Post a pic of yourself ... or a pic you took ...

[Inkubus]

This me more than fifty years ago when I was
still a young man with the world at my feet.
Now I'm old and grey, and reminiscing about
times long past and the opportunities I missed.

          

Looking at your haircut I'd say you lacked discipline:

[TheGentlemanBastard]

Everyone's already met this lady:


And, hey Thump, I amp'd up:


Tomorrow, the latest addition to the family arrives:


Firefly's (far less expensive) take on the Gibson Explorer.



I'm almost certain there'll be an acoustic under the tree on Xmas morning, so look for a family photo shortly thereafter.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Everyone's already met this lady:


And, hey Thump, I amp'd up:


Tomorrow, the latest addition to the family arrives:


Firefly's (far less expensive) take on the Gibson Explorer.



I'm almost certain there'll be an acoustic under the tree on Xmas morning, so look for a family photo shortly thereafter.

Good ridin', I hope you get a good flattop under your pine.

In the meantime, for your electric, find yourself a VHT Special 6 or Special 12/20. If you want Hendrix clean and Zeppelin dirt, these are the go-tos. Not big money, Spec6 is a few hundred bucks tops.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

Everyone's already met this lady:


And, hey Thump, I amp'd up:


Tomorrow, the latest addition to the family arrives:


Firefly's (far less expensive) take on the Gibson Explorer.



I'm almost certain there'll be an acoustic under the tree on Xmas morning, so look for a family photo shortly thereafter.

Good ridin', I hope you get a good flattop under your pine.

In the meantime, for your electric, find yourself a VHT Special 6 or Special 12/20. If you want Hendrix clean and Zeppelin dirt, these are the go-tos. Not big money, Spec6 is a few hundred bucks tops.

I'm listenin' Thump, and letting it all percolate 'round the back of my brain. For now, the amp has reverb, delay and modulation, and a selector for 10 different pedals on top of those, so I've got tons of tones to play with to see what I like before I start buying more effects. it also emulates 16 amps. I can already get good clean tones, down and dirty growling tones, and most everything in between, and believe it or not, I scored it for $100!

Now that I've got a Strat, a Gibson Explorer knockoff, and (most likely) an inexpensive acoustic I'm gonna have to do a lot of setup on, my next buy is likely gonna be an Ibanez. I can get a GIO for sub-$200 and there's one a step up from that for $249 that I'm also considering. That will give me three electrics with very different tonal ranges, and all of them being gorgeous little honey's that will make me want to pick them up and play them.

Hell, some day I might even get good.

My chord changes are getting better, and faster, though speed seems to be increasing faster than accuracy. I'm now practicing 13 different one minute chord changes, I've memorized 8 chords and I've tried and tinkered about with probably 8 or 10 other adding them as I get comfortable with the chord shape, or going all in when I find one like Am where I already know the shape, and can just shift over a bit (E-chord, shifted one string higher).  I'm finding bar chords rather daunting. I can't bar a fret, and finger the chord at the same time (bar-F for example), yet. The fingers just won't stretch far enough. But, I'm also doing finger stretching exercises and when I tried that F chord today, I could almost hit it.

I'm also building a repertoire of easy songs to play, because all work and no play makes Jack try to kill Wendy and Danny.
"Wild Thing," "Louie Louie," "Dance the Night Away" by the Mavericks, and Marley's "Three Little Birds" are the ones I can play through where you can pick out what I'm playing through the noise. I'm working on some other stuff as well. Easier items like "Don't You Forget About Me" as well as some more challenging stuff like AC/DC, Tora Tora's "Phantom Rider," (that one's a stone bitch, but it'll be truly satisfying the first time I play it through) Eddie's "Best of Both Worlds," etc...

Most importantly, I'm LOVING EVERY FUCKIN' MINUTE OF IT!!! Even, and especially, the difficult and frustrating parts. And, I found an amp setting today that makes the hammer-ons in "Phantom Rider" ring out WAYYYYYYY better.

