New Bling ... musical bling

[kenny]

Now we have to hear from RD.
Hey RD, after reading 10 years of your 'conversations' with pros over on RT I'd say you've ... uhm ... never worn earplugs.

Sorry, couldn't resist.
Sometimes I just crack myself up!

 

[jordyonbass]

Hey RockDiamond,

I have been referred onto one by some friends as my usual guy closed his shop, I am hoping that just the volume pot needs rewiring but I am not convinced that is all that is wrong. I think I may take it to him and get him to diagnose and price up the repair and conversion. If it's more than the Hartke then I may just buy the Hartke.

Because I play in some very loud metal bands and don't always have my cab mic'd or head unit DI'd, I need that extra grunt sometimes. But that GK is the loudest 500w solid state head unit I've ever heard, my old Warwick 500w didn't hammer like the GK.

OK so I can't get it looked at for the next 2-3 months, buying myself the Hartke and will look at fixingthe GK in the new year. Hopefully I'll have some pics on the weekend!

 

[Rockdiamond]

No- I've never worn them.
But- this thread has not yet really gotten past ancient history.
About 20 years back, I got a hold of this- and it changed my musical life....

I started playing Pedal Steel as my main musical gig in about 2001.
I play a different sort of music than my hard rock roots.
Grateful Dead style jam band music. Generally not played at blaring volumes.
Now I sit at one side of the stage -generally in a fairly sheltered spot- but not always....
I would love to try out a pair- as there are times when an over ambitious six strong guitar player may be right next to me on the stage.
50 watts is all you need on stage. But sometimes a guy needs to prove something and carry a big gun


I'm a bit skeptical at how well I'd be able to hear with plugs in- with the steel, there's no frets so being able to hear myself well is crucial.
I'd also be a bit skeeved at having hot wax poured into my ears....I mean, they somehow seal off the ear so it doesn't get into your brain, right?

Conversations? I haven't the foggiest idea what you're talking about
Maybe something was poured into my brain. A long time ago, far far away.
Seriously, if the guy at Harry Winston in 1976 doing the hiring knew I was a musician, I'd never have met Kenny, cause I would not be in the diamond business.
Shoot- if old Abe knew I was a lefty he'd never have hired me, forget about being a musician.

But maybe that's part of the reason my outlook has always been a bit unorthodox in the diamond business


Jordy- sweet on the Hartke- it's such a clean sound, which of course you can totally mess with. Please post pics.
By the way- have you tried out the new Acoustic Amps? Worth a try.

 

[jordyonbass]

Can't say I have tried them, usually when I play acoustic cover gigs I just use a DI box to cut the signal output on the bass and plug straight into the PA. Then I fire up the stack for the metal gigs when I want people to think the gates of hell are about to burst open through the floor

 

[Rockdiamond]

Jordy, I meant like this acoustic
http://acousticamplification.com/product/b300hd-bass-head/

They used to be pretty cool- but maybe they suck now

 

[jordyonbass]

Haven't heard of that brand before RD, it appears that it isn't very widely sold here in Australia - explains why I hadn't heard of it to begin with

You said it is a new brand, do you know how long it's been around? I love mostly the bigger name bass amp brands but have wondered if I am paying through the nose for a badge when I could get the same sound and quality from a smaller maker and for a smaller price.

 

[Rockdiamond]

In the late '60's The Acoustic 360 was a totally new idea in solid state massive bass sound
It had an 18inch CV mounted rearward facing.
I'm sure you see them at Woodstock and many other early '70's vintage concerts.
Nothing would ever outdo an SVT- to this day IMO......

From the 1971 catalog- they made other models with forward facing speakers and a horn as well

 

[jordyonbass]

Those rear loaded speakers would probably be much like my old Ampeg 215 folded horn; close to it you won't hear much, in fact it could even sound like it has an issue with volume. But walk away from it and you'll be getting irritated internal organs!!

