[Do You Really Need Long Fingers to Be a Good Guitarist?]

Excuse me a moment while I bang my head against my Music desk. There, much better, thank you . . .

 

Forgive me if I'm about to go over things you already  know, or have researched on your own: I just want to offer a through response, including information that any teacher, or knowledgeable sales person, should go over with you.

 

My first piece of advice would be NOT to sign up with any teacher who tries to limit or diminish your potential before you even start out. If you already have an Instrument, the first thing your teacher should do would be to look over the Instrument with you, to see if it's suitable. If you don't have an Instrument, they should help you find one that does suit you. I've seen young children, with very small hands and small fingers, who managed to find their way around a Guitar neck.

 

My second piece of advice: There is NO One-Size-Fits-All Guitar, anymore than there is one size, shape, or style of Guitarist. Sure, players with really long fingers, like a Jimi Hendrix or an Adrian Belew, have some advantage in reaching for extended intervals, or chord forms, but the Guitar wasn't designed just for Jimi or Adrian. For a player with small hands, there are a few things to consider.

 

I recommend that you never buy any Guitar you haven't held in your hands first. The body size and style, or in the case of a soldibody Electric, the shape, all make a difference in how easy or comfortable the Guitar is to hold, and to play. (Watch someone try to play a Flying V while sitting down.) You want a Guitar that feels good when you hold it, one where you can comfortably reach around the body, and all up and down the fretboard. On any Guitar with Electronics, you want the knobs, switches, or sliders out of your way when you play, but accessible when you want to change settings.

 

Next, and more crucial, are the neck dimensions, and scale length.

 

Scale Length refers to the distance between the Nut and the Bridge. For example, Gibson Guitar have a 24.75-inch Scale Length, while Fender Guitars have a 25.5-inch scale length. This means that the string tension on a Fender Guitar is slightly higher than on a Gibson Guitar, so you need somewhat more pressure to fret notes or chords. It also means that some chord forms will require more of a stretch on a Fender neck than a Gibson neck.

 

Nut width and Neck Radius combine to give you a sense of how wide and flat the fretboard will be. Nut Width essentially = Neck Width.

 

Neck Radius refers to the dimensions of a hypothetical circle, represented by curvature of the fretboard. Classical and Nylon-string guitars have no Neck Radius; their necks tend to be somewhat wider than Steel-string necks, as well.

 

One recommendation for a solid body Electric for a player with small hands, would be the current model Fender Mustang, with a 9.5-inch neck radius and a 24-inch scale length. For an Acoustic, look into some of the Parlor Guitars. And finally, find a teacher who encourages you. An unsupportive or unenthusiastic teacher can be more discouraging than a poorly-made Instrument.

 

[NPD: EQD Space Spiral Delay]

@Caevan O’Shite- Much as I've enjoyed Knobs' videos over time, I find them somewhat misleading, as well. Very often, Knobs is running prerecorded loops of processed sound through the effect being demonstrated, as in this video. Knobs' emphasis on artistry can detract from the usefulness of the information provided.

 

For example, the slow attack (SV-2, Bumblebee, Slow Gear) sound in much of this video isn't produced by the Space Spiral. I'm not sure what else Knobs is using to produce that effect, but the video could easily give you the impression that it's the Spiral. It's not, although it sounds lovely being processed through the Spiral. (Another argument for having a Volume Pedal right before your Delay effects in the signal chain, for "Volume Swell/Fade" effects.)

 

One thing this video points up, without saying so directly, is that the Spiral really could have used an EXP In jack. Many of the more interesting sounds in the video are the result of turning the control knobs IRT, which is hard to do with both hands on your Guitar, Bass, or other Stringed Instrument.

 

Finally, right around the 6:45 - 6:46 mark, you'll hear the "POP", when Knobs presses the footswitch. I'm glad that showed up in the video, although Knobs makes no mention of it when it happens, and I'm not sure how many viewers will notice it.

[NPD: EQD Space Spiral Delay]

@KuruPrionz- Some of the early "stereo" Chorus pedals did exactly what you describe, sending the Modulated signal through one Out jack, and the Dry signal through the other.

 

Sounds like you've condensed your rig down to one folding rolling cart. I wonder if we have the same model? This is the rig I had for a live radio show, some time back. The Rolls Headphone Amp strapped to the top is something the radio station gave me to cannibalize for parts.

 

[NPD: EQD Space Spiral Delay]

Along with my mission to pick up the Viola the other day, I got myself a new, used Delay pedal, an EQD Space Spiral V1 Delay.

 

Earthquaker discontinued the Space Spiral a while back, so I was glad to find one in nearly new condition.

