Hey! Guitar players, let's chat.

[Patrick-Ruff]

I'm more of an Ibanez/LP kind of guy. it's amazing to see how far I've come since then . . . I should post a new video. my picking speed is at a ridiculous level.

I applied this idea to my guitar playing, relaxed muscles move faster then tense muscles. and, when I tremelo pick, I use only my wrist, not my forearm. it allows me to pick several times faster with more consistency. looks like me being anal about my technique really payed off :).

NEXT GOAL: Sweep Picking.

I"m not really sure how long I've been playing though . . . I think I'm on 7 months now. though it seems like I've been playing longer.

[shen-an-doah]

Damn... I can't pick very fast at all and I've been playing for almost 7 years...

Then again I am rather lazy when it comes to practice...

[Patrick-Ruff]

it may just be my natural need for speed. I continually try to get faster.

for example . . . I type 134 words per minute.

[shen-an-doah]

Ah, I'm more a rhythm guitarist and I started out playing drums, so I've always focused more on rhythm, groove and timing.

My timing is near perfect 8)

[Patrick-Ruff]

timing hasn't really been an issue for me. I used to play drums too ;). that was a long long time ago, I was in 5th grade I think. but still, I had perfect rythm for the stuff I was playing.

[th3james]

Hey Patrick, thats my epi les paul in the first page of the thread (and in the sig), u considering getting one?
I upgraded to an LP from my first electric (a cheap strat copy) but tbh i never really felt that comfortable with it, i find the neck a bit to thick, its also a bit 'heavy' (as in rock, not weight) for my liking. I finally picked up a mexican tele at christmas and have found it to be a much better fit to me (i LOVE it), and am now considering selling the LP.
Its a really nice guitar thou, its just not for me, only thing that has given me trouble was the strap button, which became loose, to i replace it with a bigger screw, which also came loose, but i've now had glued and is fine (hopefully...). The tone is nice, but i find it quite muddy if your using it for clean stuff (especially open chords).
Feel free to ask any questions you have about it. I'd snap you a hi res picture of it, but i havent got a nice camera to hand (only the horrid phone i used to take the first page picture)

[Patrick-Ruff]

I am considering buying one. but I haven't got up to guitar center to play them yet. I learned how to play on an acoustic with a pretty high action and thick neck. so I'm used to it (I also have a ridiculous reach, thank you satriani :D.) though it's still debatable whether or not I'll be entirely comfortable with one.

so yes, it's all up for debate there, I'm definitely considering it though, les pauls mainly catch my eye because of the look honestly. but in the long run I will choose a guitar based on how well it plays in my hands :D.

[shen-an-doah]

SGs are far better than Les Pauls. ¬_¬

[kamaboko]

I've got a 82' Explorer E2 as well as a 82' Strat. The strat has a Floyd Rose.

[Patrick-Ruff]

so matthew, I need your input on something. we have a crate amp that is busted, a guitar luther told us it was the capacitor. but he also charged 200 bucks for a repair, so I'm beginning to doubt his credibility. so, how would one determain the problem in general?

the only thing we can get to work is the clean sound, and that's only when plugged into the wrong port :S.

if it is the capacitor, is there any way to fix it ourselves? I'm thinking it's probably a break in the connection somewhere, causing everything else to re-route . . . but I"m just wondering since you've built an amp you might have an idea.

[bazzer]

Think it might have been the 'labour' to fix it. You might be lucky if you look at it - sometimes caps swell up when they go, sometimes you'll see a browny- orange crusty substance coming out of the edge of the heatshrink. Best get the magnifying glass out. I reckon it's a pre-amp stage problem. Maybe post a pic of the board and I could guess which area to hunt in?

[matthew]

so matthew, I need your input on something. we have a crate amp that is busted, a guitar luther told us it was the capacitor. but he also charged 200 bucks for a repair, so I'm beginning to doubt his credibility. so, how would one determain the problem in general?

the only thing we can get to work is the clean sound, and that's only when plugged into the wrong port :S.

if it is the capacitor, is there any way to fix it ourselves? I'm thinking it's probably a break in the connection somewhere, causing everything else to re-route . . . but I"m just wondering since you've built an amp you might have an idea.

I agree with bazzer, most of that price was probably labor. The cap itself only cost him a dollar or two. Amplifiers are not the sort of thing I would ever recommend that anyone open up or try to work on by yourself--you really can kill yourself, especially with a tube amp. Even when it is unplugged the large caps inside can (and usually do) store a charge large enough to put you in the hospital or the grave if you don't know what you're doing...that's why the techs get paid so much. That said, if you want to learn how to service amps, look for some books, read lots, spend time really getting to know the topic well before you ever open your first amp. Oh, for your specific problem, it could be a cap, but I would tend to think it is more like a cold solder joint or a broken solder joint. Crate amps are notorious for this. These require almost nothing in parts to fix, but lots of workbench time for the tech to track down...again, a reason for the high price. He may have looked long and hard for the problem, found it, and decided to change out the inexpensive part at the same time since caps don't last forever anyway.

[bazzer]

you really can kill yourself, especially with a tube amp. Even when it is unplugged the large caps inside can (and usually do) store a charge large enough to put you in the hospital or the grave if you don't know what you're doing...

Excellent point Matthew - sorry for not making it myself! I'm used to mucking about with electronics and forget that I've had the training!!

[5-HT]

Does anyone have any opinions on using Elixir or D'Addario EXP strings (tone/feel/life expectancy wise)?
I've been pretty boring in my string choice, sticking to my tried and tested D'Addario EJ-17 phosphor bronze mediums. Would the coated ones be worth checking out (or has this been covered before)?

[matthew]

Excellent point Matthew - sorry for not making it myself! I'm used to mucking about with electronics and forget that I've had the training!!;)

Does anyone have any opinions on using Elixir or D'Addario EXP strings (tone/feel/life expectancy wise)?
I've been pretty boring in my string choice, sticking to my tried and tested D'Addario EJ-17 phosphor bronze mediums. Would the coated ones be worth checking out (or has this been covered before)?There was a time when I had tried out just about every brand of strings on the market. I found that specific guitars seemed to sound better with certain string brands/types. It wasn't predictable, and it didn't carry over to other guitars of the same type/brand/etc. After a while, I got tired of it as I discovered that the variation was quite minor anyway and that almost no one else could tell the difference.

Today I tend to buy the least expensive of the style I want: nickel 10s or 11s for electric strings and phosphor bronze 12s for acoustics.

[Patrick-Ruff]

well, I know someone who is ridiculously good with working with electrical appliances. I'm sure he knows that capacitors are built to store electricity. besides, we'd have no problem wearingn gloves ;).

however, the luther said that the hardest part was finding the part, the actual repair would be easy (for him, I assume.)

there is one thing that I should note, when it is on for a period of time longer then 15 mins, you smell burnt plastic.

and, in the back, there are 2 inputs in which you plug in peddles (I'm pretty sure the amp needs these to get distortion/overdrive, I didn't see such buttons anywhere but it looked like the kind of peddle that comes with an amp,) those don't work anymore.



on a side note, I got new strings on my acoustic . . . but they are mediums. and apparently I had lights before! so now it's twice as hard to play.

[Patrick-Ruff]

any thoughts on that matthew? or anyone who knows amps?

[matthew]

any thoughts on that matthew? or anyone who knows amps?Sorry, guys, I'm in and out this week--I'm traveling.

I'm not quite sure what would cause this. The source could be a number of things and it is probably an easy fix once it is found. A bad cap seems to be a likely culprit, or an intermittent connection due to a bad solder joint. The thing is, you have to find it and that can take time.

I'll be more regular again next week.

[Patrick-Ruff]

alright thanks for the info. to other guru's: Would a voltage tester be the right tool to find the bad cap?

also, would plastic gloves be enough to protect one from killing oneself with electricity? ;).

[Patrick-Ruff]

. . . anyone?

[bazzer]

Well imho I don't think you can test for a bad cap while it's in the circuit (although someone is bound to tell me that's wrong!) so you're more likely to see the issue if you look at the state of the capacitor - like I said before, have a look at them all, one at a time, and check for bulges, crusty brown or orange residue seeping out, perhaps black marks on the board around it, etc, etc...

Hope this helps...?

[Patrick-Ruff]

it does, thanks.

so, I managed to get ahold of a Dean Baby V that I can play . . . but it's unlike any of the other ones I've ever seen. I'll have to take a photo of it some time.

but is it just me or do V guitars REALLY screw with tremolo picking? it seems like I have to adapt an entirely different hand position just to play this guitar well . . . there is no space on the bridge I can rest my palm, it's a bit odd. I've seen a few videos of picking styles people have with these, but it's foreign to me . . . hopefully I can adapt without imprisoning myself to these guitars.

edit: so I'm almost certain that this V is f*in up my style.

[bazzer]

you know I've never fancied a V. I can't see how I could practise sitting down!!

[bazzer]

Well I got the Washburn back last night. It's had the frets stoned, levelled and polished, nut reset properly, floyd has been blocked with a mahogany insert, and all the electrics serviced and cleaned.

Initial impressions are that it's a frikkin monster now! I can hardly play it though. I think maybe cos I've got used to the Squier Strat and the Tele, they've got relatively forgiving string spacing, a lowish (buzzy in places) action and a fairly low output which doesn't overdrive too quickly.

This thing is a nutjob though!! It's much MUCH higher output, the sound of it is honestly awesome now - sounds like a les paul with some hotter pickups. The string spacing is a bit further apart than the strat, and it's got a really flat radius to the fingerboard and bigger, wider frets, which means your thumb has to be on the back of the neck, in the 'classical' position...

I'm pleased that it's a new guitar again, but now I have to learn to play it properly!

[Patrick-Ruff]

right on. I'm still waiting on my moms friend to help me out with that amp . . .

[bazzer]

Patrick, would you be able to post a pic of the circuit board for the amp?

[thisllub]

Does anyone have any opinions on using Elixir or D'Addario EXP strings (tone/feel/life expectancy wise)?
I've been pretty boring in my string choice, sticking to my tried and tested D'Addario EJ-17 phosphor bronze mediums. Would the coated ones be worth checking out (or has this been covered before)?

As has already been said it depends on the guitar.

I have a small bodied cedar/mahogany acoustic (pic somewhere in this thread) and it likes the D'Addario but not the Elixir. Even better were Dean Markley Infinity.

Try them and see.

[Patrick-Ruff]

not really . . . . I don't have a good digital camera.

[Patrick-Ruff]

what do you guys thing of Gibson/Epiphone SG's?

[matthew]

what do you guys thing of Gibson/Epiphone SG's?I've played some very nice Epis that are virtually identical to the Gibsons. If I were to buy either, it would be an Epi SG.

