Let's see your guitar and bass gear!

In reply to Antihero (Forum Supporter) :

I've played the Gretsch's and they are all fun. I can't figure out the sound differences. I have not found a PRS to play.

well I placed an order for that custom PRS and it was accepted, so there it is. I'll take some pictures when it arrives!

tuna55 said:

well I placed an order for that custom PRS and it was accepted, so there it is. I'll take some pictures when it arrives!

I'm so jelly!

In reply to tuna55 :

A good friend swears by his PRS gear. I hope you like it. Remind me, are you just learning too? Picking it up again? Played at an expert level for decades?

barefootskater (Shaun) said:

In reply to tuna55 :

A good friend swears by his PRS gear. I hope you like it. Remind me, are you just learning too? Picking it up again? Played at an expert level for decades?

I've been winging it for about ten months, and had a real instructor for three. I can do basic open chords and changes are OK. Hammer on/pull off are reasonable, alternate picking is good if I look, and I remember some scales. I can bar chords if I concentrate really hard.

In reply to tuna55 :

That's a lot of guitar for a relative beginner. Nice. In my experience, PRS stuff plays nice and smooth. Should lend itself well to learning. Don't forget to post pics!

barefootskater (Shaun) said:

In reply to tuna55 :

That's a lot of guitar for a relative beginner. Nice. In my experience, PRS stuff plays nice and smooth. Should lend itself well to learning. Don't forget to post pics!

Undoubtedly you are right. Here's the deal:

I really don't want to collect guitars. I've spent a long time playing an Epi SG Pro, and the neck was super messed up (scroll back a few pages) and I thought it was just me being terrible. My wife always made a sour face when I played, and it sounded pretty bad. It turned out that the frets or the bridge was all wrong, and nothing was in tune other than the open and 12th fret. Not even a little close. So it got me thinking that I had to step up a bit in quality and price, since I didn't want to fight a lousy guitar through this, especially since my guitar teacher is in Atlanta and can't physically put his hands on it to tell me what's what.

Fast forward and I was looking at G&L and a few others and I had my wife listen to Anderton's blindfold solid/semi/hollow video. We were both blown away by how awful the solids sounded in comparison, so it was into the semi land. Then it was between the Gretsch and the PRS and the Guilds.

Anyway it ought to be something I can learn with and won't get in the way like the Epi did.

Congrats! Post pics when you get it

tuna55 said:

barefootskater (Shaun) said:

In reply to tuna55 :

That's a lot of guitar for a relative beginner. Nice. In my experience, PRS stuff plays nice and smooth. Should lend itself well to learning. Don't forget to post pics!

Undoubtedly you are right. Here's the deal:

 

I really don't want to collect guitars. I've spent a long time playing an Epi SG Pro, and the neck was super messed up (scroll back a few pages) and I thought it was just me being terrible. My wife always made a sour face when I played, and it sounded pretty bad. It turned out that the frets or the bridge was all wrong, and nothing was in tune other than the open and 12th fret. Not even a little close. So it got me thinking that I had to step up a bit in quality and price, since I didn't want to fight a lousy guitar through this, especially since my guitar teacher is in Atlanta and can't physically put his hands on it to tell me what's what.

Fast forward and I was looking at G&L and a few others and I had my wife listen to Anderton's blindfold solid/semi/hollow video. We were both blown away by how awful the solids sounded in comparison, so it was into the semi land. Then it was between the Gretsch and the PRS and the Guilds.

 

Anyway it ought to be something I can learn with and won't get in the way like the Epi did.

Did you take the SG to a pro to have setup? 

Bring them the guitar, the gauge of strings you want to use, then they can set the action and intonation so you don't have the tuning issues.

Even a guitar on the cheaper end up the spectrum will play dramatically better after a pro puts a quality setup on it.

z31maniac said:

tuna55 said:

barefootskater (Shaun) said:

In reply to tuna55 :

That's a lot of guitar for a relative beginner. Nice. In my experience, PRS stuff plays nice and smooth. Should lend itself well to learning. Don't forget to post pics!

Undoubtedly you are right. Here's the deal:

 

I really don't want to collect guitars. I've spent a long time playing an Epi SG Pro, and the neck was super messed up (scroll back a few pages) and I thought it was just me being terrible. My wife always made a sour face when I played, and it sounded pretty bad. It turned out that the frets or the bridge was all wrong, and nothing was in tune other than the open and 12th fret. Not even a little close. So it got me thinking that I had to step up a bit in quality and price, since I didn't want to fight a lousy guitar through this, especially since my guitar teacher is in Atlanta and can't physically put his hands on it to tell me what's what.

Fast forward and I was looking at G&L and a few others and I had my wife listen to Anderton's blindfold solid/semi/hollow video. We were both blown away by how awful the solids sounded in comparison, so it was into the semi land. Then it was between the Gretsch and the PRS and the Guilds.

 

Anyway it ought to be something I can learn with and won't get in the way like the Epi did.

Did you take the SG to a pro to have setup? 

Bring them the guitar, the gauge of strings you want to use, then they can set the action and intonation so you don't have the tuning issues.

