Who could make a Van Eps-style string damper?

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I am looking to have at least one string damper made for a 10 string steel. For those unfamiliar, a guitarist named George Van Eps invented string dampers to silence the open strings (to keep from feeding back or ringing). I'm looking to do something similar.

The damper operated with a lever, so you could lift it from the strings. Here are a few examples on Jennifer Batten's website (the pic on the upper left was taken by me):
http://www.batten.com/String-Damper-Evolution.html

Let me know if you think you know someone.
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Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

mike. these van epps units have always been hard to find. i dont ever remember seeing one come through on a guitar that i was working on over the last 40 years. i have had numerous folks looking for them...and they are usually very expensive.

now for your 10 string. for a steel, i would personally approach the damper from the underside of the string. on a steel you have sometimes as much as 1/2" between the string and the fretboard. rather than a contraption coming over and down, i would try for something coming up...and using the fretboard to push against.

also another issue i see, is the 10 strings themselves. that is a LOT of strings to push down on. a lever coming over will have to have at least two arms to press down in order to cover all the strings with enough pressure to dampen.

also on some of my underarm guitars i have found it really only necessary to dampen maybe the three lower strings, as you are pretty much in full contact with the uppers.

if you are looking to dampen the strings ALL the time...you can get by with something very simple such as just a felt piece under the strings at the bridge. the intricacy of the design comes when you are talking about something that will quickly flip on and off.

so what i would start tinkering with would be a gadget that would work off sliding upwards to make contact with the strings..say on an angled ramp under the strings at the bridge.

or you could have an round rod with a small handle on one end. it could have a piece of hard foam glued in a strip. as you grabbed the handle and turned the rod, the strip would make contact with the strings. the handle would be best put on the upper string side...easily flipped with the pinky finger.

the unit might have to be placed at the bridge end of the guitar before it would really work the best with a steel guitar. but if you lift the bar a lot and play, the nut would be fine.

just some thoughts.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Those are really good, practical thoughts, Bills. It makes sense to approach from below.

I had one of these dampers and I remember the material that made contact with the strings. It was a dense, wool-like, felt material. Not sure what it was called, but if I could find that stuff, I could cut a nice strip and place it underneath.

I don't always want it "on", so maybe I could attach a handle to it to flip it down, but the mounting opens a whole can of worms.

See, the problem is I switch necks often and want to leave both necks on and can't stand when I am jumping necks and the result of pulling the bar off the strings is unwanted open strings ringing. It's almost unavoidable without too much effort.
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Rich Peterson · From: Moorhead, MN

Jennifer Batten and Michael Angelo Batio each sell string dampers. Check their websites. They use them for two9 hand tapping.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I just realized that I have some heavy duty 1" grey foam in my garage. I'm going to cut a few pieces and try that for now.
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Eric Philippsen · From: Central Indiana, USA

String dampers. Wow. Here's some background of mine and a possible bright bit of news for the future about them.

I have used a string damper on my main gigging 6-string archtop for a at least 15-20 years or so. It mutes the open strings to prevent them from sympathetically vibrating. Since most jazzers rarely play an open string one doesn't miss those 6 notes. To my ear and for my technique (or serious lack thereof) it really cleans up my lines and close-fingered chord voicings. In short, only fingered notes ring.

I get a LOT of questions about the damper from those who see me using it. A lot.

I was fortunate in that I purchased it many years ago from a guy in Minnesota who made them. I never could, and still can't, find an old Van Eps or Gibson string damper so I had him build me one which he was doing on a special order basis. As it turned out, I was fortunate to have done so. His health was failing even back then and he had to discontinue making them.

Yes, there are dampers made now. The ones made by Jennifer Batten come to mind. However, they are plastic or nylon, I believe, and, in my opinion, look kind of big and clunky. Again, that's just my opinion, at least for how they look on a jazz archtop.

But here's the good news. Some time ago I took several archtops to Dan Erlewine's shop in Ohio for repair. Elliot, one of Erlewine's luthiers, saw the damper, asked about it, and took detailed pics of it. Later, he emailed me to say they were considering manufacturing them. However, I don't know what stage they are in that process now.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Here is a pic of mine (I did sell it a few years ago):

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Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

Glenn Uhler · From: Trenton, New Jersey, USA

Gentlemen:

If any of you would like to try a piece of this felt as a starting point for a string damper, let me know. It's 1/2 inch thick, and I've got enough for dozens of dampers.

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John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

45 years ago, I was playing in a Mothers-style band, using a big fat arch top Gibson. Of course I had feedback problems! Went to a music store in Chicago looking for a damper. They didn't have one but gave me an address and apt. number. Told me to see the guy who lived there. Went and knocked on the door GVE answered! Got mine from him directly! Too bad the guitar was later stolen!

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

Wonder if mounting one at the changer end might not be quicker and easier to use?

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

Get a piece of foam pipe insulation at Lowe's. Cut it with a pair of scissors or a knife, and slide it under the strings. Done deal.

Cool

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

"and slide it under the strings. Done deal."

Donny,
That would take too long, and be unwieldily when jumping between necks. Mike needs something he can use very quickly.

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

Mike,
Long ago, I had a Japanese guitar that had a mute mounted on the bridge. You just gave it a quick flip.

Larry Dering · From: Missouri, USA

John, I had a Teisco guitar with the same mute on the bridge. Made it sound more like a banjo when applied and played. Gotta love the 60's. Mike should just hire a Hula Girl to lay that palm leaf on the strings when needed.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Stephen Gambrell · From: Over there

The mute pads at the bridge of a Gretsch 6122 are awful. They shorten the guitar's scale length, without telling the frets about it.
Didn't Herb Ellis use some kind of damper, at one time?

Dave Mudgett · From: Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee

The Van Eps dampers are nice. I played one on a guitar in Connecticut 30 years ago, but I've never been able to find one to buy either.

I agree on the Batten and MAB dampers - they cover up too much 1st fret real estate for my tastes.

Eric - I'd be real interested if Erlewine's shop starts making these for production. This seems like something a good machinist could turn out pretty easily. Unfortunately, I'm not a good machinist, nor do I have access to a machine shop these days (that was one of the perks of teaching in an engineering college).

Jerry Hedge · From: Norwood Ohio U.S.A.

Herb Ellis used a Van Epps.

Stephen Gambrell · From: Over there

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

"The mute pads at the bridge of a Gretsch 6122 are awful."

I used to borrow a White Falcon, 35 years ago. It had the split mutes, one for the bottom three, one for the top three. They worked great!

Dustin Rhodes · From: Owasso OK

A lot of guitar and bass players are using fret wraps. Obviously they wouldn't work on a steel as it wouldn't wrap around the neck but they're very simple devices and it shouldn't be hard to have someone make something similar.

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

Mike,
How about some pics of the guitar? I still think a damper at the bridge end would be the fastest and easiest to use.

Jerome Hawkes · From: Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA

i think the first version of the Gibson Console Grande had something like you are talking about - due to there being no selector switch so you had a Van Epps style damper to mute the neck you were not playing.

i can send you one of those felt blocks or you could go to a sign shop and maybe buy one - they use them to install vehicle wraps - they are very durable
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John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

JN,
You are correct! I have the prototype of the Gibson, a 1937. Those parts are missing now, but the mounting holes are there. That's one of the reasons I think a mute would be quicker, and better, at the bridge end of Mike's guitar. I hope he posts some pics, cuz that may give me some ideas about how to build them. I think it would be easier to use the pick hand to operate the mutes, rather than the hand which has fingers holding the tone bar.

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