HU
Nice for fingerpicking
Bought this about one month ago and have played almost daily. It is heavy and sturdy, feels solid in your hands, and looks beautiful. Tuning is alright but for the A string (which is sometimes quite tricky), but it stays well in tune. Sound is balanced and loud, very good for fingerpicking and clawhammer, though perhaps a bit too metallic when strumming along with a group of ukes. I ended up buying a 100% uke for that, but will keep this banjolele as it is great fun.
1
0
Report
S
Great banjolele for the price.
I’ve been playing the banjolele, Formby style for over ten years. This one caught my eye due to the price and other reviews that I head read. It are within a couple of days of the order being placed. I was very pleasantly surprised with how this looked in real life.The quality was really good, well made and beautifully finished. There were no rough fret ends and the neck was aligned very nicely. The open backed tuners worked as they should once the strings had settled. The sound with the plastic remo head wasn’t to my liking and so I replaced it with a calf skin vellum which transformed it, giving it a much warmer tone. This is a very loud instrument and one which projects really well due to the bowl back resonator. To be honest once you have it set up for your style of playing you really can’t go wrong. I gave it four stars as I felt that a better quality tuning peg would have been nice ,not that the ones supplied don’t do there job very well and I felt the remo head let it down on tone. That said both are relatively cheap fixes for a really great piece of kit. So all in all ,turned out nice again.
1
1
Report
R
Something all Forby fans should have!
This is a great instrument to play and can fill a room with very little amplification. In fact, I did a gig last night and didn't need any amplification at all.
This is a heavy instrument and therefore I would recommend either playing it sitting down or investing in a suitable strap. Unfortunately this does not come with any brackets so these would need to be added manually.
Secondly, you'd best buy an extra set of strings. Ukulele strings are held at the bridge using a simple knot made with an additional wrap-around to double the size of said knot. However Mr. Benton must not have had the time to do this. Upon inspection I realised that there is not much room to improve matters on the strings in place. Therefore, the only solution available until Mr. Benton improves his knots is to order a new set of strings.
Overall this is a good instrument with a good sound. With the above issues taken into consideration you will not encounter any issues.
This is a heavy instrument and therefore I would recommend either playing it sitting down or investing in a suitable strap. Unfortunately this does not come with any brackets so these would need to be added manually.
Secondly, you'd best buy an extra set of strings. Ukulele strings are held at the bridge using a simple knot made with an additional wrap-around to double the size of said knot. However Mr. Benton must not have had the time to do this. Upon inspection I realised that there is not much room to improve matters on the strings in place. Therefore, the only solution available until Mr. Benton improves his knots is to order a new set of strings.
Overall this is a good instrument with a good sound. With the above issues taken into consideration you will not encounter any issues.
5
0
Report
p
Good but not great
Has a nice sound. Looks really nice and is great for what I use it - theatrical performance. The sound is OK. I expected more banjo sound but it sounds more like ukulele. It also has some resonance problem which I couldn't fix myself but it is bareable for what I use it for. I suppose it is just mine with this problem.
2
0
Report
s
Not bad for the price
I'm satisfied. Lovely looks, not too banjoy sound - it's quiet for a banjo, bit mudded, note separation is tragic and it gets worse up the neck. But it's ok for strumming along when you sing and it's nice companion for a bonfire or a small pub. It doesn't have tonering, so it's light, you can take it backpacking. Tuning pegs are awful, but it's easy to change them. Forget about neck adjustments. Overall, you get what pay for, nothing more.
1
0
Report
