Kiwi

On 30/12/2022 at 21:36, Baloo76 said:

On Christmas day the dog knocked over the Les Paul, and broke two of the tuners, hence the reason for joining the forum, and another thread coming up on that soon, if you wouldn't ind giving me some help and advice replacing them?

 

We're happy to help but need pics to provide any detailed advice.

On 04/01/2023 at 22:55, Paul S said:

  I see a lot of familiar user names.

Some non bass playing members but they need a bit of something to react to more regularly than once a fortnight unfortunately.

I've only skimmed the surface of what is available so far.  I've downloaded 400 rigs to try out (including maybe 20 for bass) with a view to whittling that list down to maybe two or three from each amp model of interest plus any pedal profiles.  But already it does amps better than amps if the noise floor is anything to go by.  I'm pretty much resolved to getting shot of my pedals on the back of it, with all their compatibility issues and noise levels.  But it made me realise that while it offers greater practicality and higher reliability, having all the sounds doesn't substitute for having the sounds and the original gear.  But it almost makes owning the original gear pointless as it is, the only real benefit to gain is bragging rights and entertainment value from knob twiddling.  The one thing it won't do is replicate controls that don't fit the Kemper's predefined format.  So, for example, you can profile a Mesa Studio pre but the profile won't provide control over the graphic eq, so the graphic has to be optimised as part of the original profile.

I got one for a Chrissie pressie...wondering if there are any like minded GC members.

Passion is more important than guitar course, especially for beginners because of the learning curve.  Focus on learning how to play songs that you like first.  There are plenty of youtube tutorials out there for well known ones.  Pick a song with maybe three chords at most.  I started with Happy Birthday for my daughter and then progressed onto other childrens' songs before I started getting into things like Give A Little Bit (Supertramp) or Say Somethin' (Justin Beiber and Chris Stapleton).  Then I progressed onto a bit of Bon Jovi (Dead or Alive) and Chic (pretty much anything).  For me it's like play, I get to see if I can play something like I hear it on the radio.  Or practice singing and playing.  

Fun factoid, the PRS people told me that the Mira was their answer to a Gibbo SG.  Tonally at least.

Jonathan from Feline Guitars in Croydon does some of the best fret jobs in the country.  He's not cheap but a decent fret job on stainless steel frets will last a lifetime for anyone not touring and playing every night.  A good fret job takes a lot of time to do well.

It looks like noone moved the T&Cs over when the forum was set up.  I'll have to add it to my to do list.

Originally I took up guitar to try and improve my harmony on bass. However it's opened up a different world entirely which has been a massive distraction away from the original goal.

I have five guitars and 6 basses but there are more guitars in the pipeline thanks to a collection of parts.

I think what's happening is that the business model has shifted and those shops that are making enough and jumped on the bandwagon early enough are surviving.  Those late to the game and can't afford the extra overheads are losing out.

Technically, if you have the right string gauge.  You would need to find a piccolo bass set, maybe Rotosound still make them, and tune it to the top four strings of a guitar.  But you'd probably find there was a bit of adjustment in terms of string tension and playing technique for the lower register, especially chords.  You might even decide you just don't like the basic character of the plucked note.  Piccolo basses tend to be quite twangy.

On 18/09/2022 at 20:01, Skinnyman said:

Could that just have been the strings?

Maybe but I was going by the resonance of the instrument.

I tried a silent bass and the response across the strings was extremely uneven.  Some strings were dead and others were OK, I'm not sure why but it didn't inspire confidence...and I'm a Yammiefan.

On 15/07/2022 at 19:06, 15thfloor.co.uk said:

We specialise in custom pickups for electric guitars and basses that cover a wide range of sounds to achieve the tone that you want to hear.

Just a thought but I'm wondering what you would recommend for the following 5 positions on a pickup selector switch on a HSH guitar:

1) Bridge humbucker - Satriani style rock (pull vol for coil split)
2) Bridge inner coil + middle - 80's strat quack

3) Bridge and Neck humbucker (pull vol for coil split tele twang)
4) Middle and neck outer coil - funky strumming
5) Neck humbucker - jazz archtop (pull vol for single coil strat kind of tone)

I know it's a demanding and perhaps unrealistic request but I'm wondering how close you might be able to get.

