Reuse, Reduce, Recycle - Guitar Medic

If you feel that it is such as waste to change the whole set of guitar strings when one of them breaks and it is still relatively new, fret not! Maybe your guitar strings can survive through basic guitar strings 'first-aid'.

This capsule is the 'first-aid' kit for your strings. Inside it contains a few ball ends.

If you string is still long enough after it has broken, maybe you might still be able to reuse it by making another ball end for that broken string. There are proper instructions on how to tie one. You are reusing broken strings, or 'recycle' would be a better word. You are also reducing the number of strings you are using.

Digitech + Fernandes

I guess everyone knows what is a Fernandes Nomad is, right? 

It is basically a guitar with a built-in amplifier on it. It is small in size and weighs rather light. In a nutshell, Nomad is a traveller guitars. In Japan, these guitars are known as Zo-series guitars. 

Of course, we don't expect the amp there to sound like a JCM or anything like that. It is after all a 'practice amp' integrated on the guitar. The priority of Nomad is to allow you to practice your guitar while traveling rather than its tone. Some of us may find that unappealing though. 

However, we also know that practice amps may produce tone that is rather appealing when you place a multi-efx unit before it. That is exactly what Fernandes do to their Nomad.

The above is Nomad Deluxe. It is just a Nomad Standard with one extra feature; built-in Digitech signal processor.

The processor is based on RP-100 so if you have tried RP-100 before (quite an old model though), you would know that it is quite a good unit. Oh yes, like the RP-100, there is a drum machine in it. Quite an awesome travel practice guitar.

Blacktop @ SV

You may now get your Blacktop from SV guitars right now!

It is not available in all kind of finishes though. In fact, you only get to choose between black finish and candy red.

Oh, you have a choice between a rosewood and maple fretboard apart from the two choices of colour. Do note that ONLY Blacktop STRATOCASTERS are available. If you are looking for other models, you might have to look for it elsewhere.

Guitars and Cars: Gibson + Renault

Gibson and Renault had teamed up to build one-off showcar for Rock En Seine music festival that occurred just outside Paris about 2-3 weeks ago. The below is the original Wind Gordini. The showcar was based on this model.

(Wind Gordini)

This is Gordini by Gibson. 

Can you spot the differences? Gibson's Gordini doesn't have spoilers at the back. There is the word 'Gibson' on its door as well. There are more differences inside though.

See that lines on the seat? They are actual guitars strings integrated into the design of the seats. 

• The volume knob of the media player there is one of the volume knobs for guitar pots. That's why Renault keep this guitar-theme going. 

Lastly, Gibson built 5 special SG guitars which sport a similar white stripe paint treatment as the Gordini. They are reissue of the Gibson's 1961 SG. Festival goers who took part in the Gordini guitar solo competition have a chance to win one of the special guitars based on the number of votes they get on the Internet for their performance.

It is cool, yes. I wonder if this will have any 'great' impact on their sales...

• 
  

The Gibson Bus

Some photos I saw online.. Take a look at Gibson's Nashville Tour bus.

Pretty much Gibson-themed, featuring their famous Hummingbird and so on..

The place inside it looks rather comfortable. I like the idea of the dreadnought-shaped table there. 

This looks like the jamming room. The guitars won't be lying on the floor though. I guess it would be strapped to the wall. This photo might just be a promotional shot. You don't even see any amps in that room.

That's one large fretboard hanging on the ceiling. Wicked! I would say that is the most creative and attention-seeking feature on that bus. 

Singapore Guitar Show 2011

If you have been to this one before...

You would probably be interested to go again this year. It is happening again.

Do note that this event is more for those acoustic enthusiasts. I don't remember seeing much of electric stuffs there last year. The good thing (for me) is that it is after my A lvl so I should be able to make it. Last year, there were some guitars we have not heard of (or seen) before but that doesn't imply that they are lousy. Of course, there are those famous names like Martin there as well. I remember that there was a D16 there. 

And I wonder if primeVibe will be here this year again... I hope they are..

New wood conditioner

I got this SKYDD wood treatment oil from Ikea today. I didn't buy it. I asked my cousin to help me look for one since he stays 2 bus-stops away from Queensway Ikea. If I was him, I would 'da bao' meatballs from Ikea every week. I love the food there.

Anyway, after one long day of jamming and stuffs, I decided to clean my Fernandes. I am actually starting to regret using inlay stickers. Why so? Just take a look at the photo below.

