Increased volume was a motivating factor for a number of builders to come up with their own take on a resophonic guitar. Tim Scheerhorn has stated in interviews it was a main motivation for him to use his skills as an engineer in the late 1980s to build his own guitar because his old Dobro was getting buried by banjos in jams he would attend. 

That was Step 1 - refining the design to create a pleasing sound for the player of course goes hand in hand with getting more volume. I have played and heard some resos over the years which achieve some high unplugged volume but the tone just didn't do it for me.

"Killing" banjos has long been a motivation in designing certain instruments. Dana Bourgeois came up with a flattop guitar model for the great Bryan Sutton in the late '90s which is in fact called the "Banjo Killer."

Here is the description from the Bourgeois website: "Slope D Body. Long Scale Power. Raucous Sound."

....that being said...volume, in my opinion, is more a characteristic derived by the player, as is tone.

Well, I tried a Dobro a few years ago, and I must say, there was no way I could get any volume out of it, no matter how hard I picked it with my very strong and thick picks. The design simply choked off the sound.

Just FYI, tone is another word for timbre, which is a French word for the inherent sound an instrument produces. Of course, hand placement, string type and thickness, and fingerpick material and thickness affect timbre, as well as the wood used and the design of the guitar's bout.

It sounds a bit odd to me when someone refers to playing with tone. To play with different tone, one should play a different instrument. That is why so many different instruments are made. I, for one, have both a walnut and a maple reso, as well as one of each banjo.

Hope this helps.

Patrick

When the term "tone" is used, I can't say whether we're (in this group) using the dictionary definition. But I think most here would agree that the tone derived from an instrument can vary depending on how it's played and who is playing it.

I'm sure a fair number of us here have had some formal music education and there is a lot more going on with the term "timbre" than just the inherent sound of a musical instrument.

Using the term "tone" is pretty universal. A lot of people, along with being unfamiliar with "timbre" would also mispronounce the word. 

Electric guitars, amps, and radio often have "tone" controls. I don't think I have ever come across a "timbre" control. It might be a little like calling out a song at a jam and referring to it as a "12 measure blues in G" rather than a 12 bar blues. 

As far as tone and volume is in the hands of the player - of course - up to a point. If this were an absolute, then many of us here have wasted a lot of money on expensive guitars when a hot rodded Regal with a Legend cone and #14 spider would do the job just fine. 

Tone again - a seemingly ongoing discussion pops up now and then regarding  Jerry Douglas and the best "tone" during the course of his career. Some prefer the years when he played an RQ Jones. Others say he sounded best on Scheerhorns. And yet others think his Beard Guitars  are the ticket. 

Same hands - different guitars. 

“Same hands - different guitars.”

but also different mics and different pick-ups.

I’d love to hear an A/B of a Regal/Legend cone with Beard installed Nashville PU vs. a Blackbeard (or Scheerhorn, or pick your favorite dobro) with a Beard set-up Nashville PU & JD Aura pedal with the blend turned up all the way. Same player.
It would be interesting.

In studio work I'm reasonably sure Jerry used some of his favorite long owned high end mics with the different guitars. But wait - different studios, different producers, different engineers. All this stuff makes my brain hurt...

As far as the Aura system and Nashville pickup, I guess I'm doing it wrong - I might be the only player who doesn't set it at 100% microphone image. For whatever reason I prefer 12 o'clock to one o'clock. 100% image I believe is at 3 o'clock. Several years ago I attended a Fishman event in Davis, California (UC Davis - alma mater of Rob Ickes)  which was put on by the brilliant guitarist and witty musician/comedian Greg Koch. For acoustic he was showing the audience the features and benefits of the Aura on a Martin dreadnought. 

After the presentation I was speaking with the Fishman rep who was traveling with Greg and he was amazed when I told that dobroists often prefer  100% image and don't blend it with the pickup.  We both decided that to our ears it has a more "airy" quality if you blend in some of the pickup with the image. 
 

As far as guitar comparisons using the Aura and  Nashville, if you need to play out plugged in, I have long felt the best bang for the buck in a Reso is the Gretsch Bobtail, particularly with image @ 100%.  I think the majority of the audience would have a difficult time telling the difference between the Gretsch and a $6000 guitar plugged in. 

quote:

---

Originally posted by MarkinSonoma

ITone again - a seemingly ongoing discussion pops up now and then regarding  Jerry Douglas and the best "tone" during the course of his career. Some prefer the years when he played an RQ Jones. Others say he sounded best on Scheerhorns. And yet others think his Beard Guitars  are the ticket. 

Same hands - different guitars.

True enough Mark, but....

I think equally important in the discussion of tone over a player's career is what they find the most satisfying and pleasing in the present. I suggest if you listen to any important player of any kind of instrument you'll hear their tone evolve over time.  It could be the result of several factors, their growth as a musician, the kind of music they've chosen to pursue, changes in their hearing, changes in equipment and popular trends. All of these could account for differences in tone even if the actual instrument were the same. Tone is unique to the individual and people change over their lifetimes  

---

Would it be appropriate to ask on this thread about body size with respect to volume and tone?

For example, looking at the Beard website, I see lines that come with an E model with a larger body or R model with a smaller body.

I've only been playing a reso a month or so and playing a $180 instrument but do want to learn as much as I can as if I'm still actively interested in a year, I'll want to upgrade.

Others may mention such qualities as large/deep body guitars having more bass response. However, from my experience, I wouldn't make any generalizations regarding tone/volume with regard to the body style of the guitar. I have experienced many examples where those generalizations have proven to be untrue. Again...in a particular players hands (responding to their playing style and attack) those generalizations are bound to go out the window. The best I can advise is play as many guitars of different designs and from different luthiers as you have an opportunity and judge with your own ears.

Indeed,

In addition to body size, internal design and construction techniques have much to do with a guitar's "voice" and character. Soundwell, open body, baffle, scoop are all used buy various builders on a variety of models.

I'm reminded of the old Sho-Bro, described by many as the large guitar that sounds like a small guitar.

Size doesn't "always matter".

Eric is spot on. Play as many guitars as you can get your hands on.

I'll also add, talk to the builders as they can share their vision for a particular design and/or tone wood.

At the end of the day, it's your ears and your right hand. No one else's.

h