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Hi thread, does anyone recall the thought processes of getting a second guitar, or early expansion of the collection generally? I have the Marshall-branded Strat clone I started with and don't really use, an Epiphone G400 and a Gretsch Electromatic G2220 Junior Jet II bass. I've had the Epiphone as my main guitar for over a decade, didn't put the hours in for much of that time, got the bass because I like Royal Blood and gave it some time in Rocksmith, now I'm also playing 6 string again and have made a lot of progress (I think) . So anyway, in a lot of ways I'm looking at getting my second guitar (Even though I have three, as one's a retired beginners guitar and the other a bass) I'm going to try to get to a guitar shop in a few days, but right now I'm quiet interested in Gretsch's line. Aesthetically I really like the Electromatic Jet's v-stoptail, although I've trying to nail "Would?" which got me think a tremulo would be good, and maybe since my G400 is solid I should look at a hollow body? What are some good things to try out in store by the way? Any tech stuff I should look at?
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Mar 17, 2022 04:19
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Tried out a Gretsch hollow body at the weekend, was nice but I felt besides the large body it was hard for me to reach the high frets. I did really like the Bigsby trem though, especially as I'm playing a lot of Alice in Chains/Would? right now. I'm going to try a G5655t center block I think, narrower body looks like it may be more comfortable, but I may instead/also fit a Bigsby trem to my Epiphone G400. Looks like it should just screw on in place of the existing tail guard? The strings on it are loving old actually, might be a good excercise anyway. I gather the B5 is the model I want, or the cheap licenced B50 or B500. Anyone got experience of them and know if it's okay to cheap out on the copies? BizarroAzrael fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Mar 29, 2022 |
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Mar 29, 2022 02:12
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Ok Comboomer posted:is Digsby Glarry’s trem brand? Man I fixed that whilst you were posting, god drat.
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Mar 29, 2022 02:20
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Verman posted:Do you recall which one you tried? Was going to say I think I tried that exact model and colour but I think it was single cut. I'll try to compare filtertrons to broadtrons, I think the 5655 is just a single cut version of the 5622, I'll also see if I can find something with the thinner body and broads.
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Mar 29, 2022 09:52
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Verman posted:I've got a 5422tg and I love it. It's the sound I wanted when I started looking at gretsches. I tried 2622 and 5622 and they sound nice but just not what I expect a gretsch to sound like. More like a 335 which isn't a bad thing, 335s are nice. I prefer filter trons vs the broad trons which are more of a standard humbucker. Been on another YT guitar rabbithole (been doing that a lot of late) and giving serious thought to the filtertrons, but the Gretschs with both the center block body and filtertrons are like four grand. But it seems I can get a pair of filtertrons on their own for about £100 plus the mountings if needed, so maybe I should look at getting a 5655 and switch out the broads for filters? I'm seeing stuff about people doing it and liking the outcome. Or since I was looking at a Bigsby for my G400, could maybe looking into swapping filtertrons onto that. Much less straightforward, but I'm starting to get interested in mucking around like that. Should be reversible anyway.
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Mar 30, 2022 01:48
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I'll make sure to try a 5422, but I think the 5655 has what I'm looking for besides the pickups, including being single cut which I think looks better.
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Mar 30, 2022 02:59
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I think I need to know more about the tech before I take my next steps, pickups, amps, peddles, is there a good single resource on that rather than my bouncing around YouTube as I am and not always understanding everything. Maybe I should look more at my other great before looking at a new guitar? Generally play more outside of Rocksmith, learning to get desired tones myself and such.
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Apr 1, 2022 02:57
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nitsuga posted:
Dropped a couple of videos about them into my playlist, they came up recently as they have new bass amps out. I live in a flat so I'm not sure if I should look at new amps, I have a 40(?) watt one from my starter pack but apparently 10-15 is plenty for the home, so could maybe look at something better but smaller. I guess what should I be looking at to go beyond practice on Rocksmith? I'm looking at first pedal vids, considering new guitars or pickups for one I have. Are there amps out there good for both 6 string and bass?
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Apr 1, 2022 03:21
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nitsuga posted:I’d still give the Katana a recommendation. I think it would handle bass and apartment living with aplomb. The amp you’ve got is probably OK, but the Katana opens up a lot of tonal and connectivity options, like an aux-in and USB-out. This leads to your next question. I feel I need to improve a lot more as a player but I'd like to write/record my own stuff at some point, although I also like the covers option, mainly grunge, Joy Division and Royal Blood right now. Actually I've seen some guides on the Royal Blood sound so might be a good start on effects. I got Rick Beato's book/s on sale recently so will be having a go at that. I'm a little curious about modding, perhaps I'll just order some filtertrons and try to fit them into my G400, and maybe reverse that later and replace the broadtrons of a G5655. I should at least try a Gretsch solid body though, kind of assumed an Electromatic Jet would be like a Les Paul, and by extension quite like my G400, but with the different pickups it's worth a go.
