Dad3353

There's no relationship between changing strings and pick-up failure. If you've looked at the wiring (How..? Did you remove the scratch plate..?) and can see nothing wrong, the best help I could suggest would be to have it checked out by a reputable guitar tech. Your local shop will be able to suggest someone, or have someone 'in house' for that. Of course, we've no idea as to your location; there may be someone near you that could have a look..?

The low 'E' pin is a bit high, too. Probably nothing; maybe the holes have been reamed differently (although that would surprise me of a Yamaha...). The holes are actually tapered. Next time you re-string, try swapping the 'D' pin for the high 'E', for instance..? As for the tuners, they're very rarely an issue, with any guitar. Most of the time it's just a question of how to put the strings on. Here's what we do at our house... I'll assume that the bridge pin is now firmly holding the ball end in place, as described above ^^. I thread the string through the hole in the tuner. For the skinnier strings, I loop around and pass through the same hole again. In doing this, I keep some slack in the string, enough to hold it about an inch or so above the fretboard. I'll wind the tuner, keeping the string taut above the fretboard until it's settled into the nut slot. My first turn, I'll guide the string to below the tuner hole. The next turns I'll guide progressively up the tuner post. There should be about three or four turns, if the amount of slack has been guessed correctly. Repeat for the other strings. Once all the strings are fitted, I'll tune up to pitch (I start with the 'A', then tune 'em all relative to that...). Once they're all up to pitch, I'll seize each string at its mid-point, and gently lift the guitar up, solely by the string. There's no fear of the string breaking in doing this; it settles them and tightens up any slack anywhere, just by the guitar's own weight. Once I've done this for each string, I'll tune up again, more precisely. This way, new strings are pretty much bedded in from the outset. Maybe a tweak or so the next day, but all will be stable from then on, until the strings wear out through aging or intensive playing. If there's anything not clear in my description, feel free to ask for more. If you have your own method that suits you, carry on, of course..!

How are you stringing up these strings..? I presume there are bridge pins holding the string in place..? You'll notice that there's a groove in these pins. The idea is to feed the ball down through the bridge hole, then slide the pin down with the string in that groove. Before pushing the pin down hard, pull the string back up, so that the ball comes up between the pin and the bridge. It can't come any further, of course, so the pin may now be pushed firmly down (without undue force; it's not needed...), whilst maintaining tension on the string. As the string is tuned up to pitch, the ball wedges the pin in place; the more tension, the more the pin (and, of course, the string...) are held firm. Sometimes, in stringing up, the ball remains under the pin; if that happens, string tension can, and often does, pop the pin up, and tuning is lost. The pin may even pop out completely (to be lost forever on a dark stage..!). Does any of this ring a bell..? Maybe a photo of the bridge and pin could shed some light..?

'Very' would be an exaggeration, but it's probably best to not have one as one's first guitar. The repertoire tends to be different, as they're more generally strummed, or used for cross-picking; seldom for 'lead' lines. The bug-bear, for beginners, is the tuning (twice as many strings, of course...), as they do not sound 'amazing' unless properly in tune. Worth trying out (at a music shop, or borrowed from a friend..?) before investing, unless really keen. Once acquired, though, they're keepers.

Boney M..? ...

Good evening, Sting PS, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Lefty is right (if that's not a contradiction...), it's part and parcel of playing the guitar. Having clean hands should be a 'given', of course, and rubbing down the strings after every session with a lint-free cloth is Good Practise, too. Personally, I don't think there's any benefit from string lubes such as FastFret, but you may find differently. The main thing is to play lightly when sliding up or down the strings, and let it happen if you can't avoid it. There are so many tracks out there with string noise on 'em; most decent 'virtual' guitar software even allows for adding it in for a more realistic effect. Concentrate more on the sounding of the notes, and their timing, and ignore the squeaks; they're not that important, and most listeners don't even consciously hear them.

