5 pages of bullshit

5/21/2013 9:47:50 PM

5 pages of obsessive compulsive behavior, bad taste, and the fatal trap so many guitar players fall into.

caring more about the gear than the practice. i did this for a long time and then got rid of all of it-

purchased a $150 yamaha classical.

best music-instruction-related decision i ever made.

5/21/2013 9:52:11 PM

^

[Edited on May 21, 2013 at 11:15 PM. Reason : when I'm not disagreeing with willy I agree with him so fucking much]

5/21/2013 11:14:50 PM

I made these threads a joke to begin with and then when I found there was actually 1-2 people with valuable advice I asked a question when it was relevant. How in the fuck do you know how much I am playing a day?

I simply have a gift card and I am trying to decide what to spend it on, plain and simple. I could care less what trap you think I have fallen into. I think you are just sore you didn't get a Tempest Custom for $349.99

Quote :

"5 pages of... bad taste"

Quote :

"purchased a $150 yamaha"

Quote :

"best music-instruction-related decision i ever made"

I've been playing an Alvarez RD8 Acoustic for over 5 years, I simply decided to go to electric in the last 3-4 months. I'm not sure why some of you can't wrap your heads around that concept. Too many happy pills for you?





[Edited on May 21, 2013 at 11:49 PM. Reason : _]

5/21/2013 11:44:42 PM

That last sentence is one of the more ironic things ive read in awhile.

But at least we've finally established this was a joke.

[Edited on May 22, 2013 at 12:50 AM. Reason : -]

5/22/2013 12:49:27 AM

MXR just released this today (my birthday):

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pages/mxr-prime-distortion?icid=203192

only $49.99, I could give it a go, but I am still wondering if a clean boost would produce what I am looking for instead of going with overdrive or distortion.

I bet the Fulltone Fatboost 3 would definitely have an effect, I just don't know what it would be and it's $99 at the absolute cheapest.

5/22/2013 3:20:43 AM

Why is this a thread?

5/22/2013 5:09:20 PM

WHO THE FUCK CARES

GO PLAY

5/22/2013 9:28:16 PM

Yes the 1-2 minutes I lose to come type a few sentences is really affecting my playing time....

This is a thread because I have so much love on here, look at those 3,000+ views.

5/22/2013 11:01:21 PM

Ended up going with the DigiTech CM-2 pedal, found it brand new for $65. Here is the page on MF about it:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/digitech-hardwire-series-cm-2-tube-overdrive-guitar-effects-pedal

5/28/2013 7:47:43 PM

I never told yall, I ended up returning my Super Champ X2 for a Blues Junior III. I just finished doing the majority of the Billm mods on it (http://billmaudio.com/wp/) and that thing is a beast now. I added the Presence knob and the Sparkle knob mods along with the basic cream kit + Switchcraft Input Jack and Volume Taper. It was really no trouble at all and now I am not cooking my EL84's like the stock setup was. I may go back and add the clean boost later.

So my setup ended up pretty awesome in the end, but now I am working 60+ hours a week and barely have anytime to play except the weekends



[Edited on August 10, 2013 at 3:05 PM. Reason : _]

8/10/2013 3:04:22 PM

i used a blues junior for a long time

they sound pretty good, but in the end, the cabinet is too small for the 12"

going to a 10" (the princeton is essentially the same size but doesn't sound boxy) or a deluxe-sized cab would do it a world of good

8/10/2013 3:07:08 PM

Agreed the cabinet size is the limiting factor there, but I don't think putting a 10" in it will help it. You would then lose a lot of the bottom end, which I just added with the tone stack mod. The cool thing is with the sparkle knob you can take it from a Blues Junior 1 all the way to a 3 in terms of how dark/bright it is. It sounds like a different amp after all those mods being done at one time, but I was a little worried when I first flipped on the power to set the bias with what would happen. I did desolder about 10 components and soldered in about a dozen. I have been doing it for 10+ years, but mistakes happen and when you throw power to it you always squirm a little (especially on a $500+ of equipment).

