The Steel Guitar Forum

I am in the market for a double or triple neck lap steel. What are the pros and cons of the different Fender stringmasters , Customs , Etc and what Scale length should I look for.I want to start brushing up on my western swing and hawaian playing. i'm curious about the difference in tones of the different models.
Thanks!
BB

Brice get in touch with Herb Remington for new 2 3 necks. They are better than the stringmasters ever could be. CC

Hi Bruce,
You got a lot of reading to do buddy. Try the search function for staters on this site.
I'd type in;
Fender Stringmaster, or Custom
s.s. Hawaiian
George Boards
Gibson consolette


Anybody else feel free to add your 2 cents

Hey Bruce:
I'm sure you'll get as many opinions and responses as there are pickers! I prefer a more vintage tone, and for me, my favorite is a 50's era Stringmaster, 24 /12" scale. I've owned bunch of them, and prefer this scale to the 22 1/2 or 26", plus I like the blend control, not available in the 26" scale. I've found the 50's era in general used lighter and more resonant wood, likely swamp ash, similar to the Tele's of the time. I also like that there are no obstructions of the picking hand with a Stringmaster, such as knobs, pickups or covers in the way. I also feel that a vintage tone is highly reliant on vintage type pickups, played through a tube amp. FWIW, I've also owned Gibsons, Nationals, Fender Customs, etc. and a few others, and still prefer the Stringmaster (next to the Bigsby!), but those are all nice guitars, and I wouldn't kick a nice 60's short scale Stringmaster off the stage either!
DD

Don't forget the consoles that Fuzzy makes, the Jerry Byrd model. They have great tone and hold their tuning very well. Jerry Byrd prefers the short scale (22 1/2) for bar slant work, however Cindy Cashdollar does quite well on her triple neck stringmaster with the long scale. I've had a stringmaster and wish now I hadn't sold it. Rumor has it that Sierra might be making a double neck also, the Sierra single neck has great tone also. I have a feeling that whatever you decide to go with will sound just fine with you playing it. JMHO.

Steve Cearley

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I had steady work for a couple years playing non pedal. For Hawaiian, early retro jazz stuff a bakelite Ricky panda is the ticket. I have a single neck 8 string. Glorious sustain. What a sound.

For western swing stuff I have an D8 1958 Fender stringmaster 22 1/2" scale. Nothing cuts through or honks like that sucker.

I have yet to play a non pedal (or pedal for that matter) that has more whatever it is than those 2 steels.

Non pedal steels are a blast to play and have a certain expressive quality that is somehow missing on a pedalsteel. My pedalsteel has been paying the bills these days and I have been missing the non pedals.

Have fun with whatever one of those confounding little buggers you come up with !

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Bob
intonation help

Brucemeister
The Stringmaster is the way to go, either in the mid-scale (24.5") or the short scale (22.5"). Some feel that the 50's models have the tone to seek because of the wood, but I've found great music in the Stringmaster regardless of vintage.

The other example of Fender pro-level steel, the Dual Professional and the Custom, have great tone also. Their drawback is they're short scale guitars and the pickup cover tends to cramp your right hand space when playing up the neck, like in Joaquin-ville. However for most playing, the Dual Pro/Custom (2 neck vs. 3 neck) is also a fine sounding horn.

The Herb Remington Steelmaster is a well-built guitar, no lie. But Herb uses George L pickups in them, and they simply flat out sound like a new guitar. Cindy C. was playing one at a gig here in town and from outside the club it sounded like someone playing non-pedal style on a Fessenden or some other modern guitar. It's simply the sound of those pickups.

I think the Stringmaster is the way to go for you, or else the Dual Pro/Custom route.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

many thanks to all of you for your wonderfull, valuble opinions . i think I've got a line on a 24&1/2 Stringmaster. If it's still available I'm buying it.
Pray for peace
Bruce

Hi Bruce,
I too love the sound of the 24.5 inch scale Stringmaster.

I have posted photos of mine here.

These instruments are still a bargain, even the high priced ones, at least for now.

