solusash's forum posts 241

Mods can you please add Name: Mountain Guitars/Krait Guitars Custom Headless Koi Fish Guitar

It's a solidbody, fanned fret electric guitar in the style of .strandberg* instruments. To my knowledge, they're unavailable now, but as I have one, and use it fairly regularly, I'd like to be able to add it to my board.

Thanks kindly!

Just buy jj. I honestly have so many tubes I may never need to buy them again... although I tend to go through 84s pretty fast so who knows

Bingo. They're made in Slovakia, they're a damn good tube, and yeah, outside of potential supplyline disruptions, shouldn't be too hard to get hold of other than everyone else swapping to them.

NGL, I just straight don't like Marshall full stop. Never have. They sound... Off to me. Not just the speakers, the amps, too. My da bloody loves 'em. And that's cool, if that's what drives your sound, go for it. Just doesn't work for my sound. I'm a Vox/Orange/Matamp/Green (which is basically Matamp) kind of guy.

I'm the guy who's played a show with nothing more than a Lyon Strat knockoff and a Vox Pathfinder as my rig, using the "turn the master volume down, crank the gain, then let 'er rip!" to get overdrive, so I'm probably not the chap to ask about backups and whatnot. Still managed to get a standing O that set, too. Course, I was 17, it was my 2nd band, and I had exactly zero fucks to give. PUNK ROCK, man!

What gave that away? My excitement over their mention? lol

That's a possible tradeoff, Brad Delson never seemed to have any issues though (seriously, love or hate their music, Linkin Park had one hell of a stage presence). I myself am old school, have the speakers for generating feedback rather than monitoring--granted that's trusting the house to have what I need for that, which, in past hasn't always worked out. But hey, when all you've got money for is your rig, your ride, and your rotgut, you do what you can do. I'm older now, and don't play live because of multiple physical disabilities, not least of which is extreme nerve damage in the ol' beater cases, but again--your call, you know what you want to accomplish on stage more'n I do.

Good on ya. ReAmping is the future I tell ya. You youngins get all the bells and whistles!

Mesa. Mesa Mesa Mesa. I'm not just saying that because I'm a Dream Theater fan. There's something about their sound that's just appealing to me. Current wishlist of gear has a couple of different Mesa amps on it, will likely have at least one flavour (probably a Mk V) when I kit out my home studio in full.

I wouldn't go quite that far, as there are always options to overcome any health issue (usually). I don't know what you've got going on (not my business), but if you can't use in ears, Brad Delson from Linkin Park used over ear monitors. There are ways around most issues, if you don't mind getting creative.

Main thing about going the cab route is it has (in my opinion) more flexibility out of the box than going direct does, both for playing and recording. Plus the aforementioned ReAmping, then again, you could probably do that with direct, now that I think on it. /shrug

Course, you don't have to limit yourself to a Marshall speaker cab. Find a speaker you like the sound of, don't be afraid to mix it up. For instance, my da really likes Vox amps, but friggin' loves the speakers in his old Orange combo my uncle fried. Next thing you know, his Vox now has Orange speakers in it. Now, with cabs, you don't have to rewire anything like he did, you just pick a cab, pair it up, and rock.

I got to run my Orange through some Celestion G12H Redbacks not too long ago, they had a great sound to 'em. Felt it was really balanced, really crunched up nice with the Orange doomy tones, kept tight and punchy when it did, didn't get real loose like some speakers do. Downside? That sumbitch is nearly 5kg a speaker, so if you're doing a full cab, that's 20kg just in speaker weight if you go with those--then you've got the cab itself. That'd be one heavy rig!

Anyroad, that's about all I've got. As I said, options, plenty of. Just depends on you. I'm a mic the cab kind of guy, and seriously, look into a ReAmping device for when you record. REALLY opens up options!

EDIT: I keep forgetting I'm Scottish and the majority of people here are probably not using Metric (forgetting the metric bit, not that I'm Scottish, only forget that after I've had too much juice of the barley). So for everyone using Freedom Units: Bit over 10lbs, (they're actually 4.7kg) so make no mistake, it's a heavy cab. You'd want a cart for it.

