Ancient Mariner

On 4/19/2024 at 5:26 AM, ksl said:

do the lower mass stops offer more potential sustain than the intonatable chuncks of stops?

More likely less (if you can tell) because they're more likely to resonate in sympathy with the strings, taking away vibrational energy. But they may well make it sound more open and less compressed - I had this with a strat, swapping the stainless block saddles over to traditional pressed sheet steel jobs, opening the guitar up nicely.

12 hours ago, daddymack said:

ah, but which way to read those numbers? 0060918 or 8160900?

0060918 - the top of the 1 has a tag showing which way up it should go, the upper circle on the 8 is smaller than the lower one.

Someone on this forum might be able to help: https://redspecialforum.com/? although they may only be interested in the original instrument.

I play slide in open E. I've tried a couple of other variations, but E just works for the simple stuff I want to do. Never really been a fan of wild open tunings.

On 3/25/2024 at 6:35 PM, daddymack said:

A guy who made his name playing African-American music is an open racist

And that I find somewhat bizarre.

Trying to understand this, you may have heard of the Windrush generation of black people who arrived in the UK from the British commonwealth in fairly large numbers. They quite changed the face of Britain from almost entirely white to one that was very mixed indeed - about 30% of the kids I went to school with up to age 11 were black, in an area that had been previously working class white. The 2 ethnic groups didn't mix much with a few exceptions*, and probably because the white population was not welcoming, the black newcomers held tightly to their cultural differences, quite reasonably. That created a very us-and-them situation, and I wonder if this was one of the things that sent him down this path. It may also be that he could collaborate with black musicians from other nations because they would accept him as he was, and so he could accept them?

*I had a black friend at school, but we lost touch after going to different schools aged 11. I heard he went to prison for murder later on.

Because of the area I grew up in, it took a long time to see black people outside of their cultural barriers that had been built, and to see them as people like us. The culture was so defining and hard to set aside in everyone that I met, especially after puberty. I had never been brought up to be racist, and the barriers came through interraction rather than my own culture. I was also the son of a foreigner in that culture, subject to a prejudice that I can see and understand now, but didn't at the time.

If it were closer, I'd go look for sure, but 2 hours drive each way or shipping? Not, so much.

On 3/24/2024 at 3:35 AM, daddymack said:

no, not the Nazis...the pommie bastards ruining the UK...

It'll be tough getting rid of them - they seem to be everywhere here these days.

I'm an Austrian - not Australian. 😄

Does that mean I have to work with the Nazis now, and when the war is over I'll be shot?

Hey, at least you know I'm not a bot or a scammer. 😄

Not really trying to talk about anything. I picked up a strat for the first time in weeks last night. The band had a gig booked for last weekend, but it got re-scheduled for October, and there's nothing else on the horizon. At some stage I'm going to have to start selling kit that's surplus to requirements.

On 3/20/2024 at 9:11 PM, Zeopold said:

"I used to be into dope, now I'm into racism. It's much heavier, man. {censored}ing wogs, man. {censored}ing Saudis taking over London. Bastard wogs. Britain is becoming overcrowded and Enoch will stop it and send them all back. The black wogs and coons and Arabs and {censored}ing Jamaicans and {censored}ing [indecipherable] don't belong here, we don't want them here. This is England, this is a white country, we don't want any black wogs and coons living here. We need to make clear to them they are not welcome. England is for white people, man. We are a white country. I don't want {censored}ing wogs living next to me with their standards. This is Great Britain, a white country, what is happening to us, for {censored}'s sake? We need to vote for Enoch Powell, he's a great man, speaking truth. Vote for Enoch, he's our man, he's on our side, he'll look after us. I want all of you here to vote for Enoch, support him, he's on our side. Enoch for Prime Minister! Throw the wogs out! Keep Britain white!"

Don't do drugs, kids, or you'll end up saying dumb things.

Sounds like he was a man of his time that probably never realised he needed to move on. Enoch Powell made a famous speech about immigrants and rivers of blood, but the net result was that he lost his career in politics and became a byeword ford racism.

As for fixing Clapton's chin, why would be ever want to do that? Really? He's a musician, not a model - we have character - we're not pretty boys.

It looks a little funky, but at least it will stand out in the crowd. HNGD. 😀

It always seemed like a solution looking for a problem. Great idea, but generally un-necessary except maybe for problem instruments.

I've never really thought about it. My medium-ish fingers have been happy with a variety of fingerboard types, feeling like they were just a part of the guitar's character. The width of the neck, thickness and shape make much more difference.

On 2/2/2024 at 9:13 PM, dcindc said:

you're still alive???

Desite appearances to the contrary.

The staircase in our cottage in the UK is *quite* steep - the place is nearly 300 years old and there wasn't very much room - but at least it's not a spiral staircase like I've seen in some places. But we're also in a small village without shops or transport network, and that will also be a factor, especially if we reach the stage where neither of us can drive any more.

Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally used up and worn out, shouting '...man, what a ride!'

Working on that.

Just now, daddymack said:

Ah, I forgot, you are across the pond!

I joke about that 'stipend', but our house is paid for and we can pay our bills with our pitiful Social Security income...but yes, we also have investments, a 401k, two IRAs [one Roth, still untouched]...so we are solvent.

We did 'downsize', sort of, from 3500sf to 2100sf when I retired...still too big a house for us...the next move will be the real downsize ...when we leave California.

The present house is about 100sqM - so around 1000sf - but it has 3 bedrooms and a staircase that's going to be too steep eventually. Downsizing will also mean we'll need to get rid of lots of stuff: the AC30 I had from 17 years old, other amps and cabs, bicycles and a loft full of junk.

1 hour ago, daddymack said:

Trust me...wait until you are over 67....unless you have a serious 401k/IRA.

My retirement from the Fortune 50 company I worked for in the 80s is ~$350 a month....doesn't even cover gas for the month...or my bar tab.

I'm in the UK and *hoping* for something a bit better than that. Have pensions in various places plus the basic state pension starts at 67 and is $278/week at present rates. Should be at least double that with other pensions. We have a house in an expensive location that may well get sold so we can downsize, and another home in France that we're renovating. Ran my own business for 6 years and was reminded of what we learned when the kids were small, that we can live on very little if we have too. 😶

It feels like life is slipping rapidly by, doing stuff that we enjoy less these days than we did. Work was once exciting and a challenge, but not so much now.

Hope you've got a good income from other sources.

31 minutes ago, gardo said:

I’d love to be 62 again except that would mean I would still working full time 

Like I am now.

Just another 2 1/2 years....

On 1/23/2024 at 3:46 PM, dork lard said:

Thanks for the suggestions. It was 500ish $ new, and it's still brand new, save those recent hits.

Just enjoy the dings and bashes - some people pay hundreds or thousands of dollars/euros for damaged/relic'd instruments, where here yours is becoming an authentic relic for nothing. 😁

Many of my instruments have bashes and dings, acquired over years of use. It's just a part of life and adds character.

Actually it seems they're no as sucky as I first thought. Still not something I'd bother with (I really like modulation, but have very specific preferences for chorus, phaser, flanger etc) but can still sound good in the right hands. Examples:

This second demo is cool.

On 12/24/2023 at 2:59 PM, zzach said:

lots of lo fi pedal what's your fav

Is that one of those things that makes weird electronic fart noises? TBH I've never found a use for such things and I don't really know how you would use one in a gig.

On 12/24/2023 at 3:12 PM, zzach said:

I joined in 2023 I miss out 

Yes, big-time. Sometimes it was more like a chatroom than a forum.

On 12/3/2023 at 5:02 PM, Hoot Owl said:

Ragin' Cajun? Isn't that Eminence?

Yup, that's the one. IIRC it's a 101dB/1W/1M - so quite efficient. For me it's a nicely balanced and rounded speaker at lower volumes with no flub and also no icepick. Smaller so it goes in a tiny cab that makes transport easier.

Often amps are picked because they're loud, and a big 'ol piece of backline often sucks a bit at low volume because that's not how it's intended to be run. My AC30TB had the nastiest, dryest tone run at low volume, even though it roared gloriously above half volume.

Line 6 kit is nasty, as BP said. 😄

Generally solid state just doesn't sound great, and needs a lot of tonal shaping (like with a processor) to overcome the suck.

I don't care about looks - I want warmth and sweetness with enough spank and edge to cut through. Speakers are as important as the anmp driving them, especially if you like a bit of dirt.

I don't even know what amps I have any more, though I am still gigging.

Main amp these days is a 5W SE design based around the Epi VJ but with negative feedback to make it clean up a little.

Vox Handbag for practice.

Pignose G40V

Home-build installed in a Marshall MG30 cab - pentode preamp for chime with IIRC a 6SJ7 power valve

Home built Madamp A15 in an enormously heavy ply cab + 60s G12M

Tube 30 - 2 X 6L6 power stage, modded preamp for less suckage.

Ceriatone 18 Watt trem in a chocolate custom cab with 60s G12H

Tech 21 Trademark 60

Vox AC30, owned since I was 17 (now 62). Retired, one of the speakers had a hole in the cone and it needs a cap job.

A few home-built and vintage chassis laying around.

That's what I remember right now.

On 12/3/2023 at 5:24 PM, Hoot Owl said:

I almost left this place multiple times due to harsh moderation

I DID leave for a while. Mazi Bee banned me around 2010ish for using a word that he didn't approve, and after a week away I realised how much time I'd been putting in to HC. By that time I'd done cold turkey nad moved on.

On 12/3/2023 at 5:43 PM, Hoot Owl said:

The only real LP is a Gibson LP. 😡

With EMGs?

Red does look nice though.