Gibson Guitar Board: JohnnyReb - Viewing Profile - Gibson Guitar Board

Here she is! The love of my life and a sucker for daddies Gibson Guitar

I think she's in store for a baby Taylor or a little Martin for 3rd birthday until she's big enough to handle daddies jumbo

Ok so the title of the post pretty much explains it. I've had a capo laying around for years and never use it. My dad never had one at all so when I learned guitar I didn't even know what a capo was for a long time. I kinda followed his path I guess and learned how to play everything I know in different keys. When I play with other people such as in a bluegrass jam they capo up to play key of A in the G position. I never understood why and just always played an A chord and went along. I guess some people just don't like some chord shapes and choose to capo up instead.

Anyway so tonight I decide to play and sing that Pearl Jam song about the car wreck and where oh where can my baby be....,I'm sure you know the song. Key of A fits my voice best for it but that dreaded G minor was killing me when barring it. ( I hate bar chords). So I dig my old capo out and put it on the second fret to play out of G and use the Em.

So with the capo on my AJ it sounded like it had a noose around its neck! It's a big sounding booming guitar with a Martinish rumble to it that I love. With the capo on it became brittle and thin. It was terrible. I couldn't get it off fast enough. Now I've heard other people play with a capo and it sounded fine. Just seemed to choke all the life out of my AJ. Especially my big E string. It went from boom to thud. Of course volume wasn't a issue other than my bass was totally gone. Just thin and brittle, but still loud.

So is this normal?? I just don't have enough experience with one to know. I expected to still keep some of that booming rosewood dread in the sound with a capo on the second fret. It just sucked the life out of it. Sounded like some old Stella parlor guitar with rusty strings. Yuck!

I guess it could be the round shoulders and Gibson tone. I never did like that dry thuddy tone of a lot of Gibsons. My AJ is the exception because of its power and depth. I guess maybe with a capo it looses it and turns into a dry sounding j35 because of the loss of scale lenth and round shoulders. Just a theory. I guess if I'm going to play with a capo I need a Martin

Well so I figured out Sundays are for football and sharing your music on the forum. So here's my favorite Merle song with no inflammatory political views ( sigh). Gave the AJ a rest and drug the Les Paul out. Pardon the screw up at the end. If it isn't a dead giveaway I'm sure the smile and head shaking will be. Enjoy

Well at the advice of MR Aussie, I slapped a set of lights on my AJ for the first time. I don't recall ever using lights on a guitar other than my dads old Kay Archtop or obviously my electric guitars. I'm a sucker for big volume and power so lights have never been in my tool box. I've been pondering the theory of how larger gauge strings can choke a lightly built guitar and actually restrain it in some ways.

So.....I've spent around 10 mins with them so far and they are great! The AJ is a loud guitar as we all know and so far I can't tell any loss in volume whatsoever. To be honest I'm not quite sure it isn't louder. Maybe this choking effect has some merit to it ( in this particular case). The guitar seems more free to move, almost as if I took the chains off. One huge huge difference is string tension. I've never had trouble with mediums on my Martins in regard to tension, but my AJ has always felt really tight. The lights are a huge improvement in playability and tension. Also I seem to have improved sustain and that rosewood overtone. It's really like the lower tension has released some tone I didn't have before. I can tell a difference on my low E and A string though. There is a little less BOOM from them I guess from the reduced gauge. Well, they still boom but just a hair thinner of a boom.

So I guess this is a success so far. I'm really pleased with the change. Of course that's subject to change but I feel pretty good about it. I think I have gained some tone and volume by reducing the tension( not that I need more, but the more the merry'r) A little more time will tell.

I'm taking the AJ in for a new setup sometime in December. I been a little frustrated with my low E string lately. I can tune it to a perfect pitched E.....then play a G chord and it sound sharp at the 3rd fret. Mostly I just tune the string down a little by ear to make up for it. Anyway it's not a hugely big deal and while I'm there getting the action re adjusted might as well decide how I want to tackle the problem. I been thinking lately about replacing the stock saddle with a new bone compensated one. Anybody ever done that and noticed a improvement??