And I agree regarding the SVT, they really are the benchmark for amps but oh so pricey!! I'm still devastated about my old SVT Classic and SVT heritage stack; a moshpit spilled onto our stage toppling over and to never work again. $4000 completely destroyed in a split second, a broken arm and insurance wouldn't pay the cost of damages. I learnt a VERY hard lesson that night about not taking pro gear to heavy metal gigs...

 

[Rockdiamond]

DAMN- that sounds scary Jordy!
For those who've never lifted an SVT head, it probably weighs about 150pounds ( unless it was the newer solid state version.)
Even still, perched on top of a five foot tall speak cab, that sucker could kill you with a direct hit.

That's a good thing about Grateful Dead fans- they're usually too stoned to storm the stage

For many years I played for an Elvis impersonator.
That involved some stage storming, but it was generally girls wanting to kiss a pseudo Elvi...no moshing

It was a really fun gig after the sheer revulsion wore off- as a kid, Elvis was ....really corny compared to the Doors or the Beatles.
But once I started playing the music- even Elvis '70's stuff, I became enamored.
He had James Burton on guitar from about 1970 till the day he died.
Ronnie Tut on drums
These guys are monsters.
I used to love doing this song....at one point we had a horn section and three female backup singers- it was a hoot.
Kenny- if you're still reading- James Burton really rocks out on his Pink Paisley Telecaster
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PHp_o7zNp4

This one is for you Jordy- listen to Jerry Sheff rock out the Fender Bass on this one- and much better video of Elvis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ihGMXtce6Y

 

[jordyonbass]

Yeah a toppling SVT rig is injury for anyone close and death for the rig. Like I said, lessons learned with that one!! And that P bass sounds so sweet, I am thinking about buying one at some point next year...

Got the Hartke LH500 today, had a tweak and got the sound out of it I've been chasing. Loud and punchy yet smooth and clear sounding. I love this amp, now I don't know what to do with my GK

Here is a video of my favourite bassist, Ryan Martinie from a nu-metal band called Mudvayne. He's basically playing lead bass and his tone in the album LD50 is still something I have never heard duplicated.
https://youtu.be/dvo7W3jjjbc

 

[Rockdiamond]

Lovely piece Jordy. I love the simplicity. And the power, tons of head room
What's the speaker cab?

Wow, that guy Ryan Martinie really took that Warwick places I'd never have imagined.
The Bass Player/Bandleader of one of bands I play with has a five string Warwick.
Those basses are really something.

 

[jordyonbass]

I'm playing through a Warwick 410 300w cab, I've always liked the sound of their cabs. My very first bass stack was a Warwick head and cab, so I was running all Warwick gear including my bass. I just needed to tattoo their logo on me as it was already everywhere onstage, I might have gotten paid lol. From there I got the SVT stack that got killed so after that I just bought another Warwick cab and the GK.

Ryan is an amazing player, his approach to bass was so different that it inspired me to be the best bassist I could be. He's a well respected player but highly underrated IMO

 

[Rockdiamond]

HI Jordy,
Are you a Chris Squire fan?

Kenny????

You still here.....I hope so.
This thread is so much more fun than most other things people are speaking about online nowadays


Here's a very cool Axe- I bought in in 1980- it's one of the first Hamer Guitars.
I love the way it combines aspects of a Gibson - namely the shape, neck profile and pickups- with the string through design of a Fender. It can do an amazing growly LP sound, or a twangy Fender sound.
I'm very happy I never sold this baby. I've used it quite a few times on stage.

 

[kenny]

I count 10 strings.
What are the notes?
Like a guitar, E A D G B E plus four more?

 

[kenny]

Around 1977 I had a roommate who played a black Rickenbacker bass.
He had that tall Acoustic amp cabinet with an 18" speaker that looked similar to the one above.
It's a folded horn design.
The speaker actually faces back into wood baffles that reflect the sound forward.
This is clever as it effectively gradually extends the width from 18" out to a much larger area.
This improves the impedance match to the space of the room and the power transfer.
That old famous holy grail home speaker Klipsh horn shared this design.

The Acoustic head had EQ sliders instead of knobs.
And of course that sky blue is just so cool!