There is very little in life I regret having done, and none of them are major regrets. However, I have to great regrets. Both of them regrets of omission. One of them is not doing this sooner! The joy I have missed over the years... But, I'm living it now, so I'm gonna try to let that one go.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

A preview of the Ibanez guitars I'm looking at:

at $169:


A little pricier, but still sub-$200 at $189:


And, the one I'll likely get if Dad sends cash at xmas, as he usually does. Still a very affordable $249:


There's just something about that red and black finish that really speaks to me, though I love the others almost as much.

I wish I could afford a B. C. Rich Black Widow, or (read, and) even a Jackson X series Warrior... a Fender Acoustasonic Jazzmaster... A Gibson Les Paul custom... Hey, a guy can dream, right?

Yeah... I've got the bug. 

Honestly, I'm trilled to be living at a time where you can actually get brand new, well built, good sounding guitars that don't require a second mortgage. I remember the prices back in the 80s when I was desperately trying to get my folks to buy me a Strat. Bargain basement was around $300 and something decent went for $500+. Add another couple hundred for a good amp, and in 80s money that's two or three month's groceries for a family of four, just for just the guitar and amp. With the third electric, the amp, and the acoustic, equivalent money won't have been spent yet, even counting the little peripherals (strings, tuners, straps, gig bags, cases, etc...).

[Thumpalumpacus]

I'm listenin' Thump, and letting it all percolate 'round the back of my brain. For now, the amp has reverb, delay and modulation, and a selector for 10 different pedals on top of those, so I've got tons of tones to play with to see what I like before I start buying more effects. it also emulates 16 amps. I can already get good clean tones, down and dirty growling tones, and most everything in between, and believe it or not, I scored it for $100!

Now that I've got a Strat, a Gibson Explorer knockoff, and (most likely) an inexpensive acoustic I'm gonna have to do a lot of setup on, my next buy is likely gonna be an Ibanez. I can get a GIO for sub-$200 and there's one a step up from that for $249 that I'm also considering. That will give me three electrics with very different tonal ranges, and all of them being gorgeous little honey's that will make me want to pick them up and play them.

Hell, some day I might even get good.

My chord changes are getting better, and faster, though speed seems to be increasing faster than accuracy. I'm now practicing 13 different one minute chord changes, I've memorized 8 chords and I've tried and tinkered about with probably 8 or 10 other adding them as I get comfortable with the chord shape, or going all in when I find one like Am where I already know the shape, and can just shift over a bit (E-chord, shifted one string higher).  I'm finding bar chords rather daunting. I can't bar a fret, and finger the chord at the same time (bar-F for example), yet. The fingers just won't stretch far enough. But, I'm also doing finger stretching exercises and when I tried that F chord today, I could almost hit it.

I'm also building a repertoire of easy songs to play, because all work and no play makes Jack try to kill Wendy and Danny.
"Wild Thing," "Louie Louie," "Dance the Night Away" by the Mavericks, and Marley's "Three Little Birds" are the ones I can play through where you can pick out what I'm playing through the noise. I'm working on some other stuff as well. Easier items like "Don't You Forget About Me" as well as some more challenging stuff like AC/DC, Tora Tora's "Phantom Rider," (that one's a stone bitch, but it'll be truly satisfying the first time I play it through) Eddie's "Best of Both Worlds," etc...

Most importantly, I'm LOVING EVERY FUCKIN' MINUTE OF IT!!! Even, and especially, the difficult and frustrating parts. And, I found an amp setting today that makes the hammer-ons in "Phantom Rider" ring out WAYYYYYYY better.

There is very little in life I regret having done, and none of them are major regrets. However, I have to great regrets. Both of them regrets of omission. One of them is not doing this sooner! The joy I have missed over the years... But, I'm living it now, so I'm gonna try to let that one go.

That's great, bud. The thing is, you can never master the instrument, so it's like Tolkien's road, it goes on forever.

One note about practicing: Don't practice for speed. Practice for accuracy. The speed will come on its own, and you won't bake in any bad habits.

[brewerb]

Nine years ago today.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

She was late, but finally arrived.


Straight out of the box, tuned her up and she sounds amazing. I'm going to have to do some setup, re-string, lower the action a bit, adjust the pickups, probably set the intonation, but I'll get to that later today. Right now, I'm gonna giver her a workout.

ETA: Yeah, intonation damn near spot on! I may have to tweak it after changing the action and adjusting the pickups, but for this session, it's more than just okay!

