The Steel Guitar Forum

Okay, now that I have learnt my first song.
I am having so much fun here I want to get a Resonator. I am gonna keep this little Roustabout it is a great instrument. But I have been lookin' at a couple Reso's- Since I don't have a lot of cash, got to go low end. I will gladly accept donations towards a Gibson Dobro. I played a Regal rd45 and rd75 both are within my budget is there a big differrence in the two? The RD75 sounds a little better. If I decide to do the Quarterman upgrade would it make a great difference what stock Regal I get? What about the nut? does a bone nut really make a difference?
And could the upgrade work on a Johnson?
Sorry for all the questions I'm sure they have been asked before. But I am just having too much fun here. When I started playing again it all kinda came back to me. Like the bar just feels like part of my hand even though its been over 20 years. I just need to get some little stickers to put on the neck to number the frets above the ninth (it takes to long to count) I don't have a problem on my standard- go figure?
Anyway thanks for any info and all the help for what videos and books to get for beginners.

Hi Cindy,
I have a RD-75 and for the money,I am very happy with it.The quarterman up-grade is something that I am thinking about myself!It
sounds pretty good allready so Im not sure if it worth it or shoud I just save for a better one?But knowing me,I'll probubly do the upgrade!I think that a bone nut dose make a difference and if you go with the RD-75,it comes with a bone nut allready.I have only played a few Johnson brand Dobros, but they were all of a little lesser quality.IMHO
Dont worry about not being able to buy a high end Dobro right now.The important thig is to just get one and start haveing fun and pick'n.Good luck and let us know how you make out.

------------------
Sho-Bud ProII
"there's been an awful murder, down on music row!"

Cindy,

I think mine's the R45, and I love it. I've never played anything else, though, but I've recorded many, many songs with this and -- it sure sounds like a nice resonator guitar in the mix, and that's what counts.

Al

Cindy, Here's some info on the Regals.
http://www.folkofthewood.com/page156.htm

Check out the rest of the site as well. I got a RD-45 from them a while back. Replaced the stock cone with a Quarterman(recommended)Seems like a decent guitar for the money.

I think the wider string spacing on the RD-45 is a big advantage. I played one at McCabes in Santa Monica and it sounded real good with comfortable action. I checked out a RD-75 a few weeks later and did not like the narrow string spacing. The spider on the Regals looks like it is not metal but maybe plastic? The 45 seems like a good deal. The style and construction look good and the brand name has a history linked nebulously) to Dobro.

Any feedback on the new Johnson Tri-cone square-neck?

Haere mai
Steve H.
S8A6

The Regal spider is metal. The one on the RD45 I used to have was not at all flat and level on the bottom and had to be sanded down a lot to get a decent tone.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Alan Kirk on 24 October 2003 at 09:09 AM.]</p></FONT>

Regals are okay starter dobros. But even with a bone nut, ebony bridge and Quarterman cone mine does not have the loudness and depth of tone of the more expensive pro models. Buying a cheap Regal to get started and then upgrading it later with Quarterman is a good way to spread out the costs during a learning phase. But I don't think buying a new Regal with the cost of a custom Quarterman upgrade added on is a great idea. If you can pay that out of the starting block, save up a few hundred more and get a real American made pro model.

Somehow Regal got the look, but not the essence of the sound. If they had paid as much attention to exactly copying the insides as they did the outside, they could have done a lot better for the same price.

I sold my RD-45 and bought a much more expensive Tut Taylor Virginian....Now the Virginian has a much more refined tone, and looks to kill, and better quality all the way around, but I had to go out an buy another RD-45 because I LOVED the string spacing, and also that funky, dirty, bluesy , tone that it gives after the upgrade...My Virginian is a real lady and sounds just as sweet as she can be, but my Regal is a nasty o'l brawler that likes to play in the dirt !!... What I'm saying is , it all depends on what you need your instrument to do... I can swat flies with my Regal , and not worry about it... I wouldn't let a fly around my Virginian !!..Jim

I bought James Q's RD-45 which he had upgraded and I couldn't be happier. Maybe because it's the full mahogany model - neck,sides,back and top - it has a more complex tone quality - warmer than a couple of spruce topped RD-45s I've checked out. I've put a Fishman transducer on it but haven't needed to use it yet because the 4 jobs I've played it on have been totally acoustic strolling and barnyard gigs and the thing has plenty of volume for that w/the Quarterman mod.The other good news is that it paid for itself plus a little more on those 4 gigs. It would take at least $3k to improve on that guitar dramatically enough to get me excited - so I'm good to go for a while with this particular RD-45.I'm getting ready to do some recording with it in the near future and I'm anxious to hear how it sits in a mix. Thanx James. -MJ-