My main complaint about SGs is that they tend to be neck heavy, so you have to hold them up with your fretting hand a little bit as you play. I think with a little practice a person could compensate without much trouble, but it bugs me. :) I generally like the feel and tone otherwise.

[bazzer]

what do you guys thing of Gibson/Epiphone SG's?

Well as it happens I saw an old 'Rock Goes to College' last night, it was ACDC. And as you're probably aware Angus Young plays one. The sound he was getting, plugged straight into 2 marshall stacks was absolutely brilliant. But the axe itself looks a hell of a beast. They are HUGE!!

[matthew]

Well as it happens I saw an old 'Rock Goes to College' last night, it was ACDC. And as you're probably aware Angus Young plays one. The sound he was getting, plugged straight into 2 marshall stacks was absolutely brilliant. But the axe itself looks a hell of a beast. They are HUGE!!I agree about the tone potential...the guitars aren't especially large in size, though. Angus is a very small man. :)

[shen-an-doah]

SGs are great. I mean people like Angus Young, Tony Iommi, Adrian Smith, Eric Clapton, etc can't be wrong, right?

I play an SG copy made by a company called Vintage. Considering it cost £159, it came with a solid mahogany body and mahogany set neck. The only let down is the hardware (which I think has been improved on the newer models now it's all designed by Trevor Wilkinson), but I've replaced everything except the bridge, which is going soon.

[Patrick-Ruff]

I'm considering this (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Gibson-Faded-SG-Special-Electric-Guitar?sku=517222) one. very good price for a gibson imo.

I'm getting really frustrated as I haven't played any of these guitars . . . I've been told that SG's and LP's are good for hand positioning, I do hope this is so, that'll make my world much better. this flying V I've been playing has been kind of frustrating me because I can't play with a medium pick since I don't have enough leverage with the hand options I have . . .

think of the dean I have like this one (http://hangmester.hu/gitar/dean/electric/v79_b.jpg) but with the spot where the strings go in right behind the bridge, it's about a quarter inch away from the bridge instead of an inch like the guitar there.

[shen-an-doah]

I'm considering this (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Gibson-Faded-SG-Special-Electric-Guitar?sku=517222) one. very good price for a gibson imo.

I'm getting really frustrated as I haven't played any of these guitars . . . I've been told that SG's and LP's are good for hand positioning, I do hope this is so, that'll make my world much better. this flying V I've been playing has been kind of frustrating me because I can't play with a medium pick since I don't have enough leverage with the hand options I have . . .

Have you not got any music shops nearby where you could try one out? Even one of a similar shape/set-up would be good...

[Patrick-Ruff]

I have a friend who has a gibson flying v, it has the same exact bridge it seems. so I might call him up and play his.

I'll post a pic of the Dean today. I have summer school so I gotta get to that now, be back in 5-6 hours.

[suterb42]

SGs are great. I mean people like Angus Young, Tony Iommi, Adrian Smith, Eric Clapton, etc can't be wrong, right?

Not to mention Frank Zappa. :-D

[Patrick-Ruff]

haven't listened to zappa . . .


I thought clapton was loyal to the single coil pickups? :)

[shen-an-doah]

I thought clapton was loyal to the single coil pickups? :)

Obviously you haven't listened to enough Clapton. Check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Clapton#Clapton.27s_guitars

IMO, he started going downhill when he began using strats exclusively (well, at least nothing he's done since compares to his work with Cream, apart from Layla, but that's dragged down by the rest of the album).

His SG:

http://www.legendarytones.com/claptonearly1_clip_image012.jpg

[guitodd]

Wow.. lotsa Linux Musicians. I play Guitar in a Northwest rock band called LogosEye. We've been around for nearly 10 years - 3 albums. I play a Gibson Les Paul Standard, a 98' Gibson Les Paul SL2 and an Epiphone Les Paul Quilt-Top.

www.logoseye.com
www.myspace.com/logoseye

[guitodd]

Oh.. and my studio..

www.myspace.com/firwooddigital

..just easier than listing everything!!

[Patrick-Ruff]

it loosk like sg's don't have the pickup controller that LP's have (being able to switch from bridge to neck pickup or both . . .) is this true?

[kamaboko]

Oh.. and my studio..

www.myspace.com/firwooddigital

..just easier than listing everything!!

Nice setup.

[shen-an-doah]

it loosk like sg's don't have the pickup controller that LP's have (being able to switch from bridge to neck pickup or both . . .) is this true?

Not true at all. It's between the control knobs and the scratchplate:

http://www.blackdot.com.au/catalogue_images/epiphoneg400large.jpg

[Patrick-Ruff]

oh really? so it's just marked differently?

it looks to me that it says Treble and Bass, is that just dummy terms for bridge/neck?

[shen-an-doah]

oh really? so it's just marked differently?

it looks to me that it says Treble and Bass, is that just dummy terms for bridge/neck?

Actually it says rhythm/treble, which is the same as on a les paul. It's pretty self explanatory though, as the switch is slanted so when it's set on "rhythm", it is actually pointed towards the neck. Compared to a les paul where it doesn't (http://www.elderly.com/images/vintage/30U/30U-13202_switch.jpg)...

[Patrick-Ruff]

lol, I'm not entirely sure of why you stated that :S.

that picture looks like a very haggard les paul.

[suterb42]

that picture looks like a very haggard les paul.

You hardly ever see 'em with P-90's. That must be an old guitar.

Personally, I have a Peavey Razer and a Yamaha RBX550 bass. I play through my GuitarPort (under Windows) or just stick the guitar cable into the 1/4" input on my sound card's breakout box. (If my GuitarPort worked under Linux, I'd ditch Windows RIGHT NOW.)

EDIT: For those of you that don't know what a Peavey Razer is, I found a pic of one that's exactly like mine.

http://img26.picoodle.com/img/img26/8/6/24/f_Razer1m_21041f7.jpg

[Patrick-Ruff]

lol, definitely not my style.

[suterb42]

lol, definitely not my style.

It was given to me a few years ago. I like having something nobody else has.

[Patrick-Ruff]

I'd rather apply that sort of philosophy to ability rather then meterialism ;).

but then again, nothing is really original . . . it's just too hard to be original if you're trying to be original. most people discover it by accident.

[Patrick-Ruff]

this thread has really started struggling since bezmotivnik left.

[Patrick-Ruff]

so, we opened up the amp and there doesn't seem to be any really obvoius issues. we tested some of the capacitors and it seemed like one was messed up but it's really hard to say.

is there any reliable way of finding out if something isn't working right without the schematics of the amp?

[matthew]

this thread has really started struggling since bezmotivnik left.Yeah. Sometimes things go in waves, too. I've been really busy lately.

so, we opened up the amp and there doesn't seem to be any really obvoius issues. we tested some of the capacitors and it seemed like one was messed up but it's really hard to say.

is there any reliable way of finding out if something isn't working right without the schematics of the amp?Hmm. Caps are one of those things that are harder to test. It's usually easier to just change them since they are pretty cheap anyway--it's the bench time that costs so much, and you end up paying more for the testing time than you would to just switch them all out.

Having the schematic makes the job tons easier, because you know what things should look like, and you usually have test points with voltage measurements listed on them, and so on.

[Patrick-Ruff]

yeah . . . I couldn't find schematics for this amp anywhere online . . .

[Patrick-Ruff]

well, if anyone can help me find schematics on this amp I would greatly appreciate it :).

Crate MX65R
S/N: BQUDO20348

[Patrick-Ruff]

nevermind, got a schematic!

[matthew]

nevermind, got a schematic!
Great! That should help.

[shen-an-doah]

Just bought one of these for £125 off ebay:

http://www.gig-fx.com/products/Chopper/chopper.htm

It looks awesome, can't wait to get it :D

[Patrick-Ruff]

dude that looks hela awesome.

here's the schematic if anyone is interested . . . forgive me if it infringes some copyrights. they gave it to me without asking for much so I assume it's not that big of a deal.

http://www.mytempdir.com/1363002

[Patrick-Ruff]

dude that looks hela awesome.

here's the schematic if anyone is interested . . . forgive me if it infringes some copyrights. they gave it to me without asking for much so I assume it's not that big of a deal.

http://www.mytempdir.com/1363002

sorry, accidental double-post.

[suterb42]

Just bought one of these for £125 off ebay:

http://www.gig-fx.com/products/Chopper/chopper.htm

It looks awesome, can't wait to get it :D

Would there be a way to turn that "Won't Get Fooled Again" preset into a plugin for Ecamegapedal?

[shen-an-doah]

Would there be a way to turn that "Won't Get Fooled Again" preset into a plugin for Ecamegapedal?

Well, you'd have to have some way to achieve the chopper effect, which I think is pretty unique to the pedal. I mean a very deep tremelo would give you a similar on/off effect, but it wouldn't be quite the same as it would have equal intervals of on/off, rather than the long on/short off the chopper does...

[Patrick-Ruff]

uh, didn't The Who use the bridge/neck pickup switcher to do that effect? I'm almost 90% certain they did.

[shen-an-doah]

uh, didn't The Who use the bridge/neck pickup switcher to do that effect? I'm almost 90% certain they did.

It's an organ.

[Patrick-Ruff]

ok so, back to my amp. so I have the schematics for it, what would the best way to go about determaining the problem?

my friend said he would use a frequency generator, but I'm a bit unsure. any thoughts?

[Patrick-Ruff]

so it seems that the busted cap is the biggest one on the board. a 4700µF 50v.

it seems that the ONLY place I can find this exact capacitor is on ebay in a bundle of 10 for 28 bucks . . . .


I really hope this is the only busted cap lol . . .

[matthew]

It is possible to substitute caps of different values in place of that one, but I am extremely hesitant to discuss how...it's not rocket science, but fooling around inside a tube amp can kill you. If you can do some reading you might be able to figure out how to safely put two (less expensive) capacitors in series or in parallel, or how much variation is allowable in the rating and just find a cheap, really closely valued substitute.

Start here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor

Some quick rules of thumb with capacitors:

- never use a cap with a voltage rating that is less than the one you take out (unless you are putting them in series and you know what you're doing)

- you can usually get away with about 10% variation in the value (in Farads), going larger but not smaller. That's not absolute, though. Again, if you don't know what you are doing, read more or just find an exact replacement.

- if you replace one electrolytic cap in a circuit, it is a good idea to replace them all. New parts of this kind can add stress to old ones, and electrolytic caps have a life expectancy of about 10 years on average. Anything older than 8 years I generally change out if I have the amp apart anyway. I always change them all at the same time...it prevents unexpected downtime later.

- finally, always triple check that you put the cap in the circuit the right way. Electrolytic caps are polarized. If you put it in backwards, it will explode..not might, will. I've seen it.

Read this as well for a good, overall introduction: http://www.kbapps.com/tubeamptips.html
ignore the "buy my brand of tubes" bits.