That thing was LOUD.
I can still feel my bones shaking.

Sorry Jody, but I love the tone of the Rick bass.

 

[kenny]

And I agree regarding the SVT, they really are the benchmark for amps but oh so pricey!! I'm still devastated about my old SVT Classic and SVT heritage stack; a moshpit spilled onto our stage toppling over and to never work again. $4000 completely destroyed in a split second, a broken arm and insurance wouldn't pay the cost of damages. I learnt a VERY hard lesson that night about not taking pro gear to heavy metal gigs...

Yea that happens all the time at classical chamber music concerts too.
I leave my Strad at home and bring my Yamaha violin.

 

[Rockdiamond]

I count 10 strings.
What are the notes?
Like a guitar, E A D G B E plus four more?

Hi Kenny, don't take this the wrong way, and I never imagined I'd be genuinely saying...but I love you.
The reason for this effluent gush is that the PSG is so much of a passion for me, and being able to explain the technicalities to someone who will understand it a great opportunity, and will me great pleasure.
Here's the 10 strings- string one is furthest away from the player.
String 3 has the highest pitch.
String 10 is the B that you'd hear by playing the second fret on the A string on a "regular" guitar.


Pick the right strings and you can play an Emajor chord in the open position.
Or a Bm
Or a Bmajor
Or an EM7

So you've got a very cool palate of notes in the open position, and with the bar you can transpose all of that to any fret/pitch

BUT- what really separates the Pedal Steel from other slide guitars, such as dobro, are the pedals the knee levers.
In fact, there's a lot of similarities between a PSG and a harp.
The pedals and knee lever pull and release tension on given strings to accomplish pitch changes.
The number on most identifiable change is achieved by pressing pedal A and B together.
A pedal raises the B's to C#
B pedal raises the G#'s to A

That takes you from EMajor to A Major
Are your brains fried yet?

 

[jordyonbass]

Good googly moogly, 5 strings are enough for me thanks!! I know guys who can't even get their heads around one of those and just use the old faithful 4-banger

 

[Rockdiamond]

Here's my latest purchase- I ordered her in what I thought was as close to a "cherry sunburst" as possible.
Like your baby blue amp Kenny, this one took six months and happened to arrive on my birthday in 2013.



Even the bottom is beautiful, in a mechanical sort of way

The pictures above are taken in my office.

A good....25% of the floor space is taken up with Pedal Steel, amps- guitars, etc.
I consider it on of the greatest luxuries of being the boss. Other offices hang art, this is my art.
If we had the space ( and I could overcome some matrimonial considerations my office would look something like this

I'd love to add in a Bösendorfer Kenny......

 

[Rockdiamond]

Guitars- so much more fun than people with funny hair and large mouths....

KENNY!! How about this guy?
https://reverb.com/item/1443015-gibson-es-335td-cherry-1961-owned-by-jeff-tweedy

 

[kenny]

Guitars- so much more fun than people with funny hair and large mouths....

KENNY!! How about this guy?
https://reverb.com/item/1443015-gibson-es-335td-cherry-1961-owned-by-jeff-tweedy

$26,000?

 

[Rockdiamond]

I think it represents a pretty good investment.
Kind of like a diamond in many ways.
You buy it knowing if you have to sell it, you're going to loose a bunch of dough.
But, it will retain a pretty decent percentage of it's value compared to most other things you buy- and both diamonds and ES335 dot markers are extremely pleasurable to own.

The Reverb guitar purports to have the original PAF pickups.
That alone is $15K.
It looks really mint to me.
AS opposed to Fenders which are very easy to repro- and even Les Pauls- A guitar like this is far more likely to be real.
Did you look at the case?
I love the old cases.
There's a certain smell that you just can't replicate- but hot pink....wow

 

[kenny]

That's great, but I only buy guitars to use them.

As with any other investment, past performance is no guarantee of future performance.

I'll go back and look at the case.
I wish I had bought a regular hard shell Guild case in 77 with my Guild.
I bought an aluminum flight case since I traveled a lot.

