Sheepdog1969

In mid March of 2023, my mother lost her years long battle with frontal lobe dementia. Six months earlier, my father asked me to pen her obituary knowing she would not survive her disease. As I detailed her extraordinary, perpetually involved, active and generous life, I came to a previously unrealized revelation. Hopefully what I learned about my mom, while attempting to honor her life in words, will resonate with the vast universe of musically talented individuals. My mom never played an instrument. I can't ever remember hearing her sing a song, even at church during hymns. She didn't hum along with the radio. She never whistled. Despite producing/organizing multiple charity stage musicals, she didn't even participate in the chorus. I can't even remember seeing her dance to music. But I do know that she absolutely loved listening to music. One of the reasons she fell for my dad was because of his talented tenor singing voice. From choirs to Barbershop quartets to stage musicals, she adored it when he performed. She especially liked it when he played guitar and sang. She had an extensive vinyl collection and she was particularly drawn to live performances. She never missed any of my band performances from 5th grade to college. Eventually she grew to love Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chicago Lyric Opera performances, and had season tickets, (for decades), for both. Summer nights at Ravinia, just north of Chicago, were magical concert experiences for her, and her season tickets there never went unused. When my musical skills appeared to be impaired by budget oriented instruments, she somehow found the funds to buy me the high end, and high dollar, instruments that allowed me to better express my talents. When Jim Culbertson, the nationally renown director of my high school jazz/funk band, informed her that my 5th trombone skills demanded a high end, F attachment, bass bone, I somehow had one a few days later. When, after playing hand-me-down acoustic guitars for over a decade, I mentioned that I would like an electric guitar, she managed to buy me a new, 1983 Korina Gibson Explorer for $350.00. (Somebody at Guitar Center probably lost their job after that sale.) She somehow understood, despite never making music herself, that investing properly in musical talent can exponentially improve a musician's art. As I crafted the document that would encapsulate and enumerate my mom's effect on the world, I learned that she had provided far more philanthropic support for the arts than just her season ticket purchases. Her financial contributions were not something she talked about, nor did most of us even know about them. I then began to think about all the individuals who had not a "musical bone" in their bodies, but so loved music that they were literally able to "make music" by giving financial donations to musicians, thus ensuring that the music could play just a little bit longer. Sharps, to them, may simply be pointy things that can cut you, and they probably think flats are only bad things that happen to tires. Yet, without these generous audience members, music would inevitably diminish into the sound of silence; the church bells would all be broken. As I said goodbye to my mom, I understood that she did make beautiful music, she just made it in a different way. And, in my head, I heard Jackson Browne singing: "...Oh wont you stay just a little bit longer..." And I know if she could have, she would have. "...now the promoter don't mind, and the union don't mind if we take a little time and we leave it all behind and sing one more song..." Susan Elaine Zick wife, mother, grandmother, music lover 1944-2023

The back of the guitar is separating from the body across the top, (below the neck). I will upload a more detailed pic when I have some time. (I have been "radio silent" for a bit because my mother passed away a few weeks ago after a 6 year struggle with frontal lobe dementia.) I am trying to figure out if I need to use a "steam box" to allow the wood to become more flexible, or if there may be a better method.

Bass strings last that long? Guitar strings loose their edge in less that a year.

I have played guitar for over 45 years, and have occasionally fiddled with other peoples Bass guitars during that time. I recently picked up my own Bass, and have it set up to my liking. (the funny story of how I acquired it can be found below.) It is a p/j and I play (and I am learning to play) rock, metal, jazz, funk, fusion, R&B, and blues. It is a 4 string Rouge series III lx-200B. (it actually plays quite well, holds tune, is intonated, and has the action set just high enough to eliminate 98% of fret buzz.) Yet it still has the factory strings on it, and I bet it will sound even better with a set of quality strings. Any thoughts?

