Dad3353

Don't panic; help is here; see below... Yes, tell us what you are wanting to do (which chords..? Which song, if any..? Any particular style, such as folk, rock, red-hot jazz, or none of these..?). Maybe spend a short while looking through these introductory videos, made especially for absolute beginners, and FREE..! Come back to us with answers to our questions, and pose others if you wish. Over to you..? Beginner's Guitar Videos ... Douglas

I don't know if you're aware of it, but Guitar Pro 8 is an excellent tool for guitarists, for composing, recording and/or learning. I've just looked up this piece (I'd never heard it before...), and there's a GP version, which I've just run through with Guitar Pro 8. In standard notation and tab, the playback speed can be varied (I just played back the solo at 10%...) without pitch change, repeating any section at will. I've attached the GP3 file I downloaded from t'web; maybe it can help..? Yes, the secret is to do it slowly, in manageable chunks, and, with practise and Patience, it will all come together. That's how Randy Rhoads got to play that way, that's certain. Hope this helps... Douglas osbourne_ozzy-crazy_train.gp3

Basically it's a choice of material, really. For acoustics, the 'norme' would be phosphor-bronze, but for this guitar, steel strings might well suite, too. If you like the 'gypsy jazz' style, Pyramid do a set of 10-45 with ball ends; they would probably be close to the strings already on. A more traditional acoustic set would be the Harley-Benson 10-47 coated phosphor set, from Thomann, or D'Addario EZ900 Bronze, 10-50. Maybe best to go to the Thomann site and have a look through the wide range listed there..? You could buy a set from anywhere, of course, but you could at least look through the options. I would only suggest that it's probably not worth paying premium prices for exotic strings, as the guitar wouldn't sound like a Martin, whatever strings are on it. It's a modest guitar; put on a good set of modest strings like those suggested and enjoy. Douglas

Yes, I'd say that it was made for steel strings; the tuners for nylon strings would have a much wider diameter, and that tailpiece would be typical; nylon would not have ball ends, and would knot around a differently-formed bridge. It reminds me of my very first guitar, a Russian made acoustic with similar features,, and a flat fingerboard. It was difficult to play, especially for a beginner, but I appreciated all the more my upgrade to a Hofner President..! The guitar pictures needs to be re-strung, and the tailpiece drilled a little if the low 'E' string doesn't seat properly. The other end just needs to be correctly wound, with the excess string length clipped off. Yes, it's a modest guitar, but we don't all play Martins or Gibsons, and if it sounds fine, there's no foul. Douglas

That's a bit harsh, I'd say. I doubt that it's a 'concert' model, but, unless it's got structural issues, it's a modest guitar, s'all. If you don't want it, give it to someone who might appreciate it for what it is.

I doubt that that's a luthier, or manufacturer. It looks more like a shop sticker, where the guitar was sold. I found this in a corner of t'web, by a n old photo of Soissons... Il y avait un magasin d'instruments de musique tenu par Raoul Dequevy qui a été mon professeur de musique à l'époque qui m'a appris à jouer de la guitare. No idea who, what, where or when the guitar was made. Douglas

Good evening. I'm sorry, but the best I can do is what is sometimes called a 's*** sandwich', so... Well done on the video front; it's not easy to get all the elements synced up, with multiple views. Good work , there. What's 'less good'..? The mix. I listened through monitors, then with my headset, and had to compare to the original (I don't know the band or the track...), and your mix doesn't fare too well in comparison. There's a wall of low-end mush clouding it all, taking all the 'snap' out of the drums and solo spots (I couldn't distinguish cymbal hits at all...). It's been multi-tracked, and the result is far too dense, with complete loss of detail. A great pity, as the playing is very good (to judge from the video shots, not from the sonic result...). The ultra-low tuning is not doing you any favours, without some delicate filtering and EQ to be able to 'place' everything in its sonic space. The energy is there, the vocals that do come across are convincing; you can all play, no question, so 'Well done' on choosing and realising such a song. Take the stem tracks back for a re-mix, breath some clarity into it all, thin out the mush and retrieve the 'snap', I'd say. Disclaimer : I'm a drummer, and old, so my hearing is no longer top notch. In this light, get other opinions for a balanced view. Thanks for sharing; hope this doesn't come across as being cruel; you're doing well.

