|
Philthy posted:I've been a fan of the Jackson necks with the sharktooth design for whatever reason. I noticed this over at Guitarfetish. I currently have an ESP LTD M-10 starter guitar that I've swapped some SD pickups in and I'm enjoying it for what it is. I was thinking of getting this neck and some tuners and basically turn this into my beginner/build guitar. The floyd rose nuts should be three square nuts that clamp the strings in place to help keep the guitar in tune when using a floyd rose bridge. Shouldn't make a difference if don't have a floyd rose bridge, and you can just take them off and leave them off.
|
# ? Dec 25, 2010 20:42 |
|
|
# ? May 16, 2024 17:53 |
|
What is the scale length on your ESP? If you don't know measure from the nut to the 12th fret and double it. The Guitar Fetish neck doesn't specify either you might want to e-mail and ask them. If the scale lengths aren't the same the guitar won't play in tune once you put it together.
|
# ? Dec 25, 2010 21:13 |
|
I was going to pick up a practice combo amp - currently I've got an acoustic, but picking up an electric soonish. Do I need separate types of amps for acoustic / electric?
|
# ? Dec 27, 2010 04:59 |
|
I currently have an Epiphone SG400 and a VOX DA5 - since I didn't get any cool Xmas presents I want to be a bit of a man-child and buy myself something musical. I'm about six months into guitar and a few months into bass - I love them both so far. Would it be a big mistake to plonk down a wodge of cash on a high end (i.e. $600-$1k) guitar at this stage, or am I better off looking at getting a better amp? I'm thinking more along the lines of BC Rich, Dean and Ibanez than Gibson or Fender though - would that affect resale value?
|
# ? Dec 27, 2010 23:17 |
|
Personally I've always been about a good amp over a high end guitar. Check out Rondomusic.com though. You can get some mighty fine instruments to take you to your intermediate level for pennies. The Agile Les Pauls are considered some of the best bang for your buck guitars out there.
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 00:27 |
|
Hm, I like the Explorer copy but I'm not a huge fan of the Les Paul or Strat body style to be honest - and they seem to be approximating those. Is there something inherently worse or better about aforementioned Dean/BC Rich/Ibanez stuff which makes it easier/harder to play (forgetting the fact I would look like I went through a gothic-puberty stage 10 years too late if I bought a Warlock)
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 01:46 |
|
Those Rondo guitars look like good value, hard to tell without actually using one though. No idea what I'm looking at though. Is there a guide to the significance of the different shapes? Is there anything other than how they look (aside from hollow/semi-hollow)? Also, anything on my question about amps for electric/acoustics? One last thing - are the Rondo practice amps any good? crm fucked around with this message at 02:31 on Dec 28, 2010 |
# ? Dec 28, 2010 02:10 |
|
Southern Heel posted:or am I better off looking at getting a better amp? And if you're ever feeling a bit down, cranking your amp up is a sure way to re-energize yourself.
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 02:19 |
|
Southern Heel posted:Hm, I like the Explorer copy but I'm not a huge fan of the Les Paul or Strat body style to be honest - and they seem to be approximating those. Is there something inherently worse or better about aforementioned Dean/BC Rich/Ibanez stuff which makes it easier/harder to play (forgetting the fact I would look like I went through a gothic-puberty stage 10 years too late if I bought a Warlock) I'd be wary of the quality. Guitars made to cultivate some kind of "rock n roll image" tend to charge for it. Something like a Schecter with blueburst maple flametop for $300 makes me wonder how much you're actually spending on the parts that make sound. A lot of those guitars marketed to metal players also come with absurdly low action and an unusually broad and/or skinny neck. I find them uncomfortable and they really don't make you any better. Excepting stuff that's actually poorly made, your fingers will get used to whatever guitar you buy. Comfort is important. Oddly shaped guitars like the Explorer and Flying V are pretty bulky and don't lend themselves to setting on your lap. While practicing entirely on your feet may be metal as gently caress, you probably won't want to practice at all if you can't sit down and do it comfortably. For a beginner guitar I'd keep resale value in mind, and that may suffer with some of the more "metal" looking guitars compared to a generic strat/LP body style. If you really want a non-standard body style, go with the Bo Diddly.
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 02:21 |
|
CalvinDooglas posted:Comfort is important. Oddly shaped guitars like the Explorer and Flying V are pretty bulky and don't lend themselves to setting on your lap. While practicing entirely on your feet may be metal as gently caress, you probably won't want to practice at all if you can't sit down and do it comfortably. I practice standing pretty much all the time, feels way more natural and makes it easier to fret notes higher up the neck. It's not fatiguing at all to be honest, but yeah it's still probably a good idea to get a more generic one.