[Patrick-Ruff]

I don't think this is a tube amp.

but replacing ALL the caps on the board is like . . . insane. that's over 50 caps! that would probably cost me more then the amp is worth.

[matthew]

More reading for you.

http://home.alltel.net/vintage/tubefaq.htm#Section14

http://www.ax84.com/

http://www.triodeelectronics.com/capacitors.html

----

Other possible parts sources (not an endorsement...just FYI. Mouser has a great reputation, though, and I've used Triode Electronics above.):

http://www.mouser.com/search/Refine.aspx?Ne=254016+1447464&N=1323038%20254295&Ns=P_SField&RefType=Header

http://www.ampwares.com/index.html

http://www.mojomusicalsupply.com/capacitors.asp?id=44974

[matthew]

I don't think this is a tube amp.

but replacing ALL the caps on the board is like . . . insane. that's over 50 caps! that would probably cost me more then the amp is worth.Only the electrolytic caps, not all the other ones. These are the ones that look like little cylinders. There might be 10 of those total. The rest are fine.

Not a tube amp? Hmm. Okay, it's a little less dangerous for you, but still not incredibly safe. I'm still going to strongly recommend letting a trained technician deal with it for you. It will cost you some money, but you won't get hurt and it should work afterword...unless, of course, this is a disposable amp. Then play, but do so safely.

[bazzer]

- finally, always triple check that you put the cap in the circuit the right way. Electrolytic caps are polarized. If you put it in backwards, it will explode..not might, will. I've seen it.


+1 - hilarious at college while the lecturer is trying to tell you about the dangers of capacitors, but a little surprising when you do it by accident....

[matthew]

+1 - hilarious at college while the lecturer is trying to tell you about the dangers of capacitors, but a little surprising when you do it by accident....I once installed one backwards in an amp from the 1940s that I bought off of eBay and was restoring. It scared the tar out of me. Thankfully I was wearing protective glasses. A bit of that electrolyte solution in an eye would be really, really bad.

[justin whitaker]

That's some pretty severe damage, and I suspect that there may be more problems you can't see.

I'm not an authority on major acoustic repairs except to know that it's almost impossible to get them done both well and cheaply. Competent major acoustic repairs almost always exceed the value of the instrument. :(

I'd take it to someone who's more up on classical instruments and see what he says.

Ok, quick update: I finally broke down and strung the thing....after finding out some more about it, it seems that despite the extensive damage, it should hold tension.

The bio of the guitar is that it was bought for my Mother in law from a Luthier in El Salvador. It's handmade, and about 40 years old. Very expensive guitar, from what I understand.

My wife learned to play on it, and sometime 15 years ago, it got placed in a basement sans case, and forgotten. Effing shame that it's been abused so much.

So how did it go? Absolutely fine. My brother actually went to Peabody to train on Classical Guitar, and this handmade is fuller, richer, and more complex sounding than his Concert Guitar. Absolutely beautiful.

I'm afraid to let anyone repair it because it is one hell of a classical guitar. I'm worried that getting it fixed might lose that special quality it has.

Now I just need to get my fingerstyle skills up to speed. ;)

[Patrick-Ruff]

if it works, don't fix it.


also, I have someone that I don't have to pay to help me, I'm certainly not spending money on someone anyhow. it seems like I can only find the particular cap that seems to be busted in a bulk of 10 for 35 bucks on ebay . . . .

[matthew]

I thought everyone would enjoy this.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/47/Denmark_street_sign.jpg

[shen-an-doah]

I thought everyone would enjoy this.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/47/Denmark_street_sign.jpg

It doesn't mention Iron Man, score!

[bazzer]

That is without doubt, excellent!!

Wonder what Jimmy Page, Slash or Tony Iommi would make of it though if they wanted to have a go? ;)

[shen-an-doah]

That is without doubt, excellent!!

Wonder what Jimmy Page, Slash or Tony Iommi would make of it though if they wanted to have a go? ;)

Well, it wouldn't matter to Iommi as none of his songs are banned. Ritchie Blackmore might be pissed though...

[jeffc313]

me: *begins to play stairway to heaven*
storeowner: "get out... just leave my store"
lol

[bazzer]

Well, it wouldn't matter to Iommi as none of his songs are banned. Ritchie Blackmore might be pissed though...

:oops:

[dexter]

I have a question about playing a certain kind of riff that involves palm muting. Iron Maiden (along with other bands) have a lot of "galloping" riffs. See for instance The Trooper: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phHVeT9YThc at 1:05.

When they are playing the galloping part, the power chords are palm muted. Do you think they still play both strings of the power chord (e.g.E5), or just the top one ? I've tried playing both strings but i fail at playing that "smooth". When i look at this video about palm muting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqzbTb7fNbw, it seems that only the top one has to be played. Anyone knows how they exactly do it, do they play one or both strings ?

[matthew]

For palm muting, either way can work. A lot of it will depend on your overall volume. You can punish a crowd playing one palm-muted low E string through a Marshall stack that is turned up. Other times, you will need the extra volume of two strings, such as when you're playing with a small combo amp in your bedroom.

I suggest practicing both ways and trying to achieve fluidity with both...the more tools you have in your toolbox, the more flexible you can be when you feel inspired.

[shen-an-doah]

Yeh, it's perfectly possible to palm mute a powerchord. You just need to practice things slowly in order to get them accurate and then speed up.

[dexter]

Yeh, it's perfectly possible to palm mute a powerchord. You just need to practice things slowly in order to get them accurate and then speed up.
Playing a powerchord palm muted isn't the problem. It's playing that galloping rif palm muted. Especially my upstrokes are really bad and I sometimes keep hanging on a string while playing an upstroke.

For palm muting, either way can work. A lot of it will depend on your overall volume. You can punish a crowd playing one palm-muted low E string through a Marshall stack that is turned up. Other times, you will need the extra volume of two strings, such as when you're playing with a small combo amp in your bedroom.

Currently playing on a squier startpack. Got that about 7 years ago. Im not really that glad with it, it has several design issues that achieve bad quality but make them very pricy. During college a played very little (5 years), but i'm about to graduate (i'll become a civil engineer, specialised at computer sciences in belgium 8)) and spend a lot more time practicing. When I have some money I intend to buy a Gibson SG Standard and a good amp, which will be a huge difference :D


I suggest practicing both ways and trying to achieve fluidity with both...the more tools you have in your toolbox, the more flexible you can be when you feel inspired.
Will try and do both, starting very slowly ;).

[justin whitaker]

A good song for you to practice palm muting on is Ozzy's Crazy Train, or Ultimate Sin. There is a palm-muted bass line in those that is a tad slower than what IM does....

[Patrick-Ruff]

lol nice pic matthew . . . .

I totally get where they're comming from. there are several songs that are RIDICULOUSLY over-played.

[joeyea]

hehe this is my sort of convo. epiphone sg, line 6 spider, dunlop crybaby, sun strat with a selection of crazy pickups including fender japs, and much more lol (not that great compared to some of you guys but i only 15).
has anyone got it working through creox here?

joe

[Patrick-Ruff]

right on. I'm 16 so I'm not that far ahead of you, as far as equipment goes Im' still working on fixing an amplifier.


I'm getting closer and closer to finding a good site that has these cap's. I found one in the UK that has them, but right now I'm lookingi for ones in the U.S. :).

edit: found one in the U.S. ordered 2 caps for 4 bucks :).


4700µF 50v (http://www.alliedelec.com/Search/ProductDetail.asp?SKU=862-0135&SEARCH=&MPN=380LX472M050H032&DESC=380LX472M050H032&R=862%2D0135&sid=46859D0016C8617F)

[joeyea]

cool, what amp is it?

[Patrick-Ruff]

Crate MX65R 65W

[Patrick-Ruff]

maybe we should start a new thread? 135 pages is a lot.

[matthew]

maybe we should start a new thread? 135 pages is a lot.I look at it as comparable to "how long has your server been running without a reboot?" A thread that has stuck around this long, with this much interest, is pretty cool. :p

[Patrick-Ruff]

I think it's got to the point where most of us have forgot waht's gone on in this thread, and new members don't want to run through 100+ pages lol.

I wouldn't really care about how long the thread was if it didn't slow down /soooo/ much.

[Patrick-Ruff]

so I realized that my bad arm is hindering my tremolo picking ability. atleast, as far as string switching goes.

I need some help working through it, I'm going to post some videos soon, and I woudl really appreciate it if you guys could help as much as you can.

thanks

[godd4242]

I look at it as comparable to "how long has your server been running without a reboot?" A thread that has stuck around this long, with this much interest, is pretty cool. :p

Totally agreeing there.

Speaking of guitar wolrdness ossity

Anyone wanna refurbish a custom made 1967 les paul?

http://www.blastingroomstudios.com/gfx/stacie2/images/Les-Paul-(04).jpg

That is really
Except mine is
you know
rusty
and missing a pickup
and the volume control is busted up
missing a few strings


I guess you guys kinda get the picture by now. ;_;

[Patrick-Ruff]

why don't you refurbish it yourself? it could be quite the experience ;).

[shen-an-doah]

why don't you refurbish it yourself? it could be quite the experience ;).

Sounds like a plan to me.

Check this site for some help: http://projectguitar.com/

And for parts: http://stewmac.com/ (their trade secrets newsletter is also pretty good)

[bazzer]

And www.axesrus.co.uk (http://www.axesrus.co.uk) too....

[matthew]

Anyone wanna refurbish a custom made 1967 les paul?

http://www.blastingroomstudios.com/gfx/stacie2/images/Les-Paul-(04).jpg (http://www.blastingroomstudios.com/gfx/stacie2/images/Les-Paul-%2804%29.jpg)That would be so fun! I'm probably a bit too far away at the moment to really consider helping you...and there are no parts available here. :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

hey matthew, did you use a schematic to build your amp?

[matthew]

hey matthew, did you use a schematic to build your amp?Yes. It started as a kit. I built it, then it has been modified a few times. Here's a really old web page I made showing the process.

http://www.matthewhelmke.com/guitar-amp/allen/allen2005.html

[Patrick-Ruff]

nice. how much did it cost you total? (the initial stuff, not the modifications afterwords)

[matthew]

nice. how much did it cost you total? (the initial stuff, not the modifications afterwords)The guy from Allen Amps was just getting started, so I got a screaming deal at $750, which included everything, even the cabinet and speakers and an output transformer upgrade. He couldn't have made much money from me as the parts would have taken up at least $700 of that. Today the base model kit is $1099.

[Patrick-Ruff]

wow . . . I don't know if I can afford that lol.

anyone digging my new avatar? :D

[godd4242]

Sounds like a plan to me.