@Thumpalumpacus, definitely not practicing for speed, that's just where I'm improving the most on my one minute chord changes. I dial the tempo back when learning something new, usually drastically. It's better to sound decent slow than to sound like crap in a blender.

[Dānu]

"You've already got three guitars! Why can't you just look at porn like a normal husband!"

[TheGentlemanBastard]

"You've already got three guitars!  Why can't you just look at porn like a normal husband!"

Who said I don't?!?

Gotta have something to do the other 15 hours and 45 minutes I'm awake.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

So, after practicing/playing/noodling/playing around with tone knobs and amp setting...

The setup on this guitar is amazing, out of the box. Action is at a really good height, intonation needs some minor tweaking (low E and A are a bit flat at the 12 fret) and the pickups are pretty low, but still doing a bang-up job.

Hindsight being 20-20, this is the guitar I should have picked up first. But, I was enamored of having a Strat, and the Floyd Rose that I've barely used so far. Absolutely no regrets on either one, I'll be playing them both on the regular, but I think I would have done myself better service had I bought them in reverse order. The tones coming out of the Firefly (shiny!) are very different from the Strat and the volume knobs and tone knob were easier to figure out.

Looking forward to Xmas and the acoustic, and (most likely) cash from dad with which to pick up the Ibanez.

I'm having way too damned much fun!

[Thumpalumpacus]

"You've already got three guitars!  Why can't you just look at porn like a normal husband!"

One is too many, and twenty ain't enough, said your local forum alkie.

[Thumpalumpacus]

So, after practicing/playing/noodling/playing around with tone knobs and amp setting...

The setup on this guitar is amazing, out of the box. Action is at a really good height, intonation needs some minor tweaking (low E and A are a bit flat at the 12 fret) and the pickups are pretty low, but still doing a bang-up job.

Hindsight being 20-20, this is the guitar I should have picked up first. But, I was enamored of having a Strat, and the Floyd Rose that I've barely used so far. Absolutely no regrets on either one, I'll be playing them both on the regular, but I think I would have done myself better service had I bought them in reverse order. The tones coming out of the Firefly (shiny!) are very different from the Strat and the volume knobs and tone knob were easier to figure out.

Looking forward to Xmas and the acoustic, and (most likely) cash from dad with which to pick up the Ibanez.

I'm having way too damned much fun!

I don't know how dialed-in you are on intonation, but if you need any help let me know. You being an engineer of sorts, I know you can get it. Bottom line: if the intonation is sharp, lengthen the string by letting back the saddle; if the intonation is flat, shorten the string by bringing in the saddle.

Sorry for all the unasked-for advice, it must be annoying, but I love seeing more guitarists in this world and can't really shut my trap. Crank that fucker up. If your jeans ain't flappin' in the speaker-breeze, you're not loud enough.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

So, after practicing/playing/noodling/playing around with tone knobs and amp setting...

The setup on this guitar is amazing, out of the box. Action is at a really good height, intonation needs some minor tweaking (low E and A are a bit flat at the 12 fret) and the pickups are pretty low, but still doing a bang-up job.

Hindsight being 20-20, this is the guitar I should have picked up first. But, I was enamored of having a Strat, and the Floyd Rose that I've barely used so far. Absolutely no regrets on either one, I'll be playing them both on the regular, but I think I would have done myself better service had I bought them in reverse order. The tones coming out of the Firefly (shiny!) are very different from the Strat and the volume knobs and tone knob were easier to figure out.

Looking forward to Xmas and the acoustic, and (most likely) cash from dad with which to pick up the Ibanez.

I'm having way too damned much fun!

I don't know how dialed-in you are on intonation, but if you need any help let me know. You being an engineer of sorts, I know you can get it. Bottom line: if the intonation is sharp, lengthen the string by letting back the saddle; if the intonation is flat, shorten the string by bringing in the saddle.

Sorry for all the unasked-for advice, it must be annoying, but I love seeing more guitarists in this world and can't really shut my trap. Crank that fucker up. If your jeans ain't flappin' in the speaker-breeze, you're not loud enough.

The advice is most certainly welcome, Thump. Even if I've heard it before, I'd rather get good advice twice than not at all.