Thanks everyone for the great info.
I think I will stick with the RD45. I like the wider string spacing and the tone quality is fine for the price. I don't think I will do any upgrading. For a beginner it is okay. If I want to spend more money it will be MUCH later.
Is there a difference in tone and sound depending on what strings you use? I want the blues, rock-a-billy sound. I know techninique is probably most important. ;o
I wish there was more Dobro tabs to be found on the internet. The problem I have is with all the different tunings. ARGH! I am used to getting tabs for my standard guitar.
Oh yea does anyone use the Red Rajah on their Reso-Dobro?
I tried the Stevens bar and even though it has the flat grooves I find it tends to be a little heavier than my Rajah and wants to slip in my hand. I went back to using my Rajah, think there will be a prob. with technique?
Everyone seems to say to use the Stevens bar.

Anyway - Thanks everyone!<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Cindy Burch on 28 October 2003 at 05:34 AM.]</p></FONT>

I've had some good dealings with Folk of the Wood. If you ever want to trade up, they will allow you what you paid on a trade in.

The Stevens type bars are probably what you are going to end up using so why not start now. With all the bang and clatter going on on a resonator guitar you need all the clarity you can conjure up. Besides good technique,this means having as hard and polished a bar as you can and this case a little weight is your friend. Anyhow,plastic bars tend to sound scrapey on the wound strings and they're not as easy to tilt and tip as a bar with grooved sides. I use a Shubb SP-2 which is a nice combination of shapes and hard smoothness and gets a great tone without breaking the bank.Weight is relative I guess,because I came to dobro from pedal steel and after years of slinging a 4" x 1" 12 string bar around,a dobro bar weighs nothing to me so you can get used to anything. -MJ-

Cindy, just stick with GBDGBD low to high to start out with. That is what 95% of Dobro players use. Try this link for TAB. http://www.squareneck.com/Tablatureindex.htm
Have fun!

I have an RD-45 and the spider definately looks like it is plastic.

I stand corrected. It is metal. <FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Richard Sinkler on 31 October 2003 at 02:59 PM.]</p></FONT>

Hey Richard. It just looks plastic. It is coated black.
How do you like playing it? And the sound?
I don't know much about Reso's, but I don't think a plastic spider would work at all.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Cindy Burch on 31 October 2003 at 11:17 AM.]</p></FONT>

Cindy, you might want to try the Scheerhorn bar, designed by Ron Tipton. They're available from Elderly Instruments, and have wider, deeper, more pronounced grooves for your fingers. A LOT easier to hold on to. They're kind of expensive, though, but Dunlop makes a knockoff version, that's available for 20 bucks or so. You might give 'em a try.

Thanks Stephen.
I'm doin okay with the Stevens.
But I still like the Rajah I can't put it away.
It works great for me. I like the round tip too.
So I will use both depending on what music I am playing.

Cindy... It is coated black and when I touch it, it feels plastic. Could just be the coating though. I am not brave enough to take it apart. As far as the guitar, if you're not expecting it to sound like a $4000 sheerhorn, then you will be fine with it. I just play around the house so it is fine for now. Although, I did get the Alison Krauss DVD and CD and am really impressed with the sound Jerry Douglas gets with his Dobro (OMI) and sheerhorn reso guitars. Makes it hard to play mine after that. If I can get some money out of my divorce (from the house), I will probably buy a good reso.

Good luck in your ventures.

Richard, the Dobro brand name is no longer owned by OMI. It now belongs to Gibson, and they went through a lot of stuff when they took over the name. They didn't want "dobro" to become a generic term, ala "Kleenex," or formica. That's why you hear the term "reso" used. But it's a hard habit to break. I want to put on my CD, "Steve Gambrell--lead guitar and Guernsey" But everybody'd think I was playing a cow--you can't win

Richard if your bar is a Rajah. I have a Red Rajah.
It is Metal with a powder coating.
Kinda sticks in my hand but not to the strings.
I'm not sure how they make it.

Stephen, thanks. I already knew that about Dobro, but my brain is only running in first gear today.

Cindy, I use a Shubb-Pearse bar similar to your Stevens. I think it is an SP-2 (not sure). It has no curved ends on it for better pull-offs (so they say). I would be interested in trying the one with one curved end on it.

Hey Richard I'm sorry.
I thought you were talkin' about the bar.
There is a black on that is extra hard.
Duh.. brain burp.

As far as rounded tip goes I have no prob. with pull offs and it seems like I have more control over where I hit the string.
Everyone has there own preference I guess.

On the spider mine has a spot you can see some of the paint is off it is metal under it.
I am pretty sure.