13in. from nut to 12 fret. 15 from 12 fret to bridge. Did exactly as instructed, and Bertha sings. Intonation perfect on first try. Made the proper bridge adjustments and harmonics at 12 fret. Open 1st string and fretted 12th sound exactly the same. Thank you for this video.
Clifton... A little background on me ..I was a guitar builder and guitar tech that traveled with some major rock bands on large tours back in 80s and 90s I have build cigar box guitars and other specialised instruments for film composers and what you describe here is great about this little known point. Also when i set the intonation on any instrument with moveable bridge i always take into account the way a string stretches and pitches up slightly when fingered. This usually means the bridge gets slightly set back a bit to compensate..often i do this with a tuner that i go by the 12 fret and open string and move the bridge to get that perfect balance...but sometimes an instrument has its frets set in poor position and up at the neck it might play better if tweaked for that area instead if it matches the style of the player better...Cheers.... always great info you provide..you are a treasure!!!
I met a guy in a music shop claimed he’d been setting up banjos for decades. He insisted the bridge be in the centre of the drum. Didn’t go there again.
I play primarily electric guitar. Very finicky about intonation. Bought a banjo & just assumed cruddy intonation was part of the experience. Now I can fret higher & can hear the angels in my banjo like I can in my electric guitar.
When I bought my latest banjo I hadn't seen this on one of your other videos so I had a devil of a time trying to find where to place the bridge to get good intonation. After I saw you do this on the other video I checked mine and it was dang near close. Such invaluable information. Honestly need to recheck and see if mines moved much
Thanks Clifton, it's not something i'd checked myself yet. I had my banjo and tape nearby to check and thankfully my bridge setup was in the right spot. Cheers pal. Looking forward to more.
Young man,I know this sounds out of wack but.....you rock!!! This new venture is AWESOME!!! I did know about that however I love how you said,"you don't need to be able to read music" I can't be the only self taught git fiddle player out there who truly appreciate's those words!!! Really!!! Thank you !!!✌🤘
As a beginner the banjo I purchased had a slight angle on the bridge. I’m primarily a fiddler, so I thought I needed to make it straight and I moved it. I am so happy to be corrected on this. Thanks!
Thank you so much for this video! I am stuck at home in lockdown still, with my ancient Epiphone MB100 Banjo, and it sounded so bad as I played up the neck. I couldn't take it to the music shop to get it fixed and would have cost a lot of money as well. I have been watching your videos for about a month and I just watched this video and did what you said, and it worked!!! Wow. my banjo was almost unplayable and now it sounds amazing - even with its old strings! I'm so grateful. Thanks so much Clifton for putting this information out there. You made it so easy to follow your process. Thank you! Jay
Clifton, you are such an inspiration. I also remember your old videos when you speak about your military service which are also inspiring. My main instrument is the bagpipe, but this has me dusting off the banjo and getting serious. I hope the Songster Method vids will be understandable for us newbies. Thank you! Dave... Say hi to Ol Leatherstockings for me!
great explanation Clifton! my strings have been buzzing lately, this is the first thing i am going to look at. do you have any videos of banjo head changes?
I can never tell if it's right. Sometimes it sounds right and other times it doesn't but I never know exactly how to fix it. I guess it's just something that comes with practice
John, once you put your name & email on the early-bird list at BanjoHeritage.com you'll be "carried over." Just keep checking your email and the website for updates.
Uh...damned spell check!...this last video was great. I know we all appreciate your efforts in educating us. Thank God I can't read music or tablature...I can "see" and "hear" the music better with jes' my ears!! 😁👍
Clifton, I still consider myself a newbie, but I have purchased a fretless banjo. How, if possible,would you check the intonation on something like that? Thanks..
On a fretless it's a matter of moving the bridge around to wherever feels most comfortable. The fret positions will shrink/stretch as your move the bridge forward/backward. It's all relative when no raised frets are present.
It's not really that important on a fretless banjo, as the note will be wherever you find it. Just make sure you keep the bridge in the same place and you'll get used to where the notes are. Most fretless players don't play that far up the neck anyway.
