The Guitar Pron Thread

[hullabelew 3,724]

13 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

PSA for Austin folks:  I took my G&L semi-hollow Tele into Austin Vintage Guitars yesterday to see if I could get a more reliable output jack.  Kevin McKinney (Soulhat) was working on an old Guild but talked to me about it for a few minutes.  Then one of the other guys wandered up, asked what the issue was, took a look, figured out that the lock washer on the back side of the jack (via the switch plate) had come loose, and fixed it all up.  No new parts needed, no charge for almost 30 minutes of labor.

I felt bad so I bought a t-shirt.  Good dudes over there.

Kevin McKinney amazes me.  I saw him once with Bob Schneider.   His guitar work, as usual, was flawless.  Bob, as usual, did bunch of new songs right off the bat and Kevin didn't miss a thing.  Brand new material that hadn't been released yet, and Kevin didn't play on, and he nailed it all.  I'm pretty sure he didn't play on any of the recordings.   I have a live recording of that show and Kevin does an extended solo that almost sent me to my knees.  What a talent.  

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

16 minutes ago, hullabelew said:

Kevin McKinney amazes me.  I saw him once with Bob Schneider.   His guitar work, as usual, was flawless.  Bob, as usual, did bunch of new songs right off the bat and Kevin didn't miss a thing.  Brand new material that hadn't been released yet, and Kevin didn't play on, and he nailed it all.  I'm pretty sure he didn't play on any of the recordings.   I have a live recording of that show and Kevin does an extended solo that almost sent me to my knees.  What a talent.  

Yeah, he is a wizard.  Almost under the radar, even in Austin, which makes no sense whatsoever.

[dcbc 14,565]

15 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

PSA for Austin folks:  I took my G&L semi-hollow Tele into Austin Vintage Guitars yesterday to see if I could get a more reliable output jack.  Kevin McKinney (Soulhat) was working on an old Guild but talked to me about it for a few minutes.  Then one of the other guys wandered up, asked what the issue was, took a look, figured out that the lock washer on the back side of the jack (via the switch plate) had come loose, and fixed it all up.  No new parts needed, no charge for almost 30 minutes of labor.

I felt bad so I bought a t-shirt.  Good dudes over there.

Kevin also does their demo videos, which almost always make me want to buy something I don't need.

[dcbc 14,565]

2 hours ago, hullabelew said:

Kevin McKinney amazes me.  I saw him once with Bob Schneider.   His guitar work, as usual, was flawless.  Bob, as usual, did bunch of new songs right off the bat and Kevin didn't miss a thing.  Brand new material that hadn't been released yet, and Kevin didn't play on, and he nailed it all.  I'm pretty sure he didn't play on any of the recordings.   I have a live recording of that show and Kevin does an extended solo that almost sent me to my knees.  What a talent.  

One of my favorite guitar players.  I've got some great stuff of his I recorded off the board at the Satellite Lounge in Houston when he was there with Soulhat as a trio with Mack McNab  on drums and the bass player from the Ginge'bread Men (1998 or thereabouts).  Two completely different shows, and both were absolute barn-burners.  I need to dig those out of the CD box.

Edited December 7, 2023 by dcbc

[Goredho 17,455]

On 12/6/2023 at 4:52 PM, Deej said:

My understanding is that Harley Bentons don't need much. Supposedly very good. 

 

On 12/6/2023 at 8:16 PM, Horn Draoi said:

I bought a H-B Tele-style ‘52 as a beater/leave at the other house toy.  Tuners are extremely mediocre, good fret work, nice finish, pickups surprisingly decent.  Can’t imagine doing better for $149 or whatever I paid.  I’m gonna replace the tuners just for the hell of it.  Body and headstock shape aren’t perfect, but who cares?  Not gonna be on any album covers anytime soon…..

I took a flier on a fusion HSH, will see what it needs to be made to play good, and if I can provide that.  If that works, I'll see what it needs to be made to sound good.  Intriguing company with some gear offerings that might allow one to round out a sound palette with niche instruments on the cheap.  Like, I see they make a knock off Rickenbacker 12 string, as well as mandolin's and banjos.

 

[Deej 77,005]

[Deej 77,005]

Today I learned that Ned Ryerson played with Stevie Ray Vaughan.

