Alan Kirk
From:
Scotia, CA, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2003 4:03 pm |
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I've been thinking about tuning to an open F for two reasons:
1) I heard a recording of Josh Graves doing Amazing Grace. Seemed like he was tuned to an open F. I wanted to try it.
2) I want to be able to play things in G and have a couple of frets below to work with. (I can always capo to get back to the open G effect.)
So I detuned (downtuned?) to F to fool around, and I liked it. Now I want to change my string gauges. I've looked at some string gauge charts and here's what I came up with (from the highest pitched string to the lowest):
C/.18
A/.22
F/.30w or .32w
C/.42w
A/.56w
F/?w
I'd appreciate any comments on or adjustments to these choices before I go out and buy a new set of strings. I especially need help choosing the low F string. (I have a Regal RD45.)
Thanks.
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Tom Olson
From:
Spokane, WA
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Posted 14 Jan 2003 9:01 pm
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I might be wrong, but from looking in a catalogue I have, the only ball-end strings available larger than the .056 are .058 and .060. If you're going to use a .054 on the second-to-lowest string, then it seems like the .060 would be the best bet for the lowest string.
With that said, though, I would wonder if you really needed to change the strings at all. For example, you'd only be lowering each string by one step, I guess. With a normal G tuning, you'd be using the .018 string for an open B note.
From your proposed tuning chart, you'd be using the .018 string for an open C note, which is, of course, half a step higher than the B it would normally be used for.
So, one way to think of it is that your proposed string gauges are a half step closer to the proper string gauge than if you used standard strings and just tuned them lower.
But, on the other hand, it's only a half step difference, AND, you're putting that much more tension on your neck, bridge, cone, etc.
Just something to think about, anyway  |
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Kevin Macneil Brown
From:
Montpelier, VT, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2003 7:56 am
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I've been tuning my Dobro in F for a while now, without changing to heavier strings.
To my ears, it makes for a "darker" sound that is especially nice for solo playing.
I also like the looser feel of the strings, along with the lower overtones that seem to bloom from the instrument.
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