Post by Deleted on May 4, 2007 18:34:59 GMT
admin said:
a brass bodied guitar, it was steel. Stentor had no idea what I was questioning.Whether they are biscuit bridge, spider bridge or tricones, is of no interest.
Hello. I didn't even know these things did matter? .
To be serious, and because this is my first post, a short introduction, and an answer to the original posting as well:
I'm John, bought a resonatorguitar a few weeks ago, although I was looking for one on and off for years. I just play some fingerpicking, and I am just a bedroomguitarist, but lI ike the sound of a reso, and specialy the way it reacts on how you hit the strings, etc.
About the (budget) reso's: Like I said, I was thinking about buying one for years, things started when I saw my first shining guitar, probably on the Dire Straits LP-cover, or something like that. After a few years of playing electric and acoustic guitar, a few months ago I started the hunt for a reso, cheap or expensive, it was the same to me from the start. Why buy a expensive one when a cheap one is as good? On the other hand, I noticed that a lot of people wrote that "this or that guitar sounds just as good as a National", so I assumed that there must be something about NRP, if everybody compares their guitar to them. Anyway, if possible, I liked my future reso to be a "real" Dobro, because that's what they are called, isn't it? And, one thing it should have was a wide neck and, if possible, a wide stringspacing at the bridge, because that's what I like most about my 1930's acoustic OM-imitation, so it would be nice if my future reso had the same spacings. Well, I tried a Dobro 33, which had the wide nut, and an average bridgespacing, but I didn't like the sound. Tried a Dobro 60D, very nice sound, but also a very narrow nut and bridge. The Dobro F60 sounds okay to (to me), wide nut, narrow bridge. I also tried the cheaper reso brands, but they didn't appeal to me. I know the stories about the "cheap reso + quarterman cone" which "sounds as good as a real National", may be true, but I could not find one. After weeks of trying, and driving my car for many miles (for example, drove six hours to check out a Johnson, who has a 44 mm nut, according to their website, but they really don't, they have the average 1 11/16 stratocaster neckwidth, believe me, I know, now) I gave up the hunt for the moment.
And just then, I walked into the store of the National importer in Amsterdam, where a woodbodied-spiderbridged Model-D National was waiting. For me, I guess. Because, I took it up, played it for a while, and walked away again. I noticed it had a wide neck, a very wide neck indeed. And, for the first time in months the sound of that particular guitar kept spinning in my head, so, after a week, took the train to Amsterdam once more, tried the guitar again (I guess you know that guitars do sound much worse the second time you try them) and bought it on the spot. I did not regret it for a second, which is very rare for me, because usualy, I only hear minor negative things once I play a guitar at home, after buying it. And those minor things grow, and grow. Not on this one. At the moment I'm trying to play "in Christ there is no east or west" by Fahey, and the National really sings and pushes me on and on.
So, in general, I guess there are cheaper resos that sound good, but in my case, each time I tried one, I simply did not like the sound, like something was missing every time. And another thing, it took me a while till I noticed that I did not lik the sound of a biscuitbridge, it was (with my style of playing at least) as if the sound stays inside the guitar, didn't come out. This was also the case with genuine Dobro's and Nationals, so it must have been me, guess I'm a spiderman .
In short, my advice would be to try and try every reso you meet, and don't spend your money till yours ears tell you to.
Regards, John.