Pjotor - Posted - 01/20/2021:  02:41:48

resohangout.com/reviews/search...edir=true

Spoiler alert: it's positive.

LukeL - Posted - 01/20/2021:  14:10:50

Nice. I’ve been debating getting one of these but I haven’t had any issues with my Bradley.

SlimPickins - Posted - 01/20/2021:  16:28:42

They are both great. I have used both and I believe the latest generation Charlie’s Capo and the Bradley to be on pretty much equal footing. I have no issues using them interchangeably as there is so little difference to me, but I use Bradley chrome plated bars and am very used to using the Bradley capo with it.

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 01/20/2021:  17:40:05

What Brent said. Both capos qualify as the best of the floating types. 

I don't have dog ears, and as I continue to age my hearing isn't  getting any better. I'm reminded of this while watching TV  and my  annoyed wife asks "can you turn it down - too loud!"

That said, I still hear a little bit of what like to call "tone death" with my Charlie's capo. 

Multiple people disagree. Even Jimmy Heffernan who did a video  review several years ago didn't think there was any loss of tone with Charlie's Capo. 



Beyond that I don't know what else to say, I can still hear that little bit of tone death. I don't  use the capo that often, but when I do  I am pretty  happy with it.

 

daver - Posted - 01/20/2021:  19:35:17

quote:

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Originally posted by LukeL

Nice. I’ve been debating getting one of these but I haven’t had any issues with my Bradley.

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I was a happy Bradley user.  Not one other capo sounded better or was easier to use.

With all the talk about Charlie's capo, I steadfastly resisted the siren's call.  Why bother?  I had exactly what I needed.

Then in a moment of GAS-induced weakness, I said to myself:  "Self, you could buy it and try it, and sell it if you don't like the sound or how it works."

The Charlie's is the go to capo now.  The Bradley sits in the spare everything box.

YMMV.

LukeL - Posted - 01/20/2021:  19:58:57

That’s good to hear. I love the tone of the Bradley and I feel like the Charlie’s might be lighter, but hearing that from you I think I might try one.

Colin Irvine - Posted - 01/20/2021:  20:37:51

I tried a Charlie’s capo for a while, but ended up getting a shubb capo instead after reading many positive reviews from Greg Booth. I was having all kinds of trouble with my Charlie’s pulling my lighter strings out of tune. It could have been operator error but I tried quite a few different things and it didn’t help that much. Anyway, I couldn’t be happier with the shubb. I find it interesting that the Charlie’s selling feature (other than good tone) is that it’s easy to put on with one hand... I can honestly say, now that I’m used to the shubb, it’s easier to put on one handed than the Charlie’s capo was!

Flaps - Posted - 01/20/2021:  21:49:14

I just got a Charlie's. It came super fast. I absolutely love it and It was a vast improvement from my last capo in both convenience, speed, sound and it has very nice workmanship. My other capo isn't a Bradley (never tried one and so I can't comment).

badger - Posted - 01/21/2021:  06:53:27

Ditto what Daver said...

daver - Posted - 01/21/2021:  08:22:47

quote:

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Originally posted by Colin Irvine

I tried a Charlie’s capo for a while, but ended up getting a shubb capo instead after reading many positive reviews from Greg Booth.

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Now there's two of you in the reso world!  I know Greg sings the Shubb capo praises, and there's no doubt he's zeroed it in for impeccable tone.  I could never get the consarn thing to work for me.

GONE - Posted - 01/21/2021:  10:58:42

Guitars with frets and suitable action height setup Shubb is an excellent affordable choice. $35 compared to $85 or more.

Unfortunately many guitars vary in action height or use inlayed flush frets and the Shubb isn't gonna cleanly/easily handle those instruments.

Bigred - Posted - 01/21/2021:  16:24:33

I used a Leno for a long time and then decided to try a Charlie's. Charlie's is the best capo I have ever used.

mesmithut - Posted - 01/21/2021:  20:10:50

quote:

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Originally posted by Colin Irvine

I tried a Charlie’s capo for a while, but ended up getting a shubb capo instead after reading many positive reviews from Greg Booth. I was having all kinds of trouble with my Charlie’s pulling my lighter strings out of tune. It could have been operator error but I tried quite a few different things and it didn’t help that much. Anyway, I couldn’t be happier with the shubb. I find it interesting that the Charlie’s selling feature (other than good tone) is that it’s easy to put on with one hand... I can honestly say, now that I’m used to the shubb, it’s easier to put on one handed than the Charlie’s capo was!

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Colin,

I also felt like the Charlie's Capo was pulling my high D string sharp. But I liked the sound, so I kept using it and just retuned that string when it bugged me. I realized reading this thread that I haven't had to re-tune for quite a while now when using the capo and that got me wondering why. When I took a look at my capo, I saw that the high D string had made itself a little groove in the plastic tubing. That groove can't be more than 0.010" but it's enough to not pull the high D string quite as much when the capo is tightened and therefore the high D stays in tune. I hope this tube lasts a long time because it probably took at least 6 months of regular use to develop the groove and I don't want to have to wear another one in. Here's a picture

"Worn-In" Charlies Capo

Colin Irvine - Posted - 01/21/2021:  21:21:41

Hey Mark,

Ya I could definitely see that making sense. I was constantly rotating the tubing and even switching it from side to side, trying to keep it fresh because I felt the tone was best when I did that. I shouldn’t have bothered!! Haha. I was retuning the strings like you did and just got too sick of it. It’s ok to do that at home but it was going to a jam that made me seek out another option. Honestly the shubb is such a breath of fresh air. I’ve had it for close to a year now and use it all the time... no issues. If I have a buzzy string, I give the tightening screw half a turn and it’s back to perfect. Also, I hardly have to change my left hand technique to play notes on the first fret because of the low profile. Anyway, each to their own, thanks for the input Mark. I’ll probably dig my Charlie’s capo out and take a closer look at it now that you’ve brought that to my attention!

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 01/22/2021:  10:52:09

quote:

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Originally posted by daver

quote:

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Originally posted by Colin Irvine

I tried a Charlie’s capo for a while, but ended up getting a shubb capo instead after reading many positive reviews from Greg Booth.

---

Now there's two of you in the reso world!  I know Greg sings the Shubb capo praises, and there's no doubt he's zeroed it in for impeccable tone.  I could never get the consarn thing to work for me.

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Make that three. Rob Ickes has been using the Shubb for the past couple of years and even sells it on his website (he also offers Charlie's). 

The last time I saw Rob and Trey play live was in San Francisco at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in October, 2019 and Rob used the Shubb on a couple of songs. Between here and the Dobroholics page on Facebook  a few others have posted that they have witnessed Rob using the Shubb.