I started a new hobby today! (Guitar)

The greenback I have is from an old WEM cabinet a friend has. I will probably build it into something else. I'm totally happy with the Fane in the Watkins amp so I suspect it will only get replaced if I break it!

There was a time when I didn't like modelling amps, but I borrowed a Line 6 Flextone from a friend and was impressed enough to buy one myself. I like the fact that it's just one box which will do everything I want - and if you remove the Line 6 logo, it actually looks quite cool and old!

Imagine this without the logo...
images



Steve.
 
I know the Flextone, but that's an old model from the time when Line 6 didn't sound good *to me*. Agree the cab looks nice though.

I had a POD pro rack unit for a bit to try to record, but couldn't get a sound I liked from it. Had a couple of floor modelers too, and felt the same way about them. I had really liked the idea, and I'm no luddite, but they never sounded good to my ears, just like Seymour Duncan pickups don't sound good when I use them, even though they sound great in other people's hands. I've not tried any of the recent HD stuff, brought out to compete with AxeFX, and I'm told it's enormously better.

If that GB is 20watts power handling then that's a GREAT speaker!
 
Just a quick update to say I've been practicing about 5 days a week, about an hour each time, fingers are getting a bit rough at the tips and on Saturday I was actually bleeding ! lol Playing everything from some Taylor Swift Love Story to Eric Clapton Layla, then to Rocksmith for some lessons and also watched a few Justin's lessons online. There are just so much material and to be honest, I wish I am competent right now so I can play it all.

What is strange is that I can get the riff for Layla down if I just do it slowly and build it up, none of it is impossible, which is great but also it made me think why didn't I take it up sooner, instead of spending my youth playing computer games if I had spent it on this I would surely be amazing by now !
 
The nice thing about learning guitar is that it's possible to play something which sounds good right from the start. Unlike piano and violin (for example) which need a certain amount of proficiency before sounding musical.

When I started playing, I couldn't walk past my guitar without picking it up for a few hours. Often remembering the reason why I was walking past it a few hours earlier was that my mum had called me to say lunch was ready!


Steve.
 
Cool that another guitarist has been 'born', welcome..

FWIW I didn't start playing until I was nearly 40, but have since played blues and classic rock in a couple bands. So keep plugging away, you never know where it could lead.

Taylor's are generally very nice guitars and yours looks great. Though I have played some that had very sharp fret ends. I would like a 314 CE some time and have had a Simon & Patrick Cedar 6 for a few years now. My favourite guitar is my Gibson Les Paul, though is also like my Japanese 50's reissue Strat and my Baja Tele. As for amps, my main gigging amp has been a Marshall DSL 401 with a 1x12 extension cab. I picked up a Blackstar HT40 Club and matching 1x12 a couple of years ago. Have gigged it a couple of times, but only since swapping out the TAD tubes for Svetlanas. The TADs were very harsh and the one of the power tubes went microphonic, so they had to go.

Sweet Child O' Mine is another must for the music shop.. ;)
 
GeeJay57 said:
...and have had a Simon & Patrick Cedar 6 for a few years now...
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That's what I play too! Mine must be 15years old now (it was a birthday present from my parents when I was doing my GCSEs) and plays really nicely. I retrofitted a B-Band preamp and play it at church every week. Unfortunately for convenience I have to leave it there so I don't get to play it through the week (having two small children is probably the reason why I don't play any of my other guitars in the week)!

I'm loving seeing these home-made amps! I've always dreamed of building one, along with making my own guitar - maybe when the kids have left home in 18years time :jawdrop:
 
I actually tried learning the piano, I found it very hard to get something musical out of it. After 2 years of lessons I still couldn't get pass the left hand doing one pattern and the right hand doing something completely individual at the same time. When I tried to play Layla, watched a Youtube video and in around 2 mins I had something similar coming out of my fingers and I laughed out loud for the next 2 minutes because I could not believe I was doing it.

Instead of sitting in front of the TV in the evening watching TV with an iPad in my hand, I now sit in front of the TV with a guitar in my hand, put the TV on mute with subtitles while practicing chord changes. Can easily do that for an hour. The other day I was watching an episode of something while doing the same intro riff of Love Story over and over, I am not sure I was paying attention to the television or what I was playing but by the end I wasn't even looking at the strings that I was picking yet I was getting the right notes and I was picking in the right direction too, as opposed to down pick every time.
 
Raymond Lin said:
I still couldn't get pass the left hand doing one pattern and the right hand doing something completely individual at the same time.
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Same here. If I look at my right hand, the left hand tries to play the right hand part and vice versa.