 

It's a Modulated Delay, which isn't quite the same as a classic Memory Man-style Delay w/Modulation pedal. The Space Spiral doesn't add a Modulation effect to the repeats, like the Memory Man, or the Carbon Copy ; it modulates the Delay Time, which can produce extreme Pitch-Bending effects at extreme settings, or something more like a Chorus effect, at lower settings. Turn on one of your favorite Delay pedals, and turn the Delay Time knob back and forth. You'll hear the echoes change pitch and duration while you're turning the knob; that's sort of what the LFO in the Space Spiral does.

 

First up, it runs off of a Princeton PT2399 chip, a Digital chip that can sound "Analog", which is to say, it's not a pristine-sounding Delay. You can generally tell which pedals are likely to have the Princeton chip, as they'll often tout "Analog-like" sound, will usually have some form of Modulation or Filtering added to the Delay, and they tend to top out somewhere between 300 and 600 milliseconds. I've seen some very cagey promo copy using phrases like "Analog warmth" without specifically saying that something is an Analog circuit, and at least one line (Modtone) calling their Delay pedal an Analog Delay, when it's not.

 

You can push a PT chip near 900 milliseconds or so, but the sound quality degrades quickly. Catalinbread's Bicycle Delay, J. Rockett's Immortal Echo, Mojo Hand FX' Mirror Ball, and JHS' Pink Panther are just some of the pedals using the PT chip. There are a LOT more than you may expect.

 

One issue with many, but not all PT-based Delays; when you hit the switch, you'll hear that old familiar "POP" that some of us remember all too well from our first pedals back in the 70's. It's a feature, not a bug, to use the current phraseology. My Bicycle Delay does it, the Space Spiral does it, and I've read reviews of other PT-based pedals that do it. Some players have them in a discrete loop, which seems cumbersome. For my purposes, it'll be an always-ON effect, so I'm not concerned with the noise.

 

The controls are pretty simple and straightforward. The top row has knobs for Time, Repeats, and Mix, which are self-evident. The bottom row has Depth, Shape, and Rate. The Shape control takes the Mod waveform from a fairly smooth Triangle Wave to a choppier Square Wave setting.

 

The pedal can go from subtle to seasick, depending on the Mod settings, and the Delay Time. Long Delay times with slow, deep Triangle Wave Modulation will have you heaving over the rails. You can use it as a more-or-less conventional Delay pedal, if you dial back the Depth & Rate controls to Zero (around 7 o'clock), but why bother? PT chip-based Delays aren't noted for their sound quality, even beyond the switch-popping issue.

 

I got this for my live Novparolo pedalboard, which held a Quantum Drive (local boutique Dual OD/Distortion), a Keeley Seafoam Chorus V1, and a Malekko 616 Analog Delay (a personal favorite), in the S/R loop of a GR-20 Guitar Synth. In that board, I keep all three pedals ON, as "thickeners" for the Guitar signal. It really makes a difference in how they blend with the Guitar Synth tones. For now, I've swapped out the 616 for the Space Spiral, for a more textured sound.

 

If anyone is interested, I've found that a completely Dry Guitar signal just sounds anemic when blended back in with the Guitar Synth tones, while heavy Distortion or over-processed tones wind up sounding like I'm in my own way. Getting the two signals to play nicely together is part of the fun, and an essential part of the technique.

 

FWIW, there were 2 versions of the Space Spiral, and mine is a V1. V2 had what EQD calls a Variswitch; tap it for normal On/Off function, or press-&-hold for Momentary function. Not a critical feature for my purposes, but I can see where it might be very useful, especially in something like the Rainbow Machine, where you might want to bring that sound in briefly for an accent effect, then have it drop back out.

[OT: Wish me luck!]

Thanks, everyone!

 

Brought it home early this afternoon, and tomorrow, I'll start looking for some introductory online instructions.

 

I also have a truly great resource nearby, in that one of my local Musician buddies is a Luthier, with his own Violin shop and studio. He asp happens to LOVE the Viola over the Violin. His shop is also right up here in my neighborhood, a long walk, but still, within walking distance. When I get to where I can find at least a few notes without causing anyone pain, I'll take some real-life lessons with him, or whichever of his teachers he recommends. FWIW, I would gladly have bought an Instrument from his shop, but even his student-quality Instruments are wa-a-ay out of my price range.

 

BTW, @Sharkman, I appreciate, and even endorse your suggestion in general - some Instruments are only fit for someone commit Art upon them, preferably with power tools or incendiary devices. (I was very fond of 80's Industrial Music, like Art Of Noise and Test Dept..)