The chances that any "unused" item may be "needed", regardless of how long that it has sat idle in storage, will increase exponentially the second that it is no longer in your possession. (ie: While you have it, it won't be needed, but once you let it go, a need for it will arise.) Trying to explain this to your wife, girlfriend, and/or mother will fall on deaf ears and expose you to ridicule. (a sexist would say!). PS - I've known many musicians who not only could find a use for those straws, but would cut them in half, (or thirds), when they "used" them, thus getting 2X+ the use out of them.

FYI, there are some things that are "objective" regarding a "pro set up", like intonation and fret shaving (if needed to smooth rough edges), yet many things are "subjective", and are only "set up right", when they meet each individual musician's playing style, type of music they play, type of strings they choose to use, the type of amplifier and/or electronics they use, etc.. The "action" (string to fretboard distance"), for example, only needs to be high enough not to rattle on frets, yet not so high that it impedes playability and/or negatively effects intonation. Action height between these two extremes is up to the musician. As such, pickup height, is extremely subjective, and truly could never be "set up" to meet your specific needs unless it was done with you being present and actively involved, all while using your rig, (amp, effects, strings, etc..). As little as 1/4mm change in pickup height can drastically effect output tone and volume. Pickups can be adjusted so that the height distance between it and the low E is different than the distance at the high E. Fine tuning this distance can be done per string on your covered humbuckers as well. Based on your comments, your bridge pickup, or at least a few of the string to p/u distances on it, are just a tiny bit too high. A few minutes fine tuning each individual "pole" until sound quality at the high gain levels you play at, meets your needs. Lots cheaper, less time consuming, and less invasive that p/u replacement, if it works!

Learned about stop bar tail pieces not being "attached" on my Explorer years ago, as a teen. Nothing like a heavy chunk of metal falling off your guitar unexpectedly while changing strings! Like Dub said, simply never remove all of your strings at once while changing them unless you are prepared for it to "dislocate". Yes there are reasons that one may need to remove all of the strings of a guitar prior to replacing any of them, like when removing a pickup or when the rosewood/ebony fretboard needs oiling/cleaning, for example. However, my decades of experience restringing guitars has lead me to only change one string at a time, 99% of the time. No, I do not "cut/snip", (with wire cutters), old strings, let alone cutting/snipping all of them at once. I actually unwind each string to be replaced, one at a time, and then replace it, ( using a Luthier's knot) This, "one at a time" method does a couple of things. It keeps a stop bar tail piece from falling off. It maintains tension on the neck and body of your guitar during string changes, albeit 5 strings of tension versus 6, which minimizes the movement of the neck, headstock and body of the instrument, (the changing of the slight bow of your guitar neck, headstock, and body, which is normally maintained by the tension of it's strings whilst in tune), thus mitigating fret board cracking, lateral fret movement/shifting, finish cracking and other structural wear due to said movement. Although you may not be able to see the "flex" differential between a strung and tuned guitar compared to when it is unstrung, the progressive damaging effects from these complete tension releases followed by tension increases, especially when torque (twist) is also applied to the neck, headstock, and guitar body by tightening each new string onto an unstrung guitar, especially when each new string is installed from lowest to highest, (or the reverse), can eventually damage your instrument. By changing one at a time, torque is mitigated by the tension from the other 5 strings on the guitar. This method also limits drastic changes to truss rod tension, mitigating "thread stripping" and/ or unintentional changes to desired truss rod tension.

I actually am trying to find out how to "strip" the voices from my Alesis Concert 88 key and not from my DX 100. (the DX 100 came with very detailed instructions/user manual regarding MIDI operation, but the Alesis instructions only detail how to assign the MIDI track, (it has only 1 MIDI track output, per the specs, but I may need to use the MIDI software to try to "strip" the onboard Alesis "voice". The Sweetwater rep claimed that my Alesis Concert 88 could also function as a MIDI controller keyboard when connected to a PC with proper MIDI software.) As I just got it a day ago, I have not spent the time reviewing how it functions when connected to said software.

To be abundantly clear, I am a heterosexual male who's preferred pronouns are; he, likes, b00bies.

