Luna Moonbird BGB 6-String Acoustic-Electric Banjo Satin Black

This review is for a PRS guitar

I figured that the low rating from one customer where they just said "junk" was unfair. That is until I got it. I didn't expect much quality at this price point. I already own a dozen banjos and a half a dozen guitars, at a variety of price points. I also repair my own banjos. I figured the first one I got was defective as the bridge was missing so I sent it back. The second one didn't have the bridge installed either (see photo). Then, I found the bridge inside of the bag that contains a wrench for adjusting brackets. This is the first of 10 banjos purchased on the Internet that didn't come with it installed. For those that don't know how to install a bridge, that means you'd have to take it to your local music instrument shop and pay to have a luthier install it for you (after you've already paid to buy it online). For those of you that decide to install it yourself, you will find the action is too high afterwards (meaning the strings are too far away from the fretboard - making it harder to play as it takes more strength to push the strings down). Even living with that, the sound quality and playability aren't very good. The quality here just isn't as good as the cheapest banjo I got from China (as my first one ever). Assuming you buy this at full price and then have to take it to a luthier to fix it afterwards, you are almost getting up to the price point for a manufacturer of banjos that are made in America (whose quality at this price point can't be beat). I've returned this and bought one from that manufacturer.

My very experienced luthier cannot get the E and A (5/6) strings to intonate. The bridge continues to float on the head, and when the bridge depresses the head, it interferes with the spacing. 5 and 6 are very muddy and actually useless for actual chording. The Guitar Center luthier was afraid to rip the head, so the GC setup was way off. I took it to my luthier and he completed his work and said "that's all I can get out of it". Luna customer service is very nice but totally useless. I love the look of the unit. I wish I had not bought it.