I agree. Currently produced amps may sound great, but what do you do when a circuit board craps out and the company doesn’t support the product once it is discontinued? Throw it out like an old tv?
I 100% agree. Less gain forces you to pick harder (actually making up for some gain) with more precision. Thus making you a better player through healthy practicing!
There is a interview with Pete.T on youtube where he is discussing the early days and the way there equipment was constantly needing to be boosted and made louder and he tell's that exact story about the marshalls and the full stack .At the same time Jimmi H. was also constantly coming in asking for similar stuff to be upgraded,so it was pete who helped develop the full stack but it was jimi pete and clapton who were constantly working with Jim.M to get what they needed from their marshall amps.
The starting with acoustic guitar myth, I think, is more about learning good habits with a super clean tone so when you inevitably switch to electric, you can be a cleaner, more technical player.
Yes.. You are 100% right. You should learn acoustic first. It will make you a better electric player learn a ton of chords snd scales. Within them hard chords. Finger picking. The reasons go on and on. I played metal over 30 yrs been playin acoustic for 5 yrs. Theirs so much i learned playin acoustic i missed out on them 30 yrs. If i only played acoustic first i been so much better. Lets face it electric pretty much a handful of chords. Got lame after 30 yrs. I just wish i played acoustic first.
You do realize you can play an electric without plugging in? I have played both acoustic and electric for around 40 years and I find this to not be true.
@@tomterry2662 If you only played a handful of chords after 30 years on electric, you did yourself a great injustice. I also grew up listening to metal in the 80s, but didn't limit myself to just playing power chords. Acoustic isn't the only way to learn to play clean or to learn more chords.
You can get the same effect of not masking your mistakes if you set your amplifier to the clean channel (or turn the gain to zero if it's a single channel amp).
I remember hearing Townshend tell the story about asking Jim Marshall to build him the 8X12 cabinet. Marshall replied that he could do it, but that Pete's roadies would end up hating him cause of how much it weighed. Pete dryly replied, something to the effect of, "They get paid……."
"Tonewood" That will go on as long as guitars are made of wood - and then they will argue carbon fiber vs metal vs acrylic vs ceramic vs no body at all (ie Gittler). EDITED: I love that you pinned that idiotic statement by a pinhead. Good on you mate.
Great video dude! The one that you talked about beginners playing an acoustic first, I was that guy growing up. Played acoustic till I was 15, bought my first electric off a guy I went to school with for $10. My family didn't have a lot of money at the time and thought it was just a phase I was going through. Well, the phase is still going on 46 years later lol!
i second this^ i think the main thing is you get what you pay for. the cheap birthday present guitar sounds like a good idea to grandma but if you cheap out on a guitar you will hate playing it, if you can play it at all
nobody sounds like stevie ray vaughn. they try but nobody does it like stevie. i can't tell one metal player from another because i just don't listen to it enough. same deal. i don't think you hear it.
I like his point on the acoustic vs electric for a first guitar. Let me say though, I started on a crappy acoustic. Luckily Nirvana had enough songs on acoustic to keep me interested. When I did finally get my hands on an electric, it made me have a great respect for the instrument. Same as when I finally got and amp, and when I finally got a distortion pedal. It made me respect them even more, and I carry that to this day.
top mounted jacks make building a pedal board sooo much easier to wire. That is part of the reason I went with all Strymon. If you can't get the sound you want out of the Strymon line then you haven't spent enough time trying.
Couple of my thoughts. 1. On the cable myth. The big thing on them is the shielding. Some cables use thinner braided shield, allowing slightly more RF to penetrate. Also, how that shielding is transfered in the connector ends is key as well. You see a bit more of the better materials and construction in the higher end...but still doesn't mean inexpensive ones can't. 2. On the Steve Vai, I am the same way with hearing him. However, on the Whitesnake album he did, when I first heard it. I was like...that's Steve...and that's Adrian. Only to find out Steve played all of it. Adrian had a broken hand or something like that when they recorded it. 3. On the delay pedals...analog or delay isn't as a big concern as much as what type of delay circuit is uses...ie water bucket circuit. Just my thoughts and opinions is all.
My favorite amp is a 1973 Peavey Classic. Cheap as dirt, and to me, after a speaker change, sounds wonderful. PCB.?pp6., although the pots, and jacks are not connected to the board. I also have several hand wired, and actual P2P amps. I brought my Peavey in to be repaired, and my blond Bandmaster in at the same time. Both for recaps. Guess which one was cheaper? The Fender cost 1/3rd the price of the Peavey to recapp. So, I agree, from a tone point of veiw, PCB is just as good, if not clearer that HW, but from a repair standpoint, HW is much simpler. From my limited experience. Thank You.
Absolutely great segment. Being a retired electronics engineer, I can tell you the gauges of the cable is the main difference. I use large cbi cables from the amp head to the cabinets .It makes for a cleaner transfer of current , thus more electrons flowing. I use the same cables from to loop my boards to the amps. I make my own cables to connect my pedals.
One observation I have about cables is that for me the price of the cable doesn't affect the tone much, if at all. What you do get with more expensive cables is, as mentioned, better quality construction. Personally I use the Lava Tightrope cable system, but it's because the cables are flexible and the type of connector allows you to plug them into jacks that many other cables would be impossible to plug into. They're also incredibly easy to make once you get the procedure down. They're sort of like the Evidence Audio SIS ones Dan from That Pedal Show uses when he builds boards.
When I started playing guitar in 1992 my parents could not afford the whole deal. So I got the electric without pedals or amp. Believe it or not it took me 2 years to plug that guitar into an amp. I might not be a great guitarist but I never gave up
When I was young, my parents bought me canned beans. Believe it on not, it was 3 years before they bought me a can opener. man!!! talk about the blues!
Electric guitar is actually easier to play for a beginner who lacks callouses. Thin electric necks help beginners with smaller hands. Building up strength by playing acoustic is productive, too. Maybe the best option is whatever will inspire the learner to keep playing. I hate to see a guitar sitting in a cupboard gathering dust...
Hell ya rock on man, I watched a video that Rob Chapman put out and he talked about a guy that he knew that played a electric guitar without an amp for a long time. I don't believe in gear shaming and rock what you got the biggest factor is your passion and work effort...and you showed that..much respect and good luck to you man
i had my electric plugged into a stereo within a day,plugged into the record input on a cassette player with record and play on(and pause pressed) if you unpress pause it records the distorted guitar......after 1-2 years i had a jcm800 100 watt head and 4x12" 1960a cab and a gibson les paul custom(got both for $1200)
I'm for the end of the video. Now I am a man that grew up with parents that hated Rock and Roll. My parents hated me playing guitar in the first place.They let me have an acoustic guitar to start out with. But when I was ready to start playing electric guitar,they said no way. I tried to explain to my dad that electric guitars are more easier to play and have more fret room.But you couldn't talk sense with him at all. All he thought I was out to do was make nothing but noise.But still on this day I believe electric guitars are easier to play then acoustic and I own one of both.
I use 16s tuned down on acoustic guitar, but I’ve gone done to 9s on electric guitar. Like BB King said:”Why are you working so hard?” I play Slide on a round necked Dobro with Resophonic guitar strings which only come as 16s in Australia.
Of course, one reason you can discount Brian May as the source of the full stack is he started using AC30s before he even joined Queen, and other than the Deacy, he sticks with them.
Part 2 Okay, thanks for sticking with me. The 2nd guitar was a Left Handed Hamer Flying V, all black with red touches (knobs, switches, etc.). I am a right-handed guitarist so you can imagine the fun I had with the volume knob, etc. It had a double-locking Floyd Rose and "Hamer" on the headstock ("Hamer" was also upside down). But the pick-ups were nothing short of wicked: Rick Derringer "Stealth" pick-ups! I had never heard of them before, but GWAD they were good. I honestly cannot think of any style of rock/blues (and I'm an old blues guy myself). If I ever found a set in real good condition I buy them in a minute if I had the funds available---no kidding, that good. The Hamer had a huge, heavy, V-shaped hard she'll case, and the only other one I ever seen I saw recently was $5,000+. So okay, maybe I got rid of it a few decades too soon, but what the hell, right? Sorry if I ran on, but your show got me thinking. Thanks☮ Mark Zuelch markziz60@yahoo.com
Another good thing about less gain is less feedback problems when trying to play a tight rhythm. I also notice the low strings distortion a lot faster than the high strings. The fact that I get plenty of chunk from a valvestate amplifier with the gain on 5 especially the avt150 head and the amp stays pretty much quiet if not low hiss.
Hey man; awesome video as usual. I actually experienced the last one when I learned to play. My uncle was an awesome guitar player, mostly played Iron Maiden kind of stuff and Iron Maiden has always been my favorite band so I really looked up to him. I had wanted to learn to play since I was old enough to listen to music and imagine myself playing with the band (around age 5), so when I finally got the courage to try (age 15), I asked him if he could help me learn. He was a les Paul player but he told me that the only way to learn was on a steel string acoustic and he bought me one and circled some chords in a book. That was all he did for me, he basically taught me to teach myself, which I'm grateful for. I hated the acoustic and I don't even own one today ten years later. But I really wanted to learn so I stuck it out. I think that it actually helped me as a player. But I totally see where you're coming from, if I hadn't wanted it so badly, I probably would never have learned. Anyway, sorry for the novel man. Ha. Thanks for the great uploads
One myth I wondered about was if you go over the top bar on a swing set you will turn inside out? This unfortunately for my friends Jimmy Howard it is true. He got over wild on a swing set and turned in to a pile of guts. Don't go swimming for an hour after you eat. Most of the kids did drowned. The coroner blamed the heavy lunch for the three deaths. He never asked if any of the children knew how to swim. Most inner city kid pre boys and girls club barely knew how to get water in their mouth. Forget swimmers in it. See you Wednesday and thank you.
