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Dobro
Dobro () is an American brand of resonator guitars owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally a guitar manufacturing company founded by the Dopyera brothers as the Dobro Manufacturing Company. Their guitar design, with a single outward-facing resonator cone, was introduced to compete with the patented inward-facing tricone and biscuit designs produced by the National String Instrument Corporation. The Dobro name appeared on other instruments, notably electric lap steel guitars and solid body electric guitars and on other resonator instruments such as Safari resonator mandolins. History The roots of the Dobro story can be traced to the 1920s when Slovak immigrant John Dopyera, instrument repairman and inventor, and musician George Beauchamp were searching for more volume for Beauchamp's guitars. Dopyera built an ampliphonic (or "res ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tricone
A resonator guitar or resophonic guitar (often generically called a "Dobro") is an acoustic guitar that produces sound by conducting string vibrations through the bridge to one or more spun metal cones (resonators), instead of to the guitar's sounding board (top). Resonator guitars were originally designed to be louder than regular acoustic guitars, which were overwhelmed by horns and percussion instruments in dance orchestras. They became prized for their distinctive tone, and found life with bluegrass music and the blues well after electric amplification solved the problem of inadequate volume. Resonator guitars are of two styles: * Square-necked guitars played in lap steel guitar style (also called a dobro) * Round-necked guitars played in conventional guitar style or steel guitar style There are three main resonator designs: * The ''tricone'', with three metal cones, designed by the first National company * The single-cone "biscuit" design of other National instruments ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Resonator Guitar
A resonator guitar or resophonic guitar (often generically called a " Dobro") is an acoustic guitar that produces sound by conducting string vibrations through the bridge to one or more spun metal cones (resonators), instead of to the guitar's sounding board (top). Resonator guitars were originally designed to be louder than regular acoustic guitars, which were overwhelmed by horns and percussion instruments in dance orchestras. They became prized for their distinctive tone, and found life with bluegrass music and the blues well after electric amplification solved the problem of inadequate volume. Resonator guitars are of two styles: * Square-necked guitars played in lap steel guitar style (also called a dobro) * Round-necked guitars played in conventional guitar style or steel guitar style There are three main resonator designs: * The ''tricone'', with three metal cones, designed by the first National company * The single-cone "biscuit" design of other National instrumen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dobro
Dobro () is an American brand of resonator guitars owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally a guitar manufacturing company founded by the Dopyera brothers as the Dobro Manufacturing Company. Their guitar design, with a single outward-facing resonator cone, was introduced to compete with the patented inward-facing tricone and biscuit designs produced by the National String Instrument Corporation. The Dobro name appeared on other instruments, notably electric lap steel guitars and solid body electric guitars and on other resonator instruments such as Safari resonator mandolins. History The roots of the Dobro story can be traced to the 1920s when Slovak immigrant John Dopyera, instrument repairman and inventor, and musician George Beauchamp were searching for more volume for Beauchamp's guitars. Dopyera built an ampliphonic (or "res ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lap Steel Guitar
The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar or lap slide guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of playing a traditional acoustic guitar, in which the performer's fingertips press the strings against frets, the pitch of a steel guitar is changed by pressing a polished steel bar against strings while plucking them with the opposite hand. The steel guitar's name is derived from this steel bar. Though the instrument does not have frets, it displays markers that resemble them. Lap steels may differ markedly from one another in external appearance, depending on whether they are acoustic or electric, but in either case, do not have pedals, distinguishing them from pedal steel guitars. The steel guitar was the first foreign musical instrument to gain a foothold in American pop music. It originated in the Hawaiian Kingdom about 1885, popularize ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National String Instrument Corporation
