Silenced Fred Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 you guys who blow **** out of proportion need to chill. quite honestly, a lot of the minuscule stuff doesn't matter, but if we all said "well yeah, **** that. that stuff doesn't matter when you're playing" this place would be a ghost town left with me posting neil young videos and steve posting about how neil young sounds like a cat getting run over and we should all listen to bullet for my valentine. everyone has a preference. voice it, or don't. but ragging on people because they have preferences in gear, preferences in sounds, whatever is lame Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 Not yet... Awesome. Classic answer from usenet guitaro bizarro world. Thank you for that! I have to ask, just so it's on the 'net: Have you met Howldog? rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FirstMeasure Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Sure. But the paint, no matter what anyone tells you, has nothing to do with how your guitar sounds. That was the point of my post. No one has ever walked out of thousands of shows I've done or ever asked for their ticket money or cover back because of the finish on my guitars either. And while I've been fired for reasons most of you aren't old enough to hear without an adult present, I've never been fired because the paint on my guitars made them sound wrong. I love a pretty guitar much as the next guy. rct Well, you realize I'm pushing 40. In fact, come April I won't be pushing anymore. My only point is that looks are important to an audience that's watching. I'm not happy about that, it's just a fact. I completely agree about the sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShredAstaire Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I dunno...the only people that look that closely to your guitar are musicians....when you're performing, you're going to be playing for mostly non-musicians. You gotta like the way your own guitar looks..I agree there...but the TYPE of finish is not important to me. As long as it looks pretty cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FirstMeasure Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I dunno...the only people that look that closely to your guitar are musicians....when you're performing, you're going to be playing for mostly non-musicians. You gotta like the way your own guitar looks..I agree there...but the TYPE of finish is not important to me. As long as it looks pretty cool. You'd be surprised. My aunt likes my Squire best because of the color, it don't sound anywhere near as good as my Nighthawk. I've heard people say "He need a new Guitar" while watching a band that was using a vintage Strat. I thought it was a great guitar, the ladies at the table next to me thought it was ugly. The fact that most people in the audience aren't musicians just reinforces my point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShredAstaire Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 You're right...I am surprised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silenced Fred Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 You're right...I am surprised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vourot Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I love my AJ. I love my G&L's. I'm beginning to think that the finish doesn't really matter. Poly can take a beating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jantha Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 That's what I've got goin on my Tele and it's so awesome! How do you like the finish on the post 2008 American standard Fenders? I love it. The neck on my Tele is shiny on the fretboard and headstock but satin on the back. Like really smooth satin and then the body is just regular shinyness. I love it myself. I don't believe that the finish has any affect on tone either. Personally, I think it's mostly marketing hype. If it does, it's not something my ears can detect. I just like shiny, durable guitars... so I think poly is great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I prefer nitro in my air and Polly in my bed............ .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Well, you realize I'm pushing 40. In fact, come April I won't be pushing anymore. My only point is that looks are important to an audience that's watching. I'm not happy about that, it's just a fact. I completely agree about the sound. I agree, looks are important to an audience. And that also depends on the audience you attract. I play to an adult audience, Yacht Club, Country Club, Retirement Community, etc. I doubt that there is one person in the audience who cares if I bring my shiny/poly Casino, checked/nitro ES or my satin/whatever-it-is Parker to the gig. I've I'm playing at a 'black tie' event, I'll bring my shiny sax and if I had a relic'd guitar, I wouldn't bring it to that gig. But nitro or poly wouldn't matter. They do care if we are neat and respectable looking and have dressed appropriately for the occasion. They do care if we are playing appropriate material and at the appropriate volume level. I really doubt that any audience would care whether you played either of two identical guitars except for that fact that one is finished in poly and the other in nitro. I could be wrong about that though. Notes ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadCase Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 From what I've heard... Gibson also uses nitro because repairs can be made virtually invisible. Not so much w/ poly... I've seen some GREAT broken headstock repairs done w/ nitro. So, yeah... I do like the nitrocellulose, besides... I do not like my guitars shiny... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milod Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oddly one of the more popular regional bands around here is using a beat up fiddle, beat up Gibbie 335 and beat up Norlin era bass... m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FirstMeasure Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I agree, looks are important to an audience. And that also depends on the audience you attract. I play to an adult audience, Yacht Club, Country Club, Retirement Community, etc. I doubt that there is one person in the audience who cares if I bring my shiny/poly Casino, checked/nitro ES or my satin/whatever-it-is Parker to the gig. I've I'm playing at a 'black tie' event, I'll bring my shiny sax and if I had a relic'd guitar, I wouldn't bring it to that gig. But nitro or poly wouldn't matter. They do care if we are neat and respectable looking and have dressed appropriately for the occasion. They do care if we are playing appropriate material and at the appropriate volume level. I really doubt that any audience would care whether you played either of two identical guitars except for that fact that one is finished in poly and the other in nitro. I could be wrong about that though. Notes ♫ Whether it's shiny or beat up is certainly not a make or break situation, but it does get noticed more than I think most performers realize. And it works both ways, some people think you should have a beat up guitar and holes in your jeans when you play Rock and Roll. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milod Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Firstmeasure... Here's where the "age gap" enters. When I first started playing rock, jacket and tie was a "must" and you tried to get as much of a uniform look as possible. Later in my rockin' early years it was in uniforms - first a pretty one <grin> and then more semi-junkie looking by intent. But Chuck Berry wasn't using a relicked guitar and until the Stolling Roans showed up like they just got off work in the dockyards, "dressed up" was the order of the day. I still find it interesting that the old blues guys always wore a suit or dinner jacket of some sort, and uniform-type outfits were functionally required for a serious gigging band. O tempora o mores <grin> m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallastx Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Really don't care much about Poly,Nitro,etc..but all my Fenders have slick necks. I polished and waxed them until they were smooth. I hate satin. D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bender 4 Life Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 I just wanna play my guitars... yep, what Shred said....... like most here i have nitro/poly/painted guitars, the only time i really even think about finish is covering my stand when i'm playing a nitro geet. i never abuse them, and would fight before "relic'ing" one, but honest wear and dings are no big deal IT'S GONNA HAPPEN. but i wonder if Gibson/Epi spray a "finish coat" over painted geets........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Versatile Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 IMO it's all about imagination (of the musician).... Nitro has a vintage feel about it and harks back to old cellulose auto finishes from the 1920's on So this can impart a certain reverence in the player.... Poly varnishes are undoubtedly durable and can be high gloss and more colour stable There are some very expensive guitars finished in Poly, and they seem to sound OK.... V Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zigzag Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 Finishes are only a concern before buying a guitar, and far down the list of concerns for me, although certainly it is useful to know if Off or a stand is going to affect a finish. I mean, I've never sat around and thought, "Dang, I wish I'd gotten a nitrocellulose finish on this guitar," or "Man, I wonder how much worse my 335 would sound with a poly finish?!" But I did once think that I might call Gibson and ask them what it would cost to have them make me a 335 with a polyurethane coating. Once I found out how much it would cost and how long it would take, I forgot about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silenced Fred Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 From what I've heard... Gibson also uses nitro because repairs can be made virtually invisible. Not so much w/ poly... I've seen some GREAT broken headstock repairs done w/ nitro. So, yeah... I do like the nitrocellulose, besides... I do not like my guitars shiny... yeah, but Fender headstocks don't break Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy R Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 It's all crap. Nobody ever returned a record because they didn't like the sounds of the <fill in the blank> finished guitars. And of course Paul Reed will come up with the New Messiah Of Guitar Paint. How else will he continue to sell yet another copy of other peoples' guitar ideas? rct RCT I agree with your general statement but a guitars finish definitely has an effect on it's tone. Does it come through to a listener I highly doubt it.... To a player? Depends on the player. Does one sound better than the other? Matter of opinion... Over all it comes down to that no finish would allow the most potential for the resonant quality of the wood to come through. However unfinished guitars are probably less desirable from a sales, marketing and product quality/stability standpoint. So if you finish the guitar to circumvent these issues you are essentially covering the wood with a wet blanket. I doubt you would hear much difference between a brand-new poly finished or nitro finished guitar though. Over time the nitro has more "Potential" to harden to the point of cracking and checking and "Potentially" improving the sound of the guitar because at this point the finish has dried to the point it is not a blanket anymore. How much would be subjective.... Poly will most likely sound and look the same ( not saying it is bad) ... I happen to like finish cracks and checking as well as the yellowing of nitro. I also like how it wears... That's just me... In the end to each there own and as I started I doubt anyone could pick between the two on a recording or a gig... Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.