The EBow

[Trucks]

Has anybody got one? Maybe some clips of it in action? Im unsure as to whether I want one... Basically because im not really sure what it does lol

 

Any info would be appreciated

[The Big G]

Originally posted by lee83:

Has anybody got one? Maybe some clips of it in action? Im unsure as to whether I want one... Basically because im not really sure what it does lol

 

Any info would be appreciated

Lee

Big country used to use them a lot so maybe dig around see what you can find of clips of them.

It is an interesting area which I am going to check out any further info i get I will post on to you.

G

[Kramer Ferrington III.]

Originally posted by The Big G:

I am not 100% on how they work but i believe they create a vibration once pressed against the strings which acts like the pic etc...

G

AFAIK, it's VERY BASICALLY two magnets placed very close to each other that keep a plucked string vibrating, giving you unlimited sustain. Hence the "bow" part (as in "bowed strings", geddit? )

[PBBPaul]

I have one that I use occasionally. It's fun to use with slide.

[Trucks]

Sounds like a cool idea PBB, you got any song clips mate?

[PBBPaul]

Originally posted by lee83:

Sounds like a cool idea PBB, you got any song clips mate?

I don't think so but I can dig around and see. Give me a couple of days.

[Trucks]

That'd be really cool PBB, somebody pointed me in the direction of some clips on the web used to market the Ebow but i'd definately love to hear it in action with a slide.

 

Thanks mate.

[Sauce]

HERE you go (click the link in here). It's their website, got some sound clips and some other interesting info.

[Justus A. Picker]

I've got one although I'll be damned if I know where it is right now. It's cool for playing legato lines that have a synth pad flavor and ambient sounding textures to tunes.

 

The synth-like guitar in the middle on this:

http://www.stringdancers.com/paulrk/mp3/A_Short_Melodrama.mp3

is an e-bow with a strat.

[Scott Fraser]

I've been using them for close to 30 years now. It's a pretty essential part of my gig. Basically the effect is that of very controlled feedback, very rich in harmonics. It's pretty hard to switch strings seamlessly or quickly, so it works best as a modal textural element on one string. The current black model works better & gets the string going faster than the old chrome one. It's pretty limited & definitely not for everybody, but it can be cool when used judiciously.

 

Scott Fraser

[Eric VB]

A friend of mine has one. Seems to prefer the string synth in the BOSS multieffect board.

 

I tried it briefly on my bass. It's too much work for the effort on bass, IMO, because it is designed to work with guitar string spacing. (They don't make a bass model.)

 

Anyway, it works. You gotta get used to it, just like any new toy. Obviously it's a different technique. If that's your must-have sound then pick one up.

 

I'd guess that most guitarists buy one, noodle around with it for a while, and then when the "new toy" feeling has passed it collects dust.

[Kramer Ferrington III.]

Originally posted by RicBassGuy:

A friend of mine has one. Seems to prefer the string synth in the BOSS multieffect board.

 

I tried it briefly on my bass. It's too much work for the effort on bass, IMO, because it is designed to work with guitar string spacing. (They don't make a bass model.)

Oh! I really wanted one for my bass, years and years ago and the guy at the shop told me it'd never work on bass 'cause the strings were too heavy for the eBow.

[Eric Iverson]

I have one and enjoyed using it with my guitar when I played in a band where I could play amplified. Mostly just to sustain certain notes.

 

The cassette that comes with the package is AWESOME - you can do all kinds of things with it -cello and violin bowing techniques, harmonica and flute imitations, bizarre rock things.. anyone who is interested, I can make a copy of it for you!

 

One acoustic guitarist who uses it a lot is Chris Proctor - beautifully I might add. (Yes, amplified, but in a way that preserves the acoustic guitar sound.)

[picker]

I have had two of them and they are very cool for getting a different flavor out of an old guitar. YOu should hear the tape that came with the first I owned, the guy who played it sounded like a monster.

[Scott Fraser]

<>

 

I just checked it out with my violin bass clone & it does work, but not too well. It takes too long to get the string to really vibrate & the EBow keeps slipping between the strings. Everything that's difficult with it on a guitar is more difficult with it on bass. I don't think it would be possible to do much more than effects with it.

They used to make one for pedal steel that did 3 strings at a time, but it must not have worked well because they don't seem to have been on the market much, if at all. I guess bass didn't work for them to make a special model for.

 

Scott Fraser

[Guitarzan]

has anyone considered a sustainer equipped guitar?

that really has me thinkin.

