Lunch Report Nov 16th wednesday

[louis cyfer]

today i had to eat fast food. i went to wendy's and got 2 grilled chicken breasts and a baked potato plain. ate half of the potato and the chicken breasts with hot sauce. total cost 6 dollars.
there is similar stuff available at most fast food places.

i have mentioned before that i have many pets. cats and dogs. i am heavily involved rescue work. i have fostered and raised dozens of cats and dogs and found them homes in the past few years. i bottle raise a few litters of kittens every year. the humane society will kill all kittens under 900 grams immediately, if they are without the mother, so i usually bring them home when people are trying to drop them off.

my non g&l question for today is: how many here own pets, and what steps you take to protect your gear (amps, guitars, pedals etc).

mine leave my stuff alone, only have to put away gigbags and tweed cases, they seem to like those. amps, guitars and pedals are perfectly safe with both the cats and the dogs.

i am considering getting a strat style g&l. i know there is the legacy, the comache and the s-500. my g&l question is what is the difference between those? i know the pickups are different, anything else? i have never compared the g&l z pup and the strat style mfd and the g&l alnicos.
please discuss the differences and preferences between the different style pups g&l makes.

[Philby]

Hi Louis,

I don't have any pets but my 3 y.o. daughter is drawn to red guitars like a bull to a red rag. She pulls them down and tries to play them like Daddy. She also collects my picks and stores them in her jewellery box. The tortoiseshell ones are her favourites. She doesn't pay any attention to sunburst or natural finish guitars so I tend to leave them in the house.

I've never seen a Comanche, but there are a few subtle differences between the Legacy and S-500 other than the pickups. The S-500 has locking tuners as standard and a modified switching circuit that gives you 7 pickup combinations rather than the usual 5. I bought my S-500 second hand and it came with a spare set of Legacy pickups in addition to the installed MFD's. I've tried them both and much preferred the Legacy alnicos to the MFD's, though the neck MFD is REALLY nice. I would characterise the MFD's as lacking character compared with the alnico's, but I understand that some people would prefer having a blank tonal slate to add effects to. In the end I installed some Seymour Duncan quarter pounders and I'm really happy with them.

[zapcosongs]

Our canine companion is a rescue from the baddest neighborhood in DC. He has been a great friend, and has been the childhood dog and best buddy to our two boys. Although we really aren't able to foster additional animals and such right now, we do donate money regularly to the local Humane Society and shelters. Meet my best friend. He's old, deaf and no longer sees well, but his heart is as big and beautiful as ever:



My only S-type guitar now is my early SC-3. I did own and love a Legacy, but I'm really a T-guy at heart..... I will say that I really, really liked G&L's take on the vintage alnico single coil pickup. And I recall fondly that the bridge position was actually quite useful all by itself, which isn't always the case with this type of instrument (for me, anyway).

There's some interesting reading in the Knowledgebase section here that will help you much in your quest. Boogie Bill, in particular, has contributed some great stuff on your very issue. - ed

[zapcosongs]

This was shot by my older kid of his little brother years ago. I think it just happens to be a nice composition. And very good luck! - ed

PS: I just realized that my dog has a rather incredible tongue! Ha! - ed

[repoman]

Can't help you much on the S500 vs Legacy as I only have an S500. Someone else has already mentioned the obvious features with the switching and tuners. But the biggies are in the sound of the pickups. At the time I was shopping I preferred the MFDs. I suppose I should get at least 1 Legacy! Guess it depends on what sound you're striving for.

We have dogs, cats, and fish at our house. My wife has worked and volunteered with the local Humane Society for years so we usually have at least one extra animal (usually several) at the house for either quarantine or fostering. Never had any real problems with pets around equipment. Just the cat who likes to curl up in open guitar cases

Jeff

[KenC]

I briefly owned a Legacy last year. The sound was incredible, but a neck problem sent it back to the store. My S-500 (the only one I've ever played) is too early to compare to the current model. If you're inclined toward older instruments you should try a Skyhawk if possible. The pickups on mine are some of the best I've ever heard. They have a shimmery sound that has been great with every amp I've put them through.

