Forum Activity for @rob-n-lackey

Sounds like a great combination of woods there, David. Bet it'll sound like a dream

Congrats! Sound clips when you get the chance..

Congratulations, very exciting! Hope you post pictures after you get it. I also ordered a new dulcimer from Folkcraft (a custom butternut/walnut with wenge accents and a galax back). They are a wonderful group of people there and great to work with. If you ever get a chance to visit them, you'd find it interesting.

Look forward to seeing it...

Congratulations on your impending arrival. My first dulcimer had a mahogany back and sides and a spruce top. Nice tone and excellent sustain.

Thanks Ken,

Yeah I figured I would stick with a product made for a wooden instrument!! 

I just remember as a child doing my "chores" and we always had to use pledge on the bedroom set furniture and it has like this waxy build up now ( I recently was given my mom and dad's bedroom set after my mom passed and noticed that and remembered what we used!!)

take care and thanks

Maria

Ordered just placed. Folkcraft, African Mohagany Bottom/sides, Sitka Spruce Soundboard. Black Tuners. Very excited.  Make me a better player? NO.  But a really happy one.  Merry Christmas all.

Robert,

Today I made a bid on ebay on a new but old Marine Band 365, with 14 holes, key of C.  I've gone as high as I am going to bid, so I will probably not get the bid, but maybe I will.  What you had to say about your 364 pushed me over the top on this decision.  

My favorite harp is a Hering Vencedora 60 reed double sided tremolo, keys of C and A.  On the C side, the 5th blow reed has failed, but I always liked the A side the best anyway.  I also have an 84 reed Vencedora, keys of C & G.  So if I need a C, I still have one.

Special 20s are my favorite ten holers.  I have Lee Oscars, Suzukis, a Marine Band, Bushman, and a couple of Seydels.  Something about the Special 20s though that float my boat.

Thats why there are so many different harmonicas how there, kind of like vehicles, no one of each makes everyone happy.

Maria, you shouldn't have any problem with the Lemon Oil. I disagree with Bob on the use of Pledge or any polish that contains silicone. It can cause problems with trying to match the finish if a repair is needed. Just speaking from experience. Stick with polishes made for instruments.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

The harp I use the most today was one I  bought back in 1970 that did not work for me then . its a Hohner 364... key of C. 12 holes three octaves. You can see the versatility of being able to go between three octaves. Too bad its not made in other keys, I could really use a D... Robert...

Okay so this is good information. Thank you.

I ordered this: from musician's friend ebay store: Dunlop Fretboard 65 Ultimate Lemon Oil

it was free shipping and less then 4.00 and it gets good reviews

I will try that on the fretboard and see what happens etc...and then perhaps the other advice on the wood or maybe even try a spot that's not conspicious and use it for the wood. I will know more when I receive it and read the label.

Thanks again

Maria

That's good news Bob.  You know, I still play dulcimer just as much as always.  But the harmonica gives me a way to make music  when it's  difficult or impossible to play dulcimer.  Put one in your pocket and away you go.

I too have a drawer full of harps, 10 holers and tremolos.  My main interest is tremolo.

Have fun!

Terry, your posts about harmonicas inspired me to dig mine out.  I have about half a dozen that I played in high school and college.  That's over 30 years ago now.  I guess they are all getting to be "vintage."    I have a couple of marine bands, a blues harp in b-flat, a chromatic (which I never really learned to play well) and a Piccolo in C.  I like the piccolo because it slides right in my pocket.

Although it is hard to tell from the photos, the fret board and body may have been finished differently from the body.  If the fret board looks a lot less shiny than the rest of the instrument, then this is probably the case.  For everything but the fret board you are probably OK with a guitar polish, or believe it or not, Pledge furniture polish.  I would try a small spot first to make sure.  Not knowing what is on the fret board, I would probably apply a light coat of lemon oil to it.  I use Old English lemon oil.

Folkcraft has produced a Folkroot model for at least a couple years.  Dulcimers come up on Shopgoodwill quite a bit.  But no one there can answer any questions about the instrument, and shipping is invariably expensive.  Good luck with your purchase.  Once you have it, you can contact Michael Rugg and get complete info on when it was build, woods, etc....

