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Guitar chord forum - chordie → Posts by dguyton
There's no such thing as too much practice. BUT, when you feel yourself getting frustrated or tired or bored, put it down for a bit. Go get a drink, do a household chore, just do something else for a bit, and come back to it when you're good and ready. Trying to play through frustration gets you nowhere.
Now, playing when you're frustrated with other things, that's different!
Hey, I don't drink much, but I have a peice of crap Ovation I'd certainly like to thow into a bonfire. I'm not sure if everyone else could put up with the burning plastic smell, but I'm thinking it would smell pretty good to me.
Count me in. Where is this shindig going to be?
It's my understanding that Britain banned a number of "Irish rebel tunes" over the years. "Arthur McBride" being one that I've heard was banned (and may still be). Does anyone know if "The Croppy Boy" was officially banned?
First album I owned was Jim Croce- Life and Times
The first one I bought was Janis Ian- Between the Lines
Modding (I prefer the term "customization") seems to me to be about trying for a certain sound in an economical fashion. If you like the sound of an MIA strat but can't afford it, why not buy the cheaper MIM version and replace the pickups? It's pretty easy, it's a lot of fun, it makes the guitar uniquely yours; and if it gets you closer to "that sound in your head" then good for you. Don't let anybody kid you about it suddenly being an MIA, though; it's a customized MIM.
Another popular platform for modding is the Gretsch 5120, which I've posted about before. It seems almost everyone who buys one of these mods it up in some fashion. Nobody claims to suddenly own a 6120 Chet Atkins model though.
Adjusting the truss rod has to do with neck relief; a properly set up guitar shouldn't need it. I've no idea why a modder would go messing about unnecessarily with the truss rod unless he was intent on fouling up his axe...
There is no short cut to memorizing the fretboard or anything else. You just have to practice and work at it. Otherwise, we'd all be proud owners of the Esteban guitar method and playing professionally. 
Zurf-
Glad it helped you out. For me it's still a challenge to remember not to try and 'strangle the neck'; as long as I can keep in mind what I'm SUPPOSED to do, as opposed to what I've always done, it's stupidly easy.
LOL. Cytania, you missed a few: Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Mark Knopfler, Bonnie Rait... 
GSE, thanks for the advice. I understand the wisdom of not biting off more than you can chew, believe me. Right now I'm still taking baby steps in this repair and modification area. One of the projects that I have on deck is a pretty good crack in the back of an old acoustic in my possession; it could stand a refinish, too.
One advantage I might have in the market I'm looking at, is that I know (or am related to) a number of the influential musicians in the area. If I can demonstrate the quality of my work to them (prior to actually pulling the trigger on a store front), I can pretty well count on significant positive word of mouth. It also looks as though (from the local shops where I currently reside) a large portion of the "bread and butter" comes from lessons. A modest number of students, at an hour a week, can add up to a significant percentage of the store's total income.
Any info you can give regarding distributors is most welcome. At present, it doesn't look like I will be able to swing a direct deal with one of the big names (Fender, Gibson), so I am looking at dealing with wholesale aggregators.
Also, anyone with insight into setting up a recording studio feel free to chime in as well.
Jerome, I understand what you're saying, but...
The way I learned it, is that there are 5 (and only 5) 7th chords: Major 7, minor 7, dominant 7, diminished 7, and minor 7b5. That's all the ways that you can make a 7th with 4 fretting fingers.
Now, I would agree with you that 9th's, 11th's and 13th's are "built on" 7th's in the same way that the 7th's are "built on" majors: you include the previous added notes. But I would disagree with the terminology that 9th's etc. "are just" 7th's.
I also know that we both mean the same thing, it's just a difference in how we choose to say it. You say Tomato, I say tomahto.
No, the guitar doesn't make the sound. BUT, and it's a really big BUT, my playing (and my motivation to play) was tremendously enhanced by getting my hands on a decent instrument; one that felt "right", that played easily and sounded good. Part of that expensive guitar mystique might be that since the quality is higher, it's that much more likely that one will fit you properly. I'm guessing, of course, YMMV.
Modded (Customized?) Gretsch 5120: Martha
Gretsch 5129: LeAnn
I kinda named them after the vocalists I think they sound like. Martha Davis and LeAnn Rimes.
Conventional wisdom says to learn the chord changes first.
BUT, and this is a real kicker, if you want to learn Travis picking, I am here to tell you that getting the changes down with that is almost like starting over. So if you're interested in Travis, find yourself a good book or video (I've heard good things about Paul Pigat's DVD at http://www.learnrootsmusic.com/, but it's apparently not for the beginner), set your metronome to about 48, and start in.