We currently have a pug and two cats. One of the cats was born in a shelter and joined us as a kitten. Her mother was a domestic cat gone stray, and her father was from a feral colony. She is very affectionate toward my wife, but is still shy around me after eleven years. She's never been aggressive, but some of the feral traits seem to have come through in her genes.

We found the second cat in our basement in the middle of an Ohio winter. We have no idea how she got in or how long she had been down there, but when we discovered her she weighed less than three pounds. Our vet thought she was just under a year old at the time. Once we determined she was disease-free she moved upstairs and joined right in. Three years later she weighs about 15 pounds and thinks she rules the house.

Ken

[louis cyfer]

philby
you know bulls are colorblind. they go after any color, it is the movement i do the 7 sound mod to all my strats. i love the dfs tremolo though.

zapco
beautiful dog. good for you. love the picture. you mean a very good lick? can i suggest to look for no-kill shelters to donate the money to. the humane society is not that humane sometimes. thanks for the info about the knowledgebase.

repoman
that is great that you foster animals. wee need more people to do that. i am involved with several organizations now, i couldn't handle the volunteering at the humane society. it was too hard for me to watch some of the things that go on.

ken
how old was the kitten when you got her? usually the feral behavior is learned, not passed on. i have had very good luck with raising kittens from feral cats and turn out very social and friendly towards everyone. have to separate them from the mother early, 3 weeks old the latest if the mother is very feral, because the kittens learn from the mother to be cautious towards people. i do some consulting for people with dogs that have problem behaviors. also with cat behaviors, usually on introduction of cats to each other is the biggest issue. when properly done, most cats can get along very well.



i am constantly campaigning for people to adapt, don't buy pets. i am very happy to see that the people here have very good hearts and are adopting the pets.
here is a pic of a litter i raised last year. found them abandoned in a parking lot at a petsmart. only 2-3 days old. ended up having cerebellar hypoplasia. 2 of them found homes, the third one ended up staying with me because she became very attached to my blind cat. they are best friends



and here they are with the foster mama

[louis cyfer]

this is one of the foster dogs cuddling with the kitty that has the cerebellar hypoplasia. she is the sweetest cat, despite her handicap.




another rescue. he was dumped in the mountains at big bear lake by the owner. he was loose living on his own for a month before getting trapped just as the first snow was coming down. he was very shy, stand offish. also had very bad separation anxiety. i think he is still looking for his owner. whenever he sees a certain type of pickup truck he goes nuts. i am still trying to find a home for him, but it has been difficult because it takes a while for him to warm up to new people. he has been with me for 2 years. he is a big goofy boy.

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

I am getting home very late this evening.

Louis you are turning inside out to be such a kind person.

I have had dogs, cats, ducks, and fish but I currently do not have any pets.

I'd like to have a dog but I live in an apartment where pets are not allowed. Frankly I am fine with it because I would not want to rent where pets were allowed. Not all owners are worthy of pets. I have known very wealthy home owners who allowed their spoiled pets to crap and pee all over their marble floors and fine furniture. Renters can be even worse.

Funny you should be talking about animals today. I sort of know a lot of animals all over town. I was driving up a mountain road this afternoon and came upon a dog lying in the road. It was very sad because I was familiar with this dog. People drive very fast in the mountains and animals have been known to run off until they drop dead after being struck by cars. Fortunately this dog was only napping in the middle of the road.

Later on in a different part of town I was approached by two separate cars minutes apart looking for a missing dog. I had seen the dog 20 minutes earlier. I saw the dog again about 20 minutes later. A kid had found it and put it on a leash. Not being certain I asked him if that was a stray and after a few minutes of discussion learned that the kid knew the family, figured the dog had wandered away from home and was walking it over to their house. So the family and lost pet were reunited.

