resotom - Posted - 09/18/2022:  13:13:22

I have a SlideKing reso with string puller ( like pedal steel ) I have a K&K mike built into it at the bottom of the cone. Too bad, the feed back problem comes when I sit too close to the amps which can not be helped. Space is limited in my basement. So... I am looking into installing either a Krivo or a Lace Ultra Slim or a Schatten pick-up on this res. Any comments you can provide will be very much appraciated. This reso has a very sweet tone when played without any amplification. The natural tone is amazing with roller bridge and nut adding to the sustain. The pedal changes the G cord to a C cord. Very unusual but it was custom made for me in Nashville some time back. So I am asking you out there for your opinion on those three choices. Many thanks for your input !

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 09/18/2022:  14:15:14

The Schatten will very likely have similar problems re feedback, etc. as the K & K. It's in the same general category as the dreaded Fishman donut pickup. I would avoid the Schatten.

I have been up close and personal with a couple of resos with the Lace pickup. They sounded fairly lap steelish to me. 

Of the three, the Krivo would be my choice. They have become pretty popular. I have still yet to try one in person, but of the samples I have heard it might come closest to sounding like a dobro for a surface mounted magnetic pickup. There is still a bit of the lap steel electric sound when played straight into an amp. 

I still think the Fishman Nashville is the best with the JD Aura pedal or one of the other gear choices for shaping the sound. But if I didn't have it in my main guitar and wanted to avoid the hassle and expense, I'd go with the Krivo. 

resotom - Posted - 09/19/2022:  14:08:24

Many thanks Mark for the response. I run the resos through a Roland SE-70 half rack effects box with a JD Fishman Aura pedal. Some times I use the different settings on the Aura to get a really true Dobro tone. and sometimes not depending on the tune. I use a plate reverb on the effects box or a Large room or a cathedral setting to add depth to the tone. The Krivo pick-up doesn't have a loop to use when I am standing up on stage however. I might have to try to rig something up to solve this problem.Any more thoughts on this post would be very much appreciated. Thank you !

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 09/19/2022:  14:20:31

Tom, you know a lot more about your Roland rig than I do, so  I can't comment on that. 

One thing I do know is that the JD Aura was specifically designed to work with an under the saddle pickup, in this case the Fishman Nashville. 

I have seen a couple  of videos of the Krivo combined with the Aura and you don't get the desired effect. 

JC Dobro - Posted - 09/19/2022:  18:01:49

I’ve experimented with both the Krivo and Lace Ultra Slim on my square neck spider reso.

Both are resistant to feedback. Both impact a magnetic (lap steel-ish) pickup tone. Of the two, the Krivo gives better results and slightly less lap steel tone. It can be run through the JD Aura to help simulate some Dobro midrange honk, but it’s nowhere near as effective as the Fishman Nashville / JD Aura combo, which remains my go-to rig for live playing.

I do find some value in both the Krivo and Lace for my metal body National Tri-cone, but mostly for blues or ambient type stuff with some haunting reverb.

For the spider bridge reso, it’s Fishman Nashville / JD Aura for me.

resotom - Posted - 09/20/2022:  08:00:14

The SlideKing reso has a roller bridge and roller nut so the Fishman set-up might not work in this instance.. Any comments would be appreciated.. I done want to have this reso damaged in any way with cutting up the wood.

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 09/20/2022:  11:27:29

If the roller bridge insert is mounted in an aluminum spider, then I'm guessing  even if you changed it out there wouldn't be any woodwork involved, correct?

I don't believe they are making this guitar anymore at Jackson with the foot pedals. They have the Edge pitch changer and I see on the website the unit goes for $800. I saw on Reverb  a reso with  the Edge attached, new for $1200. Which leaves around $400 for the actual guitar.

When they were actively selling this model I remember thinking based on the price that the guitar itself is a fairly inexpensive Asian import - am I correct?

