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Topic: Alkire EHarp tone? |
John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 10:12 pm |
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What do the Alkire EHarp's sound like? How good is their tune, sustain, all that? And what are they generally worth?
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 11:10 pm
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John, there were at least three versions of the Alkire Eharp. The first version was made by Epiphone, 1940s, early 50s, and that's the most desirable/valuable one. Other versions were built by Valco for Eddie Alkire in the 1950s and into the 1960s. The 50's ones have a gray MOTS covered body, and the later ones have a rectangular body. Some of the later ones have legs.
I have the early Epiphone Eharp, and I would describe the tone as dark and mellow, not a bright tone. It does have a good amount of sustain, in my opinion. I played it on this song ---> Sleepy Lagoon
I had one of the 1960s Valco ones many years ago. As I remember it had a very clean tone and pretty good sustain, but it was made of cheaper materials than the earlier ones IMHO.
Eharps are undervalued, in my opinion. The current VGM price guide lists the Epi Eharp at $1200, but I've seen them sell for a lot less than that. The Valco ones sometimes sell for as little as $450 on eBay. I think Eharps are historical lap steels and a lot of fun to play. I really admire the accomplishments of Eddie Alkire, teacher, inventor, Steel Guitar Hall of Fame member.
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 23 Jul 2009 10:08 am
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I had Jason Lollar wind a couple Stringmaster pickups and I machined a titanium bridge.
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Roger Shackelton
From:
MINNESOTA (deceased)
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Posted 23 Jul 2009 11:11 am
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HI CHAS,
Let us hear your E-Harp sing. 
Does the Titanium bridge create more sustain?
ROGER |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Al Terhune
From:
Newcastle, WA
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Posted 23 Jul 2009 7:20 pm
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Doug -- I had an eharp just like yours (that I sold), and in hindsight, it had such a great, mellow tone unmatched by any other lap/pickup I've had before or since.
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Roy Thomson
From:
Wolfville, Nova Scotia,Canada
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Posted 24 Jul 2009 6:07 am
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I have never seen an Alkire Steel let alone
try one and would be interested to know
the string span at the nut?
Looks consistent to the bridge?
Need a 3 1/2" bar perhaps. 
Roy
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2009 9:55 am
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Roger, does the ti bridge create more sustain? From an engineering point of view, probably a little, from a reality point of view, I didn't notice any. The idea was that titanium, to my ears, is a very musical metal and that it would transfer the string vibrations to and from the body very well, in conjunction with the strings thru-body design. If you want to hear it sing, you probably have to come over here and take it for a spin...
Doug, brighten the tone is an understatement for the bridge pickup, solo. I've been "moonlighting", at my dentist's office, cleaning teeth with it. "The Shadow On Your Smile" is a favorite.
Yup, the extra knob is a "blender" and that with the tone control gives a surprising range of tone. As an aside, I was just noodling around on it and after spending the past week with my new Clinesmith with the 25" (24 3/4) scale, the E-Harp's 23" (22 3/4) scale took some adjustment.
This is my other one. I had to sell my Valcos to make a mortgage payment, a while back.
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Matt Berg
From:
Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2009 7:05 pm Vakco eHarp
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| There's one with a black pickup cover for sale not too far from me. Can anyone comment on whether this is a different pickup than the white cover? |
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Tom Keller
From:
Greeneville, TN, USA
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Posted 25 Jul 2009 7:17 am
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| It might just be my tin ears but I always thought the Alkires had more of a Gibson like sound in comparison to a fender or National guitar sound. I remember really being shocked the first time I played an Alkire with a rock band it certainly wasn't the cutting biting sound of a Fender or National. YMMV |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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