Some people have a very steep learning curve. Happens with beginners ... they buy a guitar and quite soon realize what they should have bought instead. Then the modding starts.

Cheers

David

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"Humans think they are smarter than dolphins because we build cars and buildings and start wars etc...and all that dolphins do is swim in the water, eat fish and play around. Dolphins believe that they are smarter for exactly the same reasons."

Actually, they know little about a guitar and little about equipment. There was no 'magic' gutar to buy. They don't know scales, various chord voicings, strumming techniques, etc. They don't know how to set the equalizers on their amp, what pedal to use , etc. Often even changing a pick will make as much difference in sound as new pups.

They often can't play worth a darn...'the action is too high'...'the intonation is off'...'I need a different brand of strings'.... 'the neck radius is wrong'.

I will start to pay attention to what someone advises of pickups, etc. or mods to a guitar after they have played 2 hours a day for 5 years and have a clue what they are talking about.

Wow, that is so true about the guys referred to here as poindexters! I have seen several of them regularly in my local edition of "the evil empire" (GC) playing their solo concerts, as i'm forced to return to the dark side with some regularity due to a lack of other music stores who have what i need in stock. The best performance i've seen to date, was a young man demonstrating his talent in the pro sound department on a keyboard a couple of weeks ago while i was scoring my second mackie sub. He was really gettin' into it man, and it was actually quite humorous, as he would be playing the keys soft and slow, and then would suddenly start poundin' away while bringing forth a sudden outburst of very loud vocals. As i was paying up at the counter, i mentioned to the guys that he really seemed to be involved in what he was doing, and they all smiled and one guy mentioned that he'd been at it for over six hours! And he was still going strong as i passed him to leave!

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I believe in Christianity as i believe that the sun has risen. not only because i see it, but because by it, i see everything else. C.S. Lewis

Most "upgrades" are tonal nonsense (changing the nut material on a guitar for an easy example). Changing out stock pickups to get a different or more personalized sound is legitimate, though "upgrade" is a subjective term in this instance.

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"Life is like eating jalapenos. What you do today may burn your arse tomorrow"

I dissent on this one, a plastic nut changed to brass or bone has very different tonal qualities.
Evident on an electric but much more so on a fine acoustic when also the saddle is changed.

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

I guess we all talk about our gear and what goes into them, what we prefer and what we want.. the last thing we all seem to talk about is actually playing them I bet we could all learn off one another right?

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Yea, We could. Played the Tempest at The House of Blues main concert stage tonight. Seriously can't put my finger on it, but I can't put it down. In the past, I've gone through Fender, Ibanez, and a whole lot in between. But my Schecter just has a mojo that I can't explain. No mods needed.

Fox 5 news was in attendance, I invited them myself. Played my best and was happy with my performance. It was a great night. I wouldn't trade or modify this guitar for anything. I'll be looking at getting another one in the future.

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HaleAmano- House Of Sharks (Now On iTunes)
http://www.reverbnation.com/haleamano
http://www.haleamano.com

Congrats! Nice when you get "that feeling".

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-T

"You can't spend what you ain't got, you can't lose what you ain't never had" ~ McKinley Morganfield

Tuesday 26.

Hee-hee! I've just been on a little stroll around the Forum and now I'm reviving this thread because of the number of posts I've been finding in the last 20 minutes that use the word "upgrade" to describe a modification.

'Fraid I've a feeling the message of this thread has completely failed to get through...

Oh well: I'm just popping downstairs to upgrade my cup of coffee.

Cheers - C

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I was in a grocery store yesterday,

(I know I know, what does THIS have to do with upgrades?) and entered the cereal isle. I was amazed to find an entire isle of JUST cereal! That's right! There must have been 60 feet by about 7 feet tall of just cereal. I couldn't begin to count the number of brands. SO MANY CHOICES to the point of actually making it HARDER to make a choice! Crazy huh?

Now I will admit to being a bit of a minimalist but the number of choices and combinations of choices for pickups, strings, woods, guitars, amps, speakers, tubes etc. is kind of overwhelming!

It still comes down to the player more than anything else. When I play my Strat well, it sounds amazing! When I play it poorly (it happens), it sounds like it.

Peace (no choice),
Gridlok

Indeed......as bewildering as the choice of available Strat pickups.



Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I still eat Corn Flakes, Raisin Bran and Rice Crispies.

Which of these would you fell right buying?

Car for sale: 2010 Toyota Corolla...serviced regularly... $10,000

Car for sale.: 2010 Toyota Corolla...took the engine out. Switched out some parts (because I know better than Toyota how to build a car)...$10,000.

LMFAO!!!



Arjay (who loved Post Toasties)

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I once went to an informal jam session with some guys, and one of them blamed his poor playing on his guitar and amp--several times he said, "Yeah, if I had a high-dollar Strat like yours, I could kill that song..." "I never had a nice tube amp like that," and "Aww, you got all them pedals, you ain't really playing..."

I finally got sick of his belly-aching and handed him my axe (after making sure he wasn't wearing a belt buckle)--still hooked up through the pedalboard, amp and all. I took his guitar (a decent Epi G400 SG-style guitar) and tweaked a knob or two on his amp (an older solid state Fender, not bad but not great) and said, "Kick it off, rock star!"

For some reason, he still sounded the same, and he couldn't figure out why his rig sounded better all of the sudden.

I'm not the greatest player in the world, and I do believe it's easier to play some guitars better than other guitars, but if you can't play, you could have Eric Clapton's rig and still sound like crap.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

It's a slip-shod carpenter who continuously blames his tools for the miserable work he produces.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY