Banjo recommendations

Tone71 · January 2014

Any banjo players here?

I`m keen to muck about with one and love the sound but have no idea on what to look for when buying, thinking of a couple of hundred tops or maybe swap some gear out to get one.

Any recommendations?

Cheers

thermionic · January 2014

Here's a recommendation - don't.

ToneControl · January 2014

I think therapy is available, or perhaps a hypnotherapist

Seriously - they are notoriously hard to tune or keep in tune, which is one of the reasons why most guitarist hate them and more jokes will likely follow

If you want one, I recommend visiting Frailers, and spending £200 or £300, give them a call for advice

They even have tele shaped ones there with 6 strings, however, you will be asked to leave the FB I assume

thermionic · January 2014

I jest, I'm quite partial to a bit of banjo.

EricTheWeary · January 2014

http://thegreatbritishbanjocompany.com

Although not exactly cheap! Interesting though.

knuckleberryfinn · January 2014

Whatever you do, don't get a Fender - their folk instruments are dreadful. Ozark are good and within budget I think.

bandmaster188 · January 2014

I bought one of these a few years ago and it's got a good tone and stays in tune really well. They have gone up a bit since I bought mine, I think I paid about £280 for it but it sounded better than the ozarks that were in the next price bracket. It's all about the brass tone ring. Quite plain to look at but sounds good. You might pick a used one up in budget. http://www.andybanjo.com/cgi-bin/trolleyed_public.cgi?action=showprod_RBGRAFTONCLIPRB

bertie · January 2014

I had the same yearning about 6 years ago, bought an Ashbury ? from Hobgoblin................for about £140 I think

I tell you this, if you can finger pick guitar and think that will hold you in good stead for playing the banjo - think again. Its a WHOLE new ball - game, totally different rhythm and picking patterns.................I actually gave up

ROOG · January 2014

Having listened to the vids I just can't resist it; "YEEEHAAAA!"

ICBM · January 2014

bertie said:
I tell you this, if you can finger pick guitar and think that will hold you in good stead for playing the banjo - think again. Its a WHOLE new ball - game, totally different rhythm and picking patterns.................I actually gave up

Exactly my experience too.

I even tried a 6-string banjo (guitarists' cheating version) thinking it was the different tuning and odd 5th string halfway up the neck thing that was throwing me, but it wasn't.

Lewy · January 2014

Most banjo pickers I know have very positive things to say about www.andybanjo.com

Tell him what you want and your budget and he'll tell you the best banjo for you. Most importantly, he makes sure they play right before he sells them - not something you'll get if you buy from a general music shop etc.

geepers0677 · January 2014

Get a second hand old school variax for 200 quid. Banjo sounds great and you won't have to get your head around the instrument.

Tone71 · January 2014

Cheers for the replies, bertie I too have wondered about the odd 5th string

Might have a long think on this one and stick with the Uke for now whilst looking into it.

I think the inner hillbilly resides in us all though doesnt he?

Lewy · January 2014

Bertie & ICBM - was it Scruggs style you tried and gave up on, or did you have a go at clawhammer/frailing too? I tried the latter and, whilst it was a challenge, it wasn't too counter intuitive for a fingerpicker.

Didn't stick with it, mind.....

bertie · January 2014

no idea, I was just trying out some choons from a book mrs bert bought be - Foggy Mountain..... the roll and thumb finger 'progression' just wasnt anything like guitar - which because Ive been picking for over 30 years, I do in my "sub-conscious" which is why its hard to "learn summut" new

ICBM · January 2014

Similar here. I didn't try learning from a book but I just couldn't get the hang of the picking patterns. I couldn't get it to sound right either - the dynamics are totally different from a guitar, and I've spent thirty years finely tuning my hand dynamics to accurately control volume from the strings directly (I don't even use the guitar volume control normally on an electric), so the banjo just threw a massive spanner into the works. I can't get on with compressors either, for the same reason, although in the opposite direction - banjo sounds like it has an expander on it.

ESBlonde · January 2014

The Tommy Tedesco method of playing 'other' stringed instruments on sessions.

Tune it like a guitar.

He would take second instrument fees for anything on sessions, lute, banjo, mandolin, bazooki, all tuned and played (rather well in his case) just like a guitar.

