Jump to content
Gibson Brands Forums

I Need a Real Guitar Player to Explain This


Recommended Posts

This is a video of Tony Rice talking about his Santa Cruz signature model. I'm not posting this to promote the guitar but to ask a couple of questions of real guitar players, which I'm not.

 

Feel free to skip to 3:08

 

Tony plays a lick and describes the guitar as being "Extremely accurate in terms of notation. Most acoustic guitars [can't] do that--especially in A."

 

1. What's so special about the lick?

 

2. What's so special about the key of A?

 

3. Is this really true about most acoustic guitars?

 

4. If so, would a pro set up fix it?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-MX2piDsd0

 

 

FMA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, since he plays the 12th fret flageolet and fretted notes for comparison, I guess it's about the purity of the A5th's octave. Octaves may turn out to be more compromised on guitars without compensated saddles, and I think he experienced the problem especially with the A5th of the strings he uses on his guitars.

 

Different strings and different guitars might lead to different results though. I don't think there's a particular A5th problem in general.

 

This having said, I have to add I'm no real guitar player... :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Also not much of a real guitarist, but I have DVDs by Al Petteway, a very Real Guitarist, and he mentioned that for his DADGAD playing, he likes to capo up the neck and had a new saddle made for his guitar with compensation on the Low (6th string).

 

 

Another example of real guitarists getting what they want done, while the rest of us just go with what we have.

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

BK777: what is your favorite instructional DVD series?

 

 

Probably too may to mention, FA.

 

I like to keep the cogs turning, so I tend to buy all I can and take the 'throw some at the wall and see what sticks' approach! Anything helps, but narrowing the options is the hard part.

 

So with that in mind, from Stefan Grossman, the fave at the moment is the Robert Johnson dvds because the guitar parts seem fairly comprehensive and I have been diddling with that stuff for many, many years and it is time for an overhaul.

 

Next would be any of the John Miller dvds for his attention to the fine points, which I am not very good at. (plus he has the same OM18v guitar!)

 

But really the only way with the Stefan dvds is to start at the beginning and work and work until you get the thumb thumping and then vere off into things that interest you. For me, that was Lighning Hopkins, Lonnie Johnson, Wille Johnson, Son House, Charlie Patton, Furry Lewis, John Hurt, Bukka White,etc etc and then Chet Atkins and then mixed bags....Ohew. I feel a bit tired.

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Flageolets (definitely a WTF moment), DVDs teaching the styles of a million players -lawdy just makes the mind wobble. I was considering going out and playing a bit but for some reason I don't even want to go near a guitar at the moment. About the only thing that seems to make any sense is BKs comment about throwing it at the wall and seeing what sticks. A man after my own heart.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Back to Br Rice, I would imagine the guy has very developed ears, probably able to hear nuances that would escape most of us. Listening as a more civilian, that run he plays is so rich and juicey, yet the notes ring clear. It's a pretty articualte instrument. It would be interesting to hear him play a similar lick on some off the shelf models.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He might be referring to "intonation" where a lot of guitars go sharp at the 12th fret on the E and A. Especially comparing each note - you lose the accuracy of each note due to stretching the string as you press down higher up the neck. Each sting also has a different rate of going sharp based on string gauge. The guitar design of frets ultimately is a flawed design. Some builders go as far as "fanning" frets, but most of us "regular" players just learn to live with it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He threw me when he said "notation." Maybe it was a faux pas and he meant intonation. I assumed that is what he meant. That guitar sounds magnificent. Of course, he has magic fingers. I'd love to see just how good a very high end dread sounds like in my non-expert hands.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He threw me when he said "notation." Maybe it was a faux pas and he meant intonation. I assumed that is what he meant. That guitar sounds magnificent. Of course, he has magic fingers. I'd love to see just how good a very high end dread sounds like in my non-expert hands.

 

 

I think he meant intonation.

 

That's an awesome-sounding guitar, but we are talking about Tony Rice, who could probably make any guitar sound awesome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since Tony Rice only plays dreadnaughts and one style of music, his reference is from inside his box. My primary guitar for 6yrs was a SCGC Tony Rice dread with EIR/sitka spruce. I don't play bluegrass, over time it developed a very deep tone so I traded it for a Collings D2H. They are both great guitars and Tony's latest is as good as they get.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ha,ha, I love guys like this!

(Tony)Hey did you notice this small nuance when I play? (Me)Lol,ummm, no, because I was too busy being amazed by your playing.

 

This guy could make any guitar sound good, lol. Now if regular joe, schmo can make it sound like that... [drool]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yep, that one and the "Blake and Rice" CD. Can't beat those two for first rate Martin folk-country tone.

The last thing I saw Norman Blake doing He was playing a Gibson, It was an outdoor event in Georgia somewhere, Either an AJ or a SJ but definitely a Gibby........and He made it sound awfully good too.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...