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Millions posted:I just saw this Ibanez Gio on Craigslist for $50: The Gio is the "budget" guitar from Ibanez, but even for a budget guitar, at 50, it seems really cheap. Say at worst 25-50 extra bucks for a guitar tech to fix the loose output jack and general maintenance, maybe 10-20 for new strings, it's still a great deal. Cheapest Gio I can google is 130 bucks but you don't say what model it is. The only problem is I believe they have problems staying in tune due to a floating bridge which are always a pain in the rear end to maintain, but according to Wikipedia not all Gio models have that bridge: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibanez_GIO I can't tell from the screenshot which model it is but for 50 bucks, man I think I'd get it and try it at least. Budget Ibanez aren't that great in my experience, but come on, 50 bucks.
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Sep 1, 2011 22:02
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It's a vintage style trem, so there's nothing stopping him from just screwing in the trem claw a bit more if it isn't already up against the body.
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Sep 1, 2011 22:04
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I actually have a very similar Gio, the GRX90, which I got for about $50 on craigslist as well. http://ibanez.wikia.com/wiki/GRX90 It's not a great guitar, the electronics have some problems and it doesn't always stay in tune, but for $50 it's more than serviceable. Compared to what you would get for $50-$150 on a new, cheap electric guitar it's much better, but not nearly as nice as like a MIM Fender which is sort of my minimum quality that I would be comfortable paying for. Overall, it will satisfy your curiosity, but you'll probably crave something better very soon.
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Sep 2, 2011 14:24
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My guitar playing has always consisted of me either playing back songs with various lead lick things to play on top of them from various teachers, but never anything serious about rhythm. Going through a bunch of sheet music/tablatures via guitar pro software, I'm beginning to believe that the structure of the rhythm you play out is a little more complicated than "yeah that sounds about right".... In specifics I'm talking about the music notations/tabs for "angie" by the rolling stones. Between the split chords and the muted rhythmic meter, I feel like a goddamn fool for thinking that this would be an easy song to learn. In between almost all the chords are semi guitar fills that either you need to finger pick for or mute 1 or more strings in between 2 separate fingerings to achieve the same effect. I'm looking for rhythm exercises that you can go from major to split chords to other major chords to muted chords(rhythem beat(beats) to other split chords(rhythm exercises that run the gamut, so to speak) So the muscle memory can build between the muted strikes... I guess my goal hear to be able to finger the next chord, no matter what, within a muted rhythm strike or as fast as possible to maintain an 1/8th note progression with difficult to finger chords. Then again maybe I'm fingering the chords wrong. Thats why I'm asking for help here I guess.
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Sep 2, 2011 16:26
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Mex posted:maybe 10-20 for new strings Unless you're buying coated strings, try 5 bucks!
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Sep 4, 2011 19:56
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RillAkBea posted:Unless you're buying coated strings, try 5 bucks! Strings are way overpriced here in Mexico 
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Sep 5, 2011 05:18
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Mex posted:Strings are way overpriced here in Mexico Well that sucks considering I can get American made strings for 5 here in Japan of all places! EDIT: Looking to replace my bridge pickup just for fun. Firebird Studio, currently got the stock Epiphone Alnico Classics in there at the moment, looking for something with a little more gain that can still give me some good clean tones as well. Seymour Duncan's Tone Wizard suggested either the SH-14 Custom 5 or the SH-10 Full Shred but I want something I can put a cover on, which rules out the full shred. This would be the first time I've ever looked at something like this properly so I really have no idea what I'm doing, so any opinions or alternate suggestions? (My local custom shop does free switch-outs if you purchase in store, so no crazy boutique pick ups this time unfortunately) RillAkBea fucked around with this message at 07:26 on Sep 5, 2011 |
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Sep 5, 2011 06:12
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Time for some guitargoon Dear Abby if that's cool: I'm soon-to-be a recording industry student, a singer and an on-and-off bassist with a bit of theory under my belt, and this little niggling part of my brain keeps telling me that it should learn how to string together a tune on guitar with some vocals for godsake because otherwise what kind of a musician am I, really? Based on these qualifications, am I foolish for wanting to buy this? (Oh dear god, it's sexy/sounds sexy!) Or any electric guitar, for that matter? I just love me some modern rock type stuff (Strokes, Surfer Blood, Spoon, oh man that's all "S" bands... ok, Mother Mother!) I've heard the opinion that it's "better to learn acoustic..." and other such "guitarist vs. musician" gum-flapping, and this is causing me some headaches as I can certainly see the advantages in both. Grr.
