knirirr

A good point indeed; there is certainly a risk. Since then I have used it at some jams and it had plenty of volume on the clean channel even with the attenuator on 1/2 power.

For jazz purposes I've had quite a lot of mileage out of a finger across the top four strings in standard tuning. This produces rootless (the bassist is in charge of roots) voicings of Min7, Maj6 and Maj9 chords depending where it's placed. With the addition of another finger one can get a dominant 7 or a 4-note "So What chord".

Thinking that I ought to have a hollow bodied guitar for jazz I bought a Streamliner and have indeed given that Bigsby a wobble from time to time despite it being considered inappropriate within the genre.

In order of discovery: 1. Hank Marvin. 2. Albert King. 3. Wes Montgomery. This was part of a progression from 60s pop; The Shadows were great but led me on a hunt for something more satisfying, eventually reaching 60s jazz. One thing I "learned" from Wes Montgomery was that if playing like him was what was expected from a jazz guitarist then I should stick to bass. This was back in the days where getting any information or tuition was very difficult. Only recently have I started to try guitar again, sounding nothing like him and accepting this.

A late-arriving gift; a set of .012" TI jazz flatwound strings. These will go on an Epiphone LP special once I've had someone who knows what they're doing dress the frets properly.

This year: A book on jazz guitar comping concepts.

If no one mins a jazz mention, here are Wes Montgomery's Gibson L5s: https://jazzguitartoday.com/2020/05/the-many-l5s-of-wes-montgomery/

Is there somewhere nearby you could try one? I had a go at a branch of PMT and didn't buy one in the end; a nice clean tone but not enough clean volume. I didn't investigate the distorted tones. If ordering online from them it can be returned to the nearest branch if not suitable. In the end I got a Vox MVX150C1, but they are now discontinued.

From what I've read, Vox think that it is indeed a sort-of direct equivalent. I'm not sure if it's catching on, though. Recently, I purchased an MVX150C1 (Nutubes in preamp and power amp) but I think they're discontinued; the one I got was the last in stock at PMT and at a discounted price. I've not had chance to try it at a jam, gig or rehearsal yet but the tone seems good to me and I'd guess that it would be loud enough (150W class D 1x12"). Whilst they were generally available they didn't appear to be very popular, as far as I can tell. I've also got a VX50 GTV (Nutube in the preamp) and this has proven to be loud for its size and very portable.

Well, I have obtained an RMA. Now I just need a box, unfortunately having thrown mine out before this guitar broke.

My reasons for having them are that I like the tone (I mostly play jazz) and find them comfortable to play - as you say, I'd not have expected them to cause any issues on a guitar based on a design from that era.

These are the strings: https://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/pyramid-gold-13-56-pure-nickel-flatwound-guitar-strings-true-vintage-gauge They shouldn't cause any issues on any decent guitar, I think.

I think I'd prefer to have a refund and buy something else better made and able to handle heavy strings. A shame, as other than this (and the truss rod which slid out when I was adjusting it) this guitar sounds and feels very good.

Hmmm... Thomann suggested that I try "...gluing 3-4 thin veneer strips to the bushing of the bridge stud using superglue..." or sending it back to them, I hope to not merely try the same.

If it really is bad then perhaps a warranty claim might be in order. But, I'd rather fix it if I can.

This looks like a bit of a nuisance - the tailpiece is coming out on the low-E side. Perhaps my choice of rather heavy string is responsible, or could the angle across the bridge be too steep? Anyway, as far as I can tell the solution is to do the following: 1. Take off the strings and tailpiece. 2. Remove the offending bolt. 3. Put wood glue around the inside of the hole. 4. Hammer the bolt back in (perhaps with a toothpick as a shim) and make sure it's lined up properly. 5. Reverse step 1. I've not tried anything like this before but it's a cheap guitar so I ought to try myself. Is there anything I ought to watch out for?

Following on from this, I have found that Vox do a very similar amp called the Clubman 60. This has a line out. It also lacks or simplifies some of the effects and doesn't have the various emulation (inc. distortion) settings, being designed for a clean tone with (semi-)hollow guitars. It sounds ideal, if I can sell the VX50...

This has been traded and is no longer available.

Thanks for the pedal link - I might look into something like that. A Roland Blues Cube would be great, but is 3.5x the weight and rather expensive. That DV Mark amp is only 2x the weight, though... Perhaps something to consider in the longer term. Micing up the amp might be a possibility as I do actually have a microphone and stand.

I've got a Vox VX50 GTV(*); this is very small and light and therefore good as a practice amp, but if turned up(**) is capable of being loud enough clean to play at a local jazz jam, which is not bad for a small combo with an 8" speaker. But, it's sometimes difficult to find a good place for it so that everyone can hear clearly and I wonder if it would be worth plugging into the PA as well. But, of course, there's no line out on this amp. It does have a headphone and also a USB socket, but I don't know if anything useful could be done with those. If I understand https://www.thomann.de/gb/millenium_die_dibox_passiv.htm correctly, could this be used to send the guitar signal to both amp and PA? If so then presumably the signal the PA receives won't have the amp's effects, modelling etc. applied. Could the amp perhaps be omitted entirely and some sort of pedal used to connect to the PA (if so, what might suit?). If there's a similarly light/small/loud/clean amp with line out that might be worth getting instead. (*) https://voxamps.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/VX50GTV_VX15GT_OM_EFGSJ1.pdf (**) Power on full 50W, gain on half, volume a little over half, usually does the trick.

A couple of books of jazz soloing technique turned up amongst my presents.

I've probably got too many jazz books already but why not order this one as well? I just have, for delivery before the end of the holidays. Already got the turtleneck.

This was purchased earlier this year and has been little-used; I have a G&L ASAT and find that gets the most playing time. The leather strap won't be included but the gig bag will. I have a box and could in theory post it but I would prefer to avoid that if possible (it would cost extra, also).

An event I still remember was a Martin Taylor gig. Probably about 1991 or not long after. So, I was very much a novice with limited exposure to the music. What was so astonishing about this gig was that it was simply him playing solo, doing the melody, chords and bassline all by himself. I'd never seen or heard anything like that, and wasn't expecting it either as I'd never heard of him and didn't know anything other than that it would be a jazz guitar gig.

Indeed! My fencing students groan at hearing the phrase “slow is smooth and smooth is fast” over and over again, but tense muscles and rushing will never give them good point control and quick ripostes. At the moment I’m at the stage of trying to (re-) learn how to change chord shapes, and the method mentioned above (slow, frequent practice, with a metronome) is necessary.