As a Chicago guy, I prefer a deep dish sausage pizza, but only if it is a "puck", not a "crumble". Chicago folks know what I mean.

Checked my girlfriend for "teeth" down there. No teeth, but her gums were in terrible shape!

I recommend taking your Gibson to your nearest music store. Once inside, uncase your axe, find a seat, and yell out, "Somebody give me an A!" Tune, by ear, your A string to the tone that follows. (Or, you can pick up your "land-line phone" and use the "dial tone" similarly.)

Found a high quality Yamaha sustain pedal for my Yamaha DX 100 on Sweetwater for around 26 bucks with free shipping. Decided to ask my "sales rep" if it would work exactly like the pedal that was an option for my synth back in 1989. The sweetwater "rep" replies by email that it was, so I bought it. It actually worked. A few weeks later I decided to buy a Behringer 600 watt KXD15 Ultratone key board amp from them because it was the best rated keyboard amp, with every option I needed. Got it no problem. A week or so later I reached out to my Sweetwater rep, and asked him a few very detailed questions about an 88 key MIDI capable "piano". It did not have a dedicated 1/4 line out port, but did have two line out RCA ports, a USB MIDI out port, and a 1/4 "headphone" out port. I wanted to know which output port would be best to connect to my new Behringer KDX15, since I feared the headphone out 1/4" port may provide "hotter" than line level out signal when the keyboard volume was at full. Since the "piano" did not come with a stereo RCA to 1/4" stereo cable, which my Behringer amp supported, I simply wanted to know if I should buy said RCA to 1/4" cable, if this was a better way to connect the "piano" to my amp. I also wanted to know if said "piano" was capable of being a MIDI keyboard controller, (able to use the MIDI USB port to connect to a PC with the appropriate software that could "ignore" the "piano's" onboard voice/tone selection, and allow it to only play/produce the "voice/tone" that my MIDI software assigned to it.). I also asked about THD (total harmonic distortion) associated with the "piano", not wanting to invest in a noisy instrument. I also wanted to be sure that my 1989, first generation MIDI synth would be compatible with a 2023 MIDI "piano", since I wanted both to be able to operate using the same software. As I am a guitar guy, and just learning piano and MIDI, I thought it best to ask my Sweetwater salesperson, as I assumed he was a keyboard/MIDI/piano pro.. When he called be back, he seemed overwhelmed with my questions, and when pressed, he said he was NOT really a keyboard/synth/MIDI professional, but he said he did play "lots of instruments".??? Every question I emailed to him was relating to specs I was unable to find online, and since Sweetwater was selling the "piano" I thought met my needs, I just wanted clarification on it's capabilities from a "pro", like Sweetwater claims they assign you. A "deer in the headlights" best describes my "Sweetwater pro's" reaction to said queries, despite the exact same queries being sent by email to him a day before he called me. He obviously did NO research prior to calling me back, nor did he ever really provide specific detailed responses to my questions. He DID specifically ask if he could "place the order for said piano for me", as if his non committal, non specific responses to my technical concerns solidified my desire to purchase the item. A "music pro", by definition, needs to be extremely well versed in the minutia of the type of gear their client desires to purchase. If they are not, then their is no harm in transferring the client to another staff member who possesses said knowledge. Sad that my pathetically basic knowledge of MIDI keyboards and synths exceeds that of a paid "professional". (think used car salesman)

So am I a nerd if I actually sang and played your song, AND LIKED IT? (asking for a friend) Luv ya dude!

Funny, I just posted a piece detailing the 1981 Gibson Explorer Korina '58 reissue, and I included to parts numbers and pat. # for the Tim Shaw covered humbuckers it came with. The patent number stamped into them was the same as yours, but there also was an "inked" number that may be a Gibson parts number. 151683 pat no. 2 737 842 on one and 150683 pat no. 2 737 842 on the other. Since yours has no "inked" number, and only has the "stamped" pat. no., the patent number may apply to the humbucker design. Since no "inked" number is present, I can't be sure if the pickup is a Gibson part. Hope this helps.

