Winston Psmith
-
Posts
5,042 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Events
Articles
Downloads
Gallery
Store
Posts posted by Winston Psmith
-
-
I had a small errand this morning, which was going to bring me within range of the nearest GC, so I thought I'd go grab some of the parts I wanted for the Affinity Strat. So I thought . . .
First off, there was almost no one there. This is a BIG warehouse-sized store, so it's very noticeable when it's empty: picture your nearest Wal-Mart or Costco, with no customers. Second, I saw LOTS of empty shelf space, and a multitude of empty Guitar racks? It looked more like a store in the process of closing down, than anything else.
Bear in mind that the next nearest GC on this side of the river is way up the road in Laurel, Maryland, which isn't at all close, and otherwise, the next nearest GC stores are all over in Virginia, so this is the main GC location right on top of D.C. proper; there are NO Guitar Centers within the city. D.C. is full of Musicians, so you would think GC would make a serious investment in keeping this particular store well-staffed, and well-stocked . . . unless the idea is to LOSE money?
One guy was hauling starter Guitar kits from somewhere, and when I asked him why the store looked depleted, he told me that they don't have enough staff to stock inventory, never mind sales staff.
I stood looking at the Parts Counter for a few minutes, with no one offering to help, or asking what I might want, so I went ahead and started pulling the few things I needed - and then I waited.
The guy with the starter Guitar kits had disappeared, probably to go dig out more of the same. There was one young guy hanging sets of strings on the wall, but apparently, he's not allowed to do sales, or much of anything else? I waited around for longer than I wanted to, and once I'd decided to put everything back where I'd found it, and leave, someone finally appeared. He was very apologetic, which meant less than nothing to me by that point, and when he asked, "Would you like me to ring that up right away?", I said, "I would have, 20 minutes ago," and then I left. I did make it a point to call and speak with a manager, once I got home, to tell him that the next nearest Music store was very grateful for my business.
When I worked in Music Retail, it was heavily impressed on us that our first priority was the customer standing at the counter. It didn't matter how much gear you had in stock, or how good your prices were, if you weren't actively serving the people who came in to do business. I know GC has never been at the forefront of customer service, but it really seems that they've given up altogether.
-
4
-
1
-
1
-
-
20 hours ago, p90jr said:
I woke up this morning and succumbed to the Moog Grandmother Synth as the SDOTD for $350-cheaper than usual... they seemed to sell out of the deal quickly.
It was an impulsive thing... maybe I'll flip it and make a few hundred bucks?Thats QUITE an impulse buy!
-
1
-
-
11 hours ago, Scott Fraser said:
I have plenty of volume pedals for swells from silence. That's a major component of what I do. But there's an effect that Bill Frissell uses a lot, where the attack is present, but the note or chord swells in after that, rather like a pedal steel effect. It's subtle & almost sounds like a very heavy compression thing with a slow attack, slow enough that the natural attack is preserved.
@Scott Fraser- Couple of thoughts. Bill Frisell used one of the big green Line 6 Delay Modelers as part of his rig, and it could be that he was using the Auto-Volume Echo, which also doubles as an Attack Delay effect, like the Slow Gear or Crescendo. More recently, the Walrus SLO Reverb has a Rise effect, where the Reverb swells in behind your playing. Very nice . . .
-
4
-
-
10 hours ago, Doerfler said:
page already gone, you must have bought it.
Not me, I wasn't about to drive to Fairfax in 90-degree weather for anything, thank you. Northern Virginia traffic is a little slice of Hell on Earth, as you've probably experienced. If you've ever made the trek to "the Lube"*, 'nuff said.
Local venue notorious for horrific access, and demolition derby parking lots. "Abandon Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here."
-
2
-
-
My final word on the subject - at least I think so?
Not looking to get yet another Affinity Strat, thanks, but seeing this at a nearby GC really settled the cost vs. value issue for me - Used Affinity Strat.
$85 for a Pickguard that might not really be an improvement, or $65 for a spare Guitar, one that looks pretty damned clean for "Fair" condition. I'm good with what I've got. No point messing with mediocrity.
-
4
-
-
One thing I've noticed lately, when checking on concert tickets - the first links that come up are almost invariably re-seller/ticket broker sites, NOT the link to the venue or the legitimate ticket seller. Very often, these sites will be posting prices for events where tickets haven't even gone on sale, and the prices listed are way beyond face value!
Not long ago, a noted D.C. comic, with a huge local following, was doing a show here in D.C., where the re-seller's prices for single seats were more than absurd, in the 4-digit range, but those were often the first prices people saw when they tried to search for tickets. This show was guaranteed to be a sellout event, and thus a serious opportunity for ticket scammers. The situation was so ridiculous, and had local people so angry, it made some local news reports.
FWIW, I paid $95 each for floor seats for King Crimson's last D.C. show, and $55 each for floor seats for Steve Hackett, going through the legitimate ticket vendors.
