One night my band at the time was playing a fairly large club in Somerville, MA called Goodtimes. It had a huge stage, and was big enough to backline the gear of all the bands playing that night. My band was going on first, followed by 2 modern metal bands. The 2 guitar players in the bands were on after me were friends with each other, and set their Mesa Rectifier halfstacks up side by side. I admit it looked very impressive.
I had a small rig, an Avatar 2x12 and a rack that housed a power amp, and a Line 6 Pod Pro. I placed my speaker cabinet off to the side, near those chrome plated monsters. After my band played our set, I was breaking down my gear, and 2 guys came up to the front of the stage and complimented me on my sound. I said thanks, and was kind of stoked that someone would go out of their way to pay someone a compliment.
They asked how I got all my equipment to the gig, and I said, in the back of my Honda Civic. They looked at me, and pointed to the 2 half stacks, you get ALL of that into a civic?! I realized at that point that they thought that wall of speakers was the rig I had played through. I had a little chuckle, and said no, pointed to the nondescript rack and speaker cabinet.
"THAT'S my rig."
Their jaws dropped.
"THAT Little setup?!"
"Yep."
"Wow."
I have to say the compliment was nice, but I think they were a bit bummed out that I wasn't cranking up those diamond plated beasts. Needless to say it was an eye (ear?) opener. Picking your gear based on how it sounds, not the brand, or any other reason should be the priority. If it sounds good, it is good.
Oh and the guys the played after us with the Mesa Rectifiers sounded great too, BTW.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Guitar tip#1 (coil taps)
If you have another guitar player in your band, and you both have humbucker equipped guitars, you may have an issue separating one sound from another. Installing and using a coil tap can allow you to quickly and easily cut through a mix, while not overpowering the other guitar. It gives you a bit of your own sonic space, while not stepping on the other guitarist's sound.
MXR Micro Flanger Review
It's built in the same cast metal boxes as like their Carbon copy delay and Phase 90 pedals, which means it's not going to take up alot of space on your pedal board. The only controls are rate and depth knobs, which keeps things very simple. The on/off footswitch is true bypass, so there's no degradation of tone while it's not in use, and as usual, red LED light indicates when it's on. A 9v Power adapter jack is mounted on the side, which uses the same center negative pin found on most pedals. It will run on a regular 9v Battery, but to access the battery compartment you'll have to use a Phillips head screwdriver to remove the screws that secure the bottom of the pedal.
While it only has rate and depth controls, it certainly doesn't lack any sound. Flanging is one of those effects that certainly changes your sound, and even with low settings. I personally find it easier to dial in a good sound with fewer knobs. There are flangers out there with more controls, but I find that they sometimes don't do as much on certain settings, and at times can clutter up the actual sound you're looking to dial in. It can easily go from a semi mild modulation, to easily getting into that underwater/ufo bubbling effect. It was Super easy to dial in those Van Halen flanges like "unchained", Heart's "barracuda" and "the Spirit of Radio" by Rush. While it can get those classic sounds, one thing it doesn’t have is alot of noise or hiss like some of those older, sought after vintage flangers.
The street price is around $85 which is also a great plus, I've seen flangers that don't sound as good run well into the $100 range easily.
I know it's a cliché to say it has a small size, and big sound, but in this case it's you'll find that it's true. I found it easy to work with, no extra noise, and didn't clutter up my sound. This one will be on my pedal board for the foreseeable future.
Pros: Compact size, big sound, great price
Cons: Some players may desire more controls, pain to get battery out.
http://www.jimdunlop.com/product/m152-micro-flanger
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Cables
For years I was using regular cables, whatever the local music store had, Guitar center "free with purchase of $10" ones, you name it. Nothing to write home about, but always a problem, they'd last about a year if I was lucky, and the tone loss and noise were really a bummer, needless to say they seemed to get more tangled up than a pile of spaghetti.
Back in 2004 I finally had enough. I had retired my pedalboard, all of my old amps, and got a Pod Pro, and a Tubeworks power amp. I wired everything up with monster cables. I picked up (3) 20’ cables for my guitars, and I was using monster speaker cables.
With the Pod I was able to get almost any tone I needed with ease, and it was simple. At the end of the gig, I rolled up all the cables in the back of the rack case, and I was done. I marveled at how solid those cables were. They also seemed less prone to tangle, due to their thicker diameter. Yes they were expensive, at the time they were $45 a piece. But they have a lifetime warranty. It took about 3 years for one to get tired enough to have some noise issues, so I walked into guitar center, and I gave them all of my old ones, and they gave me new ones.
The only other time I had to replace them was when the other guitar player in the band I was in, forgot his cables at a previous gig, and the next week we were recording in New York. I lent him 2 of mine for the session. When the next practice session came up I asked "hey man, can I grab those cables back?" He looked in his bag, could not find them, and surmised that he must have lost them. He kind of shrugged and said "oh well". I was kind of bummed at the lack of respect he gave to someone else’s property, but I was like ok, no biggie, they're not priceless heirlooms, they can be replaced. So here are your options to make the situation right:
A: Find them, as I'm guessing they're in the studio in New York. Call the Studio and ask them to ship them up to me, at your cost. (Probably his cheapest option)
B: Replace them; almost any good music store has them. And I’ll need them by next week, as we have a gig.
C: Give me the cash and I'll go out and buy a new set.
He was kind of bummed I wasn't gonna let him slide on this, and was kind of surprised I was making a big deal about guitar cables. When he found out how much they cost, he kind of flipped out, and didn't believe me. My bass player chimed in, and assured him that the cost was correct.
"Why do you buy such expensive cables?" he asked.