Check this site for some help: http://projectguitar.com/

And for parts: http://stewmac.com/ (their trade secrets newsletter is also pretty good)

haha alright

totally looking into it, thanks

[shen-an-doah]

Also, you don't have to do restore it too much. If it works perfectly fine, you might wanna leave it in a worn/distressed state, as that can look pretty cool. Hell, people will pay money for pre-distressed guitars, so the real thing is even better...

[Patrick-Ruff]

yeah, last thing you want to do is screw up giving it a new paint job and then having it look worse ;).

I'd say, fix up all the controls and hardware. if there's anything major beyond that, that's really worth attempting, than go for it ;).

[Patrick-Ruff]

no consistent conversation in over 4 weeks . . . I'm willing to say that this thread is totally dead.

[matthew]

http://www.teslatheband.com/TheBand/images/great_radio.jpg
Tesla - Party's Over

It's the same old song and dance,
You're askin' me for a second chance.
I don't care, baby, what you say,
All I wanna do is gotta get away.

Been too many times callin' out your name,
You promised me, but you never came.
Was it, baby, all a game to you? Yeah.
After all the things that I've done for you,
Say your love, your love, could not be true.
I don't need nobody like you.

So turn out the lights, the party's over.
Turn out the lights, the party's over for you.
This time is the last time, never be a next time.
Tonight I wanna dance to a brand new tune.

You know, it took so long for me to realize
You got a cheatin' heart full of dirty lies.
Now listen baby, I got news for you.
Now don'tcha come knockin' on my door.
'Cause I don't want your love no more.
I don't need nobody like you.

So turn out the lights, (lights out) the party's over.
Turn out the lights, (lights out) the party's over for you.
This time is the last time, never be a next time.
Tonight I wanna dance to rock and roll.

I guess it must-a been you were so caught up
That you didn't even notice we were fallin apart.
Now you played the game, now you play the fool.
I don't need nobody like you.
I don't want it. I don't need it.
No, no, nobody like you. All I got to say.

So turn out the lights, (lights out) the party's over.
Turn out the lights, (lights out) the party's over for you.
This time is the last time, never be a next time.
Turn out the lights, the party's over.
Turn out the lights.
Turn out the lights. (turn out the lights)
Turn out the lights, the party's over.
Turn out the lights. (turn out the lights)
Turn out the lights, (lights out) the party's over.
Turn out the lights, the party's over. Yeah.

[g4ry.l33]

WOW this is great! I have a Les Paul, a Strat, a Tele, 2 Ibanez electrics and an Ovation. Which one do I like best? What day is it?

[matthew]

WOW this is great! I have a Les Paul, a Strat, a Tele, 2 Ibanez electrics and an Ovation. Which one do I like best? What day is it?Nice collection you have there! If you have any pics, I would love to see them.

[Patrick-Ruff]

nice matthew, I love Tesla. have you heard them play Thank You by Led Zeppelin?

[isaacj87]

wow...I'm brand new to this thread and I can't believe there are 137 pages...

Anywho, I've got 4 guitars:

This really old classical guitar that my dad gave to me to learn on..
2 Ibanez:
S-370
GAX70

and a Yamaha that's in pieces. Not sure what I'm going to do with it. I want to replace the pickups, maybe repaint, and definitely remove the nasty pick guard...not a big fan of those (the yamaha is a strat copy, 3 single coil and everything)

And, as I stated before, I'm brand new to the thread and I'm not sure if someone has mentioned it, but...For WinCrap, there's Guitar Pro (a tab program that is very cool for those who don't know). So, I was hoping that there was something similar for Linux...and there was!! It's called TuxGuitar and it acts and performs just like GuitarPro. So check it out.

Hands down the best player of all time (IMO of course!) is good ol' SRV (Stevie Ray Vaughn). None of that Satriani, or Vai crap. Don't care for futuristic noises and too much hammering.

And on a similar note: There's this 15 or 16 year-old boy from france who's absolutely fantastic at the guitar. Go on YouTube and look up Mattrach...you won't be disappointed. And a brazillian player who is also very good...lookup "Amazing insane guitar solo" or something like that.

-Isaac

[matthew]

nice matthew, I love Tesla. have you heard them play Thank You by Led Zeppelin?I haven't. I just looked on youtube and they had someone's very poor quality camera video from a concert, but the sound was so bad I could only recognize the opening riff and I couldn't hear anything else. :(

EDIT: Isaac, thanks for joining us!! Yeah, that kid you mentioned is pretty good. Oh, and I'm a huge SRV fan!

[isaacj87]

EDIT: Isaac, thanks for joining us!! Yeah, that kid you mentioned is pretty good. Oh, and I'm a huge SRV fan!

No one can play the guitar like SRV...it's not all about technicality with SRV (even though he's an exceptional player), but more about the timing, tone and the notes he plays to complete the music. ;-)

[Patrick-Ruff]

matthew here's the official video ;)


great quality, you wont be dissapointed

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AiU1lV4YGUU

[matthew]

matthew here's the official video ;)


great quality, you wont be dissapointed

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AiU1lV4YGUUThanks! That was very well done. I enjoyed it.

[bazzer]

Ok, I confess I had another GAS attack at the weekend. So finally, after about 24 years of wanting one, I finally got my first Fender Stratocaster. Bit underwhelmed though, it played like a dog as was - it's a '98 Mex that's had NOTHING done to it at all since it was bought from the shop. So I disassembled it and gave it a new set of strings and a quick polish of the fretboard, and it plays ok.... But still the tone pots don't work :( and the volume control is all within the top 3 numbers, below that there's no output. So I think I have a project on my hands here.....

Anyway, here are all the girls:
http://www.barryrlee.f2s.com/stuff/guitars.jpg

[Vague]

Finally, I found the guitar thread. Long story short, I have too many (or so I'm told) and not enough time to play.

@Bazzer: Never good to be underwhelmed, but a project is always fun, right?

[matthew]

Ok, I confess I had another GAS attack at the weekend. So finally, after about 24 years of wanting one, I finally got my first Fender Stratocaster. Bit underwhelmed though, it played like a dog as was - it's a '98 Mex that's had NOTHING done to it at all since it was bought from the shop. So I disassembled it and gave it a new set of strings and a quick polish of the fretboard, and it plays ok.... But still the tone pots don't work :( and the volume control is all within the top 3 numbers, below that there's no output. So I think I have a project on my hands here.....

Anyway, here are all the girls:
Nice picture. Projects are fun. Here's a strat schematic page I found to get you started. I've gutted electric guitars before, it's not terribly hard and should make a fun little project. You might simply have some dirty pots or something and it could end up being easier yet. http://alexplorer.net/guitar/basics/stratschem.html

Finally, I found the guitar thread. Long story short, I have too many (or so I'm told) and not enough time to play.

@Bazzer: Never good to be underwhelmed, but a project is always fun, right?Welcome to the conversation. I'm pleased you found us. :)

[bazzer]

Well after a lunchtime A-B test of the 'real' Strat against the Squier I can safely say the tone pots DO in fact work and I must have been hallucinating last night when I thought they weren't. However, I still don't feel happy with the 'real' one yet... The Squier just sounds more 'Stratty' than the real one! I think it might be that the 'real' one has a thicker body and chunkier feeling neck (it's about 3mm wider at the nut) but it's got a more round, lower tone about it, where the Squier feels bright and zingy. Maybe a little 'too' bight and zingy? I dunno...

To be honest, I only have my own ears on this at the moment, I've a mate with a good one and I want to invite him over for a jam soon to get his opinion.

The pots are all a bit wobbly though, the Squier hardware seems better quality - the pots take a bit more force to move, for example - so I MIGHT just have to swap them over... And maybe a little mid boost circuit like the Clapton one? Long way off I think...

Cheers for the linky, I'll study that all a bit later on.

[shen-an-doah]

So, I got my birthday present of a Bigsby and a new bridge for my SG yesterday and today I fitted it all and set everything up. Here's some pics:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v191/shen-an-doah/sgpics.png

Removing the old tailpiece and plugging the holes was pretty simple. In fact I was just about to leave to buy some dowel when I realised I had some freely available round pieces of wood already! Broken drumsticks! Just cut two bits off and sanded them down to fit and then painted the ends black with old Warhammer paint :P

[bazzer]

That is one gnarly looking axe, dude!! :guitar:

[shen-an-doah]

That is one gnarly looking axe, dude!! :guitar:

Why thank you, my good man. I do love it so...

[matthew]

So, I got my birthday present of a Bigsby and a new bridge for my SG yesterday and today I fitted it all and set everything up. Here's some pics:Nice!! I love the custom paint. Have fun with the Bigbsy!

[Vague]

So, I got my birthday present of a Bigsby and a new bridge for my SG yesterday and today I fitted it all and set everything up.

That looks great. I love a Bigsby on an SG. Also, is that a Warpig I see in the bridge there?

[shen-an-doah]

That looks great. I love a Bigsby on an SG. Also, is that a Warpig I see in the bridge there?

Indeed it is. Best pick-up ever.

[Vague]

Indeed it is. Best pick-up ever.

Awesome. I was going to ask how you liked it, but I guess that answers that question.

[shen-an-doah]

Awesome. I was going to ask how you liked it, but I guess that answers that question.

Heh :D It's a very high-output pick-up. I've got a built-in overdrive on my SG and it distorts no matter how light I play :P But without overdrive it's very clean and has a great clean sound as well...

[Patrick-Ruff]

glad to see the thread starting to be active again.

so, we got the capacitor. open up the amp, test it, solder it in, test it. turn on the amp, it turns on for 3 seconds then turns off.

so at this point we start testing everything, it doesn't turn back on again so we test the main power cable for the board. it stops RIGHT at the fuse.


so, I'm thinking something I did busted the fuse, or it busted merely out of coincidense . . . worst case scenario: bad solder joint, frying several nearby componants, and then reaching the fuse and frying it.

we haven't had the time to test EVERYTHING, but both caps work and many nearby componants so I'm not really sure what screwed up the fuse . . .

[matthew]

When a fuse blows, your amp (or the fuse) is trying to tell you something. A blown fuse almost always means you have a problem in the amp, not a bad fuse. A fuse is a protection circuit designed to interrupt the flow of current when the fuses current rating has been exceeded. It means that there is a short circuit somewhere.

So...I have some ideas. This isn't a complete flow chart or anything, but it could help.

My first thought is that the caps you replaced are bad or damaged. That would cause blown fuses. Do they have any visible defects? Are you 100% certain you wired them in correctly and not backwards?

Are there any sloppy solder joints that might be making a short circuit by touching more than the intended parts/contacts?

Do any parts look burnt or darkened? Specifically, I would check the transistors first, then the rectifier.