Years ago I went through a rough time when what had been the love of my life ended. My best friend gave me a very young puppy. At the time I was philosophically opposed to giving pets as gifts. There is too much responsibility involved and unless everyone is fully aware and you just happen to be the one paying for the animal it is a potential disaster for the pet, the owner or both. But I learned something entirely different. A pet is just what I needed. At first I hated being strapped down as I wanted to keep moving to avoid thinking about the loss of the relationship. But instead of things remaining this way I started to gain more and more interest in caring for this puppy. It had been removed too soon from its siblings and mother so it needed me by its side whenever it was awake. If it awoke and I was not there it cried. I wanted to raise this dog correctly so I read books about raising dogs. I wanted it to grow up healthy and not neurotic like so many pets are encouraged to be by bad owners. This dog was so smart. It was thoughtful, polite, neat and aware.............about a step away from being human. I thought of it as a daughter in many ways. But I did not go so far as feeding it human scraps or indulging in other ghastly spoils. She was treated like a dog for the most part. She was trained to serve so she knew how to please with obedience rather than being raised to believe she was one of the kids with full privileges. A friend threw a birthday party for her dog and invited friends and their pets. At one point people had their dog perform a trick if they knew any. I sat and watched all of the dogs do their tricks. I had not trained my dog to do any circus type tricks because it just wasn't something I thought about. As I watched these dogs I knew my dog could do every one of them. So that night I went home and within minutes this dog had learned and performed every trick. I ended up marrying that best friend but the clincher was that she was allergic to animals and it meant losing the dog. She wrote this heartfelt ad with the dog's personality as if it was speaking that attracted the right people and we found a perfect match for her.

As for G&L Strat type guitars, I own a Legacy. I have played a total of four Strat type G&Ls but I have not played the other three plugged in. So my experience is only addressing the feel rather than the amplified tone. Out of a total of 12 G&Ls I have played the one that is at the top is an S-500 with a birdseye maple neck. In my limited experience birdseye maple necks (with maple fretboards) feel the best. Not sure if there is any physical spec to support it but for some reason the edges feel like they are more rounded for one thing. Some feel sharp but not the birdseyes. The overall playability is superior to me. I really cannot explain why, it is more than the rounded edge though. This S-500 had the best neck of all. The 2nd best playing G&L was an ASAT with a birdseye maple neck and fretboard. Back to Strats, I did not buy the S-500. It had an f-hole which I do not like and it was priced higher than I was interested in spending ($2000).

[louis cyfer]

I am getting home very late this evening.

Louis you are turning inside out to be such a kind person.

I have had dogs, cats, ducks, and fish but I currently do not have any pets.

I'd like to have a dog but I live in an apartment where pets are not allowed. Frankly I am fine with it because I would not want to rent where pets were allowed. Not all owners are worthy of pets. I have known very wealthy home owners who allowed their spoiled pets to crap and pee all over their marble floors and fine furniture. Renters can be even worse.

Funny you should be talking about animals today. I sort of know a lot of animals all over town. I was driving up a mountain road this afternoon and came upon a dog lying in the road. It was very sad because I was familiar with this dog. People drive very fast in the mountains and animals have been known to run off until they drop dead after being struck by cars. Fortunately this dog was only napping in the middle of the road.

Later on in a different part of town I was approached by two separate cars minutes apart looking for a missing dog. I had seen the dog 20 minutes earlier. I saw the dog again about 20 minutes later. A kid had found it and put it on a leash. Not being certain I asked him if that was a stray and after a few minutes of discussion learned that the kid knew the family, figured the dog had wandered away from home and was walking it over to their house. So the family and lost pet were reunited.

