Gibson EH-150 : Good For Hawaiian ??

Bob Snelgrove · Post by **Bob Snelgrove** » 17 Oct 2001 5:52 pm

Hi Gang,

Looks like it has a Humbucker. Would that not be that great for the "Classic" Hawaiian tone? Too warm or muddy sounding?

How long were these made and what is the history on them?

Thx!

Bob

HowardR · Post by **HowardR** » 17 Oct 2001 6:04 pm

EH 150 = Electric Hawaiian

This model was introduced in 1936. It went through a variety of feature transitions up until it was discontinued in 1943.

That's the short & sweet version.......

Bob Snelgrove · Post by **Bob Snelgrove** » 17 Oct 2001 6:23 pm

Thanks, Howard

Which would be the most sought after? I have seen 2 types of pickups, a rail type and a pole type?

thx

bob

George Keoki Lake · Post by **George Keoki Lake** » 17 Oct 2001 7:13 pm

EH-150 certainly has a nice Hawaiian sound. Mine dates back to around 1937. However, I prefer my Rickenbacker frypan over the Gibson
whenever I feel like playing a 6 string.

Gerald Ross · Post by **Gerald Ross** » 18 Oct 2001 5:23 am

Which "classic" Hawaiian tone are you referring to? If you are looking for a 1940's Dick McIntire type of sound I feel the Gibson will do just fine.

I have a 1937 EH-150 with the CC pickup. The tone leans more towards the mid range side of the spectrum. I like it, especially when I am playing at home solo. The mid range fills up more 'bandwidth' and makes my playing sound fuller.

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Gerald Ross
Gerald's Fingerstyle Guitar Website
[This message was edited by Gerald Ross on 18 October 2001 at 06:23 AM.]

Bob Snelgrove · Post by **Bob Snelgrove** » 18 Oct 2001 6:10 am

Gerald

Good point about the classic sound. I don't know enough to really say, but many years ago Bobby Black played his frying pan Ricky for me in his living room and that's what I think of

How does the CC pickup sound compared to the stock? pole type one?

thx

Bob

Gerald Ross · Post by **Gerald Ross** » 18 Oct 2001 6:34 am

My EH-150 has the Charlie Christian (CC) pickup. I also have a 1947 Gison BR-4 which has a 1940's era P90 single coil pickup.

Now I'm not a pickup expert but on these two guitars to my ear I've noticed the following... They are both very mid-rangy but the 150 has a more 'cleaner' tone. What I mean to say is that the P90 sounds more like a wall of sound whereas the CC has more definition between separate notes.

They both sound GOOD. It depends what you are looking for.

To make matters even more cloudy, the tone on each guitar can change from day to day and even hour to hour. They can sound different depending on the weather, amp settings and my mood on any particular day.

Welcome to the guitar world and the quest for ultimate tone.

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Gerald Ross
Gerald's Fingerstyle Guitar Website
[This message was edited by Gerald Ross on 18 October 2001 at 07:38 AM.]

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 18 Oct 2001 9:01 am

I have a dog-eared 1937 Gibson EH-150 whose pickup was long ago replaced by what looks like an early 50's tele pickup. The EH-150 is one of the most popular lap steels ever made. It's a classic design with wonderful tone, feel, string spacing, etc. - but you know what? It really doesn't matter what guitar you play; YOU, the player are the real factor. If you listen to a lot of Hawaiian music, learn to play from your heart and develop a genuine feel for the subtle nuances of that kind of steel playing then you'll sound better on your Magnatone-Bluestar-Chandler-Melobar-Morrell-Doodleburg than somebody who thought that buying a mint '38 Rick Bakelite would make them into a great steel player. Once it's in your head and your hands THEN you can talk about the elusive quest for tone.

Ian McLatchie · Post by **Ian McLatchie** » 18 Oct 2001 11:59 am

I agree with Andy: it's ultimately the player that produces a beautiful tone, not the guitar. The EH-150 is a good instrument to turn to, though. The semi-hollow maple body and CC pickup are a great combination. The EH's I've played have varied in quality a fair bit, but they've all been excellent guitars. My 1938 7-string is one of the finest lap steels I've ever played, with a very bright mid-range and brilliant attack. The one problem I've encountered with the CC versions of the 150 is that some are very noisy; even the quietest produce a fair bit of hum.

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 18 Oct 2001 12:09 pm

Ian's right about the 60 cycle hum from the Christian pickups. They were widely considered one of the best sounding jazz guitar pickups of all time. Besides CC, Barney Kessel used one for years. The warm, rich midrange is indeed one of the assets of the EH-150. But as I said above, "it's not the wand, it's the magician".

Here are some nice looking photos of the venerable EH-150: http://www.buffalobrosguitars.com/buffalobros_7_30/01_ulc4404_gibson_eh150/#photo4 [This message was edited by Andy Volk on 18 October 2001 at 01:43 PM.]

Gerald Ross · Post by **Gerald Ross** » 19 Oct 2001 5:17 am

Thanks for the photo link Andy. The guitar pictured is the same version/model of the EH-150 which I own. And yes, the tone and volume knobs were originally spec'd to be brown and black.

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Gerald Ross
Gerald's Fingerstyle Guitar Website

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 19 Oct 2001 7:31 am

Same as mine too, Gerald, except mine has replaced pickup with a custom tortise shell surround & replaced tuners and knobs (I have gold top hat knobs on mine). Not much of a collector's guitar but a great player's axe.

chas smith R.I.P. · Post by **chas smith R.I.P.** » 19 Oct 2001 1:23 pm

Ian's right about the 60 cycle hum from the Christian pickups

I've always considered the 60 cycle hum to be one of the better parts of my 'sound' and certainly the most consistant.

mikey · Post by **mikey** » 20 Oct 2001 7:14 pm

To some, the EH-150 is THE Hawaiian Guitar...I've always wanted one...I prefer the Charlie Christian pickups...
Mike

TonyL · Post by **TonyL** » 23 Oct 2001 12:15 pm

I tried both an EH-150 and an EH-185, and I ended up buying the EH-185. I preferred the p-90 style pickup since it's a lot hotter... The ES-150 had more of a "wood" sound...

TL