Gosh, gang, I am suddenly immensely grateful that I kept my mouth shut. A couple years ago DH took up guitar. The nook in the house where he practices is awash in picks, music sheets, instrument stand, books, tuners -- you get the idea. He seems happy so I just putter on by. Now I am seeing that I may need my own hill of goodies -- this dulcimer world does become expansive, doesn't it?

Ah, yet another thought! I am using a Herdim pick but there are some guitar picks in the house and I can look at some homemade options too. Thanks for the suggestion.

Hi Robin

The dulcimer I am playing is the one that is in my thumbnail photo -- it is a teardrop shape -- it's really very charming -- I am hoping to sit down with the maker -- but holidays are a busy time and I need to wait until there's a hole in his busy schedule. Meanwhile, I toddle on. The truth is most of the odd sounds are likely due to me. Ellen

Robin Clark said:

Hi Ellen,

Do you have a photo of your dulcimer - I'd like to look at the set-up you are using.

It is interesting that the maker designed the instrument for Gdd tuning and a short scale. There were a lot of old dulcimers that were pitched up to the key of G, particularly those with a slightly shorter scale - and that can give an instrument a really bold voice. You don't need to drop to the key of D if you like the instrument's voice in G. There are ways around that issue. For example you could tune to GDg with the right string gauges on that 24" VSL and still follow all the DAd TAB and lessons (you just pretend you are in DAd and everything works out fine but you are in a higher key). If this is the dulcimer you bought from your local friend who build it you could get him to help you set it up to playperfectly inthe style you want - I'm sure he would help you get absolutely the best tone and playability from the instrument for your prefered playing style.

Thanks, Everyone, for helping out. I will try the single melody string. I am really learning to appreciate FOTMD -- I would have a hard time moving forward without the internet support. Ellen

Ellen said "I am a bit confused on one other thing. It sounds like many people switch back and forth between Daaa and Dadd tuning -- but Ken's string calculator suggests two different string sets. So does one just go with the strings most often used in one of the tunings?"

Yes we often change up a note or two and down a note or two using the same strings. As you saw, from a set of DAd strings you can go up to EBe, and perhaps FCf; but you'll probably break a string trying for GDg. Likewise you can go down to CGc easily, and perhaps BFb before the strings get too floppy.

Going from DAd to DAA is even easier because you're just slacking off the melody string from d down to A.

You can also tune to Dorian Mode -- DAG -- and Aeolian Mode DAC without changing strings. Those tunings give you very minor sounding scales for tunes like Shady Grove, Drunken Sailor, Scarborough Faire, City of New Orleans, Be Thou My Vision (all Dorian Modal tunes). Aeolian Mode gives you tunes like Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies, Greensleeves, Long Black Veil, and Wayfaring Stranger.

Ellen, I was just about to suggest the same thing as Randy. You will get a cleaner sound if you use one melody string. Try it and see if the dulcimer sounds better to you.

Ellen...slacken one melody string and lay it over to the side.....then play without it and see if the 'echo' is gone.

Yep, it's still Mixolydian... all the tabs still work... you'll just be playing in E instead of D. Strother's calculator is a little "light" for my taste, so if you can ease them up a pitch it may take away some of it. However, it could be that you just have an instrument which has a lot of sustaining power and it seems like an echo. Some people like that in a dulcimer; some don't.

OK. So is that still a Mixolydian tuning? Your comment made me smile because when I heard the audio clip, I thought the same thing. "That doesn't sound so bad" -- but in real space the drone is . . . really long. It's not sounding charming like it should. There's a big buzz from inside the box at some points.

Elaine, I really didn't hear an excessive echo in your sound clip. However, just for curiosity's sake you could try tuning up to EBee and see if that takes away some or all the problem.

OK, We followed the advice here. The dulcimer is now strung thusly : Bass string 22 Middle String 14 Melody Strings both 11 and tuned Dadd. I think there is too much echo. Oddly, when I tried an "Appalachian capo" (pencil held with rubber bands) across the first fret, it all sounded better. The dulcimer came to me tuned Cggg and the original strings were bass =26 and all others = 18.