Hohners marine band model 365 is the best of the series. Only come in C&G. 14 holes nice bass range and warm chording. I have a G model. Unfortunately with a broken reed. Larger body bigger sound and very easy to play... Robert...

Hey folks. Since this discussion is heading in that direction, let me just point out that we have a whole group at FOTMD devoted to home recording .

I never much cared for how a pickup sounds for recording. I prefer a nice mic. 

so basically no matter what finish it is the lemon wood WON'T HURT it right??

If that's the case then I will get that. 

Thanks

Maria

@marymacgowan  I only wear headphones if I'm multi-tracking.   Otherwise if I was listening to the previous track through a speaker  while I was overdubbing  then I would be recording the original trackl again onto the new track and I wouldn't be able to isolate them. 

Thanks so much Rob! Your feedback means a lot to us. We appreciate you listening. If you haven't yet, would you be willing to write a review about the Hearts of the Dulcimer Podcast on our iTunes page? The link is: http://bit.ly/hotdpodcast .

More reviews = more visibility on iTunes for the dulcimer!  :-)

As the others say , we really need to know what the original finish was -- oil, urethane, shellac, etc.   FWIW, Lemon oil can be used on ANY wood, not just lemon wood <grin>  Brand doesn't matter, contents do -- you want a lemon oil where the lemon oil itself is the predominant ingredient.

Patricia, I have enjoyed all the episodes of Hearts of the Dulcimer.  I especially enjoyed the new one with Holly Tannen.  Thanks a lot.

I use Martin Guitar polish on my dulcimers.  Seems to work well.

it won't let me delete the duplicate picture sorry

oh wow...I don't know. I do know it was made by Jack Bruner who owned the Walnut Valley Dulcimer Company. It's all solid black walnut and it was the 86th dulcimer made in 1989. I believe the owner of mine actually bought it new in Epcot from the owner.

Thanks so much

Maria

here are some pictures

 IMG_8283.jpg - 165KB

Is it a painted finish? Or stain, or oxidation?  Who was the builder?

[quote="marymacgowan"]
[quote="Guy Babusek"]Guy, could you describe what you use to simulateneously film and record? I have microphones and preamps and headphones (and a Bose songwriter amp system, which would be good for filming - I think - ?), but just don't know how to put it all together for a live recording. thx![/quote]

 Sure Mary! I've used several different methods through the years. Lately I find I get the best results by simultaneously recording the video and the audio  from two separate sources . I have mostly just been using my iPhone to record the video and I record the audio right through the iPhone microphone.  I simultaneously record the audio using a decent microphone right into the computer using a program like Logic.  Once I have finished recording, then I import the audio and video into a video editing program such as Adobe Premiere. I sync the audio of the decent recording up with the iPhone video and then delete the audio recorded on the IPhone.   I've also experimented with filming directly using a WebCam while I'm recording into Logic but I find that sometimes is less than satisfactory   Hope that helps! 

Thanks everyone for taking your valuable time to respond to my past.  Seriously.   Hopefully, with the help of my son,  your advice,  and a little money, I'll get something decent together.

Meanwhile, I'll probably quit recording with my smart phone.

Merry Christmas 

Maria, different finishes require different conditioning. Do you know what your dulcimer is finished with?

DAN

www.dulcimore.com

Hi,

I noticed today when I was playing in the sun (hard to believe it's Dec 15th in NY) that the wood has some areas where it looks dry.

This is the all black walnut dulcimer I bought used. The owner's son had it in a box (original box btw) for the last 20 years.

Thanks so much. 

I've heard lemon oil ( I think it was Marc Matthieu) but I don't know what kind to get brand etc...and can that be used on walnut

Thanks so much

Maria

Hearts of the Dulcimer Podcast - Episode 8

Holly Tannen: Songstress of Folklore

http://bit.ly/hotdpodcast

Holly talks about how playing the dulcimer helped her overcome her shyness, about songwriting, and more! Come by for a listen and hear some great dulcimer music.

