The Steel Guitar Forum

for those who play standard E9th or extended E9th and wish to expand their rhythm playing capability, how about adding a 4th pedal (or wherever you want to put it) that lowers string 7-F# down to E and string 9-D down to B together?

This would allow you to get fat, strummed chords. When engaging this pedal, you would get B-B-E-E-G#-B-E-G#, which is 8 strings in a row of strummable Emaj chord that you could carelessly strum without worrying about grips and hitting a "wrong" note. It would be especially handy for rock/blues style rhythm that could be done on the bottom 4 strings (B-B-E-E), and adding the upper register strings together with the bass will give you some good folky strumming/finger-style picking options. Again, without having to be super careful about hitting a "wrong" note.

I did something similar on my U12, my zero pedal left of my A pedal lifts string 1 a tone, string 2 a semi tone and lowers string 7 to E. As the Uni tuning does not have a D on string 9 a chord can be strummed across all 12 strings and sounds pretty amazing.

I also made a little gadget which jams the zero pedal on which leaves my foot free to engage other pedals, so other combinations can be strummed, not always over all 12 strings but offers some interesting combinations.

Great fun

On my ext E9, my RKL lowers 2,7,9, so I have a strummable A major or C# minor across the middle 10 strings.

Geoff, I also started on a universal and didn't have to worry about the 9th string D, but that 7th string was necessary to get out of the way for good rhythm strumming. I'm curious about the pedal-jamming gadget you made. I'm picturing in my mind a brick or large rock laying on the ground beside your pedal that you use to keep it pressed down

Ernest, your lever is like the pedals down version of the
rhythm pedal. I think most E9th setups have that 9 string half-tone lower to C# lever already, and adding the 7th string lower to it might be an easier solution than adding a whole new pedal. Great idea.

Jacek Jakubek wrote:and adding the 7th string lower

Don't forget to put a half stop on the string 7 lower. It works like P5 on C6, among other uses.

Jacek Jakubek wrote:I'm curious about the pedal-jamming gadget you made. I'm picturing in my mind a brick or large rock laying on the ground beside your pedal that you use to keep it pressed down

Yes, I had a Dutch friend many moons ago who had a converted ambulance he travelled about in. He developed a cruise control system that featured a brick on his accelerator pedal

My gadget is a wee bit more subtle than this, I'll post up some pictures when I get a chance. Not sure if it would work on any other steels other than the new style MSA's but I'm sure something similar could be devised for other makes & models.

Edit...

OK here's some pix and an mp3 of something I'm currently recording using said gadget. Picture 3 & 4 show it in position, in picture 4 I'm depressing the adjacent pedal to show how it is inserted into the gap.

Here is a tune I'm working on just now with just the steel and a bit of bass.


http://www.jifferama.uk/jifmusick/Hengilas.mp3







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The pedal steel guitar is a lead instrument. Just sayin'.

Johnny Cox wrote:The pedal steel guitar is a lead instrument. Just sayin'.

One of the things I love about the pedal steel is how versatile an instrument it is

It’s a lead instrument in the same way that a screwdriver is for opening tins of paint.

I'd sure have a ruff time strumming the low 8 and not hitting 1 and 2. I'd look into Travis picking on your steel. Check out Bobbe Seymour. You can get some awesome stuff doing that. BTW, hitting 1 and 2 would make a nice Maj 9th but that is not a chord for the timid. Ron