The Guitar Guild

Finally, the identity of The Dooo is revealed...

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Thanks for letting me know. Image looks fine this end but I have reposted above. Hope it looks OK now. Had a similar issue a few weeks ago. Nice looking guitar by the way.

Couple of my relatives visited yesterday, and urged me to play few tunes. It's only been a month since I started learning, but I can play the simple versions of the Godfather love theme, Yesterday, Stevie Wonder, O Sole Mio and couple of Hindi songs smoothly.


However, what followed was the worst and most awkward few minutes of my life with me fumbling the notes, accidently plucking the wrong strings, accidently muting some strings, and my right leg (on which my guitar rests) shaking uncontrollably.


I got the dreaded pity applause at the end. Guess I am not made for performances.

I have mental blocks when playing for people. Even songs I have played for years. Just one of those things. I've been playing for over 25 years and to be honest I'm happy to just shut myself away for an hour or so and just have a great guitar session with no audience. Don't get disheartened by it.

Looked up how to play Iris. Tuning as follows B D D D D D. That’s not a typo, never seen that before. And now you see why people buy more than one guitar.

“Play Iris, play Iris!”

”You sure you want this?
You know what that means, right?
That’s the only song you’re gonna hear tonight.
I’m not sure if I have enough hair in my face to play this...”

Or you can buy this




Which apparently allows you to change the tuning to 10 or more different types on just a click of a button.

@John McClane Good to see a fellow no-practice slacker! I've been not-practicing for about 12 years now.

Just played the tune myself and all I can say it's good you're trying to play the same thing in different octaves. Remembering the notes you're supposed to play is key, obviously, but it's good to know your notes all around the neck, too.

An exercise: Try playing the entire melody on just the 6th string. Try to learn what the notes on that string are called. This string is more important than anything else, because later on when you get to barre chords, you will be taking their names from those notes.

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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.

So are American guitars really the best purchase or are we all just paying top whack for Gibson or Fender’s name to be stamped on our guitars? I love my Gibson and Fender American additions but my Indonesian guitars (PRS, Ibanez and Gretsch) are also great for a fraction of the price.
I don’t own a made in China guitar but it is apparent that the electronics just don’t stand up to the test of time.
The finish you get on a PRS is excellent and you would have to pay 3 times the amount to get a similar finish on a Gibson. Your thoughts please.

All my guitars are made in either Japan or Mexico, and I am just fine with their quality. Well, except my 1975 Guild F50, but that is more of a rarity.

Chinese made are the worst (apart from Lava ME2 which isn't available in India). My current is a Chinese made acoustic guitar with Chinese made strings. And apart from being cheap, and something that will come apart soon, it sounds awful (something that my ears are realising as I practice more and more). It's also harsh on my fingers with the high-action (there is no truss rod).


I agree on Ibanez. My next is most probably going to be it. My eyes are fixed on their electro-acoustic guitars.
All depends on how I am progressing. I might also change on that.


When I first started I had planned to switch to electric eventually (maybe a year or two later), but it's increasingly looking like I might end up with a classical guitar instead. I am leaning towards completely switching to fingerpicking (though I am currently just practising the 3-4 basic pattern exercises which I do everyday - as I am still on level 5 on Yousician and fingerpicking comes much later on the app).


Right now though it seems like I might end up buying an electro-acoustic Ibanez unless I completely fall in love with fingerpicking, and get a proper classical guitar instead.

My Peavey was made in Indonesia, my Alvarez was made in China, and my Yamaha was made in Japan.

Today is a global world and instrument manufacturing, outside of a few select lines, is hardly a trade secret. Attention to detail is greater from certain places (think Yairi from Alvarez, and they are made in a Japanese factory). I see no reason at all to buy an American made guitar. Unless you hate money in which case you can just mail it to me. I’ll take it off your hands.

With that said, I do prefer to only buy from companies that have a true American presence and ownership, so Peavey and Alvarez have my loyalty.

I won’t buy Fender or Gibson because of how they run their company. Even tho Alvarez makes their guitars in China they all get a full setup and inspection in St. Louis. The same can’t be said of Gibson and Fender.

Electric is so much easier to play as the strings bend nicely and don’t have that harshness of an acoustic. Classical however would be great for fingerpicking but more of a stretch on your fingers playing chords as the neck is much wider. All pros and cons, just depends on what style you wish to follow.

I don’t dispute what you say at all. Although I have Fender and Gibson my other brands play just as well. I am curious as to how Fender and Gibson run their companies from your quote. I hate to think what the cost of them to make a guitar is. Probably a frighteningly low price.

Mexico and Korea, here. Honestly, my skills are not to the point I would know the difference. On paper, I recognize different electronics, pickups, maybe a body wood or fretboard, but like nothing I would concern myself with given the price difference. I have no issues with my guitars. If I find American-made on a crazy sale, I won't pass it up. But even then that's only if I've already been eying that model for some time. Oh, my acoustic is Japanese, but that's from 81 I believe. Maybe a different standard. I love it though. Currently, it's my favorite guitar.

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"My Dionne Warwick understanding of your dream indicates that you are ambivalent on how you want life to eventually screw you." - Joel

"Ever try to forcibly pin down a house cat? It's not easy." - Captain Steel

"I just can't get pass sticking a finger up a dog's butt." - John Dumbear

Primarily, they have foreign investors, so they are not, by the strictest standards, American owned/operated companies anymore. However, I do believe Fender has recently (January 2020) become acquired by a new set of American investors, but foreign money still helps bankroll their operations. Same with Gibson.

Another thing is that a large number of Fender and Gibson guitars (the low end models) come straight from China without any American hands touching them before they hit the sales floor. It's why you hear a lot of bad things in regards to their action, electronics, and overall assembly quality. There's just no real quality control on the bulk of their products, and good luck getting any real support from the company.

Peavey and Alvarez are still privately owned American companies, and they handle their operations entirely different when it comes to quality and support. Keep in mind I am primarily going based on things I have heard second hand from my teacher/local Peavey dealer, but the quality of everything I have personally bought has been rock solid. And Alvarez, well, I can't believe the quality of the instrument I got for the price I paid. It's almost a steal, and I already know that if I ever get good enough to warrant an "expensive" acoustic is is going to be a Yairi. No question about it.

This is just a personal preference, but I believe the Japanese are the most skilled musicians and instrument manufacturers in the world. The Yamaha bass guitar I have is all stock parts from the early 80s, and it is a tank. A certified war tested tank. Made in Japan is always going to be my preference when it comes to music.

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"This is that human freedom, which all boast that they possess, and which consists solely in the fact, that men are conscious of their own desire, but are ignorant of the causes whereby that desire has been determined." -Baruch Spinoza

I thought all Gibson’s were American made and the lower end was Epiphone which are made in various parts of Asia? I have done a few searches where rumour is headstocks are made in America then the rest is out sourced to Asia. If this is true then it’s a disgrace.

@Thunderbolt: Yeah, you would be correct about Gibson being made in America. I should have been more careful in my writing. I was mainly talking about Fender in that regard, and I forgot to clarify that it is Gibson's Epiphone brand that is made overseas and doesn't see American hands before they hit the floor shelves.

However, what I said about their ownership still stands: Gibson is not, in its strictest standard, an American owned company. As far as outsourcing goes they use smaller companies to grow/cut the the wood for them. A few parts are premilled at other factories in the USA, but all the assembly takes place at a Gibson factory.

Gibson owner here.







That's all.

Who needs an electric guitar when you could have e-lec-tric youth?