What do you think of the Line 6 spider III amp 15w ?Not a great amp; Modelling amps tend to be fairly average in my experience and there are a couple of decent valve amps around its price point, like the Vox V20+ and 40+
Go VOX. Versatile and easy to use from a beginner's standpoint. Investing in pedals at you're stage would be a waste.This. Once you've got a fat ass budget you can go for a Marshall or Blackstar, or if you're really unfairly rich an ENGL.
I don't plan on buying another amp, or at this stage any pedalsWelcome to the land of Derp tone, then.
Also because one of my friends keeps talking about it, what do you think of the Slash signature wah pedal (I know, stay away from signature stuff)Not an expert on wah pedals.
Sorry for the bump.Set your bass control to 10, your treble control to 8, and your middle control to 2; should give you a dramatically scooped tone like Dime's.
What settings do use to get a good Pantera tone? I've been learning Cowboys from Hell (making decent progress) and i would love a decent tone (at the moment im playing on the same settings i use for Deftones-My own summer)
Sounds good, any effects?I'm not entirely sure, but he used solid state amplifiers, so you're fine in that respect.
Is there a sizeable difference in quality between cheap picks and more expensive ones? I broke my only one and need to make the right buy for the replacement.Try Dunlop Tortex picks, most guitar stores have them and you can get many sizes. Generally I use 1mm picks.
Know any decent cheap tuners that will reliably get my guitar in to drop tunings? My current one doesn't under stand the low 'e' being tuned to a 'c' and just decides to stop working when i try.Try the Snark Clip On Tuner. Apparently it's great and it costs only £16.
Know any decent cheap tuners that will reliably get my guitar in to drop tunings? My current one doesn't under stand the low 'e' being tuned to a 'c' and just decides to stop working when i try.
Never knew you played guitar or bass.Know any decent cheap tuners that will reliably get my guitar in to drop tunings? My current one doesn't under stand the low 'e' being tuned to a 'c' and just decides to stop working when i try.
If you have the same cheap Konig tuner that I have, you have to switch it over to "Bass" in order to downtune the low E.
just acousticOh very nice. I actually have an acoustic sitting in my closet. *too lazy to play it*
My Ibanez Sage Series is amazing :Pyou should put a beard on it. XD
Is there a sizeable difference in quality between cheap picks and more expensive ones? I broke my only one and need to make the right buy for the replacement.Try Dunlop Tortex picks, most guitar stores have them and you can get many sizes. Generally I use 1mm picks.
It looks great but Ibanez active pickups suck, and the bolt on neck is disappointing considering the access the body provides. It would be much better in a high end version. The new Jackson X-Series warrior with EMGs is by far the best mid range guitar for the price.I really dislike the body shape of them, also i lean my guitar everywhere, that would destroy it.
Not so bad, but using a crappy Floyd Rose special rather than a proper Floyd isn't clever; if you want a Floyd, wait until you have enough cash.It looks great but Ibanez active pickups suck, and the bolt on neck is disappointing considering the access the body provides. It would be much better in a high end version. The new Jackson X-Series warrior with EMGs is by far the best mid range guitar for the price.I really dislike the body shape of them, also i lean my guitar everywhere, that would destroy it.
What about this?
http://www.bcrich.com/models/guitars-and-bass/Virgo/Virgo-Celtic-Tremolo/123 (http://www.bcrich.com/models/guitars-and-bass/Virgo/Virgo-Celtic-Tremolo/123)
I would like a guitar with a Floyd Rose Tremolo (but would have to change my style to play it, i rest my hand on the bridge), but i have no source of income except birthdays and christmas.You'd better wait, I'm afraid. Most forms of the cheap forms of Floyd are pretty bad. Unless you can find, say, a BC Rich Ironbird Pro for a cheap price (generally it costs around £500), you're not going to find a decent one.
In the first two weeks of having my guitar, i raised the bridge due to neck buzz (admittedly,way too high), i just lowered it to the perfect position (no buzz but pretty low) and no longer feel that i want a new guitar, it plays so much better now (surprisingly large difference just by lowering and raising the bridge)This is good. By spec, your guitar is pretty good for a beginner guitar. Only real improvement you can do it replace the pickups. I'd recommend Seymour Duncan JBs, Di-Marzio Super Distortions (not actually very high output but a great pickup) or Activator X (very metal oriented). Avoid EMG like the plague, as they are hard to install.
It costs more than my guitar...In the first two weeks of having my guitar, i raised the bridge due to neck buzz (admittedly,way too high), i just lowered it to the perfect position (no buzz but pretty low) and no longer feel that i want a new guitar, it plays so much better now (surprisingly large difference just by lowering and raising the bridge)This is good. By spec, your guitar is pretty good for a beginner guitar. Only real improvement you can do it replace the pickups. I'd recommend Seymour Duncan JBs, Di-Marzio Super Distortions (not actually very high output but a great pickup) or Activator X (very metal oriented). Avoid EMG like the plague, as they are hard to install.
