El Toro's Official Guitarded Thread...

[VinnieVincentsVag]

Damn dude, how many guitars do you need?

Here's a heads up: That bridge is going to give you fits if you're a stickler for intonation.

I wondered about that.

I currently have
2 EVH
2 Ibanez
1 Gibson
1 homemade strat
1 ESP 7 string
Boss Katana 50
Fender Mustang III
Peavey VIP III

My next purchase will be a Kemper Profiler I think.

I only need one or two, but instead of putting in hours of practice like I used to, I just buy another guitar thinking it’ll make me play better.

I would sell most of my current stuff, I’m just too lazy to list them at the moment

[VinnieVincentsVag]

I ordered this dude to be delivered later this week. Never played through one or heard one in person, but on paper it checks all my needs in a sometimes clean sometimes gritty amp for smallish spaces.

Give a review after you get it

[VinnieVincentsVag]

Thinking about pulling the trigger.....

[sirthx]

Thinking about pulling the trigger.....

Pull it!!! We're all bored. Pull it!! I'm a big tube-amp/analog pedal guy but I have a TC Electronics NOVA and a Fender Mustang and that stuff is tremendous fun.

[VinnieVincentsVag]

Thinking about pulling the trigger.....

Pull it!!! We're all bored. Pull it!! I'm a big tube-amp/analog pedal guy but I have a TC Electronics NOVA and a Fender Mustang and that stuff is tremendous fun.

I’ve been watching videos and it seems like I need to make a choice between the Kemper and the Fractal Axe8.
Any experience with either?

[sirthx]

Thinking about pulling the trigger.....

Pull it!!! We're all bored. Pull it!! I'm a big tube-amp/analog pedal guy but I have a TC Electronics NOVA and a Fender Mustang and that stuff is tremendous fun.

I’ve been watching videos and it seems like I need to make a choice between the Kemper and the Fractal Axe8.
Any experience with either?

I don't. I seem to hear the 'fractal' gear in more pro's rigs though but that may have nothing to do with performance at all. I shy away from reading too much because I'm not ready to go down that wormhole. I have a loaded Bias 2 and a stomp-box for my iPad and that's as fancy as I get in that world.

[VinnieVincentsVag]

Hey has anyone tried out the Slick guitars, from Earl Slick?
Under 250 and they come with brass hardware.
Not really digging the headstock, but if they played well I could look past it.

https://www.guitarfetish.com/Slick-Guitars_c_496.html

I have not.
Anyone played the Squire John5 model?
Looks decent, but someone told to run away from anything Squire

[WolfgangVonPage]

Leo and Les had a butt baby



https://www.guitarplayer.com/gear/meet- ... HNX3YuLJXc

And the top is a Chibson. Humanity deserves the hand fate has dealt us.

How can you tell it is a Chibson?

[Turner Coates]

I bought a solid mahogany acoustic with a very thin top. It came from Florida, and I'm in New Mexico, so now I've gotta play the humidify game. I have a room humidifier and the good old Postal Service lost an internal guitar humidifier I ordered, so I made my own, using a sponge and a zip lock baggie. I can't wait for the hygrometer I ordered, so I can tell what the hell I'm doing.

[HueyRamone]

I bought a solid mahogany acoustic with a very thin top. It came from Florida, and I'm in New Mexico, so now I've gotta play the humidify game. I have a room humidifier and the good old Postal Service lost an internal guitar humidifier I ordered, so I made my own, using a sponge and a zip lock baggie. I can't wait for the hygrometer I ordered, so I tell what the hell I'm doing.

Why would you buy that guit? No matter how good it supposedly sounds, seems like it'd be a lot simpler to just buy a local acoustic, where it's not gonna risk warping or other weirdness.

I lugged an acoustic from Tucson for a 2 week trip to singapore. in the 90s. Fucking stupid. It wouldnt even fret while I was there.

[Turner Coates]

I bought a solid mahogany acoustic with a very thin top. It came from Florida, and I'm in New Mexico, so now I've gotta play the humidify game. I have a room humidifier and the good old Postal Service lost an internal guitar humidifier I ordered, so I made my own, using a sponge and a zip lock baggie. I can't wait for the hygrometer I ordered, so I tell what the hell I'm doing.