Go cab, 100%. Mic up the cab, gives loads more options, plus you can always get a ReAmp device, and expand your sound even more.

That's my two bits on the issue. As ever with my advice, though, take it with a grain of salt, a wedge of lime, and a shot of tequila.

Oh it gets Doomy feedback for days doing it that way. In fact, the AK95 is my primary guitar for doing Doom Metal. People are like "are you insane?" and I'm like "Well according to the Commonwealth, yes..."

And aye, everything becomes an effect or another part of the chain when I play, record, or produce. Take my Waves Reel ADT plugin. I use that to get "ghost" type effects going on, ala Syd Barret.

I really need to sit down with a camera and record some of this one day. I've got the kit for it, I just uh... don't do it.

"Better" is purely a subjective term here, as what I like may not be a tone you enjoy. I will say that it's my experience that there are a lot of different flavours out there now, as opposed to your bogbasic 70s stompbox sounds, with the ability to craft your tone to how you want it to sound far greater than you've had before.

Even the much-loved/hated/cloned Klon Centaur "transparent" overdrive has been "improved" upon with the Wampler Tumnus Deluxe, giving you the ability to shape almost every aspect of the tonal quality in it.

It really comes down to what you're looking for, what kind of sound you want, and how you want to shape it. And as to "Are they really that modern," I mean, the basic circuits are roughly the same, if that's what you're asking. The basic way they function is roughly similar. Just the components and how they clip have been changed to give it different flavour, if that makes sense?

To give an example of just how well the foam returns to form: I have on my desk a Kyser capo that's nearing 20 years old. I once used it as I described above (a coat hanger), and left it in the hotel room by accident. A year later, I returned to that hotel, to find it STILL on the curtain rod (which had ridges in it, mind--also, that says much about the cleaning service that hotel used--but that's a whole 'nother ball game). I was worried it'd take a serious curve and some notching because of that.

Two days of being off the rod, it was back to form, like nothing had happened to it at all, outside some discolouring where the notches dug in. Still perfectly flat to this day. I bloody SWEAR by these capos.

What's interesting is that you've used the subject line as the entire post.

To answer the question, Kyser capos last longer and the rubber bit that comes into contact with the strings actually returns to form better than any other brand I've used.

And if that's not enough of a selling point, you can slap them just about anywhere sand have an impromptu coat hook.

So yeah, they really are different, and in my opinion better.

Here's the order: (not so different than a chain I've ran in the past, actually) Collision Devices Black Hole Symmetry>Behringer SF300>Akai Phaser (because it's basically a Phase 90, which is basically a shitty Univibe?)>Behringer UO300>Boss HM-2>Boss MZ-2>Joyo Tauren>Ibanez SC10>Clefly Nano Flanger>VSN Slow Hand>Joyo Aquarius>Roto Engine>VSN Looper or my Boss RC-50

So uh... That follows the basic idea of how wotsits is supposed to work. So I know people say that 'verb goes at the end, as well as delay. BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT... SO here's the thing, right? The Black Hole Symmetry (the best pedal that has ever been made, EVER OH YOUR GOD/MY GODS SERIOUSLY YOU GUYS if you don't have it why don't you?) is a Fuzz (chain opener) delay (modulation) and reverb (the end). And it's all RIGHT THERE at the start! So I can have some of the BEST sounding reverb I've ever had crashing into all of my effects for this... Just wall of... not shoegaze? It's not shoegaze. But it's this really just, crazy goodness. Then having that multieffect Roto Engine thing at the end that's got MORE 'verb (plus delay, but I'm probably gon' use it like a Leslie Emulator), it's probably going to get real messy real quick. I can stereo out because of some of the effects and route to two different amps, and I may do that coming out of the MZ-2, actually, split that and run my Tauren and Chorus into my Vox, then use another lil' nano chorus I've got to run into my Orange, and slap this lil' digital delay I've got laying around on that chain as well. Ping pong that stuff... I dunno. We'll see.

