Oud987
Oud Maniac
Posts: 59
Registered: 8-27-2004
Location: San Antonio Texas
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Mood: Happy
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Using a 12-string
What tuning options as far as oud music would be best for tuning a steel string 12-string guitar?
and would it be worth it to remove the frets?
Returning from Texas!
Joshua
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MatthewW
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1031
Registered: 11-5-2006
Location: right here
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Mood: Al Salam
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perhaps the Turkish D tuning or a variation of, from low- high: D,B,G,E A,D. another variation of this would be : E [or D],F#, B, E, A, D.you could
try the Arabic C tuning, but I think due to the different scale and string tensions of the guitar the really low F or C might be too low...try it and
see. would you keep the 'normal' double courses of strings with an octave apart, or replace the higher strings with a regular set of strings so you
have double courses of the same string type? Taking off the frets might be an interesting experiment, although it would look a bit wierd with all the
grooves left on the fingerboard from where the frets were, and not sure about the sound. If it isn't an expensive 12 string then experiment! Have you
tried playing oud music on the 12 string guitar in just regular open D guitar tuning ( vestapol) at all?
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SamirCanada
Moderator
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Registered: 6-4-2004
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just buy a oud.
taking the frets of a guitar isnt going to work... not much sound will come from it being fingered.
Its been tried and its not worth it.
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MatthewW
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1031
Registered: 11-5-2006
Location: right here
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| Quote: | Originally posted by SamirCanada
just buy a oud.
taking the frets of a guitar isnt going to work... not much sound will come from it being fingered.
Its been tried and its not worth it. |
SamirCanada is right, it may be interesting to fool about with the 12 string guitar, but if you want that oud sound and feel your'e just gonna need to
buy yourself an oud! 
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Jason
Oud Junkie
Posts: 734
Registered: 9-17-2005
Location: Louisville, KY
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If you're set on trying a fretless guitar you would probably be better off just buying one. You're not going to be able to use traditional oud
tunings on a guitar with regular strings. You could do D G A D G C by using two sets of 'A' strings for the low G and A and then use a very light
guage B string for the C.
But everyone else is right, no matter what you do it's not going to sound remotely similar to an oud. Instead of ruining your 12 string it would be
better if you bought even a cheap ebay oud.
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nouphar
Oud Maniac
Posts: 96
Registered: 3-28-2007
Location: Spain
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Guys, I defretted my classical guitar some months ago, and I am satisfied with the results. If you use a plectrum the sound volume increases
significantly. Putting four wound and two nylon strings -same pattern as an oud- I can obtain a true oud tuning. I have some videos on youtube. I'm
not an expert guitar player, but I think my stuff will give you some ideas,
http://es.youtube.com/profile?user=Nupharluteum
Obviously the best is to own a good oud, but why not defretting a guitar?
For a 12 string guitar I'd just put two regular acoustic guitar sets in order to have unison courses. If you can really lower the action, then a
fretless 12 string guitar is possible...but if you can't you can always put extra frets between the 1st and the 2nd frets, and the 3rd and 4th frets,
just like this great algerian mandole-guitar,
http://bp1.blogger.com/_FGOFNVq1tgQ/Rv4QACpN4UI/AAAAAAAAAqg/7QRI00A...
Those extra frets allow you to play rast, bayati and saba for example. The tuning must be EADGCF.
By the way, this same instrument is being advertised on ebay,
http://cgi.ebay.es/GUITARE-12-cordes-12-strings-GUITAR-MANDOLE-MAND...
Regards.
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Lintfree
Oud Junkie
Posts: 171
Registered: 2-9-2007
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I don't know if anyone else has taken frets out of a 12string but I have and it does work. I took the frets out of a Guild 12string and strung it with
two sets of light bronze strings and it sounded great. Maybe a little less volume but it didn't matter because I put a Sunrise magnetic pickup on it
and it sounded huge. A better pickup would be a Seymour Duncan Mag-Mic because it has 12 individual pole pieces and a little microphone in it.
The other project was a Mexican 12string made by Jeronimo Amescua in Paracho, Mexico. Mexican 12strings are braced like a classical guitar with fan
bracing. It had a 12string classical guitar bridge on it so I strung it with 2 sets of classical guitar strings (unison) and it was wonderful,
especially in Arabic oud tuning. Then I took the frets out and it sounded the same but with no frets. Like ouds 12string guitars are all different.
You'll never find anything new unless you take a chance. You may find the perfect instrument but if you don't go for it you'll never know. D.L.
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