It left some markings there, a result of all the dirt and sweat accumulated at the sides of the stickers. It took me quite a while to get these things off the fretboard. Thanks to Dr. Duck Axwax, I managed to scrub it out. Normally, I would use Axwax as a cleaning liquid as well as a wood conditioner. It does its job quite well but not as well as I want it to be. The fretboard is rather dry as well. I neglected it since 2 weeks before my exams started. After using SKYDD on it...

It is totally different. Sorry for the lousy photos because I'm using my Nokia E72 camera and it isn't the best camera on Earth.

Is it harmful to use on your guitar? Is the chemical too harsh for the instrument?
It is safe to use on your guitar. After all, Beez uses this. Subversion uses this. Why would they do so if it is harmful for guitars.

The Mounting Kit..

Snark wasn't the only item I got from TYMC. I got this as well.

So why do I need this Cioks Pedaltrain Mounting Kit? No, I am not getting DC-10 (but it would be useful if I happened to get one). And if I'm getting DC-8, why would I need this? Stay tuned to find out more!

Snark

So I've gotten myself the Snark tuner... The red colour one.

I couldn't resist that red colour. It was just too nice and this tuner looks cute that I just have to buy it. Anyway, it was a good buy. For a $16, I got a nice and cute little tuner. I dare to say that this Snark is better than my Cherub WST-900 clip Evo Tuner in terms of precision.

Where do I get it from? Sound Alchemy? Davis? No.. I got it from TY Music.

Teye > Les Paul?

If you are getting bored of singlecut designs like that of PRS, Les Paul, etc... you might find Teye might be interesting.

Although I find some of the designs of Teye rather excessive, the one above is actually a cool one. It's called La India Supreme (S-series). Someone has told me that Teye is a better Gibson Les Pauls. I actually beg to differ. Gibson Les Paul's body is a pure solid mahogany wood. La India and many other Teye has an aluminum plate on it. That would give Teye a different tone from a wooden Les Paul. The body of Teye are also smaller compared to an LP. So is it really accurate to compare Teye with Gibson LPs? In my opinion, they are from two different worlds. Of course, I have YET to try them so I may be incorrect, too. But I still have my doubts if Teye can really substitute Gibson Les Pauls...

SOLD: Cioks Baby Mach 2 pedal power supply

I am selling my Cioks Baby Mach 2 power supply as the title has suggested. It is basically a 5 output power supply, 4 output of 200mA each and one isolated output of 100mA. It is about 1-2 months old. I bought it from another person who wish to sell it after owning it for just 2 weeks. A new one costs $99.

Cute little power supply

....that is smaller than the Grunge and can easily fit in underneath PT-mini. Not sure about nano.

• Includes all the original Flex cables that came along with it. 
• 2 additional split Flex cables (30cm & 50cm) worth $15 each included.
• A receipt of the purchase is found inside the box for the 6-month warranty.
• Condition: 9/10. Won't give it a 10/10 since it is over 1 month old. 
• SOLD

SOLD to a very nice guy on 12:48 pm. 

Reason for selling: Getting a new pedal power with more juice!

Long wait...

DC-8... something that is supposed to be released by Week 35. I am not sure what calender they are using but week 35 should be on 25th of August. However, it's already September and DC-8 is still nowhere to be seen, both in Singapore or other countries. I tried searching for it online but I still can't find it.

To be frank, I'm losing my patience. Plus, Voodoo Lab PP2+ is on sales at a tempting price.

Affordable pedal powers?

Some may find that Voodoo Lab, T-Rex, Cioks, etc.. might be over their budget. So if you have been looking for alternative power supply that wouldn't break your piggy banks, here is something interesting. 

This 'Dream Project Electronics' hand-build pedal power supplies and at very affordable prices. You can also customise your own pedal powers according to the specs you need. You can check it out yourself ---HERE---. The only problem for those in Singapore is that... it is located in Ipoh. No worries though. They ship to Singapore as well!
I am not helping them advertise or whatsoever. I'm just sharing this so that all my readers can get affordable pedal powers.

Can wall hangers damage your guitar?

My dad asked me if it is a good idea to hang all the guitars back in my country using a wall hanger. There are quite a lot of them and it's space-consuming. I told him not to. He asked me why and if wall hangers can damage the neck joint of the guitar.  

My answer is.... it won't. Do you know that the strings exert more force on the neck joint than the weight of the guitar does on the neck? Some calculations and researches shows that strings' tension is about 200lbs (about 890N). How heavy is a guitar? Assuming that it's 10kg, the weight of the guitar would be 98.1N. What is 98.1N compared to 890N anyway. Some will say it weakens the neck joint. I would say, not significant enough. If hanging on the wall is dangerous, why would guitar shops choose to adapt this method?

