Guitars for Musicians

Latest gibson guitar EBAY Auctions

Oct 31, 2009 Gibson Guitars

Hey, check out these EBAY auctions:

GIBSON SJ-200 EC ELECTRIC CUTAWAY ACOUSTIC GUITAR

US $2,800.00 End Date: Friday Mar-12-2010 11:07:23 PST Buy It Now for only: US $2,800.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list

Tags: Auctions, Gibson, Guitar, Latest

How to Choose your First Guitar

Oct 31, 2009 Gibson Guitars

So you have decided you would like to learn to play the guitar, but are completely lost about what kind of guitar to get, where to find music that you can play, what style of music you would like to play, and just in general, where to start. Well do not worry, it is common to feel this way when you are first learning to play guitar, and with a little help, is not nearly as daunting as it first seems. In this article, I would like to help you to choose your first guitar. This is an important step, and should be taken into very careful consideration.

When choosing your first guitar, you will want to focus on the larger guitar manufacturers such as Fender, Ibanez, and Gibson. But don’t think that just because these are big names in the guitar industry, you will be paying an arm and a leg, this is not the case. Each of these brands will have beginner models of their guitars that are perfect for the new guitarist, often times coming in great little packages that include a bag, guitar tuner, picks, and a strap. Your best bet is to head to the local music store and ask them what kind of beginner guitars they have, and if they have any beginner packages as I mentioned above.

There are a few things you don’t want to do when choosing your first guitar. You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on your first guitar. Not only will you not have the ability to truly utilize your nice new guitar, but you will not know how to take good care of the guitar, such as tuning properly, changing strings when needed, and just keeping it in nice shape. If you were learning to ride a motorcycle, you wouldnt go out and buy a Harley Davidson for your first bike would you? One beginner mistake and you might end up laying the bike down, and feeling rather embarrassed. Instead you would buy an old used bike for a few hundred to learn and gain experience on. Then eventually upgrade to a much nicer bike. My advice is to take the same approach with your first guitar. Choose a nice beginner guitar, and once you feel like you are ready for an upgrade, go for it. One more thing that you really should not do is buy one of the cheap $20 guitars off of E-bay. I have personally made that mistake, and the guitar was a piece of junk. I would recommend budgeting up to $200 for your first guitar, but no more.

I hope that this article helps you to choose a great beginner guitar to learn with. It really is a great feeling to learn and play your favorite tunes. Just remember that for your first guitar, you do not need the rolls Royce of guitars, whether it be an electric or an acoustic. You will just want a quality guitar that has a good sound and feel. Good luck and have fun!

Tags: Choose, First, Guitar

Dan Torres on Guitar Pickup Mod and restores

Oct 31, 2009 Fender Guitars

By Mark Grove
Co-writer: Dee Curtis

02/29/04 Back Catalog Article wanted by readers

When you hear the name Dan Torres and pickups in the music industry, ears tend to perk up or pickup, that's a joke get it.I know a bad one. And pickup makers like Seymour- Duncan and Di Marzio tend to take note. Introduction of this article and information on Dan Torres the amp and pickup Master from California, is by Canadian Guitar Player Music Consultant Dee Curtis.

The first time I heard of Dan Torres was when I was out in Los Angeles in the early 80's with a group of musicians, who were talking about Dan Torres who was and still is a guitar moding guru,moding their amps and guitars for them.

These guys back then got in touch with Dan through an ad in (Guitar Player) when mail order was the rage in the music business. So I sent away for some info on how to hop up your guitar and do mods to your amp, through his free brochures, and wound up getting some reprints of his articles which were in (Vintage Guitar).

I had a bit of electronic know how at the time which was helpful but nothing with tube amps. But through some of his articles I started tinkering with The capacitors and resistors in the amp head along  with changing tubes, to reshape the sound coming through the cab. I wound up using his Midrange tone control switch on every guitar I    had back then. Currently I'm not using them and I miss them.Dan is one of the top experts on amp and guitar modification and one a lot of top musicians use.  

Very recently, I contacted Dan about my (Sovtek Midget Combo Amp) and asked him what tubes he recommended because the Sovtek was sounding a little dark to me. I had some feedback from Sovtek on this and made some mods, but it was still sounding too dark.