The intonation on the Firefly is surprisingly dialed in. I thought the Strat from the music store had a good setup, but after playing the Firefly, straight from the factory, I'm going to have to do more adjusting on the Strat than the Firefly. But, I do want to replace the plastic nut on the Firefly. It drags on the strings making them a bit harder to tune, and who wants to spend time tuning when you could be playing.

What are your thoughts on brass as a nut material? I went looking for Tusc nuts, and saw the brass, and that would blend with the aesthetic, but black Tusc would look good as well.

[Thumpalumpacus]

But, I do want to replace the plastic nut on the Firefly. It drags on the strings making them a bit harder to tune, and who wants to spend time tuning when you could be playing.

What are your thoughts on brass as a nut material? I went looking for Tusc nuts, and saw the brass, and that would blend with the aesthetic, but black Tusc would look good as well.

Avoid brass like the plague it is. It's a soft metal that deforms under tension, which means it will grab your strings and make your tuning stability even worse. You can solve the problem of your plastic nut by applying graphite lubricant into each string-slot. I use a .5mm mechanical pencil and simply "draw" the graphite into the slot each time I change strings. Really helps tuning.

If you want to do the work, sure, Tusq is great, but not necessary. Just lube the nut and play it like you stole it.

[Antonio]

excellent hunting rifle 30-06 caliber

https://www.browning.com/products/firear...afari.html

couldn't post an original picture of my rifle so I posted this similar pic

[TheGentlemanBastard]

But, I do want to replace the plastic nut on the Firefly. It drags on the strings making them a bit harder to tune, and who wants to spend time tuning when you could be playing.

What are your thoughts on brass as a nut material? I went looking for Tusc nuts, and saw the brass, and that would blend with the aesthetic, but black Tusc would look good as well.

Avoid brass like the plague it is. It's a soft metal that deforms under tension, which means it will grab your strings and make your tuning stability even  worse. You can solve the problem of your plastic nut by applying graphite lubricant into each string-slot. I use a .5mm mechanical pencil  and simply "draw" the graphite into the slot each time I change strings. Really helps tuning.

If you want to do the work, sure, Tusq is great, but not necessary. Just lube the nut and play it like you stole it.

That's about what I figured on the bronze nut. Bronze is pretty, but difficult.

I'm getting fret buzz on the first fret of the low E, and nowhere else I've been able to find. Not bad, not all the time, but just enough to be irritating. The neck is straight, with just a hint of relief, but the nut is really low, so I'd like to bring up just a smidge. I know I could shim it, but if I'm gonna do the work anyway, I might as well set a Tusq nut, and get that little bit of cleaner ring and easier tuning at the same time I'm fixing the fret buzz. In the short term, graphite's gonna be my new best friend.

One is too many, and twenty ain't enough, said your local forum alkie.

The wife: How many guitars to you need?

Me: Just one more.

I've got a laundry list of guitars that I want/would be really nice to have. From the $139 Leo James Telecaster knockoff to the $900 Washburn Nuno Bettencout signature. And of course, there are a ton in the $1500-$2500 range I'd love to have, but those will be the guitars I'll buy to celebrate taking the stage as the opener for Staind or, the more likely event of winning the lottery. 

---

I'm digging that Ibanez. Is that an Artcore? I've got a couple I'm eyeballing...

The Artcore AF75 with the transparent red sunburst finish (again with the red/black):


And, the Artcore AS with the indigo fade finish:


Both have price points that are at the "maybe with a good bonus/tax return" level. But, with the new job and the better financials it brings, they're no longer as far out of my price range as before. Maybe just save up, or of course, I can always explore the used market as well.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I'm getting fret buzz on the first fret of the low E, and nowhere else I've been able to find. Not bad, not all the time, but just enough to be irritating. The neck is straight, with just a hint of relief, but the nut is really low, so I'd like to bring up just a smidge. I know I could shim it, but if I'm gonna do the work anyway, I might as well set a Tusq nut, and get that little bit of cleaner ring and easier tuning at the same time I'm fixing the fret buzz. In the short term, graphite's gonna be my new best friend.

If the first fret is the only one buzzing, I bet the problem is not the nut or the bridge, but the fret itself. Is the buzz isolated to particular strings, or is the buzz neck-wide across the breadth? If it's neck-wide, the nut is likely the problem. If the buzz is isolated to under one or two strings, the fret is probably proud under them and a little local filing and a polish might solve the issue.

