Steve Haynie

I have never been to the local GC that opened a year ago. Everyone who has visited a GC says the guitars are all scratched. While I think it is important to let someone try out a guitar, it works two ways-- the customer should try to take care of the guitar if they have not bought it yet. How many GC hang-outs go to other stores and scar the merchandise? Does the problem get worse in a market once GC moves in?

I'm thinking the same thing. Chris-- just go on a road trip. See some music stores. Catch a show. On the right weekend I would be willing to drive! I have bought two instruments that were shipped without cases. They arrived unharmed, but one box was not going to last much longer.

There was a contest in conjunction with the launch of an online source for guitar lesson. http://www.workshoplive.com

Try locating something equivalent to a Hamer, import or USA, within 100 miles. If your daughter turns into another Jennifer Batten she will be frustrated with her lack of nice guitars to try out. I worked in a store with a left handed USA Ovation in stock. The few left handed people who tried it were still disappointed that there were no other high quality left handed guitars to try out in the store. It is a big risk to stock a large number of lefty guitars over $1000.

Try to find a high end left handed guitar. Very few people stock them. Playing right handed will make it easier to progress to better guitars. If your daughter happens to play well left handed, she will not be able to try out a variety of guitars. Special orders cost money and usually cannot be returned. Famous left handed people who play right handed include Steve Morse and Joe Perry.

Wow! That blended heel looks nice!

I offer $351. Seriously.

It might be different when you can surround yourself with only "yes-men" so you do not have to listen to criticisms like those posted in this thread.

A friend loaned me a copy of Michael Schenker Group Twenty-five Years Celebration. It is perfect.

Happy Birthday, Chris! I'll buy you a Coke next time I see you.

Some of the performers will do a private show in the price range of the fantasy camps. Jamming with some of them could be fun, though, IF the guys you play with are not jerks.

There is perfect maple on both of those!

Objective data would have to be something done under laboratory conditions. Outside of the controlled environment of the lab there would no longer be any way to be objective. Wood density varies too much. Humidity affects the wood. One person on the production line may carve or sand slightly different from the another person. There are too many variables. Then there is pizza day at the factory which causes all kinds of problems...

There is no good barbecue in Western North Carolina. We can look at the cooking technique and the ingredients in the sauce. They all suck in Western North Carolina. Go to Tennessee, Georgia, or South Carolina and it gets better. We can see better cooking recipes. Scientifically we can deduce that the pH and moisture contents are different. We can laugh at people in Western NC that think they know what barbecue is supposed to taste like. The WNC people are offended by remarks like mine (but WNC BBQ really is not as good as it should be) and claim how long they have been in business making BBQ. The mustard based BBQ people from South Carolina really do make better BBQ, but it is also an entirely different recipe. An argument can be lost on that fact alone. BBQ magazine editors will swoon over the brands of BBQ sauce that happen to be the most heavily advertised in their pages. Stores that get a bigger discount from a manufacturer will be trying harder to sell that brand of BBQ sauce. It all comes down to what kind of BBQ you like, what you have tried, what you understand about cooking BBQ, and whether or not you could stand to eat the same BBQ every day.

I'd like to have Supertramp's live in Paris album.

I have taken my 8 string bass into some bars to play. It was a custom order all the way, but I bought it to play. It has been babied, and I never stray away far from it. I would be just as concerned over any expensive guitar. The korina Hamers are not "oohs and ahhs" guitars, but they are priced the same. I do understand the idea that some guitars have gotten to the point of being a player, but Hamers have that broken in feel that makes them feel almost the same. The stigma of not wanting to scratch a new guitar should not be a factor in playing, but sometimes it is.

It is usually best to let someone pick out his own guitar. We all know what we want, or think we want. Get the kid a Gibson and get yourself a Vector. Let him play both. If he still wants the Gibson you will have a Vector to play with. If he wants the Vector instead of the Gibson, keep the Vector, stick him with the Gibson, and tell him that is a lesson they just don't teach in college.

When I took a tour of the Ernie Ball/Music Man factory the first thing we were told is that they believe their quality is as good as anyone else "including Tom Anderson", so that must mean Anderson is a benchmark for quality in the guitar business. The Andersons I have seen have looked great, but I was not really looking for a Fender design at the time. I, too, have e-mailed Tom Anderson with a question about finishes, and he sent a well written complete response to my question.

Crap! I live close enough to drive down there in an evening.

In general, the 40% off thing usually applies to stock that has been around too long, not something brand new.

Is there a recording you can reference? The fuzz on the early Alice Cooper albums came from a Jordan Boss Tone. Hendrix used the Fuzz Face. Boss, Fulltone, Keeley, and other stomp box manufacturers have sound sample available. It is not unheard of to use a combination of pedals. An overdrive into a distortion can work. A Danelectro Grilled Cheese has a really cool fuzz that is only useful for people wanting an obnoxious fuzz tone. They are cheap and known for the case cracking if you step too hard on it.

The reissue Fuzz Face is the way to go. It is so noisy in addition to the fuzz that it is irritating to use. Instead of the fuzz, you are distracted by the hiss. Now that's fucked up.

The photo of Chris and Paul switched is an instant HFC classic!

The Paul Stanley signature is small enough not to be gaudy. That is cool. I would love to hear what that amp really sounds like.

Someone at Peavey probably knows. Maybe you could contact their artist relations department. Someone would likely remember.