Mica Covered Steels-why do you play/prefer one???

Tommy Bannister · Post by **Tommy Bannister** » 24 Mar 2012 4:28 pm

Ken Byng wrote:Todd is right - Pro 111. That guitar will sound more Emmons than Sho~Bud.

ken has 5 or 6 of the top steel guitar makes of steel guitars plus a webb 614e but ken sounds like ken to me whatever he plays on any make of guitar!!!

Joseph Meditz · Post by **Joseph Meditz** » 24 Mar 2012 5:04 pm

I can imagine a mica guitar sounding better, and I can imagine one sounding worse than a lacquer one. I think the reason so many people play them is because they are cheaper and more plentiful. This is good for the builders as well as the consumers. One can glue and nail the body together and then cover it with mica, and no one will be the wiser. The reason black sounds better is because they too are more plentiful. Again this is because it is easier for builders to stock one color. That's all well and good. What I don't understand is how it came to be that the '50s kitchen counter style with its tacky chrome edgings become an accepted aesthetic for a PSG. Granted some mica in vivid colors and inlays can be very attractive. But plain black?

I do think that Sho-Bud got the aesthetics right a long time ago. Those guitars are beautiful. And they didn't do too badly in the tone department either.

Tommy Bannister · Post by **Tommy Bannister** » 24 Mar 2012 6:35 pm

Tommy Bannister wrote:
Ken Byng wrote:Todd is right - Pro 111. That guitar will sound more Emmons than Sho~Bud.
ken has 5 or 6 of the top steel guitar makes of steel guitars plus a webb 614e but ken sounds like ken to me whatever he plays on any make of guitar!!!

i#d nrver argue with ken byng,he has a greater knowledge of steel playing plus steel guitars than I ever will have,plus a greater sence of responcability to us forum members

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:49 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:50 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:51 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:53 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:54 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 12:56 am

I prefer the mica tone with the ears and the lacquer look with the eyes. Are there builders that experimented with lacquer-layers to get the same sound as a mica covered guitar?

regards, Johan

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 25 Mar 2012 1:02 am

something wrong with the posting....? The delete-box is also dissapeared. Virus??

Howard Steinberg · Post by **Howard Steinberg** » 25 Mar 2012 4:41 am

In 1985 I sold my mica MSA D-10 that I had been playing for about 8 years. I did a lot of gigs with this guitar and can honestly say that the guitar looked the same as it did the day that I got it. I sold the guitar for exactly what I paid for it. This was at a time that it was really difficult to get MSA parts.

I replaced the guitar with a stunning Mullen D-10 that has a blue lacquer finish. The color was extraordinary until I played a bunch of outdoor gigs where the guitar was partly in direct sunlight. The color of the guitar is now a dull greyish blue. It's not horrible but it's nothing like it was in it's youth. There are numerous bar dings in the top as well.

I don't see how it's possible to generalize that one type of guitar sounds better than the other. Not only is this a subjective area but it would seem necessary to A - B the same guitar in mica/lacquer to form an opinion.

As beautiful as a wood and lacquer guitar can be, my next guitar, which is on order, will be finished with mica. Were I ever to have a wood guitar again it would have a natural finish which would likely age more gracefully. Howard