Also, remember to adjust your truss rod when your neck gets too bent.
If you need to progress in terms of gear I'd get a Blackstar HT-5. Great, fairly cheap, nice sound, reliable, versatile. Not great for live performances due to its low output wattage, but great at home for that very reason.
Fairly cheap for a valve amp. As I have said previously in this topic, save up and invest.It costs more than my guitar...In the first two weeks of having my guitar, i raised the bridge due to neck buzz (admittedly,way too high), i just lowered it to the perfect position (no buzz but pretty low) and no longer feel that i want a new guitar, it plays so much better now (surprisingly large difference just by lowering and raising the bridge)This is good. By spec, your guitar is pretty good for a beginner guitar. Only real improvement you can do it replace the pickups. I'd recommend Seymour Duncan JBs, Di-Marzio Super Distortions (not actually very high output but a great pickup) or Activator X (very metal oriented). Avoid EMG like the plague, as they are hard to install.
Also, remember to adjust your truss rod when your neck gets too bent.
If you need to progress in terms of gear I'd get a Blackstar HT-5. Great, fairly cheap, nice sound, reliable, versatile. Not great for live performances due to its low output wattage, but great at home for that very reason.
Also how do I know if my neck is too bent? (guessing it's a noob question.)Generally just looking down the neck to see what angle it is in comparison to the body, or:
Guessing via doing the technique in the video my guitars arc is fine.But i have found two badly levelled frets on the d string "13,14".Either get a fret sanding block (Stew Mac sells them from abroad) or use tape on the frets on question.
I don't really know all too much but I use Super Slinky strings on one of my guitars and Not Even Slinky's on the other, they seem to work real well.Can you be specific of what your maximum price is and what purpose you're trying to fill with the amp? Certain amps are better at certain styles and volumes.
Another question, I'm getting a new amp soon, and it can't be too expensive, so I want something that can do a fair bit but also looks nifty.
Is the Orange PiX Crush 20LDX a good bet? It even has a few built in effects, etc
Oh wait, you already posted one, still recommend it?It's great for a thrash sound.
3 posts of pure doom.
Can you be specific of what your maximum price is and what purpose you're trying to fill with the amp? Certain amps are better at certain styles and volumes.
They only ever sold 1000 of them, in the whole world.Oh wait, you already posted one, still recommend it?It's great for a thrash sound.
3 posts of pure doom.
Really, you can't get a pedal with great variety of tone, other than maybe the Blackstar Gus. G Signature model, which has a nice variety of high gain sounds.
For more sort of Stoner and sludgy styles go steal a bass amp from a friend. That's how Kyuss did it.
Do you know any good ones around or under £150?The Boss Metal Zone is pretty good. The advantages of the two I suggested is that they are tube pedals which generally sound nicer.
My truss rod doesn't have a "slot" for an alan key or screwdriver.Also how do I know if my neck is too bent? (guessing it's a noob question.)Generally just looking down the neck to see what angle it is in comparison to the body, or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHM3h4NOsMk# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHM3h4NOsMk#)
Use the method covered in the later half of this vid.
Nah, Line 6's suck. Unlike your guitar they aren't customizable and are infamously rubbish. Ask politely and calmly explain and hope your convincing voice works.Would the amp really matter if i had a distortion pedal through the clean setting?
Also, a great amp is far more key to your sound than a great guitar. I could play a Crafter Cruiser through an ENGL Fireball and it would sound awesome.
Usually there's some sort of cover you have to remove.My truss rod doesn't have a "slot" for an alan key or screwdriver.Also how do I know if my neck is too bent? (guessing it's a noob question.)Generally just looking down the neck to see what angle it is in comparison to the body, or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHM3h4NOsMk# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHM3h4NOsMk#)
Use the method covered in the later half of this vid.
Zakk sucks anyway. Go get some proper strings rather than signature strings.Nice.
Worth noting, today I held Steve Vai's first ever signature 6 string; the one he used for 15 odd years, the one he himself owned.
Think i should just re-string the whole thing? Waste of my ducking money...Played it acoustically for about 30 seconds. Was out of tune, considered re-tuning it :P
Also, did you get to play the guitar?
You should have.Think i should just re-string the whole thing? Waste of my ducking money...Played it acoustically for about 30 seconds. Was out of tune, considered re-tuning it :P
Also, did you get to play the guitar?
Go get some proper dunlop strings.
Getting the heaviest gauge strings doesn't make you clever. It makes it very hard to play fast on the upper frets unless you downtune to C.Well atm im playing everything in c, so thats alright I guess.
I just use ernie ball superslinkys.Good for shredding.
