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Guitars
In the world of guitars, there are literally hundreds of thousands of choices. Narrowing it down requires consideration of many things. Number of frets, type of body, tuning pegs, string weight, tone knobs, color, quality, price, etc. The list goes on and on. How can you decide?
I have a Dean acoustic and a Jackson electric guitar. I have had them both for 3-4 years and, while I wouldn't mind having a couple of top of the line axes, they do pretty well. I have come to realize that just because you have the best, most expensive equipment, that doesn't mean that you will sound like Eddie Van Halen or whoever your guitar idol is. I've learned to be content with the gear that I have, and just try to write songs that sound good regardless of what they're played on.
I think it's pretty interesting that guitars have such a variety of sounds possible. Even without effects pedals, electrics have fingertapping, harmonics, feedback and many different types of tone at their disposal. Acoustic guitars have most of the same abilities (minus the feedback) but they have a milder, more familiar sound. Throw in effects pedal and you can pretty much make the guitar sound like anything you want, even if it's not a guitar. There are voice box pedals which come with a tube that you sing into, which is then distorted through the guitar's notes. Standard electric guitar effects such as distortion, chorus, flange, and pitch shifting are used often in various combinations.
I remember before I played guitar, and didn't know the world of fun that existed in doing so. It's not only one of the most popular instruments in the world, but you can be a novice or a world master and still have a great time making music.
Posted by DCSchneider on 
August 14, 2007 - 03:14 PM
Thanks for your article. Guitars are a funny thing to ponder… I have two electric guitars, both from the 1960’s and both from Japan. Needless to say they were cheap when I bought them; but that’s what a high-school kid needed to start with, and cheap makes neat! My acoustic is a Stella; cheap also but made in the good ol’ US of A! What made the difference for me were the amps and speakers and the people you play with to make sound; though being a loaner in my younger year’s people to play with were rare.