I'm digging that Ibanez. Is that an Artcore? I've got a couple I'm eyeballing...

It is an Artcore. It's a 2015 AS-93. It's basically an ES-335 copy, albeit with different woods and electronics. Unlike the guitar you posted in your reply, it has a solid block extending from the neck to the bottom of the guitar, so less feedback. I love it because playing heavy rock, I can go from good cleans to Sabbath grind and can control the feedback by how I stand or rolling the volume knob.

The AF-75 is fully hollow, so for jazz and probably blues good, but once you get above moderate volume you will run into feedback issues even with a clean amp.

Once your amp is sweating, this guitar will be hard to control. Even mine with its solid block in the center is very resonant, to the point I have to turn this way and that to avoid unwanted feedback at the levels I sometimes play.

Both have price points that are at the "maybe with a good bonus/tax return" level. But, with the new job and the better financials it brings, they're no longer as far out of my price range as before. Maybe just save up, or of course, I can always explore the used market as well.

The used market can be really good. My Ibby listed $700 brand new when I bought it in 2016. I got it in pristine shape for $400, less than a year old. Prices will have obviously gone up, but I'm seeing AF75s about $300 used right now.

I've played this model before and when set up well it's a fine guitar for jazz or other quiet playing. If I was walking down that road, I'd sure consider one. I'm just not playing that stuff right now, head is in heavier stuff.

[Unsapien]

Okay lets see if this works...
This is my first attempt at uploading my own content up to YouTube. The videos are unlisted though, I'm not trying to become creator or anything.

So My kids got me a dashcam last year, and this is the first thing it recorded on June 6th of last year of any importance.
I had woken up at 4am as always and when I looked out the window I saw the building across the way on fire. So I immediately called 911, meanwhile my wife (I was very upset with her for doing this, it's just a car & it's fully insured) ran out to the car to move it away from the fire.
 




My wife told me when she got into the car she could barely hold the steering wheel because it was already so hot.

The link below is some video I took from our balcony after I got off the phone with the fire department, that's how fast the fire spread.(youtube classified my second video as a "short" and they restrict shorts to prevent spam apparently, so it's only available as a clickable link)  Thankfully the building wasn't occupied at the time as it was being renovated. The empty parking space is where our car was, all the other cars there were destroyed. The firefighters were here just a few moments after this video, and somehow got it under control by 4:30 which seems pretty amazing considering how big the fire was when they got here.
 

https://youtube.com/shorts/KaKwUxjxUVw

[brewerb]

^^^ Yikes!

Unsapien: Please let us know if you find out the cause.

[Unsapien]

^^^ Yikes!

Unsapien: Please let us know if you find out the cause.

Arson.

They held a person of interest at the scene but I don't know what came of that. This building was emptied back in December of 2023, the tenants were a real bunch of idiots, cops were called multiple times for fights & public drunkenness. Then they had to fix the mess the tenants left behind which was bad. The fire was started in front of my car in a rubbish pile of construction waste, the police were hoping my video would catch who started it but my dashcam only works if the car is running or if it gets bumped hard enough to activate to parking monitor function ( which it didn't).

They suspected it was one of the previous tenants.

[Mancunian]

This is my lad practicing his guitar skills, he's only just starting out but some of the stuff I'm hearing is impressive.

[Thumpalumpacus]

This is my lad practicing his guitar skills, he's only just starting out but some of the stuff I'm hearing is impressive.

That's right, Dad, raise 'im right.

[Mancunian]

This is my lad practicing his guitar skills, he's only just starting out but some of the stuff I'm hearing is impressive.

That's right, Dad, raise 'im right.

I must say that it sounds like he's been playing for years. Been into town today to get him some new strings, one snapped the other night when he was going for it with his amp on full volume.

[SYZ]

Okay lets see if this works...
This is my first attempt at uploading my own content up to YouTube. The videos are unlisted though, I'm not trying to become creator or anything...

Excellent videos mate.   

And I think Mrs Unsapien did a great job in
shifting your car—calm, focussed, and knew
exactly what to do, and under pressure.