That was the best explanation I've heard to tell people what guitar they should start out on. Thanks again, Robert. Your experience has helped me once again. I've been asked that question so much throughout my life from friends interested in learning guitar.
Pete does talk about the stack idea in his book. He says if i remember correctly, somewhat paraphrased of course, that he started stacking 2 of them on top of each other and would strap them together and thats how the stack supposedly started.
Me and my dad are similar on that front although I used an acoustic to show him I was willing to learn an instrument and he went and bought me a BC Rich Warbeast as my first guitar I played the hell out of it
LOVE your videos. Always spot-on. Btw, don't listen to that ignorant, belligerent fu*k who dissed you because of your size. I didn't realize you had to be a certain weight to be a good guitar player! He's obviously off his meds. Just one observation on your Acoustic v. Electric comments though, which I also thought were both accurate and honest-as always. I'm a rock drummer, but I think people start with acoustics for lots of good reasons. First, they're cheaper. Second, you don't need an amp, you can play them anywhere. And third, I think they give you a solid foundation in good guitar playing, regardless of style... they certainly strengthen and stretch your fingers. But I think people got this idea from the way OTHER artists usually begin their careers. For example, nearly every great pianist I know started out playing classical piano to learn good technique and how to read, then transferred to electric or jazz or whatever, later. Same with professional dancers. Most of the truly great ones started in ballet to master the foundation and the basics. And finally, even the world's best actors usually begin doing live plays (especially Shakespeare), then eventually move on to television and film, wisdom being, if you can do this kind of acting, you can do ANYTHING. Just my two cents.
Firstime watcher, man you won yourself a fan here. "Vintage gear sounds better, BEeeeeep" wrongo. You said it! Thank you for being one of the few humble/honest people to say it. Keep it up love the content.
04:55 I think I read an interview with Jim Marshall years ago, where he did confirm this story. Only alteration was that Pete's roadies objected to the cartage of it & why Pete got Jim to make 2 4x12 cabinets instead.
On cords: Had a summer gig years ago with an organ trio playing Elks and Moose lodges and the organ player was still using cords he bought in the 1960’s, lol. No one was allowed to touch them as we amusingly/admiringly watched him gingerly wrap them back up! I have only splurged on a cable once, a Monster coiled white one (like Hendrix) I saw hanging on the wall at GC. It’s served me well and I use it at every gig, and often get comments at gigs about it, which is pretty cool.
I would love to get one of those cables. I'll have to check it out. I have one unique cable if you want to call it that. It has a yellow button on each end of the cable on the jack. If you press it, it kills the signal to the amp. I just push the button, unplug it, and then plug it into the next guitar, then press the button again, and I'm off to the races again, no horrendous noise, and it's fast. I bet many others have something similar, I'm sure its probably a common thing.
There are many reasons that PCB amps can be less rugged than hand wired amps. If done right PCB can be good. Such as remote mounted tubes and pots, over time these things mounted on the PCB can cause problems.
One thing I wanted to mention about the history of gain, and this may sound very simplistic, but it makes sense. From the recording POV, things can be very rushed. Bands have only so much time to knock out a record. So what they do to achieve the right tone in the studio will often surprise those who have never been in a studio environment. I've only recorded demos but from that I learned how different the studio is from playing live. Also, I watched way more professional artist lay down tracks and it was a revelation. The studio is such a different environment that you really can't compare it to a live situation. Bands use surprisingly little overdrive. This makes it easier to mix multiple tracks. With metal you need a big, thick sound. But you don't want mud. if you have too much mud you can't even hear a major to minor shift and it will create an unpleasant dissonance. Mustaine is simply masterful in the studio. He understands guitar tone like few others. This is why Peace Sells and Rust in Peace are so monumental in the annals of great guitar tone. I also like that he stuck mostly with Marshalls. He didn't go off over the edge with gain like Metallica and other bands did. Even on Justice which is one of Metallica's clearest sounding albums when it comes to guitar it is still way too hairy. Also, you know the story about mixing out Jason's bass. I'm not going to go anymore into that but it was a genuine asshat move on the part of Lars. In a good mix everything must stand in its proper place, siloed but mixable. I love the tone of Ellefson's bass on Peace Sells. It's so clear and powerful. As I was saying earlier, things can be very rushed in the studio. For expediency you can go one of two ways. Crank the gain all the way up and let things be what they will. The reason this is not done is for the reasons stated. Producers and sound engineers deal with distorted guitar tracks all day long, every day. It's their job. They know what works, what doesn't, and why. Now, playing live you always end up using more gain, more of everything. You use higher volume and higher resonant peaks, bigger lows, etc. Live is about taking the drama of the recording and playing it for a live audience, recreating what you can. Bands NEVER sound the same live on the album, not even a band like Rush, Dream Theatre or Return to Forever. You can only get so close. Live music is about the live experience. This means you understand that the control of the studio situation goes out the window. If you set the gain on 3 on a record, then live you might even have it ono 7 or 8. Some go to ten, and yes, some go to 11.
in the guitar store where I purchase my gear there was an add of marshall telling the story,except it said it was the road crew that became upset with it.
My favorite myth is (I keep hearing it from parents who are afraid to throw money at their kid's new hobby) that at first a cheap, lousy guitar will do "and then if he/she progresses well" they will get a better one. While cheap doesn't necessarily mean bad, there is a correlation, you can't expect a $100 guitar to be good. And when it's not good, you don't feel like playing it, you're not practicing, you're not progressing. It sounds bad, it feels bad. Even worse: if the neck is bad, uncomfortable to play, you learn a bunch of bad positions and techniques. I'm not saying that the first guitar of a kid who's just starting off should be a $1800 pro instrument. But it has to be decent.
As is widely recognised now luckily $100 starter guitar will be reasonable. Heck the Harley Bentons and Wolf guitars aren't going to break the bank and they're much less than $500
I sorta cheated. I started playing in mid 70's and bought a hardtail Strat as my first guitar. If you follow R Neilson C Trick he always says in late 60's early 70's you could get good guitars for $300. Like I did. The only cheap guitars I ever bought are now with a A/E 12 string and a A/ E 6 string. $ 129 for 12 string and $83 for the 6 string. And I use both in my worship band. For the money both are great.
@@sparkyguitar0058 you were lucky to live in a country where stuff was available. Here in Romania I started by making my own pickup from my grandmother's turntable and gluing it on my lousy acoustic, wiring it into the same grandmother's radio's amplifier. Later I had someone put together a distortion pedal following instructions from a magazine. In 1992 a Strat appeared in the window of a pawn shop. Me and my friends went there almost every day just to look at it. The price was about 8 times the average monthly wages here. Try explaining that to today's kids who can walk into a guitar shop and pick the instrument that they want, many of those quite affordable...
@@ferencercseyravasz7301 Ya I hear you. As a matter of fact just watched some rich kid in a Guiter Center go pick out a $2000 Les Paul for daddy to buy. Kid doesn't even know how to play. As I answer this my $83 guitar is on my lap so I practice my worship songs for Sunday. I wonder when that kid last picked up that guitar to play. Maybe he took lessons and actually loves his guitar. Or realisticly it's already sold off for new video games. The way we learned you gotta love your guitar EVERYDAY. For me I'll lose the ability to remember so many songs while trying to learn new 1's.
@@sparkyguitar0058 I'm not saying that everyone should start with the cheapest option, quite opposite, even a first guitar has to be decent. But obviously a $2000 instrument for a kid is way over the top. As for me, I played that lousy guitar - to use a quote by Bryan Adams - till my fingers bled. And it was the first stretch of the road that took me from Heavy Metal through Conservatory to a PhD in Musicology and a life that brought me joy and happiness. So yeah, it is possible...
I started on a Hofner bass, & then switched to 6 string... Have never had the desire to play an acoustic guitar, I had a go at playing one a few years ago, absolutely horrendous! I might as well tried to play a shovel...
Yeah I have a Boss TU-3 tuner on my board just to have one pedal thats not true-bypass. Use to be a TU-2 for about 20+ years until recently when I bought the new model, just for the screen being brighter and easier to see. My TU-2 is still being used and works 100%. Boss pedals for me have NEVER failed and ive owned quite a few thru out the years and some of them survived festival season's being caught in the rain. ;-) Im not a huge fan of the top mounted jacks. But i do have two pedals that have them in my simple 6 pedal setup I use now. I started guitar on an electric and im glad I did because it had low action and made me want to play the guitar. Im not saying all acoustics are hard to play, but a lot of the cheaper acoustics at the time I was starting to learn had seriously high action and I prob would of quit trying to learn the guitar if id had a high action guitar to begin with. I got into the acoustic about 1 year into learning and I got an Ovation and I still use Ovations today and that made switching between acoustic and electric very easy. I do use and own other acoustics today, but the electric i began with that had low action and the Ovation (also with low action) were great guitars that didnt frustrate the learner right off the bat. These days the Ovations that are cheaper have high action so its not like it use to be and they are starting to become hard to even find in stores. But the guitars priced in the low low end these days are amazing compared to what was available when I started. I cant really say that learning on an acoustic first is better or not, really depends on the person. I def agree that some of the playing you hear is def in the persons hands. When I was young I couldnt hear or didnt pay attention to the fine details in certain guitar players like I do today and now when I hear someone say cover a song Im really paying attention to all the little details that made the original song by the original artist so unique. You hear a lot of guitar players who can play very well, but there is no emotion of feeling in those notes. I appreciate hearing the emotion and detail to the notes being played. A lot of that is in the hands obviously.