I love the amp, but I wanted more sparkle and cleaner tones. Dan suggested I try( 6L6 GC Tubes) which will give me clearer top end and less mid-range and darker tones. I have them on order now and I know it'll sound beautiful.

Now, anyone who's a guitar or bass player I implore you to get Dan Torres book (Inside Tube Amps), which is literally the bible on tube amps, and it's  in laymen terms so anyone can understand how to--mod their amps or guitars.

Mark Grove: We first started this article with an intro on how Dee Curtis was first introduced to the amp and pickup master himself Dan Torres, but we'll end this section where we originally wanted to go, and that's talking about Dan Torres take  on restoring pickups and the fact he was  one of the first techs to start rewinding pickups for musicians in California. Dan also has a line of single coil and custom made pickups, along with new ones called (Torres P90's) and custom Humbuckers -- as well as SRV midrange and blues pickups.

This man is the master of pickup tone control along with other gurus like  Bill Turner (EMG founder and current resident pickup expert for Fender. In this interview with Dan Torres we'll venture into Pickup restoration and how to keep those vintage pickups just"hummin" along.

<a onClick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/article_exit_link');" href="http://www.torresengineering.com">www.torresengineering.com</a>  This is a "uber cool" site for players

I know another bad line. Dan is also known for his amp and guitar building kits which are popular for the more astute musician. This will be an interview you'll want to archive in your e-mail or site, so  get ready to be amazed by Dan Torres fellow musicians. Canadian Guitar Player talks to Dan Torres about the intricacies of pickup         restoration and when to toss that old heap.

M.G: At what point has a regular or vintage pickup for that matter outlived it's usefulness sound wise and mechanically?

D.T: Currently, since the beginning of magnetic pickups, virtually none of them have actually worn out. Even the earliest pickups, unless damaged, are still functional sound wise and mechanically.

M.G: What's the most common form of pickup wear and tear that has to be addressed when restoring a pickup?

DT: Most common wear is user wear. Pick damage to the top of the pickup, getting jabbed with screwdrivers, stripped screws and results of mistreatment. Magnets and hardware may rust quite a bit from an instrument that is allowed to get damp. Rust can push magnets out of contact with the pole pieces, causing the pickup to stop working correctly.

<a onClick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/article_exit_link');" href="http://www.torresengineering.com">www.torresengineering.com</a>

M.G: Is re-magnetizing a pickup important to gain back the original sustain and solid string pull?

DT: This is a very tricky question as the target tonal character of our most popular guitars (and pickups) is based on those instruments being old at the time they were used/recorded. That is--one does--not seek out a 1959 Gibson Les Paul with Patent Applied Hum-bucking  pickups to play "how high the moon" (a Les Paul hit of the 50's) they seek it out to play "Sunshine of your Love" (Clapton" or "One Way Out" (Allman Bros”)

The guitars that are the most treasured were in their "second life" as used instruments picked up by the young musicians of the mid  60s' from pawn shops,    etc. as very inexpensive, used, good sounding guitars. Therefore, the original  magnet strength - that is the magnet strength when this particular guitar was manufactured in 1959, is not the desired "effect". The desired sound is the       "old guitar" heard in the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and today.

A lot of effort has been put into demagnetizing magnets or finding old ones. Currently my collection of patent applied for original Gibson magnets sell for   $150+ per magnet if I will let go of any of them. (only about six left.)

M.G: Does the magnetic field become weaker over time yet produce mellower and fatter tones?

DT: This is easy, yes. But the magnet field has quite a long life. Even the oldest pickups we commonly see, such as the "Charlie Christian" pickup found on the 1939 Gibson with cobalt magnets still have more than enough flux to this day. Jazz Great Barney Kessel used to bring in his far-too-famous Gibson with the Charlie Christian pickup.

Those huge, very old magnets were still very strong and the best pickup (he had several) was very high impedance, 10,000 ohms. This pickup sounded absolutely wonderful, a magical musical instrument. A lot of experimentation was done in the 80's by many pickup manufacturers, with stronger or exotic magnets.