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Sep 6, 2011 05:38
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You're better off starting with whichever you see yourself making the most use of, electric or acoustic. As far as choice of guitars, the Epiphone semi-hollows have been in my experience really good guitars. That being said, going electric means that you're resigning yourself to the price for some kind of amp/pre-amp, if you've already got some audio gear, too.
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Sep 6, 2011 05:42
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If you have a bass amp you'll be able to play through that too, won't give you a classic guitar amp sound exactly but it never stopped Josh Homme (actually I think that's exactly why uses them). Acoustic's a bit harder what with the higher tension strings, which is why people recommend learning on that first, but you've at least had some bass practice so that probably counts for something. Like P Turtle says, get whichever one you want to play - try a few out! You can also play a semi-hollow acoustically too, it won't be as loud as a real acoustic and it'll sound a bit thin too, but you can take it off to the park when you feel inspired or whatever
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Sep 6, 2011 18:27
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Can anoyone recommend some basic guitar books (free or otherwise)? I'm going to do the basic guitar class at my college next semester but I have an old acoustic guitar and I can spare a few bucks to pick something so I can start practicing now. I'm looking for really basic stuff as I'm a complete beginner.
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Sep 8, 2011 03:09
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sw0cb posted:Can anoyone recommend some basic guitar books (free or otherwise)? I'm going to do the basic guitar class at my college next semester but I have an old acoustic guitar and I can spare a few bucks to pick something so I can start practicing now. I'm looking for really basic stuff as I'm a complete beginner. I don't know about books but if your looking to start practising then http://www.justinguitar.com/ is the place to start. Loads of lessons, including the very, very, basics.
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Sep 8, 2011 12:49
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I have acquired a nice Takamine acoustic, but I think the drat neck needs adjusting. String tension is far too high with standard strings, they feel like razor wire! Is my assumption it's the neck correct, is there anything I can do myself? Of course using different gauge strings is a nice workaround, or tuning half a step down for casual play, but that's avoiding the problem really . . .
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Sep 10, 2011 22:37
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Adjusting neck relief won't affect string tension, all you can do is tune down or use smaller strings.
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Sep 10, 2011 22:45
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Tension is a set value for any given string pitch, length, diameter. Material also matters, but if you're using acoustic strings they're pretty much all made of brass/steel anyway. The only way to reduce tension is either to downtune, use thinner strings, or play a shorter scale neck (Gibson length is the standard "short" scale). I think what you're getting at isn't tension, but action; the distance between the fretboard and the string. On an acoustic you shouldn't have more than a few millimeters at the end of the fretboard. The lower and more even the action, the easier the strings are to play and more in tune they sound over the whole fretboard. Poor neck relief effectively causes the string to be longer when you fret up high because it has to travel a greater distance.
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Sep 11, 2011 02:11
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I'm a little guy who likes his guitar up high. I'm having some trouble finding a guitar strap that holds high up enough. I like it when the topside of the guitar is about at my chest/nipple area. I'm 5'6 at the most. The best I can find so far is a couple inches lower. I can make do with this but it would help a lot to get that couple inches closer to my chest. Are there any straps designed for super tightness/highness? Or will I be better off cutting my own notches in the straps I own already?