On starting on an acoustic, I agree with you, I personally wish I never had to go thru that probation myself, but in hindsight, I will concede that starting out on an acoustic has its merit. Firstly, whether it's on an acoustic or an electric, the base remains the base. Chords, arpeggios, scale, picking, hand dexterity, strength and endurance, coordination with both hands, what have you. That's something you have to go thru before learning Master of Puppets. Now, I am, like you are, convinced that starting on an acoustic will not do anything for you. However. Not every child's desires ought to be fulfilled in life. Sometimes, they need to earn it. If the promise of buying an electric conditional to reaching a certain level on an acoustic is not a strong enough motivation, that the acoustic ends up in a corner of the bed room, you know, maybe that child never deserved an electric in the first place. The mistake I've seen however is having a child starting on a über cheap acoustic with ridiculously high action and hardly any radius on tiny frets.
With the Pete Townsend story, what I had heard was he was responsible for the SLP i.e. 100W amp. I haven’t heard the story about the first full stack. He kept going back to Jim Marshall saying the amps weren’t loud enough and he needed more power behind them, causing Jim Marshall to double the power amp thus creating the 100W SLP. Please correct me if that is not the case. Please and Thank You.
Great vid!!!! I use to play my acoustic to EVERYTHING that came on the radio in the late 70's. When I did go to electric, barre chords were so much easier. And my hands were stronger!! So I think a kid should start with acoustic. Seen too many have a nice stater electric, and lose interest quickly.
Actually, Billy Gibbons used 7's when he first switched to light guage strings. Then moved to 8's. There is an interview near the end of the video where he plays La Grange at Darryl Hall's house. In that video he explains how and why he changed to light guage strings. HINT: BB King was involved, by asking him why he was working so hard. Then suggested he switch to lighter guage strings. There is more to the story, if you search TH-cam using both Darryl Hall's name and Billy Gibbon's name it should come up. Then scan to about 5:41 in the video.
After 40yrs as a player and tech,your cable thing is correct i.m.o.They pretty much depend on how well the ends are made off.High end(usually)have better soldering and well fitted jacks.Though as you said,I also have cables,low end but still working after decades.But as a player,I want the best cables and a full set of all sizes in my gig bag,
You're totally right about gain. These days we have all the gain in the world even on very affordable budget amps. Some of the most classic metal albums of all time were recorded with far less gain than most would imagine. It's impossible to mix multiple ultra-high gain tracks. Mustaine is very smart when it comes to using gain. Peace Sells, Rust in Peace and Countdown to Extinction have some great tones.
I used to have a vintage jcm 800 100w amp head I got someone to take the negative feedback loop out of it, great sound but too loud. I wound up selling it to guitar center..
“Tone is in the hands” is my favorite myth. People like to say that then go out and buy every piece of signature gear they can so they can sound like whoever. You can’t make this stuff up lol.
I just watched my first NON-gear video of yours and Damm you are good you definitely have the top-tier quality channel right now Ron honest thank you for the entertainment Steve P
As a loooooooooong time metal guy, your dead on. We dial the gain back to preserve tonality. And ur right about slayer and megadeth. Good ear bro. I like your vids. Keep up the good work man!!!!!
I know the Pete Townsend story is true because, I asked Jim Marshall about it at a trade show. He had to make slanted top cabs because the straight cabs on top tended to be a bit unbalanced.
Speaking of cabinets, many years ago 2 of my buddies had the opportunity to each buy a 9x12 cabinet (and each speaker was ported ... just for your information) from the band Manowar. Those cabs were monsters !!! Then shortly after that, Manowar decided to go back out on tour. Instead of buying them back from my friends, they rented them. And that's the last thing I ever heard about those cabs, this was back in the early 90's ♫♫♪♫ :D
Robert, Metal nut vs bone nut? zero fret vs standard setup? nitro vs poly finish insofar as tone? Does tone wood really matter considering many guitarists use pedals anyway.
I'm an electrical engineer and the one thing I'll say in regards to cheap cables is I've cut a few Chinese made ones open or opened the end to inspect the filament only to find copper clad aluminum instead of pure copper. CCA isn't nearly as conductive. That's not to say a more expensive cable couldn't be CCA but I've never opened a major brand cable like Fender, Boss, GLS, Hosa etc. only to find CCA instead of pure copper.
There's something of an interesting history behind the full-stack, crazy loud amplifier that probably has nothing to do with Pete Townsend personally (although The Who did perform during that time, and they might have been the ones to commission the 8×12). At some point in that era, concert-goers started doing something that was simultaneously fun and *really* annoying for the musicians - they started screaming. Constantly. This was before amplifiers would get hooked up to the PA, so there was a problem - you needed a lot of volume to be heard over hundreds (sometimes thousands) of people screaming their heads off, volume you just couldn't get with only 2 speakers. Bands literally got into a loudness war with their own fans, and at some point someone went up to amp manufacturers asking if they could make a matching amp and 8×12 cabinet - after which it went pretty much how you described, they ran into problems with being unable to lift a wooden cabinet with 8 heavy speakers in it so they sub-divided and started making stackable 4×12 cabinets. There was also a way to effectively daisy-chain multiple amplifiers together (provided they all had multiple input jacks) so they'd all amplify the same guitar signal. That was actually done sometimes for huge outdoor concerts - yes, the wall of Marshall amps Jimi Hendrix used at Woodstock was all real, and yes it was entirely necessary at that time.
You were right on about Acoustic and Electric guitars are totally different animals. I started on Electric back in the 80s but in the last few years I play mostly acoustic. If I get an electric gig, I have practice on an electric to get my chops back.
copper quality and purity can change, but I agree with you, copper is basically copper and the important thing is the quality of the rubber used and the jack and soldering.
Excellent point about true bypass pedals; I use cables no longer than 6 ' because after 10 ' the signal degrades. I use 6 ' cables to compensate for all of the patch cables as I usually run everything straight into the amp. P. S. I do think the story about Pete T. is true---Ive heard that same story,but with just Pete T. though,it could have been any one of the guitarist mentioned
Robert: First time to your channel. I think you are "spot on" in your analysis. I do have a thought about premium cables. If you are in a "recording studio setting", and I'm NOT referring to guitar cables, but to mic, speaker, and interface cables, then you may want a mid range to premium cable to cut background noise. Even my Ethernet cables have been upgraded to cat 7 plenum cables. There is shielding to stop light fixture noise and cross talk. I'm not saying everything has to be Mogami, but not the cheap, unshielded, version. But within 20 feet of an amp, altogether different.
SRV didn't have 0.13 gauge set of strings, they were a custom set with the top and low (E) strings 0.13 and 0.58 the middle ones were of a med set I believe it was (B)0.15 (G)0.19p (D)0.28 and (A)0.38. I put this on my old Fender A.S. with Texas Special P/Us and it's pretty damn close to his tone.That G and b string squeal is definitely there if you have the finger strength. I love it!
The whole vintage gear sounds better myth started in the early 70's. Gibson and Fender were producing very poor quality intruments (with some exceptions) compared to the stuff they made in the 50's and early 60's. It didn't take the pro's long to figure that out. Today, we live in gear heaven. New gear is so well made. Even low end stuff can be great. So vintage gear does not hold the same advantage it did back when this myth started.
I played cello before picking up a bass guitar... Once i got a bass and then subsequently an electric guitar i vastly enjoyed each of the instruments more aince i was able to cross many different genres and playing techniques. My parents didnt have much money to buy me a bass guitar when i was young so the school orchestra was what i had to do. I really wanted to just play music in general.
You're right about most of it, but I gotta call bullshit on people sounding just like SRV. There are people that are clearly influenced by him, but you can ALWAYS tell the difference.
Cables??? I like the monster Rock but the lower priced cables sound the same. The higher priced cables are probably not going to fail during a show. Your opinions are very well said....
PCB stands for Printed Circuit Board. if the beginner is a young, small child a classical guitar might be the right choice because the strings are easier on the fingers. I really struggled on a steel string acoustic when I was 8 y/o. got a 3/4 size electric for my 9th Bday. much more comfortable.
I never liked heavy gauge or tuning down lower than D, and that was only for a couple songs in a set. My preferred gauge is 9 and occasionally 10-46. Otherwise, 9 is where it's at. I have also used 8s. Frank Marino uses 7s with unwound D strings.
I agree with most of what you say in this video. I think comparisons where you say something is "better" is mostly dependent on opinion and you covered this point as well. Subbed!
You need more fingers! Here's another myth, the guy who owns all the expensive stuff or the one who owns the most gear is a better player. How many times have you gone to a gig where the one who is playing the $4000 PRS is chugging power chords all night while the guitarist with a modified Epiphone, Joyo pedals, and a budget amp is killing it? Too many guitarists judge that book by its cover.
You are correct, Jim! The best guitar players always seem to be using serviceable gear that they’ve been beating the hell out of forever and they’ll never get rid of it because they love it. Many players who have the money to play all of the $5000 Les Pauls that they want always seem to be average at best. Though I do admire their appreciation for high-end gear.
I am that guy with Gibson Standard LP who barely can play anything beyond power chords. But I love it and it inspires me to play and practice much more than my previous cheap guitar. Anyway gear cost and playing skills are usually not connected at all. It is just that professionals tend to spend more on what they work with.
Another myth is whammy guitars are a crutch. While using a whammy too much is not cool, it's just another tool. My number one reason for liking Floyd Rose bridges is tuning stability. I like your channel. You know what you're talking about.
Completely agree with the last point about acoustic guitars, also electric guitars are a lot more beginner friendly, e.g just play it unplugged and check the volume level vs the standard dreadnought everyone gets dumped with.
