banjoman3 - Posted - 11/15/2009:  21:22:24

hey ya'll, i'm wanting to put a clear five star head on the RK. will it change the sound any? thanks in advance for any help that can be givin :)



RK makes our Day!

RaYhOLio - Posted - 11/15/2009:  21:57:27

I just went from standard head on my RK85 to a semi-clear frosted head.. I think it made a very noticable difference in sound... took some of the 'plunk' outta it.. which was what I was going for.. If I recall, the clear heads are supposed to Add 'plunk'.. ?

-RayHoLiO
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bigfeller - Posted - 11/15/2009:  22:31:01

It'll probably be a bit crisper and brighter, I changed my frosted to an unfrosted and that's what happened to my banjo's sound, so a clear head will probably have similar results. It wasn't a huge difference by any means, but it was noticeable.

Travis

Tanbark - Posted - 12/13/2009:  21:32:19

I was due for a new head, and recently, I put on a Snuffy Smith "extra frosting" medium crown on my RB-3. Big mistake. I lost volume and tone. Unspinnably. Those heads are nothing but Remo's with an overspraying of frosting. I can't remember the price difference, but it's not worth it. Boy-howdy, is it not. I used 80 grit sandpaper and some steel wool, to take off the extra frosting. You can tell it's a hand job, but doing that improved the sound, although not to the level of my old Remo.
I've been reading about how the 5-Stars are better than the Remo's, mainly because the rim is integral, instead of being glued on to the crown portion, as with the Remo's.

Went over to a music store and tried a 5-Star on my new Crafter's tone ring. It was very loose, like, an eighth inch of play. The outer edge of the crown, just above the rim, was so wide I wasn't sure my stretcher ban would fit over it. The depth of the head, or crown, was also shallower than a new Remo. It was well-made. I had no concerns about that, but it would have been a very sloppy fit. Period. Maybe it was just a bad head. I can't believe that the 5-Stars are all, that loose on a Gibby-style flathead tonering.

I wound up getting the new Remo, which fit like a glove on my new ring. Haven't switched out the ring and the SS head, but I'll do it soon, and than talk about that.

Happy holidays, all.

stelling man - Posted - 12/14/2009:  06:37:40

Price, Try a ludwig smooth unfrosted white head, It has the same sound as a clear, but still has the traditional white look..

STELLING MAN

lazyarcher - Posted - 12/14/2009:  06:49:38

I dont like clear heads. I've found them to be thin and bright without the depth of a frosted head. Huber and AMB heads are very good and very consistant and IMHO would be the choice for a RK banjo given its construction.

pearcemusic - Posted - 12/14/2009:  07:00:45

I'm with lazyarcher ... the no frost heads, particularly the clear, are very crisp, bright, .... to a fault IMO ...

I used them in the late 70's when that sound was more mainstream.

Now the frosted heads ... even heavy frost (like the old gummy ludwigs) is more mainstream.

I suppose you could adjust your banjo to get the most out of a clear head ...
but if you are looking for a good bluegrass banjo sound the clear might fight you on it.