Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
At The Back => Time Out => Topic started by: Twinfan on June 15, 2012, 02:18:43 PM
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I went to see a guitar player called Larry Miller last night, who was great by the way, and it's put into place the final piece of the gear puzzle I've been pondering over recently. He played the whole night through a really straightforward rig:
* Stock early 90s Gibson '59 LP reissue
* Handful of 'regular' pedals - TubeScreamer, CryBaby wah etc
* Marshall Vintage Modern and DSL heads
* Marshall angled 4x12
Really simple, straight off the shelf stuff. He sounded SUPERB. Nice and bright and crunchy, the neck pickup on his LP had no flubbiness whatsover and the bridge was crisp without ripping my ears to shreds. Clearly he's very good at setting up his gear to work for him and getting the best out of it.
This struck a real chord with me as I've had enough of constantly buying and selling guitar gear, and losing cash every time in the process. What I've been doing is matching up guitars/pedals/amps (and I now have 3 dedicated rigs) and this seems to have removed the constant need to chase my all-in-one "holy grail" tone - which I'm now convinced doesn't exist. This approach works great for me as I get the best out of certain combinations, and the different setups give me some variety in tone/feel and bring out different playing styles.
So I'm going to stick with what I've got and stop looking for things to buy :roll: I'm very fortunate in that I have some great gear, so I'll sell a couple of things I'm not using any more (empty Matamp 2x12 and PRS SE Custom 24) and just enjoy the great stuff that I have.
There, I've said it. It will be done.
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I'm saying nothing... :P
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but surely half the point of this forum is waiting to see what Dave will get next, and what he's going to sell to make room for it? it wouldn't seem the same if you weren't!
if anyone needs cheered up, i'm currently sizing up a new buy. it's not a PRS, but i'll do my best :)
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Two weeks. ;-)
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Nope, seriously SERIOUSLY I've had enough. I've said it before I know, but I've always had aspirations to upgrade my rigs to something "better". I'm now using matched Bogner/65 Amps quarter stacks, along with PRS Private Stock guitars and so now there is no "better" - just "different".
I'm done.
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My rig's stayed the same for 10 years now and I haven't sold a guitar since 1987. Maybe I'm ill.
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Nope, seriously SERIOUSLY I've had enough. I've said it before I know, but I've always had aspirations to upgrade my rigs to something "better". I'm now using matched Bogner/65 Amps quarter stacks, along with PRS Private Stock guitars and so now there is no "better" - just "different".
I'm done.
Can't argue with the pedigree of what you have Dave and it it matches the sound in your head, then you have no need for change.
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My rig's stayed the same for 10 years now and I haven't sold a guitar since 1987.
Wow, that is impressive. I hadn't sold a guitar before 1987, but I've probably sold about 40 to 50 (??? I think... :? ) in the last 20-odd years.
So all those times you say "I need another Strat", you never actually buy one?
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Why do you say these things Dave?
You know you will do no such thing... You are our very own musical Magpie ... When the next sparkley thing come out of Mr Paul reed Smiths shop your resolve will be but a distant memory. :P
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Why do you say these things Dave?
You know you will do no such thing... You are our very own musical Magpie ... When the next sparkley thing come out of Mr Paul reed Smiths shop your resolve will be but a distant memory. :P
It's cathartic for Dave.
Who amongst us remembers Daves "I've had enough of Humbuckers, it's Single Coils for me all the way now" thread..?
I reckon 2 weeks is about right. A month at the outside.
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So, whatever PRS brings out at Winter NAMM this year will be of NO interest.
Andy
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So all those times you say "I need another Strat", you never actually buy one?
I never said I hadn't bought another strat. I just haven't sold any.
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The sky darkens with porcine activity.
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I suggest we run the sweep as how many days from the original post before his resolve crumbles...
I'll take 30.
( he hasn't heard the reverb we have in the works for a start ;) )
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Dave, perhaps (?) you have finally seen sense !
Larry is a GREAT act by the way ! 8)
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So, whatever PRS brings out at Winter NAMM this year will be of NO interest.
Nope! I want to have money to spend on other things :)
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It's funny your should say that-- A friend of mine who has had quite a lot of gear too (Two Rock, Fender Twin, AC30, Lazy J, JCM800, Champ etc.) has also said that one of the best tones he's had was from a DSL... I think they're pretty good amps, especially for the money!
