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Speaking of muting: does anyone know if heavier strings are less prone to feedback? I used to feedback something terrible, and was pretty worried about the muting thing with the switch to Benson picking.
I played a very loud gig with a drummer in a hotel hallway the other night that was basically a cave. Think a lot of exposed marble and very little dampening. Amp was on the floor due to a rushed setup.
This is the kind of situation that would've resulted in horrible feedback in the past, but for some reason I didn't have any string noise or feedback. I'm wondering if the switch to 0.14s has made an effect on that.
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10-11-2014 03:10 PM
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Originally Posted by ecj
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Here's an auditory tidbit for your listening pleasure. Sinatra, Benson and the Quincy Jones Big Band playing After You've Gone.
The Chairman is up to his usual late-life mucking around with the lyrics but Benson's playing and Jones' arrangement makes it all worth it. Especially to hear Benson tackle a mainstream, old school standard.
Enjoy
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
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Originally Posted by ecj
In terms of clinical precision and clear note definition at very fast speeds, JC is by far one of the best I've heard, whereas others I've noticed use a looser, flappy tech that grooves and pops the note a particular way. Depends what feel and sound you're going for.
Sometimes I briefly go back to traditional picking (for about 5 mins) to compare the difference - it's not an exaggeration to say that playing around 200-210bpm with Benson picking feels like 160bpm with traditional, in terms of the effort required.
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
So it's taking me a bit of time to figure out what I should keep from my old way of picking, and what I should throw out - evolutionary hangovers.
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Originally Posted by ecj
The strings have an unbelievable tone and are amazingly pliable for what is called a "flat wound" set. They also last forever, which is why LaBella includes an extra pair of plain steels for the two top strings (.014 and .018). From the company:
"La Bella Strings Electrics Black Nylon Tape Wound sets are the secret behind the sound of the best professional jazz players in the world. These strings are handcrafted with a proprietary black nylon tape, wound on a hexagonal steel core. The result is a flat and extremely smooth string, which produces a warm, jazzy sound with zero finger noise. The Electrics Black Nylon Tape Wound strings are ideal for archtops and hollow-body guitars."
Subjective company opinion aside, I had a phone conversation several years ago with Bob Archigian, who's been with LaBella for decades. Bob told me that GB once ordered 60 sets of the 800s because he was so blown away with the sound. Of course, this was years before his endorsement deal with Thomastik-Infeld, which if I had to choose any other string it would be one of their sets. Henry Johnson uses them, too.
What keeps me with the LaBellas is the fact that they sound so good for chords, octaves, double-stops, fingerstyle work and walking bass line accompaniments, plus there's no comparison to any flat wound (including the TI's) if you dig blues half as much as I do. The wrapped G string is remarkably pliable for string bending, so I can use the same strings and guitar for Stormy Monday as I do for any of the bebop, swing, ballad and latin classics.
Bob also told me that they finally had to raise the price, because the wrapped strings last so long that players would replace them every few years, and I can attest to that. It's the plain steels that will lose their intonation and have to be replaced more frequently. The only issue at times is whether the nut and tuning machines can accept the low E string, but I've had no problem on the Gibson or my Ibanez GB10.
If you or anyone does decide to try them (best price is at Elderly Instruments), stay away from the light set because the tone is nowhere near as robust as this one. Btw, don't be intimidated by the gauge, since the wrap contributes to the measurement but adds zero tenson to the metal core. All for now..Last edited by JazzOnSix; 10-11-2014 at 07:10 PM.
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Originally Posted by monk
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Originally Posted by JazzOnSix
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Originally Posted by ecj
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
Log on to the manufacturer's website and look for the page dedicated to your guitar. Look for specs. That will give you everything you need to know about your instrument.
For archtops these days, the most common scale is 24.75" or 25.50". Most common body size is 16" or 17" measured across the widest part of the lower bout. Most common nut width is 1 11/16".Last edited by monk; 10-11-2014 at 09:29 PM.
