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Author Topic:  Best pickup for a dobro?
Mark Simpson

 

From:
Oregon, USA
Post  Posted 18 Jun 2012 4:29 pm    
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Any input on the best way to play a dobro with an electric band? Anyone know what Jerry Douglas uses?
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Stephen Cowell


From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
Post  Posted 18 Jun 2012 5:56 pm     Re: Best pickup for a dobro?
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Mark Simpson wrote:
Any input on the best way to play a dobro with an electric band? Anyone know what Jerry Douglas uses?


http://www.jerrydouglas.com/gear.cfm
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Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 23 Jun 2012 11:59 pm    
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Mark, there have been many threads here on the Fishman Nashville Resonator pickup which is pretty much considered to be the best thing going these days and the Fishman Jerry Douglas Aura pedal.

Here is a link to one thread from earlier this year to get you started:

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=220093&highlight=fishman+aura
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Brian McGaughey


From:
Orcas Island, WA USA
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 5:43 am    
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Mark,

After doing a lot of research on dobro pickups, it seems the Fishman Jerry Douglas model bridge pickup used in conjunction with the Fishman Aura pedal is the only way to go.

I found a lot of horror stories of players ruining the pickup during DIY mounting jobs. You'll probably want to have a luthier or builder mount it and slot it, or you can purchase a new spider with the pickup pre-mounted, which is what I've done.

http://schoonoverresophonicguitars.com/schoonover_modular_spider.htm

I have one on the way from Kent Schoonover as we speak. Kent makes his own spider that attaches the bridge a little different than the standard slotted mount for the bridge.

Good luck!
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Greg Gefell


From:
Upstate NY
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 8:22 am    
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Thanks for the info/link Brian. I have recently decided I want to install the JD aura system in a Beard/Goldtone reso I have. I contacted Beard to see if they are still doing installations but heard nothing back. This option from Kent seems like the way to go. I wasn't crazy about having to ship my guitar through the mail anyway.
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Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 8:44 am    
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How long since you contacted Beard? I find their customer service to be typically excellent.

At some point I'm probably going to get the Schoonover unit for my Clinesmith as things are changing with my musical endeavors and I will be playing with a mixed, acoustic/electric band, and playing a dobro through a microphone only isn't going to cut it. I still have the older Fishman donut pickup in my guitar, but it's basically a piece of crap.

Greg, i know it's not exactly a Sunday drive for you from far upstate New York to Hagerstown, MD (about 300 miles?) - but if you could plan a road trip it would be cool to go to the Beard shop and have them do the install and setup work on the Gold Tone/Beard. But then I just drove back from San Diego last Saturday (560 miles).

The "danger" if you were to make the road trip is that you might trade up for a real Beard when you're test driving guitars at the shop!
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 8:51 am    
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I know that Bobbi Beard is handling the phones for a week or so as Paul is out with daughters on a pre-college outing. I was up there last Friday helping out.

Yep...They'll do an install for sure.

h
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Brian McGaughey


From:
Orcas Island, WA USA
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 8:23 pm    
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My buddy Bob tried to contact and order from Beard but after several attempts with no reply gave up. He's got a set up on the way from Kent, too.
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 25 Jun 2012 9:41 pm    
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I'll pass this along when I visit the shop late this week.

h
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Greg Gefell


From:
Upstate NY
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2012 5:22 am    
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Howard, I know you've said you're not fully active at Beard anymore but any chance you can ballpark a cost estimate of what they would charge plus shipping for the soup to nuts package? THX
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2012 5:29 am    
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I think the package deal is still good. $505 for everything (pup, spider, aura, power). Free labor.

Plus shipping Ins both ways.

Figure about 2 hours for an install.

h
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Greg Gefell


From:
Upstate NY
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2012 6:02 am    
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That's a great deal! Who would you recommend I talk to to set this up? I'd rather call at this point since the email was a dead end.
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2012 6:55 am    
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Hey Greg...and others,

I talked to Bobbi and she is inundated with Paul out of pocket (no email, cell, etc) and apologizes to all. I've sorta been "on call" to assist with technical issues and she is still "under water".

Here is the current deal on pickups:

Price increase to $525 (inc labor). Shipping both ways paid by customer. They are OUT of pickups and are awaiting shipping confirmation from Fishman for some large (75-100) number. So, don't be sending guitars until they confirm that pickups are in stock.

best email is "parts at beardguitars.com"
phone 301-733-8271 (Bobbi will answer or leave msg)

I'll do my best to run to the shop on Friday if you want to talk to me. Gig late Thurs...<sigh>

I don't mind running interference for Paul. You can email/PM me. It's a mom and pop operation even though it seems larger Very Happy . Sorry for the inconvenience.

So much for retirement... Laughing

h
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Brian McGaughey


From:
Orcas Island, WA USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2012 8:09 pm    
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I have to confess that in my small business I don't always get back to everyone either... Embarassed
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Michael Brebes

 

From:
Northridge CA
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 8:05 am    
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Since it looks like I'm the only one that actually has both items, I will give you a review:

I have previously used the McIntyre dobro pickup attached to the cone, which I fed into an L.R.Baggs Para D.I. I have been pleased with the setup for a number of years.

