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Topic: Interesting Pedal Steel Guitar |
Scott Duckworth
From:
Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 3:41 am |
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As seen on eBay, a Teisco Pedal Steel Guitar...
_________________
Amateur Radio Operator NA4IT (Extra)
http://www.qsl.net/na4it
I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus! |
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Jeff Garden
From:
Center Sandwich, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 4:21 am
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Interesting pedal setup Scott...too bad there's not a photo under the hood. Which got me to thinking, if they can put fly-by-wire technology in fighter aircraft, how about fly-by-wire pedals on a steel. And of course then you could have some sort of helmet and visor arrangement with a heads up display for chord charts and tab. And what the heck, why not an ejection seat for those bad nites when things go horribly wrong!  |
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Scott Duckworth
From:
Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 4:44 am
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| you could have some sort of helmet and visor arrangement with a heads up display for chord charts and tab |
That might be a good use for Google Glasses...
_________________
Amateur Radio Operator NA4IT (Extra)
http://www.qsl.net/na4it
I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus! |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 10:24 am
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This is what I've been advocating for many years, and I have initiated many posts about cable-in-tube systems. There's no disconnecting and reconnecting pedal rods every time you pack the guitar up. Automobiles and aeroplanes passed the stages of rod connections decades ago, but the pedal steel has never caught up.
I'm planning on converting a MultiKord to this set up in order to have a set of pedals in the front position rather than in a semicircle like an organ.
With cables like this you can built folding legs into the body, too.  |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 11:44 am
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I'm waiting for the day when the pedals communicate with the guitar via Bluetooth or WiFi.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, Recording King Professional Dobro, NV400, NV112,Ibanez Gio guitar, Epiphone SG Special (open D slide guitar) . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Les Cargill
From:
Oklahoma City, Ok, USA
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 11:49 am
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| Richard Sinkler wrote: |
| I'm waiting for the day when the pedals communicate with the guitar via Bluetooth or WiFi. |
I expect you'll be waiting for a while. |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 11:52 am
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Yeah. By the time they get to wireless (or should that be rod-less), Bluetooth and WiFi will probably be obsolete.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, Recording King Professional Dobro, NV400, NV112,Ibanez Gio guitar, Epiphone SG Special (open D slide guitar) . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 2:14 pm
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Richard, instead of being able to play steel by remote from another location, what about being able to bipass that and listen to the completed piece without having to play it at all?
It's known as a CD, and there are plenty of them around.  |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 2:19 pm
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Tell me more about this "CD" thing.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, Recording King Professional Dobro, NV400, NV112,Ibanez Gio guitar, Epiphone SG Special (open D slide guitar) . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Jeff Garden
From:
Center Sandwich, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 20 Sep 2014 2:28 pm
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| You're right Alan...if we advance technology too much with all of the fancy bells and whistles we'll create the 21st century version of the player piano....and then what fun is it to just sit back and listen to it? |
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Samuel Vance
From:
Urbana, IL
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Posted 24 Sep 2014 6:52 am Pianosteel
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I had an idea sometime back that I feel is possible but never worked at it because I just don't see a market for it.
As keyboard technology has brought about chord recognition, it would be possible to have pedals which alter a chord the same way for each chord played on the keyboard. For example, if a keyboard player plays a C chord and wants to slide into an F chord like a steel guitar, the keyboardist could use a pedal which always alters the E's s and G's to F's and A's. In this way, (think E9th in this context) one could feasibly replicate the main function of the steel guitar on a keyboard.
There are advantages as opposed to steel guitar. For pianists, this approach would be easier to learn than steel guitar. Additionally, this could be added to any MIDI equipped keyboard and could be software based with only a pedal board and cords required hardware. A different way of playing and styling inevitable as well for many reasons.
