nickgrooves's forum posts 170

If that rumor is indeed true, then I would avoid their brand of cables because almost all other brands offer the same warranty. Mogami is cheaper than Monster, and Planet Waves I think, and they have a lifetime warranty. And what ever happened to Whirlwind? I have a few Whirlwind cables from 20 years ago (yeah, I'm sort of old I guess) and they still work like brand new.

Also, don't buy a coiled cable (the slinky ones) unless it has a lifetime warranty. I bought a Fender 'vintage' one and it broke after a couple months. I bought a Monster one, still works great, and if it ever breaks (many coil cables do apparently, not just mine) it has the warranty. Monster is too heavily invested in home theater and other audio arenas, to be impacted by lack of sales at Guitar Center. In my opinion.

Did you read my post? at all?

For beginner players, definitely light gauge. More important for you to enjoy playing and learn the chords and scales. You can switch to heavier gauge later.

Or, if you are willing, just man up and get the heavy gauge now. But you have to be totally honest with yourself, and understand it will not be pleasant until those calluses have grown. But they will grow a lot faster. So ... it's really up to you and your personality.

ACOUSTIC strings ... I only use Elixer "nanoweb" phospher bronze on my steel stringed acoustics. I'm not a fan of the silly names (nanoweb? really?) that's just marketing. But they sound great AND they last forever. They are almost as expensive as bass guitar strings, ranging $14-16 last I checked. But they will last you a loooong time. I recommend a set of 12's.

Some excellent suggestions here. Especially asking the store (and I would pick on a big chain, like Guitar Center) if they will sell you their broken cables for cheap bulk pricing. Although, I suspect they won't, because Guitar Center now has their own brand (which I think is called LIvewire ...) and they process the lifetime warranty on those cables. So basically, they are most likely shipping their broken house cables back to their own manufacturer and not selling them to you / us.

The only thing I can think of adding, is that I really didn't have time to solder all my cables, even though I have a soldering iron and the knowledge, so instead I bought the Planet Waves Cable Station cable kit. You can find it on my Equipboard. It's REALLY REALLY easy. And takes a few minutes. And comes with more than enough cable and parts to handle a busy board. In fact I have two boards, and got them both done with one package, and had leftover cable.

I have also run into the same tuning problems the author from ES335.org mentions (strings going magically sharp) with every modern guitar that's passed through my hands every goddamn summer when said guitar leaves my air conditioned home... or all of them at once if I open the windows on a cool but humid day.

BTW, the bit about expanding and contracting with the weather is definitely true. 100%. All instruments have that issue, not just guitars. Even brass instruments have that problem. Everything expands and contracts with weather. Even the highways, that is why large interstate bridges will have [expansion] joints in them. Anyway back to guitars ...

Kiln-dried wood is a real thing. Houses are a great example. If you have ever tried to renovate an old home, and had to cut through an old wooden stud (yeah just a 2x4 stud) you will know the difference between modern "yellow wood" and kiln dried which typically (in homes) has a darker, more tan or orange-ish color to it. As for guitars ... I have no idea. But the kiln dried wood is typically found in homes made before the mid '70s. I have never seen any such wood in homes made after 1990.

Getting back to guitars, I play axes which were hand-crafted by a boutique luthier. One is purple heart wood with ebony fretboard, one is white limba (korina) with a tiger maple neck and rosewood fretboard ... all the wood was purchased from a lumber mill near his shop. No idea if the body blanks were kiln dried but I suppose it's possible. They are heavy (but sound great) LOL

The above knowledge is first-hand from working part-time in my dad's residential construction business. I do not pretend to be an expert on wood and certainly not on guitar woods. Just trying to add some perspective to the conversation regarding kiln dried wood.

The fact that your O.P. broke soloing and chords into two separate categories is a red flag. Here's what you need to do (and I apologize if it's already been said; I only glossed over the previous posts):

Think of all possible notes you can play in a song as being part of a "note pool," consisting of our own "holy trinity" of Scales + Chords + Arpeggios. There is no such thing as "lead player" and "rhythm player" or "soloing vs chords." Many of the best solos contain chords, and many of the best rhythm tracks contain melody lines.

So the next time you are practicing a chord progression, try connecting each chord with the scale tones in-between. Or, instead of playing the chord progression, play them as arpeggios. Adding arpeggios and skipping across the strings is an excellent way to open up your playing. Add some passing tones (scale tones, voice leading) and next thing you know you've got a really decent solo happening.

Finally, don't forget the only difference between Pentatonic (5-tones) and Major or Minor or other Septatonic scales (7-tones) is just two notes ... so if you can add some "passing tones" into your pentatonic licks then you're halfway there already.

If the guitar in question - especially artist models (is Dale Earnhart an artist?) - has a different electronics wiring, or a different wood type, then it should most definitely be it's own product on Equipboard or anywhere else for that matter. For example, a rosewood fretboard vs an ebony fretboard. Different guitars. Another example, if the bridge is different. Tuners are different. Anything different about it, makes it a new product EXCEPT the paint color. Notice I did not say lacquer coating ... if the only difference is the paint color than no.

BTW, FWIW, most players I know prefer the nitrocellulose lacquer or a hand-rub Tung oil or comparable oil rub finish. Less lacquer or thinner lacquer = better tone.

Right. Don't hijack the thread. So, I have a very good friend with the Vox AC30HW with the half power switch etc. etc. He loves it, and whenever I'm over his house, I play it. I'm a Fender guy myself so I don't own one, but I can definitely recommend it. And I did use it on a studio session once, and got a really nice classic Rock sound out of it. I am not surprised to hear that it can handle Metal.

As a piano teacher, I would say ... Practicing the scale patterns and chord inversions is wise because ALL of the songs you will ever want/need to play will consist of parts or all of those scale patterns and chord inversions. Also, practicing reading them will make it much easier for you to sightread new music.

As a player with a naturally gifted ear, who taught himself guitar mostly by ear (playing along with records), I totally sympathize. That's where the discipline comes in. All that time I spent running guitar scales and chord progressions has literally paid dividends, allowing me to make a living as a performing & recording artist for the past twelve years.

Things you already know or have been told, I am sure; I posted this for the younger readers out there in Equipboard land who needed to hear it.