But the point of diminishing return was reached instantly. Stronger magnets may produce a louder pickup with more output, but the excess string pull caused damping, pulling the strings out of pitch so the pickups had to be placed quite a ways below light gauge strings, canceling out most of the improvement. The exotic magnets did not sound as nice as the wider flux range alnico or ceramic magnets.

M.G: Do hum-bucking or single coil's wear down faster and why?

DT: A tough one. Single coils, such as Strat pickups die more frequently, but usually due to damage. It is not hard at all to wear through the top of a strat pickup cover and damage the coil. P-90 type single coils use hum-bucking magnets (2) and have a plastic coil form, so we have a cross over in pickup structure between the hum-bucker and P-90.

The cylindrical magnets of the Strat and Telecaster pickup have a large amount of flux and will last several life times if they are not damaged. The earliest guitars still sound spectacular. Jerry Garcia replaced his DiMarzio hum-bucking pickups frequently saying they had worn out, but these pickups have been moving around here in the San Francisco Bay area, and do not seem to have lost anything noticeable. But musical perception is far, far more sensitive then any instrument.

Not hearing  them brand new makes it impossible to hear what Jerry heard. By their nature, single coils may wear down faster as the magnets are more subject to the real magnet killer, shock  being hit by the pick, strings etc.

M.G: With your handling some of todays top players pickups, do they think twice about throwing out their singles or hums, or even going to a different company for restoration?

DT: I usually encourage pros and amateurs to consider keeping vintage pickups in place if they are providing the type of tone they want. I find if the guitar feels right, but doesn't sound right, hand wound or new  pickups from ourselves and or all the other manufacturers can be selected along with appropriate potentiometers, tone controls, etc.

To fine tune the guitar to do exactly what one wants without butchering  a fine vintage guitar, many pros are choosing new guitars, or fine quality imports (Ibanez, Aria, Cort etc.) so they can make as many changes as they wish and have several identical guitars on hand without the super high cost of vintage instruments. Restorations are done if pickups have been severely damaged, are dead or partially dead, or in some cases--when they just look ratty, ugly.  

Rust can be removed and/or new pole piece screws and studs fit to hum-buckers, delicate work with steel wool can clean up strat--tele magnets. Most restorations are to dead vintage (valuable pickups) getting them back to life without losing their inherent musical character.

Broken coils are the main problem by far. With a very good eye, steady hand, and knowing exactly what to look for, the broken coil wire can be located and reattached without losing any more than one or two ohms of a 5,000 ohm pickup.  

The most difficult part of this process may not be finding the broken wire. It is treatment of it after finding it. Usually you only have one chance. The wire is coated with insulation that must be removed before you can re-solder to it.  Since the wire is thinner than a hair, and in some cases one is working with just 1/16 to 1/8 in of wire. This is delicate work.

M.G: What is the most common type of pickup that is replaced?

DT:Currently it is running about 55% strat--tele type and 45% hum-buckers, but it shifts constantly pretty much keyed by the current popular guitars in use on TV, Concerts and other media.

M.G.: Is restoring pickups for the most part something you should leave to luthiers or guitar parts restoration specialists?

DT: If the pickup has high value, yes, get someone with experience. A good eye, practice, and knowing what to look for can rescue a $200.00 Patent Applied for that may be totally destroyed by an inexperienced (or unsteady) hand trying to fix a broken coil wire. attention to detail will bring the pickup back to life as it should be.

M.G.: When restoring a pickup are single coils or hum-buckers easier to restore?

DT: Single coils are usually easier - they are simpler, everything is out in the open and easy to see, there are no layers of age-old tape to peel off,(a real difficulty with old hum-bucking pickups.)  But -"funky" type single coils. Harmony,  Silvertone, Danelectro, Kay etc. are REALLY hard to restore as they are often made on a budget.

Cardboard coil forms, glue and masking tape are all used in assembly pretty difficult to dig through. Some of these old inexpensive guitars do not even have coil forms. Just  a coil of wire and magnet. It is often hard to tell what it was supposed to be in the first place!

M.G: Are there any special ways of repotting, re-magnetizing or rewinding a pickup to actually improve it's tone and sustain in regards to string pull?

DT: I would not say "special ways" as much as the application of very good technique in all these technologies. Potting or repotting in wax (or lacquer) has to be at the right temperature so the wax soaks the whole coil, but not so hot it melts a coil for  tricky re-pots.  But once you have it right it is easily repeated.  

