Three_Eyed_Willy - Posted - 04/15/2023:  23:07:20

I have had a hankering for an 8 string reso for about a year. The Gold Tone instrument is reasonably priced, but they seem to disappear from the market almost as soon as they become available. So, a couple of weeks ago, one came up for sale on the Elderly Instruments web site. The photos looked good, and the price was reasonable, so I purchased it.

The instrument itself was in nearly perfect condition. There are no scratches, and the metal parts shine quite nicely. I'm not sure which Beard cone it has in it, because I haven't taken it apart to look at its innards yet. However, I can say this.

It sounds quite good -- significantly better than my Gretsch 9231, which I purchased for significantly more money ca. three years ago. It's not as loud as my Appalachian, which is a really good-sounding instrument.

The extra strings take a bit of playing to get used to. They are spaced a bit closer together than the strings on my other reso's, so slant work takes a bit more of a bend to get it in tune. However, after noodling around on it a bit, I found that I could play anything I already knew in G tuning on the 8 string instrument, just by dodging the 4th and 8th strings.

Am I happy with it? Yes, I definitely am. Am I going to get rid of any of my other reso's? No.

wlgiii - Posted - 04/16/2023:  10:05:09

For those who want a second opinion, I concur on about everything, with one addition- I tune to C6 (with a high E), and the lighter gauge strings still provide adequate pressure on the cone.

Okay, 2 additions- When going back and forth between it and a console steel, it sounds a bit too dobroish and not swingy enough. But, when played by itself it does just fine.

Three_Eyed_Willy - Posted - 04/16/2023:  11:50:30

Good points. I should add this -- I'm in the middle of making a transition to an 8 string lap steel. I'll probably be tuning it to C6. I'm building my own instrument. The main body is white oak and the headpiece/fretboard assembly is leopardwood. I have most of the woodworking done. I'll post photos when it's finished.

My own style of dobro playing is somewhere between Josh and early Leon McAuliffe. When I was a kid, my dad was stationed at Randolph Field in San Antonio, where he was in the Army Air Corps. He taught navigation, physics and German, and on weekends he gigged with Floyd Tillman.

doug662 - Posted - 04/16/2023:  21:35:06

I know of someone with a mint condition has talked about selling.

doug662 - Posted - 04/17/2023:  01:14:43

Oh I read the whole post and you have one. Good job

Three_Eyed_Willy - Posted - 04/17/2023:  21:14:29

quote:

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Originally posted by wlgiii

For those who want a second opinion, I concur on about everything, with one addition- I tune to C6 (with a high E), and the lighter gauge strings still provide adequate pressure on the cone.



Okay, 2 additions- When going back and forth between it and a console steel, it sounds a bit too dobroish and not swingy enough. But, when played by itself it does just fine.

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What string gauges are you using for C6 tuning, if you don't mind.

wlgiii - Posted - 04/18/2023:  07:39:36

For string gauge, go to this handy chart everyone should have: hawaiiansteel.com/learning/gauges.php

I still haven't found anyone who makes a C6 reso set, so it's off to the local music store or strings.com to create a set. And I've mentioned before- I use C6 versus A6/G6 because it better suits our singing keys. You may also want to give those a try if you haven't.

Edited by - wlgiii on 04/18/2023 07:40:00

Three_Eyed_Willy - Posted - 04/18/2023:  23:57:17

That is definitely a handy chart. Thanks!!!

Lounge Primate - Posted - 04/19/2023:  07:28:58

Super handy chart by Ely.
Thanks for posting Wayne!

wlgiii - Posted - 04/19/2023:  07:40:24

I defer credit to the reso hanger outer who had posted a link to the chart a while back.

And it's handy in so many ways. I recently used it to select string gauges so I can back and forth between low bass A and high bass G on my dobro. (The jury is still out on that decision.)

Edited by - wlgiii on 04/19/2023 07:42:50

Lounge Primate - Posted - 04/19/2023:  08:47:10

I do like the simplicity—not a big spread sheet (I have some sort of undiagnosed spreadsheet allergy) for scale lengths.
Basically: short scale lean towards the number on the right (fatter string).
Long scale, the number on the left.

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 04/19/2023:  09:31:00

Screenshot below from the Mike Auldridge DVD on eight string Resophonic guitar. Click on it to enlarge.  Interesting version of C6 with a D on top. I like that he included the gauges - people list tunings all the time in publications and various sites, but oftentimes they don't include gauges, so you have to go to sites like John Ely's to figure it out. And being lazy, I appreciate it when folks include the gauges.

Though I wish I could have asked him when he was alive about the .056w 8th string tuned to up to A instead of the typical G for that gauge - seems awfully tight and a potential accident waiting to happen. Same for the .045w 7th string tuned to C rather than the typical B in Open G tuning. 

Edited by - MarkinSonoma on 04/19/2023 09:31:36

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 04/19/2023:  09:40:20

Here are the other tunings and string gauges Mike teaches in the DVD. Again, click to enlarge. 

Lounge Primate - Posted - 04/19/2023:  10:27:49

cool, thanks Mark!

wlgiii - Posted - 04/19/2023:  13:18:45

Thanks a LOT. Now that C9 will be bugging me until I give it a try just to see what it's like.

