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Topic: Gibson Electraharp |
Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 2 Jun 2010 6:01 am
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I'm finishing up the restoration of a 6 string/4 pedal Electra Harp (EH610 I think) and I have a couple of questions regarding the setup and have initially set it up with an E7 tuning (EBG#EDB). It has a couple of bars on either side of the changer fingers that pivot and I'm wondering about their function and I'd also like to know about the setup and tuning. While I've done work with a Multikord before and I had this information at one time but CRS is kicking in and I'm unable to find where I stashed it. Any help would be greatly appreciated. |
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 3 Jun 2010 12:55 pm
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I've been known to resort to begging if need be . |
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Glenn Suchan
From: Austin, Texas
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Posted 4 Jun 2010 11:28 am
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Jim, I feel your pain. My first steel was was the 8-string/6-pedal version of the Electra Harp. Since I was smitten by the popular country rock of the '70s (Poco, NRPS, and some Grateful Dead) I tuned mine up to an 8-string (non-chromatic) E9th with the "Emmons" pedal set-up. Pedal 4 lowered the E's and Pedal 5 raised 'em. Later, after I got a 'real' pedal steel guitar (that's what my teacher told me ), I tried to find out how the guitar was tuned from the Gibson factory. After countless hours of sleuthing, I contacted someone at Gibson guitars. The person I spoke to told me that each pedal was intended to change the tuning rather than to play different chords the way pedals are used now. However, he couldn't tell me what factory tunings were assigned to each pedal. As you know, a lot would depend on the string gauges that are on the guitar. You could do E9, A6, B6, and G#m7 together. Probably more but I ain't too good at cipherin' out that stuff. I never did change the tuning on mine before trading it and cash for a Sierra U14 guitar.
Oh yeah, the pivoting bars are used for lowers. If memory serves me (most times, it don't ), for a given pedal, you adjust the two screws that apply force to the pivoting bars causing all the strings to drop in pitch. How much pitch drop depends on how far the screws are turned. Then you tune/raise all strings that aren't to be lowered to pitch with the screws on the string fingers for the given pedal pressed.
Keep on pickin'!
Glenn _________________ Steelin' for Jesus |
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Jim Cohen
From: Philadelphia, PA
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 4 Jun 2010 4:18 pm
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Thanks so much for the information- there are 2 bars in front of the raise adjusters- one has solid screws in round stock like the changer "cross shafts" and is bolted solidly to the changer chassis and the other is much larger and is rectangular and has springs under set screws. There are 2 pivot bars- one on each side of the changer that, when pushed against by the screws in the cross shafts, cause the stop bar to be raised (adjustably). I'll keep on messing with it and try to be smarter than the guitar I'm working on .
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 4 Jun 2010 9:51 pm
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So true Jim- Al was wonderful and very knowledgeable man and was quick to offer help which I often took him up on-~~ |
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Abe Levy
From: California, USA
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 5 Jun 2010 9:45 am
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Thanks Abe however that doesn't mention the function of the bars in front of the raise bars. |
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2018 3:11 pm
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Revival of old thread . I've searched high and low and have been unable to find tuning instructions for the EH-610. Later models had raise and lower capabilities and this one might but it's not as obvious and am looking for someone who knows or has access to original instructions? Thanks in advance~~ |
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Jon Light
From: Saugerties, NY
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Posted 13 Dec 2018 3:19 pm
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Was this the 'lawsuit' model that copped heavily from Multikord or was that a different model?
If it was not based on Multikord, it raises the question, if Gene Fields was a genius behind some very innovative PSG engineering at Fender, who was the unsung wizard designing this stuff at Gibson? (Or was it all Multikord ingenuity?) |
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2018 4:40 pm
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This is a different model than the one closely resembling the Multikord and it appears that the lowering is accomplished by lowering all strings and raising the ones back up that you don't want lowered. Works fine but dynamically it is lacking for sure. |
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Tom Spaulding
From: Tennessee, USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2018 7:04 pm
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Jim- You might send a note to Walter Carter at Carter Vintage. He is a Gibson historian and may have access to info on the EH-610.
Here's his contact page: https://cartervintage.com/pages/contact-us |
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2018 8:13 pm
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Thanks Tom- will do! |
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Gary Spaeth
From: Wisconsin, USA
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Posted 14 Dec 2018 8:23 am
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i found a patent for this changer that explained the function and parts. i wish i would have bookmarked it but it's under steel guitar tuning device or something like that. patents.google.com. |
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Gary Spaeth
From: Wisconsin, USA
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Jim Palenscar
From: Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 14 Dec 2018 8:39 am
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Too cool! Thanks Gary! For anyone that has a remote interest- the raises are pretty much self-explanatory when you look at it. The lowers are achieved by basically lowering all the strings with the outside rails and using the springs below the set screws to keep the strings that are not being lowered from lowering. Voila! Thanks much for the help ! |
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