The Steel Guitar Forum

I've got an elementary equipment question for ya if you don't mind - I'm looking to add effects to get some more sound out of my guitar. I've been playing for just over a year. I've got a volume pedal, obviously, and now that I can play a bit, I'm looking for whatever the next logical piece would be. Steel Driver ? Blues driver? Reverb? I realize this is a matter of opinion...

I'm basically finding that, without the extra pedals/etc, the sound fades quickly and I'm not getting the most out of the instrument.

My vote is reverb. I like the Boss RV-5.

Noel Coakley wrote:I'm basically finding that, without the extra pedals/etc, the sound fades quickly and I'm not getting the most out of the instrument.

You shouldn't need anything besides a quality amp/guitar and a volume pedal.

The issue you're experiencing might be the product of problems with the guitar/amp or it might be a matter of playing technique or even just perception.

After you make any needed adjustments to guitar/amp/technique/perception, the only pedal I would recommend is a little bit of delay.

YMMV.

There are a few unknowns in the picture. To start with, what kind of amp are you using now? I think the other comments regarding reverb (if your current amp doesn't have that), and maybe a touch of delay are good suggestions. I recently sprung for the Boss DD-7 which is capable of analog delay, and foudn it was a nice addition to the reverb in the amp. Aside from those basics, what you want will depend on what sort of sound you're looking for.

-Chuck

Noel, the Lexicon MPX 100 sound processor really helped me start to get the sound I wanted. these Lexicon units usually are fairly inexpensive. And come up for sale ocasionaly here on the forum. The Steel Guitar Black Box also is a big help! Depends a lot on your budget.And what type of Amp you have

When you say "guitar" are you talking steel or standard six string?

Noel Coakley wrote:I'm basically finding that, without the extra pedals/etc, the sound fades quickly and I'm not getting the most out of the instrument.

Assuming you have a decent amp, as a beginner, the problem is more than likely that you're not turning the amp up enough. I recommend you turn the amp all the way up, and then learn to control your volume with your foot pedal (volume control).

You don't turn the amp up to "make it loud", you turn it up so you can keep boosting the volume of the fading note (holding the note volume so it sustains at a constant level). When done properly, this method works wonders, and gives you that "endless sustain".

Donny said it so well. A decent volume pedal, and decent amp with amp reverb, and a decent guitar. Turn the amp up and control it with your volume pedal--- Your good to go.

When did you last change your strings ?
See this

What Basil and James said. That should do it. And lots of what Bobby Seymour calls a** time sitting with the instrument.

Noel,

It sounds like what you are looking for is more sustain on your guitar. You said the sound fades out too quickly. That is accomplished with a combination of things. A good reverb set up properly, some delay, a good pedal and of course the guitar itself.

Here is the problem . . How do you know what is a good reverb and how much delay, and how do you set it up properly? Right? For someone just getting started on any instrument setting up the sound can be a time consuming and frustrating process, not to mention the expense of buying all that stuff.

Beyond that, if you aske 10 different people, you will get 10 different answers.

I will probably get "beat up" for this, but I am going to offer a simple solution: A Peavey Profex II with the "Jeff Newman" cache card. It has a sampling of just about every sound you can imagine set up for pedal steel. Jeff wrote down the settings from all the 'Great" players and stored those settings on the "card". You can choose sounds from Buddy Emmons, Lloyd Green, Curley Chalker, John Hughey, Randy Beavers, etc . . .

As you listen to each player's settings you will see the diffeences in how they achieved the tone and sustain. You can then change them or create new ones to create your own sound.

There are many good FX units available, but the Profex II is the only one I am aware of that you can get those individual presets especially for Pedal Steel.

Peavey discontinued the Profex II (WHY?? - I don't know)But you can find them on the Forum with the preset Card and they are not expensive - usually about $250.

I have a ton of stuff in my studio, but I still use the Profex II for pedal steel.

Hope that helps.

Darrell

Play hard! This may seem counterintuitive if what you're looking for is a smooth sustaining sound. At first you may sound clunky and noisy, but stay with it and your hand strength, blocking technique and muscle memory will improve. The harder the strings are plucked, the longer they will sustain. Practice playing really hard and then you can back off a bit when playing "for real". Combine that with good volume pedal technique, some tasteful reverb and (to stay on topic) a little analog or digital delay (170 - 250 milliseconds). I like the MXR Carbon Copy for analog delay.

1st a bjs bar, you really will hear the differance,

what style of music are you going for? personally I use a little delay, amp reverb and a hilton v pedal and thats it. The sad truth is all that great tone from pros is really from technique. till you start developing your style you probably wont know what tone enhancement youll need/want. I have 2 different amps, a Ken Fox mod peavy nashville 112 and a fender steel king with a peavey bw 15. Id invest in as many good steel recordings as I could and listen to effects. Depending on era youll hear a lot of echo/chorus/phaser/distortion/fuzz effects added in.

echo/delay will add a cool dimension to any style without dating the sound to much.

good luck!