The Steel Guitar Forum

I have a Mullen Discovery. Added split tuning, 5th KL, and a half stop… I have been thinking of moving to a Royal Precision SD10. Would I notice that much difference in sound and feel? Any advice will be appreciated.

Hi Larry, I've never owned a Royal Precision but can give you my opinion comparing a G2 with a Discovery. That being said, I did get to tune and play a Royal Precision that 1 of my students would bring for lessons, once every 2 weeks. Honestly, I find the Discovery plays, tunes, sustains and sounds very much like the G2. The pedals on the G2 may play a little easier but not so much that after playing the Discovery for a few minutes, you wouldn't even notice it. The knee levers feel the same to me. As far as tuning, they're virtually the same as well. No over return compensators needed on either guitar and both guitars hold their tuning well. The Discovery may have slightly more cabinet drop but I tune mostly by ear and have never scoped it on a tuner so it's no concern to me. I find the sustain of the 2 models very similar(very good), with the G2 slightly having the edge in the upper register. Again, not a huge difference. As far as sound, they have many inherent qualities. Even though the changers and some other parts are different, I think the biggest difference in tone comes from the wood neck on the Discovery compared to the aluminum necks(on mine) on the G2. All that being said, they do sound very much alike when I play them. So much so, that this year, the Discovery will be my main steel for live gigs, if I don't need the C6th.

According to the information contained in a Youtube video (posted by a Mullen dealer), the changer and undercarriage are basically the same on both the 'Discovery' and the Royal Precision'.

Thanks for your thoughtful comparison. Sounds like I wouldn't find that much difference Dale and David.

Larry,

Here is the Discovery demo link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_b3GLhjsvE