The National String Instrument Corporation was an American guitar company first formed to manufacture banjos and then the original resonator guitars. National also produced resonator ukuleles and resonator mandolins. The company merged with Dobro to form the "National Dobro Company", then becoming a brand of Valco until it closed in 1968. History Early years The first company was formed by George Beauchamp, a vaudeville steel guitar player and house painter, and inventor John Dopyera, a violinist and luthier. Dopyera had seen an amplified Stroh stick violin nearby with a small flat diaphragm and long attached horn. He used that initial idea, but with a large spun conical inverted speaker, to create his patented multiple resonator designs. Dopyera was assisted with his nephews Paul and Carl Barth spinning the first aluminum diaphragms on wooden bucks. They first experimented with their novel ampli-phonic design in a large walnut console instrument. Soon afterwards the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Dopyera
John Dopyera ( Slovak: ''Ján Dopjera''; 1893–1988) was a Slovak- American inventor, entrepreneur, and maker of stringed instruments. His inventions included the resonator guitar and important contributions to the early development of the electric guitar. Early life John Dopyera was one of ten siblings born at the close of the 19th century. His father, Jozef Dopyera, was a miller in Dolná Krupá, Slovakia, to which they had moved shortly after John's birth. A gifted musician, Jozef constructed his own violins, which were popular in Slovakia for their craftsmanship. Under his father's tutelage, John built his first fiddle while still a young boy. In 1908, concerned that was imminent in Europe, the Dopyeras emigrated to California. In the 1920s, Dopyera opened a stringed instrument shop in Los Angeles, where he built and repaired fiddles, banjos, and other wood stringed instruments. Around this time, Dopyera patented several improvements to banjo construction. Middle years ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Resonator Mandolin
A resonator mandolin or "resophonic mandolin" is a mandolin whose sound is produced by one or more metal cones (''resonators'') instead of the customary wooden soundboard (mandolin top/face). These instruments are sometimes referred to as " Dobro mandolins," after pioneering instruments designed and produced by the Dopyera Brothers, which evolved into a brand name. The trademark "Dobro" is currently the property of the Gibson Guitar Corporation. When Gibson acquired the trademark in 1993, they announced that they would defend their right to its exclusive use. The resonator mandolin was developed in parallel with the resonator guitar. The resonator guitar was originally designed to be louder than conventional acoustic guitars. A resonator mandolin is generally somewhat louder than a standard wooden mandolin, and has a different tone quality and distinctive appearance. Though resonator guitars are often played flat in the lap steel guitar style, resonator mandolins are almost e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Original Musical Instrument Company
Original (formerly "Original Musical Instrument Company", also known for its acronym "OMI") is an American brand currently owned by Gibson through its subsidiary Epiphone. The company uses the brand to produce and commercialize resonator guitars. The company was formed in 1967 by two of the original John Dopyera brothers, Rudy and Emile, to manufacture resonator guitars. They produced their first instruments under the brand "Hound Dog". In 1970 the company reacquired the Dobro name that had been sold in 1966 to Semie Mosely of Mosrite, although it carried on using the Hound Dog name for a time. In 1993 the Gibson Corporation acquired Original, and subsequently changed the name to "Original Acoustic Instruments", moving the manufacturing operation to its headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee. Gibson Corporation still produces Dobro resonator guitars through its subsidiary company, Epiphone. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valco
Valco was a US manufacturer of guitar amplifiers from the 1940s through 1968. Apart from its original products, Valco also commercialised electric and acoustic guitars and basses through its subsidiary companies. History Valco was formed in 1940 by three business partners and former owners of the National Dobro Company; Victor Smith, Al Frost, and Louis Dopyera. The company name was a combination of the three partner's first initials (V.A.L.) plus the common abbreviation for company (Co.) Valco manufactured and sold electric (since the 1950s), resonator, lap steel and classical guitars and vacuum tube amplifiers under a variety of brand names including Supro, Airline, National and Oahu. They also made amplifiers under contract for several other companies such as Gretsch, Harmony, and Kay. Valco merged with Kay Musical Instrument Company in 1967; however financial difficulties forced the merged company to fold the following year. Replicas and revivals Si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
