If you have a banjo picker on your Christmas list, here are a couple of ideas from BanjoLit. The Slovak-based company, which also ships in the US, has two new products that will appeal to serious banjo pickers all over the world.
First up is their Banjo Picking Trainer, a small wooden board with five banjo strings and a bridge, allowing for right hand practice wherever you might be. It’s tough to bring a banjo when you travel, especially when commuting by train or bus. But with the Trainer, which comes with a neck strap, you can work on rolls anytime!
Both the string tension (tuning) and the bridge height can be adjusted.
It sells for $65.90, with an option to have it engraved (up to 21 characters) for an additional $10.
Also new is their Mic Match, a preamp designed especially for banjo mics. It accepts an XLR microphone jack and provides phantom power, outputting to a 1/4” line jack. Meant for use on stage by players who like to use a microphone, but also run through a pedal board, the Mic Match can accept power from a board, or from an available power adapter.
Mic Match sells for $69, with the optional adapter going for $9.90.
More details can be found on the BanjoLit web site, where you can also see their popular Dr. Arm wooden banjo arm rests.
