O pedal

[Dennis Voges]

Hi Everyone

Just learning to play the pedal steel guitar and was wondering what is the 0 pedal and should I focus on this pedal while learning.

Thanks
Dennis

[Jim Pitman]

I've been "just learning" the pedal steel for 45 years and look forward to some responses as I too have been considering adding a pedal to the left of pedal 1 (pedal 0).
If I recall most folks use it for a specific "lick" change. What that is, I don't know.
I have a G#, strings 3 and 6, dropping a half step change to yield a minor chord on pedal 4. Perhaps I'll move it to pedal 0 and revert back to what pedal 4 is typically used for, raising string 5 a whole step.

[Richard Sinkler]

You'll find the majority of players with a zero pedal will have what's called the "Franklin Pedal". It lowers the 5th string to A, 6th string to F#, 10 string to A. Some that have the 6th string lower on a knee lever will only lower 5 and 10 to A, and combine it with lever to get the full Franklin pedal. The Franklin pedal is not just a "lick" pedal. When combined with lowering 4 and 8 to D#, you get a partial B7 chord (no root)on strings 4,5,6,8,10. 1 and 7 work too. This chord position was explained by Paul on his talk tape on the Franklin pedal.

[Rich Peterson]

Hi Everyone

Just learning to play the pedal steel guitar and was wondering what is the 0 pedal and should I focus on this pedal while learning.

Thanks
Dennis

The answer to your second question is "No." Focus on first two pedals (A &B) and the knee levers lowering and raising the "E" strings. And learn bar slants.

[Jon Light]

0 pedal is whatever you want it to be. IMO its function should be something that you decide you want to put there. Until you decide "I want to try this or that on my 0 pedal" and set it up as such, it has no reason to exist and should be ignored. And yes, Franklin pedal is one widespread use. I have something different there and I have seen yet other different, very cool things.

[Richard Sinkler]

0 pedal is whatever you want it to be. IMO its function should be something that you decide you want to put there. Until you decide "I want to try this or that on my 0 pedal" and set it up as such, it has no reason to exist and should be ignored. And yes, Franklin pedal is one widespread use. I have something different there and I have seen yet other different, very cool things.

I added a zero pedal (kit) on my Carter for the Franklin pedal. I never used the Franklin pedal, so I used the pedal for experimentation, but found nothing I liked. When I found out how uncomfortable it was to hit that pedal in that position, I removed it and sold the kit. Plus, as a Day player, I found the Franklin pedal more suited to pedal 4. Still didn't use it. Have the B strings lowering to Bb on pedal 4 now.

[Ian Rae]

History lesson required please. Did Paul Franklin's invention of the "Franklin pedal" bring the 4th pedal into being, or was he finding a fresh use for something that was sometimes already there?

[Chris Brooks]

I suggest having your 0 pedal flat the G#s to Gs.

Not only does this give you a minor chord without moving the bar away from the "no-pedals" position but it is convenient for alterations of the minor chord.

GmMaj7: 0 pedal plus E to D# lever.
Gm6: 0 pedal plus A pedal. (Note: this is also a C9!)
Gm7: 0 pedal plus D# to D lever.
G half diminished: 0 pedal plus B to A# lever.

So if you are playing a blues in G, you can go from I to IV without moving the bar--with different voicings from just mashing AB (IV chord).

[John Sims]

My 'O" pedal raises 6 a whole tone.

[Chris Brooks]

Interesting, John.

[Chris Brooks]

Interesting, John.

[Johnny Cox]

The fact is pedals are numbered 1 thru how ever many you have. The only brand of guitar that has a pedal to the left of the normal pedal 1 is MSA. They have a true O position. Still yet when you have one it's the 1st pedal. If one has the Franklin pedal on the 1st pedal of the guitar it's P1. Then they may have A on p2, B on p3 ect.
All this conjured up terminology like 0 pedal and Copeeedant is hog wash. My advice to any new player is to get a guitar with the standard Emmons setup and learn to play what's on that. That will keep you busy for 20 years or so. Don't bog yourself down with lick pedals that you will over use.
Just 2 cents from a 50 year pro.

[Ian Rae]

"Learn to play what you have" is good advice. In my case it was the Day setup, but it makes no difference.

Later I added extra changes as my musical needs developed so that I now play a complicated universal, but no way could I have started out on what I have now - I would have been totally confused and it would have distracted me from learning basic technique.

[Richard Sinkler]

The fact is pedals are numbered 1 thru how ever many you have. The only brand of guitar that has a pedal to the left of the normal pedal 1 is MSA. They have a true O position. Still yet when you have one it's the 1st pedal. If one has the Franklin pedal on the 1st pedal of the guitar it's P1. Then they may have A on p2, B on p3 ect.
All this conjured up terminology like 0 pedal and Copeeedant is hog wash. My advice to any new player is to get a guitar with the standard Emmons setup and learn to play what's on that. That will keep you busy for 20 years or so. Don't bog yourself down with lick pedals that you will over use.
Just 2 cents from a 50 year pro.

When I put on a "zero" pedal onto my Carter D10, the guitar was pre-machined for 10 pedals, one being to the left of the first standard pedal (zero position?). I called it pedal 1 though. I think the rationale for it being called the zero pedal was that if you were talking to someone about that pedal, without them having prior knowledge about what you have on it, he would assume you were talking about the A pedal.

Never liked the term copedant either. To me it's either tuning or setup.

[Ian Rae]

Just learning to play the pedal steel guitar and was wondering what is the 0 pedal and should I focus on this pedal while learning.

The short answer is absolutely not. And when people who have been playing for some time start asking about a fourth pedal, I am tempted to ask whether they have exhausted the possibilities of the third already.

[Edward Dixon]

Hi Everyone

Just learning to play the pedal steel guitar and was wondering what is the 0 pedal and should I focus on this pedal while learning.

Thanks
Dennis

Do you have a 0 pedal on your guitar?
What string(s) does it affect?

It is more important in the beginning to KNOW what strings are affected by pressing any pedal or lever and how the strings are affected in order to understand what you are doing, musically speaking.

You could name your pedals Bill and Sally and Ted and Alice. Nobody would know what your talking about but you can still name them any way you want. 0 pedal or P0 is not a precise term agreed on by all. OTH the Franklin pedal refers to particular changes on particular strings.