Gold Tone ES-Banjitar Electric 6-String Banjo Guitar with Hard Case

If you’ve ever wanted the snap, clarity, and percussive attack of a banjo but you think in guitar — the Gold Tone ES-Banjitar was built for you. This is not a novelty instrument. It’s a purpose-designed, solid-body electric that tunes and plays exactly like a standard six-string guitar (EADGBE, 25-1/2″ scale, 1-11/16″ nut), yet it produces unmistakable banjo character thanks to an 8″ aluminum tone ring, a top-tension head, and a hollow sound chamber routed into the mahogany body. Hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides respond with the lightning-fast articulation that banjo players take for granted and that electric guitarists have to hear to believe. Country pickers, blues players, Americana session musicians, and jazz players looking for something genuinely different will find the ES-Banjitar earns its place on any stage.

What Gold Tone has done here is solve a real problem: how do you get a banjo sound out of a player who already knows guitar? The answer isn’t a standard open-back or resonator five-string — it’s this. The tobacco sunburst high-gloss finish over the semi-hollow body looks every bit as serious as it sounds, with cream ABS binding, snowflake inlays on a radiused rosewood fingerboard, and chrome-plated hardware throughout. The dual-pickup configuration — a single-coil at the neck and an SMP humbucker positioned under the head — gives you everything from a clean, bell-like twang to a fuller, warmer humbucker voice, and you can blend or switch between them depending on your amp and your room. Even before you plug in, the instrument has genuine acoustic presence; the hollow chamber and the 8″ HC smooth head do real work. A ZeroGlide nut and sealed guitar-style tuners keep intonation stable and tuning rock solid night after night. I’ve played a lot of six-string banjos over the decades, and Gold Tone consistently builds the most giggable versions at every price point — the ES-Banjitar at this level is a serious working instrument.

Every instrument receives a professional factory setup at Gold Tone in Titusville, Florida before it ships. For the ES-Banjitar, that means head tension is dialed in for optimal response, the ZeroGlide nut is checked for proper slot depth and string spacing, the truss rod is adjusted for a healthy relief, intonation is set at the bridge, and action is brought to a comfortable, playable height. You open the case and it’s ready to plug in and play.

Why Buy From Banjo Warehouse

Banjo Warehouse is an authorized Gold Tone dealer, which means every instrument we sell is covered by Gold Tone’s full manufacturer warranty and you’re buying a genuine, new instrument — not a gray-market import. I’m Geoff Hohwald, and I’ve been in the banjo world for more than 45 years. I co-own Watch & Learn in Atlanta, I wrote Banjo Primer (the top-rated beginner banjo method on the market), and I co-designed the OB-Standard with Gold Tone, so when I say I know this line of instruments from the inside out, I mean it literally. My work on banjo technique is cited on Wikipedia — but what matters to you right now is that when you buy from Banjo Warehouse, you’re buying from someone who has played, sold, and studied these instruments for a career. We offer flexible financing so the right instrument doesn’t have to wait: PayPal Pay in 4, Afterpay, and 3-, 6-, 12-, and 24-month financing plans are all available at checkout, with no late fees. Questions before you buy? Reach out — I’m happy to talk banjo.

Gold Tone ES-Banjitar Specifications

Nut Width	1-11/16″ ZeroGlide Nut
Tuners	Sealed Guitar-Style
Neck Material	Maple
Fingerboard	Radiused Rosewood
Frets	21
Inlay	Snowflake
Truss Rod	Two-Way Adjustable
Body Binding	Cream ABS
Bridge	Maple with Ebony Cap
Finish	Tobacco Sunburst / High Gloss
Hardware	Chrome Plated
Head	8″ HC Smooth
Tailpiece	Straightline
Tension Hoop	Top Tension Style
Tone Ring	8″ Aluminum
Pickups	Single Coil at Neck; SMP Humbucker Under Head
Scale Length	25-1/2″
Tuning	EADGBE (Standard Guitar)
String Gauge	.052w, .042w, .032w, .020w, .013, .010
Weight	8 lbs.
Case	Hard Case Included
Setup	Professional factory setup at Gold Tone in Titusville, Florida

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to know how to play banjo to play the ES-Banjitar?

Not at all — that’s the whole point of this instrument. The ES-Banjitar is tuned in standard EADGBE, the same as any six-string guitar, and the scale length and nut width are in standard guitar territory as well. Every chord shape, scale, and lick you already know transfers directly. You get banjo tone without any new learning curve on the fretboard. The only thing that will feel slightly different is the response — banjos are much faster and more articulate than a standard electric, and most guitarists find they love it immediately.

How does the ES-Banjitar sound unplugged compared to a regular electric guitar?

Significantly louder and with genuine banjo character. The hollow sound chamber inside the body, combined with the 8″ aluminum tone ring and the HC smooth head, produce real acoustic projection — enough to practice without an amp in a quiet room, and enough to make the instrument feel and respond like a banjo rather than a solid-body electric. Plugged in, you have two distinct pickup voices: the single-coil at the neck delivers that crisp, articulate twang, while the SMP humbucker under the head adds warmth and body. The combination covers a wide range of styles from country and bluegrass to jazz and blues.

What is included with the ES-Banjitar, and is it really ready to play when it arrives?

Yes — the ES-Banjitar ships with its hard case and receives a professional factory setup at Gold Tone in Titusville, Florida before shipping. Head tension, truss rod relief, nut slots, bridge placement, action, and intonation are all checked and adjusted before the instrument ships. You won’t need to make a trip to a guitar tech or spend the first week fighting with a poorly set-up instrument. Open the case, tune up, plug in, and play.

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