GUITAR MEGATHREAD: Sorry for the nipple, I'm depressed.

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No More Drake > Musician's Lounge > GUITAR MEGATHREAD: Sorry for the nipple, I'm depressed.

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a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

cheers op! good poo poo! i like this section in particular:

Huxley posted:

You�ll hear around the internet the term �GAS� or �Gassing�. It�s an acronym that stands for

Gear
Acquisition
Syndrome

And it�s a slippery slope to unhappiness, particularly in adult high-beginner, low-intermediate players. You�ve got enough music in your fingers, money in the bank, and time on your hands to fall down a dozen different rabbit holes of what you �need� to get exactly the sound that�s in your head. You can�t get better sitting there at work bored, but maybe you can get better by shopping.

The truth is, you almost certainly don�t need new gear. You don�t need new pickups. You don�t need a boutique pedal. You need to get off YouTube. All of that stuff has its place, but when you�re starting out you need an instrument that doesn�t fight against you and an amp that noise comes out of and has some effects built into it.

You have to realize the difference between being unhappy with your gear and just being homesick for the gear you have. Upgrading your $50 Tube Screamer clone into some $400 discontinued JHS pedal isn�t going to make you a better (or happier) guitar player.

i went to the music store today to look at pianos, but of course i wanted to play a guitar. i grabbed the first one that looked decent - it was a squire tele. plugged it in and played around for a few minutes - nice guitar! i didn't see the price, it said "Used". i assumed 300-500, easily. i was wrong! the price was $150.

you don't need to spend a lot of money on a guitar, nor do you need more guitars if you already have 1+ guitars. sorry!!

# ¿ Jul 9, 2022 00:13

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# ¿ May 9, 2024 21:31

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

been going wild with books again, picked up Noad Solo Guitar Playing Vol 1 yesterday. seems to have some nice etudes.

# ¿ Jul 9, 2022 13:06

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

gently caress this loving instrument god loving damnit

# ¿ Jul 9, 2022 17:31

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

800peepee51doodoo posted:

I think tabs get a bad rap because a lot of people don't listen to the song while using them and assume they are playing it correctly based on memory, or will only learn the main riff, or otherwise shortcut out. Thats not a fault of the tablature, though. And its not an exclusive tool either, you can use tabs while also learning theory basics, doing exercises, etc.

i don�t necessarily disagree, but notation also gets a bad rap among (mainly) self-taught guitarists for being too hard, unnecessary, and in extreme cases is actively discouraged. i have a chip on my shoulder for putting off learning reading for a decade, for those reasons

the other problem with tabs and chord sites is the dogshit quality of many transcriptions. not tablature�s fault, but a problem nevertheless

# ¿ Jul 9, 2022 18:06

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

continuing the christopher parkening discussion from last thread, here's an early study from Noad Solo Guitar Playing Vol 1

great right hand warm up, and it's based on the melody from Asturias, so it sounds good

# ¿ Jul 10, 2022 13:49

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

i always recommend Alexander Technique in this thread. here are some resources i use, in case anybody wants to try it out (for free!)

i've been doing lessons with Ariel at Alexander Technique Philadelphia for over a year: https://www.alexandertechniquephiladelphia.com/ warnings: she's really cheesy, but if you can get past that, she's quite good. she's worked with many students at the Curtis Institute of Music and has a lot of experience with musicians.

mostly i do the weekly Zoom classes, which will run you $20 per class. there are usually 2-4 of us in the class. the "Play Free Musicians' Lab" is the one i usually attend.

but! if you don't feel like paying for a class, or showing your face on Zoom, she live streams most classes on her facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AlexanderTechniquePhiladelphia

here's a recent class where we talked about breathing and right hand thumb / finger relaxation: https://www.facebook.com/AlexanderTechniquePhiladelphia/videos/378339607701674/ (you can't hear the parts where i'm talking, so it might be weird).

if anybody's interested, i may flesh this out into a separate thread (we need more drat threads in ML)

# ¿ Jul 10, 2022 19:07

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Helianthus Annuus posted:

Here is the firefly guitar I recently got.

I want to replace it's pickups, but i don't know which pickups to pick! I've never replaced pickups before, so I'm pretty ignorant. I like my telecaster for its brightness, and i liked the P90s in my old Les Paul, so single coils seem like a good decision. Regarding humbuckers: I have never owned boutique humbuckers, but the cheap ones i have owned all sounded muddy to me. So maybe there are bright sounding humbuckers that I should consider instead?

