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Topic: Which guitar? |
Tony Harris
From:
England
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Posted 28 Jul 2001 7:02 am |
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Any advice guys? I love the tone of pedal- steels when players play jazz on the C6 neck. I'm playing a 6-string lap steel, C6 tuning. I'd like to get a modern tone similar to that - if you agree there is a difference.Some steels sound 'forties/fifties Western swing' to me. Is there a difference in the pickup? Which guitar should I look out for? I'd also like it to be on legs...
Thanks. |
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Bobby Lee
From:
Cloverdale, California, USA
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Posted 28 Jul 2001 8:29 am
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| The Sierra Laptop uses a George L 10-1, which is the pickup of choice for many C6th pedal players. It has that rich, full sound. |
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C Dixon
From:
Duluth, GA USA
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Posted 28 Jul 2001 8:56 am
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Tony,
I have not a clue what "tone" you are referring to. I know from my own point of view and tastes, I like the tone that Buddy gets on his C6 neck. And one of the things (certainly not all), that contributes greatly to this is aluminum necks.
From the onset of the first Emmons' P-P with aluminum necks, everything else being equal, that aluminum neck made THIS guitar stand out.
One other thing that Buddy has done and/or used is a staccato type of picking. This is where each note, NO matter how fast they are picked is very sharp and very clean. One of the devices that Buddy used years ago (before the age of "racks") was a Dan Armstrong "orange squeezer". It helps a great deal in achieving this "jazz" sound.
Of course his dexterity has no equal so a lot comes from his enate talents.
A bit of Trivia: Many years ago, I was talking to Buddy right after he finished a set at the ISGC. A gentleman walked up and said,
"HEY! how you gittin them notes so dang clean?"
Buddy just looked at him with that endearing smile. He did not say one word. How in this world could he answer THAT question? What with umpteen dozen years of endless practice and dedication plus ALWAYS having the latest device (that worked!  ) at his disposal. Plus ears lack no "buddy" on this earth! HUH?
So in essence you may not achieve what you are after on a non pedal steel. Maybe. But me don't think so. Having said that, pu's can change tone. The problem here is, one does not know what a given pu is going to sound like until you put it in. And I have yet to figure out who foots the cost of a player trying a dozen or so pu's trying to find THAT one.
Good luck in your quests, and may Our Lord bless you,
carl |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 28 Jul 2001 1:26 pm
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I would agree with Carl that practice is the key to good tone, but the guitar you are playing certainly has something to do with it.
To my ears the Gibson lap steels are generally better suited for jazzy stuff than the Fender or Rickenbackers. What kind of steel are you playing?
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Brad's Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars
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Tony Harris
From:
England
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Posted 29 Jul 2001 8:48 am
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| Brad, I have an old Selmer, and a Commodore(Guyatone-made Fender copy). A while ago I started a bit of a discussion on the forum about putting expensive pickups into cheap guitars. Since then I have put in a pair of Bill Lawrence pickups. They are loud, clean and low-noise, and I'm convinced I'm getting the best tone possible from that guitar. But there is still something there my ears don't like. Forumites discussed how much of the tone was attributable to the pickups, how much to the wood and hardware of the guitar. One other thing occurred to me - the position of the pickup along the string length! I have NEVER found a use for the middle pickup of a Strat ON ITS OWN - I've always hated the sound, and I guess the three pickups on a Strat aren't THAT different from each other. So maybe it's the position. (I've wired my Strat so that the middle switch position gives me neck and bridge together for a sort of middle-Tele tone.)So I guess I have to FIND the guitar that's got the sound I'm after. Unfortunately, here in England I don't get the chance to try many steels... |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 29 Jul 2001 9:07 am
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| Quote: |
| there is still something there my ears don't like |
Tony, have you tried to see if you can get the tone you're looking for from a pedal steel? Preferably one that you've heard someone else play who does get the C6 tone you like. Because if they get it, and you don't, then the answer might be in your hands rather than in changing pickups, necks, guitars, etc. I'd check that hypothesis out first before going down a long, slippery slope. Just my $0.02
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www.jimcohen.com |
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Gary Boyett
From:
Colorado
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Posted 29 Jul 2001 1:08 pm
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| Doesen't the amp, mods, etc. have something to do with the tone also? |
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George Keoki Lake
From:
Edmonton, AB., Canada
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Posted 29 Jul 2001 1:33 pm
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| IMHO....it's NOT the guitar. Tone comes from immediately behind your picks and a helluva lot of practice and experience. |
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