Effects for pedal steel?

[Mark Dershaw]

This may shock some players, but I have never used reverb or delay on stage. I know it has it's place in the studio, but as far as I'm concerned, there's already enough mud on stage. I love to play clean and clear and be heard! For distortion, I go back and forth between the Proco Rat and an Ibenez Tube Screamer.

[John Bechtel]

My main Effects that I use with my PSG are Delay & Reverb, which I acquire through my Alesis QuadraVerb Plus External~Effects Processor in varying amounts, of Mono-Delay and Stereo~Delay.

[Tommy Shown]

I use a Digitech Studio Quad 4 effects rack. It has delay,reverb and chorus programs. Plus flange, phase shifter,compression and EQ.

[Paul Crawford]

For small light gigs, I prefer a DD3 over any amp delay I've got. A little chorus in a nice effect a lot of guys use.

For recording and bigger shows where I want a variety of effects to match tempos, or throw a little dirt for a slide effect, I rely on my old Digitech 2112. Gives me anything I want just a click away.

[Ryan Barwin]

This is the setup I've been using lately:
Steel guitar > Match-Bro > Hilton > Small Clone > Boss TU3 > Boss DS1 > Boss DD6 > Music Man amp (w/ reverb and phaser effects)

I use a bit of the amp reverb and DD6 delay most of the time.
I don't usually use the other effects, but there are situations where it's cool to have them in moderation. The DS1 is a good fuzz sound, but not very good for bluesy overdrive.
The Small Clone chorus is kind of cool when it's set really low, to fatten up the tone when I'm playing atmospheric spacey kind of stuff. The phaser on the amp is pretty psychedelic too. And combined with the Match-Bro, the chorus and/or phaser sound pretty cool.

[Les Anderson]

This thread really does bring to light something I have never understood about steel guitar players. There are thousands of posts in this forum that expound on the beautiful tone of a or their steel guitar. Some of the threads go on and on about which steel maker puts out the best sound steel guitar.

How in blazes can anyone tell what the steel guitar actually sounds like if the guitar is being played through a stack of sound enhancing electronics? I love nothing better than to play straight up (clean) and use nothing but the amp to tweak the sound a bit according to the sound of the genre of music I am playing.

I have a very good friend who owns an Emmons P/P and he drones on and on about how fantastic his Emmons sounds. He has so much electronic garbage hooked up to that Emmons and his amp that it looks like a sound studio at his feet. The guy is not producing anything even close to what the Emmons steel guitar actually sounds like yet he still boast about it beautiful tone of his Emmons.

[Clete Ritta]

Les,

I agree. Many of today's digital effects sound just that: digital, and preset patches often sound radically different than the source.
Although I have 8 foot pedals in my loop, they are all primarily for guitar.

For steel I use reverb.

I add a small amount of reverb from the amp, and set my Boss RV-3 for a bit more if needed.
Occasionally I will add the MXR Carbon Copy for delay, but most often I prefer the clean sound of the amp and guitar

Clete

[Twayn Williams]

These days it's just lap steel straight into amp, with maybe a little reverb, though usually not.

I use a lot of fx on my looping rig and prefer analog to digital for everything except for reverb (ehx cathedral) and the looper (line 6 dl4).

There's an art to using fx, both sparingly and slathered on. If someone is happy with guitar -> amp and another is happy with guitar -> rack 'o doom -> amp then they are both right. For themselves.

[Stu Schulman]

Les,You bring up a very good point.

[Mike Perlowin RIP]

...How in blazes can anyone tell what the steel guitar actually sounds like if the guitar is being played through a stack of sound enhancing electronics? ...

Two comments:

1: If I can make an analogy, think of the steel as meat, and the effects as spices used for seasoning. You want a fine cut of meat no matter what the recipe is. But some call for very little seasoning, and the crux of the meal is the taste of the meat, and others require much more seasoning and the meat is an essential ingredient, but the taste of the food comes from the combination of different flavors.

2: There are many records where the steel, with the aid of effects, can reproduce the recorded sounds. Satisfaction by the Stones comes to mind offhand. The typical A and B pedal country sounds would not work, but a steel player with fuzz box can play the song’s signature lick. If done right, it won't sound like a steel, but it will sound like the record.

BTW I consider reverb to be en essential part of the steel sound, not an effect like a distortion pedal or phase shifter.

[Bill Stroud]

Hi check out the Steel Mixer made by Mark Dunn go to www.steelmixer.com and check it out. I have them in stock if interested.

[Elton Smith]

This guy with the dobro sound,had a bar that was coated with what looked like plastic.Any clues on that?He was ptetty good but I can't recall his name.

[kyle reid]

The best reverb pedal I have found is a Danelectro Dan-Echo, & Ive tried Boss DD3 Boss RV3 Ibanez & many others, The Dan-Echo is around $90.00 I use A nice mix of amp reverb & the Dan-Echo, Gives me a nice fatter tone from my Zum!

[Stu Schulman]

Elton,It was probably one of those graphite bars,Not sure where you can get one.

[Elton Smith]

Stu,a graphite bar? Can you expand on that?Thank you Elbo

[Mike Perlowin RIP]

I don't know what that bar is made of, but it originally came with the Goodrich match bro. I think (perhaps mistakenly) that Scotty sells them.

[Elton Smith]

I think we're geting somewhere here.It might take more than the pedal to make that sound.

[Stu Schulman]

Elton they are grey in color and have that criss cross pattern that is used in fiberglass surfboard type things,It's the same stuff that those graphite bass guitar necks use.Hope I'm not confusing you.

[Paddy Long]

Elton the Goodrich Matchbro originally came with the plastic/composite bar - this helps trash the sustain a little and helps provide a more authentic dobro sound - the trick is to play it like a dobro tuning, and not use the pedals ....or use the pedals and get more of a Pedal dobro sound (ala Paul Franklins Pedabro) !

[Elton Smith]

No sir,this to me is very interesting.We are very deep in this thread.Mite take it to the top to see who knows what it is.

[Elton Smith]

Paddy got it.That's what it was.Now where do you find one