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If this is true its only a matter of time before the US goes into recession then.
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I think my trick is to only buy "holy grail" guitars now. I've got a mental list of about five guitars that I'd blow cash on. The rack system is sorted, maybe needs a new FX processor to replace the old Quadraverb but as far as I'm concerned I don't need anything else in the way of guitar gear. Which is handy as it gives me an excuse to buy synth modules instead.
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So all those times you say "I need another Strat", you never actually buy one?
I never said I hadn't bought another strat. I just haven't sold any.
But you said your rig's stayed the same for 10 years - is that amps only then?
(Or oil....?)
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Ah yes, "rig" in that sentence meant "amp rig". Ancient MIDI tube preamp, tiny bit of Quadraverb, Marshall power amp, sorted. And no pedals, I can't stand pedals.
Although thinking back, I did stick my old Rockman compressor in the rack a few years back. Other than that, everything stays the same.
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Stop buying Paul Reed Smith guitars and buy some Paul Smith shirts instead ;)
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Stop buying Paul Reed Smith guitars and buy some Paul Smith shirts instead ;)
Oh dear, oh dear.... :roll: :P
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I gave up looking for the holy grail tone ages ago as well, I just get on with playing when I can be bothered now! Only thing I'm doing is rewiring all my guitars to 50s style because the pots are scratchy anyway and the 50s style sounds a bit better when rolling off the volume. Realised the other day I've had my Laney as my only amp for 5 and a half years now!
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I went to see a guitar plater called Larry Miller last night, who was great by the way, and it's put into place the final piece of the gear puzzle I've been pondering over recently. He played the whole night through a really straightforward rig:
* Stock early 90s Gibson '59 LP reissue
* Handful of 'regular' pedals - TubeScreamer, CryBaby wah etc
* Marshall Vintage Modern and DSL heads
* Marshall angled 4x12
Really simple, straight off the shelf stuff. He sounded SUPERB. Nice and bright and crunchy, the neck pickup on his LP had no flubbiness whatsover and the bridge was crisp without ripping my ears to shreds. Clearly he's very good at setting up his gear to work for him and getting the best out of it.
This struck a real chord with me as I've had enough of constantly buying and selling guitar gear, and losing cash every time in the process. What I've been doing is matching up guitars/pedals/amps (and I now have 3 dedicated rigs) and this seems to have removed the constant need to chase my all-in-one "holy grail" tone - which I'm now convinced doesn't exist. This approach works great for me as I get the best out of certain combinations, and the different setups give me some variety in tone/feel and bring out different playing styles.
So I'm going to stick with what I've got and stop looking for things to buy :roll: I'm very fortunate in that I have some great gear, so I'll sell a couple of things I'm not using any more (empty Matamp 2x12 and PRS SE Custom 24) and just enjoy the great stuff that I have.
There, I've said it. It will be done.
Can't beat a player who knows his shite and sports a Marshall.
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Pisstaking aside, I've hit this stage with cars (my personal money pit and obsession). I think I've just hit that perfect combination and have slimmed down their number to just the right amount. I honestly can't think of a single car I'd replace any of them for, they're just right for me and what I want them to do.
Still fancy a classic though...
...must resist!
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I think it's something that comes to us all at some point.
The only thing I'd blow cash on would be an Emerald Green Modern Eagle stop tail, but I've been looking for one of them for 4-5 years and they're rarer than hens teeth.
Anyway, I'm off to play loud rock and roll through a PRS and a Bogner.....
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I know exactly what you mean Dave. Feel very similar myself.
In a way I've been lucky with my amp and cab purchases in that I stumbled on the exact sound I wanted relatively easily.
With pedals I've been through a few but now have a selection that work with my guitars.
And with guitars theres little out there that really makes me want to splash out in that way anymore.
