Tuning the Baby
Pat W. , a friend from the 2008 Crisfield retreat, gave me important informations for my quest for the clawhammer tone:
"If what you are wanting to hear is a more plunky like a lot of the modern clawhammer players, I would suggest that the fiberskyn may not be the right head for your banjo. The fiberskyn is a dry sound and not very resonant. I personally like the fiberskyn sound as it cuts a lot of overtones. I think you want to try a Renaissance head. The Ren accentuates the midrange of the instrument more and I believe would be a better fit for what I believe you are trying to achieve. The Ren is more resonant and produces more of a note when struck.
The other thing I would suggest is to actually tap tune the head to A# when you put it on. I usually start by tuning it to G first and then bring it up to where it first hits A#. The A# works well because that note is rarely
used on the fretboard so is less likely to create wolf tones. To tap tune the head, set the banjo in your lap and put a chromatic tuner with a mic on your left knee. When you tap the head with your finger or the wrench in your hand and let the note ring. The tuner should register with the Ren head, The fiberskyn has much less tuning range and usually goes straight to A# or somewhere thereabouts. Then string it up and retune it as necessary. I usually play up the neck on the 1st string at this point to see if it loses sustain as I move up the neck. If the note decays too quickly, I usually loosen the tension slightly (16th of a turn or less) on hooks 3-5, counting from the treble side of the neck. You should notice the notes sustaining a little more."
Thanks a lot, Pat. Sounds reasonable to me. I will surely give it a try.
"If what you are wanting to hear is a more plunky like a lot of the modern clawhammer players, I would suggest that the fiberskyn may not be the right head for your banjo. The fiberskyn is a dry sound and not very resonant. I personally like the fiberskyn sound as it cuts a lot of overtones. I think you want to try a Renaissance head. The Ren accentuates the midrange of the instrument more and I believe would be a better fit for what I believe you are trying to achieve. The Ren is more resonant and produces more of a note when struck.
The other thing I would suggest is to actually tap tune the head to A# when you put it on. I usually start by tuning it to G first and then bring it up to where it first hits A#. The A# works well because that note is rarely
used on the fretboard so is less likely to create wolf tones. To tap tune the head, set the banjo in your lap and put a chromatic tuner with a mic on your left knee. When you tap the head with your finger or the wrench in your hand and let the note ring. The tuner should register with the Ren head, The fiberskyn has much less tuning range and usually goes straight to A# or somewhere thereabouts. Then string it up and retune it as necessary. I usually play up the neck on the 1st string at this point to see if it loses sustain as I move up the neck. If the note decays too quickly, I usually loosen the tension slightly (16th of a turn or less) on hooks 3-5, counting from the treble side of the neck. You should notice the notes sustaining a little more."
Thanks a lot, Pat. Sounds reasonable to me. I will surely give it a try.
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