rdclmn7 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 After some 35 years playing and fixing guitars, I have plenty of reasons to doubt what people say about their guitars. For example, the current fad is that of getting pickups as close as possible to the strings. A horrible idea as the bridge pickup will never sound as loud unless you have a real hot bridge pickup. Pickup height is can change your tone, its clearer the farther away from the strings and has less volume. Tapping the rhythm pickup will make for a clearer sound. The age-old method of comparing a 12th fretted pitch as opposed to its harmonic is a joke, it only applies to that fret and does nothing when it comes to the last few frets. Try fretting and do the harmonics on other strings to get what you need, a bit involved, but it does the trick, do it distorted as the ring of the harmonics will be more obvious. Be skeptical, develop your own criteria, make sure that you aren't just paying for some luthier's new car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 ... The age-old method of comparing a 12th fretted pitch as opposed to its harmonic is a joke, it only applies to that fret and does nothing when it comes to the last few frets. ... Sadly, it's the only harmonic working at all for equally tempered fretboards. All the rest has to be done using fretted notes after precise compensation of bridge saddles. Works for me since of March, 1979. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skilsaw Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Here's a guitar myth for you. The guys with guitars get more chicks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Here's a guitar myth for you. The guys with guitars get more chicks. Actually, they divorce more often. :D Cheers... Bence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Here's a guitar myth for you. The guys with guitars get more chicks. I wanted only one, but she finally left me. Actually, they divorce more often. :D Cheers... Bence As you might conclude, I'm divorced just once. Sadly, this means 100%. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 ... As you might conclude, I'm divorced just once. Sadly, this means 100%. Hello Capmaster! Can't really judge what's worser, Yours, or my case. Getting near to 40, I still haven't found a nice woman who could accept me. Not sure, whether it's because of the guitars, or my physical qualities, though. :D Cheers... Bence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Hello Capmaster! Can't really judge what's worser, Yours, or my case. Getting near to 40, I still haven't found a nice woman who could accept me. Not sure, whether it's because of the guitars, or my physical qualities, though. :D Cheers... Bence Among my bandmates, the bass player and me are father of two kids each and either divorced, the drummer is married with one kid, and the other guitarist is single in his early forties, and also our baby member. In my opinion, there always have to be two, about personal and physical qualities as well. Synchronicity of defenselessness in the heat of the moment is what counts to my experience. It felt right to me and my ex-wife for many years. After the death of her father, she seemed to become another person. I always knew he was a bad guy, and she was well aware of that, too. We had thought before we could handle it forever. We were wrong... :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 ...Synchronicity of defenselessness in the heat of the moment is what counts to my experience. ... Within the sad story, this sentence is just brilliant! Bence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Within the sad story, this sentence is just brilliant! Bence Thank you very much, Bence. I just tried to decribe what to my senses created the happiest moments in my life, and I'm sure it applies to her the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PelhamBlueFire Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 How about "Tonewood?" Does wood actually make any difference for the sound of a electric guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 How about "Tonewood?" Does wood actually make any difference for the sound of a electric guitar? Uh-oh.... The short answer is 'Yes'... But the Long answer is very, VERY looooonnnnnggggggggggggggggg indeed and there is an awful lot of 'No' therein............................................... P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksdaddy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 How about "Tonewood?" Does wood actually make any difference for the sound of a electric guitar? I say it does. Years ago I had a lengthy conversation with a guy who worked at Fender R&D in the 70s. He had a pretty impressive collection of instruments including a highly coveted sunburst LP from 58-60. I commented on it and he said, "Eh, it's just a slab. They're all the same." I believed that for a long time. I don't believe it anymore. If a "slab" isn't resonant, then it's 'garbage in/garbage out'. if it sounds like crap unplugged, then there's no pickup in the world that's going to fix it. Oh, you may be able to process it...you can process anything until it sounds better I suppose, but I'm talking about the ksdaddy method of playing electric guitar, which is comprised of a guitar, a cord, and the nearest amp. And I do mean the nearest amp. Whatever is available. I even believe the