Why would you buy that guit? No matter how good it supposedly sounds, seems like it'd be a lot simpler to just buy a local acoustic, where it's not gonna risk warping or other weirdness.

It's a VERY nice Breedlove. A cheap guitar with laminate side and back doesn't sound the same.The thin, graduated top makes a lot of difference. It plays like a dream and sounds heavenly. It's the nicest acoustic I've personally ever owned, and nicer than many Martins and Gibson's Ive played. It's a royal pain in the ass, but it's something I've got to try. If I fail or give up on the humidifying, I'll see if the guitar cracks, breaks or twists. I plan to gradually decrease the humidity to the point of using only the little internal sponge thang.
It came from 50-60% humidity (including the climate controlled room it was made in) and now resides in a town where the current humidity is about 11%. The humidity here gets close to the "safe zone" about 8 months out of the year.

[HueyRamone]

I bought a solid mahogany acoustic with a very thin top. It came from Florida, and I'm in New Mexico, so now I've gotta play the humidify game. I have a room humidifier and the good old Postal Service lost an internal guitar humidifier I ordered, so I made my own, using a sponge and a zip lock baggie. I can't wait for the hygrometer I ordered, so I tell what the hell I'm doing.

Why would you buy that guit? No matter how good it supposedly sounds, seems like it'd be a lot simpler to just buy a local acoustic, where it's not gonna risk warping or other weirdness.

It's a VERY nice Breedlove. A cheap guitar with laminate side and back doesn't sound the same.The thin, graduated top makes a lot of difference. It plays like a dream and sounds heavenly. It's the nicest acoustic I've personally ever owned, and nicer than many Martins and Gibson's Ive played. It's a royal pain in the ass, but it's something I've got to try. If I fail or give up on the humidifying, I'll see if the guitar cracks, breaks or twists. I plan to gradually decrease the humidity to the point of using only the little internal sponge thang.
It came from 50-60% humidity (including the climate controlled room it was made in) and now resides in a town where the current humidity is about 11%. The humidity here gets close to the "safe zone" about 8 months out of the year.

What about keeping it and a humidifier in a closet or cabinet or some other much smaller space? The couple hours or so you take it out to play will be of no consequence.

I’m sure if this was a good idea, others would have talked about it, but seems sensible...

[Turner Coates]

What about keeping it and a humidifier in a closet or cabinet or some other much smaller space? The couple hours or so you take it out to play will be of no consequence.

I’m sure if this was a good idea, others would have talked about it, but seems sensible...

Many folks DO keep acoustics in a special humidified cabinet or space, or at least leave them in a hard shell case, except when played.
If I have any problems, I may have to do that. It's so beautiful that I'd like to leave it on a stand, though.
I've been reading tons of horror stories about expensive guitars being over/under humidified.
When I was a roadie, I sometimes toured with a few acoustics, but they were kept in flight cases. I never had any temp/humidity problems other than minor tuning issues.
Some of the finer aspects of guitar making are now being used on less expensive models. This includes thinner tops. It's a trade off between sound and maintenance.
If I fail with this Breedlove, then fuck it. I'm gonna get a carbon fiber acoustic that can double as a boat paddle.

[demolition23]

Current arrangements...

[exitflagger]

That's the equalizer I use. GE-7. My rig sounds like ass without it. I have that and a multi-effects unit that has a setting that ostensibly changes a humbucker signal into a single coil. It doesn't really quite do that but between that and the EQ it creates the tone I've been trying to get for years. Had to kiss a lot of gear frogs in that time but I finally dialed it in.

[Sleek]

Many folks DO keep acoustics in a special humidified cabinet or space, or at least leave them in a hard shell case, except when played.

MANY FOLKS LIKE GETTING FISTED.

1. GET ACOUSTIC GUITAR.
2. IGNORE ACOUSTIC GUITAR.
3. PLAY ACOUSTIC GUITAR.
4. IGNORE ACOUSTIC GUITAR UNTIL YOU PLAY IT AGAIN.