 

However, if I fail with this Viola, it's already worth more than I paid for it, so I'd probably sell it or trade it in for something useful. It really is a decent Instrument, so at the very least, it should go to a good home if I can't care for it properly.

 

 

[OT: Wish me luck!]

I've had it in my head for a while to take up a new Instrument, something I don't already know how to play. (Anyone else remember Portsmouth Sinfonia?) It's partly looking for a new sound, but it's more about challenging my brain and my hands to take on something unfamiliar.

 

Among the contenders, I'd considered Lap Steel, Fretless Bass, something from the Violin family, maybe a Theremin? I saw a lot of junkers and wall-hangers, among lots of things I can't afford, and then I turned up a very nice student Viola, at the Folk & World Music store where I used to work.

 

I went to look at it, and some folks there were kind enough to play it for me, so I could hear it. The owner, whom I've known for over 30 years, was there, and offered me an even better price than the posted sale price, for an "old friends" discount, and the sale price was already enough to have brought me into the store to look at it.

 

The Viola originally came from a local Violin store that we know, so I knew it was a decent Instrument to begin with. It's a 14-inch Viola, which means it's much closer to the size of a 4/4 Violin, with a slightly deeper body. The price is right, it comes with a case, bow, and shoulder rest, and when I sent the link to a Luthier buddy, who builds and plays the Viola, he said, "Go for it."

 

FWIW, I turned 68 last month, so I have no illusion that I'm going to live long enough to master this thing, but that's no excuse not to try something new, while I can. It'll be Spring here soon, so I can spend some time sitting outdoors, sawing and scraping away at it until I start to find where all the notes live. Be glad you don't live next door . . .

 

That's my mission for today, friends, so wish me luck. I'll need it.

 

 

[Anybody recognize this guy's guitar?]

@Caevan O’Shite- Short answer, yes. The bridge plus the lighter version of the Walnut stain put it right in the mid-70's for me.

 

The Cherry Red stain is generally much darker and redder than the stain on the Guitar in the video clip, while the older Walnut stain was also somewhat darker. Look at pics of PT's SG Special at Woodstock, for example.

 

That one looks very well cared-for, because those bridges tended to corrode from long use, and, to be blunt, sweat. It wasn't long before Gibson went back to the stock T.O.M. bridge & stop tailpiece combo. OTOH, I don't think it's a great idea to have any playable Guitar mounted on the wall by its neck, particularly not an SG. Tragedy waiting to happen . . .

[Anybody recognize this guy's guitar?]

Yeah, I caught that one last night . . .

 

The bridge and the stain put it in the mid-1970's, like @Caevan O’Shitesez. Previously, you had your choice of a darker "Walnut" stain, or "Cherry Red".

 

There was an Ampeg solid-body line around that time, Guitar and Bass, with a very similar design, but the body was more deeply contoured than the SG.

[POST YOUR MUSIC HERE, To Share It With The Forum!]

 

[Roger Waters and Dark Side Of The Moon]

It's hard for me to think of Pink Floyd in terms of one album, or one era. There were arguably several versions of the band, before DSOTM, and Waters' commandeering of the band as a vehicle for his personal issues and resentments, or so it seemed? There are also far too many Pink Floyd "fans" who never really heard of nor listened to the band before 1973.

 

I still remember hearing "Piper At The Gates Of Dawn" as a young longhair, and loving the sound of that band, which was a rather short-lived version of Pink Floyd.

Interstellar Overdrive, See Emily Play, and The Gnome are still three of my favorite tunes, of any band, from any era. Interstellar . . . offered a blueprint for bands like Hawkwind to build on, See Emily Play was pure, unabashed Psychedelia, and IMHO, Waters never wrote a lyric as simple, and yet moving, as this  . . .

 

"Look At The Sky,

Look At The River,

Isn't It Good?

Look At The Sky,

Look At The River,

Isn't  It Good?"

 

Here endeth the rant. Thank you for listening . . .

[Thinking About this mod for my pre-war Martin]

My brain hurts just looking at that. Where to begin?

 

Alright, first thing I notice is that the soundtrack doesn't seem to quite line up with what his hands are doing? That could be just a slight playback glitch, but IDK?

 

Second, I don't really hear any of the Guitar's Acoustic properties in that video. I'm hearing what sounds like a heavily processed Piezo PU sound, throughout.

 

Third, when Ovation first introduced the offset, epaulet Soundholes on their Elite models, they discovered that drilling Soundholes in the lower/treble-side bout of the body lost volume and tone, rather than improving it in any way. I've seen Ovation Elites where the player either stuffed some cloth behind those lower soundholes, or just resorted to a strip of tape, and the improvement is noticeable.

