#1333491 - 01/27/01 07:35 PM
I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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joseph@andrews.edu
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ok, first im a moron and don't know too much about guitar. ahh. much better. Ok, how the hell do you get a tremolo bar to work??? I spin the bar into the hole and it goes, but it never stops! Do you need a screw or bolt nut or something under the string block or is my crappy tremolo-area busted? Secondly, what is an effects loop? Is that some sort of... i really have no idea. Thirdly, what is a good cheap amp that is pretty loud and good and sounds good. I mean, CHEAP. Im a poor seventeen year old and i don't work cuz im lazy and my parents won't let me. I have this Peavey Decade that's 10 watts, and it sounds pretty good in my uneducated opinion. However, i can't get any clean sounds out of it no matter how much i tweak everything. Also, the sound changes sometimes so i think it's busted. There. Im finished.
wait! I have a post idea!
What makes a guitar player, a GOOD guitar player. Where is the cut off in determining skill?
Thank you for your time
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#1333492 - 01/27/01 08:14 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Tedster
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Well, Joseph, you sound like a natural for rock and roll!  Seriously, though, don't call yourself a moron. "Newbie" yes, "moron", no.
Well, does your trem bar have screw threads in it? The ones that do should stop at some point, but some just pop in, so you wouldn't be able to thread them. If it is a threaded kind and just goes around, you can still use it, unless it falls out right when you go to reach for it.
As to your other thing, what makes a "good" guitar player? There are as many answers to that as people that play. Rule #1, please yourself. #2, always strive to improve, no matter how good you think you are. #3, "Good" and "bad" are so subjective, but try to model your playing after someone you think is "good". If you're a beginner, and you like Steve Morse, this could be problematic, so keep your goals realistic. Don't listen to Steve Morse and say "Well, I can't play like that, so I'm no good". Just set little goals, tackle each one, and don't bite off more than you can chew at each time. And even if Steve Morse (or the like) is your icon, there are certain elements of his playing even a novice would be able to incorporate. Strive for that.
For me, a good player is one that possesses a certain amount of technical expertise, and backs it up with soulful playing.
It's not the destination, it's the journey. Enjoy the ride...
_________________________
"Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine...(WAH WAH WAH WAHHH!)"
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#1333493 - 01/28/01 03:23 AM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Chip McDonald
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Registered: 01/19/00
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Loc: Augusta, Ga. USA
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by joseph@andrews.edu:
string block or is my crappy tremolo-area busted?
I hate it when my crappy tremolo-area busts, I can't afford medical insurance...
Fender arms screw in until they either stop or get stripped out. If it's a Floyd Rose style, you adjust the amount of free play by tightening the upper bolt in conjunction with one under the base plate. If it's a non-threaded push-in Ibanez style - it doesn't work that way anyhow and you have to either put new grommets on it tighten the spring-expander tensioner on the arm receiver that's part of the base plate.
Secondly, what is an effects loop?
"Basically" it allows to you bypass the electronics in your amp that the signal hits first - that is responsible for the overdriven/distorted sound, the preamp stage - so you don't have to distort your effects. Think of it as an electronic diverted stream...
Thirdly, what is a good cheap amp that is pretty loud and good and sounds good. I
Peavey Classic 30. Cheaper than that (about $350 I think) - hmm. One of the small Fender solid state amps, but they sound pretty thin. Cheaper than that - a used solid state Crate.
What makes a guitar player, a GOOD guitar player.
Why is blue better than sticky?
Where is the cut off in determining skill?
Depends on the music you're into, but probably it's higher than you might imagine initially and no doubt higher than your friends would probably have you believe.
http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald
_________________________
www.chipmcdonald.com (tagline inlieu of having a representational page of downloadable music for the moment...) / "big ass windbag" - Bruce Swedien
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#1333494 - 01/28/01 09:43 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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joseph@andrews.edu
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my trem bar is the threaded kind, but it just seems to go on Forever. Oh well.
Thanks
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#1333495 - 01/29/01 03:06 AM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Uh Clem
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Loc: Atlanta, GA USA
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Originally posted by joseph@andrews.edu:
my trem bar is the threaded kind, but it just seems to go on Forever. Oh well.
Thanks
On the Strats with threaded trem bars there is supposed to be a spring in the hole - it is not attached and easily falls out. Maybe your guitar is a Strat (if you are lucky) or something with a similar trem bar.
You should take your guitar to a tech (or get a spring) and your amp to a shop. And get over being lazy - it is not an ingredient for success at guitar or anything else that I can think of right off.
Also, lose the "Moron and Stupid" merit badges. They're no more hip than being lazy.
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#1333496 - 01/29/01 04:04 AM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Anonymous
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Rule #1. Always listen to Tedster.He is very wise...
