Gretsch Guitars G9410 Broadkaster Special Banjo 5-String Banjo

I play this banjo daily. It sounds as crisp as my Morgan Monroe. I did a lot of set up to get it to the front porch twang that I like, but I knew that this was coming since I prefer to do my own set up anyway.

I'm new to the banjo & have always wanted to learn. I looked around at new & used banjos before finding this one online & on sale. I read reviews & all were favorable so decided to make the purchase. I am very happy with the looks, quality & sound of my banjo. Love it......!!!

I ordered this banjo because I was looking for something mid-range in price just in case it didn't work out. I tried out a couple of "cheapies" at other stores and the seemed difficult to play and wouldn't stay in tune. I decided on this one. I had it shipped to the local GC store so they could set it up for me and then it would be just a matter of stopping by, picking it up , going home and playing. The first one I ordered had a broken headstock. GC let me know and quickly reordered a second for me. It came in with no troubles. It plays really well and has a nice smooth sound to it. I didn't want such a bright, thin sound but something that could handle the types of music I was going to be playing. It gets the job done.

If you're looking for a great sounding banjo with some great features for a price that won't break the bank this is the banjo for you. I've had a really cheap banjo for a few years and I finally got where I was playing pretty regular. I noticed that if I wanted to go further in my playing I needed a new banjo. I went to a bunch of shops around where I live in SC and picked as many banjos as I could. I stayed basically between the 400-500 dollar range. My finals were between the cripple creeks by gold tone and the Gretsch. I chose the Gretsch because I liked the action of the banjo better. It also had some more higher end banjo features that the gold tones didn't. It sounds great and has awesome volume. The action is great and it has a beautiful finish. The only way this banjo could be improved is if it were made of maple. The sound would be just a slight bit happier, But I'm super satisfied with it and it sounds good enough for me. I would definitely would recommend this banjo for someone looking for a great banjo to pick and is on a budget.

I needed a high-quality 5-string banjo for regular gigging; I'm a multi-instrumentalist, and sold off my Gibson RB250 Mastertone and an Iida Japanese Mastertone copy several years ago when I was having some hand problems. I needed the same general feel, volume and quality and expected to spend quite a bit more money (I'd tried the well-reviewed Recording King RK20, similar to the Gretsch 9410, and thought it was good but lacked a bit in volume and overall harmonics). My focus was really the higher-priced models with thick maple rims and cast bronze tone rings, mainly used Mastertones and similar types, although I was also checking out new imports - Recording King, Gold Tone, etc. - when I discovered the Gretsch Broadkaster 9400 (the model above this one, with Mastertone-like features). Due to a stroke of luck (semingly bad at first) I couldn't find one in stock locally...but did notice the G9410 was available. So I really ended up with it by accident, not intent - decided to play it for a few minutes just for the heck of it and was honestly surprised by the tone and volume - it's at least as loud as my IIda was, and has a hair more power than my 70's Gibson! The other surprise was the tone - very warm and round yet with great cutting power. The warmth was expected because of the relatively thin mahogany rim, but the volume/power was totally unexpected, and unlike any rolled-brass tone ring banjo I've ever played. It also has a great advantage over the Mastertone types - weight. Several pounds of it. It's far more comfortable to play with a strap for long periods. Some other features I personally like: the tasteful but not gaudy diamond inlay; a Waverly-style, fully-adjustable tailpiece for both tone adjustments and quick string changes; a triangular-wire strap link at the tailpiece end (always the most problematic attachment point - I wish more manufacturers would think of this); what seem to be well-machined, adjustable tension planetary tuners and geared 5th string tuner with precision control and no backlash; one-piece flange with 4 resonator bolts (dual types with both knurled edges for thumb/finger use and tops with #2 Phillips slots - another feature more manufacturers should implement) and a nicely-aged gloss finish on the mahogany and binding. It doesn't come with a case or gig bag, which is fine with me - I prefer selecting my own cases and rarely use (usually cheap) OEM cases/bags anyway. One other surprise, and it may have been pure luck: my banjo was perfectly set up with flawless fretwork right out of the box. I'm WAY too picky about setup - action, string-to-string distance, bridge height/position, intonation etc. and was annoyed (grin) that they left me nothing to fiddle with! Even the tailpiece was set at the optimum point for both tone and volume, something that usually takes an hour or so. My overall impression - if someone else was playing it I would guess it was a high-end, thick mahogany rim banjo with a high quality bell-bronze tone ring. To me it was an incredible bargain - I paid about 1/3-1/2 of what I expected to pay.