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 14:40 |
|
crm posted:Those Rondo guitars look like good value, hard to tell without actually using one though. No idea what I'm looking at though. I've bought two Agile AL-2000s (the Les Paul copies) in the last three months. They're amazing machines for the price, hands-down better in every way than the $500 Epiphone LP I owned a few years ago. The significance of the different shapes is...significant. Body size, shape, mass, the type of wood it's made of, and numerous other factors dictate the overall sound of the guitar - and that's before you get into the actual electrical components. Certain body styles are generally associated with particular styles of music, although nothing is set in stone. Plenty of people just get one they like the looks of and play everything on it until they have a little more experience. You won't need separate amps. A decent practice amp will be just fine for both electric and acoustic/electric. Down the road if you decide you need separate dedicated amps for each purpose, then go for it, but there's no real need to spend the money now. I can't personally recommend a particular amp for you, but I will tell you that the SX bass practice amp we have here at the house is a steaming pile of poo poo. I can only assume that the guitar models are of similar quality, and you'd be far better off saving up for something a little more brand-name.
|
# ? Dec 28, 2010 23:11 |
|
crm posted:Is there a guide to the significance of the different shapes? Is there anything other than how they look (aside from hollow/semi-hollow)? Body shapes mean very little to the sound of the guitar, the pickups and the amp shape far more of your sound than what the body looks like. Albert King used a Flying V for his entire career as a blues guitarist and no one ever told him to get off the stage just because the guitar wasn't a traditional "blues guitar". King just loved the body shape and played the hell out of it. There are similar stories with bands like ZZ Top, who use metal-minded Dean guitars, or Eric Clapton, who used a Firebird and an SG. Lots of guitar players even take a body shape they like and then modify it to suit their needs; like a metal player who takes a Telecaster and puts EMGs in it or the country player that puts single coils in a Flying V. I guess what I'm trying to say is just to find a guitar you like the sound of and are comfortable playing, then play the gently caress out of it.
|
# ? Dec 29, 2010 00:06 |
|
Thanks! I'm really enjoying the acoustic I got, but there's some things it just can't do Some local dude is selling a Fender Frontman Reverb PR-241 for $35 - are those things a piece of garbage or a pretty decent used bargain? Also found a cherry Ibanez AS73 w/ case for $250. Those semi-hollows are just too pretty. Tough choices
|
# ? Dec 29, 2010 01:01 |
|
crm posted:Thanks! I'm really enjoying the acoustic I got, but there's some things it just can't do If it works that's a good deal. Fender likes to save money by using a few different circuits in a bunch of different amps, so it's probably going to sound about the same as a slightly more expensive Fender solid state.
|
# ? Dec 29, 2010 01:06 |
|
Side Effects posted:Body shapes mean very little to the sound of the guitar, the pickups and the amp shape far more of your sound than what the body looks like. Albert King used a Flying V for his entire career as a blues guitarist and no one ever told him to get off the stage just because the guitar wasn't a traditional "blues guitar". This man is pretty much the sole reason that I have decided to try and not write off a guitar by it's shape. He obviously found something in those V shaped guitars that spoke to him that nothing else did. The V also props right onto your leg quite easy. As an aside, I got the Albert King w/ Stevie Ray Vaughan In Session CD/DVD for Christmas. It blew my mind wide open. I almost want to cry at how those two made such an incredible sound together. It is really amazing. Philthy fucked around with this message at 04:38 on Dec 29, 2010 |
# ? Dec 29, 2010 04:33 |
|
Ok, so I grabbed the used Ibanez Artcore AS73 I'm pretty sure that as soon as I picked it up, I got sexier. Also got the Fender PR-241 bullet amp. Some questions about these electric guitar thingies. The guitar has 4 knobs, 1 3-way switch. I understand the switch selects between the neck and bridge pickups (or both). What I don't understand is the difference between the pickups, so What's the difference in the neck/bridge pickups? I know 2 of the knobs are volume for the pickups, but how does the tone change? On the amp, there's a drive button and a drive volume, different from the normal volume? What's this drive stuff? Sorry about all the retarded questions. You guys are awesome
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 00:49 |
|
Picked up an Ibanez AK95 Hollow Body a couple of days ago. I loving love it. Click here for the full 1000x750 image. Click here for the full 1000x750 image. Click here for the full 1000x750 image.