Despite most Explorer fans and guitar professionals/brokers thinking the 1st Korina Explorer reissues being the 1983 Custom Shop Editions (94-96 made), and the 1983 Heritage line (100 made), apparently that assumption was wrong. In 1981, Gibson took it's 1976 mahogany Explorer specs and made less than 100 (at least 83 based on the "inked" serial # of one currently for sale.), Korina Explorer Reissues. These '81 Korina Explorer '58 reissues had "funny small inked on serial numbers" that had not been seen before, (1 0083, is the format shown on the example currently for sale.). Inked serial numbers in this format had only previously been associated with 1983 Korina Gibson Explorer Heritages, but these 1981 Explorers had normal Gold Kluson Deluxe Tuners with Ivory "tulip" knobs, Gold covered Tim Shaw humbuckers, gold/black "speed" volume/tone knobs, Pearl inlaid Gibson logo in the headstock, gold hardware, inline tone/volume knobs, and a 3 position selector on the "horn". Of the two examples I have seen, each has a white pick-guard, stop-bar tail piece, and gold hardware, save for the ivory tuner knobs. At least 2 known examples are "natural finish" Korina, and the other is a "Black Korina finish". (The natural finish example I have seen has black "speed" volume/tone knobs). They appear to have Rosewood fretboards, pearl "dot" fretboard inlays, and they have 22 frets. They do not appear to have the "pressed" "Made in the USA" marking, nor do they have an "inked" "Made in the USA" marking, just the "inked" serial number in the format indicated above. (No "Custom Shop Edition" logo either.) Although this type of "inked", 5 digit serial number format, (not the 8 digit "stamped/pressed" serial numbers), on Korina Explorers would previously have been associated with the '83 Heritage series, the '83 Heritages only had "nickel" hardware (including the "tulip" tuner knobs), and they were ONLY made in natural finish. Also, the seial numbers on the pots (pot codes) on these '81 Korina Explorers date to 1981, (the black finish example has pot codes that date to the third week of 1981 specifically.). The codes on the Humbuckers on the black finish '81 are, 151683 pat no. 2 737 842 and 150683 pat no. 2 737 842. Based on these factors, these Korina Explorers cannot be 1983 Heritages OR 1983 Custom Shop Edition Korina's. Interestingly, they look like hybrids of those two '83 Korina Explorer lines, combining the best of both lines, yet made two years before the '83 lines were made. In reality, these '81 Korina Explorers look to be a cool, reimagining of the 1958 Explorer by combining new style gold hardware with just enough '58 style to qualify as a reissue. (As opposed to the '83 Korina Heritage that went to extrodinary lenghts to recreate the original '58 vision of the Explorer.) The story of these 1981 Korina Explorer '58 reissues goes like this; In 1981, Gibson used 1976 mahogony Explorer specs and began making '58 Korina Explorer reissues, (ironically, less than 5 or so production 1958 Korina Explorers were actually ever made). They made them until they ran out of the gold Kluson Tuners, resulting in at least 83, 1981 Korina Explorers, but definatly less than 100. Obviously some were natural finish and at least one was black. It is said that Gibson was able to continue the Korina Explorer Custom Shop Editions in 1983 after being able to aquire Gold Schaller tuners. Other than the type of gold tuners, and the ivory "tulip style" tuning knobs, the 1981 Korina Explorers are nearly identical to the '83 Custom Shop Edition Korina Explorers, possibly down to the percentage of production "colors"/finishes produced. (hence the confusion when one comes to market.) Despite the '81 Korina line being billed as a "1958 Reissue", and containing the "inked" 5 digit serial number associated with "reissues", it is more akin to the '83 CSE, and distinctly different from the '83 Korina Heritage "reissue" which was totally built to replicate the few '58 Korina Explorers made. The Korina Black finish '81 Korina Explorer detailed above is currently for sale at Reverb for $24,995, less taxes and shipping, by The Guitar Broker, Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (full disclosure dictates that I inform you that most of the info about these '81 Korina Explorers came from The Guitar Broker's listing for this guitar.) It is in "mostly unplayed condition with only slight play time but no wear at all. The gold parts are clean and unfaded, and it comes with it's original black hard case. (I have no affiliation with Reverb or The Guitar Broker, nor is this an advertisement for either of them, nor do I have any financial incentive associated with the sale of the afore mentioned '81 Explorer, nor can I attest to the authenticity of said claims about this guitar or the claims about the 1981 Gibson Explorer Korina 1958 reissue.) As an owner of an all original 1983 Gibson Custom Shop Edition Korina Explorer, I had never heard of these '81 Korina Explorers, despite decades of research on Korina Explorers. Wondering if anyone else had heard of them or might own one?