There is often a capacitor right where the AC voltage comes into the amp, going across the contacts. If it exists, this is before the filter caps and is usually a ceramic cap with a value around .047uF. If the amp has a 3 prong, grounded cable, this won't be there. If it has a 2 prong, not grounded power cable, that is something that might be a problem as well...although I admit I am not nearly as adept at working on solid-state (non tube) amplifiers. If this cap is there, and damaged, it could cause problems.

To really diagnose blown fuses can take time...again, this is a pretty inexpensive amp, so if you can't see it yourself it might not be worth it to you to take it to a tech. At the same time, if the problem isn't one of the things I mentioned above, and isn't obvious and easy to find, a good tech may be required as tracking down a short would require some test equipment and experience to do safely. A tech would remove most of the circuit and start at the AC cord, adding parts of the amp back in little by little*, until the failure is found. This is easier and more cost effective on a tube amp that is made for longevity and serviceability...most cheap solid state amps are not made for either.

*safety cap, then the rectifier, then filter caps, then transistors, and so on.

[Patrick-Ruff]

well, I'm thinking it was a bad solder joint the first time. both joints are good, both caps are good, we tested them several times.

but my friend was suggesting that the fuse block was bad, because he took out the fuse and tested it with the multimeter and it transfered power successfully, but the actual block didn't. it's a really weird problem, I'll get more details later.

[Patrick-Ruff]

WOW . . . there aren't enough cusswords to express this . . .

one of the capacitors blew up inside the amp. good thing I had the case assembled (I'm smart like that.)

I haven't opened it yet and I'm going to wait a while, still a bit startled by it.


WHAT COULD POSSIBLY NOT BE DOING IT"S JOB!? lol. looks like I have a lot of work to do . . . I really need a multi-meter.


I'm also thinking the cap MIGHT hav ebeen in backwards. THANKFULLY we have a second one . . .


------------------------------
UPDATE
after much reading and discussion with my friend, we decided that the cap was put in incorrectly. you see, on the area in which the cap lies, there was a + sign written in regular ink right where the NEGATIVE lead should go, so instead of paying attention to the very very small + sign near the lead where we put the negative, we payed attention to the big one, and as a result the cap took in charge incorrectly or whatever happens when you pit in a cap backwards.

and as a result . . . BOOM.

so I'm a bit tired, but I put that second capacitor in there the right way, and my friend and I determined the components that are most likely to be fried in worst case scenario, so we're going to test all these components before the next run, check all the solder joints, etc.

wish me luck!

[matthew]

Re: backwards cap. I've done that. It's frightening. It is also a recoverable mistake. Hang in there.

[Patrick-Ruff]

that it is. good thing I ordered 2 of them.

NEW GROUNDS. I put the cap in the RIGHT way, turned it on, and now it's exactly the way it was before all this started.

so, I have a multi-meter now, time to start testing other stuff. atleast the most expensive part is out of the loop here. I doubt it's the transformer because it wouldn't turn on at all. so, time to test EVERY componant on the board . . .

[Cozza]

Hi

I am an acoustic guitar player :) I've got a Brunswick acoustic, dark brown shiny body with black pickguard and copper-coloured strings. I love it.

Although I have to say I am still beginner and I've only been playing for two months but I'll get there. I'm having lessons from Justin Sandercoe (www.justinguitar.com) (http://youtube.com/user/JustinSandercoe)

Take Care
Cara xx

[Ralob]

Hi

I am an acoustic guitar player :) I've got a Brunswick acoustic, dark brown shiny body with black pickguard and copper-coloured strings. I love it.

Although I have to say I am still beginner and I've only been playing for two months but I'll get there. I'm having lessons from Justin Sandercoe (www.justinguitar.com) (http://youtube.com/user/JustinSandercoe)

Take Care
Cara xx

I really like his style. He is a good one; you are very lucky! :guitar:

[Cozza]

Hi

Thanks- I'm glad you like it :) Ben Lowrey from www.vguitarlessons.com is good but he's hard to contact I can't keep up with his lessons.

Take Care anyways
Cara xx

[Patrick-Ruff]

I've just been making breakthroughs on my style. apparently anchoring the pinkey with little pressure and not resting your palm on the bridge at ALL is what most people are doing apparently. it's VERY hard to tell thruogh the internet however . . .

[Ralob]

I've just been making breakthroughs on my style. apparently anchoring the pinkey with little pressure and not resting your palm on the bridge at ALL is what most people are doing apparently. it's VERY hard to tell thruogh the internet however . . .

Indeed, I had major issues with my technique. I think I still may. See, my problem is that I am very detailed oriented, and I teach myself. So if I am unsure if I am doing it perfectly I get flustered. For example, I have very long fingers and my main problem is making sure I am always playing on the tips. Even after playing for five years I have to be vigilant about being correct :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

yep, I'm pretty much exactly the same. but I don't care about my fretting hand at all, I have a pre-satriani reach, all I need to do is speed it up really, increase muscle memory.

my MAIN problem is my picking hand, above EVERYTHING else.

[Patrick-Ruff]

so I'm a bit overwealmed by all the componants to test and what to do and all that . . . Matthew, is there any possibility you could help me out here? I'll have to give you a lot more details of course but I have the schematics, maybe you might have some extra stuff for me to try . . .

[matthew]

so I'm a bit overwealmed by all the componants to test and what to do and all that . . . Matthew, is there any possibility you could help me out here? I'll have to give you a lot more details of course but I have the schematics, maybe you might have some extra stuff for me to try . . .
I'll do my best. I'm in the middle of two crazy weeks, so if I don't reply immediately, give me a day or so and I will get back to you eventually. Do you need me to start with the basic process, or is there another specific question you have at this point?

[Patrick-Ruff]

well, my friend and I found a diode that lets current through when it shouldn't . . .

so apparently, all the effects such as the overdrive channel, clean, etc. is all going directly to the ground rather than working . . .

well, I'm gonna replace the diode and see what happens . . . if you want to see the schematic tell me.

[matthew]

The bad diode was a good catch. That should help a bit.

Do you have the schematic as a jpg or pdf? Something like that anyway? If so, I'll gladly take a look at it.

[Patrick-Ruff]

PDF. I do recommend that you make sure Line Weights are turned off, the schematic is impossible to read otherwise. I'm not sure how I can upload it on here so I'll just put it on an external site.

http://d.turboupload.com/d/1946094/schematics.rar.html

there you go.

apparently the diode is fine because I desoldered it and tested it outside of the circuit and it tested fine . . .

so, we're back to sqare one. the Red LED for the overdrive channel doesn't turn on, the input jack doesn't work, when you plug in a guitar to it you hear /very/ quiet static, with a very very very light tone of a guitar that is barely audible.

ALL the adjustors P1 - P11 don't work, atleast, it's not really noticable. the Green LED for CHANNEL turns on. and the RED LED for power turns on. we tested a ton of resistors and most, if not all of them got the desired result. WE MAY have missed something as we were testing yesterday because I was sick and slightly disoriented (and everyone knows that if you're trying to interpret circuits half-conscious . . . you're bound to screw up somewhere.)

so I'm not sure where to go next, if you have any idea's please tell me ;).

[bazzer]

I had a chat with the guy who designed my amp a few weeks ago, he has a service where you can return the amp for refurbishing. Basically, in a solid state device, the 'most likely' cause of problems are the mechanical ones. So, he tests and replaces all the switches and knobs before going anywhere else.

The only reason I spoke to him is that my amp is indeed playing up a bit at the moment. And I cannot be bothered to see if I can sort it myself; what happens is that the channel change switch sometimes works, sometimes not and the reverb control does nothing. He described to me the way the different parts of circuits 'rely' on certain components being 'good' so it might be something as simple as a bit of fluff in a switch causing the channel swap thing to go haywire.

Maybe you should check all the mechanical parts too mate?

[Patrick-Ruff]

this is way deeper than mechanical parts . . . we're talking entirely circuitry here. we didn't test EVERY knob but we tested enough of them to determain that they aren't the issue. tested over 10 resistors, 9 diodes, 6 capacitors . . . ugh, I'm tired of it already. we're running into all this crap that makes NO SENSE.

so matthew, your idea's will be appreciated . . .

[bazzer]

this is way deeper than mechanical parts . . . we're talking entirely circuitry here. we didn't test EVERY knob

Well, I'm not an amp designer but the bloke who is told me it's the most likely cause of problems. And knobs are part of the circuitry....

[Patrick-Ruff]

seems unlikely here. the input plug hardly works at alll . . . I cna get a slight buzz out of it which means there must be some sort of current running through it, but the red LED for GAIN/OVERDRIVE doesn't turn on at all, no matter what I do. the ONLY thing that works is the insert plug. and it gives me a sort of a clean sound that I can't alter at all as none of the adjustors do anything to the insert plug. . . .

[matthew]

Alright. I'm looking at the schemo now.

so, we're back to sqare one. the Red LED for the overdrive channel doesn't turn on, the input jack doesn't work, when you plug in a guitar to it you hear /very/ quiet static, with a very very very light tone of a guitar that is barely audible.

ALL the adjustors P1 - P11 don't work, atleast, it's not really noticable. the Green LED for CHANNEL turns on. and the RED LED for power turns on. we tested a ton of resistors and most, if not all of them got the desired result. WE MAY have missed something as we were testing yesterday because I was sick and slightly disoriented (and everyone knows that if you're trying to interpret circuits half-conscious . . . you're bound to screw up somewhere.)

so I'm not sure where to go next, if you have any idea's please tell me ;).
seems unlikely here. the input plug hardly works at alll . . . I cna get a slight buzz out of it which means there must be some sort of current running through it, but the red LED for GAIN/OVERDRIVE doesn't turn on at all, no matter what I do. the ONLY thing that works is the insert plug. and it gives me a sort of a clean sound that I can't alter at all as none of the adjustors do anything to the insert plug. . . .Okay, this could take some time. First off, do you know how to use a voltage meter safely? Some tips, clip the ground probe to the chassis, then use only ONE hand to touch the hot probe to the test points. That way, if you get a shock, it will only go through your fingers and not through your heart...losing a finger is preferable to losing your life if you make a mistake. Also, wear rubber soled shoes and/or keep your feet well off of the ground. That way you won't make a complete circuit from your hand near the electricity, through your whole body, and out the soles of your feet. Don't skip the safety instructions! Also, wear some safety goggles.

Take the chassis out of the case.

Clip the ground probe of the multimeter to the chassis. Set the meter to measure DC volts, using the range most appropriate to the expected test point measurements (the next larger setting, above the expected result).

Make sure the speaker is plugged in for the tests. With your hands far away, turn the amp on.

Using only one hand, touch the test probe to each test point listed on the schematic and write down the value measured. Start with the points closest to the power cord and work from there toward the input jack.

Tell me all the values.

