Thread: Guitar players out there?

Hi folks,

One of my other huge pleasures in life is playing guitar. I'm a bit of what my father likes to call a "techy" guitar player...! I like to shred. Alot. I guess thats more of my OCD side coming out because it means I dont mind sitting there practicing alternately picked 16th note triplets for hours at a time...!

I love to play stuff my Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Dream Theatre, Pantera, Metallica, Van Halen, Racer X and all that stuff. Good solid rock/ metal with guitar hero solos in it..! I also like blues stuff like Stevie Ray Vaughn, Walter Trout and some of the newer guys like Joe Bonnamassa.

I find that the OCD, perfection seeking side of guitar playing is very similar to that of straight shaving and seeking the perfect edge, shave, lather etc... You also get to go out and spend loads of money on cool kit..!
Plus there is a zen side to it as well because when I play I find hours just disappear. Really concentrating on the perfect vibrato, really working to get that legato lick super clean and, in my case, working to fit another 4 notes in before the end of the bar (!) is what makes playing so enjoyable. Definately soul food for me..!

I've got an Ibanez Jem (love it) and I run that through a Line 6 Spider amp. I've also got an acoustic Yamaha and a bass as well.

Are there any guitar players out there? If so, what do you like to play? What kit do you have? What do you like about playing? Discuss!

I fall on the exact opposite side of the spectrum as you.

I have a Boss loop station and I end up just laying down some chords, mebbe a bass line and just fool around to see what happens.

Right now I have an

-Ibanez Jet king: humbuckers, non modified

-american made Peavey Predator: single coil that has new caps, pots wires etc, but original pickups (I was going to replace them with the rest of the guts, but it sounded so good after I did the star grounding and shielding, I left it alone)

-acoustic Washburn wierdo that nobody else in the world seems to have, I think it was a limited run prototype or something. This one is my baby.

-a few solid state amps for traveling, and a little Blackheart Killer ant amp and cabinet, unmodified

-misc other beater guitars, a few mandolins, a bass

ah, i do like to play myself. i don't go for uber shredding though. just not my thing. what i really love is folk (the good kind, sorry Dylan old boy), but mostly 20's-50's music. i'm only 18 and i have no idea how i got into it, but i did. can't get enough. a few modern bands that tickle my fancy are normally a bit retro (fleet foxes, Luke Winslow-King)

anyhoo:
Alvarez MD90C - semi acoustic with cutaway, its rosewood back and sides, sitka spruce top, mahogany neck, rosewood and bone bridge, bone nut, very minimal inlays, and i believe its just french polish. its a real beauty.

Alvarez MD350 - acoustic dreadnought same spec as above, just with no cutaway or electrics and slightly different dimensions on the neck, also the bridge projects more and it has golden tuners. some herringbone trim, it's a real stunner.

Epiphone SG - Ivory colour. one of the better models i believe, but still not quite a gibson. really nice guitar, factory spec.

other than that i have just two distortions and a step thingy. on a smaller 20W for my bedroom.

Ciao Chaps,
Mister David

I like to dabble a little bit. I am into rockabilly and blues for the most part.

I play a gretsch electromatic, a Airline town and country and I also have a ovation acoustic. the amp I play through is a Fender twin reverb 64 reissue.

My airline guitar is made by a company called Eastwood guitars they make some really cool stuff and the prices really aren't that bad.

Welcome to Eastwood® Guitars.com

I play mostly country/bluegrass type stuff. Don't really get into "shredding" but would like to learn some of the Clapton/Vaughn/King style bluesey stuff. Mostly do Johnny Cash, Michael Martin Murphey, Marty Robbins, etc.

Guitars:
Taylor 810 Dreadnaught. Rosewood/Spruce. My "baby", college graduation present
Washburn HB-35 hollow body Gibson 335 Knock-off.
Squire Strat
Washburn D10 A/E wine-red. First "good" guitar
Washburn 12 string, I believe it's a D24 or something like that. Probably made in the 80's, rosewood and spruce, 5 piece neck
"Alpine" acoustic. $60 pawn shop guitar.. top with quotes and signatures from my friends
Ibanez Bass

it's probably worth a mention that Martin and Taylor guitars are the most overpriced guitars ever. it's unbelievable. they charge about £2500 ($5000) for guitars that should really be retailing at around £600 ($1000) i tried a few of the medium end Taylors (£2500) a few months back and some of them have tone and playability that is equal to about a £400 Alvarez. it's ridiculous what people will pay for a factory made mass produced brand.

I haven't touched either of them in a few months, but I have an early 90's model Mexican Stratocaster that's just about the easiest thing on the world to play, and a dreadnaught Epiphone acoustic that's been good to me for 10 years or so considering it only cost me 300 bucks. I wanted to get better at playing but work and other hobbies took up all my time.

Sounds like prices are inflated where you are.. My Taylor was $1300 and is among their best (the 810 was their "flagship" for years), and among the cheapest solid rosewood and spruce guitars I've found (martin has one for $1k, but has cheaper finish, and less little details).

FWIW I use to totally agree with you. my first guitar was a Washburn D10 cost about $350 and I noticed the only guitars I liked better cost at least $2500. After having the Taylor for a few months now though when I play the Washburn it feels like a cheap piece of junk. the tone is very good, but the sustain is much worse, the fingerboard is not as good, action is not as good and overall fit and finish is much less. And the big kicker.. Taylor uses a bolt on neck (basically everyone else is dovetail including Martin and Washburn). When I got the action set-up on both the Washburn and the Taylor the Luthier was telling me how eventually all guitars will need a neck re-set and since both mine are a few years old (8 or so on the Washburn and about 10 on the Taylor) it's something they will need in a few years to stay in top form. Neck re-set on the $350 Washburn? $1,000+ (no thanks) Neck re-set on the taylor? $200ish and that's because I have the older style neck. Apparently their new neck is literally a matter of removing some bolts and changing a shim.

Originally Posted by MisterDavid

it's probably worth a mention that Martin and Taylor guitars are the most overpriced guitars ever. it's unbelievable. they charge about £2500 ($5000) for guitars that should really be retailing at around £600 ($1000) i tried a few of the medium end Taylors (£2500) a few months back and some of them have tone and playability that is equal to about a £400 Alvarez. it's ridiculous what people will pay for a factory made mass produced brand.

I play a Fender acoustic guitar, a Martin mandolin and a stand-up bass along with several other instruments. I agree, music is soul food. I play mostly gospel and blues/jazz. Just whatever happens to flip the switch at the time.

Although not guitars, I had to put this in where I can. I've taken to practicing on my charango. I have 2 of them actually. They have a loud twangy sound that I jokingly refer to them as the Telecaster of the Andes.
Charangos are South American by origin, made by indians as they tried to copy the small guitars that the spaniards used. If you can play a ukulele you can find your way around the charango. 5 courses (pairs) of strings tuned to G-C-E(in octaves)-A-E from thickest to thinnest.
The one on the left is my beater. A Quirquinche, a simple armadillo back (yes thats an armadillo shell for a bowl) and the one on the right is a Wayra Nan made of naranjillo wood.
Ernest