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Here's is a photo with what appears to be Joey Defrancesco, George Benson playing a Les Paul and Ron Eschete on the right.
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Originally Posted by monk
I went to the Ibanez site. My guitar---the Artcore AF85---is no longer made, so I picked one that looked similar (AF75) and had the same number of frets 22. (The AF85 has bigger frets than the AF75 but that need not concern us here.)
The scale length is 24. 75". Width at nut is given as 43mm
The body dimensions are: length: 18.7/8" width: 14 1/2 " max depth: 3 5/8"
Again, that's for an AF85. I think my AF85 should be pretty much the same.
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
As I'm sure you and others know, this tune was originally released on the epic 50's quintet recording that featured Kenny Burrell with John Coltrane. You'll hear the tone I'm referring to in the fingerstyle rubato intro based on those changes, before I switch to the pick (HJ ProPlec) when the band kicks in for the head and solo. If you listen carefully to bars 9-12 in that intro, especially the tremolo treatment of the turnaround chords using subs done in contrary motion, you'll hear why it's so critical for me to maintain a more traditional hand position. There are times when I need to quickly go back and forth between the fingers and pick.
With all due respect, guys like GB and my good friend Henry are not fingerstyle players by nature, and if that were the case for me I'd be far more open to that style of picking. As you so appropriately said before, "Whatever works.." ;-)
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Originally Posted by monk
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Thanks for the info on the LaBella strings, Mark. I have a couple sets of TIs (which I love) left, but after that, I'll give the LaBellas a shot.
Great playing on Freight Trane.
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Originally Posted by JazzOnSix
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10-13-2014, 06:03 AM #893destinytot Guest
Re. using fingers with this picking style, I'm now comfortable alternating between fingers (2, 3 and 4) and a pick. It's perfectly 'doable'.
Last edited by destinytot; 10-13-2014 at 06:13 AM.
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10-13-2014, 06:22 AM #894destinytot GuestBut the big change for me has been relaxing the pick grip so it flexes and flaps more like GB, which I've noticed has made my swing feel looser.
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Originally Posted by ecj
Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
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10-14-2014, 07:11 AM #896destinytot Guest
I've started using Planet Waves shell medium (.70mm) picks. I've used the same pick on different guitars and on different types of gig over the last few weeks, and they're great - the ease of Fender Thin, the dynamic range of Fender Medium, the tone of Clayton acetal... just the feel and (quiet) sound I like from the pick as it flexes and snaps across strings.
Last edited by destinytot; 10-14-2014 at 07:29 AM. Reason: addition
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Originally Posted by destinytot
On the home front, last night I switched back from Pro-Plec 1.5s to Fender Mediums. The Pro-Plec is a good pick but more "clacky" than I'd like (-when I'm playing unamplified, which is how I tend to practice). I get more dynamics from the FMs too.
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I like the Planet Waves 70mm too, both the shell and pearloid ones. The Ibanez GB pick is really good - the straight sides do provide less resistance against the string, and they have excellent grip. The tone is slightly sharper/brighter than a normal 351 (Fender) shape. Given that they're more expensive and harder to source, I filed some regular Fenders to copy the shape. Worked pretty well - I lay some fine sandpaper down flat on the table and ran the pick across (both sides), then buffered the edges afterwards to get rid of any rough spots.
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Originally Posted by 3625
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
The sides of the GB pick have less curve than a Fender - the GB is more triangular. However, the GB's don't have a particularly sharp point - a little sharper than a Fender, but nothing like a jazz iii or picks that metal players use. Basically the GB picks are the same as a Fender, except the side curves are straightened out. By running a Fender straight across some flat sandpaper, you pretty much end up with the exact shape of the GB. I haven't got time right now to photo the one I made, but I'll post it sometime on the weekend for you to look at, plus how I sand/file them.
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