So I'm'a do that, and JUST TRY STUFF.

Who knows? Maybe I'll come up with some awesome riffage.

I guess the only question is, what Axe should I run into it? lol I've got quite the collection at this point! :D

I used to use D'Addario 11s on my electrics, because I came to guitar from bass, and had a habit of breaking lighter gauges due to... well, lack of finesse. Now, I'm a much more skilled player, but I also suffer from extreme nerve and tendon damage in both hands. So I play 9s. Much lighter, much easier on the hands.

My acoustics are strung currently with 10s, mostly because I've not got around to replacing them. Need to.

Gods only know what's on my basses, as it's been a hot minute since I changed them, and last time I did I tried something different, and can't remember now what it was. Besides, we all know bass strings never really need changing anyway.

"I got dozens of friends, and the fun never ends, that is as long as I'm buying..."-Tommy Shaw, "Too Much Time on My Hands," Styx Ah, but are those really the kinds of friends one wants to make? I suppose one could always do the old fashioned method of getting up each day, looking square in the mirror, and stating "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggon it, people like me!"

But seriously, until the question is rephrased, I got nothin'.

I don't understand the question? What exactly do you mean? I mean, you make friends with musicians just like you make friends with anyone else. It's an organic process, you can't force it. Either you're going to be mates with someone, or you're not. Like Adam and Jamie on Mythbusters, they worked together, but they were not mates. Didn't matter how long they worked together.

Like, if you're asking how to make friends in general, that's a broader topic that I can't answer.

Well... as I said, not exactly a new track, just one I re-eq'd, remastered, and polished up a bit.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/10nRUnvXI72ItXps-4Cngo88D2MPIlFlJ/view?usp=sharing

There it is for the station.

https://youtu.be/Lxd4ilMikXA

There it is for here (was going to post it in another thread, but couldnae find one that wasn't... well, where it'd have been appropriate). Story of the song, if you're inclined for such a thing: wrote it after a falling out with a mate when an intervention went wrong. He took it badly, about as bad as could be. Less than a year later, his addiction had killed him. Wish I could have reached him, but should have, would have, and could haves don't bring back the dead, and less than 10% of people addicted to heroin ever go clear. So I wrote this one to cope with losing a friend, and buried it after we buried him.

Here lately I've been unable to do much recording, so I've been pulling out old songs I recorded on my old laptop with crap gear, and seeing if I can breathe new life into them by fiddling with the EQ, remastering, all that. This is the first of that project.

+1 for Cakewalk here. It's what I use to do all my stuff (course, I've been using Cakewalk since Guitar Tracks 2.0). They also have a mobile app for Android and iPhone, it's not "Cakewalk" on those platforms, but it's a great little pocket took for taking down riffs on the run I've found.

D'Addario all the way, always. Not just because they're what I've always played, but because of their more eco-conscious packaging, the way they converted their Evans Drumhead division to making face shields during the earliest days of the COVID crisis, and the way they treat their players.

Those things taken together have made me a D'Addario player for life, full stop.

Not to mention as a primarily Ibanez player, they come from the factory strung with 'em... so...

Aye, I'm alive-ish. And not new music per se, dusted off an old one from the archives as an example to some "students" (read: people I'm trying to convince to take up recording their own music) as what can be done with crap gear and a little gumption), and a little love on the mixdown/mastering.

I'll post a link in the relevant forum, since don't want to off-topic it here, since now that I think on it, might inspire some people here to do the same thing I'm trying to get my mates to do.

Are you still open to submissions, and do you mind submissions from someone who's given one before? (Fair warning, this'n's stylistically totally different than my last one, if you are in for it)

Also sorry if I'm reviving a dead thread. Been... out of the loop a bit dealing with all my health stuff. Hoping to get back in the swing of things here soon.

you're confirmed cancer-free?

I am confirmed 100% cancer free (tentatively), after CT scans, MRIs, and colonoscopy. AND after getting the wrong test results back initially (hence the tentatively). Talk about a tense day.

