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For quite a while now I've had a pretty stable...ermmm...stable:
1974 Gibson ES-175, Eastman AR605CE, Ibanez jsm100 (the Scofield model) and a Fender Baja tele.
I usually play them through either an old 60w Henriksen Jazzamp 110 or a eigthies 'orange' Roland Cube 60 (with an Eminence Cannabis Rex speaker).
I have always though that 3 guitars would be the maximum number I wanted to own, since I would then still play them all, whereas owning more would inevitably lead to one or more 'case queens'. I ended up owning 4 guitars and find my assumption pretty much true. I play all three of them '(semi) hollows' on a regular basis and because the Baja lives next to the couch it still gets a lot of play too.
Though I still check out the second hand market from time to time, I don't feel any lust to add to my small collection. At all! Yesterday for instance I saw a nice ES330. I love those, but I find I can look at them like I look at other women: I enjoy watching them (and maybe even fantasize a little
) but at the end I'm very content with what I've got. GAS simply doesn't get the upper hand anymore!
Also I find that accumulation gear and maintaining a collection distracts me from actually playing and I've grown very conscious about that. Of course there's that little GASSer in me too that wants a Mambo amp from time to time, but then I always realize that owning one wouldn't make me actually play any better!
I must say that this is one of the most important lessons I've learned last year and more than anything else it really helped me to improve as a player. Let's hope it stays this way
Any of you have any thoughts about this?
Last edited by Pukka-J; 10-20-2013 at 05:32 AM.
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10-20-2013 05:26 AM
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4 very nice guitars! Is than an AS 200?
I'm not one for owning guitars just for the sake of it. Of course, I'd probably be whistling a different tune if I had more money! I think with the guitars you have you can truly cover a lot of bases.Last edited by Loobs; 10-20-2013 at 08:10 AM.
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I have the opposite mentality from most of the GASers which is that I just work with whatever guitars are thrown at me and very rarely feel a need to get something new. In the past ten years I have bought one guitar and two amplifiers.
I like practicing a lot and working on music and I try to get the best tone I can get from my hands. If I was doing more recording or playing high profile gigs I'd probably give more of a crap, but I'm not so I don't!Last edited by JakeAcci; 10-20-2013 at 09:03 AM.
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@Loobs: it is a more moders version of the as200, the jsm-100 Scofiel model. It is supposed to be a close copy of Scofield's as200. Though I do like Scofield I mainly bought the guitar for what it is. Great modern jazz tones, very complementary to the Eastman and the es175.
@JakeAcci: I hear you! I'm glad to be able to honestly say that I'm also studying more than trading
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I really believe that "nirvana" comes from having just one guitar and it almost doesn't matter what that guitar is. Playing guitar either does it for you or it doesn't the specific gear doesn't really matter all that much. A couple more might fill some specific niches, but they really don't make the guitar playing experience much more rewarding. Beyond that, at least for me, a lot of it is just filling time that I'm not playing with activity so I'm not bored. And I must add that I've sold a bunch of guitar that I really liked as a result of that boredom and impulse during in my non-playng hours. The comings and goings of gear has almost certainly been a net negative in that regard. On the other hand, I play enough hours that I never feel like it's taken away from my musical efforts, just from my bank account.
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Yes, I totally agree!
As you may well understand though I don't mean to say you can't try or buy other, better suited guitars. It's just that I realize that my tone is not yet the weakest link in my performance and there's much more progress to be made elsewhere
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There's always much more progress to made elsewhere. I really believe that the more I learn, the more I need to learn.
Originally Posted by Pukka-J
Yes, I totally agree!
As you may well understand though I don't mean to say you can't try or buy other, better suited guitars. It's just that I realize that my tone is not yet the weakest link in my performance and there's much more progress to be made elsewhere
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Hear hear!
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I am a one guitar person. This if for several reasons, but the biggest being that I don't gig and therefore don't require a backup for shows. My problem is not gear, it's me. I have a great deal to learn, and a different guitar isn't going to get me there. For years, I always thought the solution was a new guitar or pedal or amp. What I really needed was just the right guitar, and to take my studies seriously. I went from having 5 or 6 guitars to just two (one is for sale right now).
I think the idea of gear Nirvana does not mean having many or few instruments, it means being truly happy with what you have and being able to get your ideas across.