 

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

Edited December 10, 2023 by jimmyjazz

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

 

[Horn Draoi 256]

On 12/8/2023 at 11:57 AM, Goredho said:

 

I took a flier on a fusion HSH, will see what it needs to be made to play good, and if I can provide that.  If that works, I'll see what it needs to be made to sound good.  Intriguing company with some gear offerings that might allow one to round out a sound palette with niche instruments on the cheap.  Like, I see they make a knock off Rickenbacker 12 string, as well as mandolin's and banjos.

 

Please let us know what you think of it; I’m thinking I may need a Ric 12-string fake, myself!

[Goredho 17,455]

7 minutes ago, Horn Draoi said:

Please let us know what you think of it; I’m thinking I may need a Ric 12-string fake, myself!

Will do.

[Rip76 4,974]

How have I never heard of this Johnny Hiland cat?

Damn!

 

[Deej 77,005]

[Rip76 4,974]

Serious.

[Celery Man 21,022]

I remember him having some serious medical issue going on (even for him) but that honestly could have been 10 years ago. Looks like he hasn’t gotten out to much since covid? I dunno, I remember him from an earlier era of internet guitardom and his site is taking me right back to that time

https://www.johnnyhiland.net/calendar.html

 

I remember taking my gretsch new Nashville to Ray Hennig’s and him fiddling with it for 10 minutes and then sending me on my way no charge. 

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

Alrighty . . . I recall some back and forth about neck humbuckers and when they really work, but I can't remember the details.  My dad band has been tracking a couple of songs.   I have a couple of Tele bridge p/u tracks into my Vox Tony Bruno I like, but I need to double/pan them and I'm looking for something a bit more mellow, maybe into my little Fender combo.  

What were the rules of thumb for classic LP neck humbuckers and how to use them?  (It's not a LP, it's a G&L Tele with a neck 'bucker, but still.)  Just looking for a few "hey try this" bits of advice.

[G650 14,292]

44 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Alrighty . . . I recall some back and forth about neck humbuckers and when they really work, but I can't remember the details.

 

Man, that's such an open ended question. It depends on a ton of factors, including your fingers. I typically play a LP with bridge and neck pickups always on, and blend them with the volume knob. It varies from guitar to guitar on what ration to get the same sound.

 

Your full neck pickup sounds are like a lot of Slash solos, old Eric Clapton. Reggie Young on the intro to Drift Away is a great LP blended pickup sound.

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

1 hour ago, G650 said:

Man, that's such an open ended question. It depends on a ton of factors, including your fingers. I typically play a LP with bridge and neck pickups always on, and blend them with the volume knob. It varies from guitar to guitar on what ration to get the same sound.

Yeah, that's not an option here, unless I go buy a Les Paul.   (Shut up, it's not happening.)

I have 'bucker neck or tele bridge.  Obviously, I'm gonna mess around with it, but it's nice to have a starting point.  I'm gonna check out those references you listed, thanks.

[Celery Man 21,022]

Still need a guitar I can really use all the pickups on

[G650 14,292]

41 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

 (Shut up, it's not happening.)

[Deej 77,005]

51 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Yeah, that's not an option here, unless I go buy a Les Paul.   (Shut up, it's not happening.)

I have 'bucker neck or tele bridge.  Obviously, I'm gonna mess around with it, but it's nice to have a starting point.  I'm gonna check out those references you listed, thanks.

https://www.chicagomusicexchange.com/products/squier-classic-vibe-50s-telecaster-hs-maple-neck-butterscotch-1484316

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

3 minutes ago, Deej said:

https://www.chicagomusicexchange.com/products/squier-classic-vibe-50s-telecaster-hs-maple-neck-butterscotch-1484316

I'm not sure you're reading my question very well.  I own a (G&L) Tele with a 'bucker in the neck position.  Hence, the question.

[Deej 77,005]

1 minute ago, jimmyjazz said:

I'm not sure you're reading my question very well.  I own a (G&L) Tele with a 'bucker in the neck position.  Hence, the question.

Never mind. They sell that same guitar in shell pink. I'm about to pull the trigger. 

[Deej 77,005]

[G650 14,292]

7 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

I'm not sure you're reading my question very well.  I own a (G&L) Tele with a 'bucker in the neck position.  Hence, the question.

Typically my philosophy on humbuckers in the neck is to blend to give body to bridge pickup, or use for lead lines. Humbuckers are so middy they can get real muddy on chords in the neck position if you aren't careful.

