My first banjo came from a pawn shop. (Come to think of it so did my second one!) I took the resonator off the first one and strung it with nylon strings for the 'old time' sound. The second one is a bakelite pot Harmony with resonator and steel strings. They both play fine for my needs right now. If I ever get better I may upgrade to something better. The first one cost me $60 and the second one I think was only $50.