I was raised in a family that stressed faith, honesty, good grades, music appreciation, and baseball. I excelled at some of these qualities more than others. If my level of success at each of these could be expressed, over time, like freq dB readings on a graphic EQ with each quality listed above represented as different Hz, they would look like Aqualung by Jethro Tull. Some always present, but with varying levels of intensity, and some appearing and dissapearing from time to time, with wildly varying intensities when present.) As a kid, I thought all baseball bats just came with one size, (girth), hand grip surface, (called the "handle"), and that all guitar necks (girth) were uniform as well. I was always a solid hitter, and one day in HS while working with my batting coach, he asked me what weight of bat I used/liked and what handle size/girth I prefered. Like a deer in the headlights, I processed what he said, and then meekly replied, "There are different sizes?" Needless to say, When I was able to use a bat with a handle size, and weight that felt comfortable to me, my already solid hitting improved greatly. Not long after that, I learned that guitar neck girth can vary as well, including the girth variance on a guitar neck between the headstock and the guitar body. Choosing the "right" guitar now meant more than just tone, build quality, and appearance. After adding neck girth to my list of requirements for guitar purchases, and thus finally playing a guitar that actually fit my left hand, (and how I played), the quality of my playing improved greatly. Even the best, highest quality tool, (guitar in this case), may not result in the best, highest quality output, if it's neck doesn't "fit" the hands and/or playing style of the musician playing it. Neck "girth", and similarly neck "girth" variance from end to end, tends to be ignored by most novice guitar buyers, who may focus only on brand, looks, tone, cost, and hardware. This applies to many experienced players as well. I truly think that, regardless of a guitar checking all of the requirement boxes on your list for purchase, if the neck doesn't fit your hand comfortably, it is not the guitar for you, nor will you ever be able to play it to your full potential.

Damn, I'm not sure that I deserve such a cool tool. This guy is bad a$$! I grew up playing bass trombone (in addition to guitar,bass, etc.), so the process seems like the way one would play any wind instrument except the notes are defined by the keyboard and the inflection and "tongue" process for note seperation are just like any wind instrument. Thanks so much for the great video!!

I currently wonder if there is a market for late 60's gear... ...I am refering to myself, LOL. (And yes, I would "sell" myself to the right lady)

Just got the yamaha BC1 breath control for my Dx 100. It is totally vintage and still in the original box. The guy I bought it from said that he had bought it in the late 80's for his DX7, but he loaned it to a "friend" in the late 80's and never saw it again. Kinda felt bad for him since his friend ripped him off for 10 g's + (some dx7's are selling today for 20k+) But damn if this BC1 looks and functions like it was brand new. I think the BC1 works on the DX11, and I wondered if you have one and if you can provide me with any tips on using it effectivly?

Since I was a kid, I always loved the sound of a steel guitar. The solo on Jerry Reid's "Eastbound and down" is a great example of slide play that combines traditional gliss with staccato slide lifts and palm muting. But more to the point, I have always wondered about the slide used on steel guitars. To me, it looks like a hefty chunk of metal with a unique shape. As it is "held" in the hand, and not worn over a finger like the guitar slides I own, it seems like it has a "string side" and a "palm side". It obviously is effective for a steel guitar, but I have never seen one used on a standard guitar. Any thoughts?

