Resonator Cone Tone

[TheArimathean]

Could any of you enlighten me on what you think about the tonal qualities of Tri-cone Resonators, Spider Cone Resonators, and Biscuit Cone Resonators compared to each other?

Thanks!

[allenhopkins]

Not an expert on tri-cones; only one I owned (briefly) was a recent Chinese-made reissue, with which I was not impressed. Tri-cones are the most desired of the early Nationals, but part of this is due to their relative rarity as compared with the later single-cone models. The late Bob Brozman, in his book The History & Artistry of National Resonator Guitars (p. 100-01), waxed lyrical on the subject:

These guitars…have a lovely clear tone with a long sustain and a long, smooth decay. Natural and artificial harmonics ring through with amazing volume and clarity of tone. The sustain of extremely high notes is vastly superior to any other acoustic instruments and is measurably better than the single cone models…Generally, tricones are preferable for any music involving slide…Their smooth sustain and resonance in open tunings make them an unbeatable acoustic bottleneck guitar…There are tones and sounds possible on a tricone which cannot be made on any other type of guitar, resophonic or otherwise.

So you know where he stands on the subject.

I have both guitars and mandolins with "biscuit" and "spider" resonators. My overall evaluation is that the "biscuit" ones are louder, harsher, with a "bark" and "snarl" that can be near-deafening. They have a very quick attack, and a long sustain, though not as long as the "spider" instruments. I have both a wooden-body National (Havana) and a brass-body (Style 0), and they are the loudest guitars I own. My National Triolian mandolin is, likewise, the loudest mandolin I own.

The "spider" instruments -- I have a '30's Dobro mandolin, a '30's Dobro tenor guitar, and a newer Deneve square-neck six-string -- have a smoother sound, more of a ring, with a really long sustain. Not as loud, though plenty loud enough. The Dobros (I use "Dobro" and "National" to distinguish the different resonator styles) have a unique "chime" to their sound, and are clearly distinguishable from the Nationals. A much sweeter voice.

The one oddity I own is a five-string, banjo-necked instrument marked "Dobro," but with a "biscuit" set-up on a slightly smaller resonator cone. Despite its "National"-type design, it has more of a "chime-y" sound that I associate with Dobros, though perhaps a bit in-between the two types.

My rough rule of thumb is "Nationals for blues, Dobros for bluegrass," though I've transgressed this rule on occasion. I keep my Style 0 tuned very low -- BEBEG#B -- and use it for slide, with a heavy brass pipe. The Deneve "Dobro" is tuned in the near-standard bluegrass GBDGBD. Mandolins tuned standard, National Havana ditto.

This is only based on my limited experience, but I do have several resonator instruments of both types, and these are my observations.

[Mandocarver]

I agree with everything Allen has said. I'd just add that I find there is a huge difference between the tricone and biscuit models I own (both tenor guitars). The attack is much faster with the biscuit cone - you hear the note as soon as you play it, whereas the sound takes noticeably longer to travel through the three cones on the tricone model, so it is not as immediate and there is less "bite", but for that wonderful complexity of sound, the tricone can't be beaten, in my opinion. I'd say you need to try all 3 types to find out which one suits your music best.

[TheArimathean]

Listening to sound clips, to me the spider cones sound more "twangy" the tri-cone sounds "echoe-y" and almost muffled to me, and the biscuit cone sounds "drippy" if that makes any sense. :))

[allenhopkins]

Well, I'm having a bit of trouble with "drippy," but my one-word summary is that "biscuit" resonators snarl, "spider" resonators whine. And again, take into consideration that many of the "biscuit" instruments are made of metal -- steel or plated brass -- while almost all the "spider" instruments are wooden. And that the "spider" type resonators are often mounted with a "sound well" around the base of the resonator, while the "biscuit" ones lack the well. And that every instrument is unique, in one way or another.

Generalizations are necessary -- we can't treat every piece of data as sui generis -- but take 'em only as far as they work.

[kmmando]

Here's a few rough vids with the two systems in tenor Nationals. Might give some idea as to the sounds, although its a camera mike in all cases. There's quality sound recordings on my cds with the tenors, if anyones interested. Hope its of interest.
best, Kevin Macleod

http://vimeo.com/53160635

http://vimeo.com/53160636

http://vimeo.com/26553352

[kmmando]

https://vimeo.com/46324833