the right bar pressure

[Damiano Missiroli]

hi all, i'm a pedal steel newbie.
i'm struggling to find the right bar pressure on the strings: if i press strong strings goes sharp, if i'm more gently strings make some annoying buzzes.....this happens more around 12th fret and more on the bottom strings.
i can't find a balance.
heavier strings gauge can help?
any suggestions?
thanks

[Marco Schouten]

You need to use as little pressure as possible. Make sure that the pressure is evenly, so not all pressure on the back of the bar and not all pressure on the nose.

[Kevin Barber]

Yes, what Marco said.

I had that same problem (buzzing noise) in the very beginning of learning, and I am still a beginner, but what I found that helped me with the buzzing noise, is to make sure you keep good, constant contact with the strings with at least your pinky and ring finger of your bar hand, BEHIND the bar. This cuts down on most of the annoying buzzing and weird tones from the strings, or it did in my case.

This may or may not be the proper way to play, but it works for me.

Like I said, I'm still a raw beginner and this is just MY experience in dealing with that problem, but yours may be something different.

Hope this helps, a little anyway.

[Rick Barnhart]

You're on the right track, Damiano. You've identified what happens when you use various degrees of down pressure with your bar. You just need to practice your technique to avoid unwanted results. Find a pressure that produces the tone that pleases you, then practice being consistent...over and over and over again.

[Daniel Policarpo]

Here's a little thing from a Jeff Newman course,,,

[Bob Hoffnar]

You are using WAY to much pressure on the bar if you are pushing strings sharp ! You will have tension in your hand that will cause injury if you practice or play on a regular basis. Also your tone will always be choked and thin. And without having your hand relaxed there is no way to play in tune. The level of accuracy needed is not possible with stress in your bar hand. Players that have tension in there bar hand also have a nervous ,wiggly and annoying vibrato. Without a relaxed bar hand you will sound like a demanding goat with bad ears that is on the way to the hospital to get carpal tunnel surgery.

Check out how classical violin players hold there bow. Completely relaxed yet firm.

If you can't find a live teacher get a Skype lesson to show you. Do it now.

[Bill C. Buntin]

Get the right size bar for your hand. I struggled with this for years. If you have small hands, a 1 inch or maybe even a 15/16 bar may be too large. I played a 15/16 for a number of years and it was fine. After a sabbatical I started back with a 7/8. I think the 7/8 gives me better control.

There are other factors which have effects on this. Some steel guitars have graduated string rollers at the nut which make the string surfaces as even (or at the same height) when you place the bar on fret 1.

It is a very good test to lay your bar precisely across fret 1 with minimal bar pressure then go down through the strings and see if you are getting clear notes from each string. If you are not, then a person naturally compensates with bar pressure.

There is a very good fix for this, regardless of what size bar you are using.

Order some high quality custom string rollers. Jim Palenscar makes them. Steel Guitars of North County, in Oceanside CA.

These rollers will eliminate most bar pressure issues.

I had them on my 2 Emmons guitars, on 1 MCI and now I have them on an EMCI.

I agree with the previous statements that if you are having to press down hard enough to make the guitar go sharp, That is WAY too much pressure.

Fret 1 IS the ultimate test. Jim's rollers are so well made, particularly if you are using standard gauges, There is no noticeable difference in the heights of the strings, all the way across.

It has been my experience, this AND making certain of proper seat height, position behind the guitar and the guitar as level as possible.

[Damiano Missiroli]

All great advices, thanks. Too much tension and pressure on the bar in my left hand tecnique. I was pressing too much on the back of the bar.

[Quentin Hickey]

Basically I will use slightly less than will change the pitch for a good clear tone. Especially when you get down close to the roller nuts.

[Ian Worley]

...you will sound like a demanding goat with bad ears that is on the way to the hospital to get carpal tunnel surgery...

[Jason Lynch]

in addition to Jeff newmans pic, I also place the thumb down on the bass strings to mute them. try that.

[Don R Brown]

Damiano, it's way easier to have too MUCH pressure, than not enough. I find I just press enough to have control of the bar, and to be sure it's firmly against the strings. It does NOT work like a 6-string, where you have to force the strings against the frets - this calls for a very light touch.

Do not worry, once you get the feel for it, it will become second nature and you will no longer even think about how hard to press.

[Michael Hummel]

I remember when I was starting (and sometimes even now) when I was playing around the 12th fret, I really noticed the sound of the strings sounding below the bar. I wasn't muting the strings behind (to the left of) the bar properly. When you are playing at the 12th fret, the pitches of the string sections to the right of and to the left of the bar are about the same, so your ear really notices the beating effect.

Maybe you need to make sure you have your left hand fingers covering the strings you are playing so they are properly muted. This helped my "buzzing" situation quite a bit.

Mike

[John Cadeau]

The right bar pressure is the weight of the bar itself. You don't need to put any more pressure on the bar, as long as you are holding it properly.

[Damiano Missiroli]

Great advices, guys. I've purchased a n heavier bar that helped a little. I just lay it on the strings with no pressure at all. Good intonation and little buzzing, no buzzing at all through the amp.
Thanks

[Dan Robinson]

Good luck, Damiano. Smart of you to seek advice on this. I regret not doing the same long ago.

I have caught myself putting too much pressure on the bar. I think it was not deliberate, but developed over time until it was ingrained in my technique. I had too much tension in my arms and shoulders. Sometimes after playing for 20 minutes my left hand was becoming numb. Tension in muscles and tendons were impinging on the nerves in my neck and left shoulder.

I had to teach myself to relax. Needless to say, as with un-learning any bad habit it required lots of repetition. When applying slow/soulful vibrato to a passage I still sometimes "dig in hard," rolling the bar instead of sliding it for the emotion in the sound.

I normally use a 7/8" bar. Jim Bloomfield let me try his John Pearse 1" heavy bar a couple of weeks ago (thanks, Jim!). I liked it a lot! Definitely adding a heavy bar soon.


Jim is using the heavy bar on that D10/PP.