How about Harmos steel guitars? Robert Randolph plays one. They have different pickup setups, depending on the tone you're after. The MP3 examples on the harmos website sound great.

Joey, that's a beautiful plank! Herb, are there any newer 8-string humbucking pickups that you like the sound of? Bill Lawrence, perhaps?

Bruce;
click here “Big John”


<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by John Bechtel on 01 December 2004 at 11:18 PM.]</p></FONT>

Stringmasters are great. I agree with some of the other comments about the Remington Steelmasters. They're GREAT, WELL-BUILT, LUSH, BEAUTIFUL sounding guitars. I heard a guy (not our own Ricky Davis, unfortunately ) playing a single-neck version with Dale Watson a few years ago, and it sounded GORGEOUS (sorry, can't remember the player's name). But... while it sounded fantastci (did I mention it sounded GREAT), it did still also sounded MODERN. More like a PSG without the player using any of the pedals.

The Stringmasters just have that vintage tone, especially through a good, small wattage tube amp. Here's a pic of my 24.5" T-8 at a deck luau (it was raining like hell that night) a while back. Just click on it to enlarge it. My 22.5" shortscale walnut sounds good, too, and I use that when there's not enough stage room. I do think this '56 sounds better, though.



TJW


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Todd James Weger/RD/RTD
1956 Fender Stringmaster T-8 (C6, E13, B11); 1960 Fender Stringmaster D-8 (C6, E13); Melobar SLS lapsteel (open D); Chandler RH-4 Koa semi-hollow lapsteel (open G); Regal resonator (open D or G)

I have many lap steels, but my new Harmos Model One with a Chicago pick up, and my '51 National Dynamic are my fave. I play with in David Lindley style (I'm not any where near as good as Mr.Dave, but that what I picture in my head as I play) and both of these laps nail that tone. My third choice is an old Oahu Tonemaster.

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'49 & '51 National Dynamcs, Harmos Model One, Mesa Boogie DC-3, SRV Strat.
http://community.webshots.com/user/keefriff

You could also do a search on Don Helms and Gibson Console. There are a lot of posts comparing the Gibson to the Stringmaster. Seems most say the Stringmaster is more versatile.

Dan S.
My experience with new pickups are the George L E-66, 10-1, and PF-1 pickups, the Emmons single coil, and the Wallace True-Tone. I have no first-hand experience with Bill Lawrence pickups except the 705, back in the 1980's.

I think the "modern" sound of the Remington guitar is do to the humbucking pickups used on them. I'd like to hear one with single coil True Tones, or Lollars, or another pickup of the single coil variety.

Another thing to think about is the pickup placement on the guitar. SM's had two p'ups spaced close, but with some distance between them. That positioning would alter the sound. Remingtons have only one pickup in the traditional place, and I don't think the Remington is trying to recreate the SM sound. But if I could get into a Remington at a reasonable price, I'd put a True Tone in there as an experiment to see what sounds the change could bring.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Herb, thanks for the info. I'm not familiar with the wallace true tone. I'll look them up.

I like the sound of vintage trapazoid pickups, Rickenbacher horseshoes and vintage Carvin single coil. The problem is, when i'm recording it would be great to have a noiseless pickup or one with low noise.

Hey wait a minute Bruce!

Are you the same Bruce Bouton who played the KILLER non-pedal intro on 'Boot Scoot Boogie' & the nuclear non-pedal fills on Shania's 'Outta Here'?

If you are, then you've already got MONSTER tone fella! You're not allowed to buy a stringmaster- we couldnt stand it. And G*d forbid you should ever get a'hold of a Rick bakelite! You rock man!

And these guys are givin' you advice!

Thanks again for all the great info. i just purchased a wonderfull twenty four and a half double eight Stringmaster.I'll add it to my collection of six string lapsteels. I played Boot Scoot Boogie on a custom made Glaser Lap Strat. I've done most of my slide recording with that axe. I believe Paul Franklin played that great slide on the Shania cut that was mentioned. I played slide on a song called "If you want to touch her, Ask" which was on the Come on Over album.
I wanted a Stringmaster to learn more traditional non pedal stylings.
peace
BB