This will prevent microphonics, allowing the pickup to perform at a much higher volume level without squeal. Re-magnetizing may improve or restore the tone of a damaged magnet. Shock can demagnetize the magnet enough so it does not produce a signal. In this case re-magnetizing will bring it back to life.

Often more powerful magnets, such as Alnico 5 are demagnetized or redone to a lower "aged" level, to reduce string pull and get the effect we hear from vintage guitars.

A fairly effective process that may well increase sustain of a given pickup. But with our stock of new Alnico 2 magnets, it is often easier to just install a lower flux Alnico 2 magnet in place of an Alnico 5 for the lower magnetic pull, sweeter tone. Pickup winding is another story. Most of the "classic" guitars made in the 50's had hand wound pickups to some degree.

In a conversation with Doc Kauffman, Leo Fender's original partner he told me it was quite some time before he and Leo thought " maybe we should measure these pickups?"

In winding a pickup to get a good vintage tone a "scatter wound" technique works the best.The wire is not laid down absolutely perfect, but somewhat random, filling the coil by eye as it spins. This gives the pickup a more harmonic tonality - not so perfect is often more musical. Hum-bucking pickups, having two coils, are essentially unbalanced in the original Gibson Design. Each coil has a different iron load, therefore a different impedance. If the coils themselves are also not exactly equal, there is an effect of, again, less perfection  and more harmonic quality due to the slightly different tonalities of each coil.

Additionally the distance between the two coils picking up the guitar string signal at different locations (called phase cancellation) gives the hum-bucking pickup its distinct character. These factors can be manipulated to vary the pickup's tonality to very extreme extents.

DiMarzio is quite skilled at developing more and more new sounds from techniques like this,(and many others.) Observation of dozens of real  Patent Applied for Gibson Humbuckers,show coils that are "pretty close" but not exact when read with Digital Vom Meters,which were not available when they were made.

M.G.: When wiring a pickup are there techniques used to give your guitar a tone based on the type of music you're playing?

DT: This is one of our specialties. Besides all the variations in pickups we have discussed, we introduced the concept of varying the potentiometers to decrease or increase the load on the pickup, vastly changing the frequency response, gain and tone.

We also make a range of passive midrange controls that can be applied to any guitar to give the musician still farther range of tones from the "same old" pickups. One can start with new or custom pickups and optimize them still further for their use, or work with existing pickups by varying  the  volume controls, tone controls and wiring harness.

M.G.: Do higher prices for vintage pickups make it more attractive to restore the originals?

DT: Certainly, and  my customers, friends, are always on the lookout for guitars that "don't work". Restoration often does not cost much and we have about 90% success on dead pickups. The balance are rewound. Very few are discarded, maybe 2 a year out of hundreds. Finding a dead pickup and having it restored or even rewound is certainly the least expensive way to get "the sound".

Dan Torres

Mark Grove-CGP

To contact Dan Torres for amp or guitar pickups mods:

<a onClick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/article_exit_link');" href="http://www.torresengineering.com">www.torresengineering.com    
</a>

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Tags: Guitar, Pickup, restores, Torres

History of the Twelve-String Guitar

Oct 31, 2009 Gibson Guitars

There are a lot of controversies as regards to the history of the Twelve-string guitar. The first theory says that it has been developed by Italian luthiers laboring in the guitar workshops in companies like Oscar Schmidt, Harmony and Regal in New York and Chicago. It is substantiated by the fact that one of the famous twelve-string guitars has a strong Italian connection. As per the other theory states that it arrived in the U.S from Mexico as Latin America has a long history of double-course variants of the standard six-string guitars.

Regardless of who invented the twelve-string guitar, it is considered as one of the novelty instrument invented. Other than the occasional custom ordered 12-string guitars, the more prestigious makers like Martin and Gibson consider making of these 12-string guitar to the low-end builders. This is clearly an indication that their buyers were from the poorer end of the social level.

The popularity of the twelve-string guitar can be traced out from the early recordings, where the blues musicians in Georgia and Mexican tejano musicians in Texas used them. It appears that the first musicians to take up the 12-srting guitars were street performers. The extra volume that the double strings added increased the popularity of these guitars. It is said that the volume is so intense that a busker could work without any other musicians and still assure full and rich sound.