Well let’s see, your cables probably cost $10-20 a piece, and you forgot yours at a gig, which is why you needed to borrow mine. They're not worth that much in your mind, what's another 10-20 bucks if your forget them? Also you have a bag that you bring to practice that has your extra gear, Ebow, capo, cables, etc, and all the cables you have in there have some sort of issue, either too short, or have some sound problem. So in my opinion, you've probably spent the same amount as me on cables, except that mine work, and I'm not hauling around a bag of junky cables for some reason. If you spend that much on cables, you take care of them, keep track of them and you won't forget them at a gig.
I don't skimp on, booze, coffee, or my guitar gear. You go big, or go home.
Needless to say he was bummed to have to write me a check for $100. I promptly cashed it, and went right out and bought another set. Funny thing is though, at our next gig he was pulling whatever cables he could find in his bag to wire up his rig.
Since then I've changed rigs several times and not only am I still using monster but my pedalboard is now wired up with monster, with the exception of 2 cables I custom made because of odd lengths. I have to say it's worth it. I used all sorts of cables back in the day, but I've been using these in the studio and live, and have had no issues with them for years!
I know there are other manufacturers that make "better" cables, and in alot of cases they cost more, and have all sorts of features like cryogenically dipped ends and what not. I won't bother arguing with anyone on this. Lava, Mogami, Bullet, George l's all make a good product. But for what I'm doing, Monster fits my Budget, and I get more than my money's worth.
The point I'm trying to make here, is "You're only as strong as your weakest link" if you have a good guitar, and nice amp, get some good cables to go along with it. When you buy good stuff that costs more, it lasts longer, and you'll be happier in the long run.
Back in 2004 I finally had enough. I had retired my pedalboard, all of my old amps, and got a Pod Pro, and a Tubeworks power amp. I wired everything up with monster cables. I picked up (3) 20’ cables for my guitars, and I was using monster speaker cables.
With the Pod I was able to get almost any tone I needed with ease, and it was simple. At the end of the gig, I rolled up all the cables in the back of the rack case, and I was done. I marveled at how solid those cables were. They also seemed less prone to tangle, due to their thicker diameter. Yes they were expensive, at the time they were $45 a piece. But they have a lifetime warranty. It took about 3 years for one to get tired enough to have some noise issues, so I walked into guitar center, and I gave them all of my old ones, and they gave me new ones.
The only other time I had to replace them was when the other guitar player in the band I was in, forgot his cables at a previous gig, and the next week we were recording in New York. I lent him 2 of mine for the session. When the next practice session came up I asked "hey man, can I grab those cables back?" He looked in his bag, could not find them, and surmised that he must have lost them. He kind of shrugged and said "oh well". I was kind of bummed at the lack of respect he gave to someone else’s property, but I was like ok, no biggie, they're not priceless heirlooms, they can be replaced. So here are your options to make the situation right:
A: Find them, as I'm guessing they're in the studio in New York. Call the Studio and ask them to ship them up to me, at your cost. (Probably his cheapest option)
B: Replace them; almost any good music store has them. And I’ll need them by next week, as we have a gig.
C: Give me the cash and I'll go out and buy a new set.
He was kind of bummed I wasn't gonna let him slide on this, and was kind of surprised I was making a big deal about guitar cables. When he found out how much they cost, he kind of flipped out, and didn't believe me. My bass player chimed in, and assured him that the cost was correct.
"Why do you buy such expensive cables?" he asked.
Well let’s see, your cables probably cost $10-20 a piece, and you forgot yours at a gig, which is why you needed to borrow mine. They're not worth that much in your mind, what's another 10-20 bucks if your forget them? Also you have a bag that you bring to practice that has your extra gear, Ebow, capo, cables, etc, and all the cables you have in there have some sort of issue, either too short, or have some sound problem. So in my opinion, you've probably spent the same amount as me on cables, except that mine work, and I'm not hauling around a bag of junky cables for some reason. If you spend that much on cables, you take care of them, keep track of them and you won't forget them at a gig.
I don't skimp on, booze, coffee, or my guitar gear. You go big, or go home.
Needless to say he was bummed to have to write me a check for $100. I promptly cashed it, and went right out and bought another set. Funny thing is though, at our next gig he was pulling whatever cables he could find in his bag to wire up his rig.
Since then I've changed rigs several times and not only am I still using monster but my pedalboard is now wired up with monster, with the exception of 2 cables I custom made because of odd lengths. I have to say it's worth it. I used all sorts of cables back in the day, but I've been using these in the studio and live, and have had no issues with them for years!
I know there are other manufacturers that make "better" cables, and in alot of cases they cost more, and have all sorts of features like cryogenically dipped ends and what not. I won't bother arguing with anyone on this. Lava, Mogami, Bullet, George l's all make a good product. But for what I'm doing, Monster fits my Budget, and I get more than my money's worth.
The point I'm trying to make here, is "You're only as strong as your weakest link" if you have a good guitar, and nice amp, get some good cables to go along with it. When you buy good stuff that costs more, it lasts longer, and you'll be happier in the long run.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Welcome!
I'd like to welcome you to my blog. If it's guitar and music related It'll be here!
As a guitar player for over 20 years, I've had alot of musical experiences, and this will be a place to share them with you, from war stories, to gear reviews, trends in guitar playing, and everything in between. If you want to drop a line, feel free, I'd love to hear from you!
Keep pickin!
Chris
As a guitar player for over 20 years, I've had alot of musical experiences, and this will be a place to share them with you, from war stories, to gear reviews, trends in guitar playing, and everything in between. If you want to drop a line, feel free, I'd love to hear from you!
Keep pickin!
Chris
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