Blues guitar?

The Coffee Shop
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Being out with a double injury (3wks post-op shoulder surgery and a strained adductor since Dec that refuses to heal) and unable to train, I have a lot of free time on my hands. As such, I spend a lot of time traversing the tubes and have spent a LOT of time on youtube of late. I’ve been looping in a lot of Stevie Ray Vaughan with the usual suspects, and keep coming back to him. I love the blues. This is nothing new. I have for a long time, and once dragged a poor pop music lovin’ gal with whom I was traveling for work to a blues club in Chicago, and kept her there until I felt bad that she had passed out on a bench in the back of the hall… This is nothing new. But not training has given me time to think about things other than my workouts/eating/preventative maintenance/sleep - oh, and that work thing.

I have a banjo that I pick at, and it entertains me. I dig bluegrass. But it doesn’t reach out and tear my soul from my chest, and hold it up to the light…
As a kid I played cello (8yrs) and French Horn (5yrs)
As a very young kid I got shanghaied into singing choir (and my parents never paid for no trip to Paris, neither!)

I like to think that while far from a standout musical talent, I have *some *idea about making sounds.

So having said that, where so I start? I borrowed an acoustic guitar from my dad a while back but I didn’t really like it very much… I know it’s the player not the instrument, but it just didn’t *feel bluesy *to me. I found myself playing dueling banjos with it. :stuck_out_tongue:

I’d rather not drop a tonne of cash if I can help it, and read a bunch of threads on “what to buy” and “how to get started” that others have started before. I’m leaning towards a Mexican Strat (recommended by David Taub of nextlevelguitar.com, and besides - that’s what SRV & Clapton play :stuck_out_tongue: ), and someone before has pointed out a couple of options for an inexpensive tube amp. Tubes are good. I like tubes.

I’d also like to fool around with a side some… That seems cool to me and I dig the sound.

I also read (here) that guitars aren’t like bikes or other commodity products, and that two of the same make/model can play/sound very different. As a cellist, this makes sense to me as I remember doing blindfolded bow tests among other things to determine which worked the best for me. But not being a guitarist, how does one determine if a guitar (whether used on CL or new from a store) is “good”? Does it not really matter all that much when looking at a lower end model, or is there still a significant difference? I know that kids starting out on strings get a “Suzuki stamped” instrument made out of glorified plywood with some varnish - and they all sound pretty bad… I’d equate that to the $150 starter pack that gets you a guitar, strap, book and case. Is it possible to “go wrong” with a used Mexi Strat (or similar level instrument), assuming I’m willing to pay a tech to set it up?

I **know **what I want to play (this is my 4min mile)
I *think *I know what I want
I just don’t know how to pick a decent instrument, and am wondering if there’s anything else that I don’t know that I don’t know (but I ought to know)

Guitar heroes (and wannabes) of ST - lay it on me!

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A mid to low quality ax will do , a small tube amp . With a pandora’s box Gives you tones from pure
acoustic to Distorted metal . You’re out $400 to 1K in devalued American TP .

LINK , throw the amp in the trash Sell it on eBay when you need to move up.

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More questions…

How do I tell “good action”?
Can a straight/bent neck be seen by the naked eye, or do I need some sort of alignment gauge?

What about something like this? http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/msg/1098464163.html (It’s not the Mexi Strat I had in mind but I remember people speaking well of the brand in other threads…)

I also saw this: http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/msg/1102576103.html Very little detail but I figure if I asked to meet him at a guitar store I could pay the guys there to look it over for me…

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Thanks for the link. I’d heard that most “starter pack” type guitars weren’t worth buying because they tend to have a lot of problems holding tune, etc. Is this no longer the case, or perhaps varies by brand? One of the things I’d been reading was to avoid the very bottom rung models and go for the next one up - the idea being that a $250 guitar would be worlds better than a $150 one, or a $250 combo pack model.

I’m also in Canada, so buying local would be better for me due to the exchange rate (~30%) shipping, duties, etc.

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Hi Khai. It’s pretty hard to go wrong with the Mexi Strat. I like the single coil sound on the Fenders and there is little difference in quality between the American and Mexican Fenders. There is a bit difference in the price however. Up until a few weeks ago you could get a new strat for $450 - $475 at Long and McQuade. The prices on all the Fender stuff has gone up about 20% but I did see some old stock at the old prices though just last week.

