Guitar of the week #95 - Epiphone "1961" G-400 PRO in Metallic Gold
Gold, gold, gold. One thing most Gibson guitar designs take very well to is gold. Whether the finish is flat gold or metallic such as the guitar seen here, the Epiphone "1961" G-400 PRO in Metallic...
View ArticleAre thin guitar picks worthless?
Most guitar players use picks of a medium or heavy thickness, but what about thin? Choosing the right thin pick is important I'm showing two Fender thin picks in the photo above for a reason. They're...
View ArticleSecond Zoom R8 book coming soon
It's finally done. A while ago - and I'm talking months here - I decided to start on a second Zoom R8 book specifically concentrating on the guitar effects processor within the unit. The first book I...
View ArticleGuitar of the week #96 - Squier Bullet Mustang HH
This just might be the new perfect beginner's guitar. But before I get into that... I was asked my opinion about the Squier Affinity Jazzmaster HH, the new cheap Jazzmaster from Squier. I don't like it...
View ArticleLiving with extra super light strings (D'Addario EXL130+)
For a good long while now I've been playing nothing but Dunlop DEN9042 strings. But then I saw that D'Addario offers a size between 8-38 and 9-42, the EXL130+ 8.5-39 size, labeled as "X-Super Light...
View ArticleHow to get quality guitar audio on the Zoom R8
The book is done and is available now. I recently released a video showing the kind of sound you can get using nothing but the Zoom R8 standalone multitrack recorder: If you are unable to see the video...
View ArticleFender Duo-Sonic review
A little Fender that's good - when plugged into the right amp. Last weekend I tried out three guitars and two of them were Fender Duo-Sonic models. The last time I played one of these, it was a Squier...
View ArticleFender Mustang 90 review
This was a bit of a disappointment, but it could have been great. Because none of the local guitar stores had the Squier Bullet Mustang HH in stock yet (which is a total steal in all the right ways), I...
View ArticleThe "relic" guitar phase may finally be over (but the replacement kinda sucks)
Something happened at NAMM this year that was good... ...and that was Fender showing a lot of non-"relic" guitars. Make no mistake that as long as Fender exists, they will build "heavy relic" guitars...
View ArticleGuitar of the week #97 - Schecter Sun Valley Super Shredder
This is a lean, mean, shredding machine. Schecter sometimes does things that are both cool and funny at the same time. The Schecter Sun Valley Super Shredder, also known as the Schecter Sun Valley SS,...
View ArticleNo bent notes, no vibrato
What happens when you compose music on guitar that has absolutely no bent notes or vibrato? Before I answer that, the guitar above is the Fender Deluxe Stratocaster in Sapphire Blue Transparent. That...
View ArticleThe best guitar effect is delay
This is the guitar effect worth putting money into. Out of every guitar effect that exists, delay is the only one that works everywhere. But before I get into that, I'm specifically talking about...
View ArticleGuitar of the week #98 - Guild T-Bird ST P90
This bird sings. There may be some of you who already know of the Guild S-200 T-Bird. This guitar, the ST P90 version, is based off the S-200 but is more simplified. There are fewer switches and no...
View ArticleI'm a G-SHOCK guy
It took me a long time to figure something out... ...and that something is that I've been a G-SHOCK guy all along and didn't know it. With guitars, I found out that my true calling was Fender and...
View ArticleShort scale guitar note "warping" and what you can do about it
Guitars like the Squier Bullet Mustang HH (a very nice low-cost guitar) above are cool, but there is a known problem with a short scale electric you should be aware of. Before telling you what it is, a...
View ArticleGuitar of the week #99 - Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 2
When you want a Super Fender Telecaster, you actually want a Charvel. There are some guitar players out there that want a Fender Telecaster that has a contour cut in the rear like a Stratocaster, comes...
View ArticleFender replacement neck vs. Warmoth replacement neck
It's really easy to replace a Strat neck these days, but which is the better choice? Fender or Warmoth? Actually, there are 3 places where you can get Strat necks (as well as other Fender necks)...
View ArticleCasio G9100 Gulfman review
This was a disappointment. As I said before, the G-SHOCK watch I wanted to get was the G9100 Gulfman, so I bought it. And returned it. This is the story of what happened. We'll start with the Casio...
View ArticleGuitar of the week #100 - Squier Bullet Strat
This is the guitar that got me back into guitars; it made sense to feature this one as the #100 guitar of the week. There was a span of a few years when I wasn't playing guitar all that much because...
View ArticleWhat I learned after switching to extra super light guitar strings
The lightest guitar strings I've ever played was a 7-38 set a really long time ago by a brand I don't even think exists anymore. And by really long time I mean over 20 years ago. The only "standard"...
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