Dobro / Resonator

Dobro was the first company to mass produce a single cone resonator. The other main company was National. Both names are now used and abused by various clones. :)
I'm sure Ric will be around but here's his reply to a similar Q.
https://www.guitarnoise.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17407

correct. the Doperya (sp?) brothers created the first resonator.it was called Dobro. the internal cone could amplify the sound of the guitar. that was in the twenties.
then in the late twenties National began making resonators.
because of copyright laws National could not use the term resonator. they chose the word Resophonic.

they are the same instruments in terms of function.

the word dobro is similar to the way Kleenex is to tissues.

Yeah, but the Dobro was the third type of resonator. The National Tricone was first, and the biscuit bridge single cone National was second. Dopyera went through a lot of experimental designs with other configurations that didn't work out and never got produced. Apparently he'd trashcanned the biscuit idea, but his National partner Mr. Beauchamp got it out and patented it as if he'd invented it.

It's a common mistake to call any resonator guitar a "dobro," but that's really a brand name and generally refers to the spider bridge type. Players of Tricones and biscuits tend to get irked when their guitars are called "dobros." And Gibson's lawyers get downright testy when the word "dobro" is used as a generic name, since Gibson owns the Dobro brand. That's why more generic terms like "resonator guitar" and "resophonic" were adopted. The current National Resophonic Guitar Company is unrelated to the old National Instrument Company, but makes very high quality, respected resonators based on the old designs at their factory in California. A number of other brands of less expensive imported copies are now available.

Each type has its own sound and pros and cons. For particular musical and playing styles, one may suit you better than another. For blues, the biscuit is the most popular type, followed by the Tricone, with the spider a distant third. I think they're all useful for playing blues. The biscuit single cones have a loud, short bark that has a lot of the sound you get from clanging on a metal trash can. (I often joke that they sound like playing a banjo down in a well.) Can't beat 'em for playing high energy juke joint dance music, like the stuff Son House used to thrash out of 'em. The Tricones have a bit of that clangor, too, but they're not as loud and have a lot more sustain. I think they're very versatile. Tampa Red is the best known Tricone player. Spider bridges are the most "civilized" sounding resos, with a loud, pleasant, hollow sounding (to my ears) tone. You've heard them a lot in bluegrass and country music. If you've listened to Eric Clapton's "Walking Blues" on his "Unplugged" album, you've heard blues played on one. They're very versatile guitars, too. I'm a big Tricone fan, myself. Wish I could afford a National Resophonic, but I'm quite happy with my Chinese-made Johnson Tricone that I've customized a bit. (There's a thread about that down in the "Slide" forum.)

I've seen National Resolectrics around. You know, the ones with a resonator cone over a semihollow ( I believe) and a soapbar PU in the neck postion? Does anyone know how much they go for?

Thanks, Matt :D

Google "National Resolectric." You'll find lots of dealers selling them, as well as a ton of information.

ha thanks
Matt

heres a pic of a reso jr.

and some early resonators