I personally don't think there's anything wrong with combining some left-hand learning with some right-hand learning.
Update: I now have a HEAVILY modified Gretsch 5120, a Gretsch 5129, and a cheap Ibanez Strat.
Youzer! Put that $3000 price tag in the negatives column. $1700 for a VG Strat is a bargain by comparison.
1) No. Too much stuff to go wrong. How much time do you spend tuning compared to playing, anyway?
2) Maybe. If I feel that I want to experiment with alternate tunings, this would be the way I would go. Smaller, lighter, fewer moving parts to break.
Manhattan, Kansas.
Which one is the 'real' one?
I currently know 5 diatonic scale patterns. Using one of those 5 patterns, a C-major scale can be played anywhere up and down the neck; which pattern you use depends on where on the neck you want to play it. I also can use 3 different patterns to play a C-major scale along the neck. The multitude of ways that you can finger a sequence of notes on the fretboard seems to be what's causing you confusion.
So, pick a convenient spot on the neck where you happen to know that a C lives (low E string, 8th fret for instance), and then pick what finger you want to start with (let's say middle). Put your middle finger on that C, and then play the natural notes that fall under your fingers: C (low E string, middle finger), D (same string, pinky), E (5th string, index finger), F (5th string, middle finger), G (5th string pinky), A (4th string, index), B (4th string ring finger), C (4th string, pinky), D (3rd string, index), E (3rd string, ring), F (3rd string pinky), G (2nd string, middle), A (2nd string pinky), B (1st string, index), and back to C again (1st string, middle). Then start at the bottom, and play the sequence in reverse, just for practice.
Congratulations, you've just played one of the many C major scales that exist on the neck!
If you draw a picture of the neck with all the frets and strings, and where all the natural notes are, you can figure out where you can do this sort of thing. Customarily, the major scales begin and end with the root note; if you start playing the scale on some other note, you're getting into a different 'mode', and your teacher may scold you for it.
Good luck!
edit: Darnit, Zurf beat me, too!
Interesting; I've been finding myself using the A7 at the fifth fret (e-form barre), with the B7 as an a-form barre at the second fret; for the E7, I keep the barre at the second, and switch to the D7 shape (mute or just don't play the low E & A).
Gretsch Duo-Jet, Pro-Jet (both solid with chambers), 6119-62 (Hollow with fake F-holes, so it meets your criteria).
I did it man, I'm sorry. I came up with it as a joke; I really didn't expect anybody to actually use the thing!
If you really want to measure your progress, get yourself a cheap tape recorder and tape a few of your practice sessions. Do that once a month. In six months, go back and listen to the tapes. If you keep practicing each and every day, I guarantee you will hear the improvement.
Here is a link to my guitar album on webshots. You can see the finished product (the black Electromatic) and compare it to the stock model 5129 (the red one).
http://entertainment.webshots.com/album/560739253gBXXPx
I'm waiting fpr a piece of original artwork so that I can customize the pickguard on the 5129.
Update to the last update:
Well, I finally got the replacement for the replacement for my black Gretsch 5120 last Thursday, and I spent Friday evening and a chunk of Saturday morning replacing the stock pickups with TV Jones replacements.
I had to pull the individual volume knobs, and the Master Tone knob to do the soldering; I used plastic tubing over the pot stem (which fit through the hole in the body) in order to be able to pull them back into the proper position when finished. I had to take a dremel tool to both pickup holes to fit new pickups, and drill and refill two screw holes for each of the pickup rings. I also need a bigger soldering iron, my little 25-watt iron doesn’t work so well with those big pots.
All went back together smoothly, and the final product looks professional if I say so myself. I restrung and set the pickups to the manufacturer’s suggested height, and plugged her in. It sounds <jazz hands> FABULOUS!! </jazz hands>
I elected not to replace the linear taper pots; I’m more of a ‘set ‘em and forget ‘em’ sort of guy where guitar knobs are concerned. If I decide to do it down the road, well, I can.
Final cost breakdown:
Gretsch 5120 (black) ……………….....$595
Customized Pickguard ……………......$ 0
.11 guage strings w/wound 3rd......$ 7
TV Jones pickups, rings, shipping...$270
Grover locking tuners installed………$121
Total cost: $993
I forgot to bring my camera to work today so I can upload the photos to webshots; I will do that tomorrow and post a link.
A floating bidge is one that isn't permaently attached to the guitar, it "floats" on top of the body, the pressure of the strings holding it in place. You see this a lot on archtops and guitars with tailpieces (like a Bigsby). Both my Gretsches have floating bridges.
Guitar chord forum - chordie → Posts by dguyton