Rule #2. At 17 trs. old, don't worry about getting another amp. GET A GOOD TEACHER!!!!! Find someone who can teach you some theory and give you good fundamentals. This (along with plenty of practice) will help you get good fast. Who knows, in a couple of years you might be giving me some advice. Good luck.
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#1333497 - 01/29/01 04:23 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Anonymous
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Hi Joseph
Gotta say FWIW I am in total agreement with Khan... follow that and you won't go far wrong. I never had a teacher, learnt everything I know by ear.... I sometimes reckon it would have been a darn sight easier if i had gotten the fundementals pegged at an early stage..... I probably wouldn't have got into half the bad habits if I had done so. Maybe on the plus side, however, it made Ted Green's Chord Chemistry make sense to me.....Hmmm well now that's another issue.
Simon
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#1333499 - 01/29/01 10:17 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Anonymous
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If you want to be in the music business, give as much attention to singing as playing.
Players who can sing always gig.
A good singer blows away a great instrumentalist. Always.
Your singing skills can transfer to your playing skills more effectively thean visa versa.
You'll be a more valuable guitarist if you can sing well.
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#1333500 - 01/29/01 10:55 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Chip McDonald
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Registered: 01/19/00
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Originally posted by jtegan@tiac.net:
Players who can sing always gig.
Players who can sing tend to gig more than those who don't...
A good singer blows away a great instrumentalist. Always.
Don't plan on that "always"...
Your singing skills can transfer to your playing skills more effectively thean visa versa.
Possibly.
You'll be a more valuable guitarist if you can sing well.
Truth.
Singing is *not* something mysterious that only some people can do. Everyone can do it to an extent, and one of my biggest regrets is not trying to get into it when I started to play guitar.
http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald
_________________________
www.chipmcdonald.com (tagline inlieu of having a representational page of downloadable music for the moment...) / "big ass windbag" - Bruce Swedien
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#1333501 - 01/29/01 11:51 PM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Tedster
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>>A good singer blows away a great instrumentalist. Always.
Don't plan on that "always"...
Well, actually, sad truth be known Chip, it's closer to "always" than not. I'm not talking about quality...I'm talking about popularity, and hence, employability. Who do you consider a "good" singer, not amazing, but good? Like, let's say, Jewel. Now, let's take a great instrumentalist, like Al Dimeola, or Sonny Rollins. Sure, once in a while, a Ricky Skaggs will wander on the scene and impress the hell out of everyone with his chops, but usually, it's the vocals that sell.
I'm not saying I agree with it, or that's the way it should be...just the way it is. Cut a music video with Jewel singing and Al Dimeola playing guitar. The focus will be on Jewel. Santana got lucky because of his great marketing savvy...
_________________________
"Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine...(WAH WAH WAH WAHHH!)"
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#1333502 - 01/30/01 01:10 AM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Anonymous
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>>A good singer blows away a great instrumentalist. Always.
Maybe I'm wrong. I mean Hendrix' playing always blew me away. However I remember watching Herbie Hancock on a TV show play his magic, then a R&B songwriter came on with a guitar and sang his song.
Don't remember who the singer was or what the song was. It was just a simple melody with simple chords and the guy had a good voice but the musical and emotional impact of this person singing was more effective to me than the sophistication and virtuosity of Herbie's playing.
Joe
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#1333503 - 01/30/01 04:33 AM
Re: I'm a Moron and Stupid Guitar Wanna-Player
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Chip McDonald
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Originally posted by Tedster:
>>A good singer blows away a great instrumentalist. Always.
Well, actually, sad truth be known Chip, it's closer to "always" than not.
I didn't say that it wasn't. I said "don't count on "always"". In other words - it's *not* always. It's subjective, not an empirical quantity.
on the scene and impress the hell out of everyone with his chops, but usually, it's the vocals that sell.
I'm not disputing that vocals sell records, I never said otherwise.
Cut a music video with Jewel singing and Al Dimeola playing guitar. The focus will be on Jewel. Santana got lucky because of his great marketing savvy...
Maybe if Al got some implants and lip gloss? No? Still not the same?
HOWEVER
A "good" singer does not blow away a great instrumentalist *in my book*.
In fact...
While a great singer isn't going to improve how a great instrumentalist comes across, a great instrumentalist can make a "good" singer come across as "great".... Some names:
David Gilmour
Eddie VanHalen
Mark Knopfler
Dave Matthews
Jimi Hendrix
Great instrumentalists behind "good" singers.
Where does a "good" singer blow away a "great" instrumentalist?
All my (original) main point of contention was merely that it is not an absolute that a "good" singer is going to "blow away" a "great instrumentalist".
That a "good" singer can be more popular than a "great instrumentalist" obviously isn't an issue...
http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald
_________________________
www.chipmcdonald.com (tagline inlieu of having a representational page of downloadable music for the moment...) / "big ass windbag" - Bruce Swedien
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