The Artisan Goodtime Special has the look of an older banjo with the rich brown stain, Deering fiddle shaped peghead and planetary banjo tuners. The Artisan Goodtime Special can be heard with a sweet voice with sustain that complements all the instruments in a band. Tuned to an open G Chord, with the spikes already installed, you can easily play in other keys.
The stunning new Artisan Goodtime banjos epitomizes Greg Deering’s lifelong vision for the Deering Banjo Company – to make the best sounding, best playing, best looking, and best value U.S.A. made banjo that he possibly could. Pearloid vintage artisan style inlays pop off the new Midnight Maple fingerboard, while the peg head is adorned with a beautifully engraved design.
The Artisan Goodtime Special banjo is an achievement in keeping the cost down while providing an instrument that will stay in tune and perform reliably because it is made with precision by skilled American craftsmen. Made efficiently at our factory in Spring Valley (San Diego area of California), this is a comfortably playable banjo with a wonderfully bright tone. It is a solid dependable instrument that is immensely playable with excellent tonality and clarity.
Overall rating: 4.9142857 / 5 from 35 reviews.
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"I’m really happy with this banjo. It arrived in great condition, looks beautiful, and the build quality feels solid. The tone is clear, bright, and enjoyable to play, especially for the price. It feels like a well-made instrument that I’ll be able to grow with. Very pleased with the purchase and would recommend it."
"I’ve played stringed instruments of different types over my life. With the development of mild arthritis, however, I found guitar necks too wide and mandolin necks too small to accommodate the changes in my hands. About six months ago I decided to give the banjo a try. After some research, I decided upon the Goodtime 2. Fast forward to now. I’ve had so much fun learning to play, and if anything, using my right hand to pick three finger style and my left to navigate the near-perfect neck/finger board size has helped to strengthen my hands and slightly help flexibility. I decided that I wanted to upgrade my banjo, and while I don’t think my playing at this point merits something like the Sierra, I definitely felt an upgrade was deserved. Enter the Goodtime Artisan Special. It just arrived a week ago, and I couldn’t be happier with my decision. I asked for the Greg Deering Signature Smile Banjo Bridge be added. The tone is sweet, yet bright and snappy. I love the D shaped neck and the ease and smoothness of play on the midnight maple fingerboard. I definitely notice a difference in volume with the tone ring too. It’s a beautiful instrument; I find myself partial to the tuners positioned on the back of the headstock. If there is ever another upgrade, that would be wonderful, but I don’t see myself wanting anything else for some time to come. Deering customer service is wonderful as well! Thanks for everything!"
"My new banjo is great! I'm still learning, but, my new banjo is easier to play than the cheap starter banjo I was using After only a few weeks I can see a significant improvement in my playing."
"I received this banjo about three weeks ago, and just love it. The Deering quality and customer service is fantastic, and I’ve been having the best time playing it."
"This is a beautiful banjo with great tone, but unfortunately, it was assembled incorrectly and the 5th string pegs were pushed too far into the banjo so that there’s no space between the peg and the neck under which the string can be tucked. I’m going to attempt to self-repair the banjo with pliers, but it would have been better if the banjo had arrived ready to play."
"The banjo came very well packaged. It also looks and sounds great."
"The Goodtime Special with case arrived well packaged for protection. My first impression upon taking it out of the case was of a beautiful banjo. It has a great sound that keeps me wanting to pick it up from the stand and practice."
"This Deering Banjo is to replace a much older (made in Japan) banjo, something I will be proud to learn on."
"I can't say enough good things about this banjo! I was looking for something light weight with decent tone and volume to replace my professional (heavy) banjo. I've tried many different light weight banjos over the past year. And the Deering Artisan Goodtime Special came out on top! The attention to detail is remarkable for a banjo in this price range. I really love the dark wood, wider finger board and the lighter weight steel (not brass) tone ring! Thank you, Deering Banjos!"
"I bought an Americana Goodtime last year and really like it, but this banjo is even better. I love that it came with spikes installed, no more 5th string capo! It sounds great, is easy to play, and is loud enough to be heard in a band or jam session. I've been playing for 2 years, and this is the perfect banjo for me. Thank you Deering for your craftsmanship, affordability, responsiveness, and all those great videos you have posted. I love having an American made banjo."
Neck Wood: Rock Maple
Neck Shape: Comfortable "D" Shape
Stain: Dark Red Mahogany
Finish: Satin
Nut Width: 1 1/4"
Nut Material: Lexan Polycarbonate
Tuners: Goodtime Planetary Tuners
5th String Tuner: Goodtime Geared 5th String Tuner
Frets: 22 Pressed In Nickel Silver Frets
Inlays: Vintage Artisan Style Inlays
Rim: 3-Ply Violin Grade Maple
Rim Diameter: 11"
Tone Ring: Patented Goodtime Special Steel Tone Ring
Head: 11" Top Frosted High Crown
Tension Hoop: Beveled Steel Tension Hoop
Hooks & Nuts: 16 Flat J-Hooks and 9/32" Hex Nuts
Flange:
Armrest: Goodtime Armrest
Hardware Plating: Nickel
Bridge: 5/8" Goodtime Smile Bridge
Tailpiece: Deering Patented Goodtime Tailpiece
Finish: Hand Finished Satin Polyurethane
Resonator Wood: 3-Ply Poplar/Poplar/Maple
Resonator Finish: Satin
Resonator Sidewalls: Straight
Resonator Diameter: 13 7/8"
Resonator Stain: Dark Red Mahogany
Neck Width at the Nut: 1 1/4"
Scale Length Nut to Bridge: 26 1/4"
Rim Diameter: 11"
Overall Instrument Length: 38"
Weight Approx.: 8 lbs
The trust and pride we share in our product gives us the confidence to grant every owner of a Goodtime banjo an Eight Year Warranty ensuring the quality of our materials and workmanship.
Click below for more information.
Comes strung with Deering Light Gauge Strings
String gauges: 10, 11, 13, 21w, 10
Comes tuned: G, D, G, B, D
Can easily be tuned in other tunings as well.
Gig bags and hardshell cases available below
1. DEERING GOODTIME SMILE BRIDGE
The responsive sensitivity of the maple, with the hard, dense ebony top contributes to the Goodtime banjos clear, resonant responsiveness.
2. QUIET TAILPIECE
Specially selected metal is used to prevent the tailpiece from making “its own sound” and muddying up the banjo’s tone. The violin maple rim is supposed to sing, not your tailpiece.
3. STABILITY ENHANCING J-HOOKS
The proprietary Deering J-hooks are wider at the top to prevent twisting off the tension hoop when tightening the banjo head.
4. QUIET COORDINATOR ROD
Made of special alloy that is strong and does not interfere with the singing resonance of the violin maple rim.
5. 3-PLY VIOLIN GRADE MAPLE RIM
The maple in the Goodtime rim is the exact wood used in the finest violins in the world. Only Deering puts this professional grade 3-ply maple rim in a banjo in this price range.
6. SEALED GEARED TUNERS
Five high quality geared tuning machines make tuning the Goodtime banjo easy, accurate and fun. Too many student banjos are cursed with poor quality tuners, so the students blame themselves for an out of tune banjo when it’s the tuner that is at fault.
7. ROCK MAPLE NECK
This fine grained, dense, extremely hard, wood creates a stable neck, and imparts a bright, crisp quality to the Goodtime banjo tone.
