Andy Chase

This year I find myself in the unusual position of having a bit of money from our tax returns which isn't already earmarked towards something more important like, say, moving cross country or paying bills while unemployed, and with the release of GarageBand I began thinking about buying the M-Audio Keystation 49e for synth noodling.

I even went so far as to drive in to a Boston Apple Store to check one out, and that was where I began having second thoughts. It's a nice keyboard for the price, but I just never connected with keyboard/piano the way I do with stringed instruments; it would be a great add-on to GarageBand, but it's hard to get very excited over. The other factor was that they were out of stock- and they seem to be out of stock at most places online, too. A coworker ordered one directly from Apple a few weeks ago, and won't be getting it until march.

While idly searching Ebay for a couple of nicer alternatives recommended by a very knowledgable friend, It occurred to me to search for mandolin - an instrument that I've been growing interested in since taking up banjo a couple of years ago.

To my surprise, there were all kinds of instruments available for far less than the entry-level models I've seen at local music stores. Intrigued, I expanded my research to newsgroup recommendations, and other online retailers. The Kentucky KM-140 mandolin and its solid-top brother, the KM-140S, came up repeatedly as great instruments for the money. Furthermore, the KM-140S can be had for an astonishing price from an online retailer that I've heard nothing but wonderful things about on the alt.banjo groups in the past. Besides the good price, this store makes sure your instrument is properly set up before shipping and gives you 100% trade-in value for it should you ever decide to upgrade to something else.

It's a no-brainer, except for the part of me that's growing ever more conscious of the need to support local small businesses... when you shop with price as your exclusive criteria for long enough, you wind up with Wal-Mart. What is making the decision particularly difficult in this case is the big disparity in prices, and the fact that I haven't found a local folk instrument shop that I'm crazy about... There's a nearby store with an amazing selection of instruments and a very knowledgeable proprietor, but he always makes me feel like I'm wasting his time.

Local stores have the KM-140 priced above retail, which I assume is factors in the cost of a gig bag, resulting in a price gap of nearly $100 between them and the aforementioned online store. I understand that small, storefront-only businesses need to make a bigger margin on instruments to cover overhead, but $100 is a serious chunk of change.

It's a big enough difference that I know better than to stroll into a local store and suggest that they match the internet price to get my business. I don't get the impression that the local prices are negotiable, and even if they were I don't cotton to that way of doing business; if you're willing to sell me product x for n dollars, then just sell it to me instead of making me jump through hoops and wasting both our time.

In the end, I think I'm going to be ordering the instrument online - the praise I've heard from other customers and the lifetime trade-in are what seals the deal. I will salve my conscience by taking a few lessons from a local music teacher, and continue to look for a local store more like the Blue Ridge Pickin' Parlor in Chatsworth, California, who sold me my first banjo and got me started.