5 string banjo pickup?

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

What type of pickup is good for a 5 string banjo?

Gary Lee Gimble · From: Fredericksburg, VA.

Pete Burak · From: Portland, OR USA

Ford F250.
Forward/Reverse...
Repeat as necessary.

What a gorgous tone!

Just kiddin', Len!

~pb

Garth Highsmith · Posted 1 Oct 2003 4:07 pm

.

[This message was edited by Garth Highsmith on 09 January 2006 at 08:48 PM.]

Jon Light · From: Saugerties, NY

I've got an inquiry in to the bj picker in my band. Whatever he uses, it does the job of making the banjo, well, louder (all jokes aside, I love banjo but....) but coming over the p.a. it sure is shrill and percussive. I don't know if an amplified banjo can be anything else.

Michael Brebes · From: Northridge CA

www.stewmac.com
They sell a pickup for banjo that isn't too expensive.

Jon Light · From: Saugerties, NY

Len--my guy got back to me and here is his response----

quote:
My secret (and I do highly recommend it) is a highlander gooseneck
condenser mic specifically made for acoustic guitars that I custom
installed inside the banjo - it takes custom modifications but is not
hard to do if you are good with solder - it has a built in preamp that
gives great level.

Other than that I would recommend trying one of the clip on mics out
there prob made by AKG or something

For a banjo I have no interest in anything that is considered a pickup,
for I feel it is impossible to capture the sound of a banjo without an
actual mic

I'm very picky though, there are traditional pickups you can get
installed also - but they sound too 'direct' for me..and they also need
a preamp because they have low - passive - output

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

Try a Jeep.

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

Thanks to all for the feedback. The Ford F250
and the Jeep are worth considering also..

Jon, the mike installed in the banjo sounds interesting. However, the Highlander gooseneck mike is an acoustic mike and wonder how that would sound front miking the banjo? Also, our PA has preamp gain inputs and would that suffice rather than using a seperate preamp?

Thanks,

Lenny

Larry Behm · From: Mt Angel, Or 97362

Len tried as I might I could never get one to do the job. I bought a Gold Tone electric banjo and now my problems are gone.

Larry Behm

Jerry Roller · From: Van Buren, Arkansas USA

Hi Len, please pardon me for being serious.
I know the banjo is a different application than a Dobro but I tried pickups on my Dobro and never could get anything that was not boomy, feeding back or unnatural sounding until I tried a GHS mic. The box is in my vehicle but if you are interested I can give you the information. This is an absolutely great little mic with no feedback, plenty of volume and very natural sounding. It has a small platform which has an elastic loop that you can attach to about anything, the little platform has velcro and the mic has a flex gooseneck attached to a transformer with velcro on the bottom of it. The mic is about the size of an average copperhead. The word really needs to get out on this mic for a Dobro. I run a chord from the mic into a Boss Rev3 and from output of the Rev3 into input of a stage tuner and from it into the mic chord for low impedence or I use a transformer adapter for high impedence. I use the tuner obviously for tuning but also as a on/off control. I bet this would work very good for a banjo also.
Jerry

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

Hi Jerry & Larry:

Thanks for the information.

Jerry, I would like to know the model of the GHS mike you are referring to?

Thanks,

Lenny

Alvin Blaine · From: Picture Rocks, Arizona, USA

I've been using an AKG C-411 micro-mic on banjo. I put it inside of the banjo and it sounds great and can get up to 98db before feedback.
You can get it with a battery pack that can also run off of phantom power or you can get it in a wireless transmitter(so you can run all over the stage playing your banjo louder the H***)

AKG C-411 L

Michael Brebes · From: Northridge CA

If you want to use a mic, I've had real good success with the Audio Technica ATM35. It's a small condensor mic with a miniature gooseneck. Clamp it on one of the tension rods and away you go. I've had real good success using that mic for banjo, dobro, and violin.

Brian Davis · From: San Francisco, USA

Mcintyre pickups is worth a shot. Weber is using their feather in their mandolins. I think that a mic is generally considered the better way to go, but this may be cheaper for you. You will need a preamp...LR Baggs Paracoustic DI is recommended. Good luck!
http://www.mcintyrepickups.com/macindex.html

Brian

Robert Parent · From: Gillette, WY

I don't know about a banjo but for my Weber mandolin and mandola the Mcintyre feather pickup works great. I had them factory installed as they were both custom built so can't give any details on how they were mounted. I doubt that contact pickups will ever equal a mic, but this is pretty close.

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