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Sep 12, 2011 01:00
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the Bunt posted:I'm a little guy who likes his guitar up high. I'm having some trouble finding a guitar strap that holds high up enough. I like it when the topside of the guitar is about at my chest/nipple area. I'm 5'6 at the most. The best I can find so far is a couple inches lower. I can make do with this but it would help a lot to get that couple inches closer to my chest. Are there any straps designed for super tightness/highness? Or will I be better off cutting my own notches in the straps I own already? Depending on the type of strap yours may not work like this, but these types of straps seem very common and might help you out.  In addition to the longer flatter slits in the flat part of the strip (which I assume you're using) you also have the smaller holes on the thin part of the strip that hook onto your strap button. I have so many of those holes on my strap that I could make it too short to even really put on.
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Sep 12, 2011 11:25
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http://store.guitarfetish.com/Slick-Straps_c_314.html Yeah, I just tested it, I got my strap up super high.
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Sep 12, 2011 14:08
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Pretentious Turtle posted:Adjusting neck relief won't affect string tension, all you can do is tune down or use smaller strings. Cool, well I guess I'll stick with how I have it set up now since as I said these are already my workarounds. Thanks for the help, you too CalvinDooglas!
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Sep 12, 2011 18:53
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If you're a new guitar player, having the strings kill your fingers is normal. The key is to play a little bit every day until you discover you've grown big thick fingertip calluses. Everything else that's been said is also true: tension is dependent on the string gauge and tuning. Lower gauge strings (i.e. thinner) will be less taut, but will dig into your fingers more. Higher gauge strings (i.e. thicker) will be more taut, but won't dig so sharply into your fingertips. Action also affects playing comfort, because it changes how hard you have to push the string in order to fret it.
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Sep 12, 2011 23:59
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A month ago, I broke the 4th metacarpal in my left (strumming) hand. I spent pretty much that whole time in a cast. All my lovely callouses came off 
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Sep 14, 2011 05:27
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I've been playing acoustic guitar for a few weeks and I have a question regarding casual posture, i.e. "body rests on strumming-hand side". I try to keep my wrist straight and my elbow close to my body at all times, but I've noticed that in this posture it becomes necessary to bend my wrist to access the top (closest to head) frets. If I keep the guitar like this I lose a lot of grip on the top frets, so barring is very difficult to do, though I know that it also gets more difficult to bar the closer to the nut I am. Should I change to classical position, or is there something I'm not doing properly with holding my guitar? Which direction should the neck face as I'm playing?
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Sep 29, 2011 03:15
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As far as I know your elbow shouldn t be necessarily close to your chest
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Sep 30, 2011 13:10
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Joepopo posted:As far as I know your elbow shouldn t be necessarily close to your chest No it definitely should not be. Your elbow and wrist should pretty much form a straight line or a shallow angle depending on where you happen to be on the neck, but don't want to tuck your elbow to your chest.
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Sep 30, 2011 14:33
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I just try to keep everything relaxed, and let my fretting hand and arm naturally change positions. My arm is in a completely different position when I play an open G versus a power chord, for example.
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Sep 30, 2011 16:21
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I'm buying my first guitar soon and while looking around Guitar Center I noticed they have the one I was looking for used for about 80 bucks cheaper. Are their used guitars usually reliable?
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Oct 1, 2011 03:07
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Big Bob Pataki posted:I'm buying my first guitar soon and while looking around Guitar Center I noticed they have the one I was looking for used for about 80 bucks cheaper. Are their used guitars usually reliable? What's the new price and what guitar is it? Most guitars become "used" the moment you buy them and sell for 75% of retail at most. If it's a beginner guitar, it probably didn't get played a whole lot, and can't get much worse than the factory stock. Used guitars are a good way to save money, but if you don't know how to tell a good instrument from bad yet, you could well end up with a lemon. If at all possible, get a decent player to help you shop. If you must rely on a salesperson to help you choose, do beware of Guitar Center's unskilled, all-commission staff. A for reputation, I don't see why they'd be any better or worse than another place. If there are other stores in town taking used instruments, by all means shop around. I'd say the Used Guitar section is the only honestly marketed part of the store; they will only sell floor models, so every guitar is pretty much used when you buy it. However, I have no reason to believe their used instruments are lower quality than any other place. CalvinDooglas fucked around with this message at 07:17 on Oct 1, 2011 |
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Oct 1, 2011 07:13
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It's an Ibanez RG120 black that's new for 200 and used for 120. I figured it was decent enough to be relatively inexpensive and not sound like complete dogshit.