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Apr 1, 2022 19:25
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luchadornado posted:Just bought that goddamn cobalt blue. Such a pretty guitar. Now to buy every other thing. I guess I'll start with a locking strap. Who makes good straps? I have a Wrangler one but I'm finding it is actually possible to make a bad strap, it keeps threatening to trust of and drop the drat guitar. About as good as their jeans. I have a generic Amazon one on the bass which is actually decent, but gently caress Amazon where possible.
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Apr 2, 2022 02:54
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^^Thanks!nitsuga posted:As for mods, it’s really the same boat. Figure out what you want to do and give it a try. There’s a lot of experience in that realm up in here too, so just post when you need help. Pickups are a good project and there are more affordable options out there if you’re not set on one of the progenitors. Unless there's a lot of knockoffs out there it looks like I can get Gretsch Filtertrons at under $100 the pair, which seem to review well but I see a lot said for TV Jones. Regarding Garage Band, what are the PC alternatives these day? I see Spotify has something with a limited free plan now, anything else out there that's free, or cheap without a subscription?
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Apr 2, 2022 03:21
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Ok Comboomer posted:Spotify is a music streaming service, like Netflix for published songs. It’s not a DAW nor can it be used to record any audio or produce any music. What's Netflix? I was talking about https://www.soundtrap.com/
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Apr 2, 2022 12:07
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Got down to PMT to try out some of those Gretschs I've been investigating. I really liked the sound of the G5220, although I've just found it doesn't come in a version with a Bigsby. May have to look into how the G5230T differs from it if at all, they could possibly have different model numbers over different fret inlays. Oh Gretsch you confounding bastards. Also tried out the G5655T I had been eyeing up and simply didn't like the sound as much, could be its broadtron pickups but I'm still curious how filtertrons would sound on the semihollow body. Might not be out of the question to do that but it's kind of a gamble when I know I can get a good sound off the peg with the 5220 and probably the 55230 So with that in mind I tried the G2622T Streamliner Centerblock, which is filtertrons on a semihollow and also sounds great, and might be perfect if not for the body shape. I feel like the Gretsch double cut body shape won't let me reach high on the board there well, and I simply don't think it looks as good as their single cuts, plus it's not so much got junk in the trunk as all of Fresh Kills back there. It's annoying as I feel like the guitar I think I want, the filtertrons on the single cut semihollow body should already exist (at sub £4k prices) So maybe I'll just get the solidbody, it looks like switching a semihollow's pickups might be tricky for a first attempt. Just have to do some research and see if I need to get a hands-on test with a G5230T before ordering. Surprised myself to see the difference in price between PMT's store and website, I think I can even order the same guitar in the store for pickup online and save a couple hundred pounds. Even if the website excludes VAT the 5655 comes in over £100 cheaper. Is that standard practice? Edit: Aw gently caress that 5220 had broadtrons, so I need to check that against a 5230 now BizarroAzrael fucked around with this message at 22:14 on Apr 2, 2022 |
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Apr 2, 2022 21:15
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Siivola posted:Unless Gretsch hasn't updated their website, none of the Streamliner series have filtertrons. They only come on Electromatics (and up), and even there only on right-handed guitars with Bigsbies, and left-handed guitars. Definitely seen a bunch of inconsistencies and possible mistakes pointed out over the course of my research. Anyway, tried a couple of Jets at another branch of PMT today, decided G5230T has the sound I want, which is good as I also wanted the trem. Just need to find it in black now, or come around on the green or silver ones. They actually have an ex-display model up on their website, but it's actually more expensive than a new one. I don't know if it's a consideration for that color otherwise being unavailable or just a mistake, going to call them tomorrow. BizarroAzrael fucked around with this message at 17:22 on Apr 3, 2022 |
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Apr 3, 2022 17:20
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Rabea has also done content with Anderton's Music, his "sound like" series should be helping me pick up some effects soon. https://youtube.com/c/andertons Seems he's also performing with Leo Moracchioli/Frog Leap as well.
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Apr 10, 2022 09:57
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I'm interested in starting to pick up some effects, but find it a bit overwhelming. I've been watching a bunch of "Sound like-" videos from Anderton's channel but besides still throwing up a lot of option they are pretty old (the store links no longer work most often) I might look to get a Vox V845 Wah pedal based on their Alice in Chains video, although I think I need to compare it to the V847 which it looks like I can get for a similar price.