Have you ever decided to, out of your own pocket, buy a piece of gear, (mixing board, PA subs, quality mics, an instrument you don't even play, etc.), for the benifit of the band you are in because the band really needs it, but can't afford it? If we all had a nickle for all the times that someone in the band said, "Here is the "blank" we need. Use it, but don't break it, because I paid for it, and it's mine.". Unfortunatly years later, those once "crucial pieces of gear" tend to end up gathering dust in our back rooms, simply because we never really needed them for ourselves. Every so often, if your lucky and observant, you may find that one of those relics is more valuable and in demand than you knew. In the late 80's, my band lost a Bass player, thankfully not in the Spinal Tap way. A girl I was dating at the time was in school studying Classical Piano. I remembered that my 8th grade Jr. High Jazz band had no bass player, so the pianist played the bass lines on a Fender Rhodes Piano Bass . But, $2k+ was not an option for our little band. My girlfriend had a moderatly priced, full sized Casio keyboard for practice, but it was very limited and had no "Bass Guitar" presets that actually sounded like a Bass. She was willing to fill in, but didn't have the money to buy an appropriate instrument that would replicate/approximate a Bass guitar. Thankfully, the 80's were synth heaven, and at that time, Guitar Stores/Music shops were commonly filled with more "keyboards" than guitars. Moog's, Rollands, Prophets, and a Yamaha called the DX-7, were replacing the venerable Fender Rhodes Stage Suitcase 73 Mk I Electric Pianos. Artists from Devo to Herbie Hancock were routinely using new and specialized keyboards/synths, while standing, using the factory included/installed strap connectors and a guitar strap. Some of these "standing synths" actually had long "necks", like a guitar neck, that extended from the synth body, that had pitch and modulation "wheels/rollers", (for the left hand index and middle fingers) at the bottom edge of the "neck's left hand grip point". Keyboard/synth players were now running around stages like guitarists, and were no longer chained to their benches. Yamaha, seeing the success of their DX-7 and the popularity of synths capable of being played while standing, released the DX-100, a 49 mini keyed trimmed down version of the DX-7, with factory standard strap connectors and left hand pitch and modulation "wheels" accessable while standing or seated. It was/is "C" battery or DC adapter powered, and MIDI capable. It has 4 banks of preset "sounds" that can be modified, (programable and adustable wave forms), and is breath controller and foot sustain pedal capable. Apparently, Yamaha and many music stores over estimated the market demand for these small, light weight "stand and play" synths, so by late 1987/early 1988 my local store had 10+ new DX-100's in stock. (They had yet to sell even one, until I came in looking for a suitable keyboard Bass.) After explaining to the shop owner my situation and needs, he excitedly detailed the DX-100's specs, extolled it's flexability, and correctly stated that it was capable, out of the box, of being a "Keyboard Bass". He then said he would sell it to me for $100 flat, if I paid cash. (No DC adapter, no sustain pedal, no breath controller included, just a short MIDI patch cable, owners manual/instruction, the keyboard/synth, and the box it came in.) Despite not having much money, I knew I had more than the rest of my band mates, so I bought it. It served it's purpose, and allowed the band to play many cash paying gigs, more than covering my investment. Yet, at some point, it was no longer needed. So, it went back into it's original box, only to be pulled out on the rare occasion that a pop up jam session included a pianist in need of an instrument. Not being a piano player, it became a capable, versitile, functional, and flexible novelty, that had earned a place in my collection, but might never be used to it's full potential by me. Almost two decades later, I had a daughter, (a lefty like me), and I obviously introduced her to a wide varriety of musical styles, (even in vitro), as well as exposing her to my varried collection of instruments. Music is brain food, and creating music by playing instruments exponentially increases the "nutritional value" of said. The younger a child is when exposed to wide varrieties of music, especially if they are simultaniously provided access to a varriety of instruments that they can safely "play", the "smarter" they become in ALL areas, not just music. The DX-100, just run through a pair of small battery powered old computer speakers, seemed a great way to let her little