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Topic: Preamp pedals for reso guitars |
Tony Palmer
From:
St Augustine,FL
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 6:36 am |
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Like many dobro players today, I'm using the Fishman Nashville pickup with the JD Aura preamp pedal. It works fine of course but leaves me a little cold on the overall sound, as I prefer a little delay and reverb. Rather than use another pedal for those effects, is there a one with built in delay, reverb and maybe chorus that will replace the Aura?
Maybe if I was a bluegrass reso player I would be perfectly happy with the Aura alone but being a lifelong pedal steel player, I'm used to a slightly more processed sound. I don't really want to show up with an entire pedal board to plug into the PA, just one battery operated preamp pedal, preferably with a boost switch for solos.
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Sierra S10 (three!), Peavey 112 and 115, Benoit dobro, Beard Model E dobro, Beard Roadophonic, MSA Superslide, Dean Nickless custom dobro |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 7:19 am
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If you replace the Aura you'll lose all of those acoustic images.
Best to add a quality reverb/delay/whatever to the signal chain.
h |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 7:23 am
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To amend my response. You can certainly add a pre. Radial, Fishman & Grace are popular in the dobro community.
However, you retain the Aura for the images. A preamp won't give you those.
h |
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Tony Palmer
From:
St Augustine,FL
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 8:15 am
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No argument there, Howard. My request is because there are some open mike situations or sit in gigs where is I'm playing just a few songs, as opposed to an all night gig, and I'd really like to have just one pedal and know I have reverb and delay without having to rely on the sound board.
Having said that, is there a favorite image position you like on the Aura?
_________________
Sierra S10 (three!), Peavey 112 and 115, Benoit dobro, Beard Model E dobro, Beard Roadophonic, MSA Superslide, Dean Nickless custom dobro |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 8:26 am
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Actually I don't. It all depends on the room, the music and my mood I suppose.
After I set up I'll flip though images to see what sounds good at that moment, make any required adjustments and go for it.
I often don't have control over front of house so I set it up for the monitors and let the sound guy do the rest.
In smaller venues I use a Fishman Loudbox as a monitor. I also carry a Fishman Pro Platinum EQ/DI along with all the "effects du jour", usually reverb, delay, chorus & overdrive.
I'm sure other players will pop in here. This discussion has come up from time to time.
h |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 9:40 am
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According to my conversation with Paul Beard, just before I bought my JD Blackbeard, which is everything I imagined and more, Number 11 seems to be the most popular general setting. 3 has the most bass, for recording, and 16 is brighter, e.g., for playing in a living room..
I run my BB into the JD Aura, and then into an input switch, with banjo on the other input, and then into Baggs DI to get all the EQ and notch settings (why couldn't the JD Aura have had the settings from the other Aura pedal?) and to equalize the levels when I switch between the instruments. I use this setup for my jazz band...I toyed with adding reverb, added a Holy Grail to the pedalboard, but decided that the Blackbeard's innate resonance was more than pretty enough, adding anything just muddies it up...
When I play a gig with steel, in the alt-country band, I DO want more effects on the output, and just use a switch to go between the steel and my Beard Road-o-phonic...when i play through my amp, the Roadie is more feedback resistant. I just add an EQ pedal to the Roadie to compensate for the bass-heavy pedal steel setting on the amp...I use the Milkman's reverb on both there, sounds great. I play both through the amp just to make setup simpler, and to retain control over the volume and tone - many sound guys don't give me what I want...In the much better venues, I'll run two sound chains, for dobro (PA) and steel (amp), but I don't get to play those that often....
