initial impressions ..gold tone buc banjo uke

eor · May 13, 2011

hi folks

I recieved a gold tone BUC from the nice man from fedex yesterday.

some quick first impressions...

..the case is really nice, well padded and seems to have very solid hardware and construction... more so than alot of cases i have seen...

.... uke is solid and seems well finished

.... i got it from the twelvthe fret in ontario, canada and we discussed how important set up is for me. They did a great job. the action is nice, not high at all and plays great.

it will take a few days for the uke to settle in and for me to get used to the different feel of a bu.

initial impression... like it alot and when you consider the case is included i think it is a pretty good value for the money.

later

cb56 · May 13, 2011

Got the same uke about a month ago. Totally in love with it still! Give us a sound sample sometime see if it sounds similar to mine on the D 5th fret 1st string. The only thing I don't like about it but it may be a head tuning issue.

eor · May 14, 2011

cb56 said:
Totally in love with it still! Give us a sound sample sometime see if it sounds similar to mine on the D 5th fret 1st string. The only thing I don't like about it but it may be a head tuning issue.

hey

so far no issues. The strings are still not settled in totally and I dont have the best tuner in the world but things seem pretty good up to the 10th fret. after that my tuner has trouble getting enough vibration to work well .it would be interesting to try aquilas on it some time.

the tech at twelvth fret said he seldom sets up a BU without having to tighten the head.

ill try to do a sound sample when i get a chance.

my partner says she finds it sounds nice .

i find my self liking it very much.

whats your prob at the 5th fret???

later

allanr · May 14, 2011

I bought a GT BUC from 12th Fret last year. You made two great decisions IMHO! The BUC is a really well made and nice sounding banjo uke, and 12th Fret sets them up nicely. I feel like I got a lot of uke AND a lot of service for the money I spent.

Enjoy!!!

cb56 · May 14, 2011

eor said:
whats your prob at the 5th fret???

It's actually the note "D" in that octave played anywhere on the neck. There seems to be a vibration that is slightly out of tune with the "D" that causes a chorusing effect (not pleasant) on that note. I've heard it on other banjo ukes also and recently on other goldtone banjo ukes. If I put my thumb on the drum head in a certain place it goes away. Also if I put a folded up washrag inside the uke inbetween the head and the stabilizing rod it goes away, but then the uke is quieter sounding.

eor · May 14, 2011

allanr said:
I bought a GT BUC from 12th Fret last year. You made two great decisions IMHO! The BUC is a really well made and nice sounding banjo uke, and 12th Fret sets them up nicely. I feel like I got a lot of uke AND a lot of service for the money I spent.

Enjoy!!!

hi

i thought the service was A+ as well.

we must have sent 8 or 10 e mails back and forth . grant was real prompt and took the time for what at that point was just an inquirery.

i had alot of concerns about setup. I am out in the sticks and cant bring it anywhere if it plays poorly. also my hand strenth is compromized and i have trouble if the action is too high.

i was looking at the twelvthe fret web page and watched this video:

it was the clincher to buy here, they understood setup.

grant said the banjo uke is a lot less "complicated" to set up but does need setup never the less.

see ya

eor · May 14, 2011

cb56 said:
It's actually the note "D" in that octave played anywhere on the neck. There seems to be a vibration that is slightly out of tune with the "D" that causes a chorusing effect (not pleasant) on that note. I've heard it on other banjo ukes also and recently on other goldtone banjo ukes. If I put my thumb on the drum head in a certain place it goes away. Also if I put a folded up washrag inside the uke inbetween the head and the stabilizing rod it goes away, but then the uke is quieter sounding.

hey

i am still getting accustomed to the unique sound of the banjo uke and never having seen, played or heard a BU live until the day before yesterday my frame of reference is pretty narrow.

i have never witnessed another person play any kind of uke except on tv or youtube.

mine seems pretty good but its very possible my tin ear just isnt picking it up or that i just think it is part of the normal banjo uke sound.

i would suspect that head tension could be a factor in your situation.

see ya

allanr · May 15, 2011

cb56 said:
It's actually the note "D" in that octave played anywhere on the neck. There seems to be a vibration that is slightly out of tune with the "D" that causes a chorusing effect (not pleasant) on that note. I've heard it on other banjo ukes also and recently on other goldtone banjo ukes. If I put my thumb on the drum head in a certain place it goes away. Also if I put a folded up washrag inside the uke inbetween the head and the stabilizing rod it goes away, but then the uke is quieter sounding.

A banjo head is essentially just a drum head. Drums are often tuned, just like other instruments are. Your BUC head is probably in "d" so it's vibrating in sympathy when you play Ds. I have never noticed on mine. Perhaps playing with the tension will eventually tune it to something that is less prone to play along. But be careful. Too tight and a head can burst, Too loose and it sounds and plays horrible

cb56 · May 15, 2011

That's kind of what I though. I'll probably have a pro lookat it and tune the head sometime. Other than that it sounds wonderful.

allanr · May 15, 2011

Just a thought, and hopefully someone on the UU board with more knowledge & experience than I can confirm or debunk it, but...

Since the uke fretboard is tuned in semi-tones I wonder if tightening the head just enough to get it "off" tone or between the semitones would solve the problem since you would never actually pluck a string with the same frequency as the head? Maybe you could call Grant at 12th Fret for advice.

cb56 · May 23, 2011

Good news. I got brave last night and tightened the head on my Goldtone BUC. The problem with the strange harmonic on the D is now gone. I can hear it a tiny bit on an E but not so loud or annoying.

ichadwick · May 23, 2011

Went there and got the BUB - baritone - from them. Love it. For playing at home, however, I found the BUB a little strident. I removed the resonator plate and wedged a piece of synthetic sponge against the top to soften it. Personally, I believe a baritone deserves a 10" head, not an 8", which would make it a little less brash. Also found that E string is a tad too close to the fretboard edge for my playing style.

initial impressions ..gold tone buc banjo uke

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