Does anyone have a Huber no hole flathead tone ring installed in their banjo? Does it sound different from the 20 hole? How? Any ideas how it would sound installed on a Tony Pass rim as opposed to a 3 ply maple?
8 Comments |
 | Pickin furry paws says:
6/2/2011 9:15:51 PM
As for the sound on the rim, Dave, rim weight and skirt-depth-to-resonator-depth are, to me, the only factors. Forget about the type of wood, the block-style gluing. If the rim is matched to a properly weighted ring, the sound will be right every time.
No-hole rings from Huber, although I have not heard one in person, sound a little more compressed to my ear. The sound is "quicker;" not that it comes out of the banjo sooner, but it is closer in timbre. My no-hole ring (not a Huber) is picky about set-up. Jim Mills told me that his no-hole prewar is picky, as well. The 20-hole rings have a larger set-up window. So be prepared to play around with it a little more to get it where you like it.
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 | Barnet in AVL says:
6/16/2011 8:41:45 AM
I spoke with Jim Runnels about no hole rings some time ago. Steve tested no hole rings when doing his research, and found that they did not perform as well as the 20 hole rings on the measures that he was using. That says nothing about the subjective sound quality of a no hole ring, of course, but it left Steve believing that, in general, 20 hole rings are preferable. And in fact, Steve, Jim and the Huber guys generally find that they prefer the sound of the 20 hole ring in their banjos. This is why Huber doesn't make a no hole ring except on special request.
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| Pickin furry paws says:
6/16/2011 12:38:00 PM
Barnet, you mentioned what I forgot all about. I had that conversation with Jim and Steve separately a year or so ago, since, in my quest for good tone, I wanted to know the difference. And what they told me really wasn't a difference; it was more like this over that. Though I am not sure I am going to be that definative (I have not done extensive testing), I should point out that originally, Gibson only installed a VERY limited few back in the 30s. It may be that they didn't care for the result, either (although JD's banjo, Banger, is amazing).
Gibson has not been the most original company over the years. In fact, they ran into copyright trouble with some other banjo companies. Gibson's flathead ring is dangerously similar, in my opinion, to the old Bacon & Day Silver Bell tone ring - which was an undrilled tone ring. It may be that Gibson was just fooling around by not drilling some of their rings to see what might happen. And you see they did not continue their "venture." They continued with the 20-hole rings right up until the early 40s before banjo production fell.
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| Barnet in AVL says:
6/23/2011 4:00:16 PM
I was at the first Jim Mills seminar back in October and of course the issue of no hole flathead rings came up a great deal. Now if my memory serves me right, Jim said there is simply no good explanation for why those few no hole rings got put into those banjos. Just that... we don't know. Or, as that character in the movie "Shakespeare in Love" said... "I don't know; it's a mystery..." :)
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| Pickin furry paws says:
6/23/2011 4:45:21 PM
Yeah, Jim has told me the same thing a couple of times when we've picked, too.
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| Barnet in AVL says:
6/23/2011 5:14:17 PM
"Yeah, Jim has told me the same thing a couple of times when we've picked, too."
--Wow, what a cool thing to be able to say! :)
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| Pickin furry paws says:
6/23/2011 7:46:42 PM
He came down April 2010 and did a show. At the end of the concert, he recognized me and asked me to pick some. And we picked a little - and talked about banjos more. He loves the banjo, and inspiring others to get into the prewar sound. And he told me about his thoughts on the no-hole rings. I hope to pick again with him in August at the Acoustic Camp in Arlington.
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ricksnapp says:
12/8/2016 4:30:54 PM
I have a banjo that I put a no hole tone ring in and then changed it out alter for a 20 hole flathead (not hr-30). Both tone rings sound great but in different ways. Both rings give this banjo great sustain and note separation. I believe that the volume of sound coming our of the banjo is greater with the 20 hole ring in it. That's great if you attend lots of jam sessions and need to be as loud as possible. The no hole tone ring, on the other hand, is a bit more subdued but still crystal clear. It reminds me of the sound of Sammy Shelor's banjo on the Alan Jackson bluegrass album.
The effect of a tone ring is a very subjective thing and is not well understood. Any tone ring may sound great in one banjo and lousy in another banjo. The converse may be true in different banjo. I's suggest experimenting to find what tone ring sounds best in your particular banjo rather than make general comments about the particulars of any given tone ring.
Trust your ears. The best tone ring is the one that sounds best to you. Your banjo may sound best with the same tone ring that sounds worst in someone else's banjo.....
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