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Random (Music and Guitar Related) Thoughts Thread


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Preamp tubes never break. Except for your first show back in six years with your originals band. Three minutes in and channel three goes clean. Did the rest of the show on channel two running a Wampler Pinnacle to boost.

The worst part of it is that feeling like you are on eggshells when your gear isn't working so well and you don't know what may break next.

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  • 1 month later...

I've hit that point where I feel like I can't catch up financially.

The Talladega, Les Paul, and Firebird get most of the work with the Standard pinch hitting when my on-again-off-again originals band actually does stuff. The ASAT is becoming a fixture on Reverb, though I would like to sell it. I can't sell my other Lester, even though it is in desperate need of once over by a tech.

The problem is that I really, really love everything I have. Even the stuff that is, to be perfectly honest, absolutely redundant.

The "responsible" part of my brain says, "You don't REALLY need a Standard, a SuperPro, and a Mark III. You rarely use them."

The optimistic side says, "Hang on to them. You are going to regret letting them all go forever if you do. And besides, this will all work out." Y'all are probably tired of all my belly aching about the last two Hamers I let walk out the door.

The irresponsible part of me says, "Fuck all this shit, me and my guitars are going to South America. Let em fucking find me!"

That age old battle of whether you own your stuff or your stuff owns you.

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I don't really understand why vinyl is currently considered higher audio fidelity than CDs.

I remember when CDs came out. Prior to that, I was buying albums and recording them onto metal-tape cassettes for playback in the car, etc. That was widely considered the best audio fidelity possible short of reel-to-reel master tapes.

But when I listened to CDs of albums I already owned, the CDs were hands-down better: more clear, better dynamic response, etc. With CDs, it sounded like the band was in the same room. With vinyl, you always had the needle hiss and track bump.

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...whether you own your stuff or your stuff owns you.

Whether or not. I pulled out the Newport again in a long time. And it proofed being the right owned stuff. The sound is just f. gorgeous and playability stands next to it. A perfect make of 6 string joy. That's what I say.
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Needles wear out and records need to be cleaned every now and then.

I got my answer on the other thread.

Don't fully agree. There might be some corksniffing/Emperor's New Clothes Effect going on.

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I'm developing the theory that tubes are really better for crunch, overdrive, and some distortion sounds, but that cleans are actually better on a solid state amp. And maybe better for some of the edgier distortion styles due to the square shape of the wave from solid state amps.

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To that point, Roland Jazz Choruses used to be a go to clean amp. And when I used to do more studio work, it wasn't uncommon at all to tuck a Crate practice amp all fuzzed out in the mix -- one of those can't-hear-it when-it's-in-but-can-tell-when-it's-out type things -- just for some bite. I wouldn't say it was standard, but it certainly wasn't rare.

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Based on a segment of discussion over in the Marty Doesn't Get Hendrix thread, I was curious as to what defines music from the groin as opposed to more cerebral examples. Are we talking just in terms of technique and theory or is there some other criteria that defines both?

I suppose taken to extremes, it's fairly easy to categorize and differentiate these. Sex Pistols vs. Malmsteen, for example. But what exactly is music played from below the belt vs. above the neck? Seems to me there is an awful lot of gray area as well as a HUGE variable in the form of subjectivity.

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Technically proficient music vs stuff that makes you go YEAH!

That's the thing- there are people who listen to technically proficient stuff and go YEAH. :huh:

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I'm developing the theory that tubes are really better for crunch, overdrive, and some distortion sounds, but that cleans are actually better on a solid state amp. And maybe better for some of the edgier distortion styles due to the square shape of the wave from solid state amps.

I had thougt it's just the other way round. Clean sounds perfect through tubes and distortion totally is a solid state thingy. Or please explain how it comes that almost all distortion pedals fuel transistors rather than tubes, starting from the very first trebble boosters.

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I'm developing the theory that tubes are really better for crunch, overdrive, and some distortion sounds, but that cleans are actually better on a solid state amp. And maybe better for some of the edgier distortion styles due to the square shape of the wave from solid state amps.

I had thougt it's just the other way round. Clean sounds perfect through tubes and distortion totally is a solid state thingy. Or please explain how it comes that almost all distortion pedals fuel transistors rather than tubes, starting from the very first trebble boosters.
Because the solid state sound best modifying an analog tube signal, I guess.

When you hear of the advantage tube amps have over solid state, everyone talks about the creamy distortion tones, and how you can find the point where it breaks up so your tone sounds mostly clean, but breaks up nicely when you pick with a little extra vigor...the implication that this doesn't happen with solid state.

And, don't forget, the Roland Jazz Chorus is considered by many to have the best clean tone, ever.

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