TheFretShack

One of my former bands decades ago came "this" close (pinching fingers together) to creating our own indie host called Polluted Womb Records.

No point in sharing my pedalboard photos, I have two and they change seemingly weekly haha.

My only suggestion would be to look into the D'Addario adjustable XPND pedalboard that folds into itself. AKA, you can tailor the board's size to what you are currently using, and there's room to grow should you add more pedals or bigger ones. If I was starting a new alpha/omega board from scratch, an XPND would be my first purchase.

It’s a temper tantrum by a rich company with deep pockets going after a bunch of small businesses.

More like a yes-man collective legal team being steered by a young and very ignorant CEO, who has yet to be enlightened that the best way to revitalize Fender/FMIC brands and eliminate competition ... is to simply make better guitars, across all price points.

"Bud" needs to quit talking to lawyers and instead talk to industry historians about how previous QC fumbles during the CBS years opened the door to "build a better mousetrap" competition in the first place; and how history is repeating itself, but exponentially worse in that 1970s guitarists, retailers, repair/tech guys, artists, etc., didn't have the internet to spread bad feedback and horrid PR like wildfire.

Bud needs to filter the legal retainer money to the assembly lines and QC payroll. And he needs to be lining up a Plan B for his livelihood because I expect him to be fired soon.

If Smart Jam refers to the backing tracks for practicing, I use it occasionally. Much much more fun than a simple metronome and a great creativity catalyst.

My go-to are Herco Flex 75 Holy Grails. A repair client gave me one years ago and I was an immediate convert. I love the thickness, the grip, the flex, the tone, the durability, everything about them.



AI says notable users include David Gilmour, Jimmy Page, Edward Van Halen, Pete Townshend, Joe Walsh, Gary Moore, Michael Schenker, Rory Gallagher, Rivers Cuomo and Josh Homme, among many others, so I'm in great company. :)

It's time to refret if a.) you have any dead notes, unclean notes and/or buzzy fretted notes; b.) a setup alone doesn't fix the issues; c.) frets are seated properly, so that's not the issue; and d.) if there is not enough fret material left for fret leveling.

String changes are a matter of taste and scenario. If you like the snap and brightness of fresh strings, change frequently. If you perform live and don't want to break strings on stage, change frequently. If you record and want the best intonation you can get on tape, change frequently.

If you like the warm and mellow sound of older strings, and/or are a casual bedroom/den player who seldom if ever performs or records, don't change frequently.

A guitar in which the player is not reluctant to permanently modify to suit the instrument to his or her needs or tastes, i.e. a "tool" for the task at hand.

If anyone thinks a guitar pickup is just a magnetized copper coil, be sure to order tripe or even hooves instead of prime rib next time you visit a steak house. Because piece of cow is piece of cow, right? :) Seriously, pickups shape and shift a player's tone as much as they transmit signal, just as much as different amp and pedal types.

Beyond overall signal output ... factors pertaining to a passive pickup's coil alone that influence voice include but are not limited to coil wire thickness, insulation material and insulation thickness; turn count; wire tension and wire turns per layer.

Equally important to passive pickup voicing is magnet material, magnet size, magnet placement, magnet charge; and the collective metallurgy within the assembly. From plated metal covers to the different grades of steel used in pole screws and slugs, different alloys create different tonal results.

In the case of actives (EMG, Fishman, Bartolini, Live Wires), the preamp itself is a critical component in the assembly's voice. The preamp enables big huge output from sweet voicings typically only achieved via low to medium output passives.

The EMG Gilmour set is great for everything PF and really everything SSS. Be sure to integrate a "Gilmour switch" into the circuit if your assembly doesn't have it. It enables VERY utile "neck + bridge" and "all three pickups" as selection options. The Gilmour mod can be done with an added mini-toggle; or hidden in a push-pull pot to keep a stock S-type look. Google "Gilmour switch" for details.

I don't see what's confusing about anything I wrote. But if leading off with "moral" is confusing enough to discount my content leading up to it, probably a poor word choice on my part. I will eventually delete "moral" from the last graph so that it is not mistaken as a capsule summary for what I wrote leading up to the graph.

Also, I did not say only buy from storefronts. If you re-visit that paragraph, you will see my advice on what to look for regarding private sellers.

Speaking of advice ... while much of what I wrote should be common sense for any buyer or seller on any online platform ... everything I have written in this entire thread is my own two cents. Your own mileage and experiences and opinions on these platforms may - and should - vary.

I'm getting great rates for UPS and USPS via pirateship.com. I can't speak highly enough about Pirate Ship as a third-party shipping intermediary. They actually caught an overestimate on my part by a few ounces on a parcel I sent and refunded me a little postage!

Reverb: They also typically side with buyers over sellers in a toss-up scenario, but they have third-party moderators who are good about looking at both sides objectively and making the proper decision.

I bought a $1700 guitar on Reverb a few months ago and after the seller exhibited very shady delays and responses why regarding shipping the instrument, I reported it and requested Reverb's mods review our messaging history and timelines. Reverb cancelled the transaction immediately - like within an hour - refunded my money within one day, thanked me for reporting the seller and banished his Reverb presence.

Be aware, however, that the fees to sell have creeped up since they became a leader in gear transactions. They are currently at 5% commission on the total sale amount (including shipping, which is skyrocketing in recent times) and a payment processing fee of 3.19% + $0.49.