The Guitar Guild

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You ready? You look ready.
Been dorking around on the Raptor the last couple of nights, and it's slowly becoming my favorite guitar. Infinitely easier to play standing up. Not sure why (maybe just the design?) but the frets are a lot easier to see.

The goal now is to get to a level of proficiency where I can play the Alvarez standing up. That one is a thorough nightmare to play standing up because I can't see anything, so it's pure muscle memory. And I take longer to develop that than most people I know.
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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



Haven’t check this thread out in a while. My latest 2 additions from a few months back. Although similar models they sound very different. I put this down to the bridge.
Those are beautiful.



Those are beautiful.
Thanks. I just wish I had more time to play. I now have 9 guitars on stands in a small bedroom dedicated to them so no other furniture other than an amp and a stool. I do feel these are my last purchases as I’m now full to capacity. At least this stops me browsing in shops and online.



You can never have too many guitars. It is a sickness but what the hell. Any free space is always a potential storage spot which you will always manage to find. Also every guitar you buy is always the last....until the next one.



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
I've seen a few guitars pop up that are calling my name but dang it, I'm trying to be frugal while we still have mom's house in repair. I hate that house btw. Hate is such a soft understatement. I hate Home Depot even more though.

Grats on the book. Enjoy the read. I can't remember the last time I touched my guitar. I THINK I posted that I got a bone spur in my shoulder area that was keeping me from lifting my right arm much and couldn't drape it over an acoustic in my lap. Been going to physical therapy for a few weeks before this house timeline started. That helped a lot actually. It at least gave me confidence in what motions I COULD do without pain, which led me to reconfiguring myself (motion, posture, whatever) to work around the pain. I THINK I tried to pluck a few strings the week before heading up to VA last month, but it wasn't much.

Getting old sucks donkey donuts.
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You ready? You look ready.
@ynwtf: Bone spurs are awful. I don't have them...yet. Family genetics tell me I will one day.

I do have scoliosis, though, and a winged scapular, so playing while standing = guaranteed pain. I'm slowly trying to increase the amount of time I can withstand, but longest I have been able to bear is about 15 minutes.



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
Well, I called about that used guitar that had been calling my name. 1977 acoustic. But someone installed a pickup on it, drilling into the bridge to mount it, then the body for a 1/4" cable port. Broke my heart. Just broke. my. heart.



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
I've been mucking about with reverb. This is all done on my Epiphone Sheraton:

https://voca.ro/1ipRbMWTMlZh

pretty cool to get a guitar to sound like that. sounds like a small string quartet maybe in a large performance hall warming up.

really neat.



Have played on and off since I was 12, with varying levels of intensity/seriousness. Recently picked back up lessons. We're working on blues because my blues soloing after a while hit a ceiling I couldn't blow through with the twang of a Clapton-y vibrato. So I've been working on stuff and spent hours yesterday raging on my acoustic in true 12 bar blues. Still stuck in my head.

I want to upgrade my guitar, but it probably won't be a while. Most of my life I've played a blue Squier. 5ish years ago upgraded to a Gibson Les Paul Future Tribute (and replaced the self-tuning thing). Any ideas what I should look for in upgrading now? Both guitar and amp. I was looking at those Fender American Professional II's. Might be a little out of my price range, not sure. But I want to get something good that'll last me a while (in both durability and enjoyment).



You ready? You look ready.
pretty cool to get a guitar to sound like that. sounds like a small string quartet maybe in a large performance hall warming up.

really neat.
Right?! That was wild @ScarletLion




That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
Have played on and off since I was 12, with varying levels of intensity/seriousness. Recently picked back up lessons. We're working on blues because my blues soloing after a while hit a ceiling I couldn't blow through with the twang of a Clapton-y vibrato. So I've been working on stuff and spent hours yesterday raging on my acoustic in true 12 bar blues. Still stuck in my head.

I want to upgrade my guitar, but it probably won't be a while. Most of my life I've played a blue Squier. 5ish years ago upgraded to a Gibson Les Paul Future Tribute (and replaced the self-tuning thing). Any ideas what I should look for in upgrading now? Both guitar and amp. I was looking at those Fender American Professional II's. Might be a little out of my price range, not sure. But I want to get something good that'll last me a while (in both durability and enjoyment).
I don't know about the hardware of an upgrade, but you might consider a semi- or even full hollow-body guitar. Like a Gretsch 5420T shape or maybe an ES-335 shape. Those would offer new sounds I would believe compared to the two you have. Gibson is kinda high but an Epiphone clone 335 might be good. I'm sure you could find a good used one on Guitar Center's used section or over on Reverb.com. At one point there were a TON of 5420s.

If you've followed this thread much you'd see I'm kind of obsessed with an older brand, DeArmond. That may be due to the brand myth, but I like them. There's currently a used DeArmond x-155 (hollow-body archtop) sunburst with two humbucker pickups and a case for about $550 at GC (there was an estate sale in CO and someone dumped about 10 DeArmonds at the local store. Yes, I actually called the store to ask wtf was up with all those DeArmonds lol. It's nice to know there are others like me out there). You can hear demos all over YouTube but they're more or less for jazz/blues. The x-155 specifically I mean. And being hollow, you can play it closer to acoustic volumes without an amp. Not quite, but easier to hear than a solid body. DeArmond also has a Starfire/Starfire Special, modeled after the Guild Starfire V and III, respectively, but that's a bit higher on the price range. You might find an actual Guild Starfire not much higher, but the DeArmonds carry that mythic production history, so people are always looking for them. Anyway, those guitars went out of production in the very early 2000s but you can find tons of commentary and reviews on them if interested. I'm not going to claim that you can't find better quality today for similar or close price ranges, but I have to preach the DeArmond gospel whenever I can.

I've been passively looking for an amp for years and have narrowed it down to either the Fender Blues Deluxe or Fender Hotrod Deluxe. Both are too loud for my bedroom playing needs so I'll continue watching from the sidelines on that front. Maybe look into the Line 6 HELIX lines? There's a wide range of price per needs there (Line 6 HX Stomp all the way to the Line 6 Helix Floor or Rack) and you can simulate most any amp and effects combo you could imagine. Each pedal board will be a paired down version of the Helix board, but worth looking into being portable, quiet with decent headphones, and pretty good for sound quality. Search 'blues tones on Helix" or whatever option if you consider it. You might be surprised by the sounds.

I'm sure I'm way off point, but figured I'd get the conversation moving some



You ready? You look ready.
Does anyone else here check there vocals a certain way? And what I mean is there any phrases you use whilst EQing yourself?

I have no idea how I started doing it but I say "Chicken pot pie, who am I?"



Here's an extract of a piece of score music I've been asked to do for a very independent short film. It's the first piece of score music I've ever written! There are guitar chords in the background, lots of guitar reverb and lots of e-bow (amongst the piano and strings)

https://voca.ro/15g5nxjVnlPX



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
Here's an extract of a piece of score music I've been asked to do for a very independent short film. It's the first piece of score music I've ever written! There are guitar chords in the background, lots of guitar reverb and lots of e-bow (amongst the piano and strings)

https://voca.ro/15g5nxjVnlPX

dude.
that's gorgeous. love that delay between the note 00:28 and its resolve at around 38/39. around 00:33/34 i was literally starting to tremor, NEEDING that note resolution to close its open door. then it hits about 00:38 and such relief washed over me.

that's pretty powerful. i love that it doesn't land until when it does---about a beat or two after i would expect. subtle, but great.