bennabnd
Oud Admirer
Posts: 1
Registered: 2-12-2004
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Mood: scared!
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Help with tuning, please
Help! I just bought a 300 dollar Oud and it cost 100 more just to ship it here. It looks pretty good but when I go to tune it I crank the knobs and
they unwind themselves and detune. I can't get anywhere near the DGADGC. This happens more than an octaze away. How on earth do I tune it and
get it to stay?
I have wooden knobs and they just untwist when I tune it up high enough. However some of them stay namely the two highest and a couple in the
middle. but they still dont get high enough. the top two should be tuned an octave above middle C right?
It seems like the pes themselves slide out of the holes when they are tightened.
I am more interested in sound and playability than look, but I got the opposite. I am a college student and this is a fortune to me.
if there's any advice you have. How does any Oud stay from doing this?
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Brian Prunka
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 1-30-2004
Location: Brooklyn, NY
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The top two strings are tuned to middle C, not an octave above. They are 1/2 step above the "B" string on a guitar.
pegs improperly fitted to the peg holes are one of the most common problems with ouds, especially cheaper ones. This is likely to be part of the
problem. If you don't know someone who repairs ouds, a violin repairman can fix this problem. Violin shops also sell compounds that reduce
slippage.
Good luck!
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journeyman
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 12-28-2003
Location: Toronto, Ontario
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I also have a cheap oud that I got a while ago, but I am able to tune it with no problem. Try this if you haven't already done it:
With the peg box resting on your thigh, slack off the string tension and put pressure downward, one peg at a time of course, on the pegs that are on
top, as if you are drilling the peg in. It is important that you support the peg box when doing this. You can move the peg in both directions until
you get good friction. Then bring the string up close to pitch while still putting pressure on the peg. When you are close, you should be able to make
small adjustments in pitch without the downward pressure.
For the pegs on the underside of the peg box, you do the same thing, but support the top of the peg box with your other hand. This is what my teacher
showed me and it works for me. Good luck.
Cheers,
Roy
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evereksti
Oud Admirer
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Registered: 2-10-2004
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slipping pegs
i've found that journeyman's technique generally works but occasionally doesn't. if you still have a problem you might try the
following, especially if it's a cheaper variety oud and all you're concerned with is getting to play. take the pegs out and sand them down.
then dip them in water. if they expand too much and don't fit in their holes you can always sand them down again. i thought perhaps it might
affect the integrity of the wood and that with tightening it might cause the pegs to break, but i have honestly never had a problem with slipping pegs
on my cheap oud since then, and i've changed strings several times. (it was also a $60 oud bought in turkey). there's always some slippage
with a new set of strings but it tends to go away as the strings are stretched out to their proper length. in the old days (at least in my
grandmother's anatolian village) the technique for combatting this problem, crude as it might be, was to spit on the slipping peg.
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spyros mesogeia
Oud Junkie
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Location: WASHINGTON DC
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Dear evereksti....
Your thaught has a logical base....but you can do those things to a quality oud....
Anyhow,I like very much the fact that you are a very practical person....
Regards my friend....
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spyrosc
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 9-18-2003
Location: Northern California, USA
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Slippage
Dear friend,
search this forum for this information, because this question has been answered by many, including Dr. Oud who also had some very practical advice
that works. There was also a lot of misinformation like using rosin to stop them from slipping, which is NOT a good idea.
You can use the search function and look for "slipping" and "pegs"
Good Luck
Spyros C.
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evereksti
Oud Admirer
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in response to spyros m, i'm no expert of course but i think that as long as you are careful to dry the pegs and keep water away from the
instrument, there isn't much harm done if it's a cheaper oud. i should have mentioned the drying part. with a quality oud though i
wouldn't let moisture let alone water anywhere near the instrument. i'm sure dr. oud is the best person to talk to.
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Dr. Oud
Oud Junkie
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Location: Sacramento, CA, USA
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"take the pegs out and sand them down. then dip them in water"
Definitly NOT the thing to do. While sanding is employed in the fitting process, it has to be done carefully while checking the fit, NOT as a general
fixative. Slipping pegs can be made to grip a it better with a little chalk or talcum powder, if they fit in the first place. If the peg wiggles in
the hole, it doesn't fit and must be fitted. The cheap ouds usually have soft pegs that should be replaced with hardwood pegs. Viola pegs are a
good match, but you need the right tool and some knowledge/training to install them.
Or maybe we have to go to Anatolia to get a Grandmother to spit on our oud's pegs.
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Al Billings
Oud Addict
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Registered: 1-31-2004
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If it's your first oud, and inexpensive, you mostly need to be able to quit screwing around with the pegs and start playing. You can find a peg
paste in violin shops made by Hidersine called "Hiderpaste." Works great and doesn't harm the pegbox. Best stuff I ever used on ouds
and fiddles. Don't over-do it, just a smidgeon is all you need. And frankly, although I usually yield to Richard on matters of oud arcana, as a
stop-gap I'd simply rub a little chalk on each peg. That'll do the job until you get some paste. You'll only cause damage if you
continue to chalk the pegs for an extended period of time. It is, after all, a $300.00 oud, a learner's instrument, which you'll replace
with something better if you decide to keep playing. If you quit, can sell the cheap oud on eBay. The new buyer will come to this page for advice and
we'll all get to disagree with each other about how to stop pegs from slipping. Everybody wins.
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spyros mesogeia
Oud Junkie
Posts: 896
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Location: WASHINGTON DC
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Dear friend,
I think that Al is right....I agree with him,but only because is a low price oud....resolve those problems so you can start playing.....
Regards to all
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nadir
Oud Junkie
Posts: 329
Registered: 12-29-2003
Location: USA
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you could also put powder on them or just get ebony pegs...
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