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 04/19/2023:  14:08:54

quote:

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Originally posted by wlgiii

Thanks a LOT. Now that C9 will be bugging me until I give it a try just to see what it's like.

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Yeah - I guess I may have opened up a can of worms. But this is minor league material  compared to some of the guys on The Steel Guitar Forum when it comes to posts regarding electric lap/non-pedal. Some of those guys can geek out on this stuff until the cows come home, and will list a half dozen or more tunings in a post and how they use them. Apparently their  brains  are much bigger than mine. 

 I briefly had an 8 string OMI Dobro back in the mid/late '70s. It didn't "take" at the time so I parted with it. 

I do have an 8 string Clinesmith lap steel (25" scale like a reso) and a D-8 MSA SuperSlide console steel, shorter scale - (I think 22.5") so I have plenty of necks to geek out on 8 string tunings. 

The C9th tuning is pretty intriguing. I bought this Auldridge DVD a couple years back, Paul Beard was out of stock but I lobbied him to get some more produced, but apparently they're all gone at this point. It wouldn't hurt to ask Beard if there are any still lying around if interested. 

More recently I bought some of the last of the Auldridge 6 string Dobro teaching DVDs. I was a bit alarmed  when Beard revamped the Resophonic Oufitters site and no longer offered the Auldridge series from the late '80s, it turns out sales were slow so they were discontinued. I had intended to order them in the past but never got around to it.

And with all the teaching resources nowadays I get it. They were  able to scrounge up the discs in the warehouse, but no cover packaging - just the titles written with a Sharpie on blue paper. Not for rookies - you need to have a sufficient quantity of coffee in you to keep up with Mike and there isn't any tab. The newer (relatively speaking) 8 string DVD does include PDF tablature. 

Edited by - MarkinSonoma on 04/19/2023 14:13:45

wlgiii - Posted - 04/19/2023:  14:45:08

When I get overly confident I humble myself by reading Steel Guitar Forum posts. But thanks for the tip on the DVDs- I'll check with Beard.

And, a reminder to all on the secret to playing like Mike Auldridge, according to The Legend himself- "Keep practicing 10 hours a day".

Lounge Primate - Posted - 04/19/2023:  21:36:27

Mark, I hear you on the multitude of tunings on the SGF. I’ve pretty much settled on simple tunings (relatively simple) because this old dog just can’t hunt like he used to.



I play 6-string dobro and lapsteel almost exclusively in D. Even though I learned in G. It just works for the blues and stuff that I play. Admittedly, it’s a bit of a “weak load” (that’s Idaho shotgun lingo) for me when I’m playing with my bluegrass buddies. At least with my small bag of tricks.



And I play (lately) 8-string in E13 (sort of like the Don Helms tuning, but I like the one that has the b7 on the 7th string). It just seems intuitive, fret/neck position-wise, since I play guitar. And it’s great for that “so lonesome I could cry” sound (that is frankly very jazzy/hawaiian).

Anyhow, I just keep learning—fun stuff,

i appreciate all your insights ….

Brooks

Edited by - Lounge Primate on 04/19/2023 21:38:18

JC Dobro - Posted - 04/20/2023:  06:03:41

quote:

---

Originally posted by MarkinSonoma

quote:

---

Originally posted by wlgiii

Thanks a LOT. Now that C9 will be bugging me until I give it a try just to see what it's like.

---

Yeah - I guess I may have opened up a can of worms. But this is minor league material  compared to some of the guys on The Steel Guitar Forum when it comes to posts regarding electric lap/non-pedal. Some of those guys can geek out on this stuff until the cows come home, and will list a half dozen or more tunings in a post and how they use them. Apparently their  brains  are much bigger than mine. 

---

I've noticed a tendency for electric lap steel players to tweak tunings to get as many chords as possible under a straight bar, which leads to different permutations and combinations of tunings, often with minor variations.

Many Dobro players (myself included) lean more heavily on open string(s), or simply hop the bar around a lot more aggressively to get the notes needed.

Just a style difference I guess.  And yes, this is a generalization.

hlpdobro - Posted - 04/20/2023:  06:52:39

FWIW,



Mike's C6/C9 tunings were "designed" to allow the dobro to emulate the pedal steel's C6/E9 re-entrant tunings where the 2nd string is pitched higher than the first string allowing for some cool scale based licks.



On C6, note the C-D-E pattern and on his C9 the B-C-D-E pattern.



On the other hand, his G6 tuning is closer to a classic, 8 string console tuning.



Mike had guitars set up for each tuning and would grab whatever axe he needed.



Mike's only recorded project used the G6 tuning (The classic "Eight String Swing album). That tuning got me diving down the 8 string rabbit hole. He did use other tunings on other folks projects.



h

Edited by - hlpdobro on 04/20/2023 06:53:31

hlpdobro - Posted - 04/20/2023:  06:57:24

If you're not familiar with "Eight String Swing", well...  CLICK HERE!

Three_Eyed_Willy - Posted - 04/30/2023:  18:41:48

Mark-- Howard
Thanks for the additional information.