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The banjo reviews database is here to help educate people before they purchase an instrument. Of course, this is not meant to be a substitute for playing the instrument yourself!
7232 reviews in the archive.
Where Purchased: playbetterbluegrass.com
Year Purchased: 2007
Price Paid: 189 ($US)
Sounds good to me. I like the open-back sound. I just got the banjo, so have touched nothing in terms of setup.
Sound Rating: 8
I just a beginner, but from what I have heard and read, the banjo was setup properly.
Setup Rating: 8
I really like the looks of this banjo. It looks "old-timey". I looked at the CC-100 with the clear finish, but actually prefer the stained finish on the CC-50.
Appearance Rating: 8
It appears to be built very well, with the pieces fitting together nicely. It is very sparse on details, but what is there looks good and strong.
Reliability Rating: 8
Tim at playbetterbluegrass.com was great. My banjo was actually backordered, and I called to cancel my order. The nice lady who took the call got me on the phone with Tim, the owner, and he said he would call Gold Tone to see about delivery dates. He promptly called me back to update me on the shipping. Because he called, and kept the order, and am glad I did.
Customer Service: 9
The tailpiece looks very solid, like a nice piece of machinery. The holddowns also look very nice to me. The tuners are guitar tuners so stick out to the side. I think the planetary tuners look nicer on a banjo. It does have a smal brass tone ring, which makes it sound better than other low cost banjo I played around with.
Components Rating: 7
As a first banjo, I don't think you can beat the CC-50. I have seen other low cost banjos, and they seemed a bit flimsier than this banjo. I think I made a good choice
Overall Rating: 9
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