8/10/2013 3:24:10 PM

the amp's not designed for a 10"

i'm not suggesting you go to a 10"

i'm saying that the amp always should've been in a bigger stock cab

8/11/2013 2:04:21 PM

gotcha, I definitely agree.

Here are some pics of the mods:

Before:



Full: http://www3.picturepush.com/photo/a/13586931/img/Fender-Blues-Junior-III-w--Mods/3.jpg

After:



Full:http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/13586933/img/Fender-Blues-Junior-III-w--Mods/5.jpg



Full: http://www1.picturepush.com/photo/a/13586934/img/Fender-Blues-Junior-III-w--Mods/6.jpg



Full: http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/13586928/img/Fender-Blues-Junior-III-w--Mods/1.jpg


and here is my complete setup now:



(Pedals: Dunlop Crybaby Classic, Digitech CM-2 Overdrive and BBE Two Timer)

Overall I'm really happy with what I ended up with after all the swapping.




[Edited on August 11, 2013 at 8:01 PM. Reason : _]

8/11/2013 8:00:22 PM

giving you shit about your electric guitar would require that I gave a shit to begin with :3

8/11/2013 8:00:58 PM

but I know you love soldering , I guess you'd need to see the backside of the board to give a shit (which has some mods on that side only visible from the back).

8/11/2013 8:02:54 PM

so much talking

so little playing

you're the face of guitars

[Edited on August 11, 2013 at 8:13 PM. Reason : d]

8/11/2013 8:13:20 PM

he's too mentally tortured with all his drug usage to actually be able to play anything worthwhile :3

jk jk

I have no idea what your playing is like

so

ya that was just a troll



but yeah you'd probably do better in life if you'd quit using drugs recreationally :3

8/11/2013 8:14:42 PM

Where is that gif of Blackdog getting pile-drived playing HS football?

8/11/2013 9:41:40 PM

Did anyone else just watch the documentary about the electric guitar on Smithsonian about an hour ago?

8/12/2013 12:07:15 AM

nope, I work 60+ hours a week so I have very little time to watch TV.

Quote :

"so much talking so little playing you're the face of guitars"

oh yes, I have spent so much time on these forums since I've made this thread (check my posting history).


BTW, I haven't been on pain medicine for over a year and I haven't even smoked weed in over 8 months... I know the drug jokes will never die, but it's nice because it reminds me of where I was at one point. So keep them coming!!




[Edited on August 12, 2013 at 11:54 AM. Reason : _]

8/12/2013 11:53:17 AM

like u can even remember weed boy

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

8/12/2013 12:04:11 PM

AMP GUT SHOT THREAD

8/12/2013 5:38:02 PM

niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice

is that yours? it is custom right?




[Edited on August 13, 2013 at 8:07 AM. Reason : _]

8/13/2013 7:38:09 AM

I saw MF has the Hughes and Kettner Statesman (Quad EL84s) on sale for $499:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/hughes-kettner-statesman-quad-el84-40w-combo-with-footswitch-and-slip-cover

8/13/2013 12:02:47 PM

Heavily discounted due to being discontinued.

Not a bad deal / amp though.

8/13/2013 12:11:20 PM

That is almost always the case with any product that goes on Sale

I have never played the amp, but it sounds promising.

8/13/2013 12:17:05 PM

That's not my exact amplifier, but it's like the one I use.

Not custom; it's a Carr Artemus. They're made in Pittsboro.

That H&K is fine, I suppose, but pulling 40 watts from EL84s is a stretch. Also, you can get an AC15 used for $400 all day long, use it for years, and sell it for $400 when you're done. Aside from the occasional USA-made Crate V3xx12 that can be had for $200 or less, the best Vox deal available is usually a Vox.

8/13/2013 12:20:43 PM

Countdown until he argues with you.

...and go.

