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Topic: String Gauges For Square Neck Reso Tuned In A |
John Sluszny
From:
Brussels, Belgium
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Posted 3 Jan 2016 11:47 am |
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I'd like to tune a squareneck reso in A (E C# A E C# A)
Right now it's in G (D B G D B G) with d'Addario EJ 42 phosphore bronze strings (.016,.018,.028,.035,.045,.056)
What gauges should I use? Thanks ! |
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Ian
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 3 Jan 2016 11:57 am
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John,
Get yourself a capo and put it on the second fret. Check out Resophonic Outfitters; they have several from which to chose.
Ian |
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John Sluszny
From:
Brussels, Belgium
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Posted 3 Jan 2016 12:08 pm
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Ian,I have two resos and I don't like capos,that's why I want to tune the other one in A.
Last edited by John Sluszny on 3 Jan 2016 12:24 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Sebastian Müller
From:
Berlin / Germany
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Posted 3 Jan 2016 12:17 pm
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Hi John,
I use this set: EFT15 Flat Tops, Extra Light, 10-47
and buy an extra 016 and 018, actually I use a 022 plain instead of the w023 on most guitars because I change the tuning of this string a lot (C#min tuning) and the w023 tends to break after a while. The 022 plain sounds not as good, a bit more dull but it never breaks, so that is my go to setup in the moment. Aloha -s-
_________________
https://hawaiian-steel-guitar.com |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 4 Jan 2016 9:06 am
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I'm from the old school and I tune my lap steels and resophonics to A, high bass.
I use these gauges, as per John Ely: .014, .017, .020, .030w, .036w, .042w |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 4 Jan 2016 12:09 pm
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Please take this with a grain of salt:
Since the late 1980s I've had my squareneck 1929 National Style-1 tuned to high-bass A: E/C#/A/E/C#/A (high to low).
String gauges are: .015/.017p/.024w/.036/.044/.052 respectively.
A recently deceased world renowned expert on National instruments once told me that for the best sound, you wanted the heaviest gauge of string you could possibly get away with before it would break, or before the cones would collapse. At that time he played in low-bass G tuning almost exclusively. I asked him what those gauges would be, and he refused to tell me. Said he didn't want to be responsible for any damage to my instrument. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 4 Jan 2016 1:10 pm
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Jack,
Those gauges sound more like for an A, low bass, tuning. |
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Stephen Abruzzo
From:
Philly, PA
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Posted 4 Jan 2016 1:56 pm
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| Just looked at a string gauge chart for 24" scale and I get... .015/ .018/ .022/ .030/ .036/ .042 |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 4 Jan 2016 4:22 pm
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| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
Jack,
Those gauges sound more like for an A, low bass, tuning. |
Nope. It's definitely high-bass A, Erv. Just like a standard dobro G-tuning but a full-step higher. It barks like a dog with those fat strings in the lower register.
| Stephen Abruzzo wrote: |
| Just looked at a string gauge chart for 24" scale and I get... .015/ .018/ .022/ .030/ .036/ .042 |
My old National has a 25" scale. Not sure what would be the standard scale length for resos nowadays, but differences in scale length will definitely affect the string gauges.
I was hesitant to post my string gauges for the same reason that the aforementioned expert refused to tell me what gauges he used on his old Nationals. The caveat is those string gauges work well for me on that one particular instrument (a 1929 squareneck National tri-cone), and have worked to my satisfaction since about 1987. Those gauges may (or may not) work well on other respohonic instruments.
Given that the original poster states he uses a .016 to .056 set to play in high-bass G tuning, it would seem reasonable to believe that a .015 to .052 set would work to play in high-bass A on the same instrument.
It's also likely that he may need to make up his own custom string set one string at a time, as opposed to purchasing a ready-made set. That is exactly how I arrived at the gauges I have become accustomed to on my National -- by trial and error.
I would caution anyone experimenting with either higher pitched tunings or heavier gauged strings on any instrument, and especially on resos, to gradually work in small increments, gauge-wise. Since the price of strings is cheap compared to the price of cones, it would be prudent to err on the side of caution. |
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