 

Christopher Thorn is another neck HB Tele player I just remembered. Blind Melon/ Unified Theory guitarist.

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

1 minute ago, G650 said:

Typically my philosophy on humbuckers in the neck is to blend to give body to bridge pickup, or use for lead lines. Humbuckers are so middy they can get real muddy on chords in the neck position if you aren't careful.

Yeah, I've thought about reserving it for a "lead" or two.  (Laughable if you heard me play.)

I have a great "strat" (Warmoth partscaster of top quality) I might try for the cleaner rhythm parts, maybe that out of phase sound in 2/4 positions.

[noharleyyet 2,853]

29 minutes ago, Deej said:

https://www.chicagomusicexchange.com/products/squier-classic-vibe-50s-telecaster-hs-maple-neck-butterscotch-1484316

<100.00/guard screw...should buy

Edited December 11, 2023 by noharleyyet

[Deej 77,005]

[Goredho 17,455]

On 12/10/2023 at 10:44 AM, Horn Draoi said:

Please let us know what you think of it; I’m thinking I may need a Ric 12-string fake, myself!

So I got the Harley Benton Fusion in and tl;dr I think it lives up to its hype as far as being good bang for the buck and a great platform to upgrade from.  This has the same features as the Suhr I had and sold. 24 stainless steel frets, HSH pickups with a push/pull coil split on the tone knob.  For a new guitar and if you can do your own setup and mods, its a steal.  It has a couple minor cosmetic issues, but looks great.  Playability was good out of the box, very good after a basic set up.  If I work on the nut a bit and polish the frets, I think its going to play excellent.  The locking tuners seem to be ok and the trem as well.  At least they don't feel cheap, but how good they really are will be known over time.

The sounds disappoint me.  Its extremely low-midrange heavy and kind of dull and mushy across the board with pickups full or split.  I wouldn't use it at a gig or to record with right now for this reason.  I imagine I'm just gonna replace all the electronics in it to get it to where it would be something I'd want to play and hear along with my other guitars.

I recently bought a used PRS SE Mark Holcomb (2nd pic) and its as playable but sounded real good without needing any upgrades. I spent $300 more on the used PRS, but by the time I buy new pups and such, I'll probably have roughly the same amount into both guitars with more time/effort spent on the Harley Benton, so I don't know.  If there is a used PRS SE or Reverend that offers what you want, you're probably better off getting one of them for $500-$800.

But those brands don't offer an HSH guitar, or a Rick 12 knock off, or electric mandolins and banjos, so...  I'll keep tinkering with this, and you'll probably see more Harley Benton NGD in this thread for some of those niche instruments that would be nice to have on hand to record with, but which I don't want to invest much in.

  

[jimmyjazz 46,352]

Are those flamey-maple bits on those cheap guitars just painted on and glossed over?

[Goredho 17,455]

26 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Are those flamey-maple bits on those cheap guitars just painted on and glossed over?

It’s “maple veneer”, which is allegedly a real piece of maple, albeit much thinner than say the top on a Les Paul standard.

[Goredho 17,455]

Where I can tell a big difference between the cheap maple veneer tops and say the maple tops on the Les Pauls I currently or have owned is in the depth and movement of the flame.  With a badass maple top, it almost is like a hologram.  The flames move, shift and fade in/out in the top as your angle of perception and/or the angle of light changes.  These tops don't do that.  It's more static, so it is more like a photo-realistic snapshot of a badass flame maple top vs a badass flame maple top.  At least when you are holding the guitar in your hand and looking at it.

[Deej 77,005]

11 hours ago, Goredho said:

It’s “maple veneer”, which is allegedly a real piece of maple, albeit much thinner than say the top on a Les Paul standard.

Yeah, it's veneer. They can get hundreds tops out of a piece of wood that would  make just a few maple caps.

 

Edited December 12, 2023 by Deej

[Celery Man 21,022]

The old photo flame stuff was interesting - it was like a decal that got laid down on the top.

 

#gratuitous

[locodos 5,418]

3 minutes ago, Celery Man said:

The old photo flame stuff was interesting - it was like a decal that got laid down on the top.

 

#gratuitous

I almost bought a Japanese fotoflame guitar until...

