good cheap banjo?

juineaux · Unread post by **juineaux** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 12:55 pm

I'm looking to buy a banjo(preferably the open-back kind) and I'm looking for something cheap(below $300). I've heard good things about the deering goodtime and the saga ss-10, but I've seen a couple of kay banjos on ebay that are half that price. Does anyone have a suggestion?

MrMister612 · Unread post by **MrMister612** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 1:21 pm

i had a deering goodtime banjo and it was good..........thats about all I can say about it because idk much about banjo's

I mean it sounded like an open back, stayed in tune, had good intonation. Not much else you can say.

I would recommend it if you were looking to buy a cheap one to learn on.

i like tictacs · Unread post by **i like tictacs** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 2:24 pm

Stay away from banjos less than 300, they are just asking for trouble. Wood, skin and metal as a combination is hard enough to have anything stay in tune on. The last thing you want is a poor quality build with stuff like that, they slip out of tune very easily. If you've ever seen the flecktones or something play, you'll see bela is tuning after almost every song.

Appfro · Unread post by **Appfro** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 2:27 pm

my cousin just found a bowling shoe of a banjo in his grandfather's attic and he's going to see if he can get it fixed. that would rule cause i've always wanted to play one

jeffro · Unread post by **jeffro** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 5:26 pm

Build one out of a gourd, animal skin, and cat gut strings like they used to do back in the mountain man days. I've read how to do it, and it doesn't seem that hard. If you're a mountain man that is.

6_strings_for_life · Unread post by **6_strings_for_life** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:20 am

why do you want to get one with a open back? Ive heard that the resanators on the back make the sound alot better. But i dont really know, lol

juineaux · Unread post by **juineaux** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:34 am

well, they are just different sounding. The ones with the resonators on the back have a brighter & louder sound, and they can cut through just about any band(thats why you see them in buegrass). The open-back sound is mellower, not quite as much high end, more mid-range, but not too good with a band.

I just like the sound of an open-back more-

MrMister612 · Unread post by **MrMister612** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 1:25 pm

Not to mention open back banjo's don't weigh 500 pounds like resonators do.

I would say if you are just trying to learn on it, an open back Deering Goodtime is not a bad decision, but if you plan on playing out with it or recording, I would get a cheap resonator one.

Appfro · Unread post by **Appfro** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 1:30 pm

i'm against you paying over 300 dollars for a banjo. unfortunately i don't have any suggestions. but you never want to spend a lot of money on an instrument that you want to learn cause you just never know if you'll enjoy it. then you're out 500 bucks and trying to sell it but you can only get 200 for it and you're screwed. get a cheap one, play it for a year and if you like it, go get a good one. my 2 cents.

Appfro · Unread post by **Appfro** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 12:24 am

isn't a banjo usually tuned in open G?

juineaux · Unread post by **juineaux** » Wed May 04, 2005 6:01 pm

so I ended up getting a saga banjo, and I love the thing. But it falls out of tune quickly, but I heard they all do that-
http://www.elderly.com/new_instruments/items/SS10.htm

banker69 · Unread post by **banker69** » Thu May 19, 2005 1:08 pm

I bought a Gold Tone banjo about five years ago and have been absolutely thrilled with it. I got the OB-250 Bluegrass Special and it cost me around $550. It does weigh a ton, but stays in tune and is a tremendous instrument for its price. I've always heard that Gold Tone is the way to go if you want to spend under a thousand dollars.

http://www.goldtone.com

DMBTabs.com

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