And yeah, part celebrating, part... Hel's Bells, man. I dunno. This is the second lump been taken out of my body in 10 years that's had some form of cancer (the last one was technically "precancerous" but still) in it, on top of yeah, I know about the heart attack thing too... Just. I'm tired of dodging bullets. I'm tired of the stress.

I just want to rest, rest easy, and relax. Not have to jump at every cough, wheeze, and shake wondering if I've got some potentially life threatening illness.

EDIT: They've also done so much bloodwork on me over the last week that I'm shocked I have any blood left. All clean. So as far as tests go, they're all showing me cancer free.

Checking in... they removed a lump, did a biopsy.

Shorthand: they got all the cancer the first go.

I uh... I.

F*ckin'...

I.

I'm going to go get extremely drunk.

I know this is an introduction thread, but I figured I'd use it to let everyone know I'll be becoming slightly less active (possibly a lot less, depending on things), as I start to focus more on my health in the coming days. Between an injury at work, an unknown infection that's causing some internal bleeding, and a fever that won't break, I'm in pretty rough shape all around, but soldiering on as best I'm able.

I'd like to continue to be semi-frequent, but I just don't know that between all the doctors, specialists, lawyers (work injury), and trying to get some practice in still that I'll have any kind of time to reply like people deserve. I'll still be lurking around, I'll still be updating gear as I see it, and I'll still be working on my own board, just won't be in the forums as much, and felt giving people a reason why and a "yeah I'm sick but don't worry, been through worse and made it out the other side" was probably warranted at this point.

Anyroad, you lot take care, and I will be around. Ish.

Eh, as I said, you call the tune, you pay the Piper. It's life, I'm used to it. Keep playing the hand I'm dealt until I turn up Aces'n'Eights. So far Lady Luck has been kind in that regard, leastwise.

Well, looks of it I'll be going with the MBrace or building my own, as there just donae seem to be much out there. Building my own, could possibly fill the niche, and if I got my costs down, and it's effective, could maybe bring it to market myself one day.

Not bloody likely, but hey! 3D printing makes many things possible nowadays! :D

So I belive you're looking for what these guys have? (Best shot 0:50 in)

(snipped for clutter)

That's exactly what I'm looking for. So far I've found three brands, all come at a premium. Which, I mean, I'll pay I suppose, if that's all there is.

HRS, don't worry about it. I've lived with the damage now for nearly 2 years. I've had multiple surgeries to correct it, and while it's not fixed the damage per se, I do have use of 9 of my 10 digits (back up from 7), medio is still... Well, I don't know I'll ever have full command of medio again. That's just a lost cause. As to the back pain and whatnot, part of that's nerve damage, part of that's fracturing my spine some years ago (mission of mercy, took a tumble during, fractured the L2 Lumbar. Still, wouldn't change a thing--meds were delivered, child was saved), part of it's re-damaging my spine quite recently (L5-S1 broad base disc bulge with central protrusion, it's possible I've herniated it).

In a nutshell, I've done some hard damage to my body over the years for various reasons, some worth it, some not so worth it (I've done all manner of relief work to different warzones (the worth it bits), and then as a teen I did my share of drugs, your share of drugs, and my spouse's share of drugs, too (the not so worth it)). You call the tune, you pay the piper.

As is, I mostly play sitting down. It's the only way I can really play these days. I'm hoping to get back to where I can stand a bit. That's why I like my UB804 so much, it's a standing instrument (and hella fun to play).

Anyroad, that's all I've got for now. Dealing with other health issues (that relief work I mentioned? Yeah, took malaria on one of those trips, just now getting over a relapse--I feel like death warmed over), need to lay down.

I think we're all on the same page as to what I'm looking for now. Thanks again for all the input and help!

