The Steel Guitar Forum

Being new to Lap Steel I have been playing around with the Don Helms E6th with the g#/IIIrd on top, and I do like it, but I really seem to feel more at home on the A6th, with e/Vth on top. Having played guitar for many, many years the E9th w/pedals, and E6th are easy for me to know where I am at a glance on the fretboard, but the A6th still throws me a bit. I'm sure I would feel right at home in G6th. Anyone here play in G6th ? I'm not concerned with sitting in on someone elses guitar so that is not an issue at all. I have a Fender Dual Professional 8 coming soon. The front neck has had some pedals added to it so I am planing on setting this up in E6th, and I am thinking G6th on the other neck would be a good choice. The Dual Professionals are pretty short scale so I know I need to add this into the equation. I also thought that since my Dobro needs to be restrung that a G6th on this might be nice for those accoustic get togethers. Any thoughts or comments will be valued.
Thanks,
Fred

Mike Auldridge recorded his, "Eight String Swing," CD in G6 tuning. Judging from the sound of that I'd say that G6 is an excellent choice for Dobro. My understanding is, though, that most people prefer the higher tunings on electric instruments. How would you feel about a high C6? From High to Low G-E-C-A-G-E-C-A. Same intervals as G6 and A6 but up higher. The high G is one half step lower than the high G# on your E6.

I played dobro before I played non-pedal steel so G6 seemed a logical choice. The first 8 stringer I had was a single 8 Fender Custom, the same as the Professional but just one neck. I put that in G6 and it worked for me. I now have a triple 8 Remington and use G6, C6, and the Don Helms E6 with the G# on the first string. The G6 and C6 both have the 5th on top so are the same voicing in different keys. I'm a firm believer in what works for you is the right way. I have a good friend who is a real fine dobro picker and has a single 8 steel and an 8 string dobro and tunes both of them to G6 from high to low GDBGEDBG. I've played that dobro a few times and it drives me nuts but he plays and it sounds great. I have noticed not many here seem to be using the G6 but I have several tunes I like to do on a regular basis with that tuning. Find what's comfortable for you and go with. Anyhoo, that's my free advice.

I use the same tuning as Dave's friend (G to G), but it seems to be a very rarely used variant, and I really don't know why. Actually I've used those intervals tuned anywhere from E6 to A6 at various times, but I seem to be settling on the G6.
The 6th tuning with the 5 note on top, and then the 6 note on the bottom (e.g. ACEGACEG low to high)seems to be the most popular, but a tonic on the top seems to me a whole lot more useful than a 6 on the bottom. Asfar as the actual note, or key, you tune to, as Dave says, it's a question of whatever works for you, that you're comfortable with, and also maybe what sounds best on your particular guitar.
Nick

Gary Morse's Resophonic Rodeo is in G6th. The song list is all standard western swing.

Amen to G or G6 tuning on Dobro. This is a longer scale instrument than my lap steel, so watch those gauges. With a G Tuning on an 8 string, you can put a 5th D on top, or a 6th E on top and have heavy enough string gauges to get some tone without breaking anything.

A while back I hit upon a slightly different approach to G6 on six string lap steel and Dobro.
Low to high, the notes are: G-E-D-G-B-D.(A chance five minute conversation with Paul Lacques was partly inspirational in this; he mentioned using a tuning with the 6th out of sequence)
I had always liked to tune my middle D up to E for swing tunes and for the easily-obtained minor triad shapes it enabled, but having it right in the middle of the instrument never felt right for more Nashville-y or bluegrassy stuff, and it messed up my Dobro-learned scalar muscle memory. Retuning on stage between songs was a nuisance.
Having the notes "out of order" solved those problems for me, and was surprisingly easy to get used to.

DGEGBD on my resos.

I play swing and I have to comp rhythm as much as fills. this is the ideal tuning for me on a 6 string.

I play Weissenborn in G tuning and have been looking for a 6th tuning. So which tuning is prefered? GBEGBD or DGEGBD. Does having the root on the bottom does have some advantage?

There are probably nearly as many 6th tunings as there are guitars. On 8-string steel I use a standard C6 (with B11 and E13 on the others), but on acoustic I find that too shrill. For a while, working out of "Dobro" tuning, I simply tuned the low D to E -- still not happy. Found myself happier with a hybrid: BDEGBD. For now.

I found that a low C6 works just fine on an acoustic guitar of any type (E-C-A-G-E-C) from top to bottom. You won't get much in the way of Banjo rolls out of that tuning, though.

I use G6 (D1-B2-G3-E4-B5-G6) on both my lap steel and dobro. It's easy to grab the relative minor or any chord and a string pull behind the bar on the high B gives you the 4sus. An added advantage (for me, anyway) of using that string order is that dropping the E down to D puts you right back in standard dobro tuning. I don't use that tuning much because I prefer swing and Hawaiian grooves but on the resonator it's good to be able to pick bluegrass now and then.

I have a Guernsey 800-8 tuned to G6:

EGBDEGBD

Love having the E in there. Would like to have another whole-step interval in there, like an A or a C. Sometimes I raise the low E to F so I can get a 13 chord, or lower it to D for a big fat G.

cheers,
Drew