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Topic: To Paraphrase Bill Gates... |
b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 9:53 am |
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Bill Gates once said "640K ought to be enough for anybody."
You can call me a troll for this, and maybe I am, but I've come to the conclusion that ...
Ten strings ought to be enough for anybody.
There, I've said it. 
_________________
-𝕓𝕆𝕓- (admin) - Robert P. Lee - Recordings - Breathe - D6th - Video |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 10:16 am
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640k........
was that per year....or month? |
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Jeff Garden
From:
Center Sandwich, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 10:17 am
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Somehow Linda Manzer never seems to get the word...
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Tom Gorr
From:
Three Hills, Alberta
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 10:58 am
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Which ten? 
Piano players the world over will disagree. |
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Ian Rae
From:
Redditch, England
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 11:59 am
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Dear Mr Moderator-Turned-Troll, I do understand what's at the back of your enlightened rant. 
Perhaps the pedal steel has grown from 8 to 10 to 12 simply because it can - you don't have to get your hand round the neck! So because you don't have to hold the instrument you can enjoy the luxury of extra strings sitting there just in case the mood takes you. (It's significant that the steel expanded as far as 14 strings but then retreated, so there does seem to be a natural limit.) In defence of the 12-string, it is really two lots of ten overlapping.
And we only use a handful at a time anyway - literally.
_________________
Make sleeping dogs tell the truth!
Homebuilt keyless U12 7x5, Excel keyless U12 8x8, Williams keyless U12 7x8, Telonics rack and 15" cabs |
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Scott Duckworth
From:
Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 12:32 pm
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I think I may stick to three pedals and 2 knees...
_________________
Amateur Radio Operator NA4IT (Extra)
http://www.qsl.net/na4it
I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus! |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 12:42 pm
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| Ian Rae wrote: |
Dear Mr Moderator-Turned-Troll, I do understand what's at the back of your enlightened rant.
Perhaps the pedal steel has grown from 8 to 10 to 12 simply because it can... |
Actually, most players went from 16 to 20 strings in the 60s. The complexity of that evolution is the number one hurdle that new players must overcome. It's time to rethink what we've become.
_________________
-𝕓𝕆𝕓- (admin) - Robert P. Lee - Recordings - Breathe - D6th - Video |
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Ian Rae
From:
Redditch, England
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 1:07 pm
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Are you referring to the transition from D8 to D10? I gather that the top two strings were added by Buddy Emmons to enable more rapid diatonic work. But I can see how they're not absolutely an essential part of the instrument and you can play a lot of music with just the eight.
_________________
Make sleeping dogs tell the truth!
Homebuilt keyless U12 7x5, Excel keyless U12 8x8, Williams keyless U12 7x8, Telonics rack and 15" cabs |
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DG Whitley
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 1:35 pm
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Jeff Newman said many times that you can get just about any chord you want with just three pedals (ABC or CBA) and three knee levers (E lowers and raises and the second string knee (whatever you want to call it)).
I will say I don't think it would hurt to have a 3 and 5 with the G#,E,F# combination on the fourth knee and the B to Bb on the vertical.
I really think that would give any starting or mid-level player all he would need to work on for a very long time.
Just my 2 cents, YMMV. |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Storm Rosson
From:
Silver City, NM. USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 4:15 pm
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In reference to the original statement, "640K should be enough for anybody"...Gates was talking about ram in a pc. He certainly came up a tad short on that supposition most modern pc's have in the GB's (mine has 32GB) of ram.  |
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Tom Gorr
From:
Three Hills, Alberta
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 4:34 pm
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So...what b0b really means is that 640k, err ten strings really isn't going to be enough as the future of steel guitar music evolves.  |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Craig Baker
From:
Eatonton, Georgia, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 5:35 pm
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There are still a few of us old guys who never get tired of Buddy Charleton. The man made his living and played some incredible music, using mostly two pedals and one knee lever. If you have a few minutes, listen one more time to his playing behind ET. Buddy never raised his E strings.
For the youngsters among us. . . Hall-Of-Famer Don Warden played his Sho~Bud standing up. . .
with one pedal and NO knee levers.