This is the type I've used for years:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/GtrStd--on-stage-stands-xcg-4-classic-guitar-stand

Sweetwater has a decently large section of stands that may fit what you're looking for. Theres some A frames, for a bit more compact storage: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/GtrStdSm--on-stage-stands-gs7462b-a-frame-guitar-stand

Or, if you're not a fan of the charming "black aluminum rods and foam" aesthetic, that theres this pricer A frame:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/1401Stand--taylor-guitar-stand-brown-danish-beechwood

Here's a link to the full selection of stands avaliable. There's not too many, but hopefully something they have can help you out. https://www.sweetwater.com/c935--Guitar_Stands?ost=

I'm not talking about to hold the guitar while I'm not using it. That I have covered. I'm talking about to hold the guitar in a playing position while I play it, ala the Gracie/K&M/MBrace/Etc. So the guitar would be sat in the stand, at chest height or a little lower, at an angle such that I could walk up behind it and play it while it's on said stand. Was wondering if anyone OTHER than the three aforementioned companies made the stands, and their offerings are... pricy.

Either or, your Sweetwater link did show me that, nope, probably not outside the DIY solution that His_Royal_Sexiness suggested.

Which, HRS, I am fairly handy, and could probably word summat given time. Assuming my hands don't crap out on me (yay nerve damage). Bugger all this is turning into a thing, innit? Always does with me it seems.

Like the MBrace/Gracie/K&M. Are those they only options? Are there cheaper alternatives? As I'm getting older, my instruments are getting heavier, and after playing around with my new Ibanez UB804 (on a stand), the idea of having a stand to put my heavier instruments on to alleviate back/shoulder pain, while also allowing me to have more'n a few instruments hooked up for performance sake just seems really appealing.

Course, the aforementioned brands are also not exactly easy on the wallet, but when you're a specialty product with no real competition, I guess you can charge an arm, leg, and the soul of the first born child.

Took some serious damage in a freak accident a couple of days ago. The spouse was cleaning, and moved the guitar from where it normally sits (a corner, in a gig bag when it's not being played--hadnae bought a hard case yet), leaning it against another wall. Our house is cooled by window AC units, rather old, rather clunky ones that should probably have been replaced 10 years ago. As such, they vibrate the walls quiet a bit.

I'm sure you've all seen where this is going.

The guitar vibrated enough to slide down the wall.

My wife slipped.

She fell on the Kay.

...

Now...

Now...

I'm certain any other acoustic would have broken to pieces. Literal kindling. The Kay did not. Unless you're up fairly close, you can't actually tell there's much damage. The back has some warping inward, and is separating from the sides around the entire upper bout with a crack that's a bit wider than hairline, but not so wide as you can fit a fingernail. Probably a wound 3rd width.

The neck is separating from the body at the heel, wide enough you can fit your thumbnail under it, and there are lots of halfmoon cracks in the finish along the neck joint all the way on both sides.

Outside that, there's chipping inside the body around one of the braces.

It took damage.

I'm taking it to a luthier today. I will likely pay more for repairs than the guitar is worth. Why? Because this guitar is worth more to me than the current value of my bank account.

Anyroad, I thought I'd check in with you lot and let you all know my main acoustic, my second favorite guitar was nearly firewood.

And gods it hurts. It hurts bad. It took me 15+ years to track this guitar down. So yeah.

Right. Gotta jet. Appointment with the luthier in a few hours, and gotta find a proper hard case for it that's not only Spouse Fall Proof, but goes so far as to be United Airlines Proof!

EDIT:

Thought I was taking it to the luthier today. Instead, I took myself to the ER for "acute renal damage." I personally didn't find anything cute about it. I can no longer void my bladder. Hopefully this is temporary, and I won't need to go on dialysis.

Luthier trip moved to tomorrow, or maybe Wednesday, depending on my health.

Actually fairly familiar with rosin, thanks to some violin/viola history (we don't talk about that), and my efforts at bowing a guitar (yay Jimmy Page). Looking at the style of frog, likely going to go German, as it seems like it will work best with the nerve/tendon damage in my hands. Could be wrong. May see if I can hold one of each style before committing to.