The stupid thing is that we have to do different things with our right and left hands on guitar so why can't I do it on piano? And if you're right handed, why does your left hand do all the fiddly bits?!!


Steve.
 
It was a new hobby for me once, something like 60 years ago :LOL:

Yep, I still have a guitar, and still have a play, albeit I'm more of a Keyboard man now. :)

Dave
 
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Steve Smith said:
Same here. If I look at my right hand, the left hand tries to play the right hand part and vice versa.

The stupid thing is that we have to do different things with our right and left hands on guitar so why can't I do it on piano? And if you're right handed, why does your left hand do all the fiddly bits?!!


Steve.
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I think it is because with guitar, the left hand is doing something to serve the right hand. You are setting the strings up for the right hand to hit it and the timing is one after the other, even though it is in a very short space of time, it is still sequential.

With the piano, the left hand does a pattern, a rhythm, this rhythm repeats and repeats in isolation of the right hand. Sometimes the right hand hits a note the same time as the left hand, sometimes it doesn't. That part I can't get pass. They say it comes with practice but I dunno, I just never got over that hurdle.

Did you know the guy who invented the guitar was left handed (for all the modern right handed guitar), it is so it made it easier for him to play but that design stuck and so the whole thing is basically backwards.
 
I own a Fender Telecaster in Bronze a Dobro/ Slide Electro Guitar and a cut away Electro acoustic + a Vox AC 30 to play them through, I'm a big fan of Blues and slide blues- mostly BB King and Robert Johnson -Slide being my personal preference, I own at least 4 slides - glass - steel, brass and porcelain

here's an iPhone pic



Les ;)
 
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Raymond Lin said:
Oh my god, guitars by radiator!!!!
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No longer in use - as we now have Gas Central heating-( its an old Night Storage heater- yet to be removed)- time permitting)

as IF I'd stand a Telecaster near a hot rad- Oh the very thought makes me poorly :oops: :$:oops: :$:oops: :$:oops: :$

Les :p

Ps its a place to keep Plectrums and slides + a set or two of strings as seen in the above image
 
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I've recently started playing again after many years, bought myself a Les Paul copy and a cheapo practice amp, then it was all downhill as a secondhand Vox Valvtronic AD15VT followed, then my latest purchase a Fender Strat, my dream guitar back in the 60's when I had a Watkins Rapier33. All I have to do now is relearn how to work it all. My fingers have toughened up though after four weeks, so it's not so painful.
 
I am looking to get a "cheap" Epiphone Les Paul tonight as a beater.....Feels uneasy to practice on the T5 with no pick guard....am I mad?
 
Yes.

:)

Seriously, how hard are you going to hit it with a pick? Is the finish nitro (soft) or polymer like most modern guitars? Chances are very high that it's poly, in which case little short of dropping a screwdriver on it will mark it.
 
I think Taylor use some sort of UV cured lacquer. Pretty sure it won't be nitro and I don't think it's poly either..

Epiphone guitars can be great. My first guitar was an Epi Les Paul Special II (still have it) and I used to practice without an amp to keep the noise down... I also had an Epi Les Paul Standard until I got my Gibson. Sold it to my neighbour, he's still got it.

I've not looked at Epi's for a while, but when I was in the market for a standard, I must have tried 20 before I found one that was right. The neck angle can be quite variable which in turn has a big impact on bridge height and how well the action can be set. There were some that would not intonate properly. Others that were poorly finished, had crooked tuners or poorly cut nuts or no neck relief etc... I certainly would not buy one without a thorough hands on session first.

In fact, that applies to any guitar purchase.. Good luck..
 
GeeJay57 said:
I certainly would not buy one without a thorough hands on session first. In fact, that applies to any guitar purchase.. Good luck..
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That's sound advice. Almost every guitar I've bought without trying has had issues that would have prevented me selecting it if I'd tried it first (I can think of a couple of exceptions, but they were both dirt-cheap on ebay, and fine for the money).

My experience with Epi was only really around the mid 90's, and it wasn't good then, however I did briefly pick up an SG about 10 years ago that seemed OK. As with any guitar, try before you buy - they all vary and price/source is absolutely no guarantee of quality.
 
Taylor does use a UV cured lacquer, its done by electro-magnetic charge method to minimise waste and you get a really thin finish.

I've tried quite a few Taylor in a few different stores and I must say none of them had any problems whatsoever. I mean there was one that had a weird mark on the wood behind the satin finish on the back of the neck but that was as far as I can say in terms of problems. That was probably just a colouring on the timber itself rather than a defect on the guitar.