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Apr 18, 2022 17:33
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Am thinking about picking up one of Harley Benton kit guitars, quite possibly their Jazzmaster copy. There's actually a contest on to customize one, which might be fine if not a little ambitious given I think I'd have until mid-June and I absolutely won't win in any case. I've also not found access to any wood working facilities for it yet, as I'd definitely want the proper setup for trimming the headstock. But setting that aside, this seems like a good opportunity to muck around with some new stuff. With it's longer fret scale, would it be worth trying out thicker gauge strings on it? One other point of interest is that it would be my first P90 guitar, although they are a fairly horrible hearing-aid beige. I'd definitely try them out but perhaps a good way to try swapping pickups out on something.
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Apr 27, 2022 23:42
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Drunk Driver Dad posted:e: Speaking of Harley Benton, I feel compelled to share my experience with the 7 string I bought. Unplayable. lots of buzzing frets, a few completely dead frets. It took some finagling and negotiating, but when I finally just asked to ship it back for a refund they let me keep it with refund minus the shipping. I leveled the frets(went through 3 strips of 400 grit) and it plays better, but it still will not stay in tune, even getting it into tune is almost impossible. It'll need a nut and some tuners, and at that point, it'll be an alright guitar. It looks pretty slick though. I had seen issues come up regarding the tuners on the JA (I have to assume they are the same as the rest of the line thought) and was planning to get alternatives from the outset. All the YT reviews I have seem of them seem pretty happy with the necks but maybe the issue stems from some 7-string consideration? Or maybe the guitar YouTubers all knew what they were doing better than whoever put yours together? Have also seen wiring issues come up, specifically one of them had their switch wired the wrong way around. Nothing as serious as what you seem to have encountered anyway.
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Apr 28, 2022 01:25
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nitsuga posted:I’d say go for it. The more stripped down circuitry and tune-o-magic bridge should make the build and setup a fair bit easier. It’ll probably have some quirks, but think of it like a journey where you learn a bunch and can enjoy what you’ve made. And then on subsequent journeys you learn more and then enjoy what you’ve made even more. I actually stumbled onto this on the site as well: https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_te_20hh_sbk_standard_series.htm First time I've felt strongly drawn to something in the tele archetype, and at £85 it's about in impulse buy range. So I may be ordering guitars five and six here (for under £200 shipped) Should get around to being actually good at guitar really. But without breaking the bank I should have a collection that covers most of the solid body bases.
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Apr 29, 2022 01:20
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nitsuga posted:Harley Benton makes some pretty decent instruments, so I wouldn’t bat an eye at that Tele. Fair warning you will also want one with the standard pickup configuration before long. You mean single coils? The kit version has those.
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Apr 29, 2022 16:50
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nitsuga posted:I do. The item you linked was a pre-built HH Tele though. But yeah, if it’s another DIY kit, I won’t stand in your way. Get busy! Yeah, I meant that the HH is pretty and seems to sound good (and is $20 more than building the kit) and that the kit has single coils. Will still go for the Jazzmaster kit but maybe also pick up this prebuilt tele.
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Apr 29, 2022 18:58
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I'm looking at both the Fender Mustang Micro and the Boss GT-1 for expanding my sounds, probably not much point getting both but does anyone have thoughts? I can play through Rocksmith which allows for both setting up tone and with headphones to not upset the neighbors. I feel like I'm leaving to the GT-1 as it seems to have more applications fort things like actually performing. Anyone have both?
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May 1, 2022 15:46
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What should I expect to pay for a good set of tuners? I've seen issues with the ones on the Harley Benton kids so perhaps will get ahead of that. I do mean to try it's P90s and then replace them so not terrible if I wait.
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May 2, 2022 12:10
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Oh god there's something wrong with me, at the start of lockdown I had 2 guitars, my generic strat clone starter and an Epiphone SG. I've since got a Gretsch Bass, an Electromatic Jet, and now 2 cheap Harley Bensons are on their way. And loving hell, I still have a semi hollow on my mind and might get the Harley Benson 335 copy and try to put filtertrons in it. I am not good at guitar. I should probably get lessons and actually talk to a human instead of only test myself against Rocksmith. Probably should replace/augment my little Marshall amp as well. Would all feel a bit much if I weren't putting the time in as well.
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May 3, 2022 12:36
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Can the op be updated now the poster has been banned? Seems like Harley Benton ought to be listed under budget brands there.