The mexican Fenders are a much better quality than the Epiphone in that other link.

I did a lot of looking around and played a lit of guitars before I decided on a Mexican Tele a few months ago. If you can play anything at all just try out as many as you can. You can get a feeling for the size and weight and the shape of the neck without being an expert player.

The action etc can be adjusted.

Tom

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Hmmmm - online at least, both Tom Lee and Long & McQ are listing the “standard” Strats (I assume Mexi) for $600. NJAMS & Rufus don’t seem to stock Fender. Anywhere else you recommend that I try? I figured I’d be trolling the used market as guitar players seem to be serial upgraders so there’s a plethora of used kit available. Now I just need to figure out how to determine what’s good and worth my $, and what’s trash… :stuck_out_tongue:

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Ya, unfortunately those will be the new prices after the big increase. The Tele I got in January was $475 and the exact same guitar today is $655. The “Standard” Strats or Tele’s are built in Mexico. The ones made in the US are “American Standard”. If you look around in person you might be able to find old stock. Tom Lee and L&McQ both seem to have kept the old prices on the existing stock.

There are a lot of good used guiltars on CL. Lots of Fender stuff. If you are able to try an assortment of new ones in the stores you will probably be better able to tell good from bad when you look at used ones.

When I started looking for an electric guitar (after playing acoustic for a couple years) I wasn’t looking at Fender at all. But I tried just about everything in my price range and the Fenders just felt and sounded right to me. It’s easier to try them out in a store until you narrow down what you want and then go look for that in the used market.

Tom

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When I started looking for an electric guitar (after playing acoustic for a couple years) I wasn’t looking at Fender at all. But I tried just about everything in my price range and the Fenders just felt and sounded right to me. It’s easier to try them out in a store until you narrow down what you want and then go look for that in the used market.

Makes perfect sense, that. Thanks!

I’m pretty sure that picking the right guitar is all I need in order to sound like this…

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Khai,

Go find a Mex Strat you like. Action can be adjusted very easily with these things - at your level, this is a non issue.

I would recommend that you get the guitar you want and save some bucks for the time being by buying a small practice amp, or, if you love tubes (I’ll post back later when I have time on the small tube amp).

Quickly relearn your scales and spend a majority of time on the minor pentatonic (this is the blues scale).

Have fun till your fingers bleed…
Kai

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Awesome… post some clips when you start playing… I’ve been at it 3 years and it isn’t anywhere near the level that I would let the public hear it :wink:

I just picked up a Fender Vibro Champ xD a month or so ago, it is a fantastic amp for the price. not too loud at 5 watts, when means you can actually turn it up to the sweet spot without blowing out your eardrums. It also has a variable voicing knob, with will let you dial in a bunch of different flavours (my fave is position 2, which is voiced to emulate a 1950’s Fender Bassman. I don’t play around with the high gain metal voicins too much though…)

No such thing as “good” action. It can be higher or lower. Lower tends to be a little easier to play, but I’ve been steadily raising it so that bends don’t fret out, particularly above the 12th fret. That is especially important with fenders, which have a smaller radius (usually 7.25" or 9.5") than Gibsons (12").

I have 2 strats, a Mexican and a John Mayer Signature (Olympic White, sweet)… the signature is SOOO much better than the mexican in every way. The switch on the mexican crackles a bit, the pickups are pretty lifeless compared to the higher end instrument, the tuners are better quality, etc. The bridge alignment on the mexican is a little off as well, I wish I had known to check that before I bought mine. Most importantly, the frets are taller and the neck is a little chunkier, which feels so much nicer. That’s just personal preference. I’ve already picked out my next strat, a 62 reissue in Sherwood Green, at least until I change my mind.)

for neck straightness, the nice thing about a guitar is that it comes with 6 built in straight edges. There should be a very slight bow in the neck (have a look on the Fender website for the owners manual, they talk about how to check the relief on the neck). The bridge should be centred (same gap to the edge of the fretboard on the 1st and 6th strings). Make sure the frets are level, ie no fret buzzing anywhere up the neck.

