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Topic: Which would you go with: Fender 1000 or Sho-Bud Pro 1? |
Matt Fisher
From:
Indiana, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 7:23 am |
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Hello all,
I have been playing a D8 console (E13 and A6) with my band, and we want to work in some pedal sounds. We're playing 50s and 60s country almost exclusively. Although I recently acquired an Erickson S10 3+1 pedal steel, it's got some issues and I'm looking to upgrade without breaking the bank. I'm leaning toward something like a Fender 1000, figuring I could keep playing my non-pedal stuff on the front neck in A6 or C6. I don't think I would miss the knee levers or two extra strings that much on the E9 neck, but am I just being crazy? The style I'm looking to play in: think Jimmy Day on "Pick Me Up on Your Way Down." Or, should I hold out for a more modern D10? Any thoughts will be most appreciated! |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 8:38 am
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| It takes a certain "mindset" to play a simple guitar like a 1000. With no levers to use, there's a lot that isn't there, but there's also the challenge of seeing what can be done without them. A very few players enjoy this feeling, the feeling of keeping the old gear alive, along with it's sound and style. It's sorta like the people who own and drive an old classic or antique car. Sure, they're slow and crude, but there's a certain "something" you get in return, a proud feeling when someone says..."Hey man, that's an old DeSoto, that's really cool!" |
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Ethan Shaw
From:
Texas, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 9:37 am
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| The Fender is perfect for what you're doing. They are great guitars, just limited. And, easy to add knee levers to. |
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Nic Neufeld
From:
Kansas City, Missouri
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 10:23 am
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
| It takes a certain "mindset" to play a simple guitar like a 1000. With no levers to use, there's a lot that isn't there, but there's also the challenge of seeing what can be done without them. |
That can also be a benefit depending where you come from...I think a modern pedal steel player would probably find them constraining (but interesting/fun maybe?). For folks like me who had never pushed a pedal before, the 8 strings and no confusing knee levers was actually a bonus! I'm still trying to adjust to the whole "play with your feet and not with the bar" thing. So I think they can be a good fit for console players, sort of a missing link.
The tone is unique though...you'd want to make sure you like that sort of tone (for both your nonpedal and pedal neck) as it wouldn't be particularly easy to replace pickups without routing. I like it, but I think I prefer the thicker Stringmaster in-series tone a bit more.
_________________
Waikīkī, at night when the shadows are falling
I hear the rolling surf calling
Calling and calling to me |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 10:29 am
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I would definitely go with the Sho~Bud. 
Erv |
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Fred Justice
From:
Mesa, Arizona
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 10:39 am
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Sho~Bud, hands down
_________________
Email: azpedalman@gmail.com
Phone: 480-235-8797 |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 10:43 am
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| Sho-Bud |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 11:08 am
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I think that most modern steelers would prefer to have some levers, and that they'd probably go berserk without them, or without at least 10 strings.  Nevertheless, it would be easy to add a lever to lower the Es on the old Fender, and that would let you play 95% of everything that was done in the '50s and early '60s. If I'm not mistaken, Jimmy Day did his "Steel And Strings" album with just the A,B, and C pedals (though I believe that was done with an 8-string Sho~Bud guitar).
In the end, it's about the music, and the sound you want to hear. That's why I try not to tell others what to use, what brand or tuning is the best. It's all different, but when it's done well, it's all good.  |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 11:12 am
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You can make music with strings stretched over a 2 x 4 but if there is something better, why not use it? 
Erv |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 12:03 pm
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Erv, maybe that's not what everyone wants; like not everyone wants a new car. The old Chevy will still get you there.
Or maybe because...bad music is more often made by bad musicians than it is by bad instruments! 
Peace. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 12:15 pm
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Donny,
That could be, but there sure aren't too many steel players still using the old cable drive Fenders.
Erv |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 12:18 pm
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Even in the context of mostly 50s and 60s country, which I play a lot - IF I had only the choice of a D8 Fender 1000 or a Sho Bud (not both), I'd take an old Bud with 3+3 or 3+4 over the Fender. Don't get me wrong - I have a 10-string Fender 800 with 6 pedals and no levers that is totally cool and I love. But you said Jimmy Day, and with that in mind, I'd go Bud for sure.
Now, if you had said, "I'm goin' for a West-Coast Ralph Mooney, Jay McDonald kinda' bag", I'd say maybe get the Fender. I'll eventually get levers on my 800, it's a whole 'nuther thing.
| Quote: |
| Or, should I hold out for a more modern D10? |
I play my modern pedal steels the most (Zum, Mullen, Franklin). But I have a project starting with mostly 40s/50s hillbilly/rockabilly that will call for some lap/console and some pedal steel. I'll probably just bring a lap or console plus some type of pedal steel. But a Fender 1000 would be very appropriate, not that I'm gonna go out and buy one.
