The Steel Guitar Forum

I'm new to the world of pedal steel playing, and I was wondering if some of you could give me your personal opinion on what your pedal steel sounds like,and what pickups you are using...I think that we can all agree that an Emmons with single coils has a thinner tone to it than a ShoBud with George L's on it...I'd like to get opinions on the newer guitars, and how you kind folks would describe the tone of said pedal steel, and please include what pickups are on it..I'm trying to find my own style and comfort level in what steel I would like to buy new..I'd like to buy something that I can easily change copedants on, and most of all, something that I will be happy with the tone of...Thanks in advance for all or your opinions...Jim

Jim , probably the most interesting part of being a steel guitar player is the lifetime you'll spend changing your mind on what "Tone" etc; you want to produce. On the easy to change copedents, that went away with the Fender 1000. It was great in that department. You could flop down in the floor and switch a cable and you had your change done. On what kind of instrument to buy, no one can help you. Your taste will change so often,it will amaze you . IMHO, I think our fickleness is what makes this instrument so
addictive.
Jim Florence

Hello Jim,
I have a 1976 ShoBud ProII Custom with the old-style mechanics and original pickups. All I know is, when I bought it and the previous owner played it to demonstrate it to me, it sounded very different than when I played it myself. Much mellower. Most steel players I know around here have a mellower tone than I have. I guess my way of picking makes everything sound brighter. It is definitely true that a lot of your tone is in your hands, but every guitar has its own character, too. As for the tone of the guitar itself, I really think I hear some of that classic old ShoBud sound like Buddy Charleton on the Ernest Tubb records from the early ´60s (I admit that´s my ideal of all steel sounds...) not 100%, of course, but it does fall into that category. For that reason, I´m very happy with it, even if the pickups are a bit noisy.
Any guitar that you consider, you should play for yourself before deciding to buy it because as I said, it might sound different when somebody else plays it.

Regards, Joe H.

The search for tone is, in my opinion, never-ending. There will always be something, about any steel you play, that you 'wish was a bit better'. When you have remedied this supposed deficiency in your steel/amp/effects etc, lo and behold, there will be something else 'not quite right'.
I have been on this merry-go-round for 20 years, with only fleeting glimpses of the holy grail.

Getting a tone you like out of a pedalsteel is something that you cannot buy. Equipment does not have very much to do with it. I know it seems weird but it is true. Its not like regular electric guitar. Once you can get a tone you like out of any sort of pedalsteel then you can start thinking about which one you like best.

Bob

I am inclined to agree with Bob...your tone will improve with your playing tenure, regardless of what brand you buy.

Hello Jim
Welcome to the world of pedal steel.You already have been given some good advice by forum members.Iwould like to add one more thing.Tone is also relative to where you are picking.I can find what I want in my music room and when I get to the job it sounds like some other guitar.I am on a LeGrande 111 with a new Evans SE-200 amp.I use a small amount of delay and that's all.It even sounds different on a rainy day compared to a bright sunny day.So much of it is in the pick hand.Eventually your ear will recognize the right spot for the tone you are looking for.Then of course you will hear some other picker and change your mind again.I practice on a little six string lap steel quite often.I use no effects at all and it makes me more aware of the pick hand role.Good luck and hang with it .

Buddy Van

Well guys, my wife is in big trouble, because I just started playing, and I already have 2 pedal steels...Just like you have all mentioned, I like them both for different reasons... I love my Rusler for it's deep, rich, tone...Then I start playing my Emmons P/P and the harmonics jump right out of it, and I'm in another playing mood..Both great tone, and different as night and day..Looks like I'm gonna have to find a tone that is somewhere in the middle ( if there is such a thing ) and one that plays as good as it sounds, and easy to work on...My wife says if I buy one more pedal steel guitar, that she's gonna leave me !!!...I'm gonna miss her!..Jim

Jim,

It's true that alot of your tone is in your hands, but the equipment does make a difference. A big choice is, of course, pickups. Humbucking pickups do provide quieter operation, but I prefer the wider frequency range of a single coil pickup. I recently changed out my Lawrence 710 for a Jerry Wallace TrueTone on my Fessenden, and I really prefer the single coil. If I had to describe the differences, I'd say the 710 had a more compressed sound, with less highs and less lows, but a very focused sound (and the sound that you've heard on about a million records!). The single coil is more of a vintage sound, very clear and more natural sounding. Yes, the humbucking is dead quiet, and if you play on stages with inconsistent sound and lights (ever played Tootsie's?) that might be the deciding factor. And, of course, your amp and its settings make a big difference as well.

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Fessenden SD10 - Mesa/Boogie amps

I believe tone is in your hands. However I have found that personally if I am not getting the tone I am looking for, I struggle to enjoy playing on that particular night. We all know that sound is different from day to day. Regardless of how I am playing at the time a good tone really affects how well I play. A off night of playing my steel is still better than any other instrument I have tried to play.

