Hello everyone, new player here since Sept of last year. Been having fun and learning, now playing most of Ben’s beginning and intermediate songs. I have a Washburn B11 and I really enjoy playing it, however, I found that the head tension was not set properly. After setting the head tension it really came alive. Then I found out how to set the bridge properly by chiming at the 12 fret. That made big difference. But sustain on the 1st string isn’t all the great. I was wondering if my pickup which is on the slid on the side of the bridge under the 1st string could be muting it somewhat. I have a KNA BP-1 pickup and it works really well. But, when I do slides like from 2 to 5 they just don’t sound like they should. Any help would be appreciated.
1st string issue
Sometimes the banjo needs to settle for a few days after a big adjustment. It’s possible the problem is down to the positioning of the pickup. Might be wise to seek out the help of a pro to tweak things.
No didn’t touch the tail piece. The closest luthier is about 150mi from me. When I tensioned the head it was loose enough that I could finger tighten some of the nuts. I want to try a “Snuffy” bridge, do you think that would help? Also, when I tensioned the head to G# by tapping and using my tuner, it also seemed that I changed the action as well. Although it measures about 1/8" at the last fret as suggested. Feels like it got a little harder to play, although that may be just me.
Look for bluegrass associations and/or jams and picks near you. Talk to the other banjo pickers there. They might be able to help. You’ll have to read and learn the instrument to diagnose the issues on your own. @BanjoBen has a video on setup that he did with Steve Huber
Watch that and see if the info helps
Hey Bill! If you get a second, a picture of that pickup placement on the bridge might help with diagnostics.
Is it easy enough to remove the pickup to check if the problem goes away?
Hi @bmclure200 Bill If your not sure what your doing my best advice is don’t do anything, instead seek professional help. Too many adjustments at one time can make the situation worse.
@Archie I’ll try to take it out of town next week to a luthier and have him check it out. It may be ok for all that I know, it might be just me. But, that is good advice to have it looked at by a professional.
Bill a seasoned banjo player might be able to help if one lives close by.
Ah that doesn’t look right. I’d say the pickup is the issue
Does the problem go away when you remove the pickup? Seems like a likely cause to me. It may be pinching off the string vibrations on that side of the bridge.
@Mark_Rocka Hi Mark - I’ll try it without the pickup. The only reason I haven’t tried it before is it is stuck on there really good and every time I trying to remove it messes up my bridge placement. I’ll have to lightly mark my bridge location the head with a pencil first.