I keep my preferred 6 (Giant fucking '80's Yamaha) and my 12 (random Alvarez Yari) on stands in my living room in L.A. in 0.0% humidity. They've been on those stands for decades and seem fine.

If they start to be not fine, I will destroy them and throw them in the trash. THEY KNOW THIS.

...that's the trick. You gotta let the acoustic know who is the head bitch.

Current arrangements...

Uuuuuugh. Jaguar+Orange.

ARE YOU BECK OR SOMETHING????

Get a man's setup and you won't have to boost those lows

[Turner Coates]

Many folks DO keep acoustics in a special humidified cabinet or space, or at least leave them in a hard shell case, except when played.

MANY FOLKS LIKE GETTING FISTED.

I was talking about light tops....not hard bottoms.

[Turner Coates]

I keep my preferred 6 (Giant fucking '80's Yamaha) and my 12 (random Alvarez Yari) on stands in my living room in L.A. in 0.0% humidity. They've been on those stands for decades and seem fine.

I neglected to mention that I have a couple of cheapos for just banging around on, an Ovation and a Radio King parlor. Both have tops that sunk, lowering the action and making them fret out and buzz. I'm hoping the Ovation will pop back up with humidifying, but the Radio King is now strictly a wall hanger. As I was sitting on the couch, shimming the bridge saddle, my dog jumped up on my lap, knocking the guitar to the floor, breaking the body on the bottom.

I've had several older acoustics, such as 50s, 60s and 70s Harmonys and Yamahas that never gave me problems, but they are no longer with me. Maybe they're living with Jesus. Those probably had naturally dried wood, rather than kiln dried.

[Sleek]

I have several acoustics, but always come back to that Yamaha. It's even larger than a jumbo, fucking thing is like a canon and has low end for days.

I've owned it for over 30 years. It's all banged up. The bridge started coming up once, like 25 years ago, so I epoxied it back down...then it came up again 5 years later, so I put a couple bolts through it. It's been stable ever since

I swear, every time I do some horrible thing to it, it comes out sounding better. I feel like acoustics get better over time as they dry and settle anyway...

It originally had a little plaque on the front "Presented to Tracii Guns by James Bataan of BATAAN"...some dude passed it up through the crowd to Tracii during an L.A. Guns show in the eighties, and I inherited it.

Seen here in one of my bored-musician+pandemic videos:

https://youtu.be/mZLSMpZ0NPo

[demolition23]

Current arrangements...

Uuuuuugh. Jaguar+Orange.

ARE YOU BECK OR SOMETHING????

Get a man's setup and you won't have to boost those lows

Ha! A few people have noted that - I actually just bumped the sliders when plugging it in. The EQ is primarily because the amp has a one dial clean channel, so it adds a bit of versatility.

I’m just a living room guitarist 99% of the time, so the amp does everything I need, and the pedal board’s pretty quiet. Would the whole rig have looked more manly with my Baja Tele or my SD-loaded Schecter?

[demolition23]

yeah wtfs the point of putting all those effects on an El Kabong...

Is ‘El Kabong’ insulting the amp or the guitar?

Whatever the case, I mainly just use a fairly subtle amount of reverb and delay, plus a touch of either the OD or the fuzz, so I’m not running that much at once (usually). Admittedly, the pentavocal trem is far more pedal than I need for as little as I use it, but it was a gift, so there it sits. May swap it out for a more all purpose modulation pedal.

[Turner Coates]

DANG!
My mahogany acoustic, which arrived in New Mexico from Florida three days ago, AND played like a dream, is NOW fretting out from the 10th fret on up, on the high E and B strings. The top is sinking between the bridge and soundhole. Massive humidifying measures are being taken.....and carbon fiber guitars are looking better to me all the time.

I CURSE THEE, HUMIDITY!

[sirthx]

Seen here in one of my bored-musician+pandemic videos:

https://youtu.be/mZLSMpZ0NPo

Dude! Outstanding on every level!