Ok here's one for ya.
I sat down at my friend Jim Loessberg's '65 Wrap-around...didn't change the amp settings or anything......and just started playing; and he said: "My gosh Ricky; you sound like your playing your ShoBud".
Emmons and ShoBud; two different guitars in everyway....but I sound like I sound...no matter what guitar(well as long as it's a real steel guitar
So what does that tell ya???
It tells me...everyone has a sound in their head....and they will constantly try to pull it out of any instrument they play.....it may take years to develope.....but eventually; you sound like you sound.
Ricky

Adding to the 'separate but equal' tone. I have a mica Franklin and a laquer Franklin and I like them equally, but they are different. The mica is definitely better for rock and roll (the harmonics scream) but the laquer is better for jazz. I love them both. And 99/100 producers would never notice a difference.

Here is a thing I do to improve my tone.
If I feel like I don't get rich enough low mids in my sound I practice with a little crappy amp with a 4" speaker and I use what tone controls there are and turn off all the bass and turn the highs all the way up. Then I practice like that untill I am getting a decent low mid sound. Once I've done that I'll practice a couple weeks with the highs turned off and the bass all the way up.

Bob

Tone shmone!!!!!

Ricky, you are so right. I have told this story before, but during my past two-year "experimental" phase, I had quite a few steels in and out of here. I had been playing the same guitar for many years and I wanted to shake things up, and hopefully learn something in the process. What I did learn at the end of the day is that I sound like I sound no matter what I play on, for better or worse. Sure, there were differences, but in the context of a full mix they were so minor. And I'm talking 3 Sho-Buds,3 Emmons PP's, a ZB, and two Zums. There are a couple songs I cut during that time where I don't remember what guitar I used, and in listening to them now I can't tell for sure! Must be my bad ears . My friend Jody Cameron told me just to pick the guitar that speaks to you and makes you play your butt off. I think that is really what we are all looking for, the guitar (and amp) that "speaks" to us and puts us in "that zone", even if the final outcome is more or less the same on the album or in the fifth row.

tone is your soul, that can be released temporary by your hands, so you better get them ready for that

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my bands CODand TSC

James,

Here is what you want to think about most:

Imagine yourself sitting in the audience and you know nothing about steel guitar. Then ask yourself, "what steel guitar sound would I most like to hear"?

Sometimes the things you play sound good to you, and maybe even to other steel guitar players; but they may make no impression at all on the audience.

Unless you just want to keep your playing as a hobby, the most important thing that you can do is to play to the (musically uneducated) audience and give it all you've got.

Rick

Tommy, you and Ricky actually make sense. You play what you like best because it MAKES you play your best. But the reality is that, whatever you play on, if you are playing your best, it will sound like you. This has been proven so often, but it bears repeating.

Touche' Kevin...at least I'm remembered for something!

You can't "buy" the sound...you have to make it!

I totally agree with you guys. If I change anything in my set-up for whatever reason (guitar, amp, rack unit, etc.), I find myself tweaking settings until things sound 'right' (to me, anyway!) - chances are it'll sound like me (for better or worse, as someone amusingly added earlier!)

About fifteen years ago, I did a session with Albert Lee (back in the UK). The producer had a fixation that he wanted Albert to bring his old Gibson 'Black Beauty' as well as his Telecaster. (In his early years, Al was known by this old Les Paul.) We did the tracks and Albert obliged the guy by using the Gibson on two or three songs.

Five years or so later, we were driving somewhere and I came across a tape of that session. You know what I'm going to say - try as we might, neither of us could tell which guitar was on which track....

It makes you wonder why we go through all this stuff !

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Roger Rettig

From what I'm reading, I really don't need to be too concerned with what brand instrument I buy, because my signature sound will come in time, and it won't matter what steel I'm playing on ... My hands and soul will dictate what I sound like...So now all I have to be concerned with is how good my steel looks, and plays, and how well it's made...That makes life a lot easier for me since there are steels that are made very well, and look great, and play well, that cost a lot less than some other companies product..Now I can make a better decision....One thing I have decided on is that I will buy a D-10 since I will be learning both necks...The steels of today are light enough that I can manuver a D-10 fairly easily.....Thanks, Jim

This is an old timer speakin' at you now....
and what the others have said here is worthy of your consideration.
While some of the fellows will readily admit that they've gone thro' 1/2 dozen rigs or more, others will detail all of the guitars that they currently own.
Yes...no matter what it sounds like at home, it WILL sound different in just about any other location. So be it. Accept it!
Spend less time chasing "the sound" via other guitars/pickups/amps/and affects boxes, and devote that time to mastering your OWN guitar, amp, picks and EAR! Once you've accomplished that, you'll sound good on anything you pickup. Trust me!