Guitarists’ Guide (news & all things guitar related)

Ailerom

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

I support this view.

ecou

@Pxlhg said:

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

Ha! Didn't think of doing a pro and con search but you're right, there are some risks. The cost if hiring a professional is way more than I payed so buying another guitar would be better if it comes to that. Think I'll just put this out of my head for now, appreciate your input, thanks!

Would replacing the neck be a opinion?

Ailerom

@ecou said:

@Pxlhg said:

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

Ha! Didn't think of doing a pro and con search but you're right, there are some risks. The cost if hiring a professional is way more than I payed so buying another guitar would be better if it comes to that. Think I'll just put this out of my head for now, appreciate your input, thanks!

Would replacing the neck be a opinion?

Personally, I'd do the frets before replacing the neck. Although if cost was similar and it was an easy neck to find, (e.g. Stratocaster) it's an option worth considering.

Pxlhg

@Ailerom said:

@ecou said:

@Pxlhg said:

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

Ha! Didn't think of doing a pro and con search but you're right, there are some risks. The cost if hiring a professional is way more than I payed so buying another guitar would be better if it comes to that. Think I'll just put this out of my head for now, appreciate your input, thanks!

Would replacing the neck be a opinion?

Personally, I'd do the frets before replacing the neck. Although if cost was similar and it was an easy neck to find, (e.g. Stratocaster) it's an option worth considering.

For now I'm good, I was just curious to hear your input and if you'd be alarmed by the image. All good. Thank you

ecou

@Pxlhg said:

@Ailerom said:

@ecou said:

@Pxlhg said:

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

Ha! Didn't think of doing a pro and con search but you're right, there are some risks. The cost if hiring a professional is way more than I payed so buying another guitar would be better if it comes to that. Think I'll just put this out of my head for now, appreciate your input, thanks!

Would replacing the neck be a opinion?

Personally, I'd do the frets before replacing the neck. Although if cost was similar and it was an easy neck to find, (e.g. Stratocaster) it's an option worth considering.

For now I'm good, I was just curious to hear your input and if you'd be alarmed by the image. All good. Thank you

A little bit when I saw the image. That’s a lot of playing on the little strings. How long have you had that guitar ?

Pxlhg

@ecou said:
A little bit when I saw the image. That’s a lot of playing on the little strings. How long have you had that guitar ?

I think, my friend, you must have missed the explanation (why it's so worn there) just before the image, and I also say how long I had it, 5-6 years. Shame on you making me repeat myself.😂

Jokes aside though, if it was your guitar you would do something about it?

ecou

@Pxlhg said:

@ecou said:
A little bit when I saw the image. That’s a lot of playing on the little strings. How long have you had that guitar ?

I think, my friend, you must have missed the explanation (why it's so worn there) just before the image, and I also say how long I had it, 5-6 years. Shame on you making me repeat myself.😂

My bad 😜

Jokes aside though, if it was your guitar you would do something about it?

My first good guitar, a Charvel I got rid, I played it a ton for 20 years and the frets were hardly worn out at all.

Does it affect the playing ? Do you need it for more than couch noodling ?

Pxlhg

@ecou said:

@Pxlhg said:

@ecou said:
A little bit when I saw the image. That’s a lot of playing on the little strings. How long have you had that guitar ?

I think, my friend, you must have missed the explanation (why it's so worn there) just before the image, and I also say how long I had it, 5-6 years. Shame on you making me repeat myself.😂

My bad 😜

Jokes aside though, if it was your guitar you would do something about it?

My first good guitar, a Charvel I got rid, I played it a ton for 20 years and the frets were hardly worn out at all.

Does it affect the playing ? Do you need it for more than couch noodling ?

I'm the ultimate noodler, never played in a band, never learned a song except my own. I got my first guitar, a red 4 mik'ed EKO (strat model) when I was 11-12, or was it 10 (63 now). Fuck I don't remember, but since then I've had one for most of the time except when I lived and worked in Thailand (6 years), then I did not play at all.