I agreed with every thing you have to say. I subscribe to many , but I look forward to your opinion the most. THANKS for helping me set up my first strat. Rock on Brother.
It is a different style of music but Scotty Anderson has a very distinct style and tone. Thanks for sharing. Vintage gear was in the developmental phase of music gear. Just food for thought. Stay Safe and be blessed
Try a Weber speaker some day and you will hear even more articulation. It completely changed how I could hear what I was playing. Best articulation, IMO. Also, prefer hemp cones because longer fibers allow the speaker to sing instead of just reproduce the sound. As usual, love your videos, Robert.
Hi Robert, just thought I'd comment on is amps that are point to point wired. I personally own a few amps, one in particular, the Mesa Tremoverb amp combo. If you ask any tech about working on these kinds of amps, they can be a nightmare to repair and trouble shoot. Check the Guitologist on TH-cam. He does a video on repairing a Mesa Boogie circuit board. He talks about what a horror show it is to work on. Mesa amps have a printed type circuit board where they have a million relay switches and transistors in these amps that are hell to trouble shoot. Amps that are point to point wired are very easy to change out caps and resistors that may go bad. Mesa amps with a PCB circuit have to have the entire board taken out to work on it. You can also run the risk of destroying traces on these boards. So from a repairing stand point, the point to point wired amps are easier to repair for me personally. I've repaired my own Marshall and Vox AC30 amp and Blackface Bandmaster Fender amp. All of these are point to point wired. The Mesa Boogie Tremoverb amp after countless techs working on it, I finally had to send it back to Mesa themselves in Petaluma, California for repair. And when they got it , they asked me who the bloody hell worked on this amp. I replied, one of your supposed service centre techs. They were blown away, because they had botched up the amp terribly. The amp, I must say now plays very well. It did cost me a king's ransome to get the amp fixed and sent back to Canada. Anyway, just my 2 cents on amps.
@9:48 Truth! I've often said that if you wanna know how spoiled you've gotten with your Les Paul and your Boogie, go plug a stock Tele straight into a Champ. I say this because that's EXACTLY what happened to me. LOL
Also you'd be surprised but Richie Blackmore and Big Jim Sullivan was also in with Pete,cause 4 x10 cabs were not big enough to handle the 100+ watts these were putting out. 👍
#1 - Agree! #2 - I prefer top mounted just for neatness... #3 - I could believe it - especially with the Who. #4 - depends on what you consider 'cheap'. Really cheap can be poor - especially deteriorate over time because of the jack construction but you can buy a 'cheap' cable comparatively that will be as good as a very expensive cable. #5 - High gain is not needed for Metal and it will definitely surprise some if they saw how much gain Metal players use. #6 - More gain does not lead to heavier tone - its more forgiving but less articulate and looser. Tuning (like a drop D) and playing style can give a heavier tone. #7 - Steve Vai sounds like Steve Vai because of his set up. Some things, like his vibrato are 'unique' because of his technique, but its their style and 'technique' but their tone is their gear. #8 - Vintage doesn't sound 'better', its perhaps 'different' and different materials were used that can't be used today. It may also be down to the fact that you grew up listening to a specific sound and that resonates with you. #9 - see #6 - drop tuning - especially on the 'E' string sounds 'heavier' because its 'deeper' #10 - String gauge doesn't matter - its about the feel to the guitarists. Fatter tones may well be more to how the amp is set and the players preference. #11 - Hand-wired Amps are nothing more than a placebo, a status symbol etc. We all know a Kemper can sound exactly like a hand wired boutique amp just like it can sound like a 5150, JCM800 etc too. Maybe don't get the same smell as warm tubes and certainly doesn't look as cool as plugging into an Amp... #12 - Analogue vs Digital delay is a matter of preference and each has its place depending on what you want to achieve. Totally agree with you on that. #13 - A beginner should start with the Guitar that they want to play. Its not going to help any Rock guitarist to learn on an Acoustic and may even put them off from playing/practicing. Its a lot harder to play an acoustic steel strung and will hurt a lot more too... Its much better to get the instrument that will inspire the beginner, make them want to pick it up and play and an instrument that is of a reasonable quality because they won't want to learn if its constantly out of tune, poorly set-up without the skills/knowledge to set it up etc. Also need a 'decent' amp as it can be discouraging if the sound coming out is poor too - in other words, buy from a music store - even 2nd hand if need be and get advice rather than buy a cheap 'starter' set from Amazon...
I thought your playing sounded great thru both the higher gain and decreased gain settings. With the gain a bit lower it sounded better. Nothing against hi gain but lowering the distortion/overdrive a bit(while still qualifying as metal)sounds the best to me ---just my opinion. In lower gain mistakes are heard a lot easier,and it's more articulate as you mentioned. I like the tone of lower gain because it seems as up the gain the darker my tone becomes,in most situations. Informative video.🎸👍 When I started on electric I played .013 gauge strings,which in my opinion sound great,if not the best. Starting out on those in standard tuning sure made string bending a breeze after switching to 10s and 9s. A tip for the player wanting the SRV tone : it isn't necessary to play 13s. Get a set of 10s with a WOUND g string. The wound g is the key. If you have a Fender or Fender type amp,set the treble at 5 bass 8--10 midrange at 0. Stevie hated midrange. Awesome video. I don't have 'magic hands' ha ha. If I have that "nasally" tone,I'm playing a Strat,if my tone is strong and full of treble,I'm playing my Tele. If I have a fat tone....you get it. LOL Informative 👍🎸
The mention of treble/clarity loss across multiple true bypass stompboxes and/or additional dozen(s) of feet of cable length reminded me of something that's puzzled me for probably a couple decades now. Remember George L. cables? Back around the turn of the century, hardly anyone had a bad word to say about them, and just about as universally as they were hyped and praised back then, they're considered nothing more than a silly fad people bought into because of the hype. I'm not a "fanboy" by any means. I do think if they're assembled carefully they're not as unreliable as some people make them sound, but it's enough of a pain to get assembly right, I think they should have just used solder-on ends. I also find the thinner cable to be more prone to tangling than typical instrument cables when using a longer run to the guitar. But here's what gets me. The 20ish foot cable I made back in the day has blown away every other cable I've tested it against in clarity and preventing the loss of treble. And I've compared it to a bunch of different cables, even much shorter ones, and I've surprised quite a few people with how obvious and drastic the difference is by asking them to confirm what I'm hearing. When going to any other cable from a George L. it sounds like the tone control got rolled back a hair, it's so obvious. Someone back then told me that the cable is a type of coax and that's what prevents the attenuation of treble. It's been a while since I've had one apart, but I seem to recall a similarity to coax, but I'm thinking "normal" instrument cables aren't that different except usually a larger diameter than George L. cable. I may have to go on a research mission to get to the bottom of this, because it seems you should be able to get the best of both worlds by using George L. cable with solder-on ends (and I've wondered if running it through some aquarium air tubing might reduce the tendency to tangle, for use as a guitar cable), or the same type of cable, if George L. cable isn't made/sold any more. If anyone can explain what makes George L. cables so much better at preserving treble and even more so, why all other cables seem to be inferior in that respect, I'd sure appreciate it.
Whether it is video or audio devices add to the degradation of signal. Pedals would have to rebuild what is loss to keep the degradation to a minimal. Top mounted Jack's really is a misnomer since it is actually on the part that is usually on the end under your toes.
I say yes and no for lower tuning makes for a heavier tone. 9s tuned to E 440 then the same 9's tuned to D 430 the strings get all floppy/buzz. 10's at D 430 have roughly the same tension/feel as 9's @ E 440. And they are not floppy, cleans/tightens the sound back up. Might not be so much of a issue on a solid bridge. But on my Floyd Rose it does. A case can be made.
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The main benefit to handwired amps is the fact that they can be much easier to repair than PCB amps when a component fails.
I agree. Currently produced amps may sound great, but what do you do when a circuit board craps out and the company doesn’t support the product once it is discontinued? Throw it out like an old tv?
This is true. They also are easier to mod.
Hand wired also have better chassis.. Circuit boards are cheap. . you can burn holes in them with solder gun..
agreed
Repairing components on PCB boards is challenging and requires practice. It definitely can be done.
The cable one get hilarious when you go to the audiophile community.
I 100% agree. Less gain forces you to pick harder (actually making up for some gain) with more precision. Thus making you a better player through healthy practicing!
There is a interview with Pete.T on youtube where he is discussing the early days and the way there equipment was constantly needing to be boosted and made louder and he tell's that exact story about the marshalls and the full stack .At the same time Jimmi H. was also constantly coming in asking for similar stuff to be upgraded,so it was pete who helped develop the full stack but it was jimi pete and clapton who were constantly working with Jim.M to get what they needed from their marshall amps.
The starting with acoustic guitar myth, I think, is more about learning good habits with a super clean tone so when you inevitably switch to electric, you can be a cleaner, more technical player.
Yes.. You are 100% right. You should learn acoustic first. It will make you a better electric player learn a ton of chords snd scales. Within them hard chords. Finger picking. The reasons go on and on. I played metal over 30 yrs been playin acoustic for 5 yrs. Theirs so much i learned playin acoustic i missed out on them 30 yrs. If i only played acoustic first i been so much better. Lets face it electric pretty much a handful of chords. Got lame after 30 yrs. I just wish i played acoustic first.
You do realize you can play an electric without plugging in? I have played both acoustic and electric for around 40 years and I find this to not be true.
@@tomterry2662 If you only played a handful of chords after 30 years on electric, you did yourself a great injustice. I also grew up listening to metal in the 80s, but didn't limit myself to just playing power chords. Acoustic isn't the only way to learn to play clean or to learn more chords.
play an electric with out the amp at least when warming up it will make a difference, learn clean intonation with fingers then go .