 

Finally, watching that guy just randomly drilling holes in the top of that Guitar, I have to wonder how much of the bracing is compromised, and if he gave any thought at all to what he was doing? I'm waiting for the follow-up video, where the top collapses into itself, or the string tension tears the thing apart. It's all fun and games until someone goes an eye . . .

[cool new effects]

12 hours ago, hurricane hugo said:

Again with a write-up instead of a video, but this is a very intriguing device for blending 2 signal chains together:  https://thesoundparcel.co/products/gfi-system-duophony?_pos=21&_sid=3f16fe3b4&_ss=r&utm_source=The+Sound+Parcel&utm_campaign=fddfb745df-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_07_03_02_34_COPY_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_44f9d16a39-fddfb745df-405680057&mc_cid=fddfb745df&mc_eid=147b03036d

 

Conceptually, it seems like it's not that much different from a Mixer with built-in effects?

[What's in your eyes? (as OT as you make it)]

Speaking of Dune, I often think of Herbert's line, "To stay awake all night adds a day to your life."

 

Got up yesterday at around 2 AM, to watch the snow coming down. By around 6 AM, it was done, and by lunchtime, all but the shadiest spots were clear again, but at least I got to see it. If you love Winter, which I do, living in D.C. is much like being a surfer, or a mountain climber, and moving to Kansas.

 

I usually let my dogs out around 5 AM, so I get to see the earliest part of the day, and the colors at dawn are like an Impressionist's dream palette, warm pinks and purple, hints of gold, with the stark outlines of the bare trees for contrast. It's often the nicest part of the day, because those warm colors usually mean a new weather front moving in, with varying shades of grey.

 

Mars has been visible the last few nights, but there's too much ambient light to get a good look at that green comet, even with my high-powered binoculars. Maybe when it comes around again . . .

 

The first Crocus blooms are already coming out in one of my flowerbeds, and the Hyacinths have been poking through for a couple of weeks. I was out the other day cutting back Honeysuckle, Vinca vine, and English Ivy, because like Rust, Vines Never Sleep. If I don't get ahead of them now, I'll never get ahead of them.

 

No, I haven't been going much of anywhere, nor doing much of anything interesting. February is the quiet time for my work, between the holidays and the beginning of Spring, so I tend to things at home. The holidays were also very expensive, and not in a fun way; more like "The Sound Of Things Falling Apart." Spending some time in my own garden with my dogs is a nice break.

[Off-topic PSA: Dying intestate is a P.I.T.A.- take care of your “final arrangements”.]

I've seen both sides of this - families fighting over property, especially real estate, and people dying suddenly, while leaving a huge pile of stuff for someone to sort through and unload.

 

The other consideration - a prolonged court battle becomes much like the ancient image of a snake eating its own tail. Any potential windfall for either side is slowly and steadily diminished by lawyers' fees and court costs: Doubleplusnotgood.

[Joyo battery operated power supply.]

16 hours ago, Caevan O’Shite said:

If you disconnect the plugs from the inputs of each of your pedals between gigs and practice sessions, their batteries should last you pretty well.

 

More to the point, if you leave the Input/Output jacks connected, even with nothing powered On, you'll probably drain old-school carbon-zinc batteries overnight. Alkaline batteries will last much longer, but you'd still be wasting much of their potential life by leaving the pedals connected.

 

Plugging into the Input Jacks engages the batteries, so you really have to think of them as always-On. With many pedals that accept either battery power or AC adapters, plugging into the AC jack dis-engages the batteries (you don't have to have a Power Supply connected nor powered up, just a daisy-chain cable will do the trick) but you're still better off to disconnect any Inputs on any battery-powered pedal, Amp, or MFX.

[Joyo battery operated power supply.]

I'd suggest looking at some of those 1 Star reviews, as well.

 

Overheating, and random resetting seemed to be two of the main complaints. Several users said that the Outputs aren't isolated, so noise is an issue, and there's the likelihood that your most demanding gear will be drawing power away from other parts of your live rig.

 

IME, even under ideal conditions, rechargeable batteries still use more energy than they give back, and over time, the law of diminishing returns takes over; they can become less effective at holding a charge.

[Searching for compressor]

@Larryz- Any of the current line of Boss pedals with an "x" in the name, like your CP-1x, are Digital pedals, running off of a recent Boss DSP chip. They have a much higher Current Draw than old-school Analog Compressor pedals.

 

The old Boss CS-2, my first Compressor, drew 4mA, and the later model CS-3 only drew 11mA. Your CP-1x draws a whopping 90mA, which will suck the life out of a battery in no time. By comparison, even the Boss DD-7 Digital Delay only draws 55mA. Put a non-alkaline battery, like an Eveready Black Cat (yes, they still make them) in the CP-1x, and you might get an hour out of it.

