43 replies to this topic

[wharfrat]

 

 

I really loved mine and made a huge mistake selling it and my piano to move out of state. Beautiful Bass. I hope you enjoy it!

 

very nice! I was born with metal in my blood. I have always loved the design. 

[Soliver]

feeling really good about my progress, practicing daily, but these guitar strings are riping up my fingertips. What do you guys think of the pink super slinky's? they say they bend easy for for noobs like me. Would you recommend them or a diff brand/type?

 

Playing strings is really a lot like lifting weights ... the first few days are rough, then when you get your balance, it's fucking awful, but when your body catches up to your willingness, it's all good. 

 

That said, I prefer medium/light for acoustic unless I'm hitting J. Cash sets or something that requires a lot of thump. Your fingers will get used to whatever you choose ... I've had callouses on my hands from woodstoves that burned me at the exact same spot for seasons. 

 

Then I bought some long gloves.

 

But that won't work for guitar, so you gotta suck it up.  Play every day, even for a bit, even when it hurts.  The tingling lets you know it's working!

 

:)

 

soliver

[Soliver]

Nice to see some participation in this thread.
Sidestreet........yes, I like the tune you posted, that's some wholesome goodness.
I could come up with all kinds of crazy for that jam, was it a tune y'all did improv or was it wrote out?
90 % of what I do is improv.

Here's a tune I wrote called Taking the Time.....this recording was done live at a show we did where I lived at at the time.
There's a lot of deep meaning to this song for me as it has to do with my dad and mom as well as a friend during the time it was wrote.
Sorry for my shitty voice because I was the singer / lead guitar player in this band.
I hope y'all enjoy.
Taking the Time (live).mp3

 

Cool tune -

 

Your drummer plays a lot like me.  Keep the beat, hit the tom run when ya can -  rock star!    :) 

 

I can keep a tune vocally, but I'm no lead - and I can rock some chords but I'm no lead - so drums are my new(est) thing, as the percussionist can be in his own little world and pretend whatever the fuck he wants.  I kinda dig it.

 

I couldn't catch too many lyrics but enjoyed the song.  Makes me miss getting out and seeing live shows like when I was a tad younger, but - alas - you can't live in BFW and have live music all at the same time.

 

:)

 

soliver

[Coopdog]

Wharfrat, man that pain in your fingertips is progress under your belt. Like Soliver said play anyways, even when it hurts. In no time, (like a month actually) that pain will subside and then you will have numb fingertips, which also has issues like feeling around on your nightstand for the shutoff for your alarm lol. My fingertips feel like they are covered in a layer of plastic on my left hand and also on my fingertips and side of my thumb on my strumming hand as I get more into fingerstyle stuff. Had an awesome music night last night and my bro got some great video where my face was kinda hidden by my hair that I could post, but he is being difficult about postin it. I hope he does so I can share something.

 

Once you start bending strings and playing some lead stuff your will peel off those initial callouses and grow some deep rooted ones that don't peel off and go away if you skip a couple of days. My callouses are pretty deep and established nowadays because I put the love in...

 

Peace...

Edited by Coopdog, 08 January 2018 - 03:50 AM.

[wharfrat]

well in my string pursuit, I opted for the Ernie Ball super slinky 9's.. was a mistake, threw my intonation way off and would have been difficult to adjust that out, besides when i was giving the strings a lil stretch, the high E broke on me, I had a 3 pack so i was ok, but damn them things are skinny. After setting it up and in tune is when i noticed the bad intonation problem, so i said fuq it and ran down to the music store and grabbed a set of D'Addario EXL 110. So much happier with them, they sound bright n crisp and will prolly last longer then the EB. 

 

Fingers feeling better already, no callouses but comfortably numb. 

[wharfrat]

6 months sober and i think i traded one addiction for another..

 

My new acoustic, 1978/9 Hohner HG-07 made in Japan

[Myc]

Sweet guitar man. 

If you're a fast learner and pick up on guitar quick, there are some really good lessons on youtube. It really jumped up my game being able to watch someone (who read the sheet music) play. 