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 01:09 |
|
I love the fret inlays.
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 01:22 |
|
Wow, haven't even looked at any Ibanez semi/full-hollows yet. Those things look great.
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 01:40 |
|
One more question, in addition to the ones above - when I go to the bridge pickup + hit the drive mode on the amp, there's a pretty significant buzzing. Is this normal or did I get a lemon?
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 02:51 |
|
crm posted:The guitar has 4 knobs, 1 3-way switch. I understand the switch selects between the neck and bridge pickups (or both). What I don't understand is the difference between the pickups, so The neck pickup is going be more mellow while the bridge pickup is a lot more edgy sounding. The difference should be very noticeable if you just strum and listen. The tone knobs are something else you have to experiment with and listen for. It sets the bass or treble output just like on a stereo. 0 being the lowest and most bassy and 10 being the sharpest. You have one tone knob for each pickup. The drive button is for overdrive or distortion. The buzzing is normal and the sound should be a lot more "crunchier" and loud. It's great for rock and metal.
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 14:48 |
|
So I was widdling away and found a nice little ditty I want to incorporate into a song - it uses the notes: E, F#, G and D. I've only done stuff in the Key of C and it looks like that would be in G since there's the F# - what do I change to make a progression that would fit with it? Since F# is a VII of G and all the chord progressions I've found don't use VII, am I good to just use a simple I-IV-V (i.e. D-G-A) ?
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 19:30 |
|
It could also be D major (D E F# G A B C#) which could work since it sounds like your melody ends on a D, or E minor (same notes as G major, slightly different chords, but your melody notes outline an Em7 or Em9 chord). Could be B minor too (same notes as D major) but you didn't mention a B, so it might not imply that one too strongly. VII is actually a great chord that pulls back to the tonic, it's not used so much in modern pop music but it's definitely a part of classic standard progressions. This really isn't my area but since they're both dominant chords, the V and the VII are interchangeable and both pull back to the I. You might want to look at your melody though, see what the strong notes are in each bar and work out which chords feature those notes - work out what progression your melody implies, basically
|
# ? Dec 30, 2010 21:06 |
|
Those notes don't have to be the roots of your chords. Any chord with an F# in it will work. The notes in the chords are always "safe" melody notes.
|
# ? Dec 31, 2010 00:57 |
|
Here's the two I've picked up Ibanez Artcore AS73 Takamine EG41C Also got a Fender Mustang I amp. Doesn't sound amazing but it's nice to have pretty much every sound at my fingertips. Finally starting to get the hang of this. I can read sheet music from the piano days, so getting the fingering down is the big thing for me.
|
# ? Jan 1, 2011 19:47 |
|
Hi guys, I fully understand that this is the musical equivalent of a child drawing with crayons in the road, but here's a little intro and ditty that I made in the last few days that I like and would like some advice on: http://www.tindeck.com/listen/zdru It's just Em to D and I quite like the sound. I was looking at a G, D, C, Em progression for a verse section but nothing sounds correct - it's too chunky and loud in comparison to the reserved section I like. Any suggestions?
|
# ? Jan 1, 2011 20:57 |
|
Southern Heel posted:Hi guys, I fully understand that this is the musical equivalent of a child drawing with crayons in the road, but here's a little intro and ditty that I made in the last few days that I like and would like some advice on: I really like your rhythm part, you're right its simple, but it sounds nice. Not crazy about your lead part but I'm not sure if its the notes themselves or the lovely tone of the guitar.
|
# ? Jan 1, 2011 21:22 |
|
Hey, I'm sure this is a totally common question, but I read the last several pages and didn't see it, so apologies. I've been playing a long while on my roland microcube and I'm ready to move up to a decent tube amp. I try and play ~2-3 hours a day, so I want to make a somewhat decent beginner tube amp purchase. Do you guys have suggestions? I'm looking at around 300 or something, maybe a bit more.
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 03:08 |
|
You can get a Vox AC4 for far less than $300 on Ebay. It's not loud enough to play with a drummer, but it sounds really great. If you want something big enough to play out (but still not huge), I'd go for a Vox Night Train.