All that aside, since there is in fact a roller bridge insert involved, I would probably go with the Krivo and nix the idea of the Nashville pickup. Because it is essentially an acoustic pedal steel, constant pedal usage might be pretty hard on a Nashville insert. I read recently on the Facebook Dobroholics page that a guy broke his Nashville insert which was combined with a Hipshot DoubleShot. This was the first time I have heard of this. He either changes the tuning way too often or he could be really hard on the handle that goes back and forth. Or it's just a faulty insert. 

resotom - Posted - 09/20/2022:  13:09:26

Many thanks Mark for the info you provided me on this subject. I will go the Krivo route in the very near future.
As for the where the reso was made, the fit and finish of this instrument is very tight. The sound is a cross between the traditional dobro and the modern tone you hear today. Very bright highs and booming lows.
As far as the manufacturer and the cone, I have no clue. David and Harry Jackson were involved in the build.?? I traded two pedal Steel guitars, both of which appeared on the Opry in the early seventies by well known players. I brought them to Nashville in 2016 personally.
If in fact they were Asian built, it is a credit to who built them on the extreme workmanship that was put into them.
I can not find any serial number anywhere on this reso.
Again many thanks for your input . I value your expertise and carefully go through your posts on this forum. I have been playing resos for over 70 years so I am very particular on what I have learned over the years. Check out my 'blogs, photos and friends on this web-site. Very Truly Yours !!

resotom - Posted - 10/01/2022:  08:24:22

Thanks again Mark and everyone for your input on this post.
My SlideKing Pedal Reso does not have foot pedals, but a palm pedal that changes the one chord to a four chord.. in this instance from a G to a C.
Using a GBDGBD tuning, this is very different from the usual tuning which in in the key of E ( to an A ).
The string gauges Harry Jackson suggested include using rwo .018 string on the top and normal gauges on the rest of the tuning. Anybody know why this is done ? Thanks for your input on this post !

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 10/01/2022:  11:28:41

Tom, I was under the impression that you have the one that is mounted on a stand and has foot pedals like Zane King is demonstrating in the attached video, which is from eight or more years ago.  This is obviously not the case.

This is the instrument which I believe was discontinued. 

 

youtu.be/rNQusOIzZxo

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 10/01/2022:  12:31:30

The EDGE pitch changer from Jackson Steel Guitar. 

Tom, is this what you have?

jacksonsteelguitar.com/product...esonator/

Edited by - MarkinSonoma on 10/01/2022 12:42:02

 

resotom - Posted - 10/01/2022:  12:46:53

Yes Mark that is exactly what I have... Many thanks for posting that photo.

resotom - Posted - 10/02/2022:  09:02:28

For those of you who have not heard of the SlideKing reso, there is an awesome video on U-Tube with Zane King playing Silent Night on one of these. A truly emotional rendition with an explanation on how the pedal works. Google Jackson Steel Guitars and be prepared for a great sounding reso ! I was so impressed by this, I traded in two pedal Steel guitars for one of these.

resotom - Posted - 10/02/2022:  09:03:21

Your comments on this previous post would be very much appreciated. Thank you !

gzerninplatz - Posted - 10/16/2022:  11:59:34

FYI, I have a fishman guitar and a krivo tricone (there aren't really any other tricone pickups any more)...and pretty much anything you plug into an Aura will sound like Jerry Douglas in a box...that is what it works so hard at doing!....I even tried other instruments....
With my Krivo, I did have a jack installed into the body and more-or-less permanently (serious double-sided tape) installed the pickup...it doesn't interfere with anything and that means I'll never pull on the little wire enough to break it or dislodge the pickup...
On a different tricone I just coiled up the cable and stuck it inside the reso and made a little mount for the jack that clipped onto one of the lattice sound holes...(3-D printed). also worked fine, just not as pretty..

resotom - Posted - 11/08/2022:  08:54:23

You should post a photo of the Krivo installation on your tri-cone..

gzerninplatz - Posted - 11/12/2022:  12:48:04

the tricone was built for me by Ben Bonham, with leaving room for the Krivo included in the design...it is myrtle (sort of the mainland version of koa) and rosewood...it has a jack wired into it that is mounted near the endpin.

bonhamdesign.com

Edited by - gzerninplatz on 11/12/2022 12:48:54

 

resotom - Posted - 11/15/2022:  09:11:56

Steve...do you have any sound bites to share with us ?
Are the cones original type or they custom spun for a more modern sound or has anybody tried to replicate the Legend cone to the tri-cone set up ?
I have never heard of three small 'Legend " type cones in those guitars.
Perhaps someone out there cound comment on this post.

gzerninplatz - Posted - 11/16/2022:  11:03:38

Ben Bonham, the builder, probably has sound files, hit him up if you want to hear it...he did acoustic tests, we put the pickup on when I picked up the guitar...and that sound depends so much on the amplification, room, etc.

But it does retain just a bit of that magnetic pickup sound, while doing a good job of capturing the tricone resonance and complexity. I do find that Bonham's build has much more sustain, resonance, and complexity than other tricones I have owned or played (more than a few...)

