As entry level mandolins go, this one is a good model to start learning on. $300 is a good price, though you may do better looking for this product on reverb.com as they have a better selection and generally more available in stock.
The finish on the particular model I received was very glossy, which is not necessarily a bad thing- it's generally up to your personal preference, but the problem is the coating is so thick it was hard to get a good clean sound out of. In some spots (under the fretboard, near the f holes, there was no finish at all. I would advise against buying from the Amazon seller Adorama Camera, as they did not package the instrument well at all (just a cardboard box with no wrapping or protection) and I ended up having to return it because there was a crack all the way from under the fretboard to the bridge. For a way better model at a slightly higher price, the Eastman 315 is often on sale for around $550, and you can easily tell what a superior instrument it is, both in fit and finish as well as tone quality.

I am very disappointed in the appearance of the instrument. For the price, I expected far less imperfections. The clear coating is uneven and there are places missed and very sloppy. I bought, last year, an archer mandolin and it was far superior in quality compared to this. It was also a third the price. I bought this as a gift and I'm embarrassed.

I was a little concerned about buying it from the East coast. But it was extremely well-packed and it arrived safely. It is a beautiful mandolin and has a wonderful sound.

I've wanted to learn the mandolin for a very long time now and finally closed the deal on picking up one and I feel this is a great entry level mandolin. For $300 it's well worth it. It's much better looking in person than in pictures. Out of the box well that's another story. Naturally it had to be tuned up properly. GDAE. It's a dyslexic guitar. LOL After the tuning I learned a handful of chords and even taught myself how to play the lead break of Rod Stewart's Maggie Mae. This mandolin really rings out. I can't even imagine what it's going to sound like plugged in. Myer's makes some great acoustic electronics for guitars and mandolins. However it's going to need a good pro set up and a better set of strings put on it. It was suggested to me to put a set of Elixir Light Gauge string on it. Also read that John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin fame uses them as well. I'd highly recommend picking up this mandolin if you're in the market to start learning the mandolin. No, it's not a Weber or a high priced $4500 Gibson, but you have to start somewhere and this mandolin is a great place to start.

I just picked up this Ibanez mandolin in a fire sunburst, it was not i stock here and a little hard to find. I have been playing the mandolin for several years. I would say the tone and volume of this is equal to my old 1937 Gibson. The set up on it was very bad, I dropped the bridge down and put it in the correct place. I replace the factory strings with Lighter Martin strings. That helped a lot. This the best of the crop for reasonablely price mandolins. The tone is true, it stays in tune and it will be my go to mando for recording and live work. I am very picky as to what I put in people's ears.