Pedal/lever designations

David Berry · From: Sandston, Virginia, USA

I am a member posting this on behalf of a new steerl player. I've recommended that he JOIN this forum, but that I'd post this for him.

Thanks,

David

Fred's question:

I do have a technical question though, Given the fact that I have two knee levers, Can you tell me how they are referred to? THe lever on the left is referred to as F Lever? and the right is refered to as the "D" lever? .. THis would be helpful info rather than having to guess in the tablature. I supposed every Pedal steel can have up to 4 levers. But the courses refer to the levers in a sort of standard manner. My left lever rasies the "e" s a half step and the right lever lowers the "e"s a half step. Is that how its supposed to be? My fear is that this thing is set up wrong which I doubt or worse I am playing totally that terrible.

Thanks in advance

Fred

Steve Feldman · From: Central MA USA

There is no one set way of labeling the knee levers (e.g., F, D, etc.). Many people refer to the raise as the F lever and the lower as the D lever, but there is no set convention about this.

Moreover, there is no one 'correct' way of setting them up. Look here, for example, to see that different people set things up differently according to their preference: http://b0b.com/tunings/index.html

What matters is that you know what each lever does on your steel - e.g., that your LKL (left knee left) raises your E strings, or that your LKR (left knee right) lowers your Es - as the case may be for your steel. What your CALL IT is not so important as your knowing what it does and how the change interacts with your pedals to give you a desired change, for example.

Any tablature should identify how they label the pedals/levers, and you apply that accordingly to your own setup. Good luck!
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"...An admission of interest in protracted commentary is certainly no reason to capitalize on surmised aberations that do not exist." - BH

Brian Kurlychek · From: Maine, USA

What I have been doing is for example, if they are saying to use the D lever, then what I do is look and see what string line I am on. Is it the 8th? the 4th?

Take the string number and look at your own copedent as to what levers do what on your guitar pertaining to that string. There will only be a couple of choices at most if you are set up anywhere close to standard copedent.

Then if you are still unsure, try each one until you get the one that sounds good.
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Richard Sinkler · From: aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana

Also, what I do is locate which of my pedals/levers correspond to the one used in the tab. In the tab, the lever may be called LKL, or Lever D, or they may simply use sharp and flat symbols on the tab line next to the fret number being played. Then I locate that lever/pedal on my guitar and write the correct designation on the tab. That way I see what the pedal/lever is on MY guitar and don't have to transpose designations in my mind. I'm going through this with some John Hughey material where his LKR on C6th is my pedal 5. Pedal 8 on his guitar is my LKL on C6th. Other differences come up depending on who's tab you are reading.

b0b · From: Cloverdale, CA, USA

The single letter names D, E, F, etc. refer to the function of the knee lever. The 3-letter names LKL, LKR, etc. refer to the position of the knee lever (e.g. Left Knee Left). Here's a mapping of where most people put the 3 required levers:

Ben Jones · From: Seattle, Washington, USA

b0b · From: Cloverdale, CA, USA

Don Sulesky · From: Citrus County, FL, Orig. from MA & NH

In a lot of the tab I write I refrain from using the letters D and F for the raise and lower of the 4th and 8th strings.
Instead I use L for lower and R for raise this saves a lot of confusion of which letter does what with those knee levers and strings.
Don

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