_________________
https://www.lostsailorspdx.com
Williams S10s, Milkman Pedal Steel Mini & "The Amp"
Ben Bonham Resos, 1954 Oahu Diana, 1936 Oahu Parlor |
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Brooks Montgomery
From:
Idaho, USA
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 10:14 am
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Since you own a JD Aura preamp, you might just build a mini 1ft X 1 ft ( or whatever) makeshift pedal board with just a couple pedals (Aura pedal and 'verb) all connected and ready to plug and play at a jam. I took a raised plastic floor grid piece that came my fishing driftboat and have made several different sized pedal boards (pedal mats). They have lots of holes for routing wires and zip ties, and since they are raised, wires can run underneath. They cut up with a sharp utility knife. Here's a couple links to give you ideas.
http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/interlocking-tile/raised-grip-loc.html
http://www.driftboatparts.com/product-p/floor_mat.htm |
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Len Amaral
From:
Rehoboth,MA 02769
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 12:05 pm
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| Tony, maybe a simple EQ pedal like the Boss with 7 sliders and a level slider. That could let you taylor the tone and raise or lower the level by engaging the pedal. Also, Boss pedals are built like a tank and can use it for other applications. |
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James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 12:56 pm
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| I've been watching YouTube's on the JD Aura pedal and I'm just wondering , how many times do you really change the images ? ....Kinda a cool feature , but I don't think that I would use it much ...I would probably use the Nashville Pickup and run it into and all in one pedal board like a Boss ME-70 or ME-80, or a Zoom G3X where I would have more control over effects, EQ, volume , presets , etc ....Some of these all in one effects boards are pretty small ....Yes , you would give up the images , but how many times do you change the images when you are gigging ? ..... Again , this is my opinion ....YMMV .....Jim |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 1:58 pm
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Who cares if you ever change the image (although you might want to make it suit the room)...having an interface that really sounds like a great mic, but has no feedback, is worth a lot...like many of the knobs and sliders, once you find "your setting", it is just fine...
_________________
https://www.lostsailorspdx.com
Williams S10s, Milkman Pedal Steel Mini & "The Amp"
Ben Bonham Resos, 1954 Oahu Diana, 1936 Oahu Parlor |
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James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 3:10 pm
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| Doesn't the pickup itself have a good natural reso tone to it on it's own ? ..... That tone could be controlled by all the features in the pedal and have other effects as a bonus .....Tony was talking about wanting more effects at his disposal .... The only other way for him to go would be to go out of the Aura , and into some sort of effects unit ....This way he could still retain his Aura tone ......Jim |
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Mark Eaton
From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 5:56 pm
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The pickup has good natural tone on its own - compared to just about every spider bridge resonator pickup that has preceded it, but because it is a piezo-ceramic type, on its own you get the classic piezo "quack" that flattop players have complained about for decades.
The JD aura pedal with its images takes most of the quack out of the equation. Remember, "imaging" is quite different than "modeling."
As mentioned earlier, a couple other pedals (reverb, delay) in the chain with the Aura is a common practice. Whether one is playing bluegrass plugged in, like Andy Hall with The Infamous Stringdusters, or Jerry Douglas playing 'grass with AKUS, or with his own JD Band, something more along the lines of the Weather Report classic, A Remark You Made.
If you have never seen the early demo videos from 2008, here is al ink to a session to the Beard shop in Maryland with the late, great Mike Auldridge giving the JD Aura pedal and new pickup a test drive. Notice before Paul activates the pedal the piezo "quackiness" and how that goes away once he turns on the pedal and Mike runs through some of the images.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P89yyeVWZ50
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Mark |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 6:12 pm
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Here is a video by Chicago dobro dude Rob Anderlik as he demonstrates every function of the Aura pedal. I mean EVERY function.
It's very well done.
h |
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Mark Eaton
From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 6:29 pm
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duplicate post
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Mark
Last edited by Mark Eaton on 19 Mar 2016 6:33 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mark Eaton
From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
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Posted 19 Mar 2016 6:31 pm
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Yeah, that one is even better - slipped my mind.
Without viewing it afresh (grilling sausages and asparagus right now, and fellow wine enthusiast Howard, you will appreciate that I am sipping an Oregon Pinot) as I recall Rob really goes the full Monty on his pedal board for dobro. If one is a steel player that switches over to dobro for a couple tunes during the evening, you're probably not going to go to the extent that Rob does.