The disadvantages include inflexibility when you consider different voicing positions as you would see on a steel guitar. Also, I don't believe the "steel guitar" sound can ever be fully reproduced accurately. (which may not be neccessary for pianists or desired for some)
Others have used expression pedals on keyboards to replicate guitar effects. Each keyboard manufacturer has tried different ways for keyboardist to bend notes.
What are your thoughts?
(BTW: In the end I gave up on the idea and bought a steel.)
_________________
Carter D-10, Roland 80XL |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 24 Sep 2014 10:36 am
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I have an old electric organ which I doodle with from time to time. (Especially if I want to wake up all the neighbors. )
In one of the settings you can push one key and get a full triad plus octaves. This way you can easily play the chords with one hand and the melody on the other keyboard. Of course, this makes you lazy since you don't have to learn the triads, and there's no stride playing or boogie bass.
Is this what they refer to as "organic"?  |
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Pete Burak
From:
Portland, OR USA
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Posted 24 Sep 2014 11:09 am
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I don't see that Teisco Pedal Steel Guitar on Ebay.
Link? |
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Scott Duckworth
From:
Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies
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Posted 24 Sep 2014 12:09 pm
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It's already gone off, that's why I posted the picture. I wish they had posted some pictures on eBay of the bottom, but they didn't.
_________________
Amateur Radio Operator NA4IT (Extra)
http://www.qsl.net/na4it
I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus! |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 24 Sep 2014 2:52 pm
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| From what I remember, the bottom of the Teisco is sealed off, so there's nothing for you to see. |
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Ron Landis
From:
Arkansas, USA
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Posted 25 Sep 2014 2:11 pm
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| I don't know about cables, but I am surprised nobody has come up with a steel that has electric servos that either push a lever or run a hydraulic line to do it. sort of like adding power steering. There seems to be a lot of clickity clack going on in the linkage. Although I admit that's probably more the player than the instrument in my case. |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 25 Sep 2014 3:48 pm
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"or boogie bass.Sad "
Alan! I'm a Boogie Woogie purist! Boogie on an organ is an abomination, excluding a couple of outstanding players, the sound is just wrong! Sorry!
"There seems to be a lot of clickity clack going on in the linkage."
Turn the amp on, and you won't hear it, unless your pickup is microphonic! My Fingertip makes a bit of noise, but with the old Twin on 1, I can't hear it, and neither can anyone else! And the sound is glorious! |
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Joe Naylor
From:
Avondale, Arizona, USA
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Posted 25 Sep 2014 5:08 pm servo
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The Electric servo and some other methods have been looked at, how the main draw back is $$$$$$$ - If you double or triple the cost I do not think you would sell any.
There has been many different attempts that I know of and they all get into big dollars.
But is some would send me $20,000 I would get right on it.
Joe Naylor
www.steelseat.com
_________________
Joe Naylor, Avondale, AZ (Phoenix) Announcer/Emcee owner www.steelseat.com *** OFFERING SEATS AND Effects cases with or without legs and other stuff ****** -Desert Rose Guitar S-10, Life Member of the Arizona Carport Pickers Assoc., Southwest Steel Guitar Assoc., Texas Steel Guitar Assoc., GA Steel Guitar Assoc., KS Steel Guitar Assoc. (Asleep at the Steel) tag line willed to me by a close late friend RIP |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 25 Sep 2014 5:15 pm
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" I am surprised nobody has come up with a steel that has electric servos that either push a lever or run a hydraulic line to do it. "
Why? What improvements would result? I know of one, but I ain't saying', and it can be handled in other ways. |
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Jack Bowman
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 26 Sep 2014 6:54 am Return to Handy setup
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This prompts one to go back to the original setup that started it all. The Harlin Bros. design is a very easy steel to transport and setup. I have two of them and they setup and are ready to gig in about 2 minutes. The age old false testimony about cables being hard to tune is a tradition among the uninformed
The changer is rock solid when properly maintained. The cable stretch or shrink with temperature changes is of no importance. Before commenting as to the inadequacy of the system of the changer, I suggest that you examine and play one of these oldies.