For example, Jimmy Page uses some really obscure jazz chords to cover some of the same tones within a song. You can hack the sound for campfire purposes with something close but to get that real character .... it's nice to use the intended structure. Some of the lessons I mentioned really helped me with Page and Dean DeLeo among others. 

 

Stick with those D.Addario strings - all the way through. They're some of the best I've found in 30 years of playing. 

The Phosphor Bronze/Light EJ16-3D is a good way to buy. If you practice often, you should be changing strings every month or more often. The 3-pack (or 10-packs if you can swing it) - the more you buy - the cheaper. 

Looks like you've got quite a herd to feed these days. LOL  I have eight myself. It ain't cheap. 

 

Gave up drinking to spend twice as much on pickin' guitar. There must be a song in that somewhere !!  Jukebox Zero ?

Edited by Myc, 24 January 2018 - 10:39 AM.

[wharfrat]

Sweet guitar man. 

If you're a fast learner and pick up on guitar quick, there are some really good lessons on youtube. It really jumped up my game being able to watch someone (who read the sheet music) play. 

For example, Jimmy Page uses some really obscure jazz chords to cover some of the same tones within a song. You can hack the sound for campfire purposes with something close but to get that real character .... it's nice to use the intended structure. Some of the lessons I mentioned really helped me with Page and Dean DeLeo among others. 

 

Stick with those D.Addario strings - all the way through. They're some of the best I've found in 30 years of playing. 

The Phosphor Bronze/Light EJ16-3D is a good way to buy. If you practice often, you should be changing strings every month or more often. The 3-pack (or 10-packs if you can swing it) - the more you buy - the cheaper. 

Looks like you've got quite a herd to feed these days. LOL  I have eight myself. It ain't cheap. 

 

Gave up drinking to spend twice as much on pickin' guitar. There must be a song in that somewhere !!  Jukebox Zero ?

I been using Marty Schwarts beginner lessons on you tube, i love that guy, he makes learning easy an fun.. I'm picking up the basic 8 chords fairly well, just working on transitions, and playing "wish you were here" makes me feel like i am accomplishing something.. I got the intro and the chorus down, just have to work on the solo.

[Myc]

Study pentatonic scales - they will change your game totally. It's like learning the three chords Coopdog mentions.

 

With the scales and three chords - you'll look like a virtuoso in no time !

 

Your solo from "Wish you were here" is a pentatonic blues progression.

Edited by Myc, 24 January 2018 - 01:02 PM.

[Coopdog]

It's kind of odd that using 9 gauge strings would throw off your intonation. Never heard of that before. I actually like the Ernie Ball Steel super slinkies for electric guitar playing and have used them for years. I have heard that guitars are set up for a certain string tension and that they often recommend certain ones. I love the D'adderio Phospher bronze or EarthWoods for my 12 strings but again I use the light 9 gauge strings with no problems whatsoever. However, your string preference is just that, your own preference and nobody can make you change that by saying one or the other is better so enjoy what you enjoy and do what sounds best to you. I read somewhere that ZZTOP's Billy Gibbons uses a 7 gauge high e string! That is skiiiiiny indeed!

 

I rarely change strings just because, but nowadays if one breaks I change them and that happens more now that I have advanced my playing some. My body PH must be fairly neutral as I get a lot of use from a set of strings, whereas my buddy has to change them very often as they get corroded fast. Changing strings is a huge pain in the ass with a 12 string, so I don't often do it just to be doing it. I buy strings by the 6 pack usually as they are much better priced in bulk and it is nice to always have an extra pack on me when I go play somewhere. Several times I have broke a string (Or someone else has) and they have been amazed when I pull out a brand new set and we can keep on jamming like it didn't happen lol.

 

You think you are addicted now, wait until you pick up a 12 string and play Wish You Were Here on that! When I got one it seemed like every song I had ever been motivated to play was played on one and it brought my playing to life. Now it is my go to instrument 90% of the time anyhow. You need to look for a 6 guitar tree, they stand all your guitars up in one corner and take up a lot less space. That was my wife's main gripe about guitars was how much room they take up lol Anyways have a good day and be safe man!

