If you were going to play non-pedal....

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Which tuning would you use on an 8 string non-pedal to do a quasi-pedal steel emulation?

I'm using an E13 tuning: G# E C# B G# E D B, but I'm wondering if it's the best choice. I'm beginning to think the 3rd string C# might be unnecessary, especially in light of behind the bar bending.

Any thoughts on this? I'm seeking the help of those with more knowledge on the pedal action. BTW, playing pedal steel is out of the question for me.
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b0b · From: Cloverdale, CA, USA

I played that tuning for decades! It's real good and yes, the C# is necessary.

I eventually dropped the low B, moved everything down a notch a put an F# on the first string. Doing that increased my speed on the high strings by about 25% because it eliminated a lot of bar movement. Of course, it meant doing without the B. Confused

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C. Christofferson · Posted 17 Mar 2007 9:59 pm

Hi, i have an (up to) 10 string nonpedal instrument that id like to re setup. Could i find out the string number and tuning setup that M. Anderson used on his Honeysuckle Rose video. Is it the 'Lap Steel 12 string C6th tuning' listed on the tunings page, or other? Pending that i will try the tuning mentioned here. Thx
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Charlie McDonald · From: out of the blue

I think the C# is good because it gives you a relative minor right on top.
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Todd Weger · From: Safety Harbor, FLAUSA

Mike -- a guy I know by the name of Bret Billings plays in a band out in Fort Collins, Colorado (Halden Wofford & The Hi-Beams -- http://www.hibeams.com/index.cfm) plays that tuning on his T8 Stringmaster when he want more of a faux-pedal steel sound. He is a PSG player, but won't fool with it on gigs, so he fakes it using that E13 tuning on the T8. The band was here in Florida to play a private function in Orlando, and he stayed here at our house. He showed me a few things he did with that tuning to get that PSG sound, and it worked pretty well, actually. Of course, he's very good with the volume pedal, having played PSG for about 30 years, and that takes some practice to get just right. Oh yeah -- and uses the volume pedal standing up!

When he wants a more traditional 50's straight steel sound, he uses the C6 or A6 necks.

In any case, that tuning, the the F# inserted in there per b0b's suggestion sounds like the ticket.

Just out of curiosity -- are you playing in a country band now?

TJW
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Todd James Weger --
1956 Fender Stringmaster T-8 (C6, E13, A6); 1960 Fender Stringmaster D-8 (C6, B11/A6); Custom-made 25" aluminum cast "fry pan" with vintage Ricky p'up (C6); 1938 Epiphone Electar (A6); 1953 Oahu Tonemaster; assorted ukuleles; upright bass

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I'm a little bit country, and I'm a little bit rock and roll. Wink

I'm playing some country, among other things. Also, I'm starting up a little honky tonk group for my own personal satisfaction and I really want to get the style under my thumbs the best I can.

b0b, so you're saying you tuned F# G# E C# B G# E D?
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David Cook · From: Florida, USA

If you can find an old Shobud Maverick or cheap 10 string pedal steel and just don't use the pedals. I took off all the pedal mechanism underneath a Maverick and have been tuning F#G#EC#BG#F#E D/C# B. I use to play pedal steel but it is just too much.

Michael Papenburg · From: Oakland, CA

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I don't like the idea of sitting behind my instrument. I prefer it on my lap if not on a stand, plus 10 strings is more than I want to deal with.
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TonyL · From: Seattle. WA

I usually use an Issacs tuning variant on one of my T-8s when I play out to get that sound with string pulls and slants, from hi-low

E B G# F# D B G# E

A lot of the time I'll tune the D up for a middle E.

On A6 or C6th tuning with the 5 on top I'll do a forward 3 string slant on the top strings to get the 1-4 change.

T

David Cook · From: Florida, USA

Mike Auldridge also suggested using this 8 string tuning for an 8 string dobro. He sometimes uses it for country licks. Hi>lo DBECGEDC. This is like the top 8 strings on a E9 pedal steel tuning. Those two chromatic strings on top(that's what they call them) are very useful for fast scale runs.

David Cook · From: Florida, USA

You play the E then the D then the C then the B. The same tuning in E would be F#D#G#EBG#F#E

John Bechtel · From: Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.

Mike; If I had only (1)-Steel and it had 8-strings, my tuning of choice would be C-Diatonic. That is my main Non-Pedal Tuning and also capable of emulating a pedal steel! 8=C~7=E~6=F~5=G~4=A~3=B~2=C~1=E
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Thomas Ludwig · From: Augsburg, Germany

Mike,
I've used that tuning for Rock-a-Billy Songs first
G# E C# B G# E D B
later I switch to
G# E C# B G# F# D E
which sounds very good to me.