Now the sudden reason for my curiosity on tuning, frets whatnot is because I might do a collab and thus need to be in tune. I'll work it out somehow. 😃

Schmotown

@yellow_eyez said:
@Schmotown hey man, how is the new go device? (Btw does the interface do simultaneous onboard mic + DI/48v in “multitrack mode”?) - hope you’re having fun

The Polar Go arrived yesterday and I’ve had a little time to play with it. It took a few minutes to figure out how to set it up but I did get it working with Loopy Pro and AUM, both of which “see” it like any other class compliant interface. Impressions so far:

• It’s extremely compact. The case is plastic but seems like it could take a beating.
• Battery operation will be useful when traveling and in other situations. With a four to six (?) hour charge, there’s no need to run it with both USB cables (signal and power) plugged in. Even here at home I run it on battery power.
• Sounds as clean as any modern interface.
• The built-in mics / preamps do sound as detailed as the promotional videos suggest and there’s some kind of noise reduction at work that effectively filters out much of the room ambience and background crud. I’ve only tried the mics on acoustic guitar, not vocals, and I don’t yet have a handle on the processing that can be applied to the incoming signal (e.g. “Body”, “Clarity”). Probably some sort of EQ.
• The electric guitar DI (FET, I believe) is also quite good and latency is small enough to be unnoticeable, at least to my ears. I haven’t tried an external mic yet but I’ll do that soon. I’m sure it’ll sound fine.
• I don’t know if I’d use it as a standalone box without a DAW but that might appeal to someone who wants to practice solo in a more ambient space.

Schmotown

Everything I said above is still true, but I’ve discovered a couple of potentially deal-breaking issues with the Polar Go. Both occurred when the Polar Go was being used as an interface, not standalone. I’ll notify Blackstar as well:

• When the onboard mics are set completely off in the app, they are still sending a low level signal through to the DAW. I have not found a way to defeat them completely.
• When a condenser mic is plugged into the Polar Go, adjusting the level of the mic in the app has no effect on the audible volume or the volume meter in the DAW. You can hear a relatively soft signal but it can’t be increased.

I don’t think any of this is operator error. If it is, I’ll own up to it. Probably fixable with a software update.

ecou

@Schmotown said:
Everything I said above is still true, but I’ve discovered a couple of potentially deal-breaking issues with the Polar Go. Both occurred when the Polar Go was being used as an interface, not standalone. I’ll notify Blackstar as well:

• When the onboard mics are set completely off in the app, they are still sending a low level signal through to the DAW. I have not found a way to defeat them completely.
• When a condenser mic is plugged into the Polar Go, adjusting the level of the mic in the app has no effect on the audible volume or the volume meter in the DAW. You can hear a relatively soft signal but it can’t be increased.

I don’t think any of this is operator error. If it is, I’ll own up to it. Probably fixable with a software update.

Dies it have a Hi-Z input for the electric guitar ?

McD

@FizzyLizzy27 said:
Does anybody here have a lipstick pickup guitar?

I always considered the neck pickup on a Mexican Telecaster to be a “lipstick” pick-up but perhaps not. I love the way it sounds
and always thought I should get a better quality Tele since I love this $200 guitar (purchased used with a really shiity case).
It just speaks to me like the other dozen guitars don’t and they are all more expensive and purchased new. Lesson learned…
play used guitars and listen for that special something.

Schmotown

@ecou said:
Dies it have a Hi-Z input for the electric guitar ?

I found this on the B&H Photo site:

Analog Audio I/O
1x Combo XLR-1/4" TS Balanced/Unbalanced Mic/Line/Hi-Z Input

egobeats

@Schmotown i had to do a double take when I saw your handle. [respect]

michael_m

@wim said:
I would never re-fret a guitar unless the wear is causing string buzz. The potential downsides outweigh the upsides if it's not noticeably affecting tone.

I think that’s good advice - with any fret issues you would feel them and/or hear them, so don’t assume appearance alone indicates a problem.

Pxlhg

Not sure why the image didn't get imbedded but: it's a NINE strings Ibanez. I did not know there was such a thing. When YellowEyes showed his 8 I was thinking: "that's gotta be the limit" .. it wasn't.

McD

Is anyone aware of lower cost guitars of any type that are 5-strings. I’d like one to use the Keith Richard’s tuning (G-D-G-B-D) and the Jacob Collier guitar tuning (D-A-E-A-D)… suitab;e string gages required and I might change one or the other to be closer to he other:

D-A-D-F#-A
or
G-D-A-D-G

Just curious. Taylor sells a 5 string Jacob Collier acoustic for $2,700 and I’m not convinced I’d learn to think in these new tunings yet.

