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Topic: Different type of pre amps on the steel guitar |
Tommy Shown
From:
Denham Springs, La.
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Posted 11 Feb 2009 6:56 pm |
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| I have a question that I would like to ask. I have been on several sites looking at pre amp units for my amp. During I have seen several for mics and accoustic guitar. Can these be used on steel guitar? |
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Stephen Silver
From:
Asheville, NC
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Posted 11 Feb 2009 7:14 pm
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my question is why would you want to?
or is it that you only have a power amplifier and need to preamp that for tone controls?
If so, mic pre's and acoustic pre's are not the answer for pedal steel. Go with something from Brad Sarno, Mesa, Alembic or anything else that is built for an electric instrument.
SS |
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Tommy Shown
From:
Denham Springs, La.
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Posted 11 Feb 2009 7:15 pm
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Thanks Stephen, I appreciate your input.
Tommy |
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Paddy Long
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
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Posted 12 Feb 2009 12:19 pm
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Tommy - here is Brads site ... his stuff is about as good as it gets mate !!
http://www.sarnomusicsolutions.com/
_________________
14'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
08'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
94' Franklin Stereo D10 9+8
Telonics, Peterson, Steelers Choice, Benado, Lexicon, Red Dirt Cases. |
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Stephen Silver
From:
Asheville, NC
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Posted 12 Feb 2009 2:30 pm
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Tommy, I too use a Revelation pre amp from Brad. Outside of my actual guitar, it's the best investment in gear I've made. I've played without it, but would rather not cause it sounds so rich and full.
SS |
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Ron Randall
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 12 Feb 2009 7:21 pm
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Revelation and Avalon make great tube preamps. The Avalon can be used for mic, instrument, or line level inputs. You choose.
The most practical for steel use only is the Revelation. |
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Keith Murrow
From:
Wichita, KS
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Posted 12 Feb 2009 11:19 pm
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Tommy, not to take away from the suggestions already posted, but there are cheaper alternatives as well. I have an old Ashly instrument preamp that I got off ebay for $75 that sounds beautiful. Quiet, very flexible eq controls, and a warm tone to boot. Bass guitar preamps work well, also, because they tend to have tone/eq controls that work well with the range of the steel, particularly if they have a mid shift or a graphic eq. I see great deals on some of the out of producton Peavey bass preamps online all the time.
The made-for-steel units and esoteric high end stuff is great, but, practically speaking, you can get going with a preamp that will sound good and cost a lot less. |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 13 Feb 2009 3:27 am
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| As noted the "Boutique" tube preamps aren't the only ones that can be used with Steel. There are lots of good solid state preamps around. Evans makes a preamp (that is what John Hughey used). Some bass preamps work good for Steel. I have a cheap used Rocktron "Sidewinder" that I bought for practically nothing and as it turned out the clean channel in it worked good for Steel (and I used the other channels with my Telecaster). |
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T. C. Furlong
From:
Lake County, Illinois, USA
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Posted 13 Feb 2009 5:43 am
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| Quote: |
| Evans makes a preamp (that is what John Hughey used) |
Actually for the last couple of years, John used a Sarno Revelation Tube Preamp. I think he owned two of them.
Don't forget about the Sarno Tonic Tube Preamp and Brad just announced the new "old-school" simple to operate tube preamp - The SMS Classic. IMO the difference in the purpose built steel preamps that Brad is making and some standard instrument preamps is that the input gain is tweaked for a hot output of a steel pickup. Also, the convenience of having all of the nice in's and outs is great. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the sweet tube tone.
TC |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 13 Feb 2009 8:15 am
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A very good pre-amp for steel is the Blue Tube II by Tube Works.
I have tried many different preamps and always come back to this unit. Besides the good tone I get from this unit, it is very versatile as to the effects that can be used with it.
Some of these units came with a mod for steel but the the one I use doesn't have it and it still is fine. |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 13 Feb 2009 8:40 am
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For those that "must have" tubes then the Sarno line and other tube amps are great. For those of us that don't care either way or want solid state (like myself), there are alternatives other than what Brad builds.
I've been electronics since 1955 (both Ham radio with a General class license, and a 2nd class FCC radiotelephone license). I've been through the "tube age" but I've moved on to solid state. |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Posted 13 Feb 2009 9:43 am
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Some practical options include the GD Walker preamp (excellent preamp based somewhat on the classic Session 400), the Tube Works pre that Erv just mentioned (best bang for the buck tube/ss hybrid design), the Evans pre (tried and true transistor sound), and the Mesa Boogie Studio Pre (classic tubey sound). All of these can be found used and at a reasonable price. The preamps listed here have been and are still used by many top pro's.
Brad |
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Tommy Shown
From:
Denham Springs, La.
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Posted 14 Feb 2009 7:53 pm
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Ya'll have given me some good input on what I can use, I appreciate it grately.
Tommy
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Jim Strawser
From:
Montana, USA
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Posted 20 Feb 2009 11:20 pm Tube Preamp
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Boy Im sure glad I scored that Tube Works Blue Tube off of Ebay today.............grinz
_________________
"Steel players are like fine wine, we get better with age" |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2009 8:09 pm
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| Quote: |
| my question is why would you want to? |
because most amps are limited in the tonal variations you can get, since you have to tailor them to the room - and as modern steel guitars have no controls, it's REALLY helpful to have some way to "massage" the tone that's going to the amp. I would not play a no-control guitar of any kind straight into an amp - too much of a chance the sound will end up either mud or icepick-city trying to compensate for room size, configuration, volume level, etc.
I use either a SteelDriver II (just for the preamp side) and/or a L.R. Baggs Para Acoustic DI. The Baggs is marketed as an acoustic guitar preamp, but it is incredibly versatile and give you a wide range of control over any electric instrument (or acoustic, from banjo to upright bass!). It's my "go to" box if I'm dealing with a lousy sound board person, as I can control the signal he/she is getting and make it much harder to screw it up. 
Another that works quite well...not for tone/volume adjustment but to warm up a cold signal - is the ART Tube MP Studio preamp. I'll sometimes combine it with one of the others if I get stuck using a solid-state amp in a pre-configured backline (a condition I really dislike ). I also have Klon Centaur on my pedalboard that can do magic with most any electric instrument - it's usually called an overdrive, used as a clean-boost, but makes a superb-sounding preamp. It's just a little pricey, though.........
If I had to have ONE preamp for every instrument It'd be the Baggs.
_________________
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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