Does anyone play mediums?

[DrewPeterson7]

Having said that I have to admit that I'm in a "slopabilly" band and we play mainly punk/rockabilly/roots venues.
I ain't no "high class" players like y'all!!!!!

No need to apologize, dude - I agree with you completely. I play heavy strings not because I think they sound better (honestly, I kind of miss the snap of a lighter string), but because I brutalize my guitars and I like how I phrase better with heavier strings, lol.

 

[357mag]

The average bozo in a club couldn't give a rats ass about your "tone" when the P.A.'s feeding back, the bass player is drunk[again] they're drunk and throwing beer on you and the only objective is to shag the chick in the short skirt.
No one's thinking "Hmmm, I wonder what gauge he's using" at 2 A.M. with a gut full of cheap draft...'cept other musos.

He he he...you are totally correct. Most people that come to bars are there to drink and swap stories about whatever they like to talk about with their friends. The fact that there is a band onstage playing their heart out is quite unimportant to them. You can forget lyrics, throw-up on stage, stagger into the drummer's cymbals, play out of tune and most people don't even know it or even care about it.

But the musicians themselves care. It's their life. Any good musician cares deeply about his tone. He cares if his guitar is in tune. Their world revolves around music. Most top notch musicians refuse to compromise when it comes to their sound. I'm that way also.

I wonder why pianos don't need to be tuned every 25 minutes. Maybe it's because the strings are bigger than .009?

Mass and diameter help.

 

[thebigcheese]

I never really remembered what kind of strings I had on my guitar before, so I think I accidentally got some that are a bit heavier this time around and am regretting it. I can't manage a full step bend on... my D string, I think. I don't normally keep my guitar by my bed, so I can't check to find out. Regardless, I think I'm going to try a slightly lighter gauge next time. Maybe the .10s, since that is apparently the Gibson LP recommended size.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

I wonder why pianos don't need to be tuned every 25 minutes. Maybe it's because the strings are bigger than .009?

Actually, it has a lot to do with the fact that notes are played by tapping the string with a felt-covered hammer to induce vibration and not bent and plucked, and that piano strings are almost never changed. A good double-locking trem will hold tune almost perfectly once the strings are broken in, regardless of string gauge.

 

[thebigcheese]

I wonder why pianos don't need to be tuned every 25 minutes. Maybe it's because the strings are bigger than .009?

Your guitar needs to be tuned that often? I tune mine a couple times a week at most, and it's never off by much (if at all). I guess if I was playing a show I might double check a couple times, but otherwise it's usually good to go.

 

[357mag]

I prefer to use vintage six point bridges. No Kahlers or Floyd's for me. Huge pieces of machinery that look ugly and are a pain in the rumphole.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

I prefer to use vintage six point bridges. No Kahlers or Floyd's for me. Huge pieces of machinery that look ugly and are a pain in the rumphole.

Ah, not once you get them dialed in, though. A good Floyd that's been set up properly will hold tuning better than most fixed bridges.

That said, my favorite bridge is the Wilkinson VS-100 - essentially a Floyd repackaged as something that looks and feels like a two-point vintage style trem.

Why 6-point? Considering there's a ton of great vintage two-point knife edge trems on the market and a two-point bridge will be smoother and stabler than a 6, there's really no reason to stick with a six, IMO...

EDIT - this also explains why you retune every 25 minutes, I suspect. I'll take tuning stability over appearance any day of the week.

 

[357mag]

Ah, not once you get them dialed in, though. A good Floyd that's been set up properly will hold tuning better than most fixed bridges.

That said, my favorite bridge is the Wilkinson VS-100 - essentially a Floyd repackaged as something that looks and feels like a two-point vintage style trem.

Why 6-point? Considering there's a ton of great vintage two-point knife edge trems on the market and a two-point bridge will be smoother and stabler than a 6, there's really no reason to stick with a six, IMO...

EDIT - this also explains why you retune every 25 minutes, I suspect. I'll take tuning stability over appearance any day of the week.

I don't re-tune every 25 minutes. But every guitar is different. Some require more frequent re-tunings due to things being a bit off. Like a nut that is not cut right for example. Statocasters in general do require more tweaking out of the box though.

A good vintage style bridge that is set up correctly is great. Even Randy Rhoads dismissed the idea of these locking systems. He didn't use them.

I'm gonna put a Callaham bridge/block assembly on mine. I eager to try them out after reading enormous positive reviews from people.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

I don't re-tune every 25 minutes. But every guitar is different. Some require more frequent re-tunings due to things being a bit off. Like a nut that is not cut right for example. Statocasters in general do require more tweaking out of the box though.

A good vintage style bridge that is set up correctly is great. Even Randy Rhoads dismissed the idea of these locking systems. He didn't use them.

I'm gonna put a Callaham bridge/block assembly on mine. I eager to try them out after reading enormous positive reviews from people.

Good thing I'm not a Randy Rhoads fan, then, because Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Eddie Van Halen, Neil Schlon, Steve Vai, George Lynch, Tony Macalpine, Rusty Cooley, Mattias IA Elkund (or howeverthefuckhespellsit) and about thirty or forty hard core trem users who actually like the effect of a whammy bar whose names I'm forgetting dropped 6-point trems in a hurry and embraced them. Hell, Rhoads didn't even use a whammy bar really, I'm not sure what he has to do with this discussion, lol.

Seriously, man, there are great 2-point options out there which will be smoother and more stable than a 6-point.

http://www.warmoth.com/Gotoh-Wilkinson-Tremolo-VS100-Chrome-P621.aspx

I swear by this one.

Though, this Hipshot is supposed to be phenominal, and the ball bearing pivots are theoretically a lot smoother than even knife edges:

http://store.hipshotproducts.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=182

You're limiting yourself to 50-year-old technology just because you like the look, yet you're also complaining about tuning stability. It doesn't add up.