-
13 hours ago, Scott Fraser said:
Choosing not to do something IS choosing to do something.
Or, as the song goes, "If You Choose Not To Decide, You Still Have Made A Choice".
I'm just being realistic. It's a decent beater Guitar, but sinking money into it isn't going to substantially change that. It's playable, just as it is, and if the sound isn't exactly stellar, it's useable. With some tone contouring via my MFX, it sounds better than you might think from just looking at it. That was certainly my experience, once I'd done some tweaking and tuning.
If it really needed a major overhaul, $80-85 might not sound too bad, but I don't think I would have taken in a real wall-hanger, knowing that it would just cost me good money just to make it playable.
I already had some good straps on hand, a spare set of Schaller strap locks ready to install, and I always keep a supply of string sets, so the only money I've really spent is $40 for a good, used HSC. I won't mind spending another $20 or so on it, to replace some cheap plastic parts and some springs, and that'll be more than enough.
-
3
-
-
3 hours ago, Larryz said:
WP, I won't swear to it, but I have seen comments on having to drill new holes on Squires when installing stock Fender pickguards. The holes don't always line up for some reason, depending on where the Squire was made. It's not a big deal unless you don't want to drill on yours and have a cool return policy, like the one from MF. I thought I would mention it. 😎
@Larryz- The stock Fender Pickguards almost definitely would not line up properly with my Affinity; even some of the Pickguards being marketed for Squiers don't always quite line up, and other after-market parts are a crapshoot.
There are also too many iterations of the various Squier models. Even if we're just talking about the Affinity Strat, I can think of at least 5 slightly different versions, from different factories, or with a different country-of-origin, and even different body thicknesses: one size doesn't necessarily fit all, or any.
I've decided to choose the path of least resistance, and forgo the Pickguard replacement. I'm honestly not convinced I'll get $80-85 worth of satisfaction out of it, if that makes sense to everyone?
I'll head out to my nearest GC, and get a black switch tip, or a box of 3(?), some generic black knob covers, and some extra Trem block tension springs, and those should more than do, for now. A few black parts will change the look a bit, and the additional springs should trim 1/64th or so off the action, which is all it needs right now. Maybe later on, I'll look around to scavenge some spare parts for it, or cannibalize some other beater, but for now, it's playable, which is all that really matters, especially for a free, beater Guitar.
-
2
-
1
-
-
I know the Pickguard itself won't change anything but the look. I'm less sure about the PU's & pots mounted in it, although I can't see how they'd be any worse than the stock parts. It seems unlikely that Fender would make a "downgrade" kit? Imagine the ad copy -
"Does your cheap-o Squier sound TOO good to be believed? Downgrade your tone with the new Crap-O-Caster Pickguard Kit!"
Right; why would anyone even bother?
There are less expensive pre-wired Pickguards from GFS, but there's no way size one next to the Squier, without ordering one and hoping everything fits. At least with the Fender kit, the repair guy and I can look at it together, and compare the measurements to the body of the Squier, before we do anything.
-
3
-
-
Oversized Trem blocks, over-long PU screws, 5-way switches that were too large for the depth of the body cavity, there are all kinds of fun things that can mess with what should be simple upgrades. Not looking to turn this into a money-wasting project, by any means.
I'm even re-thinking the Pickguard swap, because I'm not entirely convinced that I'm going to get much difference in terms of sound, nor playability. If I'm really just getting an $80-85 cosmetic upgrade, there are other things I could do with that money. I did find a good used HSC for $40, so I'm pleased with that.
BTW, @KuruPrionz , I may put that "WINSTON" headstock decal on it, just because . . .
-
2
-
-
9 hours ago, Caevan O’Shite said:
@Winston Psmith- A caveat, regarding pre-loaded pickguards...
Be sure that a prospective pre-loaded pickguard and the pots and pickups and switch loaded thereon will fit inside the routed-out cavity; the bodies of the Squier Affinity series are shallower than others, with shallower cavities- and some parts will be too big to simply install the pickguard, unless one routs out deeper segments- IF that can even be done without simply making a hole through the back of the guitar!
I've already read up on this issue. One case where "Parts Is Parts" doesn't quite follow.
Supposedly, this is a Fender product designed as an upgrade kit for Squier Guitars? Measure twice, etc. . . .
-
3
-
-
Couldn't resist sharing this one . . .
-
3
-
-
A buddy is the local Guild rep, and he has one on hand. I'll see if we can meet up, so I can give a full report.
-
4
-
-
The Buzz Feiten tuning system was a very cool idea that somehow never spread around? Craig Anderton described a dual-Guitar recording technique, using one Guitar with a standard nut, and another with a Buzz Feiten system. It produces a sound almost like a natural Chorus/Detuning effect when you heard the two Guitars together.
