Guitars & other musical instruments...

[2mtech]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

I think you were Born Under A Bad Sign!

I'll take that as a SRV reference and I am perfectly all right with that!!

[high plains drifter]

Lol... well, Cream but yea... that was the road I was heading down!

[2mtech]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

Lol... well, Cream but yea... that was the road I was heading down!

Yeah, my bad...didn't go back far enough. Still, Vaughan over Clapton FTW.

[skinnyj]

Here's the real deal:

[Duuuuuuuude]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

Also I appreciate the heads-up on the back-bow and the pocket. You never know though... I've seen awesome high-end guitars with horrible truss-rod, fret, and neck issues so it can be hit or miss no matter what. Hopefully yours is acceptable now or can be tweaked a little more if need be.

With zero tension on the truss rod and the strings in tune, it's finally come around to having just a hint of forward bow. It plays fine, but needs some fret leveling, which I won't be able to do until it at least sits flat with no strings on it.

[high plains drifter]

[high plains drifter]

[high plains drifter]

[2mtech]

Let's see, favorite Gretsch or Jackson....too close to call!

[skinnyj]

My current collection:


(L-R)
2014 PRS SE Torero

2009 Fender American Standard Strat (Seymour Duncan Mini-JB in bridge)

1988 Gibson Les Paul Standard (vintage Gibson "Dirty Fingers" pickups)

2013 Takamine EG531SC acoustic

Marshall Class 5 combo in the background.

My rack system:


Furman PL-8 power supply

Alesis Quadraverb GT

ADA MP-1

ADA MP-2

ADA B-200 stereo power amp (one channel is blown )

My gigging amp


1984 Marshall 4104 50 watt 2x12 combo

[high plains drifter]

Man, you've got good taste in gear! Love the Class 5 & JCM combos... such massive and iconic sound! Also really digging that Am-Std in shoreline gold with the maple board. Can't imagine how nasty it sounds with the mini JB! And Gawd that '88 LP is just sexy af! Not positive but I don't think I've ever played a Gibby with Dirty Fingers... must sound absolutely sick! For that matter, I don't think I've ever played that particular Takamine model either... such sweet-sounding acoustic guitars. Nice top on that SE btw! Oh, and obligatory "Nice rack!" comment lol. Seriously good stuff there, skinny!

[skinnyj]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

Man, you've got good taste in gear! Love the Class 5 & JCM combos... such massive and iconic sound! Also really digging that Am-Std in shoreline gold with the maple board. Can't imagine how nasty it sounds with the mini JB! And Gawd that '88 LP is just sexy af! Not positive but I don't think I've ever played a Gibby with Dirty Fingers... must sound absolutely sick! For that matter, I don't think I've ever played that particular Takamine model either... such sweet-sounding acoustic guitars. Nice top on that SE btw! Oh, and obligatory "Nice rack!" comment lol. Seriously good stuff there, skinny!

The Strat is acutally a pearl-ish color. The light makes it look gold for some reason. This a closeup that better shows the color:


The JCM is certainly iconic, but I am looking to unload it. It is too loud for the small bars we play. I can't get it to a volume where it sounds decent. JCMs need to be at at least "4" on the master volume to sound good. The problem is that "4" is pretty freaking loud.

On a side note... I walked into a Guitar Center they opened up across town last year. I've always felt that GC employees were less than knowledgeable and got proof on this visit. They had a 4104 on the floor marked as a 1986 4212. That's more than just a simple typo. The 4104 and 4212 are completely different amps. The only thing they have in common is that they are 50 watt, 2x12 combos.

[high plains drifter]

My best GC fail story was a guitar that was listed online in good condition. I bought it and upon removing the control-cavity cover, found that the pot wiring was absolutely fried... electrical taped pots, burnt/ failed solder joints, etc. Even worse was that it had a very distinctive crack at the neck pocket. I returned it but what really ticked me off was that they relisted it about a week later... again in good condition with no repairs done to it and low and behold... for roughly $20 MORE than previously listed!! That was my last time giving them any of my business. Not sure how GC could mistake a 4104 for a 4212 but it just doesn't even surprise me. Sucks that they're eventually going out of business cause I used to find some pretty good used gear there. Oh well... I was done with them anyway. Thank God for Reverb!