1. I learned it was just a sticker
2. I read about the Hamburgler

Edited December 12, 2023 by locodos

[noharleyyet 2,853]

9 hours ago, Goredho said:

Where I can tell a big difference between the cheap maple veneer tops and say the maple tops on the Les Pauls I currently or have owned is in the depth and movement of the flame.  With a badass maple top, it almost is like a hologram.  The flames move, shift and fade in/out in the top as your angle of perception and/or the angle of light changes.  These tops don't do that.  It's more static, so it is more like a photo-realistic snapshot of a badass flame maple top vs a badass flame maple top.  At least when you are holding the guitar in your hand and looking at it.

[Deej 77,005]

9 hours ago, Goredho said:

Where I can tell a big difference between the cheap maple veneer tops and say the maple tops on the Les Pauls I currently or have owned is in the depth and movement of the flame.  With a badass maple top, it almost is like a hologram.  The flames move, shift and fade in/out in the top as your angle of perception and/or the angle of light changes.  These tops don't do that.  It's more static, so it is more like a photo-realistic snapshot of a badass flame maple top vs a badass flame maple top.  At least when you are holding the guitar in your hand and looking at it.

It's called chatoyancy. 

[Gil Bang 26,069]

you just made that up

[Goredho 17,455]

40 minutes ago, Deej said:

It's called chatoyancy. 

Thanks.  I hadn't known the name or why behind it.  It is noticeably absent on the veneer tops of both the PRS and Harley Benton.

 

1 minute ago, Gil Bang said:

you just made that up

Nah, he's right.  "In gemology, chatoyancy (/ʃəˈtɔɪ.ənsi/ shə-TOY-ən-see), or chatoyance or cat's eye effect,^[1] is an optical reflectance effect seen in certain gemstones, woods, and carbon fiber. Coined from the French œil de chat, meaning 'cat's eye'. The chatoyant effect is typically characterized by one or more well-defined bands of reflected light, reminiscent of a cat's eye, which appear to glide across the material's surface as the chatoyant object or observer shifts position."

[Deej 77,005]

[Deej 77,005]

13 minutes ago, Gil Bang said:

you just made that up

Trogly uses the term all the time when describing guitar tops. 

11 minutes ago, Goredho said:

Nah, he's right.

[Celery Man 21,022]

There’s beautiful chatoyancy in the mother of pearl purfling on my D-41.

[Deej 77,005]

[Deej 77,005]

[Horn Draoi 256]

Re: HB H-S-H setup- I thought all H-S-H were “low to midrange heavy and kind of mushy.”  Har!  Just kidding-you might find some used pickups and save some coin.  My only ‘bucker guitar is an old Yamaha Tele-shape with twin DiMarzio PAF’s; it’s a boomer, but not exactly articulate compared to well set up and tone controlled single coils.  Guess I may have been listening to Tele music too long.

[Goredho 17,455]

6 minutes ago, Horn Draoi said:

Re: HB H-S-H setup- I thought all H-S-H were “low to midrange heavy and kind of mushy.”  Har!  Just kidding-you might find some used pickups and save some coin.  My only ‘bucker guitar is an old Yamaha Tele-shape with twin DiMarzio PAF’s; it’s a boomer, but not exactly articulate compared to well set up and tone controlled single coils.  Guess I may have been listening to Tele music too long.

Heh, yeah, whatever an articulate pickup sounds like, these are the opposite of that.  Play a complex chord with extensions and it just sounds like rumbly flatulence.  The HSH Suhr I had with Suhr pickups were articulate and sounded good full or split in all positions.  It's a totally unfair comparison, as the pickups in that Suhr probably cost more than this whole guitar.  But the Harley Benton is gonna need to sound like that for me to want to play it along with my other guitars.  Anyway, I'm gonna make sure I can get the thing playing great first, then I'll be on a cheap-but-good pickup hunt.

[tbone_ 14,213]

Never understood H S H configuration. Always assumed it was done by someone who didn’t know what they were doing but just wanted to look metal.

I could be wrong though.

[AnotherUTFan 9,808]

They work well for this guy!

[tbone_ 14,213]

Ok. Except him.

[Goredho 17,455]

1 hour ago, tbone_ said:

Never understood H S H configuration. Always assumed it was done by someone who didn’t know what they were doing but just wanted to look metal.

I could be wrong though.

The idea is to have a really versatile guitar with strat & les paul pickup combinations and something approaching their tones in one guitar.  

 

31 minutes ago, AnotherUTFan said:

They work well for this guy!

This guy, too.  He uses all of the possibilities.