How is the Banjo Bolster Different from Conventional Stuffing Methods? - Part 2
By treating the banjo’s tone chamber (pot) as an acoustic space, the Banjo Bolster functions as a sound absorber, specifically targeting undesirable sonic energy caused by reflected sound.
As reflected sound enters the Banjo Bolster it is scattered and dissipated by the polyester fibers, significantly reducing their impact on the banjo’s tone.
"It works to an astonishing degree to damp the metallic overtones and not the musical ones -- and has virtually NOTHING in common with the sponges, rags, and socks that people stuff between the head and dowel stick or co-rod at the neck."
- David Politzer Pasadena, CA
(Banjo player and Richard Chace Tolman Professor of Theoretical Physics at the California Institute of Technology. David was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physics with David Gross and Frank Wilczek for their discovery of asymptotic freedom in quantum chromodynamics. He also does fascinating research into the physics of the banjo!)
Read David Politzer's Analysis of How the Banjo Bolster Works!