The twelve-string guitar gained immense popularity when it was first exploited by one of the best early players, the Atlanta guitarist Blind Willie McTell. McTell was a well-known and accomplished guitarist of his time. Atlanta being the center for the Piedmont blues, a ragtime-based guitar style where complex finger picking and driving bass is needed to invest in its kind of music. And this is how the use of the 12-string guitar gained its momentum.

The 12-string guitar also became popular after the "Leadbelly". Hudy William Ledbetter was an American folk and blues musician. He was known as the king of the twelve-string guitar, famous for his clear and forceful singing and his virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar. He is best known as Leadbelly or Lead Belly. The topic of Leadbelly covers a wide range of subjects, including gospel songs, blues songs about women, liquor and racism. It also includes songs about cowboys, prison, workers, sailors, and many more. This is how the 12-string guitar came into popularity in a big way.

After Leadbelly, even the use of the twelve-string guitar was reduced drastically. It was like musicians express the mourning by refraining from playing the instrument. A few guitarists like Dick Rosmini, Fred Gerlach, and Pete Seeger, kept the twelve-string tradition alive.

And soon the use of the banjo has outnumbered the use of the 12-string guitar, but in 1963 a record came out that knocked the banjo off its place. It was a record by Pete Seeger called "We shall overcome" and the musician used the power of 12-string and novelty to draw the attention of the people as he was selling songs of justice and freedom. The extra volume and full sound of the twelve-string guitar made it perfect for leading and they were the important part of the civil rights movement.

Tags: Guitar, History, TwelveString

Takamine EG530SCBF Dreadnought Cutaway Solid Top Acoustic-Electric Guitar – Butterfly Motif

Oct 31, 2009 Takamine Guitars

• Body Shape: Dreadnought Cutaway
• Top: Solid Spruce
• Back & Sides: Mahogany
• Electronics: TK40
• Finish: Gloss Natural

Product Description
Made to Takamine's strict specifications, G Series instruments represent exceptionally good value. Takamine Guitars are crafted from the finest handpicked tonewoods, hand-crafted by expert luthiers, all providing players with an unmatched excellence and surprising affordability. Play one today and you'll play one for a lifetime. The Takamine EG530SCBF features a dreadnought cutaway body made from mahogany back & sides with a solid spruce top. This model has an added... More >>

Takamine EG530SCBF Dreadnought Cutaway Solid Top Acoustic-Electric Guitar - Butterfly Motif

Tags: AcousticElectric, Butterfly, Cutaway, Dreadnought, EG530SCBF, Guitar, Motif, Solid, Takamine

Latest fender guitar EBAY Auctions

Oct 31, 2009 Fender Guitars

Hey, check out these EBAY auctions:

Guitar String Tree Chrome Fits Fender SALE

US $6.49 End Date: Friday Mar-12-2010 9:18:10 PST Buy It Now for only: US $6.49 Buy it now | Add to watch list

Tags: Auctions, Fender, Guitar, Latest

Gibson Custom 50th Anniversary 1958 Korina Flying V Electric Guitar, ¹

Oct 31, 2009 Gibson Guitars

• Body: 2-piece korina hardwood
• Neck: 1-piece korina, rounded, joint at fret 21
• Fingerboard: Rosewood, 22 frets
• Scale length: 24-3/4"
• Nut width: 1-11/16"

Product Description
This 50th Anniversary reissue of the 1958 Gibson Flying V Electric Guitar is consistent with the original guitar. Features a two-piece Korina body and one-piece Korina neck. Production is limited to only 100 guitars.The Flying V was years ahead of its time, as Gibson dealers tended to think of it as a display prop rather than a guitar to sell. It wasn't until the late 1960s that the electric guitar started to gain popularity. As guitar heroes such as Albert King, Ji... More >>

Gibson Custom 50th Anniversary 1958 Korina Flying V Electric Guitar, ¹

Tags: 1958, 50th, Anniversary, Custom, Electric, Flying, Gibson, Guitar, Korina

Buying A Fender Stratocaster On eBay?