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May 7, 2022 18:35
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Boss Katanas have come up a bunch, I think specifically This 50W Mk2 version for home practice? Just wanted to check, looks good to me and think it makes sense to give it a go before exploring effects further. Pretty good price new so I may drive over tomorrow and pick one up. Super secondary- it's not going to have issues with being used as a bass amp as well is it? Not a deal-breaker at all but thought I best ask. What's a good price for guitar lessons now BTW? I've found £30 per hour so far, £35 or so if I go for the one down the street instead of driving 10 mins. BizarroAzrael fucked around with this message at 00:49 on May 9, 2022 |
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May 9, 2022 00:45
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I've been checking out guitar setup, I mean to do a few bits and pieces and I think I need to adjust the truss rod on my Gretsch. I've looked down it and the neck looks pretty much straight, I gather it should be very slightly concave? My Epiphone does seem to have a slight concave curve to it so can use that as a guide.
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May 9, 2022 12:36
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  Got some toys, the HB Jazzmaster I may not do yet, need to figure how to cut the headstock. Tele is nice for the money, feels good in hand even if you'd never mistake it for something expensive. Pick guard is a bit bleh, very obviously a tortoise shell image printed on, but not a serious issue and fixable. Gig bag seems decent for a £15 upgrade with a cable. And I picked up a Boss Katana, seems sweet already, even at .5 watts out of consideration for my neighbors. Definitely better getting my amp upgraded before effects.
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May 9, 2022 23:10
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stoopidmunkey posted:I hope I didn’t mess up, but I’m getting a custom axe. The factory that makes the bad cat guitars (which are great) also does custom orders so I’m having them put together an lp but with a Tele neck. The lp body is the most comfy for me but my Tele is easier to play with the low radius. It was under $300 so we’ll see how it goes. If you goons are interested, I’ll post pics when it gets here or I get an update. They make “replicas” but I asked for a blank headstock although I thought one of the big names on it would be funny Regular LP stock with a Fender logo probably funniest, but that sounds interesting, obviously the body is immediately associated with a 3x3 so curious how it will look with an inline. Preemptive 
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May 10, 2022 14:16
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For the new OP; Might be worth linking to the Rocksmith thread for people that might be interested learning that way (admittedly deadish except for occasional updates on withdrawn DLC, but a good resource for things like getting custom tracks into the PC version, and might come back to life whenever Rocksmith+ launches) https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3587654
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May 11, 2022 16:15
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Got a bunch done tonight, gave my G400 a proper clean, used lemon oil on the fretboard, and restrung it replacing the 9-42 with 10-46, and got the action a bit lower. Feels great so far! Next up I think I'm adjusting the neck of my Gretsch and probably doing the same there. Hopefully restringing the Bigsby won't be too harrowing, I heard just bending the end a bit helps.
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May 12, 2022 02:16
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Got my first effect pedal last week, a cheap Behringer Ultra Chorus. Had a bunch of fun with that but last night I found that it won't turn on and I can't run through it to the amp. I was running off of a battery, is life typically that short? I don't think I left it turned on, I had assumed the pedal acted as an on/off switch so it wasn't using power when I didn't apply the effect, but I thought the signal would pass through with it off. Is it normal that without power it will not pass the signal through? I should probably look into getting it mains power since dealing with batteries over and over will be a pain.
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May 19, 2022 11:09
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Not as delicious, but I'm fixing to stain the body of my Harley Benton kit. After getting a sander, vice and coping saw it's already false economy vs buying a complete guitar but should be interesting. On the off-chance has anyone else done this? Part of my issue is all the tutorials use American products, is all wood stain useable? Crimson Guitars here in the UK do have a range though so may just go with that, they have finishes as well.
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May 20, 2022 01:38
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Thumposaurus posted:Is the body of the HB kit sealed? Or raw wood? Can check your specific points but my understanding is that it's treated and will need to be sanded to take stain/paint. I'm thinking charcoal/ebony, possibly followed by some grey/blue after the first strain picks out the grain. I'll see what they have at B&Q.
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May 21, 2022 02:49
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Had my first guitar lesson in 10+ years this evening, teacher seems really good, playing since he was five, has stories and a soundproof studio at the end of his garden. Got into since real fundamentals that I had been missing. I've also got this in my kitchen island;  A combination of strains plus tung oil to finish, think I need to leave it a while and hopefully the finish will cure and colour will stop rubbing off. Pleased with the look but I want to do the assembly now. I'm curious about making a semi hollow next, although those always seem to be set-in and need glue. Does something in a semi hollow preclude a bolt on? I figured a centre block would allow it.
