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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!
7233 reviews in the archive.
Where Purchased: Zepp Country Music, Wendell, NC
Year Purchased: 2002
Price Paid: Don't Remember
historic exchange rates / currency converter
Bright and loud with plenty of pop.
Sound Rating: 9
Wonderfully low action without being too mushy. I have not had to
adjust anything beyond tightening the head a 1/4 turn this spring. I
can't believe how well this banjo came set up from the OME factory,
although I am sure that Dr. Zepp tweaked things a bit before I picked it up.
Setup Rating: 9
Maple with rosewood fingerboard. No flaws that I can find. Great
abalone inlays and rosewood peghead overlay. Beautiful figuring in the
flame maple neck and, believe it or not, great figure in the Braz.
rosewood fingerboard.
Appearance Rating: 10
Top notch components and wood. Excellent plating. This thing should
last a lifetime.
Reliability Rating: 10
Tanya at OME was a pleasure to talk to and is very friendly and customer oriented. I have 100% confidence that the folks at OME will stand behind my banjo.
Customer Service: 10
Came stock with an OME straight line tailpiece, medium gauge strings,
ludwig head and a Snuffy 11/16 bridge. All top notch components. High
quality nickel plating and great fit and finish.
Components Rating: 9
Awesome banjo for both Scruggs and melodic playing. Full yet bright
sound with lots of pop. I like my Monarch every bit as much as my
Stelling Red Fox and Gibson Granada. Donald Zepp was great to deal with as part of the buying process, as was Tanya Ogsbury at OME when I called with some setup questions. Highly recommended. Considering the quality and playability, this was one heck of a bargin.
Overall Rating: 10
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