8/13/2013 12:43:18 PM

@ BlackDog

A while ago I got a pine cabinet for the Blues Jr. on the net. $150 or so. Larger and deeper cab, dovetail joints etc. I stained it and it looks pretty nice, sounds great. I also highly recommend upgrading the output transformer. I used mercury magnetics. It's twice the size, but pricey. BillM sells one as well now.

8/13/2013 4:22:25 PM

This is where things get a little silly IMO.

$500 for a Blues Junior plus $350 for mods, new iron, and a nice cab gets you into SF Princeton Reverb territory. A PR is a hand-wired, American amplifier that will last forever, sounds better, and is built much better than even an upgraded BJ.

Doing custom mods to a stock amp for your own personal use is one thing, but off-the-shelf mods to a consumer grade amp that put it in the price range of a professional appliance doesn't make sense to me.

8/13/2013 7:13:50 PM

Well yea if you spend, enough on mods/upgrades that you can buy a much better amp all together then it definitely makes sense to buy the better amp from the start.


To the comment above about the upgraded transformer, I may do that if I ever change my Blues Jr to run 6L6's. A bigger cab is a good idea, but I would want to custom make it and doing all that would take A LOT of time to fit the chassis. Definitely a project for down the road and just a FYI I only have roughly $65 invested in modding my Blues Jr. Buying the pre-made boost module almost costs as much as doing the other "normal mods" that I did (basic kit, sparkle mod, presence mod, switchcraft input and master volume taper). I think I would rather make a 12" cabinet for just the speaker and put an aftermarket 12" in it, then I could run 2x12 if I wanted to with the line out mod ($10).

8/14/2013 4:24:56 AM

Quote :

"I may do that if I ever change my Blues Jr to run 6L6's"

WHY

WHY

WHY

WHY

WHY

It's one thing to run 6L6s in a 6V6 amp to get more headroom, but why spend significant money fundamentally change the tone structure of an amplifier, especially when said amplifier is widely available and relatively cheap?

Buy a second amplifier. Get a whole different set of tones. Now you have TWO sets of tones.

It doesn't help that I dislike most 6L6 designs, but still.

8/14/2013 4:30:42 AM

^^,^^^

I just like to tinker

8/14/2013 7:56:37 AM

^^

Quote :

"if I ever"

8/14/2013 9:19:37 AM

^^ Why not tinker with an amp that has chassis space and uses regular components?

^ Why would you ever? Why not buy a Pro Reverb?

8/14/2013 12:26:07 PM

Very good point. I just already had that amp before reading the things people were doing with it, then figured WTF. All the stuff I did was more an upgrade path that spanned several years, not "well here's my $300 craig's list find....let me drop another 300 or so in one shot.

8/14/2013 3:51:29 PM

I'm all for that. Throwing a bunch of money at a brand new amp is a different story, though.

8/14/2013 5:43:45 PM

I finished my MKII Pro clone today:







Here are the N.O.S. Philips OC76 germanium transistors, BYOC uses a transistor socket setup so you don't have to solder/desolder if you need them to replace them.




I love this thing, much much cooler than my Digitech CM-2, although my CM-2 is way more versatile.

8/27/2013 8:27:37 PM

overdrives and distortions suck

fuzzes rule (silicon fuzzes do not rule)

8/28/2013 11:16:17 AM

lol, well this is a Germanium Fuzz (http://buildyourownclone.com/esvfuzz2knob.html), but my CM-2 can still produce a broader range of sound (most of which is usable). However this is literally the Zeppelin sound in a pedal, it is known Page used one of these during the Zeppelin era (and Yardbirds). When you turn this effect on with a nice humbucker guitar, it is obvious many Zeppelin songs were using this when recorded/played. Just the 3 OC76 germanium transistors run $10 a piece (if you can find them, BYOC has been sold out for a while now: http://buildyourownclone.com/parts/semi-conductors/transistors/oc7690.html) making the kits easily worth the sub $100 price for everything needed on one of the most famous effect pedals in history.

Here is a good history lesson on the famous MKII Pro Tonebender if anyone wants to do a little reading:

http://www.stompboxes.co.uk/History.html

8/28/2013 11:42:20 AM

Most Zeppelin distortion tones are power tube saturation and console input overdrive. There's Tone Bender on the first record, but that's about it.