SHAPE of an electric can influence the tone. Call me crazy if you must. But I can sit in a quiet room with my Tele, playing it unplugged, and it "sounds like a Tele". Again, call me crazy. Wouldn't be the first or the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PelhamBlueFire Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Uh-oh.... The short answer is 'Yes'... But the Long answer is very, VERY looooonnnnnggggggggggggggggg indeed and there is an awful lot of 'No' therein............................................... P. It's quite a controversial topic, isn't it? I remember the debate between Scott Grove and Rob Chapman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 It's quite a controversial topic, isn't it? Only a little...... Don't get me started on Brazillian 'boards... I've also listened to folks who claim they can tell by the end-tone what type of glue was used to affix the neck of a Les Paul. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PelhamBlueFire Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 I say it does. Years ago I had a lengthy conversation with a guy who worked at Fender R&D in the 70s. He had a pretty impressive collection of instruments including a highly coveted sunburst LP from 58-60. I commented on it and he said, "Eh, it's just a slab. They're all the same." I believed that for a long time. I don't believe it anymore. If a "slab" isn't resonant, then it's 'garbage in/garbage out'. if it sounds like crap unplugged, then there's no pickup in the world that's going to fix it. Oh, you may be able to process it...you can process anything until it sounds better I suppose, but I'm talking about the ksdaddy method of playing electric guitar, which is comprised of a guitar, a cord, and the nearest amp. And I do mean the nearest amp. Whatever is available. I even believe the SHAPE of an electric can influence the tone. Call me crazy if you must. But I can sit in a quiet room with my Tele, playing it unplugged, and it "sounds like a Tele". Again, call me crazy. Wouldn't be the first or the worst. Personally, I feel it has a minor effect. Most of your tone, comes from how you play. Your attack, the pick you use, where you pick. The pick-ups, strings, and the neck are very important, too. However, I do think wood factors in, as well...just not as much, as some salesmen will make you believe. If it truly is all-important, Gibson needs start using a lot more Korina and Ebony. They don't use that a lot anymore, because of money...not because other woods like Rosewood sound better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 A guitar factory has a bunch of future guitars stacked up on pallets, these are called "blanks". Blanks come from a lumber supplier, usually a milling facility that sells wood of all kinds in all kinds of forms, depending on what point the next worker needs it. The blanks were once milled parts of felled trees, trees that have been through the de barker machine and the smoothing machine and then milled to planks that meet whatever specs they are cutting that day. After the planks are milled to the right size overall they are dried in various kilns, low to high temperature, depending on the desired relative humidity when done. After they have dried they are glued together into sizes that suit the blank orders they are working on that day. Wood blanks are used for all kindsa things, guitars are probably not even 20% overall. After that they are stacked up on pallets and sent to the various guitar factories, because everybody gets their blanks from the same handful of suppliers of blanks. Your guitar is the sum total of the parts that made it, and the body wood is a total crapshoot of a blank laying on a pallet with about 184 other total crapshoots of blanks. Pine is no good because it saps and it'll wreck the paint, didn't take Leo long to abandon pine. Maple is good for necks but not so much for bodies, as I understand it it doesn't blank up as well as other woods and wants to cup no matter what you do. So sure, some wood is better than others, but for purely woodworking reasons. "tonewood" started appearing a couple of years after Harmony Central, in the late 90's. The most common immediate reaction was mirth, and lots of it. Philly Phall was full of tables full of guitars made of Tonewood, and we laughed. Hard. For a couple years. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PelhamBlueFire Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 because it saps and it'll wreck the paint, didn't take Leo long to abandon pine. Maple is good for necks but not so much for bodies, as I understand it it doesn't blank up as well as other woods and wants to cup no matter what you do. So sure, some wood is better than others, but for purely woodworking reasons. "tonewood" started appearing a couple of years after Harmony Central, in the late 90's. The most common immediate reaction was mirth, and lots of it. Philly Phall was full of tables full of guitars made of Tonewood, and we laughed. Hard. For a couple years. rct Yeah, workability. Maple and Ebony just eat up tools. Plus, making a body out of Maple will make it really heavy. Wood is selected for logical reasons and money. Making a guitar body out of Korina will be a lot more expensive, than making one out of Mahogany or Ash/Alder. Ebony and Korina also come from Africa, so that makes it much harder to get a hold off, because there's none of