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Topic: how do you tune A Banjo |
Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 1:01 pm |
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how do you tune A Banjo
a freind just called and told me he was bringing me a Banjo in a couple of weeks , never had one in my hands so any idea where to start?..... LOL
all i know is that it has 5 strings
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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Bryan Daste
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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John Steele
From:
Renfrew, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 1:26 pm
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From the first to the fifth string:
D
B
G
D
high G
This is the most common tuning.
It's open G, obviously.
The fifth string is an octave higher than the 3rd. |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 1:28 pm
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thanks guys
never thought about learning to play one of these things before ..might be fun
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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Jeff Garden
From:
Center Sandwich, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 2:23 pm
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| If you decide you want to put some time into it, Calvin, "Earl Scruggs and the 5-string Banjo" is still the bible after all these years. You can get it for a very reasonable price if you Google it. |
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Rick Barnhart
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 4:29 pm How do you tune a banjo?
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_________________
Clinesmith consoles D-8/6 5 pedal, D-8 3 pedal & A25 Frypan, Pettingill Teardrop, & P8 Deluxe. |
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Archie Nicol R.I.P.
From:
Ayrshire, Scotland
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 4:39 pm
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It had to happen. 
Arch. |
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Charles Davidson
From:
Phenix City Alabama, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 4:53 pm
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Calvin if you are serious the banjo is like any other instrument,If it's a cheap piece of crap just throw it in the garbage. If it does NOT pull your shoulder out of place [HEAVY] when you put it on,then it's not worth a new set of strings you may buy for it. YOU BETCHA,DYK?BC.
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Hard headed, opinionated old geezer. BAMA CHARLIE. GOD BLESS AMERICA. ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVIST. SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC ! |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 6:33 pm
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Charles
i know nothing about the banjo , a freind got it somehow and his wife said " give it to calvin he will play it " that's all i know about it
i have never held one in my hands before ...lol
all i know is they are bringing it with them when they come to visit in a couple of weeks
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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Clyde Mattocks
From:
Kinston, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 29 Apr 2010 9:00 pm
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Now they'll hire you for a steel gig because you "have" a banjo. Works for me!
_________________
LeGrande II, Nash. 112, Fender Twin Tone Master, Session 400, Harlow Dobro, R.Q.Jones Dobro |
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Jeff Agnew
From:
Dallas, TX
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Posted 30 Apr 2010 4:02 am
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People tune banjos? Who knew...
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 1 May 2010 8:59 am
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If you play guitar, the easy way to remember is that it's like the first four strings of a guitar, with the first string down two frets.
By the way, the lute and cittern usually have the first four courses of strings tuned the same as the banjo ...or should I put that the other way round, since they came first?!?
Also, the banjo is tuned the same way as the first four strings of a bluegrass Dobro.
Jazz banjoists, who just strum four-string banjos, often tune the 4th string a tone up.
There are many in this Forum who would suggest that the best way to string a banjo is with barbed wire, to increase the pain when you play it, so that you can experience the same level of pain as that which you're inflicting on the audience.  |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 1 May 2010 12:13 pm
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i must admit , i never was interested in the banjo
but when my freind sounded so fired up that he was giving me something he thought i would like... i made my mind up to give it a shot . hell i figure i can make a racket on most anything if i really try lol
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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Joe Casey
From:
Weeki Wachee .Springs FL (population.9)
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Posted 2 May 2010 6:59 am
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| b0b has a special course he wrote about Banger tuning. |
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Carson Leighton
From:
N.B. Canada
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Posted 2 May 2010 7:29 am
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| I like a 5 sring banjo..In songs like "Rocky Top",,"I saw the light" and a whole bunch of other stuff..I've worked back and forth with a good 5 string player, and fiddle player and I like it..To me it's just another musical instrument, and when applied the right way,,it sounds nice....Cheers,,,Carson |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Richard Damron
From:
Gallatin, Tennessee, USA (deceased)
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Posted 4 May 2010 9:46 am
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Calvin -
I didn't post this before out of fear of offending you in your desire to learn to play banjo. However, since a couple of others have taken a lighthearted approach to the subject, I'll cave in. This has been posted before here on the forum so my apologies go to the originator.
How to tune a banjo:
(1) Raise the first string until it breaks.
(2) Tune the rest of the strings to the first.
It's worth a smile.
Richard |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 4 May 2010 4:24 pm
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There's always that solution to the noisy little boy who's been given a drum or a banjo for his birthday and is driving everyone nuts... ...give him a knife and tell him there's something hidden inside.  |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 8 May 2010 6:22 pm
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i just went and bought a new set of strings for it sight unseen
but something puzzles me, there are (2) 10 gage strings ??? one is for D and one is for G
my question is does it matter which one goes on top?
or i guess another way of asking the same question is ...does it matter which one i use for the G or the D ?
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 8 May 2010 8:11 pm
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| Calvin Walley wrote: |
i just went and bought a new set of strings for it sight unseen
but something puzzles me, there are (2) 10 gage strings ??? one is for D and one is for G
my question is does it matter which one goes on top?
or i guess another way of asking the same question is ...does it matter which one i use for the G or the D ? |
I guess it depends on which one you consider to be the top.
_________________
-𝕓𝕆𝕓- (admin) - Robert P. Lee - Recordings - Breathe - D6th - Video |
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Charles Davidson
From:
Phenix City Alabama, USA
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Posted 8 May 2010 8:37 pm
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Calvin,If they are both the SAME gauge,what would it matter    YOU BETCHA,DYK?BC.
_________________
Hard headed, opinionated old geezer. BAMA CHARLIE. GOD BLESS AMERICA. ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVIST. SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC ! |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 8 May 2010 10:39 pm
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well thats kinda what i thought ????
but never having even held a banjo i just wanted to make sure
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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Tony Davis
From:
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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Posted 9 May 2010 4:24 am
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Calvin
your 1st string is D..10 guage should do
Your 5th string is tuned to G which is equal to 5th fret on first string......but the 5th string tuning peg is 5 frets up the neck level with 5 fret on 1st string so you shouldnt break it.
Tony |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 9 May 2010 8:44 am
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| Exactly. On a 5-string banjo the first and fifth string are usually the same gauge because the fifth string is the drone and shorter than the other four strings. |
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Calvin Walley
From:
colorado city colorado, USA
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Posted 9 May 2010 10:25 am
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thanks folks
i can see now that this is going to be completly different than anything i have dealt with before
i have always thought of going from bass strings to treble strings ,
never tinkered with anything that had a treble string on both sides
_________________
proud parent of a sailor
Mullen SD-10 /nashville 400
gotta love a Mullen!!!
Guitars that i have owned in order are :
Mullen SD-10,Simmons SD-10,Mullen SD-10,Zum stage one,Carter starter,
Sho-Bud Mavrick |
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