Even a guitar on the cheaper end up the spectrum will play dramatically better after a pro puts a quality setup on it.

He ran through a ton of troubleshooting, it doesn't sound like a simple setup would have helped it too much. Call it the 1 in 100 that gives Epiphone the cheap reputation.

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

z31maniac said:

tuna55 said:

barefootskater (Shaun) said:

In reply to tuna55 :

That's a lot of guitar for a relative beginner. Nice. In my experience, PRS stuff plays nice and smooth. Should lend itself well to learning. Don't forget to post pics!

Undoubtedly you are right. Here's the deal:

 

I really don't want to collect guitars. I've spent a long time playing an Epi SG Pro, and the neck was super messed up (scroll back a few pages) and I thought it was just me being terrible. My wife always made a sour face when I played, and it sounded pretty bad. It turned out that the frets or the bridge was all wrong, and nothing was in tune other than the open and 12th fret. Not even a little close. So it got me thinking that I had to step up a bit in quality and price, since I didn't want to fight a lousy guitar through this, especially since my guitar teacher is in Atlanta and can't physically put his hands on it to tell me what's what.

Fast forward and I was looking at G&L and a few others and I had my wife listen to Anderton's blindfold solid/semi/hollow video. We were both blown away by how awful the solids sounded in comparison, so it was into the semi land. Then it was between the Gretsch and the PRS and the Guilds.

 

Anyway it ought to be something I can learn with and won't get in the way like the Epi did.

Did you take the SG to a pro to have setup? 

Bring them the guitar, the gauge of strings you want to use, then they can set the action and intonation so you don't have the tuning issues.

Even a guitar on the cheaper end up the spectrum will play dramatically better after a pro puts a quality setup on it.

He ran through a ton of troubleshooting, it doesn't sound like a simple setup would have helped it too much. Call it the 1 in 100 that gives Epiphone the cheap reputation.

Yeah scroll back a few pages. It was wild. Nothing a setup would have fixed. 

I have to say, not as a pro but a decent amateur, that the issues with that SG were super strange. It was so pretty I almost wanted to get a crack at fixing it cheap!

Paul_VR6 (Forum Supporter) said:

I have to say, not as a pro but a decent amateur, that the issues with that SG were super strange. It was so pretty I almost wanted to get a crack at fixing it cheap!

It was super pretty. The worst part is that my son stayed up with me one night when I ordered it and helped me pick it out. I had struggled to spend money on myself. My daughter helped choose the color.

Booooo

I have been keeping my eyes specifically on that model/color for a long time on Reverb just never had one close enough to play first. I have had experience with Epi LPs and played a lot before I found a gem. Hoping to luck on one!

Positive Grid Spark practice amp. Is it any good? Worth spending some stimmy money on?

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

I've heard a lot of chatter out there about it but not really paid close attention because its not my cup of tea. There are some really great practice amps out there these days though for not a lot of money. Peavey has a little tweed looking combo that I nearly bought a couple years back, as it was half the cost of the other stuff I was looking at and ticked almost all my boxes. I'll see if I can't look it up. 
 

*edit. I believe it was a Peavey Classic 20. I swear the local shop was selling them for $399, but prices seem to have gone up. 

In reply to barefootskater (Shaun) :

The Spark is only $269.

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

My first amp was a Marshall MG15. Two channels, built in effects, headphone jack. Sounded great for what it was. 
Id be tempted by this orange too. 

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

People rave about it, but I remember there being months long wait for them too. I have no experience with them.

In my experience the 2 best practice amps are the Vox Cambridge and the Fender Mustang 1 and I have experience with both.

If you want super mini stuff the Hotone Heart Attack is a great hi gain amp that you can literally fit in your hand.

Orange Micro Terror ain't bad either

In reply to Antihero (Forum Supporter) :

Micro terror is good (I owned one), but they need a cab. Not a problem, just something for Jav to be aware of since it ads complexity to the setup. But for $250 it can be done and is a "real" amp and not some fancy modeler. It's like if you need a screwdriver, so you buy a Swiss Army knife. It'll do the job most of the time, but it's not a substitute for a quality, dedicated tool.  

In that vein, here's my recipe:

New Orange Micro Terror, $149 ($40 more for the Micro Dark for extra flavor)

Eminence Texas Heat 12" driver, $95

and either a half sheet of MDF to build a box or hit Craigslist for an empty 12" sub box. Local music shop for $10 speaker cable. 

Or, the easy button for $248, but that cab is 8" and a 12" will just sound fuller and bigger. It's personal preference, but throwing it out there. 

In reply to barefootskater (Shaun) :

I have a Sawtooth 25 practice about already. It sounds good, especially with the DS-1 pedal, and is more than loud enough to annoy all the neighbors. I was looking at the spark for the app and learning potential it has, not necessarily for the "tones" that it emulates.

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

I mean, the spark is a nifty gadget. I'm not trying to talk you out of it. Just wasn't sure if you were looking for an amp upgrade or what. If'n you do buy one, I request a video review, Mr. Playswithcars YouTube star. 

In reply to barefootskater (Shaun) :

You would really watch me play happy birthday on a guitar?!?

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

Or Highway Star, either one