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Author
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Topic: inexpensive resonophonic guitars
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Susan Alcorn
Member From: Houston, TX, USA
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posted 07 July 2002 09:14 AM
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After 22 years of doing without, I'm thinking of getting a resonophonic guitar. It surprises me to see how much the "Dobro" dobros hve increased in price (and many of them don't sound that good). So I tink I'm going to have to settle for one of the cheap models. I played rhe Fender which I thought was too nasal-sounding, and the Gretsch which I kind of liked. I see the "Johnson" and the "Galveston" advertised on eBay. Does anyone have any experience with them? What about other less expensive guitars?Thanks,
Susan |
Dan Farrell
Member From: Anaheim, Ca, USA
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posted 07 July 2002 10:09 AM
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Susan-- I am pretty new but have a Regal RD-45. It is in the same price class as the Fender, but, I think it has much better tone.
Dan Farrell
Anaheim CA
'97 Carter D-10
Nashville 1000
Regal RD-45
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Jon Light
Member From: Brooklyn, NY
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posted 07 July 2002 10:34 AM
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You can see the Regals (and some others) here with some good prices. http://www.elderly.com/new_instruments/50N.htm I've got a Flinthill. I've heard it said that you can get a lot of bang for your buck with the Flinthill with a Beard upgrade (cone, nut, bridge). I don't have this. I was just scratching an itch when I got this (I play PSG) and it was cool at first. But when I listen to a Jerry Douglas play and I ask "why don't I sound like that?" the obvious answer is that I suck but after that, there's no escaping that you get what you pay for. If you are looking to fill some reso parts with a C&W band it's one thing. But I don't see getting the depth of tone out of one of these low-end guits. (On the other hand, I'd wager that JD could bring on the angels with my guitar.) your mileage may blahblah..... |
George Keoki Lake
Member From: Edmonton, AB., Canada
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posted 07 July 2002 01:45 PM
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I have an old 1934 Dobro. A friend has a brand new Johnson. I was surprised at how good his Johnson sounded. Maybe my old Dobro is becomming tired as old age sets in to both of us! The Johnson I played was an excellent guitar for the value. |
Doug Beaumier
Member From: Northampton, MA
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posted 07 July 2002 03:20 PM
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Susan,Most of the low-end resonators are Korean imports (Regal, Dean, Johnson, etc) and they don't "growl" like Dobro brand resonators, but they still sound pretty good and are very reasonably priced. I have a new Regal roundneck that I recently used in the recording studio and the engineer loved the sound of it. We carry Dean resonators at the store where I teach. We usually have roundnecks in stock and we can order squarenecks. I prefer the tone of the wood body ones to the metal body ones. click here ------------------
My Site/Instruction | Doug's Free Tab | Steels and Accessories [This message was edited by Doug Beaumier on 07 July 2002 at 03:23 PM.]
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Zayit
Member From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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posted 07 July 2002 07:55 PM
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Hi Susan!To sum up: You are correct- the cheap, oriental knock-offs are okay for learning on, but dont have the depth of tone that good condition vintage reso's or the high-end contemporary luthier-made reso's have. I bought a Johnson square-neck on e-bay 2 years ago for couple hundred to learn on. Now I'm going to go for the bone nut & spun cone upgrade (I joined a band) for another couple hundred. I'll still have an instrument that I can take to jam sessions & that I can replace if (G-d forbid) I have to. I realise that it STILL wont have the tone that a Beard custom jobbie will have & one day mavbe I'll pop for one of those, but today I'm an amateur & not a proffessional. Lets remember too, that the vintage resos were NOT high-end axes made of rare tone woods (thats why they were played by bluesmen & bluegrass boys!) and many were badly mistreated. So dont always expect vintage resos to sound better than good contemporary resos....  |
Michael Brebes
Member From: Northridge CA
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posted 08 July 2002 08:58 AM
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I've got a Dean, another Korean made cheapo, and it sounded okay out of the box. Bought a Quarterman cone, replaced the bridge and adjusted the spider and it turned it into a great sounding dobro for very little extra. Bought parts from Stewart McDonald www.stewmac.com and got their free pamphlet on how to true the spider. All of it made a world of difference. I even replaced the cone on my Dobro 33H with a Quarterman and it jumped up the tone of that guitar as well. |
Bob Hoffnar
Member From: Brooklyn, NY
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posted 08 July 2002 09:31 AM
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Susan,Check here for used resos and info. Mike is a great guy who helped me out quite a bit finding a great reso. I ended up with a Guernsey. www.mikeauldridge.com Also I have a buddy with a collection that barely fits in his apt. I'll see if he want to sell any. Bob |
Jeff Strouse
Member From: Jacksonville, Florida, USA
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posted 08 July 2002 03:40 PM
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I have the Regal RD-45, and have been happy with it for a "budget" resonator guitar. I sure wish they made 7 and 8 string models though....  |
Mike Cass
Member From: Nashville,Tn. U.S.A.