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I have to say this is resonating a lot with me too. I find I'm playing just my DGT into my Cornell Romany with occasionally a pedal or two for delay, extra oomph or whatever, and it's putting a smile on my face like I haven't experienced in years. I'm looking at my other guitars and thinking that some, maybe most, of them will probably have to go as I don't like having guitars as ornaments. I like all the guitars I own but the truth is I'm just not playing any of the rest of them now. And incidentally since it was Twinfan's PRS evangelism that made me first get a McCarty and from there the DGT this is ALL HIS FAULT. :)
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I have a little bit of PRS GAS too. but mainly for a pretty bog standard looking CE 22 or 24. That said... I'm really liking my strat and don't feel a need. I almost debated parting ways with my Les Paul, but I've been through a lot with that gitter.
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I think it's something that comes to us all at some point.
The only thing I'd blow cash on would be an Emerald Green Modern Eagle stop tail, but I've been looking for one of them for 4-5 years and they're rarer than hens teeth.
Anyway, I'm off to play loud rock and roll through a PRS and a Bogner.....
Putting on the "joking apart" hat like everyone else is doing, I do see your point, and I believe you're totally sincere....
.....but I also think tastes change, and there may come a time when you fancy some P-90s, or an amp isn't cutting it any more, or whatever.
So I don't think this is "The Twinfan Story. They all lived happily ever after. THE END." But we'll see. :wink:
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Incidentally, funny reading this and gwEm's recent posts (plus a few others).... I am getting a bit of GAS-exhaustion myself, so I do understand where you're coming from. It's a bit different for me, because as you know I can't play for toffee, don't gig and there's no real "tone quest" element..... I just like guitars. But even given that, I am feeling like I've got almost everything I could want*, and it's a time to sit back and take stock.
(* Apart from maybe one or two little things niggling away in the corners of my mind.... )
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Nope, seriously SERIOUSLY I've had enough. I've said it before I know, but I've always had aspirations to upgrade my rigs to something "better". I'm now using matched Bogner/65 Amps quarter stacks, along with PRS Private Stock guitars and so now there is no "better" - just "different".
I'm done.
Can't argue with the pedigree of what you have Dave and it it matches the sound in your head, then you have no need for change.
except to get a Feline of course... 8)
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I'm happy with my gear. I just concentrate on playing. Mind you I would like a Strat with a coil tapped VHII and two MM :)
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I'm happy with ma gear, too. As long as it keeps changing ...
:lol:
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I'm happy with my gear too. Old stuff, new stuff, whatever stuff...
Recently I haven't been subject to much GAS. I need to get a load more strings soon, must get round to that. And I have some thoughts on some new BKPs, but that would mean I'd then have some BKPs not in guitars. I don't really want to part with any, and I certainly don't want to fall into the trap of buying more guitars to house pickups again!! So I haven't figured that one out yet.
I've never really been a gear trader. I tend to keep what I buy or maybe give it to young relatives if I've stopped using it and they seem to have a need...
So, in many ways, I don't quite understand the mild angst that some folks seem to have over acquiring, owning, and shifting stuff :lol: (I fully appreciate they do, I just don't experience much of it myself).
Anyway, what's the book on Twinfan and his next purchase now? (I know I'm a bit late, last time I joined a thread like this, he already had a couple of new "New Guitar/Amp Day" threads running alongside it! :lol:)
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The Devil (aka Mark @ Guitars4You) is trying to tempt me already by knocling £1000 off a guitar I'd like to try. However, my PRS Signatures do a pretty good P90 impression so GAS has been curtailed:
http://www.guitars4you.co.uk/prs-dc245-mccarty-soapbar---amber-black---special-offer+++659
I did order some amp covers for my Bogner rig yesterday, to protect it travelling to and from gigs, but I don't really think that counts! :)
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If I managed to accidentally buy some SM57s a couple months back while I was ordering keyboard stands etc, and not regard it as a "gear purchase" - then quite definitely, buying some amp covers do not count as gear purchases either :D
Something with PRS written on it and a 4 figure price-tag, though... :roll:
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You should accidentally buy some mic preamps to go with those SM57s
GAS wise I really want some Peter Jones signature socks
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JDC - you're seriously on the wrong forum...
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GAS wise I really want some Peter Jones signature socks
Signature socks? Give me strength! What a ridiculous thing to want, especially 'Peter Jones signature socks'! Are you trolling?
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I'm saying nothing... :P
+1 :lol:
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GAS wise I really want some Peter Jones signature socks
Signature socks? Give me strength! What a ridiculous thing to want, especially 'Peter Jones signature socks'! Are you trolling?