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May 31, 2022 01:28
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muike posted:you can definitely do semi-hollow bolt-ons. its just that semi-hollow guitars and set-neck builders are like a fuzzy circle if you make a venn diagram. there's the thinline tele as an example of a really classic bolt on semi-hollow I have seen thinline Tele bodies around, not checked the join, although I had been thinking something more like the 335.
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May 31, 2022 01:33
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Finished my Harley Benton Jazzmaster kit; Here's the body before assembly so you can see the colour better:  Was fun, but I did have some issues;
I think I also need to make some intonation adjustments to the bridge saddles, but I can't seem to make much difference to the tone at the twelfth fret that way. I think I'll do another when I've got an idea of what I want, but I won't be voting a headstock again.
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Jun 3, 2022 01:57
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Red_Fred posted:That looks pretty nice. How well do the necks fit? That would be my major concern with one of those kits. Seems snug, no concerns over it, 4 screws with a plate on the back so all seems vert secure. Unless you're thinking of ones you glue, which I've also seen (HB ones are all bolt ons) Helianthus Annuus posted:looks cool -- how long did it take? Well actual assembly was an hour or two most, the other optional stuff was the bulk of the time and a lot of that was waiting for stains and finishes to dry. I had to sand the body to take a stain, a few coats of the black (probably should have watered it a bit, seemed to just sit on top a lot) sanding away for the burst effect, then the blue. Finishing took a few days applying layers and a few more just letting it dry. Might have been able to speed things up a bit by fixing to hang it up so I don't need one side to dry to do the other. Headstock was a bit of a pain, was using a coping saw and I don't have many ideal spots to clap it down, plus just not been using one much. A jigsaw and a practiced hand and it would be trivial if you're not being fancy, place all the 3x3 headstocks don't really need cutting if you don't feel like it. The saddles move fine, possibly it's the app I'm using to tune with? I'' get out my old proper one and see what it says, but the app seems to be saying I'm pretty sharp on the twelfth. Rocksmith recognizes a bunch of high notes though so maybe its fine.
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Jun 3, 2022 15:57
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Not rushing yet having just built one, but I'm looking for a 335-alike kit for a new project. Looking around there's seem to be a few decent UK options, which I assume use similar or identical Asian-manufactured part simply collected together and sold as a kit. I'm a bit tepid on Kit Built Guitar's offering just for the pale fretboard, although maybe after staining the maple that can be set off better? It also comes with what I assume is a knock-off Bigsby trem. https://kitbuiltguitars.co.uk/guitar-kits/diy-335-style-hollow-body-mahogany-build-your-own-guitar-kit/ Guitar Fabric have three versions, the main stated difference being wood and fitting colours, although the Chrome/Mahogany one comes with one of those Bigsby-alikes and apparently a little extra detailing on the headstock. https://guitarkitfabric.co.uk/products/diy-guitar-kits/electric-guitar-kits.html?body_type=5656&p=5 Coban have a huge range of combinations of bodies, hardware, woods etc so helpfully have a "semi-hollow" search filter. Which is full of solid body guitars as well. It's a bit hard to look over all the variants because of that and the naff phones they have, including many that seem mismatched to what's described, but here's a better example: https://cobanguitars.co.uk/product/semi-hollow-guitar-diy-kit-es230-flamed-maple-veneer-chrome/ I'm leaning toward guitar fabric one, although it looks like if I go for the Bigsby one I'll need to do some drilling? Can't see how it's fitted otherwise. Coban have more variety of woods that might be worth a look but probably need to talk to them for clarity on what I'd be getting. Plus maybe I should get one without a trem and buy and actual Asian-built Bigsby instead? I'm interested in exploring a bunch of aftermarket parts but this is probably cheaper than trying to get a body and neck and then everything else separate.
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Jun 5, 2022 01:23
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I've got to thinking about trying a Jaguar, I like the body shape on the Jazzmaster kit I built, and it turns out rather than the JM having a longer neck than the other guitars I have, actually the Jaguar has a shorter one than them all. I'm interested in finding a pretty dark tone, which Jags seem to offer. Is the shorter scale length particular difficult? I'm considering going the kit route again, although the promising kit I've found isn't quite authentic to the standard layout and is HSH. I'm pretty used to 2 pickups, is there such a thing as "too many" for some or can I just ignore the single coil at worst? Are there any other good models for a dark sound? I'm kicking around some pickup ideas. Maybe a kit would lose something from a real Jag, I just want to keep exploring gear really.
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Jun 10, 2022 20:16
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