Members Presc Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 why not?if it makes you a better player, you'll play better... if you play better, the music will be better... that "better" music can be captured in the form of clips Well, I suppose it could. I generally don't like the concept of "proving" things via clips. To me, there's a difference between being shown something and actually experiencing the feel and feedback loop between what's going on in the room and under your fingers in your playing, which is why A/B clips are a really incomplete means of judging things. But that "feedback loop" of having gear that better fits what you're doing does manifest itself and better or more confident playing, and that could come through in a clip. We all know a different/better guitar or amp won't suddenly turn you in a radically new player, just like a pair of Jordans won't make you jump higher. But it can make the playing experience more enjoyable and that's important both on a personal level and on the level that it can show up in your music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 You are one of the more vocal people around here when it comes to beating the higher end gear= better gear drum. You know, he didnt mention "high end gear", he actually said "the right gear"- kneejerk much? Im not sure how anyone can argue [EDIT: against the fact] that Gear that suits you will make you a better player, regardless of how much it costs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members peskypesky Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 You know, he didnt mention "high end gear", he actually said "the right gear"- kneejerk much? Im not sure how anyone can argue that Gear that suits you will make you a better player, regardless of how much it costs good point...but he did happen to be crowing about a $4300 Les Paul....so i can see why some would think its a cost thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members benzem Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Sure.."better gear". But it need not be expensive, as suggested by your LP/and story of compliments given. Forgive me, but this seems like another "justification for spending all this money on stuff" thread. I love your guitars, and would like a LPaxxess?sp?, but this comes off a little snobby. And sorry, but $1000 amp/guitar combo would do you just as well. I mean, you don't need high end {censored} for basic chords and multitracked beg/intermediate lead, as I have heard. Sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Sure.."better gear". But it need not be expensive, as suggested by your LP/and story of compliments given.Forgive me, but this seems like another "justification for spending all this money on stuff" thread. I love your guitars, and would like a LPaxxess?sp?, but this comes off a little snobby. And sorry, but $1000 amp/guitar combo would do you just as well. I mean, you don't need high end {censored} for basic chords and multitracked beg/intermediate lead, as I have heard. Sorry. Please refer to post #27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members photon9 Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I agree. When a guitar fits you just right and the amp is making pleasing tones for your style it's one less thing to think about and you can focus on your playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soundcreation Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Great quality gear is much more of a joy to play than low quality gear. And it sounds way better too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members docjeffrey Posted July 3, 2012 Author Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Could you post some example clips of how the right gear made you a better player?Not that I entirely doubt you , but it would be cool to help visualize your point with examples.You are one of the more vocal people around here when it comes to beating the higher end gear= better gear drum.It is obviously important enough to you that you have been very consistent about posting this point.Let's say there are those of us that aren't entirely convinced.Show us. I'm talking about playing live in situations where people are really keying on what our band is doing. One of my gigs is a Sunday worship team, and the congregation is familiar with the songs. They are singing along and when the guitar solo comes around, the spotlight is on me. I'm NOT a spotlight kind of guy. We're not talking about a noisy bar or dance club here. The sound is quite clean and unforgiving in the worship center. You can't hide behind excessive volume or bad sound quality. Frankly, it's quite a lot of pressure. People notice when you make mistakes. The added pressure from our admonition in the Bible to play "skillfully" doesn't help either. We take this stuff seriously. I understand your point. I'm not advocating that spending a lot of money translates into better playing. But here's why the Lifeson works so well for meFirst, it's a Les Paul and I love them. Second, I've never owned a guitar with a Floyd, but I love trems. I was under the impression that Floyds were tone killers and made string changes impossible. I found exactly the opposite and I discovered that I could slip the trem bar between my index and middle fingers and let it move with my right hand as if it were not there until I wanted it to be--like my Jazzmaster and Jag. Then there's the ergonomic aspects of the design. There's no heel. My guitar weighs only 8 pounds but it has no chambers or weight relief holes. The body is thinner than a normal Paul, but you don't miss it. There's also a tummy cut. Finally, the choice of pickups and the wiring system gives me a lot of tonal range. Rather than running the piezo to its own amp, I've been mixing it with the magnetic pickups more and more lately. It adds another dimension. Then there's the parallel/series option for the magnetic pickups. The parallel sounds are fantastic and you don't lose volume like you do when you just split the coils. The HD500 is so