You can get the same effect of not masking your mistakes if you set your amplifier to the clean channel (or turn the gain to zero if it's a single channel amp).
I remember hearing Townshend tell the story about asking Jim Marshall to build him the 8X12 cabinet. Marshall replied that he could do it, but that Pete's roadies would end up hating him cause of how much it weighed. Pete dryly replied, something to the effect of, "They get paid……."
"Tonewood" That will go on as long as guitars are made of wood - and then they will argue carbon fiber vs metal vs acrylic vs ceramic vs no body at all (ie Gittler).
EDITED: I love that you pinned that idiotic statement by a pinhead. Good on you mate.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
For the record, acrylic guitars sound like trash. But they look cool.
I put a set of Duncan Blackouts in my Acrylic Warlock and now it sounds great. 🤷🏻♂️
@@RobertWJackson yeah, it was probably the pickups on the one I played.
Great video dude! The one that you talked about beginners playing an acoustic first, I was that guy growing up. Played acoustic till I was 15, bought my first electric off a guy I went to school with for $10. My family didn't have a lot of money at the time and thought it was just a phase I was going through. Well, the phase is still going on 46 years later lol!
The "learn acoustic before you can play electric" attitude is exactly the reason I got discouraged and stopped playing for 7 or 8 years.
Many times the cheap acoustic has pretty high action and those guitars can barely be played by pros let alone beginners.
i second this^
i think the main thing is you get what you pay for. the cheap birthday present guitar sounds like a good idea to grandma but if you cheap out on a guitar you will hate playing it, if you can play it at all
Same. Thanks dad.
I play bass now.
nobody sounds like stevie ray vaughn. they try but nobody does it like stevie. i can't tell one metal player from another because i just don't listen to it enough. same deal. i don't think you hear it.
Amen brother.
I know this is an older video, but I can’t stand to see mean comments. The video was great Robert just like every video. Keep up the good work
Thanks buddy. 😉🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
best not to read comments then,or stop being an oversensitive woman
Robert, even though I'm strictly an acoustic player now days, I still appreciate any guitar gear talk. I learned a lot from this video!
The thing with high gain is; A, you can have a really fizzy and saturated gain or B, you can have a much tighter sound with less gain.
I like his point on the acoustic vs electric for a first guitar. Let me say though, I started on a crappy acoustic. Luckily Nirvana had enough songs on acoustic to keep me interested. When I did finally get my hands on an electric, it made me have a great respect for the instrument. Same as when I finally got and amp, and when I finally got a distortion pedal. It made me respect them even more, and I carry that to this day.
top mounted jacks make building a pedal board sooo much easier to wire. That is part of the reason I went with all Strymon. If you can't get the sound you want out of the Strymon line then you haven't spent enough time trying.
Couple of my thoughts.
1. On the cable myth. The big thing on them is the shielding. Some cables use thinner braided shield, allowing slightly more RF to penetrate. Also, how that shielding is transfered in the connector ends is key as well. You see a bit more of the better materials and construction in the higher end...but still doesn't mean inexpensive ones can't.
2. On the Steve Vai, I am the same way with hearing him. However, on the Whitesnake album he did, when I first heard it. I was like...that's Steve...and that's Adrian. Only to find out Steve played all of it. Adrian had a broken hand or something like that when they recorded it.
3. On the delay pedals...analog or delay isn't as a big concern as much as what type of delay circuit is uses...ie water bucket circuit.
Just my thoughts and opinions is all.
My favorite amp is a 1973 Peavey Classic. Cheap as dirt, and to me, after a speaker change, sounds wonderful. PCB.?pp6., although the pots, and jacks are not connected to the board. I also have several hand wired, and actual P2P amps. I brought my Peavey in to be repaired, and my blond Bandmaster in at the same time. Both for recaps. Guess which one was cheaper? The Fender cost 1/3rd the price of the Peavey to recapp. So, I agree, from a tone point of veiw, PCB is just as good, if not clearer that HW, but from a repair standpoint, HW is much simpler. From my limited experience. Thank You.
Absolutely great segment. Being a retired electronics engineer, I can tell you the gauges of the cable is the main difference. I use large cbi cables from the amp head to the cabinets .It makes for a cleaner transfer of current , thus more electrons flowing. I use the same cables from to loop my boards to the amps. I make my own cables to connect my pedals.
Great job dispelling the true bypass myth. It's best to have a mixture of true bypass and buffered bypass pedals.
One observation I have about cables is that for me the price of the cable doesn't affect the tone much, if at all. What you do get with more expensive cables is, as mentioned, better quality construction. Personally I use the Lava Tightrope cable system, but it's because the cables are flexible and the type of connector allows you to plug them into jacks that many other cables would be impossible to plug into. They're also incredibly easy to make once you get the procedure down. They're sort of like the Evidence Audio SIS ones Dan from That Pedal Show uses when he builds boards.
a bit of cork sniffing never hurt anyone
When I started playing guitar in 1992 my parents could not afford the whole deal. So I got the electric without pedals or amp. Believe it or not it took me 2 years to plug that guitar into an amp. I might not be a great guitarist but I never gave up
When I was young, my parents bought me canned beans. Believe it on not, it was 3 years before they bought me a can opener. man!!! talk about the blues!
Electric guitar is actually easier to play for a beginner who lacks callouses. Thin electric necks help beginners with smaller hands. Building up strength by playing acoustic is productive, too. Maybe the best option is whatever will inspire the learner to keep playing. I hate to see a guitar sitting in a cupboard gathering dust...
Hell ya rock on man, I watched a video that Rob Chapman put out and he talked about a guy that he knew that played a electric guitar without an amp for a long time. I don't believe in gear shaming and rock what you got the biggest factor is your passion and work effort...and you showed that..much respect and good luck to you man
i had my electric plugged into a stereo within a day,plugged into the record input on a cassette player with record and play on(and pause pressed) if you unpress pause it records the distorted guitar......after 1-2 years i had a jcm800 100 watt head and 4x12" 1960a cab and a gibson les paul custom(got both for $1200)
I'm for the end of the video. Now I am a man that grew up with parents that hated Rock and Roll. My parents hated me playing guitar in the first place.They let me have an acoustic guitar to start out with. But when I was ready to start playing electric guitar,they said no way. I tried to explain to my dad that electric guitars are more easier to play and have more fret room.But you couldn't talk sense with him at all. All he thought I was out to do was make nothing but noise.But still on this day I believe electric guitars are easier to play then acoustic and I own one of both.
i own 10+ of both,electric guitars are definitely easier when setup properly.
I use 16s tuned down on acoustic guitar, but I’ve gone done to 9s on electric guitar. Like BB King said:”Why are you working so hard?” I play Slide on a round necked Dobro with Resophonic guitar strings which only come as 16s in Australia.
Of course, one reason you can discount Brian May as the source of the full stack is he started using AC30s before he even joined Queen, and other than the Deacy, he sticks with them.
Part 2
Okay, thanks for sticking with me. The 2nd guitar was a Left Handed Hamer Flying V, all black with red touches (knobs, switches, etc.). I am a right-handed guitarist so you can imagine the fun I had with the volume knob, etc. It had a double-locking Floyd Rose and "Hamer" on the headstock ("Hamer" was also upside down).
But the pick-ups were nothing short of wicked: Rick Derringer "Stealth" pick-ups! I had never heard of them before, but GWAD they were good. I honestly cannot think of any style of rock/blues (and I'm an old blues guy myself). If I ever found a set in real good condition I buy them in a minute if I had the funds available---no kidding, that good.
The Hamer had a huge, heavy, V-shaped hard she'll case, and the only other one I ever seen I saw recently was $5,000+. So okay, maybe I got rid of it a few decades too soon, but what the hell, right?
Sorry if I ran on, but your show got me thinking. Thanks☮
Mark Zuelch
markziz60@yahoo.com
Another good thing about less gain is less feedback problems when trying to play a tight rhythm. I also notice the low strings distortion a lot faster than the high strings. The fact that I get plenty of chunk from a valvestate amplifier with the gain on 5 especially the avt150 head and the amp stays pretty much quiet if not low hiss.
Hey man; awesome video as usual. I actually experienced the last one when I learned to play. My uncle was an awesome guitar player, mostly played Iron Maiden kind of stuff and Iron Maiden has always been my favorite band so I really looked up to him. I had wanted to learn to play since I was old enough to listen to music and imagine myself playing with the band (around age 5), so when I finally got the courage to try (age 15), I asked him if he could help me learn. He was a les Paul player but he told me that the only way to learn was on a steel string acoustic and he bought me one and circled some chords in a book. That was all he did for me, he basically taught me to teach myself, which I'm grateful for. I hated the acoustic and I don't even own one today ten years later. But I really wanted to learn so I stuck it out. I think that it actually helped me as a player. But I totally see where you're coming from, if I hadn't wanted it so badly, I probably would never have learned. Anyway, sorry for the novel man. Ha. Thanks for the great uploads
One myth I wondered about was if you go over the top bar on a swing set you will turn inside out? This unfortunately for my friends Jimmy Howard it is true. He got over wild on a swing set and turned in to a pile of guts. Don't go swimming for an hour after you eat. Most of the kids did drowned. The coroner blamed the heavy lunch for the three deaths. He never asked if any of the children knew how to swim. Most inner city kid pre boys and girls club barely knew how to get water in their mouth. Forget swimmers in it. See you Wednesday and thank you.
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lol
That was the best explanation I've heard to tell people what guitar they should start out on. Thanks again, Robert. Your experience has helped me once again. I've been asked that question so much throughout my life from friends interested in learning guitar.
