The Steel Guitar Forum

For those of you who have a low E on the 10th string what gauge do you use and what pulls (if any) do you use?

I have been using that for a long time on my 10 string Marlen steel. I I have it on a lever with the 2nd string going down, & tune it to a Low D note with that, it comes in handy with that change on there. I use that on the LKR, and raise the 9th string B to D on the LKL [which also takes the 1st F# up to a G# at the same time.
I sing & play a good bit anymore & would be lost without that rhythm chord down there on the bottom. My main axe however is an old 72 MSA S-12 U so I still have it on there also.

Ernie

I Tune 10 to F# and Raise to A w/RKR, and Lower to E w/P-6. Still Playing w/string guages using .050w Now. Seems to work OK.


WADE

Twayn: I use a .056 on my 10th string, forgot to answer that question

Ernie Pollock

A .056 on the 10th string feels just right for a 24" scale to me

A good change for a low E string is to lower it to C# along with your 4 & 8 E string raises to F. That will give you an E9 version of the C6 "BooWah" pedal. Another good change is to raise it to F# which would eliminate the low 4th on the B6th side. I had it once as an extra pull on my B pedal. That way when I lowered my E's for a B6th I could add the pedal for a B7 and the low F# would add a low 5th to the chord. I'd try a .056 for that string. JH in Va.

I use a .054 or .056w, and only lower the string with my RKR to a D. (I use E 13th tuning)

Thanx,
Jim

Thanks for all the replies! When I put the low E on my guitar, the only string I had was a 58. I'll try a 56 and 54 and see if one of those will help my bar sit right at the first fret. Right now I need to press really hard at the first few frets to ge the bar down on the other strings. I've also found that I have to play with a really light hand further up if I want to NOT press the low E out of tune. I assume this problem is just part of the territory...

One of the changes I've thought about for this string would be to raise it up to an A on the B pedal, but I'll need to order some parts before I can really experiment with any changes. For now leaving it at E seems to work pretty well, but I'd still like to experiment with some other options!

You might want to get a deeper nut roller from the manufacturer, just for that 10th string. I did that when I had a Williams D-10.

b0b wrote:You might want to get a deeper nut roller from the manufacturer, just for that 10th string. I did that when I had a Williams D-10.

Good idea, once I settle on a gauge, I'll do that!

I use a .54 because that's what comes with the Jagwire 12-string universal sets.

I lower to C# with my F lever for that low root note in the A+F position.

I raise it to F# on the same lever that lowers my E's a half step for that low fifth note of the B chord at fret zero.

I think raising this E note to an A will not sound good because it's just too much of a jump. To me, the maximum raise or lower that can sound OK is 1 and a half steps, and even that's pushing it.
try it out for yourself, thought. I wouldn't think so unless I had tried lowering a note 2 whole steps. It didn't sound good. even though I could use the note,
I removed the change.

If you want the low A note, I think it's better to lower the B string to A either on a pedal or knee lever.

Jim Bates wrote:I use a .054 or .056w, and only lower the string with my RKR to a D. (I use E 13th tuning)

Thanx,
Jim

Jim, Whats your copedent.

Bill,
I will try to attach a power point chart with my E 13th setup.(h-l) G# E C# B G# F# E D B E

Thanx,
Jim

Hey Jim, your E13 is similar to the E6/9 (E13) copedent I use.

Here's mine, pretty close to Nashville E9, but with the power chord on the bottom and no open D. Also, I've reset the RK levers to something that makes more usable sense to me.

Of course, that low E doesn't have anything on it right now, and I'll have to decide exactly what I want before I order the parts.

Twayn, I second what b0b said, a bigger grove in the nut roller will put the top of the low E string more in line with the rest of your strings, so you will not get a buzz with your bar close to the nut.

I also would suggest the E->D, as this can be a great rhythmic bass move (i.e. rhythm & blues stuff).... looks like you could add it to your RKR?

I also notice you don't lower your 8th string down to D (to replace the 9th string D). You will be missing some sweet moves without this in your copedant. Might consider adding a LKV to give more options? Seems there's always "one" more move we want to add

Twayn..try lowering the 10 to a C# with your LKL and lowering your 9 to an A with your A pedal, raise the 9 to C# with your C pedal, also your RKR.......Larry

David Wren wrote:Twayn, I second what b0b said, a bigger grove in the nut roller will put the top of the low E string more in line with the rest of your strings, so you will not get a buzz with your bar close to the nut.

Absolutely! The more I play it, the more I realize I need a new roller nut for that low E. I really like having the bottom end there so it ain't no experimental flash in the pan!

I also would suggest the E->D, as this can be a great rhythmic bass move (i.e. rhythm & blues stuff).... looks like you could add it to your RKR?

I don't think I'll put anything else on the RKR, I don't want to muck up the 2nd string feel stop and it's a pretty stiff pull as it is with a foot on the volume pedal. Any move on the low E will probably be on one of the pedals and not a lever.

I also notice you don't lower your 8th string down to D (to replace the 9th string D). You will be missing some sweet moves without this in your copedant. Might consider adding a LKV to give more options? Seems there's always "one" more move we want to add

My thoughts exactly! When I get around to the vertical lever, that's what I plan. It'll lower the B's to Bb and the 8th string E to D.

Larry Allen wrote:Twayn..try lowering the 10 to a C# with your LKL and lowering your 9 to an A with your A pedal, raise the 9 to C# with your C pedal, also your RKR.......Larry

Wow, I gotta think this one through a bit! Although I'm not putting any more changes on the RKR, at least for now!

I did have the low B drop to A with the A pedal and I liked that change a lot with the (now missing) 9th string D returned to C#. The A+B pedals made a really quite nice A6, but I desperately wanted that low E, so out it all went! Wouldn't lowering the 10th string E 3 half steps make it bit too floppy??

I set up my RKL with a 1/2 stop to lower the 8 & 4 to Eb and then D. Works easily and also works on the minor (B pedal with LKL) to run your bass down chromaticly. Larry

Oh yah..the lowered 10th to C# isn't floppy..I'm using a .054. I can send you a copy of my copedants on email if you'd like.....I can't post it on the forum (no computer).Larry

Twayn I use a .052, I do not raise/lower it at this time. I have tried lowering it by just retuning it to see how it would lay in a chord, it was to loose for me and lost it's effectiveness because it was whimmpy.

I also just installed gauged rollers on my PP, helped a bunch.

Larry Behm
503-722-7562

Larry Allen wrote:Oh yah..the lowered 10th to C# isn't floppy..I'm using a .054. I can send you a copy of my copedants on email if you'd like.....I can't post it on the forum (no computer).Larry

Sure, thanks! The more info the better.

Larry Behm wrote:Twayn I use a .052, I do not raise/lower it at this time. I have tried lowering it by just retuning it to see how it would lay in a chord, it was to loose for me and lost it's effectiveness because it was whimmpy.

I suppose that is the logical way to find out! 0.54 seems to be the most popular choice, so I think I'll go with that and see how it feels. I want to decide which pedal I'll put the 10-string change on so I can order the right parts and at that time I'll also get a new roller.

Thanks again for all the suggestions folks!