If any of these instructions are unclear or sound difficult to you, don't do anything. Take the amp to a technician. Doing this wrong is extremely dangerous. You could be hurt, maimed, or even killed. I'm not exaggerating.

[Patrick-Ruff]

are you talking about the A B C test points?

[matthew]

are you talking about the A B C test points?That question is making me nervous...I would feel more comfortable if you found someone who was experienced and could be physically there to walk you through this. I'm serious when I keep saying that doing this wrong can hurt, maim or kill you. This stuff isn't extremely difficult, but it requires specialized knowledge to do correctly, and that sort of knowledge isn't easily conveyed in text.

For some good advice, and maybe to find people more used to giving support on this stuff than I am, you might want to look at this forum: http://music-electronics-forum.com/

To answer your question, the test points on the schematic are all labeled "TP1," "TP2," and so on. The expected values for dc voltage are listed in the charts on the schematic.

[Patrick-Ruff]

can this be done without a frequency generator?

[matthew]

Not really, at least not that I am aware of. Solid state circuits aren't my specialty, but from what I do know, you seem to need the signal generator to troubleshoot properly with them.

Now, a tube amp could be taken care of completely with just a multimeter...but they are made using older technology.

[Patrick-Ruff]

I noticed that. when I looked at the amp you built, the circuit board is about 3x smaller than mine . . .

[Patrick-Ruff]

hey matthew there are points on the board labled A B C that can be tested without a frequency generator but the board has to be on while it's been done. so, in order to test these points you apparently have to hit 2 componants that are directly connected to eachother (copper traces.)

my friend had an idea that to make it less likely to screw up, we could solder wires on to the 2 points that need to be probed to test one point to prevent a short anywhere.

plausable?

[5-HT]

Now, a tube amp could be taken care of completely with just a multimeter...but they are made using older technology.
mmmm...older and so much warmer! :)

[matthew]

hey matthew there are points on the board labled A B C that can be tested without a frequency generator but the board has to be on while it's been done. so, in order to test these points you apparently have to hit 2 componants that are directly connected to eachother (copper traces.)

my friend had an idea that to make it less likely to screw up, we could solder wires on to the 2 points that need to be probed to test one point to prevent a short anywhere.

plausable?It would be very hard to do that without desoldering the components. I wouldn't recommend it, but it is possible.

EDIT: Is this you? http://music-electronics-forum.com/showthread.php?t=3546 It looks like you will get some good help there. I used to be active on their old forum years ago and there are some really knowledgeable people there.

mmmm...older and so much warmer! :)That's the truth...and with significantly higher voltages. :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

yes that is me.

their technical jargon is way above my knowledge though . . . lol. they dont' seem to be the type of forum to really define what they're saying, and quite frankly I'm afraid to ask.

[Fitzy_oz]

I'm the OP, so I guess I can take the thread off topic briefly. :)

It's an SG, specifically the one Eric Clapton played in the Cream era.http://www.edromanguitars.com/guitar/gibson/sg67%5B1%5D.jpg (http://www.edromanguitars.com/guitar/gibson/fool_gib.htm)

I have a Telecaster as my main guitar, but I also have a Guild acoustic, a Washburn bass, and a Fender knockoff of the old Guild Starfire IV semihollowbody electric. :)

I've played the Epi LP's, they're nice guitars. For the most part the biggest difference is the headstock. I played in a band for a while with a guy that had one and I was impressed with it.

Hi all,
I gig 4 nights a week with an epi explorer and i've never had a drama with it, I changed the pickups to Seymour Duncan's and I had to move the strap button on the neck. That would be my only gripe but for the price I paid for it, it's not really a gripe.... It sound great

[matthew]

yes that is me.

their technical jargon is way above my knowledge though . . . lol. they dont' seem to be the type of forum to really define what they're saying, and quite frankly I'm afraid to ask.We all start somewhere. Just be honest, humble and polite, and explain that you are just starting out as a beginner and you are trying to understand, but that it is difficult. See if anyone can/will give you some links to help get you up to speed on the jargon and the troubleshooting process, etc. In the past, the people over there have been kind and helpful.

Hi all,
I gig 4 nights a week with an epi explorer and i've never had a drama with it, I changed the pickups to Seymour Duncan's and I had to move the strap button on the neck. That would be my only gripe but for the price I paid for it, it's not really a gripe.... It sound greatCool. Welcome to the party!

[Patrick-Ruff]

ok so after no updates in 3 days I thought I'd say something . . .

I got into some fretboard tapping (or guitar tapping?) eddie van halen style so I don't know what you call it. but I blistered my middle finger doing it ;).

anyways, I still haven't tried the test points yet. Ihave a friend helping me with it, well . . . two friends. one of them is going to help me in terms of not shorting the entire board, and the other is going to help me in terms of what to test and such.

I wish there wasn't any risk behind testing such things.

[Patrick-Ruff]

hmm, 6 days now . . . anyone?

[matthew]

It's pretty slow, isn't it?

Hey, fyi. I'm taking August off--I will be doing some traveling. If I hit an internet cafe, I may say, "Hi," but I really won't be around much until the first week of September sometime.

[mikec13]

Hey guys, I just discovered this thread. I'll give a quick list of the gear that I use most right now (because it's too hard to think of the effects in the bag that go mostly unused!). [Note: all guitars are lefty]

Electric guitars
Fender Strat Deluxe
Dean Evo Special Select
Acoustic guitars
Martin DC16-RGTE
Martin D15
Baby Taylor
Amp
Fender Deville Amp
Effects
Boss GT-6 Multi-Effects
Line 6 DL4 Delay
Bass guitar
Fender Jazz Bass

[Patrick-Ruff]

yeah it is.

I was wondering about something however. . . . this guitar I'm playing on has pickup frames around the pickups that make it hard for me to anchor my pinky without a big stretch. is it possible to take these off? or would it be better for me to just find a different technique other than anchoring my pinky?


http://img78.imageshack.us/img78/2955/deanvxpp6.jpg

also, that guitar is almost identical to mine except there's one less knob and the output is within the V on the side not on the front. the bridge is essentially exactly the same.

[shen-an-doah]

Well, if you take them off, you won't have anything to screw the pick-ups to. You could remove them, but you'd then have to add a scratchplate or work out how to screw them to the wood of the guitar...

[Patrick-Ruff]

in that case, another change in technique is in order . . .

[Patrick-Ruff]

Hey guys, I just discovered this thread. I'll give a quick list of the gear that I use most right now (because it's too hard to think of the effects in the bag that go mostly unused!). [Note: all guitars are lefty]

Electric guitars
Fender Strat Deluxe
Dean Evo Special Select
Acoustic guitars
Martin DC16-RGTE
Martin D15
Baby Taylor
Amp
Fender Deville Amp
Effects
Boss GT-6 Multi-Effects
Line 6 DL4 Delay
Bass guitar
Fender Jazz Bass

any pictures?

[Vague]

yeah it is.

I was wondering about something however. . . . this guitar I'm playing on has pickup frames around the pickups that make it hard for me to anchor my pinky without a big stretch. is it possible to take these off?

I know people have done this, and there are quite a few guitars that don't use pickup rings at all. I think the basic deal is that you remove the rings and then use wood screws to screw them into the body, which means you might have to drill out the tabs a bit. You'll probably also have to use some shims behind the pickup to get the height right. I don't think it's such a bad idea to go for it if they annoy you.

[mikec13]

any pictures?
Here's the only one I have on this computer.... I'll see what else I can find on my other computer later. My nephew playing my Baby Taylor:


http://mcochran.googlepages.com/baby_taylor.jpg

[finalcut]

i play my git box from time to time

[Patrick-Ruff]

'git' box?

[Vague]

"A guitar has many, many nicknames. An axe, a git-box. Well, I guess those are the only ones."

[bobbocanfly]

Hi all,
I gig 4 nights a week with an epi explorer and i've never had a drama with it, I changed the pickups to Seymour Duncan's and I had to move the strap button on the neck. That would be my only gripe but for the price I paid for it, it's not really a gripe.... It sound great

*Bit late but ah well*

WAHEY! You are the first other person i have ever talked to that owns an epi explorer. Im still using the standard pickups in mine, bit noisy but still not bad for stocks.

Worst gripe about Exploreres though. Getting a bag! Cost me £50 including P&P to get one. Definately worth having a fight over if you ever buy one.

[Patrick-Ruff]

ok well without matthew here it looks like this thread is going to experience a pretty hard crash lol. 143 pages . . . what else could there possibly be . . . I've been posting on this trhead since page 50 I think. so, that's a lot of chat . . .

any ideas people? lol

[wana10]

some idiot(me) let me walk into a guitar shop the other day and i almost walked out with another one...i mean what the heck, that would just bring my collection up to six, thats not so bad is it:)

[Zimmer]

Any Variax users reading this?
I have recently bought a Variax 600 and Line6 Pod Live XT
The software to flash the two are Win , of course, was wondering if anyone had managed to use the software via Linux ?

[Ren]

Cool, nice to see so many guitar players on here, heres a pic I took of my gear whilst I had it all at home, excuse the floor, we had to remove the carpets before re-decorating, id take a new one, but most of my gear is in our practice room atm.

http://a382.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/126/l_122510e532ab29394c113beccf15c6c5.jpg

[aeto]

Good gear!

I'm writing a song called "Hallowed Be Thy Portage" :lol: I hope the Gentoo poem is GPL'ed. It's going to be brutal death and totally not audible!

[Patrick-Ruff]

I don't know about you guys, but I've really been digging al di meola's style of music right now. he takes acoustic to the next level ;). and I'm really just getting tired of all these speed freaks going as fast as they can without implementing good music.

[Zimmer]

I don't know about you guys, but I've really been digging al di meola's style of music right now. he takes acoustic to the next level ;). and I'm really just getting tired of all these speed freaks going as fast as they can without implementing good music.

Thanks for that, visited the website and listened to some samples. Contemporary jazz style, mixed with what appeared to be some Spanish/flamenco influence..

[thisllub]

I don't know about you guys, but I've really been digging al di meola's style of music right now. he takes acoustic to the next level ;). and I'm really just getting tired of all these speed freaks going as fast as they can without implementing good music.

The Casino era electric tone was as good as it gets. Definitely one of my favourites.

[NoSmokingBandit]

I'll post my equipment list because i am bored.