I am highly appreciating your level headed clear thinking.
Thanks!
Pete does talk about the stack idea in his book. He says if i remember correctly, somewhat paraphrased of course, that he started stacking 2 of them on top of each other and would strap them together and thats how the stack supposedly started.
Me and my dad are similar on that front although I used an acoustic to show him I was willing to learn an instrument and he went and bought me a BC Rich Warbeast as my first guitar I played the hell out of it
LOVE your videos. Always spot-on. Btw, don't listen to that ignorant, belligerent fu*k who dissed you because of your size. I didn't realize you had to be a certain weight to be a good guitar player! He's obviously off his meds.
Just one observation on your Acoustic v. Electric comments though, which I also thought were both accurate and honest-as always. I'm a rock drummer, but I think people start with acoustics for lots of good reasons. First, they're cheaper. Second, you don't need an amp, you can play them anywhere. And third, I think they give you a solid foundation in good guitar playing, regardless of style... they certainly strengthen and stretch your fingers.
But I think people got this idea from the way OTHER artists usually begin their careers. For example, nearly every great pianist I know started out playing classical piano to learn good technique and how to read, then transferred to electric or jazz or whatever, later. Same with professional dancers. Most of the truly great ones started in ballet to master the foundation and the basics. And finally, even the world's best actors usually begin doing live plays (especially Shakespeare), then eventually move on to television and film, wisdom being, if you can do this kind of acting, you can do ANYTHING. Just my two cents.
Firstime watcher, man you won yourself a fan here. "Vintage gear sounds better, BEeeeeep" wrongo. You said it! Thank you for being one of the few humble/honest people to say it. Keep it up love the content.
Thanks man! Welcome to the family! 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
04:55 I think I read an interview with Jim Marshall years ago, where he did confirm this story. Only alteration was that Pete's roadies objected to the cartage of it & why Pete got Jim to make 2 4x12 cabinets instead.
On cords: Had a summer gig years ago with an organ trio playing Elks and Moose lodges and the organ player was still using cords he bought in the 1960’s, lol. No one was allowed to touch them as we amusingly/admiringly watched him gingerly wrap them back up! I have only splurged on a cable once, a Monster coiled white one (like Hendrix) I saw hanging on the wall at GC. It’s served me well and I use it at every gig, and often get comments at gigs about it, which is pretty cool.
I would love to get one of those cables. I'll have to check it out. I have one unique cable if you want to call it that. It has a yellow button on each end of the cable on the jack. If you press it, it kills the signal to the amp. I just push the button, unplug it, and then plug it into the next guitar, then press the button again, and I'm off to the races again, no horrendous noise, and it's fast. I bet many others have something similar, I'm sure its probably a common thing.
There are many reasons that PCB amps can be less rugged than hand wired amps. If done right PCB can be good. Such as remote mounted tubes and pots, over time these things mounted on the PCB can cause problems.
I believe that it would depend on the individual , what they like and don't like...what kind of sound they're looking for ...keep Rocklin!!!!
One thing I wanted to mention about the history of gain, and this may sound very simplistic, but it makes sense. From the recording POV, things can be very rushed. Bands have only so much time to knock out a record. So what they do to achieve the right tone in the studio will often surprise those who have never been in a studio environment. I've only recorded demos but from that I learned how different the studio is from playing live. Also, I watched way more professional artist lay down tracks and it was a revelation. The studio is such a different environment that you really can't compare it to a live situation. Bands use surprisingly little overdrive. This makes it easier to mix multiple tracks. With metal you need a big, thick sound. But you don't want mud. if you have too much mud you can't even hear a major to minor shift and it will create an unpleasant dissonance. Mustaine is simply masterful in the studio. He understands guitar tone like few others. This is why Peace Sells and Rust in Peace are so monumental in the annals of great guitar tone. I also like that he stuck mostly with Marshalls. He didn't go off over the edge with gain like Metallica and other bands did. Even on Justice which is one of Metallica's clearest sounding albums when it comes to guitar it is still way too hairy. Also, you know the story about mixing out Jason's bass. I'm not going to go anymore into that but it was a genuine asshat move on the part of Lars. In a good mix everything must stand in its proper place, siloed but mixable. I love the tone of Ellefson's bass on Peace Sells. It's so clear and powerful. As I was saying earlier, things can be very rushed in the studio. For expediency you can go one of two ways. Crank the gain all the way up and let things be what they will. The reason this is not done is for the reasons stated. Producers and sound engineers deal with distorted guitar tracks all day long, every day. It's their job. They know what works, what doesn't, and why. Now, playing live you always end up using more gain, more of everything. You use higher volume and higher resonant peaks, bigger lows, etc. Live is about taking the drama of the recording and playing it for a live audience, recreating what you can. Bands NEVER sound the same live on the album, not even a band like Rush, Dream Theatre or Return to Forever. You can only get so close. Live music is about the live experience. This means you understand that the control of the studio situation goes out the window. If you set the gain on 3 on a record, then live you might even have it ono 7 or 8. Some go to ten, and yes, some go to 11.
in the guitar store where I purchase my gear there was an add of marshall telling the story,except it said it was the road crew that became upset with it.
My favorite myth is (I keep hearing it from parents who are afraid to throw money at their kid's new hobby) that at first a cheap, lousy guitar will do "and then if he/she progresses well" they will get a better one. While cheap doesn't necessarily mean bad, there is a correlation, you can't expect a $100 guitar to be good. And when it's not good, you don't feel like playing it, you're not practicing, you're not progressing. It sounds bad, it feels bad. Even worse: if the neck is bad, uncomfortable to play, you learn a bunch of bad positions and techniques. I'm not saying that the first guitar of a kid who's just starting off should be a $1800 pro instrument. But it has to be decent.
As is widely recognised now luckily $100 starter guitar will be reasonable. Heck the Harley Bentons and Wolf guitars aren't going to break the bank and they're much less than $500
I sorta cheated. I started playing in mid 70's and bought a hardtail Strat as my first guitar. If you follow R Neilson C Trick he always says in late 60's early 70's you could get good guitars for $300. Like I did. The only cheap guitars I ever bought are now with a A/E 12 string and a A/ E 6 string. $ 129 for 12 string and $83 for the 6 string. And I use both in my worship band. For the money both are great.
@@sparkyguitar0058 you were lucky to live in a country where stuff was available. Here in Romania I started by making my own pickup from my grandmother's turntable and gluing it on my lousy acoustic, wiring it into the same grandmother's radio's amplifier. Later I had someone put together a distortion pedal following instructions from a magazine. In 1992 a Strat appeared in the window of a pawn shop. Me and my friends went there almost every day just to look at it. The price was about 8 times the average monthly wages here. Try explaining that to today's kids who can walk into a guitar shop and pick the instrument that they want, many of those quite affordable...
@@ferencercseyravasz7301 Ya I hear you. As a matter of fact just watched some rich kid in a Guiter Center go pick out a $2000 Les Paul for daddy to buy. Kid doesn't even know how to play. As I answer this my $83 guitar is on my lap so I practice my worship songs for Sunday. I wonder when that kid last picked up that guitar to play. Maybe he took lessons and actually loves his guitar. Or realisticly it's already sold off for new video games. The way we learned you gotta love your guitar EVERYDAY. For me I'll lose the ability to remember so many songs while trying to learn new 1's.
@@sparkyguitar0058 I'm not saying that everyone should start with the cheapest option, quite opposite, even a first guitar has to be decent. But obviously a $2000 instrument for a kid is way over the top. As for me, I played that lousy guitar - to use a quote by Bryan Adams - till my fingers bled. And it was the first stretch of the road that took me from Heavy Metal through Conservatory to a PhD in Musicology and a life that brought me joy and happiness. So yeah, it is possible...
I'm glad you addressed your playing with lower gain. I've noticed it for awhile, and I must say; you've become a much better player!
I started on a Hofner bass, & then switched to 6 string... Have never had the desire to play an acoustic guitar, I had a go at playing one a few years ago, absolutely horrendous! I might as well tried to play a shovel...
Yeah I have a Boss TU-3 tuner on my board just to have one pedal thats not true-bypass. Use to be a TU-2 for about 20+ years until recently when I bought the new model, just for the screen being brighter and easier to see. My TU-2 is still being used and works 100%. Boss pedals for me have NEVER failed and ive owned quite a few thru out the years and some of them survived festival season's being caught in the rain. ;-)
Im not a huge fan of the top mounted jacks. But i do have two pedals that have them in my simple 6 pedal setup I use now.
I started guitar on an electric and im glad I did because it had low action and made me want to play the guitar. Im not saying all acoustics are hard to play, but a lot of the cheaper acoustics at the time I was starting to learn had seriously high action and I prob would of quit trying to learn the guitar if id had a high action guitar to begin with. I got into the acoustic about 1 year into learning and I got an Ovation and I still use Ovations today and that made switching between acoustic and electric very easy. I do use and own other acoustics today, but the electric i began with that had low action and the Ovation (also with low action) were great guitars that didnt frustrate the learner right off the bat. These days the Ovations that are cheaper have high action so its not like it use to be and they are starting to become hard to even find in stores. But the guitars priced in the low low end these days are amazing compared to what was available when I started. I cant really say that learning on an acoustic first is better or not, really depends on the person.
I def agree that some of the playing you hear is def in the persons hands. When I was young I couldnt hear or didnt pay attention to the fine details in certain guitar players like I do today and now when I hear someone say cover a song Im really paying attention to all the little details that made the original song by the original artist so unique. You hear a lot of guitar players who can play very well, but there is no emotion of feeling in those notes. I appreciate hearing the emotion and detail to the notes being played. A lot of that is in the hands obviously.