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Oct 1, 2011 18:22
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So I think I'm about ready to buy my first guitar. I'm getting to the point where I can play music by some of the more technical bands I listen too, and my poor generic strat I took from my parents isn't cutting it anymore, but I just don't know where to start. Specifically I'm on the budget of dirt poor, and want a seven string that I can practice with, record a bit, and bring around to play at other peoples houses (no gigs or anything serious). I know virtually nothing about guitar construction, and am not picky either since I just want something as cheap as possible that will do what I want. I guess what is most important is that I can get minimal pickup humming (on my strat the humming is absolutely atrocious when not selecting two pickups at the same time), and no fret buzz. Tone wise I basically want to tune it low + distortion without it sounding too muddy. If someone could point me in the right direction that would be great, and it's also important that I don't pay over like $350, as I am tight on money.
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Oct 2, 2011 03:44
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Used Ibanez RG7*2*. 7620 if you want a trem, 7621 if you want a fixed bridge. 7420s and 7620s are nearly identical to the 762* models, but the 7420 has a pretty terrible trem. The only other differences would be the pickup tab routings and maybe the stock pickups, not sure. The 762* models, I know at least, came with DiMarzio New 7s, which are basically slightly tweaked DiMarzio blazes. Being older models, these are made in Japan, and waaaaay better than the 7321, and you can get them for a loving song if you look around. Try the guitarcenter.com used section, search for the above model designations and variations of "7str", "7string", etc. Not to mention eBay.
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Oct 2, 2011 03:56
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Saucepan Man posted:I guess what is most important is that I can get minimal pickup humming (on my strat the humming is absolutely atrocious when not selecting two pickups at the same time), and no fret buzz. Well then, you want a humbucking pickup and a properly set-up guitar. Single coils have lots of hum on high gain, and that's just how they are.
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Oct 2, 2011 08:44
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I'm having some terrible problems with barre chords. The tension required to properly place my fingers and thumb seems to cause a lot of cramp style pain, and I'm also having slight issues with hooking the other fingers to hit a specific string without muting or disturbing the one below them. I've been watching tips and tutorial videos on youtube all night and I'm aware that I'm supposed to basically use the side of the finger, rather than the fleshier part; that the thumb is meant to sit in the middle of the back of the neck; that you need some space between the web between thumb and forefinger and the guitar neck so you don't crowd it; and that the entire finger from the first knuckle is supposed to be held flat and rigid. I suffered a wrist injury many years ago and it's bothered me ever since, affecting range of motion and strength in my left (fretting) hand, so I know that's likely somewhat of a factor in positioning and comfort, but I'm trying to persevere through that. The piece of tab I'm trying to practice right now is the clean intro component for Pantera's Cemetery Gates, code:
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Oct 2, 2011 08:46
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I'm definitely no barre chord expert, but I've never heard the 'flat and rigid' part. Basically you lay your index finger flat across all the strings, but because of all the fleshy indentations on the underside it's better to roll your finger slightly to the side, so you use the harder bonier part instead. It's kinda hard to keep your finger straight and rigid if you do that, I tend to get a slight curve - trying to make it straight might be why you're having trouble with the other fingers. Just in case you're not aware, the barre chord's only the first part of that tab - as soon as you get to the open string note you can ditch the barre, it's basically two-finger chord shapes until that first measure comes back around again
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Oct 2, 2011 16:22
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CitrusFrog posted:I'm having some terrible problems with barre chords. The tension required to properly place my fingers and thumb seems to cause a lot of cramp style pain, and I'm also having slight issues with hooking the other fingers to hit a specific string without muting or disturbing the one below them. A good tip I heard on justinguitar for barre strength is to concentrate the pressure of your finger on the middle of the barre, like between the 3rd and 4th strings. That really helped clean up my Em7 shape like in the first barre of that tab. And yeah, I definitely felt it in the muscles between my thumb and first finger for a few weeks. You're exercising muscles that wouldn't normally be strained that much, so it will take some time to build up strength at first.