I wouldn't recommend doing this; valve amps are a bit different to solid state, notably in their output construction. The valves drive their load (the speaker...) through a transformer, to convert volts to amps, and rely on the correct impedance to work properly (this means to not go up in smoke...). Most high-power valve amps have a multi-tapped transformer, to allow for different speaker/cab loads; it's important to respect this when connecting cabs. Your Fender doesn't have this type of transformer, and would only be comfortable (that's to say : safe...) with an 8 Ohm load. It's possible to unplug the built-in speaker and connect another cab, but it must be an 8 Ohm cab. You may change the speaker, but only for an 8 Ohm one. You should not use the amp with no speaker connected; valve amps do not like to run unloaded; the output transformer would probably 'fry'. What solutions, then..? I've a 'budget' solution and a slightly less 'budget' one. In the old days, we used 50 or 100 W amp heads, often with 4x12 cabs. These tended to be excruciatingly loud if cranked to get 'that' tone; far too loud for the safety of our ears. We would lay the cab flat on a carpeted floor; this absorbed the worst of the row. Try that, then, with your combo and see if the resulting sound is what you're after. The more technical solution is to use a 'power soak'. This is a dummy load which respects the needs of the amp, but absorbs some of the power, leaving less for the speaker. Some are fixed, others variable, and so act a bit like a volume control, whilst respecting the 'cooking' of the output valves. Here's the Thomann range; that's the 'correct' way to tame a valve amp with no risk of generating 'magic smoke'. It is important, nevertheless, to respect the impedance requirements of the amp, and only use an 8 Ohm soak. Hope this helps. Douglas Thomann Power Soaks ...

@Chiliwailer: T's all your fault, for posting such a convincing ad, coupled with an equally convincing video. Long story short: I was convinced. Apologies for not taking up this offer, though; I'm in France, and the extra faff (a technical term...) and import costs put me off, just enough to have a scout around LeBonCoin (our equivalent of Gumtree..?), where I found an identical pedal, which I bought..! Received it this morning, and it fulfils its promise. Ideally suited to my, admittedly excruciating, guitar playing (I'm a drummer, so...), and fits in very well on my modest pedal board (Boss Compressor, Boss Fender Deluxe, Twin Big Muff, Akai Headrush and now Fender Santa Ana...), all into my Fender Bassman 50w valve amp. Soft, creamy, nice switching options and very useful tone controls; I'm very pleased. All this to end up with 'BUMP'..! This is a fine pedal, which I'd have been happy to buy if I was in the UK. The Seller is a very reputable member on the sister Basschat forum, so no need to hesitate. This is an Overdrive pedal; much more subtle sonic options than a mere fuzz or disto, but marries well with other pedals. 'BUMP', I say, 'BUMP'..! Douglas

Good afternoon, Alan (@The Pinky...) and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

There is little in the guitar world for these issues; they are physiological and mental. There is help, however, in breathing exercises, for relaxation, yoga, for same, and wellness stuff such as thinking hard about coffee, smoking and/or alcohol consumption. Short sessions, with a complete break between (pop out for a stroll or a run between sessions..?), Use a warm-up routine, every time. Vary the exercises, so as not to concentrate on any one thing for too long. For longer pieces, break it down into shorter sections, and learn/practice them starting from the end. Once the end section is perfect (and not before...) learn/practice the preceding section, and continue through to the end, which is now familiar territory. Once these two sections are perfect (and not before...) work on the preceding section, play through to the end (already familiar...) etc. Every time, you're playing into sections that are already well rehearsed, and so relaxation, comfort and confidence are assured. The sections can be as short as you wish (Four bars..? A whole phrase..? Half a page, or a whole one..?); it depends on the piece, but small is OK. Hope some of this helps. Douglas

You mention 'fast position and chord changes'. My single piece of advice would be to solve this issue by doing things slowly. Slow is the new fast. Slow is the fastest way to do fast. Whatever it is you're wanting to do, do it slowly, preferably with a metronome, or whatever you use for tempo, but set it to slow. Do whatever it is you are wanting to do, slowly, for a while (two, three weeks..? Every day, for ten-fifteen minutes..? Slowly..!). Once it can be done, slowly, well, up the tempo a little. No, just a little (60 bpm becomes 65 bpm, for example...) do this, regularly, for another 'while', and once you've become proficient at it, up the tempo a tad more (65 becomes 70..?). Repeat; if, after a 'while' it's still not smooth, clean, easy, go back down a tad with the tempo and repeat. It is useful, and recommended, to start from the original 'slow' tempo now and again, for a day or so, working back up to one's current tempo, as a refresher. Always with the metronome, or whatever you use for tempo. This is the way to obtain whatever speed one wants, and is the guaranteed fastest way. Is there a downside..? Yes, it requires a large bucketful of Patience. Those without this essential accessory will not achieve their goal, so be sure to have that bucket, and keep it well topped up. It is of no advantage to do this for hours on end, nor too many times a day, but if time permits, a couple or three sessions of 10-15 minutes (no more...) may be permitted. The key is in the regularity (every day...), in the keeping the tempo slow (hence the metronome or equivalent...) and the Patience. It cannot, and never does, fail. Douglas

