I've built my first cbg and am useing Ernie Ball Earthwood 80/20 bronze guitar strings 42 gague, 30 gauge and 17 plain string. I can't play it a lick but it sounds nasty. Useing glass slide on the wound strings doesn't give me the pure sound. When I use my glass bottle slide over the 17 gauge plain string I get a second high pitch overtone that sounds like a cat. This note is over and above the normal string sound. Any suggestions beyond learning to play????
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Cool thanks! I'll keep with those. I had bought some 12s for my current, yet unfinished, CBG and will stick with them.
-Wes
Al said:
a reasonably heavy slide always helps for acoustic/cbg but i prefer something lighter for electric. I use 12s on my acoustic and 9s on my electric my quality street lap steel has a 36, a 26 and a 17 tuned either A,E,A or G,D,G
a reasonably heavy slide always helps for acoustic/cbg but i prefer something lighter for electric. I use 12s on my acoustic and 9s on my electric my quality street lap steel has a 36, a 26 and a 17 tuned either A,E,A or G,D,G
So, is there any basic (more likely used) gauge string (acoustic/electric, x-light, light, med, heavy) that [ya'll] prefer to use? I normally use 10s (light) on my acoustic and 9s on my electric. I have a set that are marked "Light" but are 12s. I think they are way to heavy gauge strings my'self. From what see, we are using the ADG(B+) strings.
I have also found that the wound strings sound aweful with low tension on them. If you can tighten them up they seem to have less buzz and less intonation problems from the slide stretching the string. I have also learned to place just enough pressure to get a good tone. Too much pressure gives intonation and sustain problems-not enough and you get muted buzzy tones.
as a little additional detail, there is one place that players often deliberately dont mute-thats on the 12th fret -cos its an octave the 'horrid screech' will turn into nice harmonics-its certainly the only place i entertain not damping.
one other point-on bob brozmans slide guitar tutorial videos he says 'the one thing that separates the pro slide player from the amatuer is the quality of their vibrato'. He's right-his vibrato is stunning-mine sucks..but its worth putting time in -try sliding up to the 5th fret then employing vibrato-then do i† again and again and again and...
If you play like i do with the slide on the pinky or ringfinger you can rest your free fingers on the string's at the back of the slide, that will kill that ghosthowl/schreech sound.
How you hold your slide is pretty important and something you'l have to learn by doing it a lot and finding a way that works best for you.
I myself use the pinky to put the slide onn, my ringfinger on top (pushing down slightly) off the slide and the midle + indexfinger behind the slide resting on the string's for muting.
That seems to work just fine for me, the finger on top of the slide gives me somewhat more controle of the slide and strings ,the muting fingers prevent the ghosthowl sound and give a much clearer and powerfull tone/note.
I hope this will work as good for you as it does for me.
I think Doc O actually built a double-ended guitar (boxes at both ends of the neck) so that he could use those "back notes" (ghost tones above the slide). I don't know how that project turned out.
Are you using another finger to mute the string between the slide and the nut (not the slide and the bridge)?
Wasn't aware muting would fix the problem. I've plucked it a few time mutes verses unmuted and sure enough the high pitch caw meow is gone.
To the person who asked about the strings, they're brand new.
If I had long hair, could sing, had raythem and a good ear I could really do something with this thing. Man o man do I need help.....
Replies
-Wes
Al said:
Wade
one other point-on bob brozmans slide guitar tutorial videos he says 'the one thing that separates the pro slide player from the amatuer is the quality of their vibrato'. He's right-his vibrato is stunning-mine sucks..but its worth putting time in -try sliding up to the 5th fret then employing vibrato-then do i† again and again and again and...
How you hold your slide is pretty important and something you'l have to learn by doing it a lot and finding a way that works best for you.
I myself use the pinky to put the slide onn, my ringfinger on top (pushing down slightly) off the slide and the midle + indexfinger behind the slide resting on the string's for muting.
That seems to work just fine for me, the finger on top of the slide gives me somewhat more controle of the slide and strings ,the muting fingers prevent the ghosthowl sound and give a much clearer and powerfull tone/note.
I hope this will work as good for you as it does for me.
Developing a good vibrato is perhaps next on the list, as are techniques like sliding "up to" or "down to" a desired note.
It's also possible to play single-note figures and even harmonics. Watch some of the videos the guys have put up!
Wasn't aware muting would fix the problem. I've plucked it a few time mutes verses unmuted and sure enough the high pitch caw meow is gone.
To the person who asked about the strings, they're brand new.
If I had long hair, could sing, had raythem and a good ear I could really do something with this thing. Man o man do I need help.....
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