 

[According to you all, what are the top 3 guitar pedals for beginners?]

The way the question, and the post, were phrased, sounded too much like the language in a marketing survey, so I looked up our new member, and went to the website listed for her.

 

I have to wonder why someone who's listed as a Marketing Manager for a Guitar-oriented website is asking for advice and opinions on a Guitar-oriented chat website? How many of our suggestions are going to show up, edited and condensed, as an article on that site? "Three Best Guitar Pedals For Beginners!"

 

Yeah, I'm cynical, but really . . .

[David Crosby, The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash Founder, Dies at 81]

Deja Vu, indeed! Just looking at that album cover is like traveling through Time. Such a loss . . .

[cool new effects]

As someone who still has a rack full of signal processors, you'll wind up with an EXP Pedal or three, at least one Footswitch to advance through Patches, another just for On/Off, and suddenly, your rack has given birth to another pedalboard. Congratulations, you're back where you started! Well, sort of . . .

[Cleaning house, suddenly in a trash it or sell it mood.]

A long time back, a good friend's brother offered a useful comparison.

 

Musicians may have a lot of gear, and almost certainly have some attachment to their gear, but they also have a use for each piece of gear.

 

Collectors may have a lot of gear, but very often, their goal is the collecting, in and of itself.

 

I've seen one house with Guitars hanging on nearly every wall, but the homeowner/collector didn't really play, and the Guitars themselves didn't represent an investment, like a collection of Vintage Instruments would. It was just a bunch of perfectly good Guitars largely going to waste as wall-hangers. Seemed a shame.

[cool new effects]

4 hours ago, Dannyalcatraz said:

I might have to pass this along to my recently deceased maternal aunt’s 2nd ex.  He’s a studio/session musician & producer out of NOLA, and his personal rig has become progressively more MIDI-centric.  

 

If he's getting deep into MIDI gear, a good MIDI Patchbay, or even a small MIDI Splitter box would also be helpful. Makes it easier to connect multiple MIDI devices to a common Controller. With a MIDI Patchbay, I can pull stunts like having each Guitar String driving a different Synth, over a different MIDI Channel.

[cool new effects]

It's not really a "Cool New Effect", but . . .

 

This thing is intriguing, if you're using a variety of MIDI-controlled gear live. It wants to be a sort of Swiss Army Knife of Controllers, with three different types of MIDI I/O, an EXP Control In jack, and a Utility Out jack that seems to function as an external control footswitch. (Think Tap Tempo, Hold effects, that sort of thing.)

 

I like the idea, but I think anyone who really needs something like this would also need more of, well, everything, MIDI I/O's, more switches, and more Utility Out jacks, so in the end, you'd wind up with something much like the big red pedalboard the guy holds up early in the demo video. If you already have a pedalboard-style MFX, you can probably duplicate many of the Futurist's MIDI control functions, and some of its other control functions, from your existing pedalboard.

 

FWIW, if you're not using much, or any, MIDI gear, this video will probably be of little interest to you, but it is an indication of where things are going.

 

 

[Man, I miss modules and racks …]

Funny coincidence, I was just working on one of my Synth racks last night.

Guitar is my main Instrument, so my focus is mainly on the sound engines, and I've had very good luck finding used hardware Synths. One of my personal favorites is my WaveStation SR, which cost me $150 at a local GC. I also have a TX81Z, a Proteus 2000, and a D-110, all of which are in good working order. (I also have a number of KB Synths, but we're talking Modules here, so . . .) I tend to drive everything with a Roland GR-series Guitar Synth, usually my GR-30 or GR-33. I also have a GR-20 and a GR-1, but I love driving other Synths with the Arpeggiators in the GR-30 and GR-33.

 

I'm not going to try to start an argument over which or what is better, hardware vs software, digital vs analog, cats vs dogs, or what-have-you, although I'll admit to a certain fondness for affordable, or cheap, hardware. In terms of what I wanted, and a what I could afford, I'm very happy with what I've got, and it works for me, which is the real issue.

 

[Anyone here ever played or owned a Gibson Chet Atkins classical electric guitar?]

I remember playing one, briefly, way back when? There was also a less expensive Epiphone model, and a "Studio" model, without the sound hole, much like some of the current Godin Nylon String Electrics. I've only seen the Studio model depicted online, never encountered one IRL.

 

The main thing I recall about the original SST is that it was surprisingly heavy, much more like a solidbody than a semi-hollow, and the soundhole seemed to be cosmetic, if not altogether superfluous?