Leaderboard

Put it all back together, polished it up and it plays just fine. What a bargain

Quick update to say I pulled the trigger on the Thinline Godin. It's new, coming from the States and even with delivery and taxes will be £300 cheaper than the best price I could find in the UK!

After a bit of work with fine wet and dry and a polish up with brasso, it transpires it's a Coxx Classix.

What a palava. OK so GC has been offline for a few days due to a mix-up in transfer of content from the old server (which was upgraded due to email notification issues on BC) to the new server. The old server subscription cancelled last week taking GC down with it. Then we had issues trying to get things set up on the new server. As you can see, we have managed to restore GC but the only back up on the old server was from January. Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry to any of you who had made the effort to post detailed or lengthy replies during that time, I've personally lost at least one lengthy post as well. If you need to flame, go ahead. We had to unravel a whole load of secondary issues to do with databases not working quite right, upgrades not installing quite correctly, DNS and nameservers not being what they should be. However, thankfully, we have made it through the other side and GC is faster and more stable than ever. I don't expect this perfect storm to happen again and thanks in advance for your patience and understanding.

Coming from the light side (basschat) and after having a friend of a friend show me how to get the most from my hx stomp, the other week I picked up an electric to try and learn… it’s from 1990 weighs less than 3kg and has switches on both knobs that makes it sound different- learning needs to happen !

Hi! It seems I joined a while ago but forgot. I started playing guyitar when I was in my teens back in the early/mid 70s the moved to bass. Now bandless on bass, I am about to pick up a guitar again for the first time in many years and have a few questions. I have had a Mexican Fender Telecaster for some years, stashed away in its case, and just recently bought one of these for a few quid at a bootsale which now sports a Tonerider PAF pickup and some new tuners. Hope to find answers to questions!

J. Bright, The Law Suit, late 1700s: There truly is nothing new under the sun...

I missed the electro bit Yamaha Music London do the FX310A for £235

Yes to both, not helped by intermittent focus in my eyesight and a reluctance to take my reading glasses everywhere in case it brings on mid life crisis.

Or are your fingers too big?

I blame the advent of GPS. ...

We're stoked to announce that we've launched some new multipacks... https://www.rotosound.com/blog/product-news/new-rotosound-multipacks/ These offer our most popular sets in 3- and 10-set boxes for cost-saving and convenience. Starting from £21.95 for the triple pack and £69.95 for the ten-set multipack, they're available now from UK dealers!

Hah! Lucky I'd just swallowed my tea when I got to "Rickenwaffe" - not heard that one before! Yeah, they are more on the ball than anyone I've ever seen about their marks. Ric copies of any serious closeness only exist in Japan that I've ever seen... the very occasional one on ebay disappears almost immediately. I'd love a Ric solod body - a 4003 bass even moreso, but I'm resigned to the fact I'll never be able to afford one (and even then I'd struggle to justify the spend, tbh). Part of me wishes they'd do a diffusion line, A Rickensquierphone. They'd surely sell well, given their absolute nixing of the market for any other options if it's a Ric you want. (The Harely Benton options are about the only ones I've seen, and they're so deviated from the original - even if nice instruments in their own right.... you'll not see a Beatles tribute act playing them the way I've seen them use a Squier to recreate Rocky, let's put it that way...). Another part of me rather respects Ric for deciding they're happy as they are rather than just chasing the lifestyle brand market, or otherwise squeezing their property for every last penny. It was a remarkably late registration attempt by Fender - real stable door / bolted horse stuff. Trademarking a shape wasn't an issue for them in 1951 -or 1954 - as it wasn't until 1960 that you could trademark a shape in US law. The first registered US trademark shape was the Coca Cola bottle, a shape they'd been using since 1916, so I doubt Fender would have had any trouble registering The Tele, Strat, and other shapes then. As memory serves they had the foresight to at least trademark the shape of their headstocks, though.... Similarly, they were behind the curve in the UK as well, where shape-based trademarks became an option under the Trade Marks Act 1994. Gibson seem to have been more effective here, though from my casual awareness of their legal efforts (not least the PRS case), most of their real protection falls in the zone of lawfare.... i.e. Gibson can afford to spend a lot more than most of those they go after, and fighting a lawsuit will most of the time be far more expensive than just tweaking your design a little to make it go away. Smoke and mirrors to some extent once you see the eminently sensible decision by the Appeal court in Gibson v PRS.

