The Steel Guitar Forum

i got a black one but still sound bad, does it help to paint the legs black too?

What about white guitars?

Mike, White is really fantastic too, but I think if it's combined
with Red or light Blue it's better sounding and plays smoother too.
Carl

I keep waiting for someone to tell us about BLACK picks, bar, strings, etc.

Roual Ranes wrote:I keep waiting for someone to tell us about BLACK picks, bar, strings, etc.

...you mean like this?

I've only owned one black mica steel and it did have a wonderful sound, but I don't know that it sounded any better than the mahogany mica one I'm playing now.

The solid black is less visually distracting than the busy look of the wood grain sim though.

Of course the 2 or 3 Red ones I had were also great sounding too, so........?

...what Herb said...

My white guitar is not as fast as my red one but as a result I play the white one with more accuracy because I have to take my time on it. Mostly, anyway....

Bob Tuttle wrote:Jeff Newman used to say that RED guitars played faster notes than all the others.

Quite a few years ago, Big Jim Baron hosted an event in Sacramento with Jeff, Bobby Black, David Wright, and Jay Dee Maness. Jeff brought 2 guitars, a Carter and a Zum, both of which were red. One was solid red, the other had a checkerboard design with red and white squares. I forget which one. I thought the Zum had a little bit more presence in the low end, but they sounded almost indistinguishable from each other.

Bobby Black played a Carter, David used a Sierra, and of course Jay Dee had his Emmons.

All 4 were onstage, Sometimes playing together and trading lines, and sometimes just one of them would play by himself. If I remember correctly, it was the first time Jay Dee had performed as an soloist at a steel guitar event.

It was a wonderful event, well worth driving 400 miles each way to attend.

and i think that was the same affair that vance terry would wander up by the stage, cracking jokes. tom bradshaw had the million pedal vance sierra on a brad's rack there.

Red certainly looks faster.
Although not proven, there is a long standing urban myth
that police seem to pull red cars over more frequently for speeding,
while white and black cars moving just as fast sail by.


Clete

chris ivey wrote:and i think that was the same affair that vance terry would wander up by the stage, cracking jokes. tom bradshaw had the million pedal vance sierra on a brad's rack there.

That's right Chris. Since you were there, did you notice any difference in the tone between Jeff's Carter and his Zum?

mainly i remember thinking that they were all 'real' steel players and no way would i have played in front of them.

Maybe black guitars sound better because the cooler musician's prefer the color black?

The color of the last guitar I bought was based on hearing this saying from many different steel players that I knew. Most of those guys are gone now, but I think black on a steel guitar demands a certain amount of respect, not so much that it sounds better. Crazy I know. tommy t.

Sound only exists in the mind. So if you think black guitars sound better they do sound better - to you.

Black PSG's sound best.
I had a gray PSG that sounded good __ I refinished it black and then it sounded great.

I could have had black, but I felt my life needed some excitement... so I stepped out and went with Red.

oh, now I know why black keys on piano sound better than white...

Db

I've had A Lot Of Steels And The Best Sounding One I Ever Had was A S10 White PP Emmons.Wish I Had it Now. SONNY.

i'm in the process of buying a black guitar.. I figured I might as well TRY to sound good...

Well, my next steel is going to have this painted on the front apron!

Mike, why does Berkely and Mr. Leary come to mind?

Actually, black is the absorption of most all incident light. Perhaps the electron orbits of the material are more energetic.

GO PHOTONS!!!

Well, my current guitar-a Jackson BlackJack Custom is a black guitar and to me, it's the best steel I've ever played. I still love my GFI-"Redgold Beauty", but the Jackson's got that amazing playability, tone, sound, smooth pedal action, and everything. The Jackson Blackjack Custom is my best steel.

Brett

I wear a red shirt that matches thr red fret markers on my Black Mullen G2. The visual impact helps me play better. No, really it does! Don D

Mike that picture looks like Walt Disney threw up.