RE: Glass Slides-Does color make a difference in tone?

[EataPeach]

All other things being relative-Glass thickness etc..
I was reading this..
http://www.mrbsguitarslides.com/standard_slides.html

[TwoTubMan]

No.

[Luke]

yes the green ones aren't ripe yet

[EataPeach]

yes the green ones aren't ripe yet

LOL..

I couldnt see how either...

[russ6100]

Well, plastics can have differing tensile strengths due to the different color dyes used in their formulation. This is because all dyes / pigments are not created equally, strength-wise, so different amounts of dye / pigment are called for in the "recipe", affecting the physical properties of the finished product. A plastics's formulation may also be changed to be able to accept certain dyes / pigments....

With glass?

Dunno for sure but I doubt it....

[ohmslaw]

All other things being relative-Glass thickness etc..
I was reading this..
http://www.mrbsguitarslides.com/standard_slides.html
It sez right in there that it is the hardness of the glass that makes the difference in tone. It just works out that the harder glass happens to be colored according to their info. Maybe the coloring agent makes the glass more dense, I have no idea, but I am sure the makers can tell you.

[JonR]

Any difference between glass slides would be down to weight. Assuming all were equally smooth (no frosted glass finishes...;) ).
Differences in "hardness" would be negligible (unless someone's invented "soft" glass... :rolleyes:).
Glass is, of course, different from plastic in its effect on the strings - but that's down to weight and smoothness of surface.
More weight means more sustain - an important distinction. Similar to how heavier guitars (denser wood) give more sustain. (But then sustain may not always be the most desirable effect from a slide. A short, scrapey sound might be what you want, if you want to sound like an authentic delta blues player. But then I guess you can grab a kitchen knife...)

In fact, I'm very surprised that site doesn't classify them according to weight. It's a bit like selling guitar strings without telling you the gauge, or picks without telling you the thickness: "these blue ones sound quite different from these green ones!" :rolleyes:

I'm certainly not buying a glass side from them. Too much b***s*** in evidence, and not enough info.
But then I already have a very nice glass slide, made from a genuine bottleneck. It's green... man, I love that green sound... :)

[kludge]

Different kinds of glass have different sounds. That may or may not corrolate with different colors of glass.

My favorite sounding slide ever is a pyrex (clear) lap steel slide I found on EBay, made from some exotic Czech glass. Very lightweight, beautiful singing tone and very good sustain for glass. But it chips up easily and is basically irreplaceable, so I don't use it except for recording now. I've tried other glass slides but haven't found one that sings like this one.

Glass slides can vary widely in sound. But I doubt color is the driving factor.

[sharpshooter]

Most glass, is just "soda, and/or sand glass", but one that was made from real "leaded glass", like the kind used for fine crystal ware, would be heavier in weight.
However, would also break very easily.