Yea... Those tubes really need to breathe in order to achieve the right tone/ sound. Crazy how some amps get so loud so quickly lol. I've definitely had some bedroom amps that I couldn't really maximize their potential just cause I had to keep them so suppressed.

Lol I couldn't really tell if that Strat was blonde or gold or sand... looked just like the shoreline color on my screen. Still looks kick ass with the maple and white accents.

[skinnyj]

Speaking of "Born Under a Bad Sign"...

LP straight into the Class 5 using what is called the "headphone trick". The amp has a speaker/headphone switch. You put the amp on "headphone" output and run the headphone output to the amp's speaker. It allows you to dime the amp at a very reasonable volume.

My apologies to Albert King...

[high plains drifter]

Sounded fine to me. I hear a distinctively gritty tone that I'm wondering if it's more the sound of the pickups or the amp? Thinking about getting a Dirty Fingers for the bridge location in my SG. Thanks for any input.

[high plains drifter]

Insomnia inspired thread revival...

Reverend Airwave 12-string semi-hollow body










Ibanez SRC 6-string bass






Carvin DC700 Koa 7-string

[2mtech]

That Reverend looks a bit dusty...shame. You'd probably better send it to me so I can verify that it's...um...set up properly, yeah.

I'll pm you my mailing address.

That Ibanez is a gorgeous piece of wood too!

[skinnyj]

Kiesel Guitars (formerly Carvin) intrigue me. Because you buy direct, you can get a guitar with high-end quality for about half the price. On another forum I frequent, 2-3 guys have Carvin/Kiesels and they say they are one of the best guitars they have ever owned.

Kiesel Guitars

[high plains drifter]

Thank you guys and I'm afraid that 2mtech is correct... the Reverend is a bit dusty. I'm going to make a list of my priorities this week and see where "sending out guitars to good homes for free" ends up on that list. If it winds up towards the top then you may be playing this one by the weekend!

I absolutely love my Reverend. I had to do a little mod to one of the bridge saddles shortly after I acquired it but it's perfect now and I swear it just sounds so huge! The PAF 90's combine with the solid construction and semi-hollow body to create one of the best tone's of any guitar I've ever played or owned. Never have I played a 12-string with such perfect action... very low/ no buzz. Reverend is a fantastic albeit lesser known company but they are really nailing it on just about every detail. I really wanted this one in sea-foam green since it has a kinda vintage/ retro shape to begin with, but I couldn't find any available at the time that I was ready to buy. No matter... I'm really happy with this one.

There are certainly nicer 4 and 5 string bass guitars out there but this one really intrigued me. Very happy with it regarding my particular needs. It sounds terrific and can slap and thump with the best of 'em. On board EQ really helps you to dial in the tone. The high E & B do sadly get neglected as I just don't use the guitar to it's potential but no worries... maybe someday I'll expand my approach and actually use it for chords and more complexity. Regardless... loving it for basic backing, blues, etc. I also have an MXR bass envelope filter that brings on a whole different level of funk when combined with this guitar!

I've got kind of a love/ hate relationship with Jeff over at Kiesel but they really are good guitars generally speaking. By the time that Kiesel and Carvin split recently, there were quite a growing bunch of critics complaining of piss poor customer service, inconsistent and absurdly stringent return policies, questionable business ethics, and a seemingly smug attitude from Jeff throughout it all. There were also some fairly legitimate complaints from people that had issues with some of their builds... everything from construction, to finishing, to set-up. Fortunately I never had a problem and both my Carvin DC700 & Kiesel Ultra V-7 are top-notch, beautiful sounding, and very well made guitars. That said, I won't go through Kiesel ever again simply because I don't trust that if there might be an issue, that I would be able to count on them to resolve it.

Anyway... My Kiesel Ultra V-7

[2mtech]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

I'm going to make a list of my priorities this week and see where "sending out guitars to good homes for free" ends up on that list. If it winds up towards the top then you may be playing this one by the weekend!

WOO HOO,,,where's the BUMP button for that???

So which is bigger anyway, your RC room or your music room?