goldsby - Posted - 01/25/2013:  05:41:11

My wife and I are just learning to play the banjo. We found in our first lesson there were 11 students in class and there was so much going on it was very confusing. Our instructor recommended Mike's banjo mute. The mute is easy to attach and mutes the banjo by a good 60%. I ordered our mutes on monday and received them on Thursday. Very satisfied with the mute.

Edited by - Lynne on 01/25/2013 06:15:52

big bird - Posted - 01/25/2013:  06:24:59

I found out that practicing with a mute gave me more drive and taking private lesson's over group lesson's really increased my playing ability.

Big Bird 

gshall - Posted - 01/25/2013:  06:36:04

I went with Mike's Mute just as my wife went with heavy metal.  She really likes the mute.  I also recommend it.

kmwaters - Posted - 01/25/2013:  07:14:11

I am not sure if there is a mute out there that attaches to the bridge and is not limited to straight capped bridges the way Mike's is. Fortunately I have no issue since I only have straight ones. However, I think Mike himself has offered to make "custom" mutes for those with different bridge shapes. I really like Mike's mute for overall performance.

BanjoJeff - Posted - 01/25/2013:  08:56:34

Thanks for the info. I checked out some demos on you tube and ended up buying one just now. What sold me was how it seemed to maintain much of the natural sustain (particularly up the neck), keeping the ring of the note while effectively lowering the volume significantly. Very nice.

youtube.com/watch?v=HMhj7oZp3mU

BanjoJeff - Posted - 01/29/2013:  05:40:10

I received Mike's Banjo Mute yesterday and tried it out last night. Lightening fast shipping from Utah to Va. by the way. Ordered it on Friday and received it on Monday with standard shipping. This thing is awesome. Extremely easy to attach and remove quickly. The notes still ring out true only much quieter. It actually gives the banjo a unique sound that makes it even more fun to practice. I'm hearing all my favorite tunes in a whole new way. I was able to get an extra hour of practice on a week night and will probably be able to get a few extra hours over the weekend. Every banjo player should have one of these, especially if you want to be able to continue your practicing well into the early morning hours without the concern of disturbing those around you. Needless to say, my wife is extremely pleased with this purchase. Thanks Mike!!!

Edited by - BanjoJeff on 01/29/2013 05:55:39

Papa-Joe - Posted - 01/30/2013:  12:40:17

Just got my Mike's Banjo Mute today. I could not believe the difference in the volume. I can now practice in the closet with the light on without getting all of the ringing in my ears, And my wife when I showed her the difference her only comment was "Thank God". And I thank Mike. It is a very nice Banjo Mute and well worth everything Mike asks for it.

Papa Joe

Edited by - Papa-Joe on 01/30/2013 12:43:32

Nom de Guerre - Posted - 02/01/2013:  11:09:42

I just received my Banjo Mute last evening, and briefly played around with it a bit at work early this morning. I haven't had a lot of time to really play with it, but I was immediately amazed at how much the volume was attenuated. It's hard to put a percentage to it, but I think it quiets down my OME Jubilee open back 11" banjo by more than 60%... perhaps closer to 80% - 85% or so.

My preliminary feelings are this is an amazing product, and as described, it attaches and detaches in seconds. I know my wife will appreciate it, especially when I am working on new songs and being really repetitive to learn new licks, breaks, etc. Thank you Mike!

casinojack - Posted - 02/02/2013:  12:10:42

quote:

---

Originally posted by kmwaters

I am not sure if there is a mute out there that attaches to the bridge and is not limited to straight capped bridges the way Mike's is. Fortunately I have no issue since I only have straight ones. However, I think Mike himself has offered to make "custom" mutes for those with different bridge shapes. I really like Mike's mute for overall performance.

---

I use one all the time on a Hatfield compensated bridge, work just fine. It's a standard Mike's Mute nothing custom.

There is a video on Youtube with Arthur doing a demo.

Jack

Edited by - casinojack on 02/02/2013 12:17:16

BanjoJeff - Posted - 02/07/2013:  12:30:22

Before Mike's Banjo Mute... I'm starting to think my wife doesn't have the same appreciation for banjo music as I do.

howseth - Posted - 02/07/2013:  14:07:01

There's a Mike's Banjo mute review nearly every day in the Review Section here at BHO. Why? Because, Mike asks each customer to put in a review. He asks nicely enough. We customers oblige. I am due to putting in my 'Review' Here is a preliminary Review.). Most reviews give the Mike's Mute a '10' and I like mine (it's a radiused model) - it's easy on and off, light weight, sturdy enough, and does not damage the bridge.

But I do have 2 beefs with it. but also one optional plus factor. The beefs: 1. You can't adjust sound level. For my older ears - it is actually too quiet. So, I wish it was adjustable. This is my biggest problem with the mute. 2.The other problem is it produces more sustain than a banjo would normally create. Mike's Mute makes the banjo sound more like a Dobro than a banjo. If you want to keep a shorter sustain - you might be better served just stuffing your banjo to mute it.

Now for the bonus (for me) of the Mike's Mute: it makes the banjo sound like a Dobro! In my current usage of Mike's Mute, If I play the banjo with Mike's Mute into a microphone while recording I can here it loud enough through my earphones - and I use it as if I was playing a Dobro for recording experiments - especially if recording multiple instrument tracks. I will play withe Mute off to get banjo track - Pop the Mik'es Mute on, and to get a Dobro-like track. Mike's Mute Dobro-like sound is really quite pleasant.

Crusty - Posted - 02/22/2013:  11:24:02

I bought a roll of adhesive tape for bandages (the fabric kind) and I put a length of it across all 5 strings right at the live side of the bridge and it mutes my banjo wonderfully so I can practice for hours and not disturb anyone else within a very few feet of where I'm at. Occasionally I'll clean the strings with an alcohol moistened wipe to get any old adhesive off.