What are you passionate about playing?  I'm thinking that if you couldn't wait for the first opportunity to pick up the guitar and get into something you really enjoyed, you'd probably still be unstructured but practicing more often.  Which leads to the next question about why structure is important if you can pick it up whenever the mood strikes?  

I haven't been playing much over the last 6 months and the other day I realised it was because I felt bad about the impact of practicing on others in the apartment.  And I also felt a bit guilty about being self indulgent...despite working six days a week for no salary as I'm trying to get a business off the ground. 

So to address the first problem I bought a nice pair of AKG monitor headphones to plug into an old Zoom unit so I can practice silently.  I'm hoping that'll also solve the second problem because noone will know when I'm practicing.  I actually practiced last night for the first time in ages and for a solid couple of hours but it was mostly on bass.   Mainly because bass is second nature and I wanted to make getting back into things easy.  But I do have some learning goals for guitar including properly how to play:

1) Rosanna solo and outro - Steve Lukather
2) Heaven In My Hands - Alan Murphy
3) White Wedding - Steve Stevens
4) something by Def Leppard, maybe Hysteria or Pour Some Sugar
5) Surfing with the Alien or Satch Boogie - Joe Satriani (if I'm feeling particularly ambitious)

He seems like a nice guy,  I wish him all the best too. It's a tragic situation to be in. 

7 hours ago, mikel said:

The way I see it companies "Endorse" musicians, not the other way round. Little known guitarist just happens to play a certain instrument, becomes famous, so the manufacturer uses him or her to promote their instruments. Cynical advertising, but as long as the guitarist gets something out of it then why not?

Assuming that you mean companies are looking for up and coming musicians to help them show the market that they can stay relevant?  There's an aspect of that too but it doesn't invalidate my point.  They exist alongside each other.

I came here thinking this would be a discussion about our ideal guitars.   Still...I'm glad some members were able to help with info.

I think you'll be OK, at least until it breaks.  Some of the cheaper Marshall amps with PCB based builds can be not worth worth the expense of repairing.  Buy whatever cable you like but get one with neutrik or solderless jacks as they tend to break less often.  Don't get sucked into the gold plating and oxygen free voodoo.  The electrons don't care.

1 hour ago, warwickhunt said:

 

Parker Fly P38 (piezo/HSS) model

I nearly bought one of these as my first gig-quality guitar.  I found an old Chandler Custom strat instead though and it was cheaper. 

Top talent though, Mark Mondesir is a phenomenal drummer and Laurence Cottle is a bass maestro.

Given the extra information in your reply Sea Chief, I was going to say that the hump in the photos is just down to the effect of string tension on the bracing.  It happens in some guitars if the bracing isn't robust enough.  That it's stable just means that the instrument has achieved a level of equilibrium without breaking.

I have a cheap 12 string acoustic with the same issue but the problem with mine is that they used a 6 string body with 6 string bracing for a 12 string model.  So the bracing isn't up to scratch (it should be X bracing rather than straight).  To fix this I bought a special brace from Stew Mac for a hundred quid delivered which has reduced the hump a bit and it's been stable over the last 3 years.

I'm not really a luthier but I've made a couple of instruments and have 2-3 more in the pipeline but made from parts.   All traditional acoustics have flat tops.  The other kind you mention are archtops and typically (but not exclusively) are associated with jazz. 

Traditionally the difference was due to construction preferences.  An arched top doesn't need bracing whereas a flat top does and the kind of bracing is down to preference and intended purpose for the instrument.  A 12 string needs the strongest bracing while a nylon stringed instrument has lower requirements.

This is a bucket list amp for some.

See if you can find a Mooer Ocean Machine - it was Devin Townsend's signature pedal. It won't replace a Lexicon PCM70 but for gigging and practice it's better than most multi effects pedals.