I don't wanna dig thru the guitar's electronics more than once, so i'm asking for help picking out something I will like. But probably more importantly: I need help making sure i don't buy something that's not going to fit!

EDIT: I recently learned that some people prefer guitars with only one pickup, because the instrument sounds better with fewer magnets near the strings. I guess the strong magnetic field prevents the steel strings from moving the way they want to, and that this can deaden the sound somewhat. Does anyone ever decide to remove both pickups and only install one new pickup?

i installed one of these in the neck of my hollow body: https://www.amazon.com/Seymour-Duncan-Model-Humbucker-Pickup/dp/B0002D05RS. it had a better bright sound than the stock pickup at the bridge. not sure what sound you're looking for, but these brightened up some dull stock humbuckers. caveat: these are the only non-stock pickups i've tried

# ¿ Jul 11, 2022 01:18

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

something seems to be clicking in my technical work. i've never been able to play fast. i carry a lot of tension in my hands and shoulders and i simply can't do it. alexander technique, i think, is finally helping me break through - with the aaron shearer scale pattern studies, i'm starting to be able to play fast in upper positions while not losing my place in the music. and i am able to sense what note i'm playing at all times. wild!!

# ¿ Jul 11, 2022 19:49

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

oh another thread christening thing:

RAT is best pedal

i agree.

# ¿ Jul 12, 2022 23:26

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

it�s always something, isn�t it

# ¿ Jul 14, 2022 18:08

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Disco Pope posted:

So, I've recently moved on to improvising to backing tracks to put the scales I've practiced to use, and it sounds cool and musical, but there's an element of "random bullshit go!" to it. How do I move towards a bit more intentionality when improvising over just loving around in that key?

some thoughts:

as the chords change, emphasize the chord tones of each chord - this means playing them on strong beats, or with longer notes
sing what you play. ideally you should be hearing what you're going to play in your mind before you play it. this helps develop that skill
singing will also help you play more melodically
avoid playing too many chord roots - other chord and tones have a richer sound than the root, which will usually be played by the bass or piano
vary your rhythm as much as possible
place accents in different spots - first on strong beats, then on 8th note offbeats. mix and match as much as possible. try playing a single pitch, and use rhythm and accents to keep it interesting

lots more you could try, but that's a start. singing what you play is extremely important for developing more melodic improvising

# ¿ Jul 19, 2022 16:46

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

BonHair posted:

Classical strings work on a ukulele? Guess I gotta find me a set then, I can't loving stand the high G.

the high G is insanely annoying. you got all your nice top 4 string guitar chord voicings, but they all sound weird and bad

having a low G would actually make it viable as a solo instrument. sounds awesome

# ¿ Jul 21, 2022 14:11

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

ColdPie posted:

I've been working on learning Yenne Lee's arrangement of "The Water is Wide" since January. (Transcript and video of Lee playing the song are at that link.) It's my first full-length song. I finally got a decent recording of myself playing it, just one hiccup at the very end, but otherwise I'm pretty happy with this performance. It's really hard to play four minutes without mistakes!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP43TeVuFOc

wow! this is great! i'm a big fan of yenne and her arrangements, i saw her play in philly a few years ago. she was phenomenal. you did an excellent job with the piece! well done

landgrabber posted:

at a fun place right now with my playing where i have learned a lot of barre shapes and how they work, and now i�m really into things like� close position triads, and using our familiar open shapes in interesting ways. figuring out what i can do by just lifting a finger or moving it up or down a fret. and realizing that our open shapes are actually just two triads stacked on top of each other (though one or two may be inverted).

i do feel like i�m getting to the next �level�. i used to kind of wonder how people built guitar parts out of more than just lead or power/barre chords, and now i feel like i�m getting there.

being able to dance around with triads looks like magic to people, you can do so much with it

nitsuga posted:

LG, I think you might find the voice leading you like in a lot of classical guitar pieces. Maybe a good starting point there would be some Bach, say maybe Bour�e or Air if you're feeling really ambitious. I'd definitely pick up a collection of some sort if you're at all curious about classical guitar. La Catedral by Barrios is another piece I will recommend to anyone. Don't let the last part intimidate you too much. It's fun to play slow too. Don't let not having a classical guitar stop you either. It's not a requirement.

oooh, i wouldn't have ever expected to even attempt La Catedral without a lot more practice...maybe i'll check it out! the middle slow movement is my favorite part!