But I have to say this - if I was just starting out on pedal steel, I would WAY prefer a modern pedal steel to learn on. I think, to learn, having a well-set-up, modern pedal steel with solid stops and relatively easy pedal/lever action and good playability trumps everything. Unless I was specifically going for the Fender sound. That's me, YMMV. |
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John De Maille
From:
On a Mountain in Upstate Halcottsville, N.Y.
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Posted 28 Sep 2018 3:00 pm
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I have to agree with Dave on this.
I'd go with the Pro1 |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 29 Sep 2018 2:30 am
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| No brainer, the Sho-Bud over the Fender. My first pedal steel guitar was a Fender 2000, it only lasted a little over a year and it was gone. |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 29 Sep 2018 7:55 am
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I’d find a ShoBud D-10 (Professional or early Pro-II) and set up the back neck for 8 string A6. Front neck can be 10-string E9. I did this for a few years. It worked great and the tone was wonderful.
_________________
To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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Kevin Fix
From:
Michigan, USA
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Posted 29 Sep 2018 4:21 pm
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| "THIS BUD IS FOR YOU" |
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Matt Fisher
From:
Indiana, USA
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Posted 30 Sep 2018 5:24 am
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| Thanks for all of the advice! I guess I should be looking for a D10, although that’s gonna be heavy. Beats hauling an S10 and a D8 console, though! |
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Ben Waligoske
From:
Denver, CO
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Posted 30 Sep 2018 8:49 am
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| Bud! |
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Ron Pruter
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 30 Sep 2018 8:53 pm
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Bud. I don't like the mushy feel of cables. (Think hand brake on a bike) The feel is nice and solid on an old ShoBud.
_________________
Emmons SKH Le Grande, '73 Fender P/J bass, Tick tack bass, Regal high strung, USA Nashville 112. |
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Bill Sinclair
From:
Waynesboro, PA, USA
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 6:58 am
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Matt,
Great question! This is something I've been considering as well. I think I fit Donny's vintage mindset profile: I drive an old '69 sedan for a good part of the year, I love my vintage non-pedal consoles and lap steels, I tinker with old tube amps, etc... I think a lot about getting a pedal steel someday but for now, I'm getting by with approximating a pedal steel sound with string pulls behind the bar and slants. There don't seem to be very many of us console players around so you might want to consider just making that distinction part of your thing. At least, until you get the pedals figured out. |
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Dave Zirbel
From:
Sebastopol, CA USA
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 7:37 am
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Try both if you can and see what suits you.  Both can make music. Fenders have their own kind of mojo. I love both!
_________________
Dave Zirbel-
Sierra S-10 (Built by Ross Shafer),ZB, Fender 400 guitars, various tube and SS amps |
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J Fletcher
From:
London,Ont,Canada
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 8:03 am
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I would go with the Pro 1 . You can play a lot of the C6 sounds on E9 by using the lever that lowers the E's to D# .
Puts the tuning into B6 . That's how I do it. |
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Pete Burak
From:
Portland, OR USA
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 9:22 am
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I have a D8 Fender 1000 and a late 70's Pro-1 ShoBud.
They are both great but the Sho-Bud is much easier to deal with from a gigging standpoint.
The Fender wears me out after a while. It takes more effort to play. |
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Matt Fisher
From:
Indiana, USA
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 9:41 am
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| J Fletcher wrote: |
I would go with the Pro 1 . You can play a lot of the C6 sounds on E9 by using the lever that lowers the E's to D# .
Puts the tuning into B6 . That's how I do it. |
Ok, now you're talking! That sounds like something I can work with!
Honestly, I always though of the Fender as a compromise between cost and weight on one hand and versatility and build quality on the other. If I can get a B6 tuning on the E9 neck, maybe an S10 is all I really need after all. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 1 Oct 2018 10:24 am
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Yes, E9 gives an open B6, on everything but string 9, with the E=>Eb lever engaged. And also remember that E9 also gives a very usable A6 with A+B pedals down, on everything but strings 2 and 9. And with the other pedals and levers, there's a lot you can do working out of these base tunings/positions, and all the standard E9 stuff besides.
If you really want the lower end of 6th sounds, you might consider either a universal E9/B6 or extended E9 12-string setup. Universal especially gives pretty close to a full 10-string C6 setup but half a step down to B6.
I've had two 12-string Sho Buds, one universal and the other extended E9. In the end, I decided to go with my more modern guitars, but 12-string Pro I guitars are out there.
To be even-handed here - the subject of mushy cable feels came up. Let me say that my cable Fender 800 does not have a mushy feel. But Bob Carlucci set it up very well. Set up correctly, Fenders do not have to be mushy, just a point-of-information.
But I still say that if I had to have just one pedal steel, it would be a more modern E9. OK, an old Bud isn't exactly a real modern pedal steel, but you probably get my drift. A lot depends on what you want to sound like and how complex a setup you want. An old Bud sounds great (IMHO) and, set up correctly, can handle a reasonably modern setup and play well. Since you're coming from console, you'll have plenty to work on before you run out of things to learn on a 3+3, 3+4, or 3+5 single-neck E9. |
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