I can absolutely recommend the Music Maker you will find lurking in toy stores for about fifty bucks. But you will want to pull off the plinky, harsh strings that are put on in a completely uselss fashion, and replace them with good wound looop-end strings. You will get good tone, two octaves, and be able to play O'Carolan pieces diatonically with these. Not much volume-- but it's great miked. Have not tried pickups yet.

These are wonderful to play in quet settings, too, if you play it facing up at yourself-- you get almost all the sound. Many happy moments lying in sunlight soaking up sound and full spectrum light. You can also play it in the crook of your arm, facing down and out, or held wide end up, facing out and down, resting between your thighs. The older ones and the new kits were curved to fit that way.

If you are playing by yourself, you can call the lowest string }do} and play as though in any key, with maybe a string retuned to catch some minor keys or odd modes.

Also there are kits to make your own. We had a good description and links in another thread. I'll go find it.

But I have two of these, both all restrung, and only use one. The other I usually lend out, and it is not now out on loan. If you would like to borrow one on long-term loan, which simply means don't alter or give it away without asking, just PM me with an address. I'd be very happy to send it later this week.

~S~