The Steel Guitar Forum

I'm TOTALLY new to steel guitar and got my a new Jackson on Sunday.

It might be because I come from the finger-picking world, but my low strings are always booming and my high strings I always have to pop hard to keep things even.

I have an old 80s Ibanez CP9 that I'm thinking of adding to the chain. It's kind of a dirty compressor, but I'm not too worried about that. Sometimes I see Dynacomps in the for-sale section, but I don't see many people talking about using them.

Do you use one?
What do you use?

I've tried DynaComps with steel. Too dirty, although for six-string with a volume pedal they're the bees' knees.

For steel, the best results I've ever gotten are with an Alesis 3630 rackmount comp/limiter, but for stage use the Keeley Compressor is adequate; not quite as clean as the Alesis and you do have to go light on the sustain, but a stompbox is much more portable than a rack.

I tried a compressor when I started but my right hand technique only improved when I ditched it.
I would respectfully suggest that you concentrate on the basics before experimenting further.
If you think about it, your volume pedal is already a compressor and it's smarter than an automatic one.
There is a lot to said for practising occasionaly without the pedal to check your attack and voicing.
Welcome to the world of pedals, the best mental puzzle ever devised!

I recommend that you not use a compressor, particularly when first trying to learn PSG. You need to develop your right hand touch, and a compressor hides your faults. You need to hear those faults and correct them.

I briefly used a Dyna Comp many decades ago. It did not make me a better player.

Lower your pickup on the bass side?

I would check amp settings before doing that

Yes, like so many when I first started playing 30 some years ago I used a compressor and it didn’t help my playing. The idea of adjusting the pick up on the bass end is a good one. More important though is just what they call “seat time”. Practice your picking dynamics with your right hand, muting with both hands and volume pedal technique. Eventually this will not be an issue. On my Fender 400 (because I want to sound a bit like Sneaky Pete) I do use a very slight amount of compression but that’s only because I don’t really use the volume pedal with that guitar. You should learn the proper techniques and once you do, this will not be a problem.

Paul Sutherland wrote:I recommend that you not use a compressor, particularly when first trying to learn PSG. You need to develop your right hand touch, and a compressor hides your faults. You need to hear those faults and correct them.

I briefly used a Dyna Comp many decades ago. It did not make me a better player.

This is sort of what I expected to hear. Im still working just to get comfortable with hand grips.

I generally hate using claws on my right hand-- not for guitar, banjo, or PSG. I wonder if that's part of my experience.

Ian Rae wrote:I would check amp settings before doing that

I actually don't play with a lot of bass in my signal. I think there's usually enough bass in the sound with a 15", so it sits at maybe 2 most of the time. I have cranked my high end for the PSG, though.

I concur with all the others here. When you're beginning, you don't want the distraction of another gizmo to fiddle around with. You need an amp with decent reverb, a volume pedal, and a good guitar. Everything else should come along only after you'e achieved a modicum of skill on the instrument.

Paul Sutherland wrote:I recommend that you not use a compressor, particularly when first trying to learn PSG. You need to develop your right hand touch, and a compressor hides your faults. You need to hear those faults and correct them.

I briefly used a Dyna Comp many decades ago. It did not make me a better player.

What Paul said. Learn to master picking, damping, and volume pedal technique. Until you have done that a compressor will be a hindrance not a help.

I used a Dynacomp in the 70's and 80's, but not for sustain or to even out my picking. I set to "squish" pretty dramatically to get a "popping" type sound similar to what Tele and Strat players were getting. I used one of those dual headed 1/4" adapters to plug it directly into my guitar, only plugging it in to get the effect. The rest of the time it sat on top of my amp. I haven't used it since the mid 80's.

Using it to even out your picking attack will only help you not develop proper picking technique.

i've been experimenting with compressors for a year or two now; wampler, keeley, tc electronics and empress. i've tried pre and post volume pedal. after all that time of fiddling, i can say pretty definitively that none of them have made me sound any better.

On my Ric 12-string, a compressor is nearly essential.
For pedal steel? No chance.

Jacob Yergert wrote:
I generally hate using claws on my right hand

Finger picks are better, tone wise compared to bare fingers in my experience.
They do take some getting used to and getting good tone out of your hands will take awhile.

Ken Metcalf wrote:

Jacob Yergert wrote:
I generally hate using claws on my right hand

Finger picks are better, tone wise compared to bare fingers in my experience.
They do take some getting used to and getting good tone out of your hands will take awhile.

Do you have any suggestions on how to shape them? They just feel so unnatural to me. I have pretty fat fingers so they either don't fit, or the tip of the pick feels like its a mile away from my actual finger and I cant find the string. I don't mind thumb picks, but I could never use fingers picks on the guitar or banjo, and I was hoping it would feel different on the steel, but it DOES NOT.

Everyone does their finger picks a little differently.
This is how I do mine. I use ProPic angled from Elderly.com
You would use needle nose pliers and bend them according to your preferences.
I typically get my fingers wet to help them stay on.

Click This
https://tinyurl.com/y8vprbpm

I know it looks like I have fat fingers but my fingers are actually pretty thin.
This comparison might show you that they are on fairly tight.

I use the Opti Comp compressor in my Zoom MS50g. I never play without it, even at home. This unit takes the note and maintains its volume without pushing your volume pedal. Each and every note is in your face. You also do not hear it “squish” or compress the attack. Mileage and other units may vary.

Hi Jacob! A few thoughts if you will.... forget the compressor and work on technique for the next few years. Finger picks are a difficult thing to use at first. I'd say get the ProPics then get a pair of Dunlops and Nationals too. Within a year or so you'll settle in on what you like. Same goes for a thumbpick except for shaping it. Get a third finger pick so you can wreck it while figuring out how to shape it with a pair of needle nose pliers. If completely new to fingerpicks they will hurt for a month or so regardless of how well you shape them. Remember when you started to play guitar and your finger tips hurt for a month? Same principle I think. You have to develope callouses on your fingers. Gonna take awhile.

How about learning materials for pedal steel? That is your next headache! It took me five years to suck and at the ten year mark I could become a dry sponge ready to absorb the wisdom of the ages. Unless you are a prodigy expect a loooong learning curve. That can be regarded as unexceptable and frustrating or you become stubborn and dig in for the long haul and eventually "get it".

Jacob Yergert wrote:
I generally hate using claws on my right hand-- .

Yes, everybody does at first. Very few pedal steel players do not use fingerpicks. I don’t think Bobbe Seymour did but not too many others. It’s something you have to get used to. I did it by wearing them around the house, even when I wasn’t playing. I do bend mine pretty radically along the end of my finger. After playing a lot of years, I can feel the strings because the picks are part of my fingers now.