Rather more towards the budget end, here's my 'Tele' guitars; Xaviere XV-610... ... and (a bit more 'Strat-like', maybe...) Xaviere XV-650 ... I bought the yellow one, one a whim, from the US, at a very low price, and was delighted with it. Our singer also liked it, and asked me to get him one just like it. I searched, and found the black sparkle one, also very inexpensive (even with the shipping to France...). This has a slightly higher spec, but he preferred the yellow one, and I've kept the black sparkle one. It's my 'go-to' six-string electric (I have others...), and is always in tune (Elixir strings...) whenever I pick it up. A delight to play. An almost unknown brand, here in Europe at least, but it's as good as I need guitar to be (I'm a drummer, so ...).

If this is for home use, I'd separate the functions and use an AI for just that. For foot pedal control, I'd suggest using MIDI, with a Behringer FCB1010 board. It's capable of switching virtual pedals on and off. It needs a Roland adapter to take the MIDI into a PC USB port, unless the AI has MIDI sockets too (my Tascam AI has 'em; some do, some don't...). The quality is well up to home studio work, but there's a learning curve implied in setting up all the parameters (has to be done on any rig, really...). Start off with just an AL, and get some experience with what the DAW, amp modelling and Fx can do. Add a controller afterwards, once you know what it is that you can't do without one.

I'd suggest starting off with the more affordable stuff, then building on that as and when specific needs arise. Going 'all out' hi-tech from the start might paint you into a corner, technically speaking. One can do an awful lot with the simpler stuff.

Good afternoon, Papa Don, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Good evening, Patrick , and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Back then, battery operation was not a simple affair, and the pre-amps less efficient than nowadays. Now that the technology has evolved, and the cost with it, there's little reason to not take advantage of their positive side. Of course, if those are not needed, passives are fine, too.

One great advantage of most active pick-ups (guitar, bass...) is the low impedance output. Less useful at home, but enables long leads on stage without much signal loss and noise generation.

[Mods' Hat On] Any issues with posts should be Reported for The Mods to deal with. [/Mod's Hat On]

The Yardbirds, 'Roger The Engineer' Astrud Gilberto, 'The Astrud Gilberto Album' Jefferson Airplane, 'Surrealistic Pillow' Heady Days.

Have you considered acquisition of a baritone guitar for tunings as low as that..? Ideal, I'd say. New prices start at around £250 or so, second-hand probably available, too, I should think. I've a baritone electric; it plays very well. Just sayin'; hope this helps.

Bass..? Pretty much 'clean', with oodles of headroom. Guitar..? Sparingly (I'm not very good, so...). 'Stock' sound would be Boss compressor, into Boss Fender Deluxe for a spot of reverb, into Akai Headrush. I've recently bought a 'wah' pedal, but not dared to plug it in yet. Soon, maybe...

Don't build up your hopes too high for this aspect; the video is shot with no vision of their feet, so... Other than this somewhat disappointing standpoint, it's a Good Interview, well worth a listen. Nearly an hour, but can be played whilst surfing elsewhere on the Forum at the same time.

A bass rig, yes, but I use it principally for guitar..! I have used it for bass in the past, but with our Hiwatt and its associated HH cab, the Bassman amp is surpassed. Luckily enough, it shines as a guitar rig, so I'm happy..!

Not much of a guitar player (I'm a drummer...), but I'll confess to being more than partial to a nice, vintage, Hiwatt amp. I had a Custom 50 for quite a while; it got left behind when I moved to France, mid '70s. Our min bass amp is a Hiwatt DR205, a 200w PA head, with KT88 valves. These were useful at one time for demolishing WWII bunkers along the Normandy coastline..! Nowadays I get by with a Roland JC60, or directly into the PC through my pedalboard when I'm recording stuff. S'not often, these days, though. I've a Bassman 50w, too, but it's been in retirement for some tie now. I must fetch it out again soon...

Good morning, Thomas, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. This is not, however, a 'live chat' forum, so, in that sense, yes, it's not the right place. Still, stick around (or pop in when you want...); you may be pleasantly surprised.