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Topic: What pickup to use to sound like 60's-70's Emmons? |
Sandra Dobbins
From:
Alabama, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 3:54 am |
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Kinda new player. Just need advise on what pickup
to use to get the sound of a older S10 p/p Emmons? |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 4:02 am
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| Not to be a wise guy, but the only way to sound like an old Emmons is to have an old Emmons. |
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Ken Metcalf
From:
San Antonio Texas USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 5:15 am
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Sandra
The kind of pick-up you are looking for is called a single coil as apposed to a humbucker.
Single coils are typically more trebley and are sometimes prone to hum and buzz from electrical interference. This would move you in that direction but there are other factors to get a particular sound like Technique, Amps, Changer mechanics and more.
This road is a slippery slope of pros and cons.
Even going out and buying an old Emmons (I would not recommend) will not guarantee a workable situation.
But I like Single Coil Pick-ups as my preference.
True Tone and Emmons make single coil pick-ups. See if you can get a local steeler to help you checking things out.
The first step is to want that sound and try to copy it with what you have.
What kind of guitar and pick-ups do you have?
_________________
MSA 12 String E9th/B6th Universal.
Little Walter PF-89.
Bunch of stomp boxes |
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 5:19 am
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Jack is right about that. Changing pickups in an old Emmons does not change the sound of the steel very much either as long as it is in the same basic ballpark. I play 60's Emmons steels and I make Tonealigner pickups.
If you are just getting going it is not so productive to spend your time on equipment. With the pedalsteel the tone always starts with your hands. Much more like a violin then an electric guitar in that way.
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Bob |
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Sandra Dobbins
From:
Alabama, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 6:45 am
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I just bought a Zum Encore from Doug in Branson, Mo.
It sounds a little twangy to me. Have adjusted the pickup, changed strings. Playing it thru a Nashville 400 with a Proflex. That's why I thought about a different pickup. |
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David Nugent
From:
Gum Spring, Va.
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 7:20 am
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| Sandra...It may be the settings you are using on the Profex. A Profex functions as a preamp as well as an effects processor, so one unit may be affecting the other. If you are not already doing so, try running the Profex through the Power Amp jack on the '400' thus bypassing the preamp section of the amplifier. |
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Alan Berdoulay
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 7:32 am
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| ......or plug the guitar straight into the amp, start playing with the tone controls and see if you come up with the sound you're after. |
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Ken Metcalf
From:
San Antonio Texas USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 8:03 am
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| Alan Berdoulay wrote: |
| ......or plug the guitar straight into the amp, start playing with the tone controls and see if you come up with the sound you're after. |
_________________
MSA 12 String E9th/B6th Universal.
Little Walter PF-89.
Bunch of stomp boxes |
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Fred Glave
From:
McHenry, Illinois, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 9:03 am
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From your description of the tone on your Encore, it sounds like you have the Wallace True Tone pickup? If so, it will give you more twang, but it can also bring out some real earthy tones that many steel guitarists love and get with the right amp tone adjustments.
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Zum Encore, Zum Stage One, Fender 2000, Harlan Bros., Multi-Kord, |
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Doug Earnest
From:
Branson, MO USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 9:13 am
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The guitar isn't twangy and the pickup isn't either. Move your right hand up the fretboard to start with, try to get your thumbpick at somewhere around the 20th fret to fatten up the sound.
A good starting point for the Nash400 is bass 3 or more, mid about 9 o'clock, mid shift noon to 1 o'clock, high 0 to 2, presence 0 to 2. Try that and unplug the ProFex and see if that doesn't fatten things up considerably.
Feel free to call if you like, I'll be glad to try to help you out. I don't play very well but I can get a good tone.
Last edited by Doug Earnest on 10 Jun 2013 10:12 am; edited 2 times in total |
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Dan Beller-McKenna
From:
Durham, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 9:40 am
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| It sounds a little twangy to me. |
But, but .... that's a good thing, right?
Dan |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Mule Ferguson
From:
N Wilkesboro NC,
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 10:14 am
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When I received my Encore with Wallace Trutone.I started played thru Peavey 112 without using my Profex ll. Like Doug say."Put your sweet hand a little closer to the Bar" (C)2013
Mule
_________________
Emmons La Grande D10, Zum Encore, Multicord,Marlen S10 1972, Nashville 112, Evans HVP #2, Peavey Profex ll, Martin, Merle Travis D28M Bigsby Neck.
