Mutes Mike's Banjo Mute
submitted 11/18/2010
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
www.mikesbanjomute.com |
Overall Comments
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Fantastic. Cuts the sound by a prodigious amount. Mike was great to deal with. I recommend this to any picker. I demonstrated it for my wife and she said 'wow, all these years you've been playing the banjo and you just discover this now?' |
Overall Rating |
10 |
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Recording King #037
submitted 8/4/2009
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
BHO Classifieds |
Year Purchased |
09 |
Price Paid |
1200 ($US) (bought USED) |
Sound
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Great sound. It's been set up by Charlie Cushman and has a Kateyz bridge. It's a typical maple: bright and ringing, great mid-range, nice growly 4th string. I did some studio work with this banjo right after I got it, and was really surprised at the variety of sound I could find. This banjo really talks as well as sings. I was at Charlie Cushman's house playing a couple of his pre-war flatheads and he left the room to answer the door. When he was gone I picked up my Scout and kept playing. When he got back in the room he said 'Hell, I thought you were playing one of mine!' |
Sound Rating |
9 |
Setup
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Charlie Cushman picked number 26 as one of two to be shown at IBMA 08. It was already a good banjo, but with Charlie's set up it is really excellent. Easy playing, sounds true everywhere on the neck. |
Setup Rating |
9 |
Appearance
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Beautiful banjo, figured maple neck and resonator with a reddish sunburst. The fit and finish are excellent. I swapped out the truss rod cover because that was the only part of the banjo I wasn't wild about. The RK banjos have a polyurethene finish, which is very durable and looks great, but is not necessarily to everyone's taste. |
Appearance Rating |
9 |
Reliability
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Good hardware. I put on Keith tuners when I got it, and the holes were not quite big enough, but that was easy enough to fix. This banjo plays in tune well, and gives me no worries. |
Reliability Rating |
9 |
Customer Service
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I haven't dealt with the company, other than to deal with RKs set up man for this model, Charlie Cushman, and he has been excellent. |
Customer Service |
9 |
Components
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It's really all good. I didn't like the truss rod cover, but that's a question of taste. |
Components Rating |
9 |
Overall Comments
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I love this banjo. It sounds great: good projection, interesting sound at every volume level, it's a joy to play, feels great, looks great. I have played a Gibson RB-250 for over a year now, and this banjo just has it beat. I don't use 10s in a review, so 9 is my highest rating, and this banjo gets my highest rating.
THIS SHOULD SAY OSBORNE SCOUT NUMBER 26! |
Overall Rating |
9 |
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Gibson RB-250
submitted 1/17/2009
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
BHO classifieds |
Year Purchased |
2007 |
Price Paid |
1700? ($US) (bought USED) |
Sound
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Great mahagony sound, very versatile. I have it set up pretty heavy now with medium strings, and it's a very clear bell-like sound. Loud banjo. |
Sound Rating |
9 |
Setup
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I bought it used from Frailin on the BHO, and the set-up was fine. I've changed it some, and the set up keeps evolving as I get to know the banjo better, but the set up it came with was very good. |
Setup Rating |
9 |
Appearance
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I love the 250 inlay, and while not very flashy, it fits my taste perfectly. There was very light normal wear. |
Appearance Rating |
9 |
Reliability
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I've had the banjo for about 9 months now, and I've played it pretty hard, and it's a real workhorse. No worries. |
Reliability Rating |
9 |
Customer Service
|
n/a |
Customer Service |
not rated |
Components
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Components are good. No complaints. |
Components Rating |
8 |
Overall Comments
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When I bought this banjo, I didn't really understand the difference between the different kinds of woods that banjos are made with, and I went through a short period of having wished I'd bought a maple banjo instead, but now I'm totally sold on mahagony. I really love this banjo: the sound is suitably throaty, it's versatile, loud; the look suits me, I love the fingerboard inlay. I haven't played many other higher end banjos, but I always feel happy to pick mine up again. |
Overall Rating |
9 |
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Prust tackhead with round head
submitted 1/17/2009
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
BHO classifieds |
Year Purchased |
07 |
Price Paid |
225 ($US) |
Sound
|
Great! Beautiful deep sound. |
Sound Rating |
8 |
Setup
|
