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Topic: Anyone use/heard of an open G with high G Dobro tuning? |
Mike Tatro
From:
Oregon, USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2000 7:57 am |
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OK, I'm a much better lap player than I am a dobro player.
The one problem I have with the standard open G dobro tuning is not having the root on top. Like Brad's mentioned before, I get an awful lot of mileage out of the 6th interval between the 3rd and 1st strings in open E. I've mastered the slants for major and minor 6ths all the way up the neck.
Is there such a thing as an open G tuning with a high G on the first string (essentially raising an open E tuning a major third on all strings)?
I'm tempted to try it. It looks like I could take a standard dobro set and throw away the 5th string, move 1st thru 4th down one notch and add a high G string (.010?).
I don't hear the mainline dobro guys doing much with the lowest two strings either for comping or solos (maybe I'm missing something). I can see the value of open G for open string pulloffs and such. G is pretty much the most common bluegrass key. Therefore, I'm reluctant to move to open E. It seems like I'd lose a lot of cool possibilities by having to play closed shapes all the time.
All knowledgable opinions greatly appreciated. Thanks. |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 24 Jul 2000 9:27 am
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I've used open G as you've described before (from bass to treble G D G B D G) but I've been unhappy with the sound. You need some light strings to tune up that high, and I just don't find the tone I like with lighter strings.
Here's a suggestion, though: try using open D (D A D F# A D) instead. You'll get most of the open notes you want in the key of G by playing at the fourth fret (where C would be on a guitar tuned in open G).
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Brad's Page of Steel:
www.well.com/~wellvis/steel.html
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars
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Chris Bauer
From:
Nashville, TN USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2000 10:08 am
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I love the sound of the standard G tuning but am way too much of a creature of habit to get used to playing without the root on top. I've always found that I could get a lot out of open D but have recently gone to a variation on open E and have begun to get a little sweeter sound there. Rather than simply move the D tuning up a note, I've started trying to duplicate a bit of the symmetry of the G tuning by using G#-B-E-G#-B-E. The bottom G# string can always be tuned down to a low E when the song calls for it.
The only significant problem I've found with either of these tunings is that the better guitars typically are tweaked for G tuning. They just seem to want those notes to sound their best. I've experimented a bit with different string guages and so far haven't found the right strings to fully compensate for the tuning changes. The sound is always a bit thinner than when in G tuning. I'm still working at it though. Anyone have suggestions? |
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Bob Stone
From:
Gainesville, FL, USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2000 11:16 am
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Hi Mike-
I used 7-GBDGBDG-1 on a Fender DeLuxe 8 then on one neck of my Stringmaster when playing steel for about 3 years in a Cajun band. It worked great musically as many of the old-style Cajun steelers used this tuning or something similar. However, tone-wise I never did like that high G string--just too wimpy. And of course it would be even worse--probably interolerable--on a long-scale acoustic.
Your E tuning, or the same thing pitched to D, might be about the best you can do with the tonic note on top. There is a reason that so many Dobro players use that same tuning--it sounds good. Stick with it and you will get used to having the 5 on top. But then again, I'm always for seeing the boundaries of steel playing expanded and using somewhat unorthodox tunings is one way of exploring new areas.
IMHO, string gauges figure strongly in why some tunings are appealing to us. For instance (using E on top), C6 gauges are just right to me compared to A6 gauges, which seem to get heavy really quick.
Keep searching!
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