D28 Henderson, Dobro and Tut Bro. Fender Tele, Stelling Stagehorn Banjo |
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Fred Glave
From:
McHenry, Illinois, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 10:41 am
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Let me tell ya I'm chomping at the bit to get my Encore with the True Tone. I can't wait! Hopefully in the next few weeks. Twang is a subjective term. Doug is correct when saying that the position of your right hand will help fine tune tone quite a bit regardless of the type of pickup.
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Zum Encore, Zum Stage One, Fender 2000, Harlan Bros., Multi-Kord, |
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Mule Ferguson
From:
N Wilkesboro NC,
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 11:29 am
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhN4tq4UoGk
Wallace Trutone on the Encore's daddy.
1:35 Randy Beavers the break.
_________________
Emmons La Grande D10, Zum Encore, Multicord,Marlen S10 1972, Nashville 112, Evans HVP #2, Peavey Profex ll, Martin, Merle Travis D28M Bigsby Neck.
D28 Henderson, Dobro and Tut Bro. Fender Tele, Stelling Stagehorn Banjo |
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Ron Pruter
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 11:54 am
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Why is the name on Randy's steel smudged out?
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Emmons SKH Le Grande, '73 Fender P/J bass, Tick tack bass, Regal high strung, USA Nashville 112. |
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Mule Ferguson
From:
N Wilkesboro NC,
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 12:22 pm
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another thread info on Randy's guitar.
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=247219 
_________________
Emmons La Grande D10, Zum Encore, Multicord,Marlen S10 1972, Nashville 112, Evans HVP #2, Peavey Profex ll, Martin, Merle Travis D28M Bigsby Neck.
D28 Henderson, Dobro and Tut Bro. Fender Tele, Stelling Stagehorn Banjo |
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Rich Peterson
From:
Moorhead, MN
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 1:21 pm
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Experienced players make subtle adjustments in their technique (often without realizing it) to get a sound they like out of almost any steel they sit down to. Each instrument has its own sound and feel. But bar pressure and pick attack are the other half of the sound.
Love the guitar that you have, instead of longing for an Emmons or Sho-Bud. Play it, experimenting with it. Bending the picks differently can cause the strings to vibrate more toward and away from the pickup, instead of across it. So can hand position. That will produce a more "full" tone from the guitar.
Even raising or lowering your seat can affect tone, by changing the way the picks hit the strings. |
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Sandra Dobbins
From:
Alabama, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 2:39 pm
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| Thank you all, yes being a newbie is part of it (the biggest.) In no way am I displeased with the steel. I am used to playing the Emmons which has a 'mellow' tone. I know the two are not going to sound alike, I was just trying to get a more fuller sound if that makes sense. (Doug, I would recommend this steel to anyone who wanted to know about the Encore.) ...OK just undone the profex, went straight thru amp, and did the recommended settings, wow what a sound! Sorry to be such a DA, just needed a little help. Thanks all. |
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Doug Palmer
From:
Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 10 Jun 2013 2:43 pm Emmons sound
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Sandra, the older Emmons Push-Pulls you are talking about probably had a single coil pick-up wound around 14.5 K Ohms.
Doug
_________________
Emmons D-10, ST-10,LD-10 III, NV-112,Fender Deluxe Reverb. Authorized wholesale dealer musicorp.com! |
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Carl Mesrobian
From:
Salem, Massachusetts, USA
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Posted 13 Jun 2013 8:15 am
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| Jack Stoner wrote: |
| Not to be a wise guy, but the only way to sound like an old Emmons is to have an old Emmons. |
 Definitely single coil pickup.. look for old Emmons pickup.
_________________
--carl
"The better it gets, the fewer of us know it." Ray Brown |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 13 Jun 2013 9:11 am
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| congratulations sandra! you've passed the first test to moving from a dumbass to a smartass like us! |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 13 Jun 2013 2:50 pm Re: What pickup to use to sound like 60's-70's Emmons?
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| Sandra Dobbins wrote: |
Kinda new player. Just need advise on what pickup
to use to get the sound of a older S10 p/p Emmons? |
IMHO, the amp, and how you set it, is far more important than either the guitar or the pickups. But, I think a beginner needs to develop decent playing skills before he or she starts to worry about cultivating a sound. Let's face it, you could give Buddy's or Chet's exact equipment to most beginners, and it would be like putting a mule in a horse race. |
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Dave Grafe
From:
Hudson River Valley NY
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Posted 13 Jun 2013 9:35 pm
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| I would only add to the worthy wisdom perpetrated here that my '74 P/P has George L 10-1 pickups and it sounds like a P/P anyway.... |
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