Indeed! Is that Peter Jones as in that tall tw@t off Dragon's Den? :?
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The Devil (aka Mark @ Guitars4You) is trying to tempt me already by knocling £1000 off a guitar I'd like to try. However, my PRS Signatures do a pretty good P90 impression so GAS has been curtailed:
http://www.guitars4you.co.uk/prs-dc245-mccarty-soapbar---amber-black---special-offer+++659
That's a big price drop! Has that only just gone on offer?
Pretty nice, although I hate the original/Santana headstock shape. And I never like the look of a bound neck on a PRS.
(I went to that Special Offers page with some trepidation, in case there was something irrestible.... :lol: )
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GAS wise I really want some Peter Jones signature socks
Signature socks? Give me strength! What a ridiculous thing to want, especially 'Peter Jones signature socks'! Are you trolling?
Indeed! Is that Peter Jones as in that tall tw@t off Dragon's Den? :?
Probably. I don't know him personally but reckon he is a total t!t.
SIGNATURE SOCKS. FFS!!!!!!!!
Clearly I still don't understand why anyone would want signature socks. Jeez.
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That's a big price drop! Has that only just gone on offer?
It was at £1975 for a while, it's just dropped the other £500...
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I like it. If only I had the money.
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I dunno, looks cute, but doesn't really get me excited...
On the other hand, I am in need of some new socks... :lol:
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This struck a real chord with me as I've had enough of constantly buying and selling guitar gear, and losing cash every time in the process. So I'm going to stick with what I've got and stop looking for things to buy :roll: I'm very fortunate in that I have some great gear, so I'll sell a couple of things I'm not using any more (empty Matamp 2x12 and PRS SE Custom 24) and just enjoy the great stuff that I have.
There, I've said it. It will be done.
Damn ...... been on holiday for 2 weeks and missed this .... thought it was not supposed to happen until 21st December this year.... :?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon)
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On the other hand, I am in need of some new socks... :lol:
Ah, an update on the sock situation: Mrs R informs me that I do in fact have some new socks... it's just that I haven't found/noticed them yet...
Whew! That's a big relief... sock-GAS abated...
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Ewan McGregor's fault, he was in the January issue of GQ which involved a picture of him sat down with some awesome stripy socks that complimented his suit trousers while bringing attention to the rather lovely pair of brown brogues he was wearing, this made me realise I needed something similar.
It's all ok because yesterday I tried out a budget end ESP Alexi Laiho signature guitar, granted wearing a lilac shirt/skinny tie, grey waistcoat, jeans, burberry clone trench in stone colour with tan shoes/belt/watch while knocking out metal riffs probably confused an awful lot of people
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Too much detail there. :lol:
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Too much detail there. :lol:
Could be worse... could have started posting pictures of Ewan McGregor
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Ewan McGregor's fault, he was in the January issue of GQ which involved a picture of him sat down with some awesome stripy socks that complimented his suit trousers while bringing attention to the rather lovely pair of brown brogues he was wearing, this made me realise I needed something similar.
Hang on, hang on..... January issue?
Have you been GASing for these socks for five months?? :?
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Also, isn't using a magazine issue from five months ago as a style-guide something of a fashion faux pas? (Us oldies wouldn't actually know, all we have to do is get down to M&S and everything's there ready, sorted...)
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5 months is surely WAY out of date? :?
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Also, isn't using a magazine issue from five months ago as a style-guide something of a fashion faux pas? (Us oldies wouldn't actually know, all we have to do is get down to M&S and everything's there ready, sorted...)
Absolutely, why buy socks, pants etc anywhere else? :?
I'm not overly familiar with the likes of GQ, but I know those magazines always have their "aspirational" articles/interviews in the first 40% of the pages, then the remaining 60% of the rag is filled with pictures of brooding, dead-eyed models wearing incredibly expensive clobber and trying very hard to look heterosexual. Then down the bottom of the page there's a bit of small print saying:
"Suit, Paul Smith, £1,000,000,000. Socks, Ewan McGregor Collection, £2,500. Watch, H Samuel Neverwright, £Gross Domestic Product of Chile."