 

Peace...

Edited by Coopdog, 24 January 2018 - 01:49 PM.

[Myc]

Your guitar neck - tuning rod - must be set up for the average string guage you intend to use.

Otherwise - if you use too weak of a string (9's) - you won't properly load the tension rod and the neck won't lay out properly.

 

If you dramatically change string gauges - like setting up your electric for 13's or going with 11's on your acoustic - you may need to make some mechanical modifications.

Stewart MacDonald online has some pretty good workshops for things like this and help one to understand the engineering behind the instruments themselves. Scale length, bridge positioning, string height, etc. - these are just a few things to pay attention to. 

 

The heavier the string - the more clarity from the tone at high volume. You'll get more harmonic and resonant artifacts with heavier gauges. Stevie Ray Vaugh played 14's on his signature Strat. A tube amp will help further enhance these unusual analog "coincidences". 

It's how folks like Eddie Van Halen got their magic "tone".

 

Another trick is to de-tune the guitar. EVH plays in E-flat as opposed to E. Just detune each string one-half step. This is how he recovers from all of the wild dives and acrobatics. 

 

Anther super-bad trick is to de-tune your heavy E-string. Drop (de-tune) it to D and leave the other 5 strings the same. 

Crank up your amp. Rock out..

You're welcome. 

 

I have fuck-tons of tricks. Since taking up the guitar, I have learned to service amplifiers. Another fun, geeky thing to do is effects pedal modifications - see some of Steampunk's work in this arena. Guitar mechanic work is also very rewarding. I've hot-rodded all of my electrics. For example: I have an Epiphone Gibson Les Paul from 1990. The whole thing has been gutted and replaced with high-end potentiometers, conductor and cavity shielding, high-end professional pickups, modified hardware and switches.........The guitar sounds better than many "custom shop" jobs and could easily be picked up by a pro for studio work with no alterations necessary. 

 

And be a Juke Box Zero ...... Got stars in his eyes. 

[wharfrat]

i put some Martin &Co. Eric Clapton Signature series strings on the acoustic, 12's and they sound awesome, just lights up the whole room

 

the intonation issues was still there after switching back to 10, though not nearly as bad, just a small adjustment made it all better. Some of it was the tuner i was using, it was a phone app (guitar tuna) I have since bought a Snark chromatic tuner and i love that lil guy, so much easier to use and more accurate. The phone app would pick up background noise and throw any tuning off ( dont tune guitar when wife is vacuuming).

 

you know you are addicted when you dream about playing 

Edited by wharfrat, 24 January 2018 - 07:43 PM.
.012 not .013

[Coopdog]

I LOVE my Snarks. They are more precise than most other electronic tuners I have found. I can tune by ear, but my pitch is not perfect and I have become anal as hell about being in pitch. SO much easier than trying to find the keys to songs when you are a little low or high and nothing sounds exactly the same. My Dean 12 string came with what is supposed to be a decent tuner on board but it is not nearly as precise as the Snarks.

 

 Myc, I love Drop D tuning but have not played with it enough to noodle around with it profficiently, mostly just learned a couple songs in that tuning. I keep half a dozen guitars in different tunings so I can just grab one up and play. Just seen a video about improvising in Drop D that looked way cool and has inspired me to want to play with it some more in a less structured way. I have come to find a lot of strings break trying to go back and forth between tunings and that gives me a good reason to justify having so many here at hand lol.

 

Peace...

[Myc]

I keep half a dozen guitars in different tunings so I can just grab one up and play. Just seen a video about improvising in Drop D that looked way cool and has inspired me to want to play with it some more in a less structured way. I have come to find a lot of strings break trying to go back and forth between tunings and that gives me a good reason to justify having so many here at hand lol.

 

Peace...

 

I keep no fewer than 3 acoustics out on stands in the living room for the spur of the moment grab.

One is tuned to standard E

One is tuned to dropped D (standard E)

One is tuned to DADGAD - this is one of Jimmy Page's open tunings for stuff like "That's the Way". This tuning is also good practice for slide guitar work. 