All of the Taylor I've tried sounds clear, good action, it's likely due to their NT neck design with the shims which can be adjusted and set perfectly in every guitar that they make, even their Mexican made (200 series and down) has the same NT necks as the Presentation/custom models. Everyone I've spoken to say the same thing with Taylor guitars, even though they might not like their sound, they all agree that it plays great. Sure that you should try before you buy, it would be silly not to but if one were to take a leap of faith on it...it's the best of the bad situation lol
 
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Nice.. Not quite my cuppa tea, but very nice guitars. One of my former band mates had one..

Prefer this myself..

 
Funny you posted a Les Paul, I tried them last week, it was good but my gut tells me no.

I tried 2 studio, a signature T and custom classics.
 
I've had the one I posted for 12-years and have played more than a few gigs with it. I have played very few guitars that have been as good and even fewer that have been better. None that I have liked more. I will never part with it.
 
Guitars are variable things: it's not unusual to find a single example that feels fantastic to us (as well as a bunch that are OK and a few bad ones, especially with hand made instruments).
 
People are variable things too. We all have different tastes, playing styles, musical preferences etc.. As it happens I think there is guitar out there for everyone. PRS make really tidy guitars, fit and finish spot on. I like my Gibson because..... well because I do. In fact I like all of my guitars. Lately I've been playing my Telecaster a lot...
 
Raymond Lin said:
Just to update I am still playing....and I bought this today.
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That's a work of art Raymond, the finish looks superb.

Being a learning lefty, my choice is very limited, PRS didn't make any "southpaw" guitars last time I looked - I hope the situation has now changed.

That LP looks good too Glenn, being a slow learner, I can't really justify the genuine Gibson, so I have an Epi LP Custom in black.

Chris
 
Foxbat Flyer said:
That's a work of art Raymond, the finish looks superb.

Being a learning lefty, my choice is very limited, PRS didn't make any "southpaw" guitars last time I looked - I hope the situation has now changed.

That LP looks good too Glenn, being a slow learner, I can't really justify the genuine Gibson, so I have an Epi LP Custom in black.

Chris
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I agree that the PRS Ray posted (custom 24, 10-top, birds, I think) is a work of art.

Thanks for the kind words about my Lester (2002 standard, Lightburst, 50s neck).

Epi's can be great. If you have a good one, hang on to it. I regret letting my Epi Standard go, though I had good reason at the time. If I could persuade my neighbour to let me have it back, I would.
 
Thanks, the guitar was set up by Guitar Village (where i got it from), so it's good :)

Although i prefer the Elixir Strings on my Taylor I think.
 
Elixir strings are my band mate's preference too. Not sure I have a major preference on strings. The last sets I've had on my Les Paul have been Gibson Vintage pure nickel series (9's) but I've also played Ernie Ball and Rotosound. My Acoustic has Martin SP bronze (11's), Tele has Fender bullets at the moment and Strat has Ernie Ball Slinkies.
 
Strings are often a matter of taste, though some last much longer than others. I prefer uncoated strings because the coating makes them give a plunk rather than twang for me, and the coating wears off quickly where they are addressed by the pick. I prefer DRs these days, for good tone, easy bending and longevity.

I agree with Glen about the saddles being off on the PRS.
 
I used to go through strings very quickly but since I got my Gretsch, they last a long time. The current set of D'Addarios has been on there four a year and a half and I play one or two gigs a week with it.

I really don't know how they last so long!

Raymond Lin said:
Thanks, the guitar was set up by Guitar Village (where i got it from), so it's good.
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I got the Gretsch from Guitar Village for about £400 less than it would have been in London.. It's a great shop. Every time you turn a corner there's another room full of guitars.


Steve.
 
Steve Smith said:
I used to go through strings very quickly but since I got my Gretsch, they last a long time. The current set of D'Addarios has been on there four a year and a half and I play one or two gigs a week with it.
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Roller bridge? It might also be that going a bit dead makes less tonal difference on this instrument.
 
ancient_mariner said:
Roller bridge? It might also be that going a bit dead makes less tonal difference on this instrument.
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No. Standard saddles. I don't really like the sound of new strings but I really don't know how I make them last so long.

I don't think I have broken one in the last twenty years either (so I probably will now!).


Steve.
 
I last broke a string last year, but I like to dig in a bit, especially with rhythm work.
 
Right, think i will get some spares....do I get Elixir Nanoweb? PRS? D'Addario EXP? Ernie Ball 2221 ?
 
DR Tite fit. :D

Try Stringbusters.com
 
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