Maybe JDC was reading the mag, got to the "Style" bit and immediately fell asleep from the sheer numbing, vacuous tedium of it, only waking up 5 months later........ like a fashion-victim Rip Van Winkle?
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I dunno, you do sound worryingly familiar with the contents of these magazines Philly :lol:
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You have to do something when you're waiting at the dentist/doctor/barber, don't you? I always forget to take a book.
(And I have to confess, I did buy Men's Health magazine for a while, years ago :oops: .... until I realised that every issue is exactly the same - especially if you completely ignore the aforementioned "style" section at the back.)
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The Devil (aka Mark @ Guitars4You) is trying to tempt me already by knocling £1000 off a guitar I'd like to try. However, my PRS Signatures do a pretty good P90 impression so GAS has been curtailed:
http://www.guitars4you.co.uk/prs-dc245-mccarty-soapbar---amber-black---special-offer+++659
I did order some amp covers for my Bogner rig yesterday, to protect it travelling to and from gigs, but I don't really think that counts! :)
With the Santana headstock, that is REALLY tasty.
The PRS GAS is rubbing off, I've been eyeing up Miras and the Santana sig lately - OMG!!! :lol:
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I need to see a picture of these socks.
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Me too. Many of my socks look like relics.
Actually, I'm now wondering if there is a market for relic socks.
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Relic socks? Nah, it's dishonest. Buy new socks and wear them out the old-fashioned way. Every hole and snag will have it's own story then. If you buy relic socks, it's like you're saying "look at me, I've been wearing socks for years...". And I've yet to see a relic'd sock that looks as authentic as a proper vintage one, the wear patterns just aren't right.
I mean, come on, it might be ok for guitars, but it's not as if you buy jeans with ... er... oh... hang on a minute, I need to think about this for bit... :lol:
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"Suit, Paul Smith, £1,000,000,000. Socks, Ewan McGregor Collection, £2,500. Watch, H Samuel Neverwright, £Gross Domestic Product of Chile."
Ironically I did happen to be in the fine tailoring section of a Paul Smith store last Friday, personally if I wanted a high quality suit I'd go to one of the better online Korean made to measure companies.
PS I don't actually read GQ, they/other people put up enough pictures on the internet for me not bother flicking through endless adverts of really really expensive stuff
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With the Santana headstock, that is REALLY tasty.
The PRS GAS is rubbing off, I've been eyeing up Miras and the Santana sig lately - OMG!!! :lol:
I don't want to be all Roo-like, I know we all have different tastes etc....
.... but I can't understand how anyone can like the Santana headstock! I think it's absolutely hideous. It looks like someone took a normal PRS and shoved it headfirst into a belt sander. :?
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I recently had a couple of suits made bespoke for me by a tailor - now if you think that buying good quality guitars is a dangerous habit....
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I recently had a couple of suits made bespoke for me by a tailor - now if you think that buying good quality guitars is a dangerous habit....
I have never, ever aspired to a bespoke suit.
I always think if you then gained or lost a bit of weight that would be a sh!tload of money down the drain.
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I resent having to wear a suit at all. I think its old fashioned and uncomfortable, and frankly just makes you look like another guy in a suit. Apart from the nastiest of cheap suits, they all look the same to me :/
Its Marks and Sparks for me all the way if I have to buy such things.
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Its Marks and Sparks for me all the way if I have to buy such things.
I go with Next for suits - Marks are rubbish for smaller sizes (at least, they used to be - haven't bothered to check for about 20 years! :lol: )
M&S for shirts, ties, socks and pants.
Gap for jeans.
Gigs, online shops and freebies for T-shirts. :lol:
Gosh I'm fashionable. :P
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I hit the vintage/secondhand shops around Brick Lane for my other gear :D
Gigs and freebies are good too, as you say!
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With the Santana headstock, that is REALLY tasty.
The PRS GAS is rubbing off, I've been eyeing up Miras and the Santana sig lately - OMG!!! :lol:
I don't want to be all Roo-like, I know we all have different tastes etc....
.... but I can't understand how anyone can like the Santana headstock! I think it's absolutely hideous. It looks like someone took a normal PRS and shoved it headfirst into a belt sander. :?
