 1.75 inches
- Weight: 3 pounds
- Material & finish: Hand-carved graduated spruce top, hand-carved graduated flamed maple back and sides, vintage sunburst finish
- Sound: Warm and rich
- Best for: Professionals
The Loar LM-600 F-model Mandolin is a high-tier powerhouse of an instrument that will surprise you with its finish and sound quality. The Loar LM-600 can easily put to shame even some vintage classics like the Gibson F-5 and A-4.
✅ Hand-carved body
✅ Beautiful design and finish
✅ Comfortable to play
✅ Fast action all around the spectrum
❌ Requires some setup
Why I Recommend It
This model will make any mandolin player happy, no matter what playing style or musical genre they play with it. Comfortable and with fast action, it’s a steal for this money, as you won’t find anything better for this price tag.
The Loar LM-700 F-Model Mandolin
- Size: 27 x 10 x 1.75 inches
- Weight: 3.15 pounds
- Material & finish: Solid hand-carved graduated spruce top, solid hand-carved flamed maple back and sides, vintage sunburst finish
- Sound: Bright and rich
- Best for: Professionals
The Loar LM-700 F-model Mandolin is a top-notch instrument and one of the most expensive models made by The Loar. This is a full-on professional mandolin with all the high-tier features you’d expect at this price range. This includes high-grade wood and a professional finish with great attention to detail.
✅ Hand-carved AAA wood
✅ Great projection
✅ Professional finish
✅ Comfortable to play
❌ Requires professional setup
Why I Recommend It
The Loar LM-700 has a great value for the price, as it offers a durable construction and a uniquely beautiful design. This model will only get better with time, as the solid hand-carved wood will settle down after a few years of being played.
The Loar Mandolins Aesthetics & Build
The Loar mandolins stay true to their vintage design inspired by old classics like the Gibson A-4 and Gibson F-5. This brand offers consistent quality with a few variations in the material and finish types.
Material
Most mandolins made by The Loar have a classic mix of spruce and maple. What makes these mandolins so special is the careful selection of fully graduated wood and the hand-carved method of production. This way you get a beautiful instrument with a great sustain and pleasant tone.
Finish
The Loar is quite famous for its thick finish, which offers great protection, making its models quite robust and very resistant to chipping.
Color
As with the material types, The Loar follows a classic design when it comes to color types. Here you’ll mostly find the vintage sunburst color type, with some small variations on this color scheme.
How Much Do The Loar Mandolins Cost?
Because of their hand-carved nature, most mandolins made by The Loar cost a little more than your typical mandolin. But at this price you’ll get a truly durable beauty of an instrument that will bring joy to your ears for years to come.
The overall price range can go from several hundred for budget-friendly models like the LM-110 to as far as several thousand for the most professional mandolins like the LM-600 and LM-700.
What Are the Best The Loar Mandolins?
Let’s review some of the best mandolins I presented in this article.
The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek A-Style Mandolin: Best for Beginners
The Loar LM-110-BRB Honey Creek A-Style Mandolin is one of the best A-style models for this price tag. Normally a good A-style can cost you up to several hundred or even thousands of dollars, but with this model, you not only save some money but also get a very good-sounding and beautiful instrument.
The Loar LM-520-VS Performer F-Style Mandolin: Best for Intermediate Players
The Loar LM-520 is a solid mid-range mandolin, which became a bestseller for this brand. This model is a comfortable and beautiful mandolin that can satisfy even professional players with its clean tonality and great sustain.
The Loar LM-700 F-model Mandolin: Best for Professionals
The Loar LM-700 is the king of all mandolins made by The Loar. This model offers high-grade wood and great attention to detail when it comes to the finish and design.
With great projection and sustain, this mandolin can cut through any group of instruments you play with, which can’t be said about many other professional models.
Where Are The Loar Mandolins Made?
Most mandolins made by The Loar are currently made in China. But by no means is this indicative of the overall quality of these mandolins, as this company takes pride in the care and attention to detail they provide for every model they produce.
What Is the Best Sounding The Loar Mandolin?
My favorites are The Loar LM-520 and The Loar LM-700, as these models have a unique richness to their tone. But remember that sound is a subjective matter, and you might find some models are better sounding.
Where to Buy The Loar Mandolins
Nowadays, there are many options to choose from when it comes to buying a new mandolin. Each online retailer has its own selection of instruments and special deals. This is why I recommend you check as many options as you can.
Amazon
Amazon is a world leader when it comes to online retail. Known around the world, Amazon gained a huge following thanks to its competitive prices and huge selection of products.
With Amazon, you can always count on fast delivery and the all guarantees a multinational company can offer, which makes this company a secure choice for any online buyer.
Online Music Retailers
Apart from Amazon, there are numerous other retailers that offer a selection of exclusive products for you to enjoy. Here at Into Strings we highly recommend FiddlerShop.com, Sweetwater.com, and GuitarCenter.com, as these retailers offer low prices with a great selection of mandolins and other instruments.
Your Local Music Store
In your local store, you’ll find a limited selection of instruments, but you can spend almost all day trying any model they have in stock. This way you can feel and play the instruments by yourself, which will give you a better idea of the sound and other qualities of your future mandolin.
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In Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this guide to the best The Loar mandolins. Here we explored several models from this company, each one with its own sound qualities and design. The Loar is an interesting young brand that will continue to grow and gain fans for years to come.
If you really liked this article, feel free to share it or leave a comment, as I would like to hear your opinion on The Loar mandolins.
Stay safe, and as always, good luck with your sonic adventures!