Need some background on Sierra PSG

Ray Anderson · From: Jenkins, Kentucky USA

Hello Forumites, I,m looking at a S-10 Sierra 3x3 and was needing some background info on these. Who makes them And are they top of the line guitars? What's the setup (i.e.) are they all pull, psh pull or pull release? Are parts available? and last of all the "tone" is it to the treble sound or the bass sound. Any help wuld be appreciated and welcomed. Smile

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

Mechanically among the very best and most advanced. Most I've heard are very bright, but their owners like it that way
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Ross Shafer · From: Petaluma, California

Sierra's were built by Sierra...founded by Chuck Wright in 1960. Most of Sierra's production happened when the shop was in Portland, Or. Sierra is not producing Pedal Steels right now, but still produces its Lap Steel model.

Parts availability depends on which model you're talking about. Jim Palenscar at Steel Guitars of North County is your best bet for parts: http://www.steelguitars.me/

Sierra's website is here: http://www.sierrasteels.com

Bo Borland · From: South Jersey -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hnHHt-poC8

here's one

b0b · From: Cloverdale, CA, USA

Most Sierra guitars have the modular pickup design. You can hot swap the pickup to suit your taste in tone. When I was performing with one, I sometimes had 4 pickups on deck, switching them between songs to get the tone I wanted. It takes about 5 seconds to change the pickup.

The mechanical aspects of Sierra guitars are superb.
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Ken Byng · From: Southampton, England

Chuck Wright's part in the history of pedal steel is immense. Historically he is so important, and is up there with Paul Bigsby, Shot Jackson and Buddy Emmons.
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Richard Sinkler · From: aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

The new MSA's also have a modular pickup system, and unfortunately it is not compatible with Sierra's. This the one thing about the guitar I would change.

I agree with Richard. This feature should be integrated into every steel guitar. Only now that there are 2 different systems, manufactureres have to decide which one to use.

I only use one pickup; a Tone Aligner. I have one in both my guitars. I settled on it after trying out several others. As Richard says, one of the advantages of a modular pickup system is that you can try out and compare different pickups, without taking the strings off. I found that to be very helpful in deciding which one to use.
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Pete Burak · From: Portland, OR USA

What model Sierra are you looking at?
Got a pic?

That Jay Leach vid sounds pretty much like what a modern Sierra generally sounds like to me.
You can go either way from there with regard to making it a bit brighter or darker to taste.

If it is a Sierra Artist model, I don't recall if that model had Modular Pickups.

But yeah... it is a wonder that the 6-string guitar industry hasn't gone to modular pickups.
Every guitar player would buy a dozen pickups.
I know at one time I had 13 pickups for my Sierra.
That was some fun times!
I'm down to 4 or 5 now.

Richard Sinkler · From: aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana

If builders all got together and asked what feature would I most like to see on a guitar, it would have to be the modular pickups, well, outside of mental telepathy actuated pedals and levers.
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Lynn Stafford · From: Ridgefield, WA USA

Jim Eaton · From: Santa Susana, Ca

Don Christensen made all the parts for Sierra guitars using GibbsCAM machining software, which is the product that is sold by my "day job".
We had Sierra as our featured customer in our booth at a WesTec machine industry trade show @ the Los Angeles Convention Center a few years ago. Don sent us a D-10 that we displayed all set up, but upside down in the case so the undercarrage was displayed and I was playing the Session S-12 E9/B6 guitar that I owned at that time. Lot's of folks came up and knew right away that it was a steel guitar and several even requested some instrumental tunes that only a real steel fan would have known!!!
JE:-)>
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Mike Pace · From: O.S. CT. USA

If it's a 3x3, then it's most likely a Sierra Artist model. I owned a 3x4 Artist several years ago. These pale in comparison to their Session, Crown and Olympic models, BUT, if you invest in some different bellcranks (the Artist's cranks have fixed positions on the cross-shafts), then the Artist becomes every bit as versatile and adjustable as a full-out "pro" guitar, albeit that's a subjective term.

Dale Lee · From: Down Yonder

Mike Pace,

Could you expand a little on your post?

Tony Glassman · From: The Great Northwest

John Russell · From: Austin, Texas

I bought Ross Shafer's Olympic SD-12 back in July and it's been a great guitar. I'm pleased with the sound--I prefer the humbucker pickup but they're both excellent. There are some issues I discovered about this guitar that I had to fix. The reverse knee levers weren't as smooth and positive as I was used to. I found a builder in Salado, TX named Jim Flynn who built a reverse lever for the E lowers. It works great (see pictures). The factory knee levers swing perpendicular to the guitar, not parallel as most knee levers do. Also they swing both directions--into and away from the guitar. I found this annoying but there's a fix I came up with. Another drawback on my guitar is the double raise and lower changers. Almost all new guitars have triple-raise. I raise my #4 string (E) with two levers and one pedal. I devised a workaround for this that works--you do need to tune one change underneath the guitar, not at the end plate. My #4 E to F raise is on a linkage that rides on the E to F# lever cross axle.