If anyone is interested there’s a massive guitar, amp and music memorabilia auction on 10th June in Corsham, Wiltshire spanning 5 days. Imagine owning 500 guitars!! https://www.easyliveauction.com/catalogue/5abe5b32c7710c2b409b15545ad1d718/0af8d24542e81eb9357e7ef448a6646f/the-guitar-sale-five-day-auction-including-the-gordon-gi/?currentPage=1

And it's done. Had to do a lot of routing to get the bridge located properly including plugging and redrilling one bridge post 1mm further way. The wiring was a challenge, I spent three days of eliminating possible causes to arrive at only one conclusion, the pickup selector switch was faulty. My midboost preamp didn't work and I wasn't going to spend a week trying to troubleshoot it, so I bought one only to discover that the guy who build it didn't include separate earth and -9v wires. So had to jury rig something up to provide the output socket with an earth connection, the boost is definitely warm but it lacks the glassiness I expected. So I have on order a genuine Demester Fat Boost (Tyler style) and at some point I will probably wire the switches so they are series, phase and parallel. Although they were fiddly to solder as well. However, after a fret levelling and proper set up, it plays very nicely and has more sustain than my other two strats. I have no idea why. It's quite a warm and loud sounding guitar as well acoustically. More aging is needed on the sides and back but I have other things to attend to in advance of being in the UK next month.

A common mistake is for folk to stick to the minor pentatonic when improvising, whether the key or chord is major or minor. Try and make sure you’re complimenting the chord by emphasising the 3rd note. A lot of players tend to play through the scales from one end to the other. Stand out from the crowd by making some interesting, intervalic jumps (Carl Verheyen is the king of this, check him out). Don’t be in a hurry to show your chops too early, build to a crescendo and release (the solo from Stairway is a great example of this).

Or, pretty much, exactly the same.

Wouldn't surprise me. The older I get, the more I realise 99% of the electric guitar market is about selling branding an intangibles far over the actual, physical product. It does seem to vary by location, though: players in the US on average still seem to be much more likely to be emotionally invested in the idea that a guitar made in the USA *must* be superior, or is somehow otherwise "the real thing". Which I suppose shouldn't be surprising given that's where the electric guitar boom started, and so there's a sense of "loss" that those aren't dominant in the market any longer - as opposed to being "only" another import product as they are for us in the UK.

I am a musician and teacher based on the west coast of Ireland. I teach online lessons across Ireland, the UK and the rest of Europe. I play electric, Acoustic and Spanish guitar in a variety of styles. My influences are diverse, from Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd to John Williams, SRV, Rory Gallagher and Tommy Emmanuel. Music was my 2nd love, but it's the one that never left me. (a good line for a blues).

Steady on, it's not like some of them need extra reasons to slap a premium on a five quid set of parts.

Gordon Smith, although better known for their Gibson types, also do a very nice Tele - https://www.gordonsmithguitars.com/shop/stock-guitars/blaggards/ TBH, though, I'm not sure that's how I would go. Clearly you're not looking for a more affordable alternative to Fender's US or CS ranges if you're thinking of spending that sort of custom money anyhow. Now, this is only a personal opinion, but.... for me it would depend a lot on what you want. A tele is such a utilitarian design that if what you want is the standard set-up Tele, it seems to me madness to spend custom-built money on it. If that's the only way - you want something really offbeat like the Jack White signature, or a Trussant Steelcaster, or you have an original 52 that you want to clone so you can leave the vintage piece at home and play a facsimilie out.... then, sure. But if what you want is "just" a Tele, it seems to be it's hard to justify spending vast sums on it.... I'd buy whatever MIM / Tokai / whatever you like and maybe rewired if you want, or track down a CIJ Fender that's good to go as is. (IMO, the top end Japanese Fenders are as good as anything form the US, typically wired the same with the same specs, and usually cheaper - nut much harder to find.) Unless you want something that's just not available otherwise, imo having a custom built Tele is a bit like having a Saville Row tailor copy a pair of 501s for you. They'll be an exquisite example, but....

Many thanks for the feedback both. Seems that what I want to achieve isn't quite in the remit of my amp. I might just go back to my comfort zone of 90s solid state.

In the end I was able to bag a nice Japanese Fender, which is now having some work done on it.

Looks like a nice bit of kit. Hope you have fun learning on it!

That’s a very fine guitar, good choice.

At least it wasn’t a bass, where that sort of thing can be a real bash to the wallet. You can still use those strings of course (if you can stop that slippage), you’ll just have to put up with poor intonation on the G string. That said, I’d just bite the bullet and get some acoustic strings, your ears will thank you.

Yep - I think you're right about the Gretsch. Not worth trying to sell it, and it does have sentimental value - it was the guitar that got me started, albeit fleetingly. I stopped playing it in 1973, but started playing bass in 2005.

Pool gigs. All the cool kids are doing them. In other news, aren't phone keyboards crap and too small?

For those swimming in, perhaps..?