The best thing to do on a fretless is not think about it, try not to think “2nd fret,3rd fret etc” but instead think by the notes and where the notes are. Overtime it becomes something you don’t even think about you just play.
@@matthewgovig Yeah I've already fallen in love with it. I just turn off my brain and let my muscle memory and hands take over. Gourds sound so awesome!
I disagree with your way of checking intonation. Measuring the frets does not account for the height of the strings off the fingerboar aka action. When you fret a string it compresses increasing the tension and string distance. When you use a harmonic to check if the bridge is in place, don't use the open string as a reference, as this can be influenced by the action as well. Instead fret at the 12th fret and compare to that. Since you are compressing the string it will give you a more accurate intonation up the neck.
Wow, so sometimes an activity can be termed "picking fly poop out of pepper" to put it politely. You appear to be doing that. Are you technically correct? Probably...but for which string? As Clifton says you cannot get perfect intonation on a banjo. A straight bridge angled can split the difference caused by the different stiffnesses of the strings but cannot get it perfect for all strings, and that's ok: a banjo does not have the sustain of other instruments so it's much less noticeable. What you've added - though from a scientific standpoint and a single string might be more correct - does not help newer players in my opinion.
13in. from nut to 12 fret. 15 from 12 fret to bridge. Did exactly as instructed, and Bertha sings. Intonation perfect on first try. Made the proper bridge adjustments and harmonics at 12 fret. Open 1st string and fretted 12th sound exactly the same. Thank you for this video.
Man my banjo sounds sweet my woman is always saying it doesn't sound like a banjo It was miles out thanks cliff 👍🪕🇮🇪🇺🇲
This would be a great first lesson for a teacher to have his student watch as a prep for the first session.
Thank you so much for these videos you are THE reason I picked up a banjo and started playing
Clifton... A little background on me ..I was a guitar builder and guitar tech that traveled with some major rock bands on large tours back in 80s and 90s I have build cigar box guitars and other specialised instruments for film composers and what you describe here is great about this little known point.
Also when i set the intonation on any instrument with moveable bridge i always take into account the way a string stretches and pitches up slightly when fingered. This usually means the bridge gets slightly set back a bit to compensate..often i do this with a tuner that i go by the 12 fret and open string and move the bridge to get that perfect balance...but sometimes an instrument has its frets set in poor position and up at the neck it might play better if tweaked for that area instead if it matches the style of the player better...Cheers.... always great info you provide..you are a treasure!!!
I met a guy in a music shop claimed he’d been setting up banjos for decades. He insisted the bridge be in the centre of the drum. Didn’t go there again.
Damn! Placing the bridge square in the center is how many old-timers did it, but it's not the best...
You’ve got great methods for the the real banjo player. Passion, love for another live.
Just,,,wow,,,thankyou clifton,,,I've only just started learning and that is a GEM to me ,,god bless you for the giving person you are, 🙏
Love this, Clifton! Would love to see a video of how to adjust the rim!
I definitely learned something here...thanks for sharing Clifton!
I play primarily electric guitar. Very finicky about intonation. Bought a banjo & just assumed cruddy intonation was part of the experience. Now I can fret higher & can hear the angels in my banjo like I can in my electric guitar.
When I bought my latest banjo I hadn't seen this on one of your other videos so I had a devil of a time trying to find where to place the bridge to get good intonation. After I saw you do this on the other video I checked mine and it was dang near close. Such invaluable information. Honestly need to recheck and see if mines moved much
Thanks Clifton, it's not something i'd checked myself yet. I had my banjo and tape nearby to check and thankfully my bridge setup was in the right spot. Cheers pal. Looking forward to more.
Thank you Mr Hicks! Great tutorial! Worked the charm on my 5 string as well as my 19 fret tenor. Happy days!
Young man,I know this sounds out of wack but.....you rock!!! This new venture is AWESOME!!! I did know about that however I love how you said,"you don't need to be able to read music" I can't be the only self taught git fiddle player out there who truly appreciate's those words!!! Really!!! Thank you !!!✌🤘
As a beginner the banjo I purchased had a slight angle on the bridge. I’m primarily a fiddler, so I thought I needed to make it straight and I moved it. I am so happy to be corrected on this. Thanks!