The stock PRS headstock is something I'm not that keen on to be honest, the Santana one is much better, imo.
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Its Marks and Sparks for me all the way if I have to buy such things.
I go with Next for suits - Marks are rubbish for smaller sizes (at least, they used to be - haven't bothered to check for about 20 years! :lol: )
M&S for shirts, ties, socks and pants.
Gap for jeans.
Gigs, online shops and freebies for T-shirts. :lol:
Gosh I'm fashionable. :P
^ +1 on Next, I get my work gear from there. Also, can't beat M&S for socks and undercrackers.
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Some people(including me) should just stop wasting time, discussing gear and trading our fortune away. We should just practice more.. Alot more. Instead of just sitting here doing nothing but discussing "tone"
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Indeed. I practice putting socks on and taking them off at least twice a day!
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I resent having to wear a suit at all. I think its old fashioned and uncomfortable, and frankly just makes you look like another guy in a suit. Apart from the nastiest of cheap suits, they all look the same to me :/
Its Marks and Sparks for me all the way if I have to buy such things.
To some degree you wear the suit. I always feel it is not only easy to see if the suit fits properly - quite a lot of people wear suits that I feel don't suit their frame - but also if the person is comfortable wearing it or not. It's often a question of whether you wear the suit or the suit wears you.
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WHOA!
Deeeep dude, deeep.
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Some people(including me) should just stop wasting time, discussing gear and trading our fortune away. We should just practice more.. Alot more. Instead of just sitting here doing nothing but discussing "tone"
You're 100% right. But I'm far too set in my ways to do that now, unfortunately.... :|
Anyway, it's fun shooting the sh!t on here. :P
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To some degree you wear the suit. I always feel it is not only easy to see if the suit fits properly - quite a lot of people wear suits that I feel don't suit their frame - but also if the person is comfortable wearing it or not. It's often a question of whether you wear the suit or the suit wears you.
WHOA!
Deeeep dude, deeep.
:lol:
But Alex is right
I don't wear suits much at the moment, but I used to wear them a lot (and I quite miss them sometimes).
I'm definitely in the "wear the suit" rather than the "suit wears you" category. I realised this years ago at weddings. I'd show up in one of my somewhat "lived-in" work suits, but I'd still look smoother than most of my peers who'd be fidgeting and looking uncomfortable.
Funnily enough, I do believe that some of the "deep thinking" about suit-wearing could also apply to guitar tone (or anything else!):
"To some degree you play the tone. I always feel it is not only easy to see if the tone fits properly - quite a lot of people use tones that I feel don't suit their playing - but also if the person is comfortable playing it or not. It's often a question of whether you play the tone or the tone plays you."
:lol:
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Incredibly we've found philosophical parallels between wearing suits and playing guitars. Now THAT is deep! :D
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This reminds me of that quote from the matrix. In guitar terms it would be something like this:
Guitar boy: Do not try and play the guitar. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth.
Neo: What truth?
Guitar boy: There is no guitar.
Neo: There is no guitar?
Guitar boy: Then you'll see, that it is not the guitar that plays, it is only yourself.
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You should accidentally buy some mic preamps to go with those SM57s
GAS wise I really want some Peter Jones signature socks
Or get a set of Nolly Signature socks!
http://www.socksrule.com/proddetail.asp?prod=AdamNollyGetgood (http://www.socksrule.com/proddetail.asp?prod=AdamNollyGetgood)
(http://www.socksrule.com/img/nolly.gif)
Apparently they go up to (size)11
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Are they a calibrated set? :D
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Are they a calibrated set? :D
yeah. one for the bridge of your nose, and one for your neck..
hurr
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Bought myself some socks that look just like Ewan McGregor's today :D
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Some people(including me) should just stop wasting time, discussing gear and trading our fortune away. We should just practice more.. Alot more. Instead of just sitting here doing nothing but discussing "tone"
You're 100% right. But I'm far too set in my ways to do that now, unfortunately.... :|
Anyway, it's fun shooting the sh!t on here. :P
Practising is a fair comment, but discussing guitar-related stuff here is also fun and educational.