On starting on an acoustic, I agree with you, I personally wish I never had to go thru that probation myself, but in hindsight, I will concede that starting out on an acoustic has its merit.
Firstly, whether it's on an acoustic or an electric, the base remains the base. Chords, arpeggios, scale, picking, hand dexterity, strength and endurance, coordination with both hands, what have you. That's something you have to go thru before learning Master of Puppets.
Now, I am, like you are, convinced that starting on an acoustic will not do anything for you. However. Not every child's desires ought to be fulfilled in life. Sometimes, they need to earn it. If the promise of buying an electric conditional to reaching a certain level on an acoustic is not a strong enough motivation, that the acoustic ends up in a corner of the bed room, you know, maybe that child never deserved an electric in the first place.
The mistake I've seen however is having a child starting on a über cheap acoustic with ridiculously high action and hardly any radius on tiny frets.
With the Pete Townsend story, what I had heard was he was responsible for the SLP i.e. 100W amp. I haven’t heard the story about the first full stack. He kept going back to Jim Marshall saying the amps weren’t loud enough and he needed more power behind them, causing Jim Marshall to double the power amp thus creating the 100W SLP. Please correct me if that is not the case. Please and Thank You.
Great vid!!!! I use to play my acoustic to EVERYTHING that came on the radio in the late 70's. When I did go to electric, barre chords were so much easier. And my hands were stronger!! So I think a kid should start with acoustic. Seen too many have a nice stater electric, and lose interest quickly.
Actually, Billy Gibbons used 7's when he first switched to light guage strings. Then moved to 8's. There is an interview near the end of the video where he plays La Grange at Darryl Hall's house. In that video he explains how and why he changed to light guage strings. HINT: BB King was involved, by asking him why he was working so hard. Then suggested he switch to lighter guage strings. There is more to the story, if you search TH-cam using both Darryl Hall's name and Billy Gibbon's name it should come up. Then scan to about 5:41 in the video.
Jim Marshall has that same stack story on his wikipedia page. I tend to lean that way.
I like top-mounted just because I can unplug my pedals without tearing it off the Velcro so I can switch from running them in series or parallel.
After 40yrs as a player and tech,your cable thing is correct i.m.o.They pretty much depend on how well the ends are made off.High end(usually)have better soldering and well fitted jacks.Though as you said,I also have cables,low end but still working after decades.But as a player,I want the best cables and a full set of all sizes in my gig bag,
You're totally right about gain. These days we have all the gain in the world even on very affordable budget amps. Some of the most classic metal albums of all time were recorded with far less gain than most would imagine. It's impossible to mix multiple ultra-high gain tracks. Mustaine is very smart when it comes to using gain. Peace Sells, Rust in Peace and Countdown to Extinction have some great tones.
I used to have a vintage jcm 800 100w amp head I got someone to take the negative feedback loop out of it, great sound but too loud. I wound up selling it to guitar center..
There's many things to discuss on the "myth" you point, but for the #13 i totally agree.
“Tone is in the hands” is my favorite myth. People like to say that then go out and buy every piece of signature gear they can so they can sound like whoever. You can’t make this stuff up lol.
RIGHT??? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤦🏻♂️
Haha so true!
Style definitely is. Tone isn't
I just watched my first NON-gear video of yours and Damm you are good you definitely have the top-tier quality channel right now Ron honest thank you for the entertainment Steve P
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!
As a loooooooooong time metal guy, your dead on. We dial the gain back to preserve tonality. And ur right about slayer and megadeth. Good ear bro. I like your vids. Keep up the good work man!!!!!
Thanks man!
Yeah dial the gain back....But what about the Pedal that the guitar is running thru before you plug your cord into an amp ?!?!?!?!?!
I know the Pete Townsend story is true because, I asked Jim Marshall about it at a trade show. He had to make slanted top cabs because the straight cabs on top tended to be a bit unbalanced.
Speaking of cabinets, many years ago 2 of my buddies had the opportunity to each buy a 9x12 cabinet (and each speaker was ported ... just for your information) from the band Manowar. Those cabs were monsters !!! Then shortly after that, Manowar decided to go back out on tour. Instead of buying them back from my friends, they rented them. And that's the last thing I ever heard about those cabs, this was back in the early 90's ♫♫♪♫ :D
hearsay my friend
Robert, Metal nut vs bone nut? zero fret vs standard setup? nitro vs poly finish insofar as tone? Does tone wood really matter considering many guitarists use pedals anyway.
all things effect tone but the difference is minuscule and essentially irrelevant
I'm an electrical engineer and the one thing I'll say in regards to cheap cables is I've cut a few Chinese made ones open or opened the end to inspect the filament only to find copper clad aluminum instead of pure copper. CCA isn't nearly as conductive. That's not to say a more expensive cable couldn't be CCA but I've never opened a major brand cable like Fender, Boss, GLS, Hosa etc. only to find CCA instead of pure copper.
There's something of an interesting history behind the full-stack, crazy loud amplifier that probably has nothing to do with Pete Townsend personally (although The Who did perform during that time, and they might have been the ones to commission the 8×12).
At some point in that era, concert-goers started doing something that was simultaneously fun and *really* annoying for the musicians - they started screaming. Constantly. This was before amplifiers would get hooked up to the PA, so there was a problem - you needed a lot of volume to be heard over hundreds (sometimes thousands) of people screaming their heads off, volume you just couldn't get with only 2 speakers.
Bands literally got into a loudness war with their own fans, and at some point someone went up to amp manufacturers asking if they could make a matching amp and 8×12 cabinet - after which it went pretty much how you described, they ran into problems with being unable to lift a wooden cabinet with 8 heavy speakers in it so they sub-divided and started making stackable 4×12 cabinets.
There was also a way to effectively daisy-chain multiple amplifiers together (provided they all had multiple input jacks) so they'd all amplify the same guitar signal. That was actually done sometimes for huge outdoor concerts - yes, the wall of Marshall amps Jimi Hendrix used at Woodstock was all real, and yes it was entirely necessary at that time.
You were right on about Acoustic and Electric guitars are totally different animals. I started on Electric back in the 80s but in the last few years I play mostly acoustic. If I get an electric gig, I have practice on an electric to get my chops back.
I like Playing Out on an Electric Guitar myself, but I usually practice on an acoustic or unplugged Electric at home.
Wow you avoided the whole TONE WOOD thing. Good for you. :)
Nope, I’m not going down THAT rabbit hole. LOL
copper quality and purity can change, but I agree with you, copper is basically copper and the important thing is the quality of the rubber used and the jack and soldering.
Excellent point about true bypass pedals; I use cables no longer than 6 ' because after 10 ' the signal degrades. I use 6 ' cables to compensate for all of the patch cables as I usually run everything straight into the amp.
P. S. I do think the story about Pete T. is true---Ive heard that same story,but with just Pete T. though,it could have been any one of the guitarist mentioned
Robert: First time to your channel. I think you are "spot on" in your analysis. I do have a thought about premium cables. If you are in a "recording studio setting", and I'm NOT referring to guitar cables, but to mic, speaker, and interface cables, then you may want a mid range to premium cable to cut background noise. Even my Ethernet cables have been upgraded to cat 7 plenum cables. There is shielding to stop light fixture noise and cross talk. I'm not saying everything has to be Mogami, but not the cheap, unshielded, version. But within 20 feet of an amp, altogether different.
That pick grip stuff, rather than something like that, I’ll just score a cross hatch on the pick with something sharp.
SRV didn't have 0.13 gauge set of strings, they were a custom set with the top and low (E) strings 0.13 and 0.58 the middle ones were of a med set I believe it was (B)0.15 (G)0.19p (D)0.28 and (A)0.38. I put this on my old Fender A.S. with Texas Special P/Us and it's pretty damn close to his tone.That G and b string squeal is definitely there if you have the finger strength. I love it!
The whole vintage gear sounds better myth started in the early 70's. Gibson and Fender were producing very poor quality intruments (with some exceptions) compared to the stuff they made in the 50's and early 60's. It didn't take the pro's long to figure that out. Today, we live in gear heaven. New gear is so well made. Even low end stuff can be great. So vintage gear does not hold the same advantage it did back when this myth started.
I think the el cheapo cables that come with guitars are junk, but the difference between mid-range and high-end cables is negligible at best.
I played cello before picking up a bass guitar... Once i got a bass and then subsequently an electric guitar i vastly enjoyed each of the instruments more aince i was able to cross many different genres and playing techniques.
My parents didnt have much money to buy me a bass guitar when i was young so the school orchestra was what i had to do. I really wanted to just play music in general.
You're right about most of it, but I gotta call bullshit on people sounding just like SRV. There are people that are clearly influenced by him, but you can ALWAYS tell the difference.
Cables??? I like the monster Rock but the lower priced cables sound the same. The higher priced cables are probably not going to fail during a show. Your opinions are very well said....
PCB stands for Printed Circuit Board. if the beginner is a young, small child a classical guitar might be the right choice because the strings are easier on the fingers. I really struggled on a steel string acoustic when I was 8 y/o. got a 3/4 size electric for my 9th Bday. much more comfortable.
I can't help but love those older Fender amps.
I never liked heavy gauge or tuning down lower than D, and that was only for a couple songs in a set. My preferred gauge is 9 and occasionally 10-46. Otherwise, 9 is where it's at. I have also used 8s. Frank Marino uses 7s with unwound D strings.
The full stack- memory serves me correct, I read that Jim Marshall validate the Pete Townsend legend. Guitar World back in the late ‘80’s.
I agree with most of what you say in this video. I think comparisons where you say something is "better" is mostly dependent on opinion and you covered this point as well.
Subbed!
