Guitar Nerds Anonymous

Loving the wireless system! Can’t make it work through the tuner (snark) for some reason, but the ability to switch on the amp and then piss people off from anywhere in the house is amazing!

You know what? I’m liking this electric thing - why did I waste thirty five years on acoustic? Anyone want a couple of Martins and a Fender or two?

(Joke. My guitars will be pried from my cold dead hands)

Any views on Duo-Sonics please?

If I throw my mind back 20+ years my then G/F had one which I hated, it felt too small and wouldn't stay in tune for anything. At the time I had an Epiphone SG and a Yamaha Pacifica and she also had a Gordon Smith, it was the least favourable of the 4.
But we were kids and I was heavily into NuMetal, so what did I know?🤷

And from that reply you learned absolutely nothing and you should go try one anyway. And try all the ones you can, in my experience cheaper (subjective) Fenders can vary hugely even though they're the same model - try all the colours, piss the staff off.

I absolutely love my Duo-Sonic. I've swapped the bridge for a Callaham one and some Kluson tuners but the stock pickups sound great and it feels so good!

That's cool, I like that.

Yeah it really is a great little guitar and I much prefer the smaller headstock compared to the Mustang. I've often thought about getting another one and putting in some nice Tele pickups but the stock pickups are actually good enough in this one that I don't want to change them.

Pissing about with a phaser pedal (Boss) at the moment. So much fun! Why did I not pick up on this stuff decades ago?

@Nahguavkire I really love your duo sonic!
Do you know if Kluson or any other half decent company’s make a vintage style tuner with a black ‘butter bean’ button? I can’t seem to find them online unless the whole tuner is black.

I want that vintage for my mustang build, but I want the tuners to match my black scratch plate.

These might do the trick?

@Nahguavkire yes thank you! I’ve just found a uk seller too.

Is there a widget that I can feed from the output of pedals to Bluetooth and therefore to over ear headphones? Crikey, that would be brilliant.

(I’m an idiot, of course there is)

Would one of these be worth the spend?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/CAMOLA-Headphone-Amplifier-Rechargeable-Electric-Guitar/dp/B08MSXVF1R/ref=sr_1_5?crid=3CCH7J996EIT5&keywords=electric+guitar+bluetooth+amp+headphone&qid=1654723006&sprefix=electric+guitar+headphone+amp+bluet%2Caps%2C86&sr=8-5

Or is there an industry standard unit that is tried and tested?

Really sorry for all the silly questions I’m asking. I’m such a newbie at electric.

I imagine the reason there isnt a more mainstream option is there would be noticable lag. Boss Waza Air gets good reviews though

Thank you. I’ll take a look.

Admittedly its in a different price category! Perhaps worth a shot on the bluetooth with amazon returns.

Looks like exactly what I want - thank you.

Ordered a set from the evil that is Amazon Prime.

The lack of lag will be critical I think. Can’t imagine the hand feel and the noise being gapped. Rather spend more and cry once.

Thank you again for the advice.

The Fender Mustang Micro seems very popular as a less spendy alternative.

I’m not sure how well any of them deal with a pedal output (which is going to be louder, potentially quite a lot louder) as opposed to being plugged straight into the guitar. The idea is you use the effects they have built in, I think.

I had a pair of the Waza Air and it’s a very impressive bit of kit but the second hand prices were really strong and I was using my Iridium more for headphone playing (using pedals) so I sold them.

Darn, slightly slow in timing…..

Have ordered the Boss set though. If second hand is strong (and eBay backs that) then if I’ve made a serious bish then I shouldn’t lose that much.

Cheers Sir.

Mustang Micro is pretty good, not noticed any real difference between direct-out-guitar or from pedal

Isn't Bluetooth out compatible though, it does have bluetooth in so you can pipe something in to play along to (which is amazing for nightime sessions on the sofa)

Shockingly I use it more than my Princeton reverb...

Will end up with one of those eventually, its always recommended and obvs a decent tuner.

I bought this (and a budget multi fx mini pedal thing) for £25 posted so at least I can get on with fully servicing and setting up my guitars which is what was needed. Don't think its an everyday tuner though tbh.

this is a great thread, i reckon by the summers end i will own a BOSS loop station..

heavy session last night, focus was hammer-ons, pull-offs, bends, slides etc. around blues scales, riffs and licks against the metronome @ 70bpm, 110bpm, 140bpm..

my fretting hand finger tips are suffering today, mentally we covered alot and will need plenty of practice to process.. all good though

if i can nail these techniques at different tempos, the improv will come naturally methinks

Had a great guilt-free session using the Boss headphone system last night. Finished pissed and finger sore at about 2am this morning with everyone else in the house long, long asleep.

I bloody love it! Such a great steer, thank you all.

Good stuff all round.

have you got a physical teacher?

I need to be taught somehow. It doesn't have to an actual person but I've played guitar over 23 years or so and all I know is pentatonic minor scale.

How do I unlearn? I need beginner lessons for a veteran hahah. I just need some structure really. Im almost jealous that its all new enough for you to be able to learn everything!

yes since december last year.. i'm relatively new to guitar playing, having a physical teacher in the room has been awesome and we have blitzed through the basics, some of it very repetitive. But I understand why, my tutor wants me to excel to the highest standard.

previously the fender app I bought wasn’t cheap, now consigned to history..

we started at the beginning using all written formats. reading music also helps me understand how chords and scales relate and I keep a diary of notes, tips, reminders.

I can read music, played oboe in my teens, self taught some piano when the kids were young and they had lessons.

i mostly bring the fender strat to weekly lessons, its totally knackered but the perfect instrument for learning.. teacher brings.. acoustic, les paul, whatever.. when both of us are amped up.. it can be powerful, engaging, insightful, educational.

every lesson has a surprise, we role switch alot, chord progression vs. licks.. metronome gets used every week to ensure i play under pressure, this all adds discipline/structure but ultimately repertoire and without practice, i get called out and more homework noted to get to the acceptable standard.

I have a listening list of songs, I am tasked with understanding the dynamics, pick out and apply the techniques I’ve learnt and if possible improvise.

This weeks homework
Metallica - Nothing elses matters, with finger picking patterns, hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides.. so it’s study first, then step by step in lesson with practice plan. Until I can play that completely, then others will follow.

i'm sure there are a ton of good on-line tutorials thanks to YouTube. I subscribe to Marty Schwartz for the simple reason that he covers many genres and this broadens my knowledge. But for now weekly lessons IRL, tasks, tests I believe will get me to the standard of live performance in the musical styles I want to play.

My appreciation for other genres has also grown beyond my CD collection.. whilst I want to play Bob Marley and Nile Rodgers guitar solos.. Def Leppard, AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath also need to be in my locker..

the journey i guess can be anything i want.. so my 2022 target is a dozen songs I can play solo from memory. Then pick up new / old / classic songs there after with the knowledge acquired.

Exactly same boat. Been playing damn near 40 years. Used to take the coach from Hertfordshire to Denmark street every Saturday for a year or so as a small boy for a half hour lesson.

Gave me a lot of the basics, but need to unlearn so many bad habits (and electric is proving such a change from classical, then electo acoustic).

Loving this journey!