I have a travel/pony banjo which sounds very shril and tinnyl . I want it to sound mellower/bassier. I have tried a skin head and a sock under the head. These haven't made a great difference. Are any of the following likely to make any difference?
* heavy steel strings rather than light.
* nylgut strings (but II play with metal picks).
* a heavy bridge.
The banjo head is 8" diameter with a brass round "tone" ring on a turned block wood rim.
Any suggestions would be most welcome.
Moby