I bought both items, with the JD Aura pedal showing up first. Plugged a resonator in with the McIntyre and it was definitely the closest to a mic'ed sound I have ever heard out of a piezo system. You can definitely get louder than using a real mic.

Got the Fishman JD pickup and installed it in my Beard reso. Listened to both pickups with just the Baggs DI and the Fishman was a little better sound, probably because it mounts in the spider and not on the cone like the McIntyre. It is an easier install because you don't have to worry about damaging the cone during installation.

If you already have a pickup in your reso, I would recommend buying the JD Aura first, to see if it gets you there with your existing pickup. If you don't already have a pickup, I would buy both pieces.
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Michael Brebes
Instrument/amp/ pickup repair
MSA D10 Classic/Rickenbacher B6/
Dickerson MOTS/Dobro D32 Hawaiian/
Goldtone Paul Beard Reso

Mesa Boogie Studio Pre/Hafler 3000
RP1/MPX100
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Paul Sutherland

 

From:
Placerville, California
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 12:15 pm    
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Why buy the Jerry Douglas Aura pedal, when for about the same price you can buy the Fishman Aura Spectrum, which has DI, EQ, a tuner, and can be connected to a computer to modify the settings/images. I don't see any of those features in the literature for the Jerry Douglas pedal.

I downloaded the settings/images available for the Spectrum, and it includes 12 dobro/resonator settings/images. It appears that Spectrum is a lot more pedal, and the on-line prices for the two pedals are virtually the same. What am I missing?


Last edited by Paul Sutherland on 28 Jun 2012 12:45 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 12:19 pm    
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Lot's more images that are specific to resonator guitar. Very handy for a reso geek like myself!

h
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Howard Parker

03\' Carter D-10
70\'s Dekley D-10
52\' Fender Custom
Many guitars by Paul Beard
Listowner Resoguit-L
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Paul Sutherland

 

From:
Placerville, California
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 12:36 pm    
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Howard: I've never tried any of this gear, and I don't even own a dobro/resonator, but I'm thinking about it.

From what I can tell from the literature, the JD pedal has 16 images, whereas the Aura downloadable library includes 12 dobro/resonator images. How many sounds does a person need? I would think one or two good dobro tones would be sufficient.

Has anyone compared what is available via the Aura downloadable images to the JD pedal. What's missing from the library that is available with the JD?

It seems to me the ability to download new images, as they become available, and the DI feature make the Spectrum look like the better pedal.

And if a person wants to play a second (or more) acoustic instrument(s), the spectrum offers the ability to have preset images for each instrument.
A clear advantage for a multi-instrument acoustic player.

I sure hope I'm not coming across as being argumentative. I just want to clearly understand the advantages and disadvantages of the products.
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 12:54 pm    
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No problem..

I only see 6 reso images in the Spectrum.
:edited- I see you mentioned downloadable as well:

I vary images a lot, using them as sort of an eq, which may vary from room to room.

Here' my .02 on which pedal. If you are a multi instrumentalist on a budget go for the spectrum. It does many things quite well.

If like me, reso is your primary instrument and/or you want LOTS of tone shaping options,or, you prefer the Douglas images over the Spectrum's offerings go for the Douglas pedal.

I don't play guitar/fiddle/anything else programmed in the Spectrum. so....

There I am.

Cheers

h

p.s. putting the cart before the horse?? Very Happy
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Howard Parker

03\' Carter D-10
70\'s Dekley D-10
52\' Fender Custom
Many guitars by Paul Beard
Listowner Resoguit-L
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Howard Parker


From:
Maryland
Post  Posted 28 Jun 2012 1:02 pm    
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With regards to running the Douglas Aura with other an/or older pickups all I can say is that I could never get the Aura to really "perform" with anything other then the Douglas/Nashville pickup which has a lot higher output.

Also the Nashville is way more feedback resistant then all of those other pickups mentioned.

I've published shots of my complete rig on other threads if you'd like to look it up.

Now...gotta play a rock gig in Wash DC.

Yeah..on reso guitar no less. I'm back tomorrow. Whoa!

h
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Michael Brebes

 

From:
Northridge CA
Post  Posted 29 Jun 2012 8:22 am    
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The Spectrum has about 6 generic dobro images. The JD has 16 that were specifically made from recording Jerry using a number of different microphones. None of the JD images are available for the Spectrum.

As previously stated, if you are just using it for dobro, the JD is worth it. If using it for different instruments, then go for the Spectrum. With the Spectrum you can actually send them your instrument and they will make an image or images from your instrument, but will have to pay for them.
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Michael Brebes
Instrument/amp/ pickup repair
MSA D10 Classic/Rickenbacher B6/
Dickerson MOTS/Dobro D32 Hawaiian/
Goldtone Paul Beard Reso

Mesa Boogie Studio Pre/Hafler 3000
RP1/MPX100
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