You have almost certainly heard him playing 'not guitar' on a TV theme of film sound track over the years. He's they guy playing the theme to M.A.S.H. for instance.

suspiciousminds · January 2014

My missus bought me a nice countryman 5 string banjo about 5 years ago and i love it, but i'm far from good on it as it is a different "beast" to guitar.
I find the 5th string further up the neck difficult master so in hindsight a 4 string banjo may have been a better choice.
I would like one of those 6 stringers though - i believe they are tuned the same as guitar.

bertie · January 2014

suspiciousminds said:
I find the 5th string further up the neck difficult master so in hindsight a 4 string banjo may have been a better choice.
I would like one of those 6 stringers though - i believe they are tuned the same as guitar.

I took it off completely, tuner and all

frankus · January 2014

I reckon a stout pair of second hand german paratrooper boots'd see you right

Phil_aka_Pip · January 2014

Put some dead strings on your guitar and fold up bits of J-cloth to put between the strings & the bridge saddles to stop them ringing and give them that nasty plicky sound. Then dial in the worst EQ on your amp that you can think of, and hey-ho you've got a banjo sound. You could probably use some kind of gate instead of the j-cloth bits.

ToneControl · January 2014

Martin Simpson has the best Banjo jokes

Seriously though, in the 1920s, all the banjo players moved to playing 4 string tenor guitars, tuned the same, because they sounded so much nicer. Have you tried one? I bought one - a Blueridge solid-top one, they are great, far less of a "novelty" sound

strtdv · February 2014

For a 4 string tenor banjo for under £300 I'd go for a used Tanglewood or something similar like a Barnes and Mullins.

Get one with planetary tuners, not guitar type ones, and a brass tone ring.

Tenor guitars are lovely and have a nice sweet tone to them (Ozark make a nice one), but for something that sounds completely different a banjo is pretty unique sounding.

As well as guitars I play an electric mandolin, an Irish Bouzouki, and a 4 string tenor banjo.

johnnyurq · February 2014

A milk bottles worth of petrol and a zippo to kill it with fire, then buy a Variax or Roland VG unit.

strtdv · February 2014

It all depends on what you're looking for. As a rhythm instrument a tenor guitar or mandola/bouzouki is more useful, but for lead parts, particularly in say Irish traditional music or bluegrass, there's nothing like a banjo.

I also like the way having the strings in 5ths makes you change the way you approach the instrument, and that can carry over to the guitar.

A guitar with a synth pickup just wont get you there, both in the overtones and unusual harmonic content that you get from a banjo and in terms of playing the licks with your left hand.

Banjos get lots of harmonic interaction between the strings and a lot of metallic sounding overtones that are unpleasant unless you tune the banjo right (which generally means tuning it so the harmonics sound right rather than strictly following what your tuner is telling you), but sound very sweet when you do. They change with each key you play in as well which is part of the reason you see banjo players tuning a lot.

Something like this would tick all the boxes and isn't too expensive at £279:

Frankieabbot · November 2015

Tone71 said:

Any banjo players here?

I`m keen to muck about with one and love the sound but have no idea on what to look for when buying, thinking of a couple of hundred tops or maybe swap some gear out to get one.

Any recommendations?

Cheers

Bit of a bump....but did you start playing banjo? Clawhammer or finger picking style?

Tone71 · November 2015

No, never did get one, the itch passed, for now!

Frankieabbot · November 2015

Tone71 said:

Cheers for the replies, bertie I too have wondered about the odd 5th string

Might have a long think on this one and stick with the Uke for now whilst looking into it.

I think the inner hillbilly resides in us all though doesnt he?

Maybe a banjolele then? Crimbo is coming. Would be a nice pressie from someone.

crunchman · November 2015

My wife bought me an Ozark banjo for my birthday. I haven't really got to grips with it yet. I did see something from Mumford and Sons where the banjo player was using a guitar pick. That may be the simpler option even if it's not completely authentic.

musicman100 · December 2015

I think some players think just because they can play a bit of finger picking on guitar that banjo will be easy. But even with finger picking on guitar there are some many different styles some easy some not so easy. I would say if you're a good synchcopated bass finger picker eg Atkins, travis, Brian setzer, and so on, you will stand a decent chance of getting the concept n a decent sound without to much hard work.

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