hands explore sounds and notes, harmonies and chords, and dissonance. My DX-100 had been recalled into active duty. It was a hit, and she/we spent hours and hours exploring its presets, playing with pitch and modulation, learning what sound is, and just making music. And, for around 14 years, it sat at the ready, ever willing to perform when called upon. Alas, as she entered her teens, it saw less and less use, ultimatly returning to semi-retirement. (As a side note: my daughter currently has a GPA and the advanced and appropriate AP class schedule, at a challenging private school, that has drawn the attention of the top Aeronautical Engineering schools in the nation. She wants to design and build spacecraft. Nasa, JPL, Space-X, etc. are her goals. She is also a talented proffesional artist, who has sold more acrylic on canvass pieces than her high school art teacher ever has. Recuiters from NASA and Embry-Riddle love the art and engineering combination. Did her early exposure to music and art, and her understanding of how they directly correlate to mathmatics, language, creativity, design, electromagnetism, etc., make her smarter? I bet yes.) Despite knowing the capabilities of the DX-100, I guess I still saw it as a $100 keyboard, and I don't think I ever knew its MSRP when I bought it. I definatly taught my daughter how to respect instruments, but the keyboard saw it's share of rough use. I did keep it clean, and it never had liquid spilled in or on it. It never was dropped or crushed, nor were it's keys or buttons abused or damaged from use. It's display is perfectly functional, and there is no exessive wear to any surface on it. The pitch and modulation "wheels" are still intact and functioning. There are no dead keys, nor do any keys have "rebounding"/reset issues, and all keys still exhibit uniform resistance/tension when depressed. I will never sell it, btw. Imagine my surprise when in early December, 2022, my Google home page included an article about 6 stupidly expensive vintage synths and their bargin alternatives. I would not even noticed the piece if not for the picture of a DX-100 next to the headline. https://www.musicradar.com/news/expensive-synth-alternatives It was a very informative piece and it confirmed things I had always thought to be true, and more. Though it expressed estimated values in British pounds instead of US dollars, I easily found that my DX-100 was possibly worth $500 to $600+, 5-6+ times what I paid for it new. I had no idea that anyone even remembered the DX-100 in 2022, let alone be willing to pay that much for one. I always knew that my DX-100 was a decent synth that had endured years of use without failing. It was nice to have that confirmed by pro's. Currently, I am seeking out the Yamaha assesories for it, like the sustain pedal, breath controller, DC power adapter, and a hard case specifically designed for it. ("play in" flight cases with dedicated storage space/drawer for all the DX-100 assesories, are stll available.) A plethora of replacement parts are still being sold, (chips, boards, buttons, keys, springs, jacks, etc.), and I may invest in the parts known to fail due to years of use. I am aware that $500-$600 is not very much for a synth. Of all the instruments I own, it is by far the least expensive/valuable. Even if I knew what it was worth when I was letting my kid fool around with it, I would have still let her have fun with it, and would have not changed a thing. The info I learned from the article has simply motivated me to "preserve" and protect this instrument, so it can continue to provide enjoyment and entertainment for me, my family, our friends and my descendants for decades to come.

It is important to note that Polish's, like Mothers, Maguires, etc., are intended for finishes such as clear coats on cars and other painted surfaces that have enough "material" thickness that allows for some of said "material" to be removed, (think oxidized, lightly scratched, etc.), thus removing a tiny layer of said to even out it's surface. They contain abrasive particulates in emulsion of specific hydrocarbon compounds, that in combination provide a compound capable of removing damaged and/or imperfect surface layers of finishes. As such, using polish on wood surfaces would not "clean" the wood, but rather abrasively and inefficiently remove wood from the fretboard and presumably scratch the fretboard surface. Abrasive polishes, as mentioned above, are not cleaners for open grain completed wood surfaces, nor are they able to remove contaminates embedded within the deep grains of the board. Polishes also require non porous surfaces to allow complete removal. Porous surfaces will prevent complete removal of the polish.