flexible in terms of routing and setting up effects chains and signal paths. It just plain works. All of this does squat for my skills, but so much of the drama that comes with live playing is eliminated. No more tuning issues when using the trem; effects are predictable and require one simple tap to switch; upper frets are easy to reach; and the icing on the cake is that this is a great sounding guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I agree that everyone at every stage of the learning process will be better served by a good playing guitar, especially when it comes to playability and intonation, those things that form the motor skills as well as the ear. I say buy the best guitar you can afford and don't collect cheapies just yet. But... I won't say any names obviously but when someone has been posting (pics and words) constantly about his high end gear and/or fabulous collection, I just assume that he does some justice, at least, to these instruments with reasonably decent playing. One, in particular, recently posted a vid of his new acquisition, the last in a series of fancy new guitars, and seeing the video, I went . No melody to speak of, every bend was off pitch, his attack was weak and ill timed and his notes were half dead upon birth. One of the worst player I've heard on this board and yet raving about his favorite brand and owning one of the most mind boggling collection of expensive guitars. My point is NOT about his playing (if he's having fun, more power to him) or for that matter that anyone should be a skilled player but it's surprising and even strange to hear someone overtime speaking with "autority" about guitars, gear, etc. and then they turn out to be abysmally bad at playing guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members genesis3 Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 sweet guitar!...it's interesting to note how on a typical Rush concert DVD...time machine for example, Alex Lifeson goes thru the whole gamut nearly of 'established' famous hardbody guits song to song and sounds perty much the same on them all (except for the tele, which has that unmistakable added twang). Granted, there all bridge humbucker guitars I believe... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Canadian Jeff Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I don't think the right gear makes you better. I think it's the not having the wrong gear which lets you play uninhibited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bluesnapper Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I recently swapped the pickups in my SG and now I sound much better. I think so, everybody else thinks so. Same guitar. Same amp. Same player. Guess I've found the right gear. Agree with the OP. Although I still have a chip on my shoulder because he can afford to buy many more expensive sexy guitars than I can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bbreaker Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I was inspired by this thread to play my Dano U 2 all night. Glorious chintz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaveAronow Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 that Gear that suits you will make you a better player, regardless of how much it costs I agree, it would be knew jerk if the argument hadn't been presented by the Op. In almost 100% of his threads. There are very few if any on this forum more vocal about it. So here comes another thread professing the same opinion. Opinions are only that opinions. Here is a chance to demonstrate one with anecdotal evidence. So I'm curious, how the op's playing a 4500.00 Les Paul make the OP. A better guitar player than if he was playing a 700.00 faded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AxAxSxS Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I'm a fanatic about setting up my guitars. Its amazing to me how many (mostly new to it) people show me their guitar and complain about how it hurts to play for to long or whatever and when I look at the thing the action is a quarter inch off the fretboard and its not remotely intonated. Cheap crappy pickups can be compensated for with the amp, but I could hand them one of my $100 refurbished strats and they rave about what a "great guitar" it is. Imo its criminal to sell guitars that aren't set up. Unless it has some weird huge neck and no truss rod any guitar has the potential to be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jerry_L Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Set-up is a big part of what makes a guitar satisfying to play, but I can appreciate docjeffrey's point, that having found a versatile guitar/effects/amp signal chain is enhancing the positive feedback loop from brain to fingers to ears back to brain, thus allowing him to realize his full potential as a guitarist. I play my best when I'm not fighting the guitar due to set-up issues, or constantly fidgeting with the effects and amp settings to dial in the right tone. It all distracts from simply playing the music I know how to play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I agree, it would be knew jerk if the argument hadn't been presented by the Op. In almost 100% of his threads.There are very few if any on this forum more vocal about it.So here comes another thread professing the same opinion. Opinions are only that opinions.Here is a chance to demonstrate one with anecdotal evidence.So I'm curious, how the op's playing a 4500.00 Les Paul make the OP. A better guitar player than if he was playing a 700.00 faded. Because he likes it better? Playing isnt really a science, it more of an emotional thing. I'm not sure why, but I find that I play and sound better when I'm really getting into it and enjoying myself. Some people enjoy themselves in different ways. Sometimes I like the challenge of jamming on "lesser" gear, like my squier mini strat, sometimes I enjoy the huge tone and better playability of my gibsons. It's not a rule set in stone but you usually get what you pay for. The quality vs price argument aside, expensive stuff can be very "nice" which would in turn make someone enjoy it more. Different strokes yo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DavidMgT Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Great quality gear is much more of a joy to play than low quality gear. And it sounds way better too. I agree 100%. