Before I bought my Deering Goodtime I did extensive research online and I went to every music store around and played a whole bunch of banjos. I played cheap ones with missing strings at Guitar Center and banjos costing several thousand from my local old time music store. I would always try to either take a banjo player with me or find someone at the store who played and get their opinion.

At the end of the day I chose the Goodtime and would have chosen it over other models even if it had cost 2-3 times as much! The fact that it was around $400 was just a wonderful bonus! At first I was a little put off by the simple look of the Goodtime. But after hearing it and feeling it in my hands it was easy to go with it instead of the fancier models. And now I just love the simple way it looks with the light-colored wood!

Oh, and I got The Crow edition which cost just a little more but is kinda cool! But, had they offered the Zombie Killer when I bought mine I would have been tempted to get that model! http://www.deeringbanjos.com/products/goodtime-zombie-killer-5-string-banjo

http://youtu.be/ZRhwrFWnoLQ

http://goodtimebanjos.com/