For episode resources:  http://dulcimuse.com/podcast/resource/008.html

Before I upgraded my studio, I got some decent recordings with an inexpensive Shure SM-58 mic plugged into a small Mackie mixer which I got for very little money. Before I got a decent sound interface, I did what no one said was possible, and that's use an adapter from the outs on my mixer to a mini in on the mic input on my computer. It was definitely not perfect, but I was able to record with a decent sound until I could afford to upgrade to some more "proper" equipment.

AS Robin says, you simply can't get good sound recording, particularly dulcimer sound, without good sound recording equipment, and that doesn't include phones of any intelligence level!

Hi Robin,

Thanks for taking your time to provide me with this information, of what works for you.  Your Sound Cloud recording is very pure, just absolutely beautiful.  And that's not lip service,  just the truth.

While you seem to have a superior grasp on this sound thing, I am just the opposite.  I'll have to ask my son to take a look at what works for you, I know he can help me out.  He is really into pedals and sound, as he has played guitar almost all of his 42 years.  I'm sure he'll help old dad.

Meanwhile, I'll be surfing through the pages of the group you suggested.

Kind regards,

Terry

Hi Terry,

Getting natural sounding recordings is not easy and, unfortunately, it seems to be that we have to spend some money to do so.  It has taken me a few years of trying out (and wasting cash!) on different systems to get something that I'm reasonably happy with.  My system will not suit everyone because I wanted something portable that gave a clean, clear, strong initial WAV track that was warm and not too coloured by the initial recording chain.  The goal for me was to get a perfectly natural initial recording that then required just minimal mixing/mastering.

The system I use at present is a Rode NT1a mic through an in-line Phantom Fethead pre-amp (20db of ultra clean lift) into a Zoom H5 Handy recorder in mono WAV that also supplies the 48v phantom power for the mic and pre-amp.  I mount the mic' at roughly the same position my ears are so what I'm hearing and the mic is hearing is the same.  I have the Zoom H5 pre-amp turned down to around 3 or 4 on the dial and never above 5 - that way I don't introduce any noise floor.  I process the track in audacity on my laptop which usually involves normalising the level, splitting the mono track into stereo (or using a pseudo stereo plug-in) and adding a little compression (saving as a .mp3 for upload to SoundCloud also adds compression).  The only e/q I tend to do is to roll a little off the top but I actually think that the headphones I'm using at present for mastering are a little top sensitive so they are the next item due for replacement!  Ideally I'd use monitor speakers for mastering but I need to have the kit portable so it has to be headphones.  Unlike the recording of 'Clocks' above where I really played around with the sound during mixing, the end result I'm usually looking for is as natural a sound as possible that's good and strong but with a very low noise floor (no hiss or rumble at all in the background).  Here is a track I recorded in my lounge using exactly this process a couple of days ago.

Like I said, what I use is not going to suit everyone, and I am constantly looking for ways to improve the quality of the recordings I produce so it is an on-going project.  There is a group here on FOTMD concerning home recording and it is worth looking through that to see what other folks have used and had success with:

http://fotmd.com/flint-hill/group/33/home-studio-recording

Robin 

Hi Robin, and @object Lesson, 

I believe ya'll are right, it's my recording device.  I use my phone, which is a smart phone.  My wife reminded me that I am having the same problem with a harmonica.  She will tell me that a harp song is very pretty, but when I record it on my phone it sounds horrible, almost nothing like the real thing.

So, if I am to do much more recording, I really need a better recording device.  

I want to thank you guys for your advice and suggestions.  By the way Robin, your Sound Cloud recording was very nice.  Thank you.

Best Regards,

Terry 

My kids got harmonicas in their stockings at Christmas (as did I and my siblings).

Thanks everyone for the feedback, I just won the auction for the 82, that's what I love about this group, good iformation and valuable conversation as personal opinion gets thrown in. Loved Roberts comment about, "It just depends how selective your hearing is."

 I have tinitus, the joy of a constant, unending high pitched ringing in my ears, day and night. Funny thing, when I play my dulcimers, I don't hear it at all.

 Thanks again friends!

 warren_may1.jpg - 70KB

Ive been playing in JI for over 40 years. All tunings work. It all comes down to how fussey your hearing is. I dislike tempered scales , even when they are in tune they have a coldness about them... Robert.