12 replies to this topic

[phaeton]

heres the thing, i totally dig slide guitar and i have three slides (brass, chrome and glass) but simpley i'm s h i t at it, i get that you hold the slide over the fret and mute behind it but i just cant get a single tune going or even a decent sound, it always sounds flat and dull.

can anyone recommend a good setup, technique, link or tuning?

[SmutVendetta]

I've only got a glass slide, it sounded "flat" and what not for me as well, but then I started to not press the slide down on the frets, I didn't know you weren't supposed to do that, maybe I'm not the only one? That's the only tip I can give ya, I'm a slide guitar n00b as well. I don't quite get what you mean by "mute behind it," I either do that and not realize it or, I don't and it sounds just fine to me.

[purr]

it's all about getting the right slide and right amount of pressure. Takes a light touch.

[tragictravisty]

if youre using a guitar exclusively for slid, raise the action as high as it'll go.

[Def Bungis]

Hey the brass should give you the brightest and scratchiest tone, and high action is preferred.
So what's the best slide guitar song around anyway?

Slow ride?
Something by zepplin?

I like Pat's "You don't love me"
... re=related

[tragictravisty]

dont expect it to be new easy. its almost a different instrument, the left hand acts totally differently from normal guitar. for chording in regular tuning, the treble strings are minor chords, and the d,b,and g strings are majors.

[purr]

Slide usually sounds like crap in standard tunning. Try a more open tunning, i dont know..

[Stevie K]

And start listening to Derek Trucks, The Allman Brothers, Johnny Winter, Elmore James, and Bukka White. Find out what tunings they use for different songs and try to learn some of their songs exactly, that should get you started, from there it should get a lot easier.

[tragictravisty]

if im setting up specifically for slide, ill tune a down to g, which makes it an open Emin7th, so the middle 4 strings are a major, and the top three, and low E are minor.

[taylormade]

I love me some slide stuff. I only use brass, but that's because I like the weight.

I've been doing a lot of work, mostly on acoustics - which works easier because of the higher actions and heavier strings (at least on my rig), so it's not so easy to "fret out" with. I play quite a bit in standard tuning, but it all depends on the song. In open tunings, I mostly work in open g, but that's just because I'm lazy, and it lets you keep the guitar mostly tuned standard - and you can cheat some open chords that way.

[Cymastar]

I had a Strat knockoff I picked up for 30 bucks, raised the action and tuned it DADAEA and used an old neck plate as a slide... I still have the neck plate...

[taylormade]

A sort of open question - are there any good minor slide tunings?

[tragictravisty]

of course, for e minor, tune d+a to e+b, or for emin4th, a bluesy type chord, just tune d to e or down to b.