 

[Rockdiamond]

That's great, but I only buy guitars to use them.

As with any other investment, past performance is no guarantee of future performance.

I'll go back and look at the case.
I wish I had bought a regular hard shell Guild case in 77 with my Guild.
I bought an aluminum flight case since I traveled a lot.

I totally get that- and I sometimes feel regret that I don't get to play all of my guitars frequently enough.
But you might have more time than me.

And even if I only open the case a few times a year, the guitar brings me a fresh pleasure every time I open that case. Almost like an experience where you can recreate thrill of doing something the first time over and over, if that makes sense.
If you buy right, there's still some reasonably priced vintage axes out there.


I bought this beauty back in 2003 for $1500 on eBay- 1957 Les Paul Junior.
Unfortunately no original case, which was cardboard anyway.
The tone of this thing is beyond amazing.
The volume and tone controls are so sensitive you can make the bridge pickup growl like the neck pickup on a two pickup guitar.





She's seen here share of the blues.....

 

[kenny]

Awesome! ... and beautiful too.

That bottom pic of the finish checking could be an abstract painting hanging in a museum.

I see a whale in it.
A whale taking a dump.

 

[jordyonbass]

$26k is nothing compared to this bad boy: www.luxuo.com/most-expensive/bass-guitar.html

Solid maple body, a nut carved from 10 000 year old wooly mammoth ivory, 24 karat gold inlay, black diamonmds set in platinum, gold hardware, diamonds in the pots: $250k

I don't think I would even want to physically touch it with a finger, let alone slap and pop an entire Chilli Peppers song...

 

[kenny]

Now, that's what I call Musical Bling!

 

[Rockdiamond]

Nice bass Jordy!!!


I took this shot at the jewelry show in Las Vegas....Gibson claims 400 cts of diamonds were set into 3.5 pounds of 18kt white gold affixed to the SG.
700 man days of work....
they value it at $2mil

 

[jordyonbass]

HOLY MOLY!!!!

$2 million...these things are pure art pieces and I don't necessarily see that as a good thing. It's all good and well having an amazing guitar as far as the craftsmanship but the reality is it's a musical instrument that should be played.
Most people would be too scared to take these instruments out of their cases for fear of damage, the instrument won't get it's chance to build it's own personal character which is something I find sad. One of my bass guitars has areas on the neck where my hand has sanded away the varnish from the years of playing. That's one of the things that I find kind of disappointing about these crazy-priced instruments.

 

[kenny]

Nice bass Jordy!!!


I took this shot at the jewelry show in Las Vegas....Gibson claims 400 cts of diamonds were set into 3.5 pounds of 18kt white gold affixed to the SG.
700 man days of work....
they value it at $2mil

I'd buy it if it didn't look so new.
Actually I think it looks butt-ugly, like it has some skin disease.

On another note, Gibson and Fender have cashed in on the skyrocketing prices of their 50s and 60s guitars since they don't make any money when a used guitar is sold.
They now pay factory employees to 'age' new guitars to make them look old and worn.

Imagine Gibson doing this to their diamond and gold encrusted $2 million dollar guitar!

Relevant confession: being a 1961 'Reissue' my (made in 2014) ES-335 did get treatment of the metal parts to make them look pitted, but I meticulously cleaned most of it off with Q-Tips and Isopropyl alcohol.

It might be argued that my purchase supported this trend of making new guitars looking old but I bought it for the sound and feel, not to fool someone into thinking I bought a $25,000 old guitar.
It wasn't actually rust, just some gunk painted on that resembled rust. How stupid!
Some say I lowered the value of my guitar! Big whoop!
Fortunately Gibson didn't whip the body with chains and keys.
The finish looks new, just a bit less mirror-like than the blinding high gloss of a regular stock 335, but nothing near a satin look.

Below is a brand new Fender ... You actually pay MORE for this look.
Even the plastic simulates aging with carefully placed yellowing.
Reminds me of those new $500 blue jeans with holes in them.