Open Back Banjo Tone Ring

A properly adjusted granadillo tone ring.

Open back banjo tone ring. The dirty thirties deluxe open back banjo brings together the old time sound of an open back banjo with the added projection and treble clarity of a traditional rolled brass tone ring. For years most modern open back banjo makers based their designs on one of these two instruments. The white laydie tone ring is based upon the fairbanks vega design which is made for old time banjo tone and styles. They are great for old time string band music and work well for solo banjo players as well.

Old time open back banjos can come either with or without a tone ring. These tone rings have been used in both open back and resonator banjos but the current popular application is in open back banjos for old time and folk music and resonator models for dixieland and irish. This tone ring consists of a round steel hoop held in place by a supn brass sleeve above a solid scalloped brass ring. It s an excellent replacement tonering for open back banjos.

It is machine fitted to the wood rim and also incorporates an inner steel ring which adds to its performance. The recording king dirty 30s open back tone ring banjo packs excellent playability and historic vibe into a retro infused package. This tone ring has been used on most of our tenor plectrum and upper end 5 string open back banjos for over 45 years and gives exceptional treble midrange and bass response throughout the entire playing range. A tone ring is a round piece or pieces of usually metal usually brass that is found between the body rim and the head and really defines a banjo s personality as it relates to its tone volume and voice.

The tubaphone represents the loudest of the tone rings commonly found in open back banjos used for old time and clawhammer playing styles. The sound of the tubaphone is a warm round sound with a sweet golden metallic ping in the tone. A banjo rim with a scalloped secondary tune ring for a whyte lady. Both of these have fairly heavy tone rings making them the loudest open back models with the most projection.