Hamer Standard
Ibanez RG570
Guild Burnside "The Lance" (think RRV)
Ibanez acoustic of some sort (cant remember the model)
Silvertone S11 strat knockoff which is actually really nice
Some random Cort Les Paul
and some random Eagle Les Paul

15w silvertone practice amp
30w Crate practice amp (although i use it mainly for bass)
200w Tubeworks combo amp
Marshall ministack (the belt-clip kind of amp)

Line6 PODxt Live (go buy one, its sweet)
Crappy behringer multi-fx

Non-Guitar related stuff:
300w Carvin bass amp combo
Danelectro 4 string bass (glitter purple!)
^those are technically my dad's, but i use them more than he does
Pearl drum set, the low-middle range one
some ancient banjo
a mandolin from a place no one has ever heard of

The funny part is i am the only musician in my family.
My dads friend just got a LP Goldtop deluxe today. It is freaking sweet. He got is as a 'blem,' but theres just a really tiny inconsistency in the paint next to the neck. They took $600 off for the blem, so he had to buy it.

[Patrick-Ruff]

awesome gear guys. right now I just have a Dean Flying V with a broken Crate MX65R 65W combo amp ( a very good one that I'm working on fixing myself . . . )

oh, and I have some no-name acoustic that works well enough ;).

[Pancetilla]

I'm bored too :) :

Epiphone Casino Sunburst (John Lennon, 1966-like)
Fender Telecaster Lite Ash
Fender Malibu acoustic

Roland Microcube
Pignose
Vox AC-1
...and looking for a matamp minimat

Big Muff Pi USA (reissue)
Some ts-808 boutique clon

Back with the guitar after ten years without touching it.

[NoSmokingBandit]

Has anyone successfully gotten Guitar Pro to install in wine? I got it installed, but when it opens up it gives me some error code in french and doesnt work. TuxGuitar is ok, but it doesnt work with half of my gp5 files.

[shen-an-doah]

Has anyone successfully gotten Guitar Pro to install in wine? I got it installed, but when it opens up it gives me some error code in french and doesnt work. TuxGuitar is ok, but it doesnt work with half of my gp5 files.

I got it installed, but I didn't have any MS fonts installed, so it used its own font, which is the musical notation, meaning all the menus were unreadable...

[modestmelody]

G&L Legacy Swamp Ash
MIM Fender strat with Fralin pickups
Martin D15 Acoustic
EHX Stereo Memory Man
Valvetech VAC22 1x12 with Greenback

What have you guys used for recording music and music software in general in Linux? Some interfaces that are well known to jive well with Linux, etc?

:guitar::guitar:

[NoSmokingBandit]

I got it installed, but I didn't have any MS fonts installed, so it used its own font, which is the musical notation, meaning all the menus were unreadable...

Sweet, I am doing a complete re-install of wine in a minute so i will try it again. If you dual-boot XP you can fix your problem. Navigate in your windows partition to C:\Windows\Fonts and copy that to /Home/YOURNAME/.Wine/Drive_C/Windows/Fonts in the ubuntu partition, it will copy everything you should need. If you dont dual-boot, just steal the fonts from a friend's XP box.


@ModestMelody:
Alot of people like Audacity. I personally have never used it, so i dont know. I'll try it someday, hopefully its compatible with plugins and stuff, that would be really nice.
Do you notice a difference with the swamp ash? I hadn't seen any swamp ash bodies until a few years ago, but i dont know anything about them.

[shen-an-doah]

Sweet, I am doing a complete re-install of wine in a minute so i will try it again. If you dual-boot XP you can fix your problem. Navigate in your windows partition to C:\Windows\Fonts and copy that to /Home/YOURNAME/.Wine/Drive_C/Windows/Fonts in the ubuntu partition, it will copy everything you should need. If you dont dual-boot, just steal the fonts from a friend's XP box.

I dual-boot with XP, but then that kinda makes trying to install GP on Ubuntu pointless...

As for recording, I use a Tascam US-122 which works pretty well with Ubuntu (there's a guide somewhere on the forums). Programmewise, check out Ardour and Rosegarden (pretty good substitutes for Pro Tools and Cubase, respectively).

[NoSmokingBandit]

I have GP5 installed with good looking menus, but the RSE gets all buggy and sound like crap. I cant use midi because ubuntu hates my soundcard.

[toupeiro]

Custom built electric guitar -- uncle made it. He used to make Mosrite guitars.

2003 Schecter S-1 Elite (This is my baby) Link if you have never seen one. (http://news.harmony-central.com/Newp/2003/S-1-Elite.html)

1970 Giannini Classical Acoustic

2006 Di Giorgio Talent I

2004 Line-6 Flextone-2 Amplifier

12x Boss effects pedals with hard cases and 2x power supplies

[modestmelody]

Sweet, I am doing a complete re-install of wine in a minute so i will try it again. If you dual-boot XP you can fix your problem. Navigate in your windows partition to C:\Windows\Fonts and copy that to /Home/YOURNAME/.Wine/Drive_C/Windows/Fonts in the ubuntu partition, it will copy everything you should need. If you dont dual-boot, just steal the fonts from a friend's XP box.


@ModestMelody:
Alot of people like Audacity. I personally have never used it, so i dont know. I'll try it someday, hopefully its compatible with plugins and stuff, that would be really nice.
Do you notice a difference with the swamp ash? I hadn't seen any swamp ash bodies until a few years ago, but i dont know anything about them.

I've used Audacity even on Windows and it's decent. I'm not too sure hardware wise what kind of compatibility issues I may run into then.

As for the Swamp Ash, I've noticed a tremendous difference between Swamp Ash and Poplar or Alder. I prefer it to those two, basswood, and mahogany for it's properties. I think it's a large part, in addition to better stock electronics, that my G&L sounds so fantastic.

[eXcentra]

Does anybody have some good experience with getting ridding of fret buzz (or know of some place where I can walk in and get this thing set up [around the Los Angeles area])? Any tips? :)

[bazzer]

Does anybody have some good experience with getting ridding of fret buzz (or know of some place where I can walk in and get this thing set up [around the Los Angeles area])? Any tips? :)

What 'thing' are you buzzing on then? there are pretty straightforward things you can do to get rid of fretbuzz, like raise the action or tweak the truss rod (if it's electric) but you need to be brave, make small adjustments and above all not blame me if it all goes wrong!!

[sebbouckaert]

Hi,

Besides regular visiter on this forum (and of course Ubuntu addict) I'm actually also a guitar player.

I have 2 main electric axes: one is a Red Tele (American standard) which looks similar to this one (except mine has a maple neck finish):

http://users.skynet.be/fa992252/library/images/telecaster.gif

The other one I own is a tad more special: it's a 1976 Les Paul Deluxe with a (somehow worn) sunburst finish. Here it is:

http://users.skynet.be/fa992252/library/images/les2.jpg

As you can see, on the amp side I am quite modestly equipped, with a Roland Cube 60. Anyway, these days I am mainly recording at home, and for that kind of thing the amp works rather well.

Besides those two guitars I also play some acoustic on a Martin DXME, which is a budget series of Martin.

You can check out some of my songs here:

http://www.myspace.com/mistersebastian

[eXcentra]

but you need to be brave, make small adjustments and above all not blame me if it all goes wrong!!
Haha, that's exactly the thing I'm worried about. :)

The buzz is mostly prevalent with the thick E string, esp. when I'm strumming somewhat hard. Would it be okay to "lopside" the bridge and raise the 6th E side? (it's a T-o-M bridge)
Just for the record, I'm a beginner; I do this in my spare time. Don't go too advanced on me. :p

Edit: Well, I raised the bridge and it sounds much better. :o At first I was afraid that I was gonna make it sound worse so I didn't try to do it myself. But yeah... now I did and good thing I did.

[bazzer]

Haha, that's exactly the thing I'm worried about. :)

The buzz is mostly prevalent with the thick E string, esp. when I'm strumming somewhat hard. Would it be okay to "lopside" the bridge and raise the 6th E side? (it's a T-o-M bridge)
Just for the record, I'm a beginner; I do this in my spare time. Don't go too advanced on me. :p

Edit: Well, I raised the bridge and it sounds much better. :o At first I was afraid that I was gonna make it sound worse so I didn't try to do it myself. But yeah... now I did and good thing I did.

Yeah on ToM bridges, they're pretty easy to fiddle with, you've done the right thing dude - if you're finding your feet with things like this, ask all the questions you need to first!

[happy-and-lost]

I've got an Epiphone ES-335 Dot and a Vox AD15VT-XL on order, to replace the Squier beginners stuff I've been using for 5 years. That's £600 worth of beer money gone, but I'm sure it'll be well worth it. I just can't wait to blast the garage windows out with it :guitar:

[Patrick-Ruff]

that's the way man.

[likemindead]

I had to hock my electrics to pay for school some years ago. Nowadays I really only play acoustic. I have a 2001 Taylor 710 and I love her dearly. I play mostly folk/delta blues/country/rock....

[happy-and-lost]

OK, am I the only person on the planet who doesn't think the ORIGINAL (not those crappy strats they've started selling) Fender Starcaster is ugly?

http://www.degrooviaguitars.com/pics/guitars/str/1.jpg

I really like it! Maybe I just have a soft spot for those Fender-Gibson hybrid type guitars (I just changed my order at the guitar shop from an Epi Dot to a Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe, in fact). I hope they reissue it someday :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

I don't like the head. other than that, it's pretty nice (the neck is also pretty weird on that style of body, but then again, we're all used to Epiphone/Gibson style ;) .)

all in all, I don't think it's really ugly.

[Vague]

People think the Starcaster is ugly? Jeez. If the prices weren't completely insane (I assume because of Jonny Greenwood), I'd have one. I love those things.

[Visti]

Oh! Does anybody have any recordings of them playing or anything like that?

[Pancetilla]

My GAS of the week:

http://www.voxshowroom.com/northcoast/images/rickenbacker/360-12FGVP/lwrfrt.jpg

chimes, chimes, chimes...The Bells Of Rhymney


and still GASing for

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/MatampPeach2watt.jpg


I'm planning on getting the minimat for Xmas...but the 360...:(

[happy-and-lost]

My GAS of the week:

http://www.voxshowroom.com/northcoast/images/rickenbacker/360-12FGVP/lwrfrt.jpg



Nice Ricky! Way sexier than an Xbox ;)

[eXcentra]

My friend is a total Rickenbacker fanatic. He bought a 325V63 and modified it to 1964 325 specs, similiar to John Lennon's. He changed everything from the jack plate to changing the Phillips screws to slotheads. But they were all minor adjustments, like the screws; I guess the 325V63 is already very close to specs already? :?
Of course, this is all just mumbo-jumbo to me; I'm just relaying what he told me. :D (I'm not familiar with guitar specs and what not).

[eXcentra]

Hey, can anybody help identify this orange guitar (or at least the brand)?:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sFjBB099Gfc
The best view seems to be at 3:10

[happy-and-lost]

Looks like an Ibanez to me, but then, the shape and the colour of the headstock isn't very Ibanez-y.