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Oct 2, 2011 16:42
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baka kaba posted:I'm definitely no barre chord expert, but I've never heard the 'flat and rigid' part. Basically you lay your index finger flat across all the strings, but because of all the fleshy indentations on the underside it's better to roll your finger slightly to the side, so you use the harder bonier part instead. It's kinda hard to keep your finger straight and rigid if you do that, I tend to get a slight curve - trying to make it straight might be why you're having trouble with the other fingers. the flat and rigid thing was in a video I found last night on youtube, it was really quite in depth. Rolling the finger to the side was another tip he mentioned. Here's the one I'm on about. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvVj1TZ4r_4 About the tab: I noticed that the barre was only needed for the first measure, quick transitioning is something I'm having difficulty with though that's an entirely different issue altogether. Even trying to play the intro for Megadeth - Hangar 18 slowly ends up with me getting all cack-handed and accidentally muting higher strings. I guess repetition and practice to develop muscle memory are what's needed there. Any tips? Caddrel posted:A good tip I heard on justinguitar for barre strength is to concentrate the pressure of your finger on the middle of the barre, like between the 3rd and 4th strings. That really helped clean up my Em7 shape like in the first barre of that tab. And yeah, I definitely felt it in the muscles between my thumb and first finger for a few weeks. You're exercising muscles that wouldn't normally be strained that much, so it will take some time to build up strength at first. Pressure on the middle knuckle of the finger seems to make sense, thanks for that tip. I seems like it requires less pressure because you're not tensing the whole finger that way. I plan on getting one of those mountain climber hand exercisers to help with my playing too, as apparently they help. That cramping in the web between thumb and index is a real bitch.
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Oct 2, 2011 22:48
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A couple of things that might help that I learned as a classical guitarist: One would be to concentrate less on actively pressing your finger down and instead feeling the weight of your arm naturally applying pressure to the strings. It might help to tilt the neck like you would if you were a classical guitarist, but you can still feel it with the neck horizontal. Another is to transfer where the pressure is in your finger. Because of the physiology of my first finger I have a hard time getting the A in that arpeggio to ring clearly so I relax the part of my finger that is on the 6th string and redirect pressure to the third string. The F# on the sixth string might stop ringing, but in the original song that note is covered by the piano so it doesn't really matter.
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Oct 3, 2011 03:44
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CitrusFrog posted:the flat and rigid thing was in a video I found last night on youtube, it was really quite in depth. Rolling the finger to the side was another tip he mentioned. You'll probably pick up a lot of good tips from this: http://www.justinguitar.com/en/IM-111-EShapeMajorMinorBarreChords.php The barring starts at 4 minutes in. Repetition and muscle memory are definitely key, yeah. It's a good idea to practice transitions over and over, to get used to jumping from one fingering to another, just make sure you start slow and methodical and only build up speed when you're doing it cleanly. A metronome is a huge help, you can tell when you're getting accurate and you can measure your progress as you handle new speeds. There's another exercise on Justin's site too: http://www.justinguitar.com/en/IM-112-1MinuteChanges.php
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Oct 3, 2011 20:06
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CitrusFrog - another tip to help with the wrist injury - pull that strap up Tom Morello style. If it suits you and you can be play better that way, go for it.
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Oct 3, 2011 20:11
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Right, I'm starting to work real hard on my picking techniques. Problem: I cannot physically move my hand any faster than what I am doing and I'm only alt-picking 8th note triplets at about 150bpm. I want to be able to do Blind Guardian style sorta riffage because I'm a cheesy bastard. What am I doing wrong?
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Oct 4, 2011 03:58
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How do you hold your pick? How much of your arm are you using to pick?
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Oct 4, 2011 04:00
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