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posted 09 July 2002 12:33 AM
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I would recommend finding a mid 70's squareneck Dobro brand insrtrument.They are quite stable & with the correct cone & setup can cut the mike rather well.....
& Usually in the $500.00 to %800.00 range.
Beyond that, Crafters of Tennesse makes a bare bones, black satin lacquer finish reso thats pretty much a cannon......not sure of the price, but its probably fairly competetive. |
Andy Volk
Member From: Boston, MA
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posted 09 July 2002 04:55 AM
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While cost is always an issue, for a player with highly developed "ears" - like yours, Susan - I don't think you'll be happy for long with a budget resophonic. I owned a Regal that was upgraded with a Quarterman cone, bone nut, etc. and was relatively happy with it for a while but then its tonal deficiancies became more and more annoying. Cheaper instruments lack the complexity of tone you find in a better guitar and tend to fall apart, tonally speaking, when played hard. They also, as a general tendency, are inconsistent across the full range of the instrument. You play very sophisticated music and need an axe that's consistent with the high quality of your music. This is just my opinion and of course I don't know your credit card balance 
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Stephen Gambrell
Member From: Ware Shoals, South Carolina, USA
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posted 09 July 2002 07:11 AM
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Susan,
I posted in the wrong place, see my post under upgrades.[This message was edited by Stephen Gambrell on 09 July 2002 at 07:12 AM.] |
Susan Alcorn
Member From: Houston, TX, USA
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posted 09 July 2002 03:21 PM
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Thank you everyone for your posts and especially yours Andy. You're right about cheap instruments often not having the tonal complexity of better ones. As for my credit card balance, it's . . . uh . . . are there any inexpensive resonophonic guitars? |
Andy Volk
Member From: Boston, MA
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posted 10 July 2002 02:24 AM
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In that case, the best way to go is to get a Flinthill or Regal (made in the same factory in Korea) and have it upgraded by Paul Beard, at Resophonic Outfitters. You can buy the guitar for as little as about $350 if you shop around and then the upgrade will cost about $200 including shipping. The upgrade includes a Quaterman cone, bone nut, maple-capped ebony bridges and set-up. Good luck! |
Tim Tyner
Member From: Ayden, North Carolina U.S.A
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posted 10 July 2002 05:00 PM
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Hi Susan! I have been playing Dobro for a
few years now and although I saved for a
while finally bought a Wolfe Custom,I started
on a 60-D Dobro with a Quarterman.This was
a great sounding Dobro I bought for 600.00.
I would recommend either this or a Regal.
Musicians Friend has some neat ones for
300.00 new,349.00 I think for the all
mahogany which I would recommmend.There is
a great set-up man in Holley Ridge,N.C.
that can improve any rezo greatly.His name
is Bobby Wright.Hope this helps some.
Best of luck on one of the most
addictive instruments on the planet.
Tim
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Jerry Hayes
Member From: Virginia Beach, Va.
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posted 12 July 2002 06:54 AM
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Hey Susan,
I have an Epiphone square neck that I bought at Mars Music a couple of years ago for $249.00. It sounds OK but is not in the class of the big names. I mostly play it electric so it really doesn't matter that much I guess. It has a pretty good tone but a little less volume than others I've heard. Maybe I'll check into getting that upgrade myself. I like the size of it as it's about the size of a classical guitar and the neck isn't as wide as others I've seen. ------------------
Livin' in the Past and the Future with a 12 string Mooney tuning. |
Dave Burton
Member From: Richland,Wa. USA
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posted 14 July 2002 12:00 PM
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Hi Susan,I took Mike Cass's suggestion and found a Crafters of Tenn Dobro on Friday and played it at Sat nights Gig,what an axe!The tone is what I like best of this guitar,I tried others but this one did it for me.It does pay to invest in a professional level instrument. Good luck, Dave and thanks Mike Cass! |
Keith DeLong
Member From: Dartmouth NS Canada
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posted 14 July 2002 01:27 PM
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I was looking for an inexpensive dobro, or lookalike, looked at the Johnsons, they sounded pretty good, but after talking to a few luthiers, ended up buying a Regal, a blue roundneck, I don't know which model it is. I had it switched over lefthanded, a raised bone nut and maple bridge installed and it sounds quite close to the real thing.
There is a website, www.folkofthewood.com, that has samples of different resonator guitars; I really liked the Beard guitars, as they say, lots of bite and growl . The regal samples were played Spanish style, so it's hard to tell. I'm putting a Schatten pickup on it and I hope it won't change the sound. Good luck.
Keith |
Buck Dilly
Member From: Branchville, NJ, USA
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posted 15 July 2002 12:33 PM
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I purchased a Dobro (1979 D model) through Ebay. It was $750 and sounds excellent. This is an 8 string, but I would expect a 6 would be roughly the same price. I have played many 70's Dobros that sounded really nice. |
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