-
3
-
-
Tele-Uke's and Mandobirds - maybe we need to start looking at a new Musical genre? Electro-Grass?
-
1
-
1
-
-
@surfergirl- If it makes any difference to you, the store where you got your Fulltone 2b would have already paid for it, so you were just helping them make their money back on it.
-
3
-
-
@Caevan O’Shite - I'll try to dig into the Pedal Bend later today, give you my opinion. FWIW, the Pedal Bend effect has a 4 Octave Range, -24/+24 semi-tones. Serious dive-bombing . . .
-
2
-
-
Back, more or less, to the pedal realm, one of the cleanest Pitch-Shift/Pitch-Bending effects I've heard is the Pedal Bend effect on the Boss MFX. I know it has to be running off the same DSP as the other Pitch effects, but it just sounds better. Well worth trying, if you get a chance.
-
3
-
-
10 minutes ago, KuruPrionz said:
Touch screen behind the bridge with every possible effect in a menu, select that and the effect comes up with sliders (not "knobs"") on the screen so you can change settings in real time.
Simultaneously adjust pitch and modulation speed for that moment of sea-sick glory moving into a rotary speaker tone, then slide the extortion up a bit to add growl. Etc., ad infinitum...
And stuff. That's a future I would love to see happen!!!!
And not just e-ffects, what about de-fects? D does come before E, right? 😇
These are words with a "D", this time . . .
In all seriousness, what you're describing is very much the sort of thing the Korg Kaoss Pads do . . . and it's not exactly the ideal control interface for Guitar effects. I have both the original KO-1 Kaossilator (compact Touch Screen Synth), and the 1st Gen Mini-KP Kaoss Pad (Touch Screen Effects). Matt Bellamy of Muse had one or the other mounted into at least one Guitar.
I've also tried the Source Audio "Hot Hand" Controller, which is essentially a Ring/Sensor that you wear, so you can, in theory, move your hand in the air to change FX Parameters.
The main problem with both approaches is that you really need a 3rd hand, in order to play the Guitar AND manipulate the effects IRT; with two hands, you can either play the Guitar or tweak the effects.
-
1
-
-
I think it was Washburn(?) who made an A/E Guitar with the Nut pre-cut for Nashville Tuning. Very pretty sound, with the right Guitar.
For now, I've got it as close to where I want it as I can get it, without starting to invest in after-market parts. First up would be a new set of Trem Tension Springs.
-
1
-
-
I do a lot with Pitch Shifted tones within my Guitar Synths and MFX, but I don't tend to use Alternate Tunings?
-
2
-
-
Smoke on the Water, Fire in the Sky . . .
-
3
-
-
13 hours ago, Sharkman said:
Guitarfetish.com has seventy five pickguards for Strat, and all are priced under $22.
They also have a pre-wired pick guard for around $35, which is more than reasonable . . . if everything fits.
That's part of the problem - ordering after-market parts online for a Squier Guitar is a bit of a gamble; one size definitely does not fit all, and there is some really awful crap being marketed to people looking to upgrade their Squiers.
Practicality is the other side of the coin - I could spend a good bit of money on cosmetics, without really improving the Guitar. Any effort at serious improvement gets into serious money for better PU's, a new bridge/Trem system, Switchcraft pots & jacks - all money that would be better spent on the Guitars I perform and record with.
None of this is pressing, by any means. It's playable, it sounds good enough, if not great, and I'm having fun working on it. It's been a good distraction, and there is a definite value to having a working beater Guitar that I would take pretty much anywhere.
Ah, almost time to go be useful for the morning. Happy Fourth, to all my fellow Americans, and to everyone else, have a great start to your week!
-
3
-
-
@Larryz- Boss Compressors aplenty in my Boss MFX, along with models of some other classic Compressors. I'll take your advice and try that.
As to upgrade parts - I may resort to soliciting random leftover Strat parts from friends, family, and Forum members. No matter what I'm looking at, outside of a new set of Trem springs for around $10, and maybe some pick guard-sized screws from the hardware store, it all adds up very quickly, for what are primarily cosmetic upgrades.
It also seems like there are a lot of non-standard measurements for a lot of Squier parts? Some things are as simple to deal with as replacement parts where the screw holes don't quite line up, others get more interesting, like Trem blocks that are too deep for the Squier's body cavity and stick out the back of the Guitar, or even 5-way switches where the switch plates are too deep for the body cavity, the kinds of things that make me very hesitant to put money into this Guitar.
FWIW, Fender did the same thing with the early run of MIM Fenders, such that you couldn't retrofit most after-market parts designed for "real" Fenders, especially not Fender-brand parts. Not a great marketing move, when one of the biggest attractions of Leo's design is the ability to swap out pretty much everything with a screwdriver.
-
4
-
The ongoing death of Guitar Center
in Guitar Forum
Posted
@Caevan O’Shite- Just beyond.