Now I play more Country, Honk Tonk, Blues etc. and so I'm back to C6 with high G-string. Bending the E-String behind the bar emulates a nice pedal steel sound.

Thomas

Larry Phleger · From: DuBois, PA

I like the E13 tuning you posted, and use it on my National T8. I have used tins tuning on the lower 8 strings of a 10 string non pedal, and added F# and D# on strings 1 and 2. That gives you access to the chromatic strings used on the E9 pedal tuning. I have found this useful in playing country and honky tonk

Carroll Hale · From: EastTexas, USA

TonyL · From: Seattle. WA

Well, say you were in the key of F in C6. With the bar across the top 3 strings, pick all three, then slant the bar forward so it's over fret 7 on the top string and over fret 6 on the second string, leaving the bar on the 3rd string on the 5th fret.

Doing this you go from an F major triad( F-A-C) to the Bb major triad. (F-Bb-D)

Yes, it is nice up here. Pity the music scene isn't quite as good...

T

Jim Bates · From: Alvin, Texas, USA

For 10 strings: E 13th l-h E B D E F# G# B C# E G#

For 8 strings : E 13th l-h E B D E/F# G# B C# E
(tune middle E to F# for some tunes)

Imitate pedal changes by playing E C# then E B quickly and vice versa. Before some of us got pedals this was a way to imitate the basic pedal change and still play great western swing.

The 10 string E 13th, I use on my D-10 Emmons with a fairly standard pedal setup (or I can play it just fine without pedals)

You will get a lot of good ideas from the Forumites, try them all.

Thanx,
Jim

Carroll Hale · From: EastTexas, USA

Larry Phleger · From: DuBois, PA

I like the E13 tuning, and added F# and D# on strings 1 and 2. That gives you access to the chromatic strings used on the E9 pedal tuning. I have found this useful in playing country and honky tonk. I use this on a 10 string non pedal steel I recently built, and used it years ago before I had a pedal steel to try to emulate some of the stuff I was hearing in country music at that time. From high to low it is F# D# G# E C# B G# E D B.

Jeff Au Hoy · From: Honolulu, Hawai'i

Hi Mike

I kinda like the sound of Jerry Byrd's E13 for that country pedal sound... (top to bottom) E B G# F# E D (and then idunno what comes after that). I think there's something in the sound of the three strings in a row voiced just a whole step apart.

I've been trying to emulate pedal sounds lately in A6, pretty much the only tuning I play nowadays. The singers I back occasionally like to do a Patsy Cline tune. I've been finding success using just two note voicings and "bending" (or moving, sliding) one of those voices. That sorta thing sounds "pedal" to me.

For example if I was resolving to an F major chord, in Hawaiian I'd slide into it this way (im trying to represent a diad voiced a sixth apart, root on top):

E ---> F
Ab ---> A

But for the pedal sound, I've been doing it this way:

F ---> F
Bb ---> A

Also, (assume I'm still resolving to an F chord) in Hawaiian I might play this:

Ab ---> A
B ---> C

but for the pedal Country sound I've been playing this:

G ---> A
C ---> C

Even better, if you have a 1-3-5 voicing in your tuning with the 5th on top, you can slant forward like this (still resolving to F):

G ---> A
E ---> F
C ---> C

(TonyL explained this one above.)

I usually do a volume swell with my pinky as I slide to really accentuate the "pedal" type sound.

I've been discovering that for Hawaiian, we almost always slide into the note from a half step below, whereas in Country Western I hear a lot of sliding in from a whole step below. I think this has something to do with the singing styles.

I've also been noticing that Country Western singers like to sing harmony voiced in 4ths and 5ths if there are two singers. For Hawaiian, we prefer to harmonize a 3rd or 6th apart in that case. I think this can be translated to steel as well.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I think I'm making really good progress with this. I've been working hard on a variation of C6 and I've been gigging with an E13.

I've got a Stringmaster coming next week, so we'll see what happens. So far, I'm very pleased, but I've got to do a bunch of transcribing to get into the pedal steel mindset. I don't really want to fake it too much.
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TonyL · From: Seattle. WA

Mike, it's true you can only fake so much. It really depends on how many songs you're doing where you need that early Day/Emmons type sound.

Then again, if your new Stringmaster was modified for a pedal or two like so many of them were, then you might be set... Smile

T

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