If it's sound, with only minor 'playing' wear, searches show prices between 1000-2000€. Any repairs might knock a few hundred off, and pristine condition and/or a hard case might add the same. No guarantee of accuracy, but I hope this helps; meanwhile... Have a great day. Douglas

I'm not sure how a p/u, on its own, can produce anything but a 'clean' sound. I can understand high output, and differing tone, but there's nothing in a p/u that can do anything but capture the string. Any grit, or crunch, or whatever must surely come from the pre-amp or pedals..? Am I wrong..? Have I always just been lucky..?

It certainly puts the kibosh on the 'tone wood' debate. I will never understand why anyone would want a sound like that. Not a fan, obviously.

There are venues and bands that adopt the amps in front of the players, in the manner of foldback cabs. Obviously not stacks of 4x12's, but combos or one-cab rigs can give sufficient volume and clarity both for the player, the other band members and the audience when placed this way. It's a good way of setting up rehearsal space, too, and makes rehearsal more like a venue stage. Worth considering..?

Good afternoon, Neil... In your shoes I think I would go with the first on the list (the bundled amp etc...); you will notice no difference whatsoever between '63', '70', '40th Anniversary' etc when learning, and many experienced guitarists would not care either which is which. Any difference in cost, as long as budget will support it, would be better spent on at least one or two lessons from a local, reputable, guitar tutor, who will be able to show you how to start off without taking on beginner's bad habits which could bite you later on. A tuner pedal, or clip-on tuner, is a Good Idea from the start; new strings can wait for a few months. If you go to a tutor, he/she will be able to recommend a method for whatever goals you set yourself (depending on what you want to learn to play...). One may learn 'by ear', or from Tablature, or get stuck into reading Music Notation from the outset; all are valuable, Be aware, though, that the fastest way to learn is to go slowly, and this includes the 'theory' side and reading music from a score. Hope this helps; I'll give my usual encouraging catch-phrase, which applies to many situations... 'It's the first forty years that are the hardest, after which things sometimes tend to get slightly easier.

Disclaimer : I'm a drummer... The ads I've seen would suggest a price ranging from £450 to £550. The original p/us are rather highly praised; if you still have them, and could include them in the deal, maybe a tad more..? Do you have a hard case for it..? That, too, will add some interest for a faster sale. You've not disclosed your location, and whether it could be posted; these factors will also affect the value a buyer would take into account. A very nice guitar; good luck with the sale.

Is that what's meant by 'air guitar'..?

Good afternoon, @Soledad, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. Douglas

Here's a page from the Selmer catalogue of the period; you can see that, for a cost of 6 guinées, it came factory-fitted with light-gauge steel strings, making it excellent for cutting cheese..! My very first guitar, mid '60s, was similar, but Russian-built, full size, and a neck fixed to the body by a bolt. I moved on from there with a Hofner President (I regret its loss...). There are often Selmer 222 guitars offered second-hand, usually priced between £15 and £25. Popular at the time, mainly for their attractive relatively low price. By 'Concert' size, they mean '3/4' size, or 'Parlour' guitar...

Quite the opposite, for me. I find myself humming a melody, then wondering what it is, only to realise later that it's something I composed myself years ago.

An excellent question. Here's a couple of answers (Disclaimer : Patience is needed, but does pay out handsomely...). Go Slowly..! ... ... and ... The 12 Most Important Fingerpicking Guitar Exercises you Must Learn ... When you've mastered those, come back and we'll give you more.

That looks to be an ideal set-up that even Gilmour would appreciate. My recollection of valve amps (I used a Watkins Westminster at first,, and a Linear Conchord, then Hiwatt 50, and now have several valve amps, Hiwatt, Fender, Mesa and more...) tell me that you have the potential for that tone, right there. 'How loud is the band..?' would be the next question. You'll be able to crank up the volume, but risk losing that delicate subtlety that's required. If your drummer is a 'shed-builder', you may get away with doubling the cab (or adding a cab if it's a combo...), but the way forward for integrating that tone at venue level would be mic'ing up the cab (SM57 aimed at the sweet spot of the cone...) into the FOH desk, and let a quality PA do the heavy lifting. It's not decibel volume per se that you will need, it's volume of air being shifted, and more speakers will do that better than cranking up the amp. You've already got a top-notch rig; improvement will need top-notch solutions, I'm afraid. How deep are your pockets..?