I am going to upload an audio file and I would most deeply appreciate advice. I am a bit confused on one other thing. It sounds like many people switch back and forth between Daaa and Dadd tuning -- but Ken's string calculator suggests two different string sets. So does one just go with the strings most often used in one of the tunings?

Ah, even more helpful insights! We're about to put the new strings on and will try Ken's suggested 22, 14 and double 11's. Hopefully that will get us to the place that we just have Operator Error to explain why the dog heads out the dog door after the first strum . . .

Ellen, I'll just add one thing here- your 24.5" scale length/VSL is rather shorter than most dulcimers. McSpadden dulcimers for example are 28 or 28.5". What this means simply is that if you and someone else with say a McSpadden were BOTH tuned to DAdd and you both had the very same strings on, then your dulcimer's strings would feel a little 'flabbier' because of your shorter scale length. To correct that, one would typically put slightly thicker strings on a shorter instrument to achieve enough tension to play and sound taut enough in standard tunings. If you tune a regular string and a slightly thicker string to the same note, the thicker string will feel tighter at higher tension. But then, you've also learned that one can tighten a string too much! That's why we use VSL length and string calculators to figure out what gauge of string we need for tuning a string to a certain note.

Wow. That is VERY helpful. We will brave the Black Friday crowds to see if we can come up with 22, 14 and two 11's.

Onward!

OK Ellen. I went to the Strothers String Calculator -- www.strothers.com and plugged in your 24.5" VSL Here are the results.

C = 24 G = 16 G = 16

D = 22 A= 14 A = 14

D = 22 A= 14 d = 11

If you go to the first page of the Beginner's Group here, Lisa has written out tuning directions, and there is a link so you can hear which C, D, and A you should be tuning to...

http://mountaindulcimer.ning.com/group/beginnerplayers

You're on the right track with the strings, gauges and tuning Ellen. Hope the new bass string makes everything sound good. Whoever made this pic did a helpful thing.

I just measured from the nut to the bridge and came up with 24.5 inches. I'll need DH's help to get an audio file uploaded - might be a couple of days.

I did wonder if I was in the right octave. Going from memory, I thought "I start with middle C" - so I started heading for middle C on the bass string. Well, that was wrong. I broke the string! Then replaced it with a different product that seems to make the sound worse still. What a muddle. Will try to dodge the shopping crowds tomorrow to get a duplicate of the bass string I broke. Then will begin again, tuning the MELODY strings to D just above middle C. Once we're at that point, we'll try for the audio file upload.

Meanwhile, Turkey Day was filled with dear friends and good food. I am blessed (no matter what my levels of dulcimer ineptitude).

Many thanks for the quick responses -- makes me feel like I'm not alone with this particular knot.

Ellen -- the gauges mean nothing to us unless you give us the VSL, as the two are intimately related. 26/18/18 isn't bad for some VSLs and some tunings.

Ditto what Rob said...

Ellen... those strings sound like they should be "right." What is the vsl of the instrument? Sounds like you might not have the melody string up to the right octave. Remember, It should be an octave above the bass. Are you using an electronic tuner? Most of them show which octave you're tuning to by a number. As for the "echo," if you could post up a sound file, it might be easier to diagnose.

Hope your Thanksgiving is Happy

Rob

Hi All,

My lovely local dulcimer came to me tuned CGG. The strings were pretty heavy wire (Bass string = 26 and the others = 18). I visited a knowledgeable shop in Big City where I was advised not to try to tune to DAD with that set up, so I switched as follows: Bass = 26, Middle = 16, Melody = 12

Now I am getting more than a drone -- I am getting an unhappy echo. And the melody strings seem sort of flabby.

What would you do in this situation? I am happily in Dulcimerschool (learning tons) and I think it does help to be in DAD so that what I am attempting sorta sounds like the instructional video (well, in my dreams we are at the NR -- "nearly recognizable" stage).

Meanwhile, don't forget that this is the night to set your scale back ten pounds. It's an important thing to do every fall.

Happy Thanksgiving all.

Ellen R