The Steel Guitar Forum

I really don't play very many "bad" notes...

I perform at least 6 to 8 hours a week, but I don't practice enough on a regular schedule.

Honestly the few mistakes that I make usually involve starting a melody, lick or solo on the wrong string.

(I play a 13 string lap steel, so there are quite a few more than your average 6 string or 8 string lap steel)


In the past I tried using a few colored wound strings and it helped a bit, but I didn't like the sound of them, and the color wore of quickly and the strings went dead.

Anybody else have a problem picking the wrong strings occasionally?

Not so much with 6 string, but when I was playing 8 string it would happen on occasion... I'm sure I would get lost all the time on the beast that you play.

I play a 12-string pedal guitar and I have no problem as I see it as three groups of four.

I would find 13 disorientating as there is no obvious symmetry. There are quite a few 14-string PSGs around but I've never been tempted. Maybe 12 is a natural limit.

I just got my 8 string lap steel a short time ago and this (hitting wrong string) is the beast I am currently battling, along with changing from Dobro tuning to C6, which has it's own set of challenges.
I am confident that if the Lord gives me enough time I will get there but the thought of 13 strings blows an old man's man.
You are a braver man than I, Dom.
BTW, mistakes prove mortality and add color to your playing.

I just got my 8 string lap steel a short time ago and this (hitting wrong string) is the beast I am currently battling, along with changing from Dobro tuning to C6, which has it's own set of challenges.
I am confident that if the Lord gives me enough time I will get there but the thought of 13 strings blows an old man's man.
You are a braver man than I, Dom.
BTW, mistakes prove mortality and add color to your playing.

Ian, your "grouping" of 4 strings is a great idea...

I just realized that I do that myself. Because I have no problem playing a 3 or 4 note chord on the top or bottom strings, and picking licks and notes on those are easy.

But it is always the middle (7th, 8th & 9th) strings that I confuse sometimes. They are all wound and similar in size.

Maybe I should go back to a single colored string for one of those to give me a quickly identifiable landmark to locate the note I am looking for, since this usually only happens when I am limited by song tempo to find it in time.

I think a single coloured string might do it.
My "anchor" string is number 8 of the 12, bottom of the middle group and easy to spot. I play an E9/B6 setup and strings 5-8 are at the heart of both tunings.

I don't know how you tune your 13 strings but there must be somewhere in that lower middle region which would make a good point of reference.

I have a 14 string and the fret board has wood grain. I used the grain as a reference to make sure I'm picking the right string. perhaps some north to south markers on the fret board would help.

I guess I'd ask how long are you playing this 13 stringer? If it's been quite some time and you're still struggling, then perhaps one or 2 strategically placed colored strings would be helpful.

I know when I moved from playing 10 strings to the 14 string Sierra pedal steel, it took a few weeks to acclimate to it, but I was fine after that period.

FWIW, I used some machinist's blue on the 9th string of a 12 string I have once. Just in one 2 inch or so spot to mark that string. I didn't notice a tone difference but then those strings were old.
Of course, it won't help on a darkened stage...

Jerry; I am ashamed to say I have been playing 13 strings for a few years now... and I play a lot! 4-6 gigs a week.

It's only on a few songs that I will sometimes start on the wrong string, and its only the first note of a lick or melody I have played a thousand times. But it's usually when transitioning from playing chords while singing to the solo instrumental. It's now become a bad habit and I need to practice practice practice those transition jumps (and consciously eyeball the correct string well in advance)

Dom, I noticed that upright harp players have colored strings in places on that multi string monster. Must be how they choose groups. It's got to be a challenge.

There are two different scenarios where I start on the wrong string and the first has to do with being able to see. If the lighting is too low or too bright it can cause me to pick the wrong string because I just can't see them. I can play a standard guitar with my eyes closed but with a steel I need to see the strings AND the frets in order to play the correct sting AND note.

The second, I hate to say, is poor memory. As I get older it's a fact that I have to practice a LOT more to remember lyrics and melody lines. Sometimes I start on the wrong string because I can't recall what the right one is and makes no difference how much I practice.

You have to have those coloured strings on a concert harp (all the Cs and Gs I believe) or you'd stand no chance!

I've thought about putting colored horizontal strips between the pickup and last fret on steels, haven't gotten around to it, but also think it's importat to do rudiment drills like the 4 basic triad grips on e9 so that the thumb, middle finger and heel of hand can feel where they are at "home base" or moving exact increments, 1 or 2 strings at at time.

Probably if you're working tunes from memory, looking back and forth LH to RH isn't going to slow you down but if you're reading sheet music, Nashville chart/tab, etc it will.

Similar: https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=2886065

***UPDATE***
For what it's worth, I ended up using a red sharpie permanent marker to color my middle string. It's not really that obvious. You wouldn't even notice unless you looked closely.

I just finished practicing a few of the places that have missed the correct string in the past, and it definitely helped. On my steel guitar it's the "A" string which just happens to be the root note of the major chord found at each fret position. That helps too!

I am sure that it will wear off in time, so I will keep a red sharpie in my gig bag to touch it up when needed.