Speaking of rosin, I'm wondering why they haven't come up with a rosin-free bow, something that grips the strings properly, and never needs rosin applied. That'd surely be worth looking into, if for no other reason than the science of it. Hel's Bells, now I'm intrigued. May have to look into doing that my own self!

First off, HI GUYS! I'm still alive! This new job, while I have more time, I'm more tired than I've ever been before. And that's saying something. But gods, I love it. Good work, good crew, come home happy--so yeah. Anyroad.

NEW INSTRUMENT DAY! I just got the Ibanez UB804 Upswing electric upright. Not had much time to play with it, but so far, I'm really digging it. Was wondering mostly if anyone could suggest a good bow for it, as I'm completely lost when it comes to that sort of thing, but that's also one of the main reasons I bought it. Love the tone, love the feel, love the way it looks. Really looking forward to trying to record with it this weekend, health permitting (new job may have herniated a disc, and I absolutely have a broken pinkie, but those are stories for another time).

I've used Cakewalk's products since Guitar Tracks 2.0. Cakewalk by Bandlabs is free, it's feature laden, it's powerful, and it does pretty much everything you need it to do. That's my £0.02.

That could be the case, or he could have been invited trainspotting and just decided "Bugger all this Brexit bullshite. Time to sod off." I know that'd have been my response.

Oh I know they know about copyright issues. I don't know that the JEM is copyright per se, the body would fall more under trademark I would think--and even then I'm not sure if it is. That's a whole 'nother thing.

Anyroad you walk it, I hope you're right about it actually inspiring kids to pick up an actual guitar--and who knows, maybe the shape of it will stick in their minds, and they'll see an actual JEM, or one of the sleek new PIAs, and be like "Yup, that's the guitar for me!" and will start to play.

I know my kid was inspired by Dave Murray from Maiden--but ended up swapping to piano. ;.;

That... I...

Disney ripping off Vai, not really sure what to say about that.

Does that mean he's officially made it?

He won't be laying in state as so many monarchs do. He'll be in his Castle, until his funeral, which the public has been asked not to attend.

They say it's the pandemic, but honestly, I feel that's kind of the way he'd have wanted it.

Gods above, though... Rough bloody day it's been. I know I need to get it together, but his death really just hit me hard. I donae even know why it did, ya know? I'm not even one for politics or monarchs or whatever, but just damn. Just bloody bollocks damn arse Hel's Bells DAMN.

I know it's naught to do with music, but by the gods I'm a Scotsman, and that man was my prince, naturalized US citizen or no.

He lived a good long life, 99 years young when he kicked off. He was a decent lad, from all accounts. Shook his hand once, looked me square in the eye, he did. Said "Well chap, that's a nice firm handshake. Good show. Jolly good." I'll never forget it.

I'm absolutely gutted right proper.

God Save the Queen.

"Good luck to whoever made this, good luck to whoever bought it, may God have mercy on your souls."

In all seriousness though, congrats man!

Good thing I know a thing or two about guitar building, repair, and setup. I mean, I'm no Dan Erlewine (who is?), but I'm a fair hand with a fretfile! :D

CONGRATS! On all the things :) That's some pretty sweet unique gear. Excited to see your video reviews.

It'll be a hot minute, right now I've got to focus on getting the roof back on the house, then getting the walls re-gypsum'd, and fixing one of the rooms floors. That storm did a number on this place, ngl. We had just enough with taxes, insurance, and savings to put it to rights, get a few extras, and start on my studio. Oh yeah, by year's end, it'll be up and running (I hope). Hopefully the guitar videos won't take too long to get up, though. I mean, I may not be the contractor I was (health woes slowed me down for sure), but I'm still fairly quick.

Congrats on the purchases! The koi fish looks sweet. I hope that you get endless enjoyment out of these.

Already loving the Lauren. Got some ebony key tuners picked out for it, some abalone end pins, and going to give it a blast of clear coat to keep the craft herpes--I mean huge chunks of glitter in place. Playability just gotta do a proper setup, some fretwork, and change out those tuners.

After the year it sounds like you've had, I'm so happy to hear there's a new gig with less commuting in your future. Congrats!