I’ve had a banjo 2 years and never thought to check this! Thank you! X
Thank you so much for this video! I am stuck at home in lockdown still, with my ancient Epiphone MB100 Banjo, and it sounded so bad as I played up the neck. I couldn't take it to the music shop to get it fixed and would have cost a lot of money as well. I have been watching your videos for about a month and I just watched this video and did what you said, and it worked!!! Wow. my banjo was almost unplayable and now it sounds amazing - even with its old strings! I'm so grateful. Thanks so much Clifton for putting this information out there. You made it so easy to follow your process. Thank you! Jay
for what its worth Clif, this setup you suggested works on a bass banjo as well.
Clifton, you are such an inspiration. I also remember your old videos when you speak about your military service which are also inspiring. My main instrument is the bagpipe, but this has me dusting off the banjo and getting serious. I hope the Songster Method vids will be understandable for us newbies. Thank you! Dave... Say hi to Ol Leatherstockings for me!
great explanation Clifton! my strings have been buzzing lately, this is the first thing i am going to look at. do you have any videos of banjo head changes?
Mate thanks from over in Australia! This is what it is all about...
I put pencil mark on my skin, so I know if it goes out and where to put it back.
Intonation is pretty important. I'd love to see some of your guitar builds.
This tip was great! My banjo sounds alot better now
YES!!!
👍👍
I can never tell if it's right. Sometimes it sounds right and other times it doesn't but I never know exactly how to fix it. I guess it's just something that comes with practice
Clifton, must we sign up each time for each upcoming session, or are we automatically "carried over?" I don't want to miss a one! Thanks!
John, once you put your name & email on the early-bird list at BanjoHeritage.com you'll be "carried over." Just keep checking your email and the website for updates.
@@CliftonHicksbanjo Thank you, Clifton! Thiszst video was great!
Uh...damned spell check!...this last video was great. I know we all appreciate your efforts in educating us. Thank God I can't read music or tablature...I can "see" and "hear" the music better with jes' my ears!! 😁👍
Clifton, I still consider myself a newbie, but I have purchased a fretless banjo. How, if possible,would you check the intonation on something like that? Thanks..
On a fretless it's a matter of moving the bridge around to wherever feels most comfortable. The fret positions will shrink/stretch as your move the bridge forward/backward. It's all relative when no raised frets are present.
@@CliftonHicksbanjo thanks much, that will help!!
What do you do for a fretless? I just got my first gourd banjo a few weeks ago
It's not really that important on a fretless banjo, as the note will be wherever you find it. Just make sure you keep the bridge in the same place and you'll get used to where the notes are. Most fretless players don't play that far up the neck anyway.
@@JohnyG29 You're the man, thank you.
The best thing to do on a fretless is not think about it, try not to think “2nd fret,3rd fret etc” but instead think by the notes and where the notes are.
Overtime it becomes something you don’t even think about you just play.
@@matthewgovig Yeah I've already fallen in love with it. I just turn off my brain and let my muscle memory and hands take over. Gourds sound so awesome!
Since the head is so rarely changed, why don't banjo players glue the bridge down to ensure it doesn't walk up the head over time?
I disagree with your way of checking intonation. Measuring the frets does not account for the height of the strings off the fingerboar aka action. When you fret a string it compresses increasing the tension and string distance.
When you use a harmonic to check if the bridge is in place, don't use the open string as a reference, as this can be influenced by the action as well. Instead fret at the 12th fret and compare to that.
Since you are compressing the string it will give you a more accurate intonation up the neck.
Wow, so sometimes an activity can be termed "picking fly poop out of pepper" to put it politely. You appear to be doing that. Are you technically correct? Probably...but for which string? As Clifton says you cannot get perfect intonation on a banjo. A straight bridge angled can split the difference caused by the different stiffnesses of the strings but cannot get it perfect for all strings, and that's ok: a banjo does not have the sustain of other instruments so it's much less noticeable. What you've added - though from a scientific standpoint and a single string might be more correct - does not help newer players in my opinion.
don't tell me what to check you're not my real father