Oct 31, 2009 Fender Guitars

If you are looking for a Fender Stratocaster, eBay is probably worth a browse. Many famous guitar players favored the Strat, so why not try to get this distinguished instrument for a bargain basement price?

The name Fender Stratocaster is a little bit misleading because these two words can mean many things to many guitar players. The first question you need to answer when considering buying a Fender Stratocaster on eBay is which model Strat do you need? Basically a Stratocaster has been adopted by players in the genres of rock and roll, blues, soul, funk and pop. There has even been the odd jazz guitarist to take up the Strat. If you are a new guitar player wanting to learn heavy metal, then the Strat is probably not for you.

The older Stratocasters were manufactured with three single-coil pickups. Some later models have a humbucker at the bridge which will give you the option of departing from that classic Strat sound, but this option is not popular amongst guitar players.

You should think about whether you need to use the whammy bar in your guitar playing. The Fender Stratocaster is not a guitar with a good reputation in the whammy department, in spite of one of the early Strat players, Hank Marvin, using the whammy almost constantly.

When you are looking on eBay for a Fender Stratocaster you need to have on hand some details on the features of the Strat models available. You can get this info from Fender's website, Wikipedia and guitar forums.

eBay has become a great place for shonky guitar sellers to peddle fake  brand name merchandise. The Fender Stratocaster is no exception to this trend. The origin of many fake Strats is Asia. Sometimes the country of origin of the guitar is hidden by the vendor appearing to be selling from the USA.

eBay has a feedback system that allows you to get an idea of how well the vendor has pleased his previous customers. If a seller you are interested in has nothing to hide, his feedback will be there for you to see. So be careful if you are thinking of dealing with a guitar vendor with no feedback or who has chosen to keep it hidden.

One reason for alarm bells to  go off in your head when you are looking for a Fender Stratocaster on eBay is a ridiculously low price. If someone is selling a Fender Strat for one hundred dollars, look out!

Tags: Buying, Fender, Stratocaster

Helpful Information on Learning your Basic Guitar Chords

Oct 31, 2009 Gibson Guitars

Learning guitar chords can be very complicated and even confusing at times, even for a more advanced guitar player. There are so many different guitar chord combinations that trying to remember all of them can really be a headache. It is going to take a lot of determination and dedication in order to achieve this goal. Learning these guitar chords is vital to your guitar playing ability and techniques. These different chords can give you the experience of performing great sounding solo acts as well as what you can achieve playing with others.

If you can just allow yourself the time that it will take to practice and learn these guitar chords, you will be prepping yourself for learning how to play many different amazing, rock n roll songs, to impress your family and friends with. They will be shocked at your new abilities of your guitar playing techniques, and they will definitely love it. Everyone loves a rock star and seeing someone play their heart out on any instrument is just aspiring and an overall wonderful experience. It might even motivate you to try and pick up learning a new instrument, perhaps even a guitar. Anyone can play the guitar and learn the chords if they really, really want it. That is all it takes. The desire and just going after what you want.

An actual chord is three different notes that are played together, so if when you strum any three guitar strings, you are then creating three different sounds at once. The highest amount of guitar chords is six. These guitar chords are placed into three different categories, minor, seventh and major. All of the chord groups will have their own sound and their own little feel to them, making them all different and unique. Major chords sound very stern and more complete, where seventh chords have more of an incomplete sound to them and more upbeat, minor chords can create a more solemn or mellow mood sound.

Break the chords down into little families, each one doing something different, then these can be combined in sequences with one another, creating a song. Breaking the chords down in such a way will prevent you from having to just rely on memorizing and getting bored with the whole idea of it. It keeps things fun and interesting for you, during this learning process. By learning how to play chords in this manner you will allow yourself the ability to master the goal at hand, instead of skipping around to new chords, doing that would only cause you frustration and confusion.

Learning guitar chords is quite difficult but it does not have to feel impossible for you. If you apply yourself properly and dedicate your time to learning the chords in different ways then you will soon be on your way to a more professional sounding guitar and much better techniques than you ever had before. It will not happen overnight, practice, practice and more practice, did I say practice? Yes, practice, that is the key!

Tags: Basic, Chords, Guitar, Helpful, Information, Learning