Sounds like you'll have a bit more time each day to focus on music & health. I love that.

It's not only that, but family as well. Once the partner finds first shift work, we'll actually be a fairly normal family again, can do the whole "Family game night," or whatever, and assuming this lockdown ever goes away, we've a lovely firepit in our back yard I've recently built that'll do great for campfire style socials!

those are some extremeley eye catching guitars.... I mean, a headless guitar with a stylized koi painted on it?

That's what caught my eye. I mean, as a rule I'm not a flashy guy. Strats, Teles, Hel's Bells, the most "extreme" guitar I own is a bleeding ICX-120 Iceman (well, and a Steinberger and an EART .strandberg clone). So yeah, fairly traditional, but every once in a great while, something catches my eye and, much like those curtains in the window with a certain southern bell, "I just had to have it." May have just dated myself a bit there... Don't care what anyone says. Carol Burnett's version is the best, "bar" none!

So... My final paycheque from my employer that destroyed my hands (nerve/tendon damage) saw me with a bit more'n I normally get. To the tune of almost double. Add that to my "Economic Relief" cheque, plus tax returns... And the partner was very generous in allowing me to buy yet another instrument or two.

So first up, I went ahead and bought The Handpainted Lauren that Jerry was bored and painted featured on Samurai Guitarist's video about horrible Reverb listings. I thought it looked like something that was pulled from the bottom of the ocean, loved the way the listing was worded, and felt that it would be a great way to teach my kid about guitar setup work, without ya know, damaging anything I care too much about.

Jerry didn't take the strings off before he painted it, and it needs a lot of work to make it actually playable, but it does have a pretty nice sound, NGL.

Yes, I know, I know. WHY? I ask myself that. But honestly, it's unique. I dig it for that, and again, it looks like something pulled from the bottom of the ocean, and I didn't name my track "Rain Under the Waves" for no reason, ja?

Moving on. Yesterday, I put an order in for This, a Mountain Guitars Headless .strandberg knockoff. It's supposedly even aped their EndurNeck, which is the main reason I snagged it. All that nerve/tendon damage makes it a pain in the neck (pun ABSOLUTELY intended) to play for extended periods, and I'm hoping that this will help with that. Yes, I could have saved some dosh and went with a different top and got the same benefits of the neck, but I mean, come on--look at that thing! IT'S GOT A FISH ON IT.

I've recently started making (crappy as hells) YouTube videos about the derth of cheap pedals on Amazon. I'll be making video reviews of these as well, once I get a decent place set up in my (currently completely trashed out because HEY! Remember that massive rainstorm that moved through the southeast? Yeah... renovations and repairs are why I didn't get a .strandberg proper) house for it.

Pretty excited about the new job, too. I'll be working first shift, the commute is HALF the time, and those what remember my posting about a practice routine, well, now I'll have all the time in the world to practice in the evenings. I've even signed up for online piano lessons, got some "how to draw" books, pulled out my old computer programming stuff from my university days...

Guys, gals, and non binary pals, I'm about to have a life again.

And I'm FUCKING EXCITED!

Happens rather frequently. Online, I'm FULLY bloody Scots as much as possible, since in person I've had to learn to speak with an, what I guess passes as American? Accent. Actual people from the region I ape could probably tell, but I learned enough of the local dialect that most people can't.

Reason? I'm naturalized US citizen, aye. Born Scots, raised in Africa (missionary parents), but when we moved to the US, where we settled people jumped me because I was "filthy euro trash," so when we moved again, I just started talking like I was from the region we were just in. Kids, man. They're the cruelest form of people on the planet.

Anyroad, that's a bit of a rant, innit? Point being, online I get to be myself, and I am so, unashamedly!

Aye, that was that way I understood it to work. And aye, the Woodpecker is figure 8. Real nice one (imo) for acoustic guitars. Just have to track one down's not damaged, and in my budget. Which not really sure what my budget is at the moment, the partner hasn't greenlit any future spending at current...

Will have to check on that before any future plans, for sure!