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 03:14 |
|
Carl Killer Miller posted:Hey, I'm sure this is a totally common question, but I read the last several pages and didn't see it, so apologies. I've been playing a long while on my roland microcube and I'm ready to move up to a decent tube amp. I try and play ~2-3 hours a day, so I want to make a somewhat decent beginner tube amp purchase. Do you guys have suggestions? I'm looking at around 300 or something, maybe a bit more. This really depends on what you play and where you want to play. If you're playing in an apartment, a 40Watt HotRod Deluxe is overpowered. Also You won't chug out metal with it. Other than that it's a fantastic amp and €300 will get a 2nd-hand one. There's a new breed of amp these days in the lower wattage range aimed at practice and recording. Most of them are around 5watt and when cranked will still get neighbours banging on the door. Marhsall's Class 5, Blackstar's HT5 and the Vox AC4 are all pretty much in your price-range for what I'm guessing you want to do. I own a HT5 and although it's not a pure tube amp in that it has a solid state phase inverter and uses pregain, it can crank out a great tone.
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 03:17 |
|
+1 for the HT5, it's my main practice amp. Clean tone is good enough, dirty tone is quite good. Not loud enough to play with a band (or probably even a drummer), but for solo practicing it's great.
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 03:19 |
|
What do you guys recommend for cleaning a guitar? What all needs to be cleaned? Anything else need to be done to maintain these things?
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 21:16 |
|
crm posted:What do you guys recommend for cleaning a guitar? What all needs to be cleaned? Anything else need to be done to maintain these things? If you wipe it down after playing every time you can minimize the amount of maintenance cleaning you need to do. When ever I get a new used guitar I will clean everything on it. A soft cloth and toothbrush and some naptha(don't smoke while cleaning!) will take care of major crud. Use the toothbrush to scrub the fretboard, saddles, any where that looks grungy clean it naptha won't hurt anything or leave a residue. Depending on the fretboard wood you might need some lemon oil, or woodwind instrument bore cleaner to condition it after cleaning, rosewood or ebony needs oiled, maple usually just needs cleaned. Any moving parts, tuners, bridges etc... can be checked while you are cleaning, tighten any screws, loose jacks, knobs. I like to give my painted guitars a coat of a good quality carnuba wax after cleaning too, it helps making cleaning next time easier. That's just how I personally do it I'm sure everyone else has their own methods, and products.
|
# ? Jan 2, 2011 22:52 |
|
I absolutely love Fastfret. I wipe down the strings if I start to sweat from playing so long/hard, and I do a quick fretboard wipe with it when I change strings. It's been keeping my rosewood fretboard looking amazing.
|
# ? Jan 3, 2011 03:29 |
|
How often do you change strings? Is there anything to look for as to when they need to be changed? Also, what are good replacement strings? Any good guides to the different types?
|
# ? Jan 3, 2011 16:42 |
|
crm posted:How often do you change strings? Is there anything to look for as to when they need to be changed? Change them when they start to look dirty/sound like rear end even when in tune. e: Unrelated, but I've been playing with my amp a lot more since I've been home, and I'm loving it. I don't know why I didn't use it before. Who cares that it's a piece of junk, it makes loud noises. BENGHAZI 2 fucked around with this message at 01:04 on Jan 4, 2011 |
# ? Jan 3, 2011 22:46 |
|
I've been playing for a few weeks and I've gotten the hang of the D,E, and A chords and switching between them. I'm teaching myself and I'm a bit at a loss about where to go from there. Any suggestions?
|
# ? Jan 4, 2011 01:35 |
|
Eminor C and G would be the next chords I recommend. You can easily play Aminor too by moving the E shape down one string. Knowing E A D Em Am C and G will allow you to play a decent repertoire of songs.
|
# ? Jan 4, 2011 01:48 |
|
Bar chords might be a good step too, they're difficult at first but it's good to start early! http://www.justinguitar.com/en/CH-006-BasicBarres.php You should look at the lessons on that site too, it's a great resource and it'll give you a study plan to work through. Also, what songs would you like to be able to play? If you name a few artists people would have some suggestions, or you could check out the Favorite acoustic songs to play thread which has some popular simple open-chord suggestions. It's good to have a song to aim for!
|
# ? Jan 4, 2011 02:14 |
|
|
# ? May 16, 2024 17:53 |
|
I know a bunch of scales, but only to the point where if you said "Play A natural minor" and I'd be able to. Similarly, if you played a chord progression that began with Am I'd happily use that scale to improvise a lead over it. Annoyingly I've only ever learned these scales as a finger pattern so while I can play them, I'm not solid on intervals or even the notes that I'm playing in the drat scale. Does anybody have any recommendations for theory books, and is it the kind of thing I can learn without having a guitar handy? Something to work at during my lunchbreak would be ideal.
|
# ? Jan 4, 2011 19:13 |