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaveAronow Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 One of my favorite anecdotes is from my old violin teacher. He was eighty two, Julliard trained retired New York Symphony And New York symphony musician. He had a tone and style as sweet , pro sounding as any world class player I have ever heard. Anyway, he was a monster player, even at eighty two he could still amaze anyone with his playing, especially his tone.. I used to laugh as his students, or even fellow pro orchestra players would complain over and over again that their fiddles, never sounded anywhere near as good as his. The story was always the same. He would ask to see the fiddle in question and would proceed to play the most mobilizing tonal orgasm any of them had ever heard. It didn't matter if the violin cost five grand or 100.00 he did it everytime. Then he would hand the violin back to the student, or fellow orchestra player in our symphony, and the person would just stand there stupefied looking back and forth between him and their instrument, not saying a word. And then came my favorite part. as he handed it back, he would say, "nope, nothing wrong with this fiddle". And then we would laugh as the owner of the fiddle tried to figure out what just happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Skyforger Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 Great quality gear is much more of a joy to play than low quality gear. And it sounds way better too. For the most part, I'd agree with you. For example, my RG is what I'd consider a high-end guitar (in my own collection, that is), and it sings. But I have come home with the odd cheapie that just plays and sounds so awesome. The Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 One of my favorite anecdotes is from my old violin teacher. He was eighty two, Julliard trained retired New York Symphony And New York symphony musician. He had a tone and style as sweet , pro sounding as any world class player I have ever heard. Anyway, he was a monster player, even at eighty two he could still amaze anyone with his playing, especially his tone.. I used to laugh as his students, or even fellow pro orchestra players would complain over and over again that their fiddles, never sounded anywhere near as good as his. The story was always the same. He would ask to see the fiddle in question and would proceed to play the most mobilizing tonal orgasm any of them had ever heard. It didn't matter if the violin cost five grand or 100.00 he did it everytime. Then he would hand the violin back to the student, or fellow orchestra player in our symphony, and the person would just stand there stupefied looking back and forth between him and their instrument, not saying a word. And then came my favorite part. as he handed it back, he would say, "nope, nothing wrong with this fiddle". And then we would laugh as the owner of the fiddle tried to figure out what just happened. That's good and all for violins, but what does this have to do with guitars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mistersully Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 That's good and all for violins, but what does this have to do with guitars? you're kidding, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members photon9 Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 One of my favorite anecdotes is from my old violin teacher. He was eighty two, Julliard trained retired New York Symphony And New York symphony musician.He had a tone and style as sweet , pro sounding as any world class player I have ever heard.Anyway, he was a monster player, even at eighty two he could still amaze anyone with his playing, especially his tone..I used to laugh as his students, or even fellow pro orchestra players would complain over and over again that their fiddles, never sounded anywhere near as good as his. The story was always the same. He would ask to see the fiddle in question and would proceed to play the most mobilizing tonal orgasm any of them had ever heard. It didn't matter if the violin cost five grand or 100.00 he did it everytime.Then he would hand the violin back to the student, or fellow orchestra player in our symphony, and the person would just stand there stupefied looking back and forth between him and their instrument, not saying a word.And then came my favorite part. as he handed it back, he would say, "nope, nothing wrong with this fiddle".And then we would laugh as the owner of the fiddle tried to figure out what just happened. I think the one caveat about this anecdote is that the guy quite obviously mastered playing violin. Someone that has mastered an instrument absolutely should be able to make any instrument sound great. I bet he sounded even more amazing yet on his favorite violin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 I know the implication is that good gear can make someone better, but I personally think playing through bad or unusual gear can make people a better player, too. Most guitars and amps have a sweet spot that can be found, even if it's a Squier practice amp (gain all the way up, volume down on the guitar, tone half way, that kind of thing). Actually having to work to get a good sound can make you open up your mind and listen to yourself, which all musicians have to do to improve, instead of just being OK with the rhythm-treble toggle and all that. I think gear in general can help people because switching gear often makes you listen to yourself more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted July 3, 2012 Members Share Posted July 3, 2012 you're kidding, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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