I don't go as thin as super slinkys personally.That's because you play in like D half the time since DT decided to downtune on their newer albums.
Exactlement, well, first part at least.I don't go as thin as super slinkys personally.That's because you play in like D half the time since DT decided to downtune on their newer albums.
Oh well.Exactlement, well, first part at least.I don't go as thin as super slinkys personally.That's because you play in like D half the time since DT decided to downtune on their newer albums.
Not a bad idea.I looked them up, they sound good but I only have a 3-way selector and the D-activators have two combinations for each pickup (five in total).I'll only get a bridge one as I never use the neck pickup.
Di Marzio D-Activator Xs kick ass, so I'd recommend them. Boss Metal Zone Distortion is a great distortion pedal, but even better for thrash tones is the Blackstar HT Dist X. Brilliant pedal.
That's fine.Not a bad idea.I looked them up, they sound good but I only have a 3-way selector and the D-activators have two combinations for each pickup (five in total).I'll only get a bridge one as I never use the neck pickup.
Di Marzio D-Activator Xs kick ass, so I'd recommend them. Boss Metal Zone Distortion is a great distortion pedal, but even better for thrash tones is the Blackstar HT Dist X. Brilliant pedal.
Tolerance?How much output they can take.
Never heard of that pickup. I'm going to google it tomorrow :PA Mesa Boogie Mark V with an overdrive pedal like a tube screamer rips, but that costs a lot.
Seeing how I've been slowly growing unhappy of my amp's tone possibilities, and how I'm constantly fiddling with the contour knob without finding a good balance (everything else is pretty much perfect IMO), I'm probably going to get a new amp after I get the guitar. But I can't seem to find a decent tone with any of the amps I've tried out at stores.
I've watched lots of videos and right now I'm kind of leaning towards the Lee Jackson GP-1000 preamp, which I think was discontinued (coincidently it's the very same preamp my fav player used until about 7 years ago), so am I just looking forward something near-impossible? xD
I don't know anything about poweramps though.
Hello again! Afraid I need more advice ;DHmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
My dad has ordered me the Vox VT40+ for Christmas, however my mum has suggested buying me a new guitar - so, what would people recommend for me around the £200-250 mark?
(To confirm, I play alt rock/metal/punk/pop-punk, and am fed up of the Strat/SG/Les Paul shape (apart from an Epiphone black Les Paul I saw... very nice.) but quite like Telecasters/Jaguars/Explorers. You know, something different.)
So you wouldn't recommend a Squier or Epiphone within that price range?Nah, really there is no point in getting a beginner guitar then getting a guitar that is only slightly better; you are better off either waiting till you can get a higher range Epiphone explorer or V or replacing bits on your current guitar.
Anyway, this is a pretty cool and versatile Les Paul that you may want to check out:
http://www.epiphone.com/Products/Les-Paul/Goth-Les-Paul-Studio.aspx (http://www.epiphone.com/Products/Les-Paul/Goth-Les-Paul-Studio.aspx)
Can't see much wrong with your guitar, unless it's made of plywood or something:P
Lol you can sit down with any V. You just need to have it classical guitar style, with the lower spike going between your legs.I went back to the guitar shop last week, and the flying v had the audio jack on the inner v , extremely dumb design.
Trems are fine once your used to them.
Anyway, this is a pretty cool and versatile Les Paul that you may want to check out:
http://www.epiphone.com/Products/Les-Paul/Goth-Les-Paul-Studio.aspx (http://www.epiphone.com/Products/Les-Paul/Goth-Les-Paul-Studio.aspx)
Craaig. You play that guitar LIKE A BOSS.He's been playing another guitar for a while so I can't see him being away any longer because of it.
I just hope it doesnt keep you away from GTM D:
I was given a blackstar dist-x for my birthday, it's epic.Treble/High-10
Any reccommended settings for thrash?
Is that for the pedal or for the amp?Pedal.
I do that occasionally, especially with lower tunings.Treble/High-10Smiley EQ's everywhere...
Middle-4
Bass-8
Am I the only one who sets his Mids to 10?
I wasn't pressing hard enough.Why does my tapping sound so bad through any amplifier?I think so. If your tapping motion is correct you probably need to improve muting - my left hand fingers naturally mute the higher strings due to the way I fret notes, the problem for me is muting the lower strings with the right hand. I pretty much try to palm mute in an opposite right wrist angle for this :P Same with sweep picking, which I don't feel motivated to develop anymore for some reason...
Is their a technique that i'm just not doing properly?
I'm not sure if this should go here, but I guess it should.Don't ask me, I suck at sweeping!
I don't really know why, but I've been practicing 3-string sweep picking lately. I can't seem to perform it cleanly no matter how much I focus nor how slowly I begin each "session".