[Sleek]

DANG!
My mahogany acoustic, which arrived in New Mexico from Florida three days ago, AND played like a dream, is NOW fretting out from the 10th fret on up, on the high E and B strings. The top is sinking between the bridge and soundhole. Massive humidifying measures are being taken.....and carbon fiber guitars are looking better to me all the time.

I CURSE THEE, HUMIDITY!

Dang...maybe buy used locally so you know what you're getting!

I never understood why acoustics aren't adjustable.

Wait...I take it you've already loosened the truss rod a bit, right?

[sirthx]

New amp arrived yesterday for 'tasteful' quarantine fuckerie.

[Funnelhead]

Seen here in one of my bored-musician+pandemic videos:

https://youtu.be/mZLSMpZ0NPo

Dude! Outstanding on every level!

Agreed!

[Turner Coates]

DANG!
My mahogany acoustic, which arrived in New Mexico from Florida three days ago, AND played like a dream, is NOW fretting out from the 10th fret on up, on the high E and B strings. The top is sinking between the bridge and soundhole. Massive humidifying measures are being taken.....and carbon fiber guitars are looking better to me all the time.

I CURSE THEE, HUMIDITY!

Dang...maybe buy used locally so you know what you're getting!

I never understood why acoustics aren't adjustable.

Wait...I take it you've already loosened the truss rod a bit, right?

Not messing with neck or bridge yet. I've had the thing three days and it's already drying out. I finally got my internal humidifier and it seem to be stabilizing it. I also have a room humidifier running, but it's going to take time. This morning, the humidity inside was 30....I just watched it decline to 15 after I opened a window, which is now closed again.
I'm hoping the internal thing will properly hydrate it in a few days. My banger Ovation is already showing a tiny bit of progress from the room humidifier.
I'll have my swamp cooler for the house hooked up next week, and that may fix things. It will certainly bring the humidity level way up.

Update:
I just moved the Breedlove, the Ovation and external humidifier into a small empty room. This should make the experiment much easier to conduct. The room I had them in was too large for the humidifier. The small room may become my "Instrument Hydration Lab and Kiln."

[Turner Coates]

Seen here in one of my bored-musician+pandemic videos:

https://youtu.be/mZLSMpZ0NPo

BRAVO! You nailed it, man.
Ronnie Lane used to do that song too. Here tis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhdMw10gtuc

[Sleek]

Seen here in one of my bored-musician+pandemic videos:

https://youtu.be/mZLSMpZ0NPo

BRAVO! You nailed it, man.
Ronnie Lane used to do that song too. Here tis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhdMw10gtuc

I think one of my tags was #goodenoughforronnielane

I think I've put up about 6 songs so far. If you liked that the other ones are public on my channel...and you can track what has happened to my face after 6 weeks of daily drinking

[Sleek]

Not messing with neck or bridge yet. I've had the thing three days and it's already drying out. I finally got my internal humidifier and it seem to be stabilizing it. I also have a room humidifier running, but it's going to take time. This morning, the humidity inside was 30....I just watched it decline to 15 after I opened a window, which is now closed again.
I'm hoping the internal thing will properly hydrate it in a few days. My banger Ovation is already showing a tiny bit of progress from the room humidifier.
I'll have my swamp cooler for the house hooked up next week, and that may fix things. It will certainly bring the humidity level way up.

Update:
I just moved the Breedlove, the Ovation and external humidifier into a small empty room. This should make the experiment much easier to conduct. The room I had them in was too large for the humidifier. The small room may become my "Instrument Hydration Lab and Kiln."

As much as it pains me to offer constructive advice instead of just making fun of you for being too fiddly with your guitars, check the truss rod once the guitar gets acclimated. Put a little slack in, it'll raise the nut in relation to the fingerboard.

I've saved a few acoustics from the junk pile that way.

...there is also a fuckton of lattitude you can get from different acoustic strings. I had one guitar that was shitting out up on the neck, and I got some strings that were close to the usual guage bu higher overall tension that helped quite a bit.

If it's still not good, a lot of times you can have a guy make a taller bridge insert for fairly low $$$.