I've heard good things about the Deering Goodtime from folks I trust.

One of the things to look for (insist upon) is a geared 5th-string tuner (the other four should be geared as well, and the Deering uses guitar tuners for those).

The tone of the Rover banjos can be improved by stuffing a sock or small towel between the coordinator rod and the head. Experiment with position. Of course this cuts the volume also but that's not necessarily a bad thing.