Thanks man! Welcome to the family!
You need more fingers! Here's another myth, the guy who owns all the expensive stuff or the one who owns the most gear is a better player. How many times have you gone to a gig where the one who is playing the $4000 PRS is chugging power chords all night while the guitarist with a modified Epiphone, Joyo pedals, and a budget amp is killing it? Too many guitarists judge that book by its cover.
You are correct, Jim! The best guitar players always seem to be using serviceable gear that they’ve been beating the hell out of forever and they’ll never get rid of it because they love it. Many players who have the money to play all of the $5000 Les Pauls that they want always seem to be average at best. Though I do admire their appreciation for high-end gear.
I am that guy with Gibson Standard LP who barely can play anything beyond power chords. But I love it and it inspires me to play and practice much more than my previous cheap guitar. Anyway gear cost and playing skills are usually not connected at all. It is just that professionals tend to spend more on what they work with.
PRS Rocker Says the guy with the screenname "PRSROCKER" hahahaha
I have two epiphones but I stink. Rock on!
Nobody thinks that.
Another myth is whammy guitars are a crutch. While using a whammy too much is not cool, it's just another tool. My number one reason for liking Floyd Rose bridges is tuning stability. I like your channel. You know what you're talking about.
You make good sense Robert. Cheers from Macleay Island Queensland Australia
Completely agree with the last point about acoustic guitars, also electric guitars are a lot more beginner friendly, e.g just play it unplugged and check the volume level vs the standard dreadnought everyone gets dumped with.
#3 absolutely true. I heard this story in a video interview of Jim Marshall talking about the early days of Marshall.
I agreed with every thing you have to say. I subscribe to many , but I look forward to your opinion the most. THANKS for helping me set up my first strat. Rock on Brother.
It is a different style of music but Scotty Anderson has a very distinct style and tone. Thanks for sharing. Vintage gear was in the developmental phase of music gear. Just food for thought. Stay Safe and be blessed
Try a Weber speaker some day and you will hear even more articulation. It completely changed how I could hear what I was playing. Best articulation, IMO. Also, prefer hemp cones because longer fibers allow the speaker to sing instead of just reproduce the sound. As usual, love your videos, Robert.
sniffing cork makes music sound 0.000003% better
Hi Robert, just thought I'd comment on is amps that are point to point wired. I personally own a few amps, one in particular, the Mesa Tremoverb amp combo. If you ask any tech about working on these kinds of amps, they can be a nightmare to repair and trouble shoot. Check the Guitologist on TH-cam. He does a video on repairing a Mesa Boogie circuit board. He talks about what a horror show it is to work on. Mesa amps have a printed type circuit board where they have a million relay switches and transistors in these amps that are hell to trouble shoot. Amps that are point to point wired are very easy to change out caps and resistors that may go bad. Mesa amps with a PCB circuit have to have the entire board taken out to work on it. You can also run the risk of destroying traces on these boards. So from a repairing stand point, the point to point wired amps are easier to repair for me personally. I've repaired my own Marshall and Vox AC30 amp and Blackface Bandmaster Fender amp. All of these are point to point wired. The Mesa Boogie Tremoverb amp after countless techs working on it, I finally had to send it back to Mesa themselves in Petaluma, California for repair. And when they got it , they asked me who the bloody hell worked on this amp. I replied, one of your supposed service centre techs. They were blown away, because they had botched up the amp terribly. The amp, I must say now plays very well. It did cost me a king's ransome to get the amp fixed and sent back to Canada. Anyway, just my 2 cents on amps.
@9:48 Truth! I've often said that if you wanna know how spoiled you've gotten with your Les Paul and your Boogie, go plug a stock Tele straight into a Champ. I say this because that's EXACTLY what happened to me. LOL
Also you'd be surprised but Richie Blackmore and Big Jim Sullivan was also in with Pete,cause 4 x10 cabs were not big enough to handle the 100+ watts these were putting out.
👍
#1 - Agree!
#2 - I prefer top mounted just for neatness...
#3 - I could believe it - especially with the Who.
#4 - depends on what you consider 'cheap'. Really cheap can be poor - especially deteriorate over time because of the jack construction but you can buy a 'cheap' cable comparatively that will be as good as a very expensive cable.
#5 - High gain is not needed for Metal and it will definitely surprise some if they saw how much gain Metal players use.
#6 - More gain does not lead to heavier tone - its more forgiving but less articulate and looser. Tuning (like a drop D) and playing style can give a heavier tone.
#7 - Steve Vai sounds like Steve Vai because of his set up. Some things, like his vibrato are 'unique' because of his technique, but its their style and 'technique' but their tone is their gear.
#8 - Vintage doesn't sound 'better', its perhaps 'different' and different materials were used that can't be used today. It may also be down to the fact that you grew up listening to a specific sound and that resonates with you.
#9 - see #6 - drop tuning - especially on the 'E' string sounds 'heavier' because its 'deeper'
#10 - String gauge doesn't matter - its about the feel to the guitarists. Fatter tones may well be more to how the amp is set and the players preference.
#11 - Hand-wired Amps are nothing more than a placebo, a status symbol etc. We all know a Kemper can sound exactly like a hand wired boutique amp just like it can sound like a 5150, JCM800 etc too. Maybe don't get the same smell as warm tubes and certainly doesn't look as cool as plugging into an Amp...
#12 - Analogue vs Digital delay is a matter of preference and each has its place depending on what you want to achieve. Totally agree with you on that.
#13 - A beginner should start with the Guitar that they want to play. Its not going to help any Rock guitarist to learn on an Acoustic and may even put them off from playing/practicing. Its a lot harder to play an acoustic steel strung and will hurt a lot more too... Its much better to get the instrument that will inspire the beginner, make them want to pick it up and play and an instrument that is of a reasonable quality because they won't want to learn if its constantly out of tune, poorly set-up without the skills/knowledge to set it up etc. Also need a 'decent' amp as it can be discouraging if the sound coming out is poor too - in other words, buy from a music store - even 2nd hand if need be and get advice rather than buy a cheap 'starter' set from Amazon...
I thought your playing sounded great thru both the higher gain and decreased gain settings. With the gain a bit lower it sounded better. Nothing against hi gain but lowering the distortion/overdrive a bit(while still qualifying as metal)sounds the best to me ---just my opinion. In lower gain mistakes are heard a lot easier,and it's more articulate as you mentioned. I like the tone of lower gain because it seems as up the gain the darker my tone becomes,in most situations. Informative video.🎸👍 When I started on electric I played .013 gauge strings,which in my opinion sound great,if not the best. Starting out on those in standard tuning sure made string bending a breeze after switching to 10s and 9s. A tip for the player wanting the SRV tone : it isn't necessary to play 13s. Get a set of 10s with a WOUND g string. The wound g is the key. If you have a Fender or Fender type amp,set the treble at 5 bass 8--10 midrange at 0. Stevie hated midrange. Awesome video. I don't have 'magic hands' ha ha. If I have that "nasally" tone,I'm playing a Strat,if my tone is strong and full of treble,I'm playing my Tele. If I have a fat tone....you get it. LOL
Informative 👍🎸
I've also noticed that I have to use even less gain while recording than I actually use live
Yep. Gain goes a lot farther than a lot of people realize.
The mention of treble/clarity loss across multiple true bypass stompboxes and/or additional dozen(s) of feet of cable length reminded me of something that's puzzled me for probably a couple decades now. Remember George L. cables? Back around the turn of the century, hardly anyone had a bad word to say about them, and just about as universally as they were hyped and praised back then, they're considered nothing more than a silly fad people bought into because of the hype. I'm not a "fanboy" by any means. I do think if they're assembled carefully they're not as unreliable as some people make them sound, but it's enough of a pain to get assembly right, I think they should have just used solder-on ends. I also find the thinner cable to be more prone to tangling than typical instrument cables when using a longer run to the guitar. But here's what gets me. The 20ish foot cable I made back in the day has blown away every other cable I've tested it against in clarity and preventing the loss of treble. And I've compared it to a bunch of different cables, even much shorter ones, and I've surprised quite a few people with how obvious and drastic the difference is by asking them to confirm what I'm hearing. When going to any other cable from a George L. it sounds like the tone control got rolled back a hair, it's so obvious. Someone back then told me that the cable is a type of coax and that's what prevents the attenuation of treble. It's been a while since I've had one apart, but I seem to recall a similarity to coax, but I'm thinking "normal" instrument cables aren't that different except usually a larger diameter than George L. cable. I may have to go on a research mission to get to the bottom of this, because it seems you should be able to get the best of both worlds by using George L. cable with solder-on ends (and I've wondered if running it through some aquarium air tubing might reduce the tendency to tangle, for use as a guitar cable), or the same type of cable, if George L. cable isn't made/sold any more. If anyone can explain what makes George L. cables so much better at preserving treble and even more so, why all other cables seem to be inferior in that respect, I'd sure appreciate it.
Whether it is video or audio devices add to the degradation of signal. Pedals would have to rebuild what is loss to keep the degradation to a minimal. Top mounted Jack's really is a misnomer since it is actually on the part that is usually on the end under your toes.
I started on an electric guitar and learned a lot. Although I found after buying an acoustic I got better at picking.
Hendrix used 10 to 38 Fender Rock & Roll strings.
I say yes and no for lower tuning makes for a heavier tone. 9s tuned to E 440 then the same 9's tuned to D 430 the strings get all floppy/buzz. 10's at D 430 have roughly the same tension/feel as 9's @ E 440. And they are not floppy, cleans/tightens the sound back up. Might not be so much of a issue on a solid bridge. But on my Floyd Rose it does. A case can be made.
You just answered a bunch of questions that I never knew to ask.