 

[muttley600]

Actually, it has a lot to do with the fact that notes are played by tapping the string with a felt-covered hammer to induce vibration and not bent and plucked, and that piano strings are almost never changed. A good double-locking trem will hold tune almost perfectly once the strings are broken in, regardless of string gauge.

Actually it has more to with the fact that if you braced the top with half a ton of cast steel, had a string length of around 60 inches and a soundboard the size of your dining table you might get away with it. Of course then you'd never get a case or strap for it but what the hell.

Most piano's used in professional recording and performance are tuned and maintained frequently.

 

[357mag]

You know nothing about Randy Rhoads obviously. He used the whammy quite frequently. Ever hear Suicide Solution?

The bottom line is practically everything on the internet is opinion only. The more you research the more you end up doing more research. It goes on and on. There is no fact. The only person who will really tell you the truth about anything here upon this earth is God. And unfortunately we can't get on the phone and ask him about the truth about a product.

What works for one will not work for another. Everyone has different experiences with products. One person can buy a piece of software and rave it up. The next person can buy the exact same piece of software and have a horrible experience with it.

Same thing with guitars...

 

[DrewPeterson7]

You know nothing about Randy Rhoads obviously. He used the whammy quite frequently. Ever hear Suicide Solution?

The bottom line is practically everything on the internet is opinion only. The more you research the more you end up doing more research. It goes on and on. There is no fact. The only person who will really tell you the truth about anything here upon this earth is God. And unfortunately we can't get on the phone and ask him about the truth about a product.

What works for one will not work for another. Everyone has different experiences with products. One person can buy a piece of software and rave it up. The next person can buy the exact same piece of software and have a horrible experience with it.

Same thing with guitars...

I told you, I don't really listen to Randy. :lol: He's mostly known for playing a Jackson V with a fixed bridge, though, isn't he?

Just googled it, and oh, look at this - turns out the RR1 Pro comes with an Original Floyd Rose. Silly me.

http://funkymunkymusic.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=335

So, do you still think Randy "disapproved" of floating trems?

All I'm saying, man, is I've been playing guitar a long time, I'm a frequent trem abuser, and I have yet to meet a 6-point trem that can hold up to the trem abuse of a high-quality 2-point vintage style, or a top-quality double locking trem, the Original Floyd or Ibanez's excellent Edge or LoPro coming to mind. You can talk all you want about "everyone has an opinion," but mine happens to come from a lot of empirical evidence and playing experience (and seems to be one that the majority of electric guitarists I've spoken with agree on), whereas yours seems to be driven by cosmetics. I'm giving you good advice - you don't have to take it, of course, but making up reasons why you're right and I'm not just makes you look silly.

 

[muttley600]

............

The bottom line is practically everything on the internet is opinion only. ...

Class A bollox right there and that's a fact.

The only person who will really tell you the truth about anything here upon this earth is God.

Aha, there's some more....

And unfortunately we can't get on the phone and ask him about the truth about a product.

Fortunately we don't have to we have physics and maths as a pretty reliable option.

I should get your pick thickness sorted before you move onto the handing out advice about stuff you have little idea about.

I could have picked huge holes in much of the drivel posted in this thread but haven't. Especially yours. If you don't like the fact that much on the intermess is opinion dressed as fact stop adding to it and get yourself up to speed on the subject you are handing out bold overstatements about..

 

[starbuck26]

The bottom line is practically everything on the internet is opinion only. The more you research the more you end up doing more research. It goes on and on. There is no fact. The only person who will really tell you the truth about anything here upon this earth is God. And unfortunately we can't get on the phone and ask him about the truth about a product.
.

Wow. Somehow I've found the end of the internet. I feel like I should be bathing in a bright white light, but I just feel really stupid.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

Wow. Somehow I've found the end of the internet. I feel like I should be bathing in a bright white light, but I just feel really stupid.

This seems timely:

http://www.wwwdotcom.com/

 

[ggunn]

I've got an early 60's Strat with the original trem assembly, and it works just fine for me. YMMV.

 

[357mag]

I've got an early 60's Strat with the original trem assembly, and it works just fine for me. YMMV.

You see? Classic example. Everyone has different experiences with a product. The vast majority of what you read on the web is opinion.

 

[muttley600]

You see? Classic example. Everyone has different experiences with a product. The vast majority of what you read on the web is opinion.

Well your opinions on the relationship between mass and sustain, the resonance and energy of heavier strings, and better highs and lows on heavier strings and intonation being better with heavier strings is all opinion and it's wrong. There are good sources on the web with the factually correct information. If they are are out numbered by incorrect opinions then that is because of people like you. People who sound off without a grounding in the basics of the subject.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

You see? Classic example. Everyone has different experiences with a product. The vast majority of what you read on the web is opinion.

One example does not prove a point. How heavy a trem user is ggunn? The occasional light vibrato, or is he all about subtle bar dips and scoops, and dive bimbing? Has he had much experience with double-locking trems, or has his trem experience only been limited to 6-point trems? How has the guitar been maintained in the past? How in-tune does "works just fine for me" entail, absolutely perfect or maybe +/-10 cents over the course of a set?

Of course, since you're quick to point out this is all "opinion" and not "fact," I should probably stop talking to you like you're trying to state it as a "fact" that a 6-point trem will hold up against a double-locking system, and go back to playing my OFR-equipped seven string that, thanks to Elixers sounding fresh forever, I only have to slightly retune every couple months. That's just me though.

 

[didgijimmy]

thanks to Elixers sounding fresh forever, I only have to slightly retune every couple months. That's just me though.

I recently discovered elixers too! their the shit man