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Mark |
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James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 6:52 am
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Mark ,
I do see your point involving the "quack" common to piezo pickups ... It's not as bad as some pickups , but the Aura does a great job diminishing the problem as it stands ...I'm thinking that I would probably get away without the Aura for live gigs , as it probably not be as evident in the mix of the band situation ....and I would probably not need it while recording as I would use a mic of choice anyway .... Still a nice product and really adds to the tone of the instrument ....
One thing that does surprise me is the fact that i don't see any one putting the Nashville pickup and the Beard Spider together in a package deal as I noticed that folks spoke of the pickup fitting loosely in a stock spider ....I ,like one guy , would have thought that the pickup would have to be sanded down to fit the spider , and not fit loosely ....??.....Just a thought .... Good to see new innovations coming around the bend ....Jim |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 7:15 am
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| James Quackenbush wrote: |
One thing that does surprise me is the fact that i don't see any one putting the Nashville pickup and the Beard Spider together in a package deal |
Beard has done this after an owner has taken careful measurements. There's no such thing as a "standard" setup. Remember that the pickup is the bridge insert. One height does not fit all guitars.
It's not a common practice to change images during a performance. It IS common to change images depending on the room and other variables.
The Aura/pickup is about 8 years old now! Interesting that some are just discovering the technology.
Images of the grill, Mark (sigh...)!
Yep...Rob Anderlik is on the leading edge of all this. He has the "Rolls" rig. I have the "Chevy" rig. 
h |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 7:24 am
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I personally don't record with the Aura. I've done a few A/B comparisons with my favorite mics. It does a reasonable job but I get a better sense of "space" with a mic. I can also set a mic and move around it and play with proximity. Can't do that with an image.
I've tried every option out there in the 26 years I've been gigging. The Aura affords me full participation in situations that were previously unobtainable.
YMMV
h |
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James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 7:25 am
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Hi Howard,
I'm not using a Reso as my main instrument , so yes , I am behind the times and technology of the gear for Reso's .....I did see the Aura when it first came out ...I proabably should pay closer attention to products hitting the marketplace ....
As far as modifications and fittings go for varous instruments , I am so use to doing the fitting's myself that I just assumed that the pickup came in one size and any mod's that needed to be done was done by the user ..... I do like the idea of the set screwes in the Beard Spider Bridge .... Nice touch ...Jim |
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Len Amaral
From:
Rehoboth,MA 02769
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 7:33 am
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| I was referring to using an EQ with your normal amp setup with effects instead of carrying a multi effects preamp. Dialing in a tone on a live gig can be a pain. Just a thought..... |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 7:36 am
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Understood!
I've always told players that if you "need" it it's the only system that does what it does.
If you don't have the need, there's no compelling reason to buy it.
h |
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Tony Palmer
From:
St Augustine,FL
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 1:23 pm
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As always, a lot of great advice for this perennial problem. All are appreciated and helpful!
But back to my original question: if I wanted to forego the Aura in favor of a one piece preamp pedal with built in reverb and delay.....so as to only use one pedal....are there any that anyone has used that they could recommend?
_________________
Sierra S10 (three!), Peavey 112 and 115, Benoit dobro, Beard Model E dobro, Beard Roadophonic, MSA Superslide, Dean Nickless custom dobro |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 2:01 pm
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I am not aware of a suitable preamp with built in effects. Perhaps others know of something.
h
oops - HERE! is one. |
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Tony Palmer
From:
St Augustine,FL
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 5:58 pm
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Howard I just found the same one..,that's a start, for sure.
BUT....look what turned up along the way
I knew about these but didn't think it would work for a resonator body!
http://youtu.be/bx8RcecL71U
_________________
Sierra S10 (three!), Peavey 112 and 115, Benoit dobro, Beard Model E dobro, Beard Roadophonic, MSA Superslide, Dean Nickless custom dobro |
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Howard Parker
From:
Maryland
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 6:12 pm
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Not my cup O' java but if it works for you, go for it.
h |
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