ALWAYS Check Your Banjo Intonation 

13in. from nut to 12 fret. 15 from 12 fret to bridge. Did exactly as instructed, and Bertha sings. Intonation perfect on first try. Made the proper bridge adjustments and harmonics at 12 fret. Open 1st string and fretted 12th sound exactly the same. Thank you for this video.

This would be a great first lesson for a teacher to have his student watch as a prep for the first session.

Man my banjo sounds sweet my woman is always saying it doesn't sound like a banjo It was miles out thanks cliff 👍🪕🇮🇪🇺🇲

Thank you so much for these videos you are THE reason I picked up a banjo and started playing

Thank you Mr Hicks! Great tutorial! Worked the charm on my 5 string as well as my 19 fret tenor. Happy days!

Clifton... A little background on me ..I was a guitar builder and guitar tech that traveled with some major rock bands on large tours back in 80s and 90s I have build cigar box guitars and other specialised instruments for film composers and what you describe here is great about this little known point. Also when i set the intonation on any instrument with moveable bridge i always take into account the way a string stretches and pitches up slightly when fingered. This usually means the bridge gets slightly set back a bit to compensate..often i do this with a tuner that i go by the 12 fret and open string and move the bridge to get that perfect balance...but sometimes an instrument has its frets set in poor position and up at the neck it might play better if tweaked for that area instead if it matches the style of the player better...Cheers.... always great info you provide..you are a treasure!!!

Just,,,wow,,,thankyou clifton,,,I've only just started learning and that is a GEM to me ,,god bless you for the giving person you are, 🙏

You’ve got great methods for the the real banjo player. Passion, love for another live.

Love this, Clifton! Would love to see a video of how to adjust the rim!

I definitely learned something here...thanks for sharing Clifton!

When I bought my latest banjo I hadn't seen this on one of your other videos so I had a devil of a time trying to find where to place the bridge to get good intonation. After I saw you do this on the other video I checked mine and it was dang near close. Such invaluable information. Honestly need to recheck and see if mines moved much

I play primarily electric guitar. Very finicky about intonation. Bought a banjo & just assumed cruddy intonation was part of the experience. Now I can fret higher & can hear the angels in my banjo like I can in my electric guitar.

Thanks Clifton, it's not something i'd checked myself yet. I had my banjo and tape nearby to check and thankfully my bridge setup was in the right spot. Cheers pal. Looking forward to more.

I met a guy in a music shop claimed he’d been setting up banjos for decades. He insisted the bridge be in the centre of the drum. Didn’t go there again.

I’ve had a banjo 2 years and never thought to check this! Thank you! X

As a beginner the banjo I purchased had a slight angle on the bridge. I’m primarily a fiddler, so I thought I needed to make it straight and I moved it. I am so happy to be corrected on this. Thanks!

Young man,I know this sounds out of wack but.....you rock!!! This new venture is AWESOME!!! I did know about that however I love how you said,"you don't need to be able to read music" I can't be the only self taught git fiddle player out there who truly appreciate's those words!!! Really!!! Thank you !!!✌🤘

Thank you so much for this video! I am stuck at home in lockdown still, with my ancient Epiphone MB100 Banjo, and it sounded so bad as I played up the neck. I couldn't take it to the music shop to get it fixed and would have cost a lot of money as well. I have been watching your videos for about a month and I just watched this video and did what you said, and it worked!!! Wow. my banjo was almost unplayable and now it sounds amazing - even with its old strings! I'm so grateful. Thanks so much Clifton for putting this information out there. You made it so easy to follow your process. Thank you! Jay

Clifton, you are such an inspiration. I also remember your old videos when you speak about your military service which are also inspiring. My main instrument is the bagpipe, but this has me dusting off the banjo and getting serious. I hope the Songster Method vids will be understandable for us newbies. Thank you! Dave... Say hi to Ol Leatherstockings for me!

for what its worth Clif, this setup you suggested works on a bass banjo as well.

Mate thanks from over in Australia! This is what it is all about...

I put pencil mark on my skin, so I know if it goes out and where to put it back.

This tip was great! My banjo sounds alot better now

Intonation is pretty important. I'd love to see some of your guitar builds.

great explanation Clifton! my strings have been buzzing lately, this is the first thing i am going to look at. do you have any videos of banjo head changes?

YES!!!

👍👍

I can never tell if it's right. Sometimes it sounds right and other times it doesn't but I never know exactly how to fix it. I guess it's just something that comes with practice

Clifton, I still consider myself a newbie, but I have purchased a fretless banjo. How, if possible,would you check the intonation on something like that? Thanks..

Since the head is so rarely changed, why don't banjo players glue the bridge down to ensure it doesn't walk up the head over time?

Clifton, must we sign up each time for each upcoming session, or are we automatically "carried over?" I don't want to miss a one! Thanks!

What do you do for a fretless? I just got my first gourd banjo a few weeks ago

I disagree with your way of checking intonation. Measuring the frets does not account for the height of the strings off the fingerboar aka action. When you fret a string it compresses increasing the tension and string distance. When you use a harmonic to check if the bridge is in place, don't use the open string as a reference, as this can be influenced by the action as well. Instead fret at the 12th fret and compare to that. Since you are compressing the string it will give you a more accurate intonation up the neck.

don't tell me what to check you're not my real father