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basilking
Lokahi
125 Posts |
 Posted - 02/01/2012 : 2:38:00 PM
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[quote]Originally posted by basilking
Was outa town fr early Dec til last week, picked up converted-to-8-str OMI Dobro en rte home. It's a beast.
String-spacing's ok but complexity of overtones/"richness" of sound really stands out to me [& luthier too]. He replaced the maple saddle with brazilian rosewood. Don't know that's the key, could be voodoo, but goodness-sakes-alive it doesn't sound "dobro-whiney" at all. Very loud [if needed] but fat tone. Now have the acoustic version of my sgl Dlx Fender 8 that I'd fantasized. Gotta learn to play it better now...
Before [L] & after [R]:
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slipry1
Ha`aha`a
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2012 : 08:25:21 AM
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| Good! I have 3 resonator guitars - my old 8 string Dobro from 1977, and a 6 and an 8 string koa/spruce top made by Dave Krause of Seattle in the last 2 years. Instead of screens, Dave carves out dolphins, which REALLY makes them look Hawaiian! I have the 8 stringers in C6/Bb with a G on top, and I keep the 6 string in B11. They're great for kanekapilas where there's no electricity. btw, since there is no plywood in the Krause guitars, they are as rich at the neck as they are open. The sound of my Dobro thins out as I go up the neck. I'll post some pics later. |
keaka |
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basilking
Lokahi
125 Posts |
Posted - 02/12/2012 : 9:37:57 PM
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Thx, Jack. Current "issue" is that a BIG/less-than-ideally-manipulatible Ernie Ball "bullet" steel [~11 oz] sounds "best" from this Dobro. Fat & sweet.
I've a 7.5 oz Robt Randolph tm steel for my Dlx 8 that's much more physically tractable; sadly its sound w/8-str Dobro seems clearly thinner/more strident to me & to my Hawai`ian wife [blind-tested w/her].
I've ground a rounded "toe" on the Robt R'dlph, it's pretty functional, physically. The harder-to-slant/etc "bullet" steel just sounds better on the now-8-str Dobro.
Any thoughts?
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slipry1
Ha`aha`a
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - 02/20/2012 : 8:52:25 PM
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| More than the steel you use, it's the material the Rsonator guitar is made of. Dobros are all plywood, so their sound gets thinner as you go up the neck. My Krauss resonator guitars are solid koa with a Sitka spruce top and maple innards, so they sound rich and full all the way up the neck. I use a heavier John Perce 5/8" bullet bar because it rests well on the strings. That helps the sound, too. Slants are easier with a bullet bar, too. btw, Alan Akaka insists that the bar should NEVER be lifted off the strings unless you're doing single sting stuff. String blocking is done with the right hand,like pedal steeler do. Alan got this from Jerry Byrd. |
keaka |
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10 String Lap Steel?
