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!
7199 reviews in the archive.
Where Purchased: South Mountain Woodworks
I am pleased to recommend the South Mountain Woodworks banjo stand.
Handcrafted by Scott Alderfer, the stand is even nicer than I expected it would be -- really fine workmanship. It is very stable; feels solid, reasonably weighty, and completely balanced. Every surface that touches the banjo is padded with felt. Certainly a better match for a fine banjo than the generic metal stand that it replaced.
It was a pleasure doing business with Scott. He was responsive to my email queries before I ordered the stand and followed up afterwards to make sure that I was satisfied with his work -- I am! The stand looks and feels like a piece of fine furniture. Highly recommended!
Overall Rating: 10
I am happy to share my very positive experience buying a banjo from Nechville Musical Products!
I had been ogling Nechville's banjos for years, but never got a chance to actually play one. I called Nechville to ask about a custom openback that they had in stock, and ended up having a couple of lengthy conversations with Brett Mularkey. Brett was sincerely interested in learning about me and my particular banjo interests, and his honest and friendly advice was extremely valuable.
Brett's answers to my questions left me confident about buying from Nechville:
What if I just don't like it at all? "Send it back, with no charge."
Would Nechville be willing to change out the neck for a different model? "Yes. And we could send you this banjo to play now while we build the new neck, and then exchange it later."
Change the armrest? "Yes, of course."
I decided to go for it, and Brett and the folks at Nechville got my banjo packed up and shipped out the same day. Once it arrived five days later, I was surprised to get a message from Brett, who had been tracking the package -- from his home, on the weekend -- just checking that it had arrived safely.
The banjo sounded and played great right off the bat -- truly a fine instrument. I adjusted the truss rod to lower the string action to my liking, and mentioned so to Brett. He suggested that I might like to try a shorter bridge to lower the action further, but he also asked "Do you like the tone now?" Seemed a simple question -- yes, I did like the tone very much! But after a good couple days of mulling on it, I responded that I might prefer a bit more bass and a bit less high-frequency response.
So Brett had the Nechville shop build me a slightly shorter yet heavier bridge. What a difference! Now, the tone is softer -- warm and mellow -- and balanced just right for my playing style.
Kudos and my thanks to Brett Mularkey and Nechville Musical Products! I thought I was entirely happy with my very fine banjo when it arrived. But they were not satisfied to just sell me a banjo that was very fine. They were only satisfied once they'd provided me with a banjo that was perfect... for me.
- Kamal Mostafa
Overall Rating: 10