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Indeed - it's always good to learn from others. A lot of the greats did just that ;)
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Didn't Clapton slow down records when he started so he could figure out riffs 'the hard way'. I'm sure I read that somewhere. Maybe it's because it is too easy to find stuff in modern times that makes me lazy enough to not learn as much as I could do. Sounds odd but there must b one truth in it (or am I making more excuses for myself :D )
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Didn't Clapton slow down records when he started so he could figure out riffs 'the hard way'. I'm sure I read that somewhere.
I don't know about Clapton specifically, but I've read many interviews with older guitarists where they talked about doing just that. It was quite convenient that record players could run at 78, 45 and 33 rpm! We even had a player which had a 16 rpm option, but I've never actually seen a 16 rpm record! :lol:
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Yep, the 45rpm to 33rpm thing was the done thing before tabs and YouTube videos!
To get slightly back on topic(!), I've found myself really inspired by the Phil X gig Ian and I went to. You can go so much tonal variety from one guitar an overdrive pedal and a decent amp - volume/tone controls and picking weight and position can make such a difference.
I'm going to have to do a gig with a really, really basic setup sometime just to see how it sounds....
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Well Dave, first song in last night ( at a wedding reception- which was great because it was a mature couple and the groom being a muso) I lost my pedals and quickly unplugged and went straight into my amp. I managed to get through the first set perfectly well and enjoyed the experience. Not a first for me admittedly and I am not as good as Phil X but you can get a lot out of a Tele/Laney VC30. I almost didn't bother sorting things out for the second set- bearing in mind I normally use eq, Visual Sound Jekyll & Hyde, T Trex Tremster and Visual Sound H20 (not necessarily in that order). Back to basics is very satisfying.
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I'm leaning towards a simple set up now. Since I have started using my amp again (only in the last week!) I haven't bothered hooking all (well, 3!!) of my pedals up. It has been refreshingly great to just get a nice crunchy tone with the guitar at 3/4 volume and then add more gain just using a combination of volume adjustment and picking hand heaviness.
Although JF is my main guitar inspiration I can't really be bothered (and can't yet afford) to have such a complex set up.
Now, where's that moogerfooger mf105 :lol:
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Well Dave, first song in last night ( at a wedding reception- which was great because it was a mature couple and the groom being a muso) I lost my pedals and quickly unplugged and went straight into my amp. I managed to get through the first set perfectly well and enjoyed the experience. Not a first for me admittedly and I am not as good as Phil X but you can get a lot out of a Tele/Laney VC30. I almost didn't bother sorting things out for the second set- bearing in mind I normally use eq, Visual Sound Jekyll & Hyde, T Trex Tremster and Visual Sound H20 (not necessarily in that order). Back to basics is very satisfying.
That description brought back happy memories ! When I was last gigging, the 'usual' was Tele / Laney LH50R - or Strat / Fender Twin. The Tele/ Laney was the most fun because it all felt very relaxing and informal somehow , like being allowed into the Office job with your jeans and T.shirt on. :) As this was over 10 years ago, I had not yet discovered B.K.P. ( and the sage advice offered on this excellent forum ) . I did go through a long phase of trying to fill the stage with pedals.
The very best times - and the most enjoyable gigs, were just Tele / Laney and playing less / listening more. :D
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To get slightly back on topic(!), I've found myself really inspired by the Phil X gig Ian and I went to. You can go so much tonal variety from one guitar an overdrive pedal and a decent amp - volume/tone controls and picking weight and position can make such a difference.
I'm going to have to do a gig with a really, really basic setup sometime just to see how it sounds....
I'm not a proper gigging guitarist so my comment here is pretty irrelevant, but that's one of the reasons I'm so fond of Les Paul Juniors and amps with no more than two or three knobs.
Yes, I'm a bit of a technophobe in some ways, but if there's less to fiddle with, there's less to go wrong, less to worry over and it's down to the player to try to squeeze out different sounds through more "primitive" means.
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Less to go wrong is quite right! One of the bigger gigs I did was at the Basingstoke festival. It turned out sort of ok in the end but there was a pretty embarrassing moment when I stomped on the fuzz factory without realising I had somehow wound the output up to full. Cue about 5 seconds of 'noise' before I realised what had happened and turned the pedal off as quickly as I could do!
Since then I only really ever gigged with an amp and the tele (and perhaps an overdrive if I was feeling adventurous).