Strings for XX Special

[Jody Stecher]

I notice there are several active forum members who play a Clifford Essex XX Special. I have had one for several years and found that with the one set of nylon (or other soft) strings I tried on it (type and brand long forgotten but I think may have been new Clifford Essex gut)  that the banjo didn't  sound quite as good as with steel strings (with which it was strung when I acquired it). I've used it with steel for many clawhammer gigs and one recording session and it never failed to elicit positive response, the most memorable being the opinion that it was a " a very happening banjo".  I would like to see if it can "happen" even more with soft strings. What type of strings do my esteemed colleagues use please?

[3iv8pyyhxxoiv]

Jody.....I've had the same CE XX Special for 53 (!) years, and like you, strung it with steel strings for a long time.  I've had nylons on it for quite a while though, and currently have Clifford Essex medium lights (22-30) on the banjo.  I definitely think that a heavier set would suit the banjo better and intend to try  a set of  CE heavy gauge nylons shortly.   To tell the truth, it also needs a new calfskin head...the one on there is from the 1960's......

[thereallyniceman]

Jody, 

When I got the banjo it had a calfskin vellum and I tried my normal Sands heavies and it sounded dull and unresponsive. I swapped to a frosted Remo and it was so shrill it tore your ears off. I then changed to a Renaissance and it started to sound mellow and smooth, but the Sands strings somehow just felt too heavy. So I swapped to CE nylon mediums with a Sands bass (no real reason other than they last for ages and sound good to me). I use a maple, Morley bridge as I do on most of my banjos.

Now I just love the sound and it rings all the way up the fingerboard. I know that it must be close as my, so called, friends who always give me abuse for playing the banjo have commented how nice this banjo sounds to them!

[Jody Stecher]

Thanks, fellers. John, if the calfskin isn't ripped or compromised in some other way, it may still be as good as the day it was put on. I have used calfskin heads that were much older and they worked very well. I know one guy who has a Gibson banjo that has had the same calfskin head since the late 1920s. He's a pro and plays it at gigs and recording sessions.  Synthetic heads on the other hand do wear out just from being stretched for a very long time and also from abrasion. 

Ian, mine also has a Ren head. I'll try different strings and bridges and see what I come up with.

[3iv8pyyhxxoiv]

Jody,

That's an interesting observation about the longevity of calfskin, and you may well be right....perhaps they do last a lot longer than often supposed.  Certainly, the received wisdom in classic banjo circles when I started playing ...more than 50 years back, was that calfskin heads gave a better result if replaced fairly frequently....perhaps every 2/3 years.  Maybe this was a marketing ploy by the sellers of calfskin heads!

The ancient one on my Special XX isn't ripped, but it is well frayed where my little finger rests, and is shamefully grubby.  Still....getting rid of it would be like saying goodbye to an old friend........

[Jody Stecher]

I think the longevity of a vellum depends on a number of factors including the quality when new, how much sweat and pressure has been applied over the years, and also how stable or unstable the humidity is. In areas where the humidity gathers and then is released in a rain storm (anywhere in the southeast of the USA in the summer for instance) there needs to be a lot of loosening and tightening of the head to counter the loosening and tightening caused by the humidity changes. This may shorten the life of the head. Or not.

John Field said:

Jody,

That's an interesting observation about the longevity of calfskin, and you may well be right....perhaps they do last a lot longer than often supposed.  Certainly, the received wisdom in classic banjo circles when I started playing ...more than 50 years back, was that calfskin heads gave a better result if replaced fairly frequently....perhaps every 2/3 years.  Maybe this was a marketing ploy by the sellers of calfskin heads!

The ancient one on my Special XX isn't ripped, but it is well frayed where my little finger rests, and is shamefully grubby.  Still....getting rid of it would be like saying goodbye to an old friend........

[Trapdoor2]

I'm currently using the "red" set of Aquila nylgut on my CE Special. Vellum of undetermined age, Cole type bridge. I could not stand the bass string that came with the Aquila "red" set (which was solid nylgut and like a large rubber-band). I replaced it with a CE "Weaver" 4th...very happy.

This set has been on since April of 2013 and is very ready to be replaced, worn and tired. I have a set of CE guts to go on next. I have used them previously and really like them.

The head on my Stewart Orchestra #2 has been on it since 1986 (when I installed it), played clawhammer style, etc. Still in perfect condition. I lost the head on my Stewart banjeaurine last year when I discovered it torn. It had to be 80yrs old at least. I suspect the Rogers head on my Bacon Blue Ribbon is original to the instrument, 1923 I believe. Still feels like a new head.

[Jody Stecher]

All duly noted. Thanks!  

I'm not familiar with the Cole type bridge. What are its characteristics?

ps: you probably know this but just in case, CE Special, and Special XX (the one I have) are two different models. It can get very confusing especially when "CE" is used as part of the model name for some models a but also to simply indicate the maker when one (me) is too lazy to type out all the letters of "Clifford Essex".

[Trapdoor2]

Cole bridges look like this:

And, yes, I know my CE Special is different...but I responded anyway. ;-)

[Jody Stecher]

YOW!  Is there a toll to cross this bridge? It reminds me of a railroad bridge I saw in Cornwall (crossing the Tamar to Devon if I remember right)  and several footbridges in Tuscany.

Trapdoor2 said:

Cole bridges look like this:

And, yes, I know my CE Special is different...but I responded anyway. ;-)

[Jody Stecher]

Here it is. It is for a large banjo. 

[Ginny Matheson]

You guys are having too much fun!

[marc dalmasso]

same thing ; my CE special XX has too much " bluegrass sound " with  a regular Remo head ; i use a vellum or a renaissance for it ; with my usual SAVAREZ nylon or  KF strings  . with the exception of the C where i use a cheap German brand or D for guitar sometimes ; this last is the string which auto destroy herself  quickly
 
thereallyniceman said:

Jody, 

When I got the banjo it had a calfskin vellum and I tried my normal Sands heavies and it sounded dull and unresponsive. I swapped to a frosted Remo and it was so shrill it tore your ears off. I then changed to a Renaissance and it started to sound mellow and smooth, but the Sands strings somehow just felt too heavy. So I swapped to CE nylon mediums with a Sands bass (no real reason other than they last for ages and sound good to me). I use a maple, Morley bridge as I do on most of my banjos.

Now I just love the sound and it rings all the way up the fingerboard. I know that it must be close as my, so called, friends who always give me abuse for playing the banjo have commented how nice this banjo sounds to them!