Compressor for Lap Steel Guitar

[Blues_Boy_4096]

Hi all!

A friend of mine who plays lap steel guitar asked me for a compressor.
He found that he hadn't enough sustain, and kept "wobbling" the string to make the note last longer (at the end of the gig, he coudn't move his rist...).

I had him try an Orange Squeezer, and he didn't like it. He foud it to enhance the mids and highs way above what he desired (he plays the lap steel through a Twin Reverb with the bass on full and only a twist of mid and high).

Can anybody recommend me another comp for him?

Thanks

[blanik]

...he plays the lap steel through a Twin Reverb with the bass on full and only a twist of mid and high...

that's the reason why most lap steel players use a twin or other fender with a 15" speaker...

maybe he'd like the Dyna Comp. it's famous for removing some highs... (i think the Ross removes some bass...)

[Mark Hammer]

Part of the solution lies in having the right pickup and adjusting it properly.  The pickup should provide some natural compression, and I gather here is where one gets into assorted forms of alnico voodoo.  Many of the classic steel guitar sounds have no compression in them.  Talk to guys like Jason Lollar over at the MEF pickup-makers forum for some info in that regard.

Apart from that, I think a higher-end multi-band compressor may be called for.  Most steel guitars, lap and otherwise, are going to have more than 6 strings, and that is going to pose a significant challenge with respect to envelope detection and gain control.  Not quite a piano, to be sure, but more in that direction than like a "normal" guitar.

Last, but not least, maybe its time to explore some other slide bars for something that helps with sustain.

[PeterJ]

I have yet to figure out how to use a compressor with my lap steel. I get decent sustain without it, but it would be nice to keeping the note going longer, plus it would be nice to balance out the strings a bit. But I can't seem to figure out how to do it (I use a Ross type). I get the best tone from my Fetzer Valve or MI Audio Blue Boy Deluxe -- either one boosts the signal enough to give me more sustain.

[mattpocket]

Couldnt you mess round with an EQ to balance out the strings, and then hit the compressor after that?

Matt