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Recording King RK-80
submitted 5/1/2009
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Submitter |
steveforse |
Where Purchased |
Angie's Banjos |
Year Purchased |
2007 |
Price Paid |
1050 ($US) |
Sound
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I love this banjo. I always go to stores to compare it to any other mahogany banjo I can find. The only one that sounded a bit nicer was the Stelling Crusader. Considering the price difference, I don't mind too much. |
Sound Rating |
10 |
Setup
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The banjo was setup alright. The action was a bit high, though. |
Setup Rating |
7 |
Appearance
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The stain from the fretboard had smeared onto the binding. There was some weird brown substance near the frets too. For a new instrument, that's pretty bad. I got #192, so I thought they would have fixed the problems of the initial runs, but that was a pretty glaring problem. It also makes me think that the banjo was just drop-shipped to me, though Angie says that they're set up by a tech before she send them out. Still, you'd think somebody would have noticed it before it got sent out. As this was my first bluegrass banjo, I didn't send it back because I wanted to play it. At the time, that was more important to me, but I notice it every time I play it. Otherwise, the banjo has a very nice heart's and flowers pattern. |
Appearance Rating |
5 |
Reliability
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The only issue I've ever had with the banjo is that the binding began to develop a crackled texture on it. I have no clue what causes that. |
Reliability Rating |
9 |
Customer Service
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I have never dealt with the company. |
Customer Service |
not rated |
Components
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The neck has always felt a little thin for me. |
Components Rating |
9 |
Overall Comments
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I would recommend this banjo because I love the sound. I bought them when they were new, but used ones are such a fantastic deal. I wish a local store had carried it around here so I could have tried one before buying it. Then I might have saved myself the trouble of having weird stains on the fretboard to this day.
Still, this is a great banjo even at it's new price. I don't think you can find a better value out there. This is just one of those cases where I think it beats the equivalent Gold Tone banjo. |
Overall Rating |
9 |
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ACME Professional
submitted 5/1/2009
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Submitter |
steveforse |
Where Purchased |
eBay |
Year Purchased |
2009 |
Price Paid |
1175 ($US) (bought USED) |
Sound
|
It sounds great. Bright, but not too bright, which a nice rich tone. I love it. |
Sound Rating |
10 |
Setup
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I love the setup on this banjo. The nut slopes down from the fourth to the first string to compensate for the string gauge. The frets increase in height as you go up the neck. And the frets, overall, are very low and stay out of the way. This thing was built by geniuses. |
Setup Rating |
10 |
Appearance
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This is a beautiful banjo. Mine is the University Glee model with the vine inlay. It's fantastic. Elegant, simple, beautiful. The heel is beautifully carved. The peghead is dainty and tastefully inlaid. Plain (mahogany?) marquetry surround the neck. I'm always finding new little "details" on this banjo. |
Appearance Rating |
10 |
Reliability
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The heel had been repaired and the top of the peghead, also. No idea when that happened or why. I haven't had it long enough to judge its reliability otherwise. |
Reliability Rating |
not rated |
Customer Service
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I wish S.S. Stewart were still in business ... |
Customer Service |
not rated |
Components
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The tuning pegs are REALLY tight. They're very hard to work with. Has a nice solid no-knot tailpiece. I love the dowel stick construction. Bone nut and ebony pip, thick-slab ebony fretboard, and thin frets make this a fine banjo. |
Components Rating |
8 |
Overall Comments
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Why would you need another openback? This one is great. If you can find it. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
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Rover RB-20
submitted 2/12/2007
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Submitter |
steveforse |
Where Purchased |
Music Mike's, Riverside, CA |
Year Purchased |
2006 |
Price Paid |
150 ($US) |
Sound
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It had a PVC rim which, so the sound was very muffled. I put some lighter gauge strings on it and I think that made it sound a bit better. It was my first banjo. |
Sound Rating |
5 |
Setup
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Definitely not setup properly. The bridge was in the wrong spot. A few of the hooks were loose. This was probably due to customer abuse, though. |
Setup Rating |
5 |
Appearance
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It was a decent-looking banjo, except for the head of the neck. It was guitar shaped and the guitar tuners didn't look good on it. The guitar tuners weren't even covered. |
Appearance Rating |
7 |
Reliability
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I used to throw this banjo in the trunk of my car without a case. It was a champ. |
Reliability Rating |
10 |
Customer Service
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I never dealt with the company. |
Customer Service |
not rated |
Components
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Covered tuners would have been nice. The bridge was junk. The finish on the neck was very glossy and it made it hard to do slides as my hand would stick with sweat after extended play, which as a beginner,was big problem. The lugs kept shaking vibrating loose with casual play. I always thought that was weird. |
Components Rating |
7 |
Overall Comments
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Since this banjo has a plastic pot, you never worry about breaking it. It will take a beating and come back for more. The neck was alright. However, for what I paid, I could have had a banjo made of real wood that sounded much nicer. Buy a used banjo made of wood for the same money. I will say that it sounded a lot better to me than aluminum pot banjos like the RB-45. |
Overall Rating |
7 |
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Gold Tone Elite Classic
submitted 2/11/2007
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Submitter |
steveforse |
Where Purchased |
Angie's Banjos |
Year Purchased |
2007 |
Price Paid |
871 ($US) |
Sound
|
This was a very mellow banjo. I never liked the sound of it when I picked it Scruggs style, but I always loved the sound of it when I frailed it. |
Sound Rating |
10 |
Setup
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Wayne sets them up in his shop in Florida before they go out. The action was good. I tried a Desert Rose Z Elite bridge on it, but it still played mellow. I liked how the head was low on the pot. It was a pleasure to play. |
Setup Rating |
10 |
Appearance
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This is a very pretty banjo. The pearl vine with the abalone flowers is very beautiful. I get a lot of positive responses from people who see this banjo. It is a little busy, but I guess that's the tradeoff. No dots on the fretboard, which is a mixed blessing since it forces you to use the side dots or just get a feel for where the frets are.
The skin head had an orangish tint to it, as though someone had smeared some good clay into about have of it. You don't really see that in the pictures that they show (it always looks whitish) and a lot of people thought my banjo was just dirty. I guess that's a negative if you're trying to impress people, though personally, I liked it. The spun-brass rim was a little tarnished when I got it, but I'm not doing anything to it. It looks good with the skin head.
The ebony wood on the fretboard is a very dark brown. Not black. Not brown like rosewood either. Very deep brown. It blends very nicely with the rest of the color of the neck, which I think is a dark brown stained maple. Overall, the neck looked great to me. I admire it sometimes. |
Appearance Rating |
9 |
Reliability
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I had this banjo for over two years and I never had any issues with it. |
Reliability Rating |
10 |
Customer Service
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When this one was stolen, Gold Tone was extremely helpful in helping me look up my registration info to get the serial number. I love this company. |
Customer Service |
10 |
Components
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There were little marks around the frets where it looked like they were going to install them, but then changed their mind. That used to bug me. Also, there was obvious filler on the fretboard for the tree of life, but you had to really pay attention. |
Components Rating |
8 |
Overall Comments
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This was my first real banjo. In retrospect, the spun-rim design is not really a great first banjo. Their Whyte Laydie would probably be a better choice. Mine was stolen in 2009 and I was very sad. But for the price I originally paid, I thought it better to purchase an original SS Stewart banjo to replace it for just a few hundred more.
Overall, it's a great sounding banjo with great looks. |
Overall Rating |
9 |
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