In short, the Mexican strat can be nice, but if you stick with it it will likely be an instrument that you outgrow.

Have fun.
J

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Khai, this post is interesting to me because I build guitars not as my day job but for the satisfaction I get out of creating something that’s beautiful to look at and can make great music. Like you I don’t feel that passion about acoustic guitars, I love electrics!

As for the Mexican Strats, I liken them to an entry level Trek bike, not the worst thing you can buy but not something you stay with if you get serious. You have to keep in mind that I’m a bit of a guitar snob since I build them. It would be like a custom bike builder evaluating that entry trek. Fender makes professional grade instruments just as Trek makes high end bikes. Fenders were designed for mass production and brilliantly so. They are simple and a good value. I buy parts pretty much one at a time so I have about $600 in my cheapest guitar just in parts and materials. Now, I hand select only high end tonewood and use only quality parts where the big guys can have cheap pickups, bridges, tuning machines and so on made in Asia in massive quantities. Some of the stuff on those guitars is total crap but other components aren’t bad. I’ve refinished some strat knock offs for people and the wood is incredibly bad stuff, some kind of random whitewood. Strats are the most copied guitar in the world and a millions of those things come out of Asia. I’ve never reworked a Mexican Fender so I don’t know what’s in those but I’d think they are a step up and a worthy place to start.

Being a practical guy, I’ve even told people that asked be about building a guitar for a kid starting out to go to guitar center and get a shiney starter set for a few hundred bucks. If the kid starts shredding in a few years you may want to get him something with a soul and personality to take to the next level. Occasionaly I get someone that just wants something nobody else has and is willing to pay, that’s great fun. Most of the time I get an idea, build it, keep it around for awhile and sell it for a cheap price so I can put the money into something else. My son gets to play some great guitars. :slight_smile:

I’ve got to go but hope you have fun with the guitar and I wish you a speedy recovery.

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for neck straightness, the nice thing about a guitar is that it comes with 6 built in straight edges. There should be a very slight bow in the neck (have a look on the Fender website for the owners manual, they talk about how to check the relief on the neck). The bridge should be centred (same gap to the edge of the fretboard on the 1st and 6th strings). Make sure the frets are level, ie no fret buzzing anywhere up the neck.

Thanks! I’ll definitely check out the Fender website and look that up. :smiley:

As for posting video… well… you might be waiting a while for that. Right now I think I’ll pull out the acoustic and try to teach myself a little 12-bar so I don’t look like a total retard when I walk into a store and ask to see a Strat, and then start playing Ode to Joy… :stuck_out_tongue:

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Thanks for your insight. That “entry level Trek” is pretty much exactly what I’m looking for right now. I don’t want a POS Wal-Mart guitar, but I’m not cruising NAHBS looking at Rock Lobsters, Richard Sachs and Nakeds, either. That may come with time, but I need to start out with gear of an appropriate level. Even I recommend Cannondale to newbies. :stuck_out_tongue:

I would be curious to see/hear what you’ve made however. Do you have a website? Pics? Sound or video clips?

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Thanks - I look forward to hearing your opinions on tubes. :slight_smile:

Now I need to Google pentatonic…

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I like “Ode to Joy”, and I bet the staff at the gutar shop would rather hear that than yet another crappy version of “Smoke on the Water”
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I seem to recall being in a music shop once that had a sign in the guitar section that read: “NO STAIRWAY”
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Khai,

I bought a used Kramer off craigslist…it needed a bit of work to get it working/sounding right.

Early Dec I started learning using some online lessons but found a good teacher on kijiji.com and he has really helped me out, both with playing and tuning my guitar.

I have found buying a guitar like buying a bike…while I am learning I need something to play…once I can play well I will worry about upgrades.

If you can find a teacher to teach you how to PLAY not learn scales and crap then they would be a great resource for purchasing a good used axe.

For blues you will like this…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKXlgISd3iA

I have been listening to them for the last three weeks non-stop
Andrew

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At least I died doin’ what I loved, man.
You know…
Lip synching…

I love that shit.

AWESOME

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The one in Wayne’s World did…

Check this guy out…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNoPNC3ebYQ

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don’t stop there

get yourself a diatonic harmonica (in A for likely crossharp blues) and learn to bend notes
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