Eric sent it set up with nylgut minstrel strings, and sent along 3 different bridges to manage humidity swings. It's a great playing banjo. |
Setup Rating |
9 |
Appearance
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Beautiful maple neck, great finish. Eric makes a bracket model, too, but he actually recommended the tackhead. It's beautiful. |
Appearance Rating |
9 |
Reliability
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I'm still breaking it in, but it's really well built. No worries. |
Reliability Rating |
9 |
Customer Service
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Eric and Donna are great people to deal with: efficient and friendly. I had a great experience dealing with them. I love this banjo, so that part of it is easy, but dealing with Eric and Donna as people just made me happy. |
Customer Service |
9 |
Components
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|
Components Rating |
9 |
Overall Comments
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I play mostly bluegrass banjo, but I wanted a fretless, and because the price was so easy, I treated myself to a banjo that I play just for me. This banjo is really super. Great sound, great feel. I love it. I don't know minstrel banjos very well, and I'm sure there are more expensive banjos that may have this one beat, although not when taking the price into consideration. I don't use 10s, so under qualification this banjo gets my highest rating. |
Overall Rating |
9 |
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Recorders Zoom H2
submitted 1/11/2008
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
Oslo |
Overall Comments
|
I don't know very much about recording equipment, but the H-2 was the least expensive model, and it works really great for what I use it for, which is to record band rehearsals and voice lessons. Easy to use, good sound, manageable variety of options, and easy transfer to computer. |
Overall Rating |
8 |
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Tuners Cheat-a-keys
submitted 12/27/2007
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Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
Janet Davis |
Overall Comments
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Love the Cheat-a-keys! It went on in 5 minutes, was super easy to tune, and it works like it's supposed to. Love it. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
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Bridges Kateyz
submitted 9/20/2007
|
Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
Direct from Mike Smith in Dawson, Illinois |
Overall Comments
|
Fantastic roundness of sound combined with great 'crack'. Mike's customer service is outstanding. He is someone who has a great ear and is willing to take the time to bring out the optimal clarity and balance in any banjo. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
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Dean Backwoods 5
submitted 9/12/2007
|
Submitter |
PaulKirby |
Where Purchased |
Music 123 |
Year Purchased |
2007 |
Price Paid |
400 ($US) |
Sound
|
Bright loud sound. Good for bluegrass. It's of course a little sweeter near the neck. Doesn't have the depth of character that a more expensive banjo has, but overall a bright, well-balanced sound. |
Sound Rating |
8 |
Setup
|
I had to set the bridge on it and tune it, but that was it. The action was pretty comfortable. The banjo was ready to go in 5 minutes. It was a good basic set up for this level banjo. Some whine in the 5th string. I've adjusted the nut height, and it's fine. A well-known component maker with lots of experience was impressed that the tension rods were pretty much as they should be. The head needed a little tensioning, but not much. It sounded great practically right out of the box. |
Setup Rating |
8 |
Appearance
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Attractive looking banjo: nice traditional-looking fingerboard inlay. Excellent finish: virtually no flaws. |
Appearance Rating |
8 |
Reliability
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The tuners were a little loose, but I tightened them slightly and now they are fine. It seems like a dependable instrument. |
Reliability Rating |
7 |
Customer Service
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No experience yet. I ordered the banjo online and it got here in a few days. |
Customer Service |
7 |
Components
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I've put on a Kateyz Prowler bridge, and will probably put on a bone nut. While tensioning the head, I noticed that some of the bracket nuts don't exactly fit the wrench. Tuners are nothing fancy but they are solid and work well. |
Components Rating |
7 |
Overall Comments
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I would definitely recommend this banjo for it's quality/price. It's an excellent value. With the kateyz bridge this thing absolutely howls. I bought it without doing too much research, and I feel like I was super lucky. It's an excellent entry-level bluegrass banjo. Beautiful, heavy and loud. At the luthier's I got to play a pre-war Gibson Granada, and the Dean obviously doesn't have the soul of the Gibson, but it's pretty astounding considering its price. |
Overall Rating |
8 |
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