[Editor Boy]

I love EBows!!!

 

Using that sucker helped me grab tons of sessions (film, commercial, advertising) from the '90s onward. It's amazing how many non-musicians know nothing of it and freak out (in a good way) when you use it.

 

I'm currently using a Fernandes Ravelle equipped with a Sustainer during live gigs with the Eva Jay Fortune Band in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I still have a blast adding feedback tails to ends of songs, solos, and riffs -- while also using it to construct groovy noise parts and synth-like single-note lines.

 

The EBow and Sustainer may be tricks or toys or whatever you wanna call them, but, hey, if you can't have fun and kick your inspiration in the panties with a weirdo effect from time-to-time, then what's the point of playing? That's my view, at least.

 

Best to All,

Mike

[Dr. Ellwood]

Editor Boy, do you know, is there much action still at the Monterey County Fair Grounds anymore? Back in the 70's I played there allot of times with the Morris Seka Blues Band from King City/Gonzales area. What a cool old place that is and with so much history! Do SF bands ever go there and gig anymore?

[Guitarzan]

yeah i knew you would mention the Ravelle.

is the body on that larger than a LP or smaller?

when you did the feature it was hard to tell by the pics if the body had a "carved away" LP shape or sections that extended over the standard LP size.

[alfonso]

EBow is a great tool and had a relevant role in my "Experience of Space CD". I used it also in combination with bottleneck on acoustic guitar, well, the most heartshaking lament I could obtain from a guitar... LOL

[BillWelcome Home Studios]

I like mine, but it really takes a while to get the hang of it if you want to use it to set the notes off, instead of just as a sustainer. But that sound is way cool.

 

Bill

[Danzilla]

Steve Rothery of Marillion uses one; check out the intro licks on "You're Gone" (Marbles) and the outro of the title track to the Seasons End album, among others.

 

A friend of mine, Keith Andrew Grimm, uses one on acoustic guitar quite frequently. In know he's got a site on Indie Heaven...

[fantasticsound]

I've had one for 20 years, but I've rarely made use of it. Never did figure out how to properly make a lot of those sounds, but I keep it around. One of these days I'll commit the time to figuring it out.

 

Originally posted by Eric Iverson:

...The cassette that comes with the package is AWESOME - you can do all kinds of things with it -cello and violin bowing techniques, harmonica and flute imitations, bizarre rock things.. anyone who is interested, I can make a copy of it for you!...

Un-necessary, Eric! If you go to their website and click "Players\' Guide . It has mp3's of the old cassette tracks! (But thanks for the offer. Incidentally, I still have my twenty-year old cassette, too. )

[BillWelcome Home Studios]

Originally posted by fantasticsound:

I've had one for 20 years, but I've rarely made use of it. Never did figure out how to properly make a lot of those sounds, but I keep it around. One of these days I'll commit the time to figuring it out.

...

Pretty much my experience, too.

 

I've occasionally floated the idea of mounting one in the guitar, and supercharging it. (Over-voltage a bit would probably do the job... send it something like 15 volts instead of 9.)

 

 

Bill

[fantasticsound]

Ahh... if it won't fry anything, Bill, connect two 9v batteries in series and go for 18v!

[dreibel]

I bought one last summer, and am still trying to get the hang of it - but what's really neat is that you can actually change the tone by moving the E-Bow up and down over the string. String-skipping is still a bit tough.

 

Here's something I did do with it last summer, a two-minute tune called Disturbulence ,

(the E-Bow bit is the second solo).

 

Guy who are noted for using E-Bow include Elliot Sharp, James Hetfield (he does a multitracked bit on Metallica's Nothing Else Matters ), former Collective Soul guitarist Ross Childress (the best example being No More No Less ) , and Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins' Porcelina of The Vast Oceans )

[BillWelcome Home Studios]

Don't forget Michael Mannering, that fabulous bassist most known for backing up Michael Hedges. His soloing with the ebow, the string drop (I don't know which one he uses) and his ability to pull his tuners right back up into tune are a total joy to watch. (and hear)

 

Bill

[Sunbreak Music]

I saw Manring do a tune w/ 3 ebows.

[EmptinesOf Youth]

 

im not the biggest fan of this guy or anything but i believe hes using an ebow.

[mdrs]

Originally posted by lee83:

Has anybody got one? Maybe some clips of it in action? Im unsure as to whether I want one... Basically because im not really sure what it does lol

 

Any info would be appreciated

Come on, Trucks.....you KNOW that you want one......I smell G.A.S.