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And yet again: hear hear!
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I started a re-hab program a couple years ago. If the guitar hasn't made money from gigging or teaching for 90 days it goes on the block. I keep track in a little book. My Guild AA has been the top earner this year, followed by the Pisano 880. In third place so far is the Latcho Drom GJG.
Certain guitars can file for exempt status. I found a Fusion Blues Villager for crazy low money and it has turned into my travel guitar. I can just throw it in a gig bag and take it on the plane, stuff it in the trunk. I don't mind taking it to the beach or to the mountains. So it gets a pass.
Best $350.00 I ever spent.
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Certainly a nice looking guitar! You're almost inducing GAS in me there
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I probably have too many guitars but I manage to play them all, some more than others.
carved archtop with floating up
Semi hollow guitar
Plywood archtop with set in pup
7 string archtop
Acoustic archtop that has flattop qualities
Tele
Beat up thin line nylon -Brazilian
That's too many guitars, but there are 3 there I will never sell.
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the number of guitars you need is represented by the equation
N = X + 1
where X is the amount of guitars i own at any given moment
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You can't argue with pure math. Originally Posted by calgarc
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I agree, the reason is the more guitars I have lying about, I play more. Originally Posted by calgarc
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Really? That surprises me. I play about the same amount no matter what I have around and most of the time I just play one guitar for days on end. All of this being aid, I'm still planning to add a fourth guitar this week and I've actually convinced myself that I have a good excuse (although I'm planning to sell one that I already own so hopefully, I'll get back to three ASAP). Originally Posted by GNAPPI
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Very noble of all of you.
I have lots of guitars.
You do not have enough guitars, IMO.
Some of my guitars are for sale.
I encourage all of you to buy them.
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Thanks. You just gave my wife her best laugh of the weekend. Originally Posted by Hammertone
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We'll see once I get a Gibson L-5 Wes, an ES-175, a Heritage H-535 in natural with an ebony fingerboard, a Heritage Golden Eagle, and a Guild Artist Award in my stable, and then i'll be able to let you know if enough is enough.
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Broyale, I recommend you start with a lovely Hofner Chancellor.
With a nice violin finish.
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Q from wife recently: "So, exactly how many guitars DO you have...?"
Feels like a confessional. Here is my collection, with a new one still on the way...(and one tucked away in my away-from-home office, so I have evening entertainment when away from home)
I suppose one could say, like women's shoes "never enough" But seriously, whilst not doing jazz (I'm not good enough), each of these instruments has a differing job to do. Only last night (amateur band recording), I could not get the sound and feel I wanted until I swapped from the PRS to the JEM. Then, it worked. The 'baby on the way' is a PRS 513 for 'strat' sounds (BTW I don't like Strats, that's why I didn't buy one, even if I have a use for the sound), and the newest totally gorgeous baby is the Wine Red ES-175
. I guess 'the answer' depends on what you're doing with them. I think my wife would be happier if I was 'guitar-monogamous' Polygamy rules...David
PS just done preview and I can't work out how to turn the image round
Last edited by dslee; 10-21-2013 at 06:38 AM.
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Originally Posted by calgarc
I was helping my son with his algebra homework this weekend, and I can confirm this formula is correct!
Math = truth.
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Pukka-J congratulations on eliminating GAS from your music life. I have gone through a Lot of GAS in my life and now have it down to 6 all of which I gig/teach with on a weekly/monthly basis...this is my justification...I have my amps down to four which all get gigged with on a weekly/monthly basis....now my obsession is effects pedals...soooo many pretty effects pedals for sale that I have ABSOLUTELY no use for whatsoever but WOW the crazy crap I could make my guitar sound like if I just had a________________. hahahaha anybody got a nice digital delay for sale cheap?
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Everyone is different. I am inspired to play music - that is, tunes - but I also get inspired to play a particular instrument at any given time. If I don't have such an instrument in hand, then instead of just using a different one and getting on with playing music, I start surfing and hunting online for the missing instrument. Therefore, if I already own all the instruments that I might be inspired to play, I am able to get up and running with the music part right away.
I could add a smiley face to this and make it tongue-in-cheek, but it's actually 100% true. So, owning many guitars works for me.
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