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Topic: Suggestions for good Dobro pickups? |
Ward Williams
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 10:40 am |
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| I'm trying to find out a way to get a good live Dobro sound. When playing solo, I've had decent luck just using a condenser mic on stage, but playing with a full band is a complete nightmare. The bands I play with tend to be fairly loud. I'm really just looking for a way to be able to "plug in" my Dobro in any setting and have it actually sound like a Dobro. Does anyone have any suggestions? |
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Ulf Edlund
From:
Umeå, Sweden
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 12:48 pm
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I've got a Barcus Berry pickup that i like. When i bought it there was two models, single coil and humbucker. I chose the single coil cause it gave a more natural "microphone-like" sound. I don't know if you can still buy 'em nowadays, but mine wasn't very expensive.
Uffe |
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Larry Robbins
From:
Fort Edward, New York
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 2:04 pm
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| I like my "Fishman" and a good pre-amp. |
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Ward Williams
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 3:00 pm
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| How hard is it to install a pickup in a Dobro? Don't you need to find someone who really knows what they're doing? Also, what is a good pre amp to use? Thanks for your responses, by the way. |
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Stephen Gambrell
From:
Over there
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 4:36 pm
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| Ward, you DEFINITELY want the pickup installed by someone who knows what he's doing. The Fishman, which from all accounts is a fine pickup, goes on the underside of the cone on the tensioning screw. So the bridge, spider, and cone must be set up exactly right. I've got the old style McIntyre in my Guernsey(best reso made!)and it installs on the spider. I think the Baggs preamp is a good choice, but NOTHING sounds as good as that condenser mike. Are you playing in a bluegrass band? |
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Ron Randall
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 13 Nov 2003 8:01 pm
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Hello from Dallas!
You might wanna read the archives on this topic. A lot has been written, but the bottom line is "use a mic". To cure the feedback problem, Sabine makes a feedback killer called Solo. Peavey makes one called a feedback ferret. The LR Baggs para-acoustic DI is very good at dialing out feedback, but it won't get it all. The ferret will get it all.
Some are experimenting with tiny condensor mics like the Shure Beta ? that is a gooseneck rig made for sax, drums, trumpet.
This would clamp onto the cover plate. Some are experimenting with the teeny weeny lavalier condensor mics.
You are welcome to come over and try my "70s" custom Dobro with the Fishman and LR Baggs. I also have a Benoit 8 with the Fishman. I have a few mics, preamps, and studio monitors to compare with.
Ron |
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Keith DeLong
From:
Dartmouth NS Canada
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Posted 14 Nov 2003 10:33 am
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| I have a Schatten, which is similar to the Fishman, fastens to the bolt going through the bridge. Sounds good but feedback is a problem. I use a Yamaha graphic equalizer and roll off some of the highs and notch out 200 Hz. That seems to take care of it. My guitar is a Regal RD35, not as loud as some of the better guitars. If you're playing in a band with all acoustic instruments, a condenser mike would probably do the trick, and you have the advantage of being able to move in for solos and away from the mike when other instruments are soloing. |
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James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2003 1:01 pm
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What Ron said....Anything you get whether it be a mic or a pickup, you really need a feedback eliminator to do the Dobro justice ..
The tiny lavaliers that Ron speaks of are VERY usefull and sound GREAT ....They are not cheap though...Most come with little attaching devices which work very well ...What's nice about it is the fact that you can use them on just about ANY of your insturments as you can get a bunch of tiny attachment devices to go with the tiny lavaliers ...Sax, Dobro, Acoustic Guitar, voice , or just about anything that makes noise !!...Pop them off of your acoustic and onto the Dobro, right on stage !!.. Dobro's are probably one of the hardest instruments to mic since they have harmonics that are sometimes hard to tame...The Feedback eliminators that Ron mentions do a good job in that dept. ...Jim |
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Ward Williams
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 17 Nov 2003 1:18 pm
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| Hey Guys, thank you all so much for all the info! I appreciate it. Now I've got a good place to start. |
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Michael Brebes
From:
Northridge CA
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Posted 18 Nov 2003 10:30 am
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| If you can get it loud enough without feedback, the Audio Technica ATM35 is a great sounding mic with a small gooseneck that you can clamp onto the cone coverplate. Sounds great and stays put. Otherwise I use a McIntyre pickup with a L.R. Baggs Para DI. for the real loud stuff. |
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Tim Tweedale
From:
Vancouver, B.C., Canada
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Posted 20 Nov 2003 5:40 pm
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In my opinion the "what pickup is best for dobro" is the best dobro discussion, and should be an ongoing thread, all the time. As we all know, the dobro is a totally unique sounding instrument, and you can't get the sound with any kind of magnetic pickup. If you want your guitar to sound like a lapsteel, you buy a lapsteel! The key is getting the mic sound as loud as you can without feedback (try lots of mics out in the store and find out which has the best, tightest response (supercardioid condenser is best) and buy it, and then reinforce your sound with either a magnetic pickup like a Lace or Barcus Berry, or a transducer like the Fishman or Macintyre. Positioning of monitors on stage and where you are in relation to the bass player and drummer is a really important thing to experiment with too.
-Tim |
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