# ¿ Jul 24, 2022 22:55

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

get "pretty good" at shred speed and then you'll be great at normal speed

# ¿ Jul 25, 2022 00:35

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

yeah i'm really interested in classical guitars, i've played them in guitar centers and stuff and i liked them a lot.

they have kind of a romantic, "mystical" sound to me, it makes the sorts of extended chords or suspended chords or modal chord progressions that i play a lot sound really, really cool.

classical guitar really forces you to use dynamics and create other interesting sounds without effects. it taught me that the guitar was way more versatile than i thought

# ¿ Jul 25, 2022 00:59

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Disco Pope posted:

This is a strange question, but does anyone else get absolutely exhausted by practicing? Like, to the extent I often need to nap.

I don't fond playing or practicing boring, but particularly when I'm putting a lot of effort into tightening up rhythm or phrasing, I'm pooped.

this probably means you're practicing well - it's primarily a mental / intellectual activity, not physical. so, a certain amount of fatigue makes sense

# ¿ Aug 1, 2022 22:01

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

i played a used squire bullet tele at the music store, it was nice as hell! i think they wanted $150 for it

# ¿ Aug 2, 2022 19:41

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

i've heard people say you should practice unamplified so as to not rely on effects / volume as a crutch

# ¿ Aug 3, 2022 17:37

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

every time i post about adventures in music theory or composition on guitar or something, no one responds. at least gear stuff is easy to understand

here's something. i'm practicing some Beatles songs, playing solo acoustic. currently "Dig A Pony". the original has a nice groove - it's fast, but has a laid back feel. when i play it and sing, i find myself speeding up at the hard parts (classic), which makes my playing feel frantic. partly i just need more practice in general, but more specifically...

i did some run throughs with the metronome. the song is in 3/4, i played with a click on every beat. this helped my time, but i'm still not getting the feel. my approach now is to play with only the click on 1, so i really need to feel the beat to stay with it. it's helping!

anybody got any other suggestions?? (i'll post a recording within a day or two, just wanted to polish it up)

# ¿ Aug 3, 2022 21:59

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Baron von Eevl posted:

What part are you having trouble with? Just the groove during the verses? The lead parts during the chorus? That almost fugue like instrumental part?

playing the lead parts during the chorus while singing, and in the pre chorus hitting high notes

# ¿ Aug 3, 2022 23:52

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Baron von Eevl posted:

They're a very weird rhythm, it's in 3/4 but each of those beats is divided into triplets, it's kind of a shuffled shuffle.

yeah, i think of it as "swing 8ths in 3/4". since the vocal rhythm is the same it's not TOO bad

here it is: Dig A Pony

here's what i tried to get a better "timefeel"

playing with metronome
playing with metronome, clicks only on 1
changing up the strumming rhythm to emphasize the "lilting" feel
click on 1, no guitar, singing the song normally
click on 1, no guitar, singing quietly
click on 1, hearing the song mentally, while taking long deep breaths

also, i finally had to admit that the standard key is too high for me. tuned down to Eb and that helped a lot!

# ¿ Aug 4, 2022 13:21

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Helianthus Annuus posted:

nice performance. the song isn't my thing, but you're my favorite guitarist / singer in this thread, mr dent!

aw thanks!

Dr. Faustus posted:

But my left hand was just dead, it turned into a claw that I could only stare at accusingly. loving traitor.

good post all around, but this? i have been there. especially when performing classical solo...total lock up the first few times.

# ¿ Aug 6, 2022 12:11

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Red_Fred posted:

I do find myself not telling most people I�m playing guitar again because I don�t want to be put on the spot and asked �are you good?� Etc.

i�ve been playing guitar and telling people about it for almost 30 years�people rarely ask this. they just assume you�re good

# ¿ Aug 7, 2022 12:24

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Huxley posted:

Think of it like tennis: when a person tells you they play tennis you make a reasonable assumption that they have put in a lot of time and work and are pretty good. But you don't assume they're on the pro tour. You don't go, "Oh hey guy at a party who just told me they play tennis, how many grand slam titles do you have?"

