[Tim Bowen]

If you're animated onstage (moving around a bit) and/or you'll be using the instument in several different situations at different volume levels, get an electric banjo. Mic'ing an acoustic banjo, or placing a pickup within such, is a bit like doing same with dobro. It's cool if volume levels are tame, or if that's the only instrument you need to get a handle on. If you simply want to pick up the thing and treat it as an additional texture and 'go', get an electric. Otherwise, you'll likely be subjecting yourself to a world of hurt and inconvenience.

A bandmate uses the same Deering electric that Bela Fleck plays, and it is indeed the bee's knees. I don't have that sort of smack available for an electric banjo, so I gig with a Gold Tone. If you go with something like a Gold Tone, understand that the inherent 'amplified' sound is a bit "midrangey", at least with regard to traditional banjo tones, and as compared to the aforementioned Deering, the output is a bit low. Hence, you might want to boost the highs and output with an outboard device, such as the Baggs.