it in the USA. They have to import that stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Yeah, workability. Maple and Ebony just eat up tools. Plus, making a body out of Maple will make it really heavy. Wood is selected for logical reasons and money. Making a guitar body out of Korina will be a lot more expensive, than making one out of Mahogany or Ash/Alder. Ebony and Korina also come from Africa, so that makes it much harder to get a hold off, because there's none of it in the USA. They have to import that stuff. Well there you go. Korina is just another guitar myth. It is used today still, but is usually called Limba. It is not all that rare, and as woods go for milling purposes, it is my understanding that it is quite literally only pennies more for a guitar sized blank than ordinary South American mahogany, importation and all. It was used for the Explorer in 1958 because, once again, a guitar company wanted to "use that stuff up", so they did. No mojo, no great tonality, just as good to work as ordinary mahogany, just wanted to use up some that they had laying around. Don't know why it isn't imported and used more. I think Taylor uses it and calls it Limba. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 ...If a "slab" isn't resonant, then it's 'garbage in/garbage out'. if it sounds like crap unplugged, then there's no pickup in the world that's going to fix it....I even believe the SHAPE of an electric can influence the tone... I agree with both these views 100%. But both of these discussions come under the 'Long' version of events which I mentioned in post #11....... Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksdaddy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Korina is just another guitar myth. It is used today still, but is usually called Limba. Gawd. When I was a junior in high school I signed up for a one semester woodworking class. I had already taken "Industrial Arts" the year before but I wanted to get back into the sawdust by any means possible. There were only four of us in the class. It was very casual and we were allowed to work on whatever wood projects we had cooking. One of the things we did was clean and organize the shop, mainly the storage area overhead. We spent a good deal of time taking rough lumber (mostly all hardwood with some select clear pine), jointing, planning, and sorting. There was a massive amount of a strange blondish mahogany looking wood that was heavy as a Buick. The instructor referred to it as "Limber", which I had never heard of before or since. Maybe it was "Limba"? Gawd. Think of all the Explorer bodies I could have bandsawed out. I think I'll weep a little now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Gawd. When I was a junior in high school I signed up for a one semester woodworking class. I had already taken "Industrial Arts" the year before but I wanted to get back into the sawdust by any means possible. There were only four of us in the class. It was very casual and we were allowed to work on whatever wood projects we had cooking. One of the things we did was clean and organize the shop, mainly the storage area overhead. We spent a good deal of time taking rough lumber (mostly all hardwood with some select clear pine), jointing, planning, and sorting. There was a massive amount of a strange blondish mahogany looking wood that was heavy as a Buick. The instructor referred to it as "Limber", which I had never heard of before or since. Maybe it was "Limba"? Gawd. Think of all the Explorer bodies I could have bandsawed out. I think I'll weep a little now. I feel this post. My Grandfathers shop was very much similar. I DO remember the woods I found, wondering what some were, wondering what I might do with them. And, I did actually contemplate making a guitar more than once. Thing is, that is the past. And because it is, the fact that times are what they are now we could not know. For your mental drooling, one thing he had in fair abundance was a supply of highly figured birdseye Maple veneer. About 3/16 thick, and LOTS of birdeye to it. I mean, like spaced 1/2 inch to an inch apart the whole of each piece. And as flamey as you are likely imagining it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Not all the myths here go around Les Paul guitars, so I guess this topic would be best in the Gibson Lounge... Nice thread though - I love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshall Paul Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 When I was in Junior High they made us do workshop. I failed woodwork. After reading the OP comments, all I can say is, after about 45 years of playing and tinkering....I've got no idea what he's talking about! (LOL!) (in the immortal words of Pauline Hansen, "please explain?"....lol). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 When I was in Junior High they made us do workshop. I failed woodwork. After reading the OP comments, all I can say is, after about 45 years of playing and tinkering....I've got no idea what he;s talking about! (LOL!) (in the immortal words of Pauline Hansen, "please explain?"....lol). Perhaps there are no guitar myths at all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshall Paul Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Maybe it's just a myth that there are any myths? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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