A few minutes ago I noticed my muting technique is correct for the higher strings, and instead, the noise's coming from the lower strings scratching against my hand (the palm muting side), which is also why I only seem to hear that over around 150bpm... What am I supposed to do here? (aside from giving up, of course).
I'm not sure if this should go here, but I guess it should.When you go faster things get sloppy (as always with guitar playing) build up slowly, and try a metronome
I don't really know why, but I've been practicing 3-string sweep picking lately. I can't seem to perform it cleanly no matter how much I focus nor how slowly I begin each "session".
A few minutes ago I noticed my muting technique is correct for the higher strings, and instead, the noise's coming from the lower strings scratching against my hand (the palm muting side), which is also why I only seem to hear that over around 150bpm... What am I supposed to do here? (aside from giving up, of course).
Seriously, I have the most imprecise lead technique ever, save for maybe tapping which I still suck donkey balls at because all I do is basic chromatic moves. I stick very strictly to Rhythm because I'm quite good at it.What do you mean by imprecise?
Just an inaccurate left hand. I'm dyspraxic so my hand eye co-ordination is pretty piss poor.Seriously, I have the most imprecise lead technique ever, save for maybe tapping which I still suck donkey balls at because all I do is basic chromatic moves. I stick very strictly to Rhythm because I'm quite good at it.What do you mean by imprecise?
Do they make a floating bridge version of the Elvira?Only a hard tail.
That would be amazing.
Those came on my guitar and are the ones I was given for christmas.It won't feel that different if you're going from 9-42's to 9-46's ,the reason I said "standard size" is because they're called regular slinkys (if you get Ernie Balls).I was given a set of standard size guitar strings for christmas, so i just restringed with them, and oh my god they're so loose in standard...What would standard be? Right now I have 9-42's, although the first string is missing. I was thinking of getting some 9-46's tomorrow, hopefully round cores... Oh, has anyone tried them?
Would using my current pedal as a preamp so i can run a different type of distortion pedal through it to refine the sound work? (No idea what i'm talking about,basically the blackstar lacks the amount of gain i want sometimes so i'm wondering if i could use another distortion pedal but still use the blackstar at the same time because the blackstar was expensive and i can't really take it back now...wooh gibberish)Grab yourself a Digitech Bad Monkey (cheap but good overdrive pedal) and try, I see no places to go wrong. You may also want to grab a noise gate (a simple Boss noise suppressor should do).
Awesome,i can get some sweet tones out of the pedal (amazing for Iron Maiden stuff*The Trooper*) but i just can't touch things like pantera and some low-tuned metals.Will test out those pedals as soon as i can.It definitley needs a noise gate though because aah mah gah da feedback my "humbuckers" churn out (my worst enemy is light fittings.)Would using my current pedal as a preamp so i can run a different type of distortion pedal through it to refine the sound work? (No idea what i'm talking about,basically the blackstar lacks the amount of gain i want sometimes so i'm wondering if i could use another distortion pedal but still use the blackstar at the same time because the blackstar was expensive and i can't really take it back now...wooh gibberish)Grab yourself a Digitech Bad Monkey (cheap but good overdrive pedal) and try, I see no places to go wrong. You may also want to grab a noise gate (a simple Boss noise suppressor should do).
What about instead of an overdrive pedal, another distortion pedal, would that work?Distortion pedals sounds less tight than overdrives when stacked over an already present distortion from the amp or a pedal.
I'm going to test out some overdrives on saturday with my Blackstar pedal.
I know what you mean, thicker gauges do feel much "tighter" but they are easier to bend in low tunings compared to standard.It won't feel that different if you're going from 9-42's to 9-46'sIt did. Last string set felt loose, the current one feels just right. Just counting the bottom strings.
Oh, and I ultimately decided for a 10-46 set while at the store, so any kind of bends and vibrato felt really horrible at first, but now I can almost tackle bends as wide as I could with 9's. I don't know now whether I should go 11's and then back to 10's or just go straight back to 9's.
Yeah I used to play in Drop C with 8's, the same set that was in the guitar when dad bought it xD and it was just ok, but now I seem to prefer thicker bottom strings.yeah Okami was pretty cool, had some control issues but was decent enough.
And I think you're pushing me towards 9-46's again.
Also I only just noticed Lupus' signature has Amaterasu on it.
Do you still recommend the DiMarzio D-activator-x pickups? Have you found an even better one?Seymour Duncan SH-6s, Bare Knuckle Aftermaths or Bare Knuckle Black Hawks.
I really want to find some place in England to try out that Elvira, or a Halberd.I'm not sure if they're in any shops, but I know they're available online.
But im struggling to find a place that has either. Anyone really lucky and has a seller nearby?
I've seen pictures of a white Elvira and it's haaaaawt. But I can't find an online seller for the white one. (If I do it will probably be my next guitar)Not sure about the white one, but the black one is totally Sabbath-y.