Schmotown

For @yellow_eyez @ecou and anyone else who’s been curious about the Polar Go interface, I ended up sending it back. (Thank you, Sweetwater.) It could be great for portable practice and recording, but the software (app) isn’t convenient enough yet, IMO. Hopefully, future versions will include:

• No bleed from the onboard mics when their gain is set all the way off
• Mute buttons for the input and mic channels
• A mono/stereo option for the internal mics
• “DAW” presets that pass the signal from either or both channels without any processing
• A more complete manual and how-to videos

Squishy

@Schmotown said:
For @yellow_eyez @ecou and anyone else who’s been curious about the Polar Go interface, I ended up sending it back. (Thank you, Sweetwater.) It could be great for portable practice and recording, but the software (app) isn’t convenient enough yet, IMO. Hopefully, future versions will include:

• No bleed from the onboard mics when their gain is set all the way off
• Mute buttons for the input and mic channels
• A mono/stereo option for the internal mics
• “DAW” presets that pass the signal from either or both channels without any processing
• A more complete manual and how-to videos

The Pocket Master has the same issue with being unable to mute the input signal. (How do these devs not see that this would be a bad thing?! Haha). I’ve found a happy medium of lowering the input enough where it’s not really audible and then boosting it with a preamp in the DAW, but it’s certainly not ideal. Hoping a new firmware update will fix this, but for now I’m getting by. For a 50 buck “interface” I guess I can’t complain…

egobeats

Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

Ailerom

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

Not sure if there is any comparison to one of these:

Not much to say about these other than, at the time they were cool, now, far from it.

wim

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

I had one sitting in a bin of old stuff until maybe six months ago. I threw it out, knowing I'd never use it. Sorry!
I always did hate the "fizzy" sound of it on guitar. I never thought about trying it on synths.

michael_m

@Pxlhg said:
When YellowEyes showed his 8 I was thinking: "that's gotta be the limit" .. it wasn't.

Sorry, but I have to tag @jwmmakerofmusic for this quote… 😂

ecou

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

michael_m

@ecou said:

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

I don’t know if I would think of Marshalls for 90s industrial - I always think of the 90s as the start of using really high gain amps, like dual rectifiers, or Uberschalls. Definitely worth trying something like that.

ecou

@michael_m said:

@ecou said:

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

I don’t know if I would think of Marshalls for 90s industrial - I always think of the 90s as the start of using really high gain amps, like dual rectifiers, or Uberschalls. Definitely worth trying something like that.

The Marshall JMP-1 is not your average Marshall. It's a rack mount guitar preamp that can go way beyond the classic Marshall sound.

It's what Ministry, Ramstein and NIN used for their guitars in the 90s.

You did not watch the videos ?

michael_m

@ecou said:

@michael_m said:

@ecou said:

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

I don’t know if I would think of Marshalls for 90s industrial - I always think of the 90s as the start of using really high gain amps, like dual rectifiers, or Uberschalls. Definitely worth trying something like that.

The Marshall JMP-1 is not your average Marshall. It's a rack mount guitar preamp that can go way beyond the classic Marshall sound.

It's what Ministry, Ramstein and NIN used for their guitars in the 90s.

You did not watch the videos ?

Didn’t watch them yet, but I will. Not doubting the amp was used, but I was thinking there were a ton of non-Marshall amps being used by guitarists playing industrial in the 90s. Maybe I’m wrong though.

Ailerom

@michael_m said:

@ecou said:

@egobeats said:
Question for older guitarists.... Anyone own or owned a Korg Pandora px4(toneworks)? My first foray into industrial music was running my Dr-202 thru the Korg Pandora, and the sounds were unmatched. I've been looking for the older boxey blue Pandora, thing made the DR-202 nasty-nasty. Would love to find the late 90's Pandora. The newer ones are different.

If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

Yes the JMP-1 was everywhere at that time. Not necessarily what most would think of as the Marshall sound, but definitely one of the era defining devices. And yes, Nembrini did a great job on the plugin. I remember I wanted one badly at the time but could only afford a lowly Digitech GSP 21 Legend.

Pxlhg

@ecou said:
If your into industrial guitar sound you may want to try Nembrini version of the Marshal Jmp-1 witch was used in many industrial guitar recording of the 90s.

I've missed that Nembrini or, ignored it because it's mustard. 😅 I'll test it next time they have a sale. Thanks for the tip, pretty fun to hear some different views on guitar tone, like the T.Reznor guy don't like mics and therefor made the chain with Jmp1.

Ailerom