Adding an Aura to the chain definitely makes it more acoustic sounding...it really is "Jerry in a box"...I don't play it amplified much, Bonham made me a couple of parlor sized instruments that I use when amplified...the tricone is so loud that I can't hear anyone else (just kidding, it does fine when played quietly), great for an acoustic jam but I prefer the parlor instruments for amplifying...

These are National tricone cones and T-bridge on the tricone....we used Beard mandolin stuff on the single cones, as the road-o-phonic does...

Note that the tricone sound is so different than the single cone sound that it wouldn't be very useful to compare pickups...for the tricone, the Krivo is pretty much the only pickup available, there was another good one but it isn't being made any more...

Edited by - gzerninplatz on 11/16/2022 11:10:57

Angle

 

resotom - Posted - 11/16/2022:  13:04:28

Many thanks for posting the photos and the info on your guitars !

resotom - Posted - 12/18/2022:  13:24:13

The Krivo pick-up is ordered and, on its way,
Instead of using the putty that comes with it, I have double-faced tape fastened to each guitar I plan to use it on. This tape will not tarnish the finish and I can easily slip the pick-up to each guitar as I need to. The tape is installed just ahead of the coverplate and behind the back of the fretboard in the usual place where a pick-up goes. I will use the Krivo on the Dobro 10 string and the Slide-King alternately. I will comment on the results in a future post on this subject after some experimentation with the other sound devices I usually use. See the prior comments on this post.

resotom - Posted - 12/23/2022:  07:44:29

The Krivo has arrived !!
I first installed it on my 10 string Dobro with a piece of double faced tape
I dialed in all the settings for this reso and got the desired results.
Then I switched over to the SlideKing palm lever (tone changer) guitar to get these settings in place with another piece of tape. I didn't use the putty that came with the pick-up. The Krivo has allen screws in each of the six spots in the pick-up and I had to adjust the high B string so it wasn't louder than the other five This balanced the tone of each string properly.
Otherwise the transfer from one reso to the other was very easy. Any other adjustments may come in the future as I work with this set-up.
Very highly recommend this pick=up if you don't use the Fishman Nashville set up.

gzerninplatz - Posted - 12/31/2022:  18:59:51

FYI, when using Phosphor Bronze strings for the best acoustic tone, the wound strings are non-magnetic, so I found that simply completely removing the slugs from the solid steel strings made it very easy to balance the outputs.

Edited by - gzerninplatz on 12/31/2022 19:01:03

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 12/31/2022:  19:22:11

Steve, please excuse my ignorance - what are "slugs" on solid steel strings?

Tom - unless you have a custom Krivo pickup for 10 strings, how does the stock Krivo designed for six strings work on the 10 string Dobro?

 

resotom - Posted - 01/01/2023:  09:32:07

I placed the Krivo pick-up on the 10 string Dobro in the usual place and it picked up all the strings with no problem. The poles seemed to be positioned just right.
I didn't have to shim up the pick-up at all.
Now I can switch it from the SlideKing to the Dobro when ever I want. These two resos have a very different sound.
I could actually install it on my 1933 Regal/Dobro as well.

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 01/01/2023:  19:24:22

Interesting about the Krivo doing a good job of "hearing" all 10 strings. I'm actually kind of amazed.

As I recall, the Krivo guy has made a small number of custom 7 and 8 string resophonic pickups as special orders.  

chriscc - Posted - 11/18/2023:  17:20:53

quote:

---

Originally posted by MarkinSonoma

Tom, you know a lot more about your Roland rig than I do, so  I can't comment on that. 

One thing I do know is that the JD Aura was specifically designed to work with an under the saddle pickup, in this case the Fishman Nashville. 

I have seen a couple  of videos of the Krivo combined with the Aura and you don't get the desired effect. 

---

Hi, I've been using the Fishman Jerry Douglas Aura with the Krivo on my Republic tricone for quite some time, and in my experience it has exactly the desired effect, and the tone/sound has elicited only very positive feedback from both musicians and non-musicians. I wholly recommend this configuration.

Cheers!

resotom - Posted - 11/26/2023:  16:41:16

Yes... Chris ccc... I know what you are saying.
When I created this post, I was told this wouldn't work.
However... after experimenting with my set-up, I can say that the Krivo/JD Aura combination with my Roland SE-70 half rack going into three amps gives me the desired tone effect.
This took a lot of time to sort out the various controls on the Aura and the amps, and the effect s box that I use.
Everyone's ear is different and you have to know what you are looking for in your particular situation.