Craig
_________________
"Make America Great Again". . . The Only Country With Dream After Its Name. |
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Les Cargill
From:
Oklahoma City, Ok, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 6:21 pm
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Using the open tuning:
C E G B D F A C D# G#
you only need three pulls to get - open, no bar - 12 base notes X 14 chords = 168 chords with three pulls:
5(F)->F# ; 4(A)->A# ; 3(C)->C#
That could be two pedals, one knee.
Many of the grips look funny, and six chords won't completely spell: A#7 , A#9 , C#13 , F#7 , F#9 and F13. You can't have an F and an F# nor an A and an A# in the same chord.
I'd throw in one more knee to raise (2)D#->F and (1)G#->A to fix that.
This would basically turn a steel into an autoharp. Melodies would require moving the bar and I doubt you could even do 2-string harmony. |
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Ray Montee
From:
Portland, Oregon (deceased)
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 6:22 pm Well Doug, I sorta agree with you............
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I've found that just seven strings with no pedals provide me with all of the variables that I need during the course of a four hour playing session.
I still contend, that deciding to play a steel guitar should not be based on the total number of strings, pedals or levers. This is not like buying an RV or whatever where extra length has some importance.
I also maintain that if more students of steel guitar would spend a couple of years playing a non-pedal guitar using a variety of TUNINGS, they might more readily catch on to the basis of pedals/levers which would make the whole process easier for them. |
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Joseph Napolitano
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 7:02 pm
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| If Buddy Charleton did all that with 2 and 1, I think I'm gonna start taking stuff off mine! |
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Craig Baker
From:
Eatonton, Georgia, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 7:58 pm
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You know what Joseph? You might be on to something. Maybe that's why they're so heavy. Years ago The "Jimmy Crawford Cluster" got quite a bit of attention. I've often referred to my steel as having the "Don Warden" cluster.
Craig
_________________
"Make America Great Again". . . The Only Country With Dream After Its Name. |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 1 Nov 2014 9:38 pm
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FWIW, I said nothing about the number of pedals and knee levers. Myself, I play 5+5 and it's easy for me to come up with good ideas for more. I just think that 10 strings are enough.
Guitars have 6 and almost everyone accepts that. Nobody seriously says "you can't play {whatever} with only 6 strings" to guitar players. The instrument is as unlimited as the player's imagination.
Same with pedal steel. Look at a D-10. The same notes are available on both necks, they're just in a different order. If you learn where all your notes and chords are on 10 strings, you don't need the other 10.
Also, a pedal steel doesn't need bass notes. Our range already goes higher than a standard guitar. Nobody expects the steel player to have lower notes than the guitar player, too.
_________________
-𝕓𝕆𝕓- (admin) - Robert P. Lee - Recordings - Breathe - D6th - Video |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 2 Nov 2014 12:06 am
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Ray Monte
In 1956 when you got your quad, which tunings and changed did you ask for and why? That would be interesting as perspective.
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Chris Lucker
Red Bellies, Bigsbys and a lot of other guitars. |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 2 Nov 2014 12:39 am
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| IMHO, watching Curly Chalker play on those old Wilburn Bros. shows is enough proof for me to show that both necks are pertinent. The way he used his bass strings on the C6 never got in the way of the bass player and really enhances the chord voicings he used. I do agree that there is a lot you can do with just ten strings, but I think the difference in the timbre and range of both necks makes the psg that much more versatile. |
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Storm Rosson
From:
Silver City, NM. USA
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Posted 2 Nov 2014 8:13 am
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| b0b wrote: |
| The Bill Gates quote was part of my trolling strategy. |
...LOL, nice one B0b, I agree with u though, when I was actually playing I only had 3+2 ,heck I always thought 3+1(F)was "standard" setup for E9th and my F#>G KL was extra....duh |
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Les Cargill
From:
Oklahoma City, Ok, USA
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Posted 2 Nov 2014 8:45 am
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| b0b wrote: |
FWIW, I said nothing about the number of pedals and knee levers. Myself, I play 5+5 and it's easy for me to come up with good ideas for more. I just think that 10 strings are enough.
<snip>
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Yep. You're a hard man to agree with  |
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