The 8 string single with 6 pedals is adequate to play anything that I have tried is the 73 years that I have been around guitars. If you need to sound like a symphonic orchestra then you don't belong in a country gig. JMHO
_________________
5220 Gretsch
Godin A-6
Godan 5th Ave.
Fender 400 PSG 4+2
buncha amps |
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Earnest Bovine
From:
Los Angeles CA USA
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Posted 26 Sep 2014 7:46 am
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| Jeff Garden wrote: |
| ..too bad there's not a photo under the hood. |
I reckon there is nothing else to see. |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 26 Sep 2014 11:30 am
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| John Billings wrote: |
| ...Alan! I'm a Boogie Woogie purist! Boogie on an organ is an abomination, excluding a couple of outstanding players, the sound is just wrong!... |
I absolutely agree with you. I would never attempt it. Boogie needs a heavy rhythm, not sustained notes. I, too, am a boogie afficianado. In fact I hate the way people like Bob Dylan introduced organs into their music when a pedal steel would have been able to put the same parts in, but sounding much better. The twist era seems to have been when electronic organs became popular. People like Chris Montez brought them in, and they never seemed to fit.
But, as many people know, there are two sides of me. On one side I play blues, rockabilly, country, etc., whilst on the other side I play mediaeval music. I never mix the two up. A steel guitar wouldn't go with 14th century music.
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=270995
The organ sounds great in a church setting, for early and baroque period music, which is what I use mine for. Yes, it's an electric organ, but there's no way I could accomodate a pipe organ. |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 26 Sep 2014 11:44 am Re: Return to Handy setup
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| Jack Bowman wrote: |
| This prompts one to go back to the original setup that started it all. The Harlin Bros. design is a very easy steel to transport and setup. I have two of them and they setup and are ready to gig in about 2 minutes... |
I couldn't agree with you more, Jack. I have two MultiKords, an eight-string and a six-string, both with six pedals, and a third in pieces right now because I intend to rebuild it with a standard pedal rack, connected to the mechanism with cables-in-tubes. I'm surprised that the Harlin mechanism has not become standard. You can change the copedant in minutes without having to turn the guitar upside-down, and the string spacing is wide enough for people like me who have wide fingers and find the close spacing of modern steels, (which was introduced by Buddy Emmons when he went from 8 strings to 10 strings and kept the same width fingerboards to keep the costs down and has now become standard), difficult to work with. I wonder how many people prefer console steels such as the Fender Stringmaster because the strings are wider separated. |
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James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
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Posted 29 Sep 2014 12:50 am
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I spotted that Teisco and started a thread several days before this one: Click
I did a lot of archive searching, trying to figure out why that Harlin changer didn't catch on. It seems so simple and efficient for changing tunings and, if used with bike cables, could be installed in a non-pedal steel to make a "lap-pedal steel". The reasons that I found for it's failure:
- it's more like a toggle switch between tunings and not good for long drawn out transitions (the pedal steel sound)
- the pedals were stiff and took a lot of pressure to use
Anyone care to comment on the validity of the first point? |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 29 Sep 2014 9:56 am
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It's a myth that MultiKords are meant to just change tunings, not for the pedals to be used while playing. If that were so the pedals would have been fitted with locks, because it's very uncomfortable to keep one pedal depressed throughout a number without slightly releasing the pressure and going out of tune. If set up correctly, a MultiKord can produce the same sounds as a modern pedal steel. The myth has been put to rest by Danny James, who is still with us and an active member of the Forum, and who was a rep for Harlins and knew the Harlin Brothers well.
If the pedals feel stiff it's only because of the awkward pedal set-up, not the mechanism. Jay Harlin himself had a MultiKord specially built that he himself used and it had a pedal rack in the normal position with multiple pedals. I'm planning on doing that when I get round to it. |
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