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Topic: Permanent ebow |
Gil Berry
From:
Westminster, CA, USA
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Posted 27 Oct 2013 2:44 pm |
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I've been reading some other threads regarding sustain on psgs and what can be done to lengthen sustain, etc. This brought to mind my ebow which I am sure you all realize can make sustain on a targeted string last as long as the battery in the ebow device lasts. Anyway, has anyone ever tried using active feedback from your guitar's pickup to modulate the magnetic field in that or an adjacent transducer? I can envision a device which could vary sustain independent of volume using such active feedback - and going one step further - a new volume pedal that would move in one direction to control volume and another to control feedback like the old Fender combination tone/volume pedals (I still have one around someplace). If this feedback system had sufficient field strength and was also capable of NEGATIVE feedback, you would in fact have an active compressor/limiter with which you should be able to vary your note from a very short sustain (almost like pick blocking) to one of virtually infinite sustain.......just thinking....  |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 28 Oct 2013 4:16 pm
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I can't see much practical use for "infinite sustain". (Other instruments that already have that capability rarely use it.) It's possible, without any extra gear, to extend most notes for 15 seconds, and chords for almost twice that long. Do you really need more?
I don't. |
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Gil Berry
From:
Westminster, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Oct 2013 6:02 pm
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| Perhaps not, Donnie, but you always have to push the envelope. Otherwise, we'd still be living in caves, hunting with clubs, and fighting over women. Hmmm, maybe things haven't changed so much after all. |
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Bill Duncan
From:
Lenoir, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 29 Oct 2013 2:51 am
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There are discussions and comments about sustain, but I have never had a problem with sustain, or the lack of it. I don't give it much thought, and my notes and chords seem to last long enough.
How much sustain is needed, or how much is enough?
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You can observe a lot just by looking |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 29 Oct 2013 4:21 am
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It seems that a useful application of this technology would be to allow for e-bow-like sustain on ALL strings simultaneously (e.g. chords), instead of just on one string (or 2 max), eliminating the clumsy aspect of having to place a e-bow in real time, remove it to play normally again, etc. I think this could be more useful than 'infinite sustain' per se.
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www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Jon Light (deceased)
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 29 Oct 2013 11:42 am
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Somebody was using the Fernandes on a lap steel but i can't for the life of me remember who did it.
Also, look into Moog. They did some work with infinite sustain. |
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Jerry Jones
From:
Franklin, Tenn.
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Posted 29 Oct 2013 6:18 pm
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I see pros like Lloyd Green, for instance, making extensive use of swell and decay. For me, it's more about dynamics.... like a vocalist....
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Jerry Jones
Last edited by Jerry Jones on 30 Oct 2013 1:37 am; edited 2 times in total |
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Don Griffiths
From:
Steelville, MO
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Posted 29 Oct 2013 7:04 pm
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My first thought too was why would you need more sustain? I'm imagining playing a whole song at constant volume with one stroke of the strings. Imagine it would sound a little like a synth, but unlike a key board, a Pedal Steel could smoothly transition from note to note by bar and pedal movement w/o reduction in volume,w/o abrupt note changes or sharp pick attack.Something that could be useful for movie backing tracks?Or ambiance?
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Shobud Pro1,BMI U12, Santa Cruz F, PRS Standard, Fender Twin Reverb, ‘53 000-28 |
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James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
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Posted 30 Oct 2013 3:55 am
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| Jon Light wrote: |
Somebody was using the Fernandes on a lap steel but i can't for the life of me remember who did it.
Also, look into Moog. They did some work with infinite sustain. |
I installed a Sustainiac in a Guyatone lap steel..........and it was stolen less than a year later. It doesn't work that great for chords. Some notes stand out and others start to lose volume after the initial strum. It's difficult to explain. It was cool for single string runs but not as expressive as an eBow. With the eBow, you can move the unit closer or further from the pickup, which allows for far more expression and effects. |
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Jon Light (deceased)
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 30 Oct 2013 1:14 pm
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Thanks for chiming in. Interesting, that note decay thing. I could maybe see how various harmonics could create phase cancellations over the course of a long/infinite sustain.
This is the Moog:
http://www.moogmusic.com/products/moog-guitars/moog-lap-steel
I'm impressed, from an inventor's standpoint. Not so interested, as a player. I actually don't have the time right now to re-view this demo so I'm just going from my recollection from when this was unveiled. |
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Len Amaral
From:
Rehoboth,MA 02769
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Posted 31 Oct 2013 7:05 pm
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| I have a Boss Tera Echo that allows you to play a chord, press the pedal and hold it and the chord or note sustains and you play over that, lift your foot and play another chord/note and so on. Would not be practical for steel but interesting with regular guitar. |
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