Thanks both, much appreciated. @Dad3353 - I discovered Ohmmage when look at hifi... I'm not the most technical of people and it still blows my mind a bit, but that's helpful to know! I do plan, though, to stick to just the one speaker to keep the noise down - if I ever have a house where I can go louder, I'll be looking at a "proper" amp. Mind you, it's impressive what you can get in a pedal form factor these days. Once they get past an inherently conservative generation of guitar players, I wouldn't be wholly surprised to see fewer and fewer bands using traditional maps on stage (save rich ones with roadies and a 'look' to maintain, of course...).

IIRC the two jack sockets are for if you are hooking up another cab (I could be way off base here and I’m more than happy to be corrected by those who know better/for sure). However, just plug the micro amp into either socket, you’ll be fine.

All change again !! I've been trying out the Hotone Ampero products, surprisingly very good !!

Yep! Therein lie the important chord tones, which will add flavour to your soloing.

PRS SE CE24

It’s odd, I’ve always hated the look of Telecasters. I went into the local shop looking for a Stratocaster, preferably white with a maple fretboard. They had three that matched and all were between £100 and £150, which was fine because I am no guitarist… £360 later, I came out with one of these: And I love it! Not enough to leave it alone, though. I’ve already changed the bridge saddles to Gotoh, brass, compensated barrels. Which I think look a bit nicer.

I bet that very subtle change in the graphics really pisses Klon off, which makes me smile.

It's fascinating how commonly cloned the Klon is, down to its legendary status. Any number of them out there, really. I got an email in yesterday telling me my pedal from Thomann is now on the way - we'll see if it's the original version or something new. I kinda wish I had ordered a few now! According to online reports, this is the new version (which may be what I'll receive): https://guitarbomb.com/behringer-rebrands-klon-clone-centara-overdrive/ Same housing, slight change of name and logo. It strikes me with some amusement that if this doesn't settle the lawsuit, this could become an even rarer version (maybe we should bot order more of them.... if I had an original couple of Klons now, I'd be selling them to buy a Gretsch!). Legalities aside, it still feels to me that Klon are taking the piss suing over an albeit very close lookalike of a pedal they've declined to put on the market for seventeen odd years....

Anyone know any guitar teachers in the Bethnal Green area of east London and how much I should expect to pay for an hours lesson?

I have the Silver Horse and would recommend it for anyone wanting an alternative boost to a TS. However I'm using an old Xotic AC Booster for that function these days, there's slightly more harmonic saturation available.

Totally agree. Like you a 6120, Setzer Sig or Hot Rod would be awesome, but

That looks great. Gordon Smith make superb guitars; I owned a single pickup Gypsy many moons ago, an absolute Gibson Junior killer.

This looks to be a 335 copy, fitted with Artec 'filtertron-type' pick-ups. Probably a little more 'chimey' than standard humbuckers; not particularly outrageous as a choice. Your ears will judge. You may find some info inside the body, using a dentist's mirror or such; sometimes there are maker's marks or pencilled information. Worth a look..? To strip the paint from the headstock, the simplest way is to rub it down with sandpaper. You could, of course, merely paint over it, if it's the finish you want to change. There's unlikely to be any info beneath the paint; this was probably, originally, just a cheap copy from the Far East, or maybe bought as a kit. Worth spending some time on, but not worth spending too much money on. A nice project, and a Good Find.

Hey, Sorry for the late reply on this. This in on my ESP which is a Strat style body so I would say yes it would fit, no modifications were needed to fit it however I did have to remove the trem setter and change the tension spring setup. These are heavy tension springs, nothing special, as I remember they are original Fender springs. I haven't really noticed any tonal change as I have 2 shit ears thanks year of playing far too loud !! but I would think that because of the extra mass and more direct body contact that there would be more sustain. It's certainly easier to adjust and simply looks a lot better than the original claw and screw setup. It was a bit pricey though at around £70 but in my opinion worth the money.

I see I haven’t posted here since 2023 when I put up my Taylor 12 string which I have since sold. Replaced with a Taylor Grand Pacific 517e Builders Edition. Matt finish wild honey burst.

Looks beautiful! (The Hofner, not the delivery guy)...

I'm not sure that it's as simple as all that. The neck profile is a factor, I'd agree, but comfort, playability, 'feel' and more are also major factors, and the real solution when choosing on such criteria is to try them out yourself. Not easy, I'm aware, but if it's so important to you, you'll avoid an awful lot of disappointment (and financial loss...) if you 'try before you buy'. I realise that this is difficult when deciding on a used instrument several hundred miles away, but them's the breaks, I'm afraid. Another option (one I adopted many decades ago...) is to not be fussy about such things, and adapt to whatever comes into your hands. I've several guitars and basses, acoustic and electric; I don't even think about profiles and such; I just play 'em. OK, not very well, but that's not the point. It has certainly made choosing instruments so much easier..! Hope this helps (but that seems unlikely ...).

Monty’s pickup has arrived… All parcels should arrive like this!