Very Heavy Banjo Strings

Basic string physics is simple. Rather, this is a reminder that, for the price of anew set of strings, one can create a different instrument. In particular, for a givenscale length, the tension can be maintained with heavier strings by tuning lower. Anextreme case is illustrated here: replace original light gauge strings with Gold Tone’s“baritone” strings, which are their choice for their “Missing Link” banjo. On theparticular instrument used for this demo, tuning about an octave low preserves theoriginal total string tension. That puts the instrument in the league of the baritoneand cello banjos. This is a case of where a difference in degree becomes a difference in kind.