[eXcentra]

I just did a bit more searching (on korean sites) and found that it's apparently a Schecter. I think the guitarist first used it around 1997 so I guess it's a somewhat old model now?
I looked through the Schecter website and it seems that all of the guitars have two humbuckers, whereas this guitar has 2 singles and 1 humbucker. :-k

[s_spiff]

any bassies here? I just picked up a rose colored, rosewood 4 string bass about three months back. I was interested in learning back then, and started out.. but recently with college pressures have almost dumped it. BTW the salesman sold it to me saying it was a GB&A bass, but I can't find a GB&A bass online anywhere. Anyone out here to help a newb?

[Patrick-Ruff]

there's been a lot of bass talk around this thread.


so, I'm ready for take two on fixing this amplifier. if any new amp guru's are browsing this and want to help me, PM me. I can post schematics again if needed.

[Vague]

I just did a bit more searching (on korean sites) and found that it's apparently a Schecter. I think the guitarist first used it around 1997 so I guess it's a somewhat old model now?
I looked through the Schecter website and it seems that all of the guitars have two humbuckers, whereas this guitar has 2 singles and 1 humbucker. :-k

Well, 2 weeks late, but in case you haven't found out much else. . . I have a couple ideas. Schecter still makes a couple of guitars that look like that, although I think they're Japan-only models. It looks a lot like a member of the NV series (that one doesn't come in HSS these days, though) or the EX series. I'm not very well-versed in Schecter history, so it might have been called something completely different back then, but those two come pretty close.

[matthew]

Hey everyone,

I'm home from my vacation. Just thought I would check in. :)

P-R, have you figured out anything with the amp?

[kruppe]

Are any of you guys having any success with Guitar Pro (and real sound) under Wine?

http://img95.imageshack.us/my.php?image=0000136ji8.jpg
http://img101.imageshack.us/my.php?image=0000137hw4.jpg

I've been playing for 3 3/4 years now, and now I finally feel pretty competent. I can play some pretty technical stuff providing I have the time to learn it. I generally play heavy rock / metal.

EDIT: Just got it working - for some reason only if I sudo wine start the app. Odd.

[eXcentra]

Well, 2 weeks late, but in case you haven't found out much else. . . I have a couple ideas. Schecter still makes a couple of guitars that look like that, although I think they're Japan-only models. It looks a lot like a member of the NV series (that one doesn't come in HSS these days, though) or the EX series. I'm not very well-versed in Schecter history, so it might have been called something completely different back then, but those two come pretty close.
Heh, i have since given up searching. :p but thanks for the info; you never know when i may go and search for it again. ;)

[Patrick-Ruff]

Hey everyone,

I'm home from my vacation. Just thought I would check in. :)

P-R, have you figured out anything with the amp?

welcome back. not really yet . . . we're planning on testing it while it's on soon.

for now though, I've been hooking my electric up to my computer and using software on OSX called amplitube . . . really whiked.

[matthew]

I've been hooking my electric up to my computer and using software on OSX called amplitube . . . really whiked.
I've seen that in some magazines. The comments I have heard are all positive, and it looks pretty amazing.

[dynamicv]

Apple finally released Logic 8. About time.

[Patrick-Ruff]

it's definitely amazing, you'd be surprised what you can get out of it.


actually, I'm going to play the star spangled banner and record it, I'll post the sound file once I get the chance to play it (I'm mainly doing it for history :) )

[matthew]

actually, I'm going to play the star spangled banner and record it, I'll post the sound file once I get the chance to play it (I'm mainly doing it for history :) )I'll look forward to it. I'll see if I can find my old recording of me playing it to test outrecording with a Smokey Amp (http://www.smokeyamps.com/) years ago.

[Pancetilla]

I'm going to play the star spangled banner and record it, I'll post the sound file once I get the chance to play it (I'm mainly doing it for history :) )

I expect lots of fuzz and brooootal distortion :guitar:

[n3tfury]

been playing on and off for a few years. no amp right now heh. 98 carvin custom and a line6 guitar pod at the moment. this clip is me soloing over a backing track. i posted this before on another forum i visit and someone said "wow, you use the whammy bar alot". not sure where they're hearing that, but no whammy.

[matthew]

this clip is me soloing over a backing track.Nice.

Here's one of me (http://matthewhelmke.com/music/spangles.mp3)...it's a lot more raw. I was more interested at that moment in the sound of the little Smokey Amp and how well it would record than my technique.

I have some more clips here, at the bottom of the page:
http://matthewhelmke.com/guitar-amp/allen.html

[n3tfury]

Nice.

Here's one of me (http://matthewhelmke.com/music/spangles.mp3)...it's a lot more raw. I was more interested at that moment in the sound of the little Smokey Amp and how well it would record than my technique.

I have some more clips here, at the bottom of the page:
http://matthewhelmke.com/guitar-amp/allen.html

i love the sound of that amp you put together, that's really nice sounding!

[matthew]

i love the sound of that amp you put together, that's really nice sounding!Thank you! It's been nearly 8 years and I still love that amp.

[Pancetilla]

I love the amp's cleans with the single coils.

[matthew]

I love the amp's cleans with the single coils.Exactly! You can always add a good overdrive pedal if you need to, but you can't recreate a good, clean foundation tone.

This amp is loosely based on the 1960s era blackface Fender Vibrolux, with some of the aspects slightly closer to the Bassman. It is my interpretation of tone heaven. :)

[Pancetilla]

It is my interpretation of tone heaven. :)

Hehehe :)...The Holy Tone quest is endless...it's always one pedal/amp/pick-up ahead...

[paul cooke]

any bassies here? I just picked up a rose colored, rosewood 4 string bass about three months back. I was interested in learning back then, and started out.. but recently with college pressures have almost dumped it. BTW the salesman sold it to me saying it was a GB&A bass, but I can't find a GB&A bass online anywhere. Anyone out here to help a newb?

http://www.bhargavasmusik.com/about_us.php

Govind Bhargava & ? Associates?

cheap Chinese made guitars, basses and other instruments. It's their "own label" they get made for them and market in India.

[Patrick-Ruff]

hah, wait till you hear the amplitube effect . . . it's mindblowing. I don't have the wire I need to record it yet. but I will soon.


I really resent the fact that my friend and I havne't tackled this amp yet . . . oh well. I'll record something in amplitube and you guys can be the judge of it.

[Patrick-Ruff]

ok so I just found out how this amp job may be several times easier than I thought. it was recently brought to my attention that one only needs one probe to test, as the black probe can be connected to a ground as one tests other points.

well, as it turns out, this DMM I have has an alligator clip (rigged up by my friend) on it, and a sharp point-like thing twisted around the red one (best for minimizing risk of arcing.

I think I'm getting it mostly now, I of course will not do this without my friend here (who knows what he's doing.) any advice from any of you on this that I may be unaware of?

[matthew]

the black probe can be connected to a ground as one tests other points.
I wish I had thought to tell you this previously...sorry. You can clip that black ground probe to any good ground. I prefer to find a good spot on the amp chassis, maybe one of the bolts that connect a transformer to the chassis. Often there is one bolt that is being used to connect several wires to ground at the same time.

This will help you to recall and use my previous advice: only use one hand at a time when probing in a circuit, especially a live one. Wear rubber shoes and keep the rest of your body isolated from ground at all times. Then, if you are unfortunate enough to get a shock, in only goes through a finger on one hand...not your whole body, coming in from one hand and out through the other hand or your feet.

[Patrick-Ruff]

uh, rubber gloves ? ;). I mean seriously, can that sort of a shock, 65 watts, really fly through a RUBBER glove? and an insulated probe?

I'm just curious here, I've never heard anyone explain something like this with so much caution. I do recognise the danger here, but can a shock like that REALLY pass through that much rubber?

[matthew]

I have almost no experience working on solid state stuff, and I know it is less of an issue there. That said, the thing to be concerned about is not the power (wattage...an 8 watt tube amp may have as much as 400+ volts on the main circuit and enough amperage to fry you extra-crispy), not even the voltage, but the current. There's an old saying, "Volts jolt, but mils kill," meaning that even a few milliamperes of current can stop a beating heart.

It's possible I'm being a little paranoid for this application. Then again, I know I'm definitely not being paranoid for the application I'm most familiar with. I also know I wouldn't rely solely on a rubber glove.

[benhagerty]

http://hs.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30090695&id=1238550204
fender jazzmaster :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

well, I'm pretty sure we wont arc anything. since we only have to use ONE probe, it's MUCH easier to keep track of and avoid messing up ;). that's why I'm recently more enthused about this, I thought you had to use two probes for a while.

[jsheeren]

just got my fender telecaster :KS (mexican - usa is a bit too expensive for me)

i'm also getting a fender champion 600 amp. has anyone here tried one? i think it sounds very good

[matthew]

just got my fender telecaster :KS (mexican - usa is a bit too expensive for me)
Woo hoo! Congrats! :guitar:

I haven't tried that amp, so no comment there. :)

[Patrick-Ruff]

hey matthew, which components do you think I should start testing first?

edit: if you need the schematic again, let me know.

[matthew]

Well, I read through the posts again where you describe the trouble. All I can think to tell you is to start where the power enters the circuit. Test before and after each connection, joint, and component. See if the power is getting where it is supposed to get, and if the voltages are what they are supposed to be at each test point. This will be the easiest way to determine where problems lie.

This may take a while, but it's your best bet at this point.

[Gremlinzzz]

FRETS ON FIRE GAME
http://fretsonfire.sourceforge.net/
:guitar:

[Gremlinzzz]

FRETS ON FIRE GAME
http://fretsonfire.sourceforge.net/
:guitar:

how too play
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5i6SxSAY4Q&mode=related&search=

[Bezmotivnik]

Building a couple of Ubuntu boxes for friends and was passing through for some tech advice (no go, but I figured it out myself).

Thought I'd give a quick hello before disappearing again.

No big news. I've built a new doomsday dedicated recording box for the studio and am remodeling the house to get some more room to work. I eliminated a staggering amount of cardboard for recycling -- guitar & amp shipping boxes from the past ten years -- and freed up the whole living room. Whoa.

One of Mark's photos of my B-Bender (http://photoweborama.com/guitars/bbender)took 2nd Place in the Cal Expo photography competition.

Cutting back on gear buys for a while and putting the money into other stuff, but I still pick up some odds and ends...like this Floyd Rose Speedloader, another fulfillment of my "Law of Blue Guitars":

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/5/7/4/270574.jpg

Got it dirt cheap because it was a closeout...IN BLUE, naturally...and just out of burning curiosity about the engineering, which is bizarre.

[happy-and-lost]

FRETS ON FIRE GAME
http://fretsonfire.sourceforge.net/
:guitar:

That's awesome! It's in the Gutsy repos, by the way. sudo apt-get install fretsonfire

[Patrick-Ruff]

glad to see you're back bezmotivnik.

thansk matthew, I'll look into it soon.