Dobro simuator, from Boss.....

[Tor Arve Baroy]

Hi, I have been looking for a dobro sim to use on my lapsteel. I play it in a dobro tuning, so the licks are the same as on a dobro. I have tried the Boss Eq trick, faders up-down-etc..., but did not like it so much. I tried the Resonator pedal from Tom Bradshaw and really liked the sound of it. It gave the sound an acoustic quality. Loved the sound. But when I tried to use it in my setup, it could not provide enough gain. So when the pedal was engaged, the total volume was about 90 % of the volume when the pedal was in bypass mode...even with the level control set at 100%.

So I had to abandon that pedal even though I liked the tone, and mr. Tom Bradshaw was great to deal with. A very helpful man.

But, I needed a dobro sim for my gig this weekend, and as I was looking for my Boss eq pedal, I came across another pedal. The Boss AC3! Its an acoustic simulator pedal. And even though its not AS nice tone as the MXR, its was way better than the boss eq.

So I used it for my gig this weekend, and It will probably be staying on my pedalboard

It worked great

Have anyone else tried this pedal for a dobro sim?

[Bill Rowlett]

I've used that pedal for resonator sounds for many years. I usually use a Goodrich plastic bar with it, but sometimes use the regular bar for an old table steel type sound.

Bill

[Don Mogle]

I wonder how the Boss EQ would sound combined with the acoustic simulator?

[Jack Hanson]

Tor & Bill,

I have tried my BOSS GE-7 as a Dobro simulator and it seems to do a credible job, but it is very, very noisy.

I also have a BOSS AC-3, but apparently have never been clever enough to experiment with it as a Dobro sim. In fact, I have been disappointed with this pedal since I bought it, and have always considered it to be fairly useless.

I would be curious of the settings you guys are using on the AC-3 for resonator sounds.

Jack

[Steven Paris]

Jack, that Boss GE-7 would probably work great if you changed out those old, noisy chips for something better----like BurrBrown OPA2134s. Also replace those awful sounding tantalum electrolytic capacitors with mica film types. Now this conversion isn't exactly easy, as several of the old, noisy chips are on the now-obsolete SIL-8 form, and the capacitor replacements are tricky to get on the board, because they're larger. I would suggest you get a bonafide studio engineer to do the work. The results should be fantastic!

[Jack Stoner]

I have a DOD FX40B EQ. Its nowhere near my Goodrich MatchBro (none of the others I've tried or heard comes close to the MatchBro), but it does a credible job for what it is. Our Lead Guitar player has used it and liked it so much, he bought one.

[Richard Sinkler]

I've used a Match-Bro, a Bo-Bro, and am using a Danelectro Fish an Chips 7 band EQ. Around $30. For one or two songs a night, it's plenty good enough.

[Steve Lipsey]

I agree on the GE-7 noise - and there are kits out there with the chips in them, or you can send it to Analogman to be upgraded - I have one of those and it is noise free...

But I'm using the Fish & Chips for dobro sim (on my Melobar lap steel), just for practice, I use a Beard Road-o-phonic for gigs..I think that the showmanship of playing a different instrument actually registers with the audience, and hammer-ons and pull-offs work a lot better...

I use the GE-7 to EQ my amp for the Beard when I switch from pedal steel, so I don't have to twiddle knobs on the amp from the steel setting...

[Jack Hanson]

Jack, that Boss GE-7 would probably work great if you changed out those old, noisy chips for something better----like BurrBrown OPA2134s. Also replace those awful sounding tantalum electrolytic capacitors with mica film types. I would suggest you get a bonafide studio engineer to do the work.

Excellent advice, Steven. Alas, if I only knew a bonafide studio engineer.

Jack

[Steve Lipsey]

here are the kits, if you are handy with a soldering iron...
http://www.monteallums.com/pedal_mods.html#bossge7

[Tor Arve Baroy]

I at work now, and cant remember my exact settings, but I want to add that it sound good in a band setting. If I did studio work or a bluegras gig I most likely wouldnt use it...

Nothing beats a real dobro

[Richard Sinkler]

Tor is right. I would never use a sim in the studio. I would encourage them to hire a good Dobro player. But, for live stage work they are acceptable. The way I set mine up is, the first slider down, the next all the way up, and keep repeating that pattern. I have seen others post that they start with the first one all the way up, next down, and repeat. I haven't tried that way of setting up the sliders. You can also tweak the settings. I had to take the 2nd slider and move it to the halfway point to help tame the low end.

[Tor Arve Baroy]

Ive tried that setting on a boss eqpedal. But i was actually refeering to the boss ac3, that ive started using now

[Robbie Daniels]

I have been using Bradshaw's Resonator and to compensate for the volume loss I have increased the volume slightly on my amp as well as making slight adjustments on the treble and bass controls and have been making it work quite nicely in the band setting. I agree that I would not use it in a recording venue. Volume pedal controls the output of the resonator, then the player comes in.

[Scott Appleton]

Yep the gain structure needs to be looked at .. I've just used a fishman Aura
as a booster after the sim .. seems good for live .. I've got it set up on its
own bypass .. sitting in the back of my amp .. then a/b between my regular
reverb,delay, trem and boost pedals ... you don't need any of those things on
when in the Dobro sim ... just a little amp reverb .. good to go .. oh I've got the
a/b switch as a single button on a mono cable to the effects patch .. so I've got one floor set up with the regular effex and just the one extra cable with a little
single footswitch box . . I currently us ether a Vibrasonic with the neo 15 or a Kemper Profiler with a closed back single 12 Celestion ..

[Nathan Guilford]

I use an AC-3 with a 6 string slide guitar. That gives a pretty convincing dobro sound.. at least enough for the bar crowd! Well...shouldn't say that. The bar crowd is often not listening. Um.. I guess I'm saying I think its good!