Ramsey Student w/ 12" Pot
submitted 3/27/2012
|
Submitter |
Joe the banjo guy |
Where Purchased |
Directly from Mike Ramsey |
Year Purchased |
2012 |
Price Paid |
In the $800 neighborhood
historic exchange rates / currency converter
|
Sound
|
The sound is exactly what I was looking for. It's got good bass response, and the tone is warm and dry (not too much sustain or metallic crash). The highs are still quite brilliant though. |
Sound Rating |
10 |
Setup
|
I haven't made any changes to the setup. I don't know the details of the setup, but it was coming from Mike Ramsey directly, so I assume it's just set up for a typical average clawhammer sound. Feels good to me. I like the action (I like to feel some pretty strong resistance from the strings when I'm playing), the string gauges are fine, and there does seem to plenty of string height for clawhammer purposes.
The neck profile on this is quite thick, both in depth and in width, and I love it. I have small but pudgy hands, and this just feels very comfortable to me. It's sort of counterintuitive, because you'd think that a thinner neck would be better for someone with small hands, but not so with me. I love the way it feels in my hands.
I also got mine without a neck scoop. Now that I have it, I'd probably have done that differently. It's still fine to play, but I realize that I will almost never use those frets.
|
Setup Rating |
10 |
Appearance
|
It's prettier in person than I thought it would be from the pictures online. The student model is designed to be as simple as possible to make it affordable, but it actually looks really nice. The blonde maple neck and rim have nice figured grain, and the ren head with brass tone hoop showing through looks really nice. The dot inlays and single star inlay on the head stock look nice and elegant. |
Appearance Rating |
7 |
Reliability
|
I have no reason to think otherwise. The finish is much less glossy than the bluegrass banjos I've played, but I actually like that. It feels much more natural. I don't know what means for durability, though. The tuners are solid. I really don't know enough to comment on this, but as far as I can tell, it looks fine. |
Reliability Rating |
not rated |
Customer Service
|
I ordered the banjo initially around the holidays and was given a quick build time estimate that turned out to be unrealistic. Mike was not the easiest person to get in touch with early on, but as I said, it was during the holidays. He was much more responsive later on in the process. He was always polite. In general, he seemed to set some unrealistic expectations for the build times. Overall, not the best, certainly not the worst I could imagine. |
Customer Service |
6 |
Components
|
See above on reliability. |
Components Rating |
not rated |
Overall Comments
|
It's the most affordable American-made 12inch open back on the market. It looks pretty good, sounds great, and feels really comfortable. I love mine, and would recommend it to anybody. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
|
Bishline Midnight Moon,Maple
submitted 9/4/2011
|
Submitter |
Joe the banjo guy |
Where Purchased |
Acoustic Vibes |
Year Purchased |
2011 |
Price Paid |
2300 ($US) (bought USED) |
Sound
|
The sound is very loud and quite bright. In short, quite bluegrassy. There is a good range of tone though, depending on how close to the bridge you're picking. The loudness is quite something when you're playing all out with picks. Very nice tone all the way up the neck.
Edit: I have recently noticed that there is a bit of a sympathetic buzz on the 5th fret when the third is picked open in the direction of the 5th string. I believe it's buzzing against one of the frets very slightly. I'm going to add a 5th string nut to elevate the string very slightly to avoid this. The end impact on the sound is pretty minimal, but gives it slightly more of a metallic "crash."
Edit Edit: After having a 5th string nut installed, the buzz went away. Sounds perfect now. |
Sound Rating |
9 |
Setup
|
The playability of this instrument is incredible. The action is quite low, but the responsiveness is amazing. I think the phrase I used to describe this instrument was "it's like playing a cannon made out of cloud." Another good analogy was that going from my old Epiphone MB250 to the Midnight Moon was like going from a Ford Focus to a Ferrari. You have to get used to the improved responsiveness, but once you do, it's amazing.
I haven't touched the setup at all from the time I bought it. |
Setup Rating |
10 |
Appearance
|
It's probably the prettiest banjo I've come across. The resonator and neck are both maple that has been stained a very dark blue/black. The resonator has a moon and stars inlay, and the neck has very small and tasteful star inlays. The headstock is a really pretty two-tone marquetry. I was going to get one of Bishline's Heirloom models, but I was too taken by the appearance. It's really stunning. |
Appearance Rating |
10 |
Reliability
|
As far as I can tell, it seems very solid. I bought it used, and other than a tiny spot of tarnish here and there on the pot, it seems really top notch. |
Reliability Rating |
9 |
Customer Service
|
I didn't buy this directly from the manufacturer, but I was in touch with Rob Bishline when I was doing my initial shopping. He was very kind and responsive to all my questions and concerns.
|
Customer Service |
10 |
Components
|
As far as I can tell, everything is top notch. I'm not an expert though. I just know how it feels, and it feels very solid to me. |
Components Rating |
9 |
Overall Comments
|
I'm mainly basing my review on the playability, tone, and appearance of the instrument. I would give it an A+ in all of those categories, particularly the playability. It's really just remarkably responsive and fun to play, and it looks great hanging on my wall too! It's my main banjo and a great piece of art. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
|
|
|
|
Feeds