Just like there's a wide range of "good at tennis" there's a wide range of "good at guitar" for people who don't play. They don't automatically assume you are EVH. If you can play 8-10 chords in time, you are good at guitar to 99% of the people who hear you play.

e: And really, the trick to being "good at guitar" is being able to play 8-10 songs well enough for people to sing along to. If you have an hour setlist in your head, most everyone will say you are good at guitar.

If you want people who are good at guitar to think you're good at guitar, go practice scale runs, or chord melody, or clean up your riffs. If you want regular people to think you're good at guitar, go memorize the lyrics to Harvest Moon.

well put. additionally: you�re allowed to be bad at stuff

# ¿ Aug 7, 2022 14:44

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

there are a few good books on the topic... initially i got started on this stuff from Jamie Andreas's "The Principles of Correct Practice for Guitar". book and video course: https://www.guitarprinciples.com/shop/the-principles-ebook-video-instruction-p-96.html warning, she sounds like a total crank, but the info is good for the most part. i actually did a couple video lessons with her years ago that were helpful.

other than that, david leisner's book "Playing With Ease" is okay (aimed at classical players), but he mainly cribs stuff from Alexander Technique and you'd probably be better off just doing that instead

# ¿ Aug 9, 2022 18:04

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

hmm

# ¿ Aug 10, 2022 18:46

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

not guitar related, but learning a bit of piano is really helping me drill intervals. on guitar, reading music, i just see the notes as positions on the fretboard. on piano i can hardly help but see the intervals as i play. pretty cool

# ¿ Aug 10, 2022 18:54

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

i used those jazz iii picks for a long time, then after i started working on my posture / ergonomics, i suddenly couldn't stand them anymore and went back to the green dunlops. kinda strange

# ¿ Aug 10, 2022 21:05

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Reaganomicon posted:

it's a Taylor DN3. All solid wood, really nice tone, I think... it has forward-shifted bracing so it's got more of a low-end and isn't so bright-sounding like most other Taylors. Also I love that it doesn't have a pickguard.

examples of the kind of toan i can achieve w/ this thing (gotta turn you volume way up):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOtGwhLEUoA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp2qCm4n6Ko

hell yeah, love that kind of chord melody stuff

# ¿ Aug 14, 2022 17:41

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

the first song i ever sang in public was Say It Ain�t So, i�m definitely weezer-aged

# ¿ Sep 4, 2022 11:54

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Dr. Faustus posted:

I feel like a quote out of context
Withholding the rest
So I can be for you what you want to see

I've got the gesture and sounds
Got the timing down
It's uncanny, yeah, you'd think it was me

# ¿ Sep 6, 2022 15:20

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

JamesKPolk posted:

Re-acquanting myself with the simple pleasures of (smoking weed and) playing heavy riffs through a bunch of fuzz and gain

am I "allowed" to just write songs that are power chords up the low e and maybe a strings? I think I'm doing it anyway but after coming to this taking a break from learning jazz standards I feel like its cheating

you�re not only allowed, it kicks rear end

# ¿ Sep 8, 2022 00:12

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

sounds like a finger placement problem? it shouldn�t take much effort to fret a note as long as you�re right up against the fret

# ¿ Sep 8, 2022 20:13

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

Huxley posted:

e: for my classical pals, after playing "Die Rose im Garten" in front of people this weekend, I'm inspired to keep exploring 20th c. stuff. This is next up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDQOapCV9T4

Dyens is very good

# ¿ Sep 8, 2022 21:10

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

LG, post a video of your fretting hand as you're playing

# ¿ Sep 8, 2022 22:42

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

landgrabber posted:

i don't know if i'm just terminally weak or something, but i have legitimately no idea how so many people play such big guitars so much and it doesn't hurt.

the answer is technique. see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvLD1wytwCs

# ¿ Sep 8, 2022 22:49

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

ColdPie posted:

I saw this on Rhett's channel and it's so good.

yep, if i could play like anybody i'd be julian. excited for the new record, i preordered

# ¿ Sep 11, 2022 15:39

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

the beato guitar does look nice though

# ¿ Sep 15, 2022 18:02

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

SGs should always be popular because of ian mackaye / Fugazi

# ¿ Sep 15, 2022 18:09

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# ¿ May 9, 2024 21:31

a.p. dent: Oct 24, 2005

when i was in high school there was a blues shredder guy who i thought was sooo loving cool, and he played a les paul. whereas i was stuck slumming with my beautiful american strat. i was seriously so jealous for absolutely no reason

# ¿ Sep 15, 2022 18:57

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