But again, why did I say no? Here's my reason. By hanging it on the wall, you are teasing the gravity. Unless you can defy law of gravity (like my hair does), it will still be pulled towards the ground and there are still risks of falling off the wall. Moreover, the wall of my house back in Myanmar isn't trustworthy at all, considering the fact that the house is rather ancient (Heaven knows when it was built). 

NEW 'www.davisguitar.com/'

So Davis has finally updated their website and this is how the homepage looks like.

Well, quite a lot of improvement. I wonder why they choose to put Uruha there though. The webpage, compared to before, is much updated. However, they didn't do something I wish they would have done: provide prices of their items. I don't know what's their reason for not doing so but you still can call them anyway.

BYOU?

There is BYOC pedals nowadays. Just in case: BYOC stands for 'build your own clone'. So what does BYOU stand for? BUILD YOUR OWN UKULELE. If you have been following TYMC's Facebook, you will know about this. 

It is not available in here yet. But TYMC is considering about it.... 

The Voodoo Party

SALES!!!! 

@Swee Lee

Voodoo Lab sales at Swee Lee, huh? It is definitely a great news for those looking for Voodoo Lab stuffs, especially Pedal powers! No percentage discount this time. There are NETT prices for each item and here is the list.

Don't worry about GST. Nett price means that it's the final price. Nothing more, nothing less. If you think that this is not a good price and you can get a cheaper price elsewhere, by all means. :) But do take note that there may be a different in the voltages for Pedal powers especially if you are buying from the US of A.

While stocks last and until 30th September.

A factory in hand (DF7)

This is what was inside the Takashimaya bag. Digitech DF-7 Distortion Factory. One the X-series pedals from Digitech. Another popular X-series is the DigiDelay. A few non X-series will be the Grunge, Death Metal, Bad Monkey and Hot Rod and any other Digitech that doesn't have that boring Arial Black or Impact (my guess) font on it.

Did I get it from Swee Lee? Of course not. Not at this time when there is no sales or any promotions. That would cost me quite a lot of money. Anyway, I got this from Subversion for a very good price.

First impression: "Damn it's heavy!". Well, it is heavier than any other Digitech pedals. Well, that doesn't affect the tone and tone is what matters the most. This pedal is called 'Distortion Factory' for the simple reason that it has 7 models of distortion/overdrive in it. It also has a 4-band equaliser like Boss MT-2. In different models, the knobs function different. So it's better to check the manual before trying it out.

Model 1: Ibanez TS-9

You can call it a replication of the famous TS-9. Though it is not exactly the same as TS-9, it is still amazingly close. Moreover, you are not just limited to a Tone knob on DF-7. With Low, Mid and Mid Freq controls available, it gives you a greater EQ flexibility. Some of us do not wish our overdrive to sound too bassy and with DF-7, you can cut down some of it. 

Model 2: DOD Overdrive/Preamp 250

Overdrive? What it actually offers is near the level of a distortion. I haven't try a DOD Preamp 250 before and they are quite hard to find nowadays. I still enjoy this effect though. The real DOD Preamp 250 comes with just a Level knob and a Gain knobs. So this is like a rehousing of Preamp 250 with a 4-band EQ controls.

Model 3: Boss DS-1

Who doesn't know about DS-1? I can't hear much differences between the emulated DS-1 & the real thing. But I definitely enjoy the DS-1 here more than its real orange-coloured kin because of the Mid control that is provided on it. No need for a mid cut mod. 

Model 4: Pro Co Rat

To be frank, I feel that this model is the least appealing model among all the 7. The emulation is a far cry from the real thing. No matter how I tweak, I still don't get the sound I want. So I proceeded to the next model.

Model 5: Boss MT-2 Metal Zone

Another popular Boss. I doubt anyone will fail to recognise that black box of metal. Well, I was never a fan of MT-2. I feel that MT-2 sounds quite dry by all itself alone. Perhaps a bit of chorus may make it sound better? Anyway, the emulation of quite well done. It brings along all that dryness I've been complaining about. 

Model 6: DigiTech Metal Master

This distortion is awesome. The main issue of the real thing is that there is a mid scooped voicing, which some find it rather annoying. The 'Morph' control on the real thing works as the Mid and Mid Freq combined together. You can smoothen the distortion by 'Morphing' it but the two controls are 'married' to each other. DF-7 is the 'divorced' version of Metal Master. Yes, the Morph control is gone but why would you need one when you have a separate controls for Mid and Mid Freq? A Metal Master with 4 band Eq... Ignore the real thing and get this one instead.

Model 7: Electro-Harmonix Big Muff π

Well, what I say about this? It sounds like a fuzz distortion like it is supposed to be. This is an imitation but I can't tell the great difference between the real Big Muff π. Sounds great enough for the $$ you pay for.

Conclusion

If you want to get many different distortions, DF-7 is something you should consider. I love it for its EQ flexibility. I'm not a sound engineer but guitarists do care about their tones so EQ flexibility is very essential, another reason why I dismiss MXR Distortion + when I was looking for a distortion pedal.

Of course, there are some bad things about DF-7. 

1. It's power-hungry. It can suck an alkaline battery dry in 3 hours. This is to be expected because this is a digital unit and it will eat up more power than analog units. Time to get an adapter. I have my Cioks to feed this 'glutton'. This applies to all in the X-series from Digitech since they are all digital. 
2. When you switch from one model to another, you always need to go and retweak every single thing. It will start to get annoying at one point. So best if you note down the settings on a piece of paper. Photographic memory fails most of the time. Trust me.

The above is how the battery compartment looks like. If you own Behringers or other Digitech pedals, you know how to open it up. If not, please refer to the manual. All you need is a pen or a fingernail.

Anything missing? You are supposed to have all the things shown above.

Selling BB Preamp + Wampler Triple Wreck

A friend of mine's selling his Xotic BB Preamp and Wampler Triple Wreck.

• Both in mint condition, with boxes. 
• The BB Preamp's going for $190 
• The Triple Wreck is going for $280

 However he's feeling kind this weekend and is offering a great deal of $430 if you buy them both! SMS 90775624 to deal

Takashimaya?

Mom: "What is this? Did you go shopping at Takashimaya today?"
Me: "Unless I am a ninja, this is not possible. Didn't you see me study the whole day?'

So what is this? I'll tell you tomorrow!

Meat dress on guitar?

I guess everyone knows about Lady Gaga's infamous meat dress, yes? I really find her bizarre sense of fashion annoying at times (actually most of the time). Anyway, take a look at this. 

This is a James Tyler Studio Elite HD in a Candy Cherry Red Schmear finish. I find it quite attractive though. It is a beauty. But my friend said it looks like beef (actually it's quite true) and it reminds him of Lady Gaga's meat dress. He called this 'James Tyler's meat dress'. So what do you think? 

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Note: James Tyler guitars are available at GuitarEast and here is their Facebook.

Other brands brought in by GuitarEast

• McPherson 
• Nash
• Teye
• Warrior bass
• Soldano
• ÷13
• AYA
• Neunaber Technology (NT)
• OKKO

Red= guitars  & basses

Blue = amp

Green = pedals

The 'Pot' & 'taper' story

Someone once told me that all the pots in Fender and Squier guitars are audio tapered. My nature is not to believe in something until I see it for myself. So I looked for the stock parts of my Squier and decided to give the pots in it a closer look.

If everything is supposed to be audio tapers, all the pots there should be A500K. But see the B500K there? That is a linear taper and it must have been the volume pot on my Squier. That is usually the case anyway. Now we know that not all Squiers have audio tapered pot in it. 500K pots on a Stratocaster with all single coils? It is not a very good idea as it will make sound very bright? But my Squier is made of Agathis, a lineage of mahogany. So it has some characteristics of mahogany. So I guess it balances out.

Fender and Jackson Day @ Bras Basah

Well, the picture says it all. If you are trying to get a new Fender or Jackson (especially Jackson), you might be interested to pay Bras Basah a visit. Please expect long queues and stuffs as well. It's normal.

Physics (II)

I was too bored. So I decided to strip a humbucker pickup. What pickup? The Fernandes stock humbucker.
A humbucker is just two single coil pickups. As simple as that. I had a hard time trying to remove all the pickup cover on it. They put too much glue on it.

A humbucker?

Now two single coils. That black bar is the ceramic magnet of the pickup.

The copper wire is wounded around the two pieces separately. This two piece of 'single coil' is held together on the pickup mounting plate with screws. 

Now there is a common mistake that is made among a lot of people, even the physics teachers. They thought that the metallic parts on the pickups are magnets themselves. True but not always true. For this case, the poles are not permanent magnets. They are temporary magnets: they will gain magnetism when there is a magnet is in contact with it and loses it immediately when it is removed.

The magnet is not attached to the poles. It doesn't attack the screw.

Now, the poles with the magnet. The screw is attracted to the poles. This shows that the poles itself isn't magnetic.

This is at least true for pickups with ceramic magnets. =/ Might be a different story for Alnico pole pieces.