Conclusion: these are well-built and great sounding pedal steels. The design is very innovative and they make other brands look crude as their engineering is so meticulous. They need a few "adjustments" but to me, it's worth the effort. Lastly, they are heavy, my SD-12 weighs about 14 lbs. more than my Zum SD-12 with the same setup--5 knees and 6 pedals. I've played two gigs with this guitar and listeners remarked on the great tone. --JR

The underside before the knee lever modifications.

Herb Steiner · From: Spicewood TX 78669

Fred Glave · From: McHenry, Illinois, USA

I owned a Sierra Crown U12 for a few years. It was a very mechanically sound guitar. Build well and played smoothly. I only had 3 issues with it. 1. It was very heavy. 2. Universal tuning was not my cup of tea. 3. The tone was not what I liked. I tried several different pickups, but couldn't get the sound I wanted. Some people say that the tone is very bright, but for me it was a little muddy. I couldn't figure it out. I tried different amps, and had the guitar checked out too. Oh well. By the way bandmembers, and others thought the guitar sounded fine, it was just me. Oh well.
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John Russell · From: Austin, Texas

I guess it's why you can buy acoustic guitars made with rosewood, maple, mahogany, etc. I find the tone of this guitar very pleasing. My "main" guitar is a Zumsteel, also an outstanding sound, but different. Maybe my ears aren't so fine tuned as other's. I find the ergonomics, or feel of an instrument more critical than it's voice--within reason. All the better brands sound good--in the right hands.

Kurt Schrotenboer · From: Florida, USA

I agree the pickup can have much to do with the tone ...on any psg. Just like a Les Paul 6 string electric, using that neck position pickup has more tone so will a psg the more the pickup is positioned away from the bridge.

Second, it's where you pick the strings. Move your hand position away from the bridge for more tone

Third, your amplifier ...a 15" speaker will have more tone than a 10" or 12". I know people like the Peavey Vegas types and they are good but that aluminium dome does poke at the 2k hz. A well tuned speaker cabinet is the best in all cases.

Additionally yes a dual coil pickup will have more tone and usually no hum ...an amp with a variable frequency mid range control can make a big difference ...last thing is IMO a "good" compressor/expander/limiter will enhance the sustain.
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Brett Day · From: Pickens, SC

I rented a Sierra Artist pedal steel in 1999 a few months before I started playin'-I didn't have a steel bar at the time, so I just kinda played around with the picks and pedals. In the late 80s, "Cowboy" Eddie Long played a Sierra with Hank Williams Jr, and it was on one live performance of "Born To Boogie" that Hank decided to play steel a little bit, so while Eddie watched, Hank played a little bit of "Steel Guitar Rag" on the Sierra. Eddie's Sierra had his name on it under the logo

Brett

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

David Wright · From: Pilot Point ,Tx USA.

Sierra was a guitar you either loved the looks or didn't..I always like it, it was different, and you never wondered what kind of guitar it was...MSA came to me when they were doing the new MSA and asked me if I thought Dad would mind if they used his idea about the pickups, I talked to him about it, he said OK...he had no "rights" on it, and was a great idea.. He was always trying to come up with new ideas for the guitar..he spent a BIG part of his life building & designing steel guitars..as far as tone, it sounded as good as the player behind it !!! .. best sounding guitar I ever had and played was a Black&Gold Sierra, I did my 2 CD's with it, ... I truly hope Sierra keeps in the Steel world, if you think about it , they are the oldest steel building company left..My dad was threatened to be sued both by Leo Fender & Paul Bigsby back in the early years, he took from there ideas and try to improve on them..he even went to Fenders factory , and when they found out who he was , was asked to leave Laughing

...Steel espionage at it's best.!! .. I like to see discussions about him and his guitars... Very Happy

HowardR · From: N.Y.C.-Fire Island-Asheville

I guess Leo Fender was concerned that Chuck Wright would get some of the ideas that Leo Fender got from Paul Bigsby...... Laughing

Sounds like a who's who of who's suing who.......

Jan Viljoen · From: Pretoria, South Africa

Thanks Blokes and to Lynn Stafford.

Here is Pete Burak on his blue Sierra and the next vid may not be him, but the close up is of his Sierra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF6t6nWiRII

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQN9YWGQ-io
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