Also, a vast majority of the Zeppelin catalog was done with a Telecaster. The Les Pauls were used almost exclusively for live situations because a single coil guitar was too noisy for stadium PA technology at the time. Humbuckers + fuzz might sound great to you, but that's not what you're hearing on the records.

8/28/2013 12:46:35 PM

Yea I know Page relied a lot on amp distortion and playing technique versus effects. However it is obvious the sound the pedal produces is very close to Page's tone on specific Zeppelin songs. I had heard that about using a Tele on a lot of songs, but never heard Page actually say it. Also the signature look of Page with a `59 Burst or the double neck would make a lot of people say that is pure BS, but I believe anything is possible in the Studio.

Your comment on single coils in PA during that time period (which makes absolute sense) has me wonder though, how did Clapton have no problem or Jeff Beck?


For 25 Grand you can get the Jimmy Page "Number Two" Les Paul signed or two unsigned version for $15k and $11k. vinylbandit what do you think of artist series guitars like this or the Clapton Fender Strat? I think if I had a load of cash available I would pick up the signed $25k, although comparing the amount of cash to a car makes you rethink the value.

(http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Les-Paul/Gibson-Custom/Jimmy-Page-Number-Two-Les-Paul.aspx)



(BTW, if anyone was wondering why the one blue capacitor is offset so much, it is because I soldered backwards and had already clipped the lead so I had to deal with a small lead)




[Edited on August 28, 2013 at 7:09 PM. Reason : _]

8/28/2013 6:58:13 PM

I think Eric Clapton is wife-stealing piece of shit who made a fortune off letting his son die.

It's also really fucking dumb to buy a signature guitar that costs TEN TIMES what a comparable new instrument costs. You could buy a whole fleet of '60s Gibsons of all stripes for what that dressed-up $4000 LP costs.

Anyways, TELECASTER.

8/28/2013 10:42:28 PM

obvious photoshop, lol

8/28/2013 11:36:31 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC6SwzXvyzw

ADOBE VIDEOSHOP

8/28/2013 11:37:46 PM

btw, how did Clapton "let" his son die? He wasn't even there:

Quote :

"The 4 1/2-year-old son of the rock guitarist Eric Clapton was killed yesterday morning when he fell out an open bedroom window on the 53d floor of a Manhattan apartment building. The boy, Conor, who was dressed in red pajamas and slippers, landed on the roof of a four-story building next to Galleria Condominiums, a 57-story building where the boy was staying with his mother, the police said. They said the window, about 6 feet high and 4 feet wide, was left open after it was cleaned by a housekeeper. The boy, who was not in the room during the cleaning, darted past the housekeeper and somehow fell out the window, which was not protected by a window guard, the police said. "At this point it seems as if this was a tragic accident," said a police spokesman, Capt. Stephen Davis. Besides the housekeeper, the boy's mother, Lori Del Santo, an Italian television actress, was in the duplex with a maid and a friend, the police said. Mr. Clapton, a founder of the rock groups Cream and Derek and the Dominos, was in New York on vacation. He does not live with Ms. Del Santo but went to the apartment after being called by a friend, the police said. Captain Davis said the Health Department was investigating whether the condominium was in violation of city regulations requiring window guards in apartments where children under 12 years of age live."

8/29/2013 6:55:02 PM

Exactly. He wasn't even there.

WHAT A SHITTY FATHER.

8/29/2013 8:35:15 PM

haha, I hope you are joking.

if anyone is to blame it was the mother:

Quote :

"Besides the housekeeper, the boy's mother, Lori Del Santo, an Italian television actress, was in the duplex with a maid and a friend"

What friend was so important the mother lets the boy run around the house and lets it up to the maid to control him? Also if you really want to get technical, the maid should have closed the window after cleaning it.




[Edited on August 30, 2013 at 12:27 AM. Reason : _]

8/30/2013 12:25:50 AM