 

I keep an electric out - all of the time. The amp(s) sits in a corner - opposite the TV. (The amp gets about equal "on" time as the TV.) And I have a really long guitar cable so I can stir stuff on the stove without having to put the instrument down. A big tube amplifier is also handy for those persistent sales calls which simply won't remove you from their calling list. I got to where I would answer and just put the phone down in front of the amp - until they hung up and went away. Feedback experiments - for punk music performances - are just the bomb. Telephone solicitors make great test audiences. 

 

For extreme, high-volume tone saturation experiments - the use of hearing protection is recommended. 

It Might Get Loud

^^ I picked up a lifetime worth of tricks from this excellent movie ^^  Get your guitar out and jam along with the musicians in the film. Just join in as if you were there. You'll pick up new stuff in no time. Pause is your friend. 

Page demonstrates how he uses volume - in the song Ramble On - to achieve the overdrive effect of whisper to a scream. 

Edited by Myc, 25 January 2018 - 09:39 AM.

[Coopdog]

I learned "That's The Way in open G, which is all e's tuned down to D and your A tuned down to G. Try it it sounds exactly like how it is played but that they are always slightly out of pitch. Now I have to try it in DADGAD too. That tuning is fun to play some slide to and I have been playing around with Pink Floyd's Fearless in that tuning as well as ZZ Tops La Grange.

 

I have watched that movie so many times it's awesome. Great trip movie! Jack white is another one, not one of my go to artists but sure do respect some of the stuff he does. I play some of his stuff too, like Ball in a Bisquit and his version of Wayfaring Stranger on the mandolin.

 

Good stuff!

Edited by Coopdog, 25 January 2018 - 01:43 PM.

[dead_diver]

feeling really good about my progress, practicing daily, but these guitar strings are riping up my fingertips. What do you guys think of the pink super slinky's? they say they bend easy for for noobs like me. Would you recommend them or a diff brand/type?

Tune down a half or even a full step. That loosens up the tension on the strings some and make them easier to play.

[Baphom3t]

Here's some goofing off improvisation shit I did just for the sole purpose of just to do it. About 80 - 90% of what I play is based in improvisation. I have no clue how to play this thing, I just go where it feels right. Feel free to ridicule me. All done on a $100 guitar, I've had for 25 years, that's had it's fair share of abuse. Tuning is E 440Hz which is normally what I tune in. https://en.wikipedia...pitch_standard)
I have messed with every tuning variation that there is to dick with, but for some reason when doing improvisation I tend to stick with the above pitch. I honestly really don't have a issue posting my ugly ass face on here or anywhere for that matter. We all are easy to find if anyone wanted to find any of us.   Hope y'all enjoy.

[Direct Link]

[wharfrat]

ha, love it brother.. thanks for sharing 

[wharfrat]

ok, i'm about ready to re-fret my acoustic guitar. I know I know, I shouldn't do it myself, but i'm hard headed and I am going to do it anyway    I watched plenty vids on you tube, it looks pretty straight forward, with the emphasis on not chipping the fret board when removing the old frets. The reason I am doing this is because this is an old guitar and the frets have huge groves worn into them, makes it extremely difficult to play without fret buzz. I purchased some nickel/silver pre cut and bent frets and have the special nips to work the old frets out. I guess my question is: has anyone re-fretted a guitar and have any wisdom they would like to share before I dig into this? 

Edited by wharfrat, 03 March 2018 - 11:02 PM.

[JustinAskin]

ok, i'm about ready to re-fret my acoustic guitar. I know I know, I shouldn't do it myself, but i'm hard headed and I am going to do it anyway    I watched plenty vids on you tube, it looks pretty straight forward, with the emphasis on not chipping the fret board when removing the old frets. The reason I am doing this is because this is an old guitar and the frets have huge groves worn into them, makes it extremely difficult to play without fret buzz. I purchased some nickel/silver pre cut and bent frets and have the special nips to work the old frets out. I guess my question is: has anyone re-fretted a guitar and have any wisdom they would like to share before I dig into this? 

Your a brave sole LOL... I would not want to venture into that with my guitars.

 

Let us know how it goes!!!