Years ago I went through a rough time when what had been the love of my life ended. My best friend gave me a very young puppy. At the time I was philosophically opposed to giving pets as gifts. There is too much responsibility involved and unless everyone is fully aware and you just happen to be the one paying for the animal it is a potential disaster for the pet, the owner or both. But I learned something entirely different. A pet is just what I needed. At first I hated being strapped down as I wanted to keep moving to avoid thinking about the loss of the relationship. But instead of things remaining this way I started to gain more and more interest in caring for this puppy. It had been removed too soon from its siblings and mother so it needed me by its side whenever it was awake. If it awoke and I was not there it cried. I wanted to raise this dog correctly so I read books about raising dogs. I wanted it to grow up healthy and not neurotic like so many pets are encouraged to be by bad owners. This dog was so smart. It was thoughtful, polite, neat and aware.............about a step away from being human. I thought of it as a daughter in many ways. But I did not go so far as feeding it human scraps or indulging in other ghastly spoils. She was treated like a dog for the most part. She was trained to serve so she knew how to please with obedience rather than being raised to believe she was one of the kids with full privileges. A friend threw a birthday party for her dog and invited friends and their pets. At one point people had their dog perform a trick if they knew any. I sat and watched all of the dogs do their tricks. I had not trained my dog to do any circus type tricks because it just wasn't something I thought about. As I watched these dogs I knew my dog could do every one of them. So that night I went home and within minutes this dog had learned and performed every trick. I ended up marrying that best friend but the clincher was that she was allergic to animals and it meant losing the dog. She wrote this heartfelt ad with the dog's personality as if it was speaking that attracted the right people and we found a perfect match for her.

As for G&L Strat type guitars, I own a Legacy. I have played a total of four Strat type G&Ls but I have not played the other three plugged in. So my experience is only addressing the feel rather than the amplified tone. Out of a total of 12 G&Ls I have played the one that is at the top is an S-500 with a birdseye maple neck. In my limited experience birdseye maple necks (with maple fretboards) feel the best. Not sure if there is any physical spec to support it but for some reason the edges feel like they are more rounded for one thing. Some feel sharp but not the birdseyes. The overall playability is superior to me. I really cannot explain why, it is more than the rounded edge though. This S-500 had the best neck of all. The 2nd best playing G&L was an ASAT with a birdseye maple neck and fretboard. Back to Strats, I did not buy the S-500. It had an f-hole which I do not like and it was priced higher than I was interested in spending ($2000).

interesting story. for me, if the girl is allergic or doesn't like my animals, that is a deal breaker. period. to me if they were ok with me getting rid of the dog, that would be a deal breaker. my gf once remarked that she was tired of being number 2. i assured her "baby, i promise you, you are not number 2" (meaning she was like number 14 or so ). i totally agree that many people are not qualified to be pet owners. often the same ones should not be parents either.i will not give up my pets, regardless of circumstance. to me it is like children. people usually don't get rid of kids because of a relationship or moving. yet many dump the animals. we find so many houses where the people moved out and leave the pets behind. breaks my heart. i am glad you did the responsible thing, and found the dog a good home. so many people just take them to the pound.

ass far as birdseye necks, that has nothing to do with the feel of the neck. in your case the birdseye happened to feel better. it is actually a structural fault, weaker wood, and it is a visual difference mostly. check what features on those necks, like rolled edges, etc you like, and you can have the same with regular maple.

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

Louis,

The neck feel might just be coincidence. It is hard to talk about it without trying to cover every possibility with a disclaimer so I just spoke rather loosely. My number one and two favorite feeling necks were birdseye maple but I don't know more than that. I think many things like this can be discussed, described then elements isolated and examined to bring them down to earth. Like the mysterious "soulful" playing.......can shredding be soulful? Anyway there are definable aspects that do not fall under subjectivity that we can agree upon. Create a list then separate the mystique. I am very tired. Maybe we can start a thread later. I will be in better shape to ask you another time. At this point I will end saying birdseye may have something to do with the feel of the neck, structural fault being irrelevant,.........to be discussed in the future. Also, I hope anyone with an opinion on this will keep an open mind for a future discussion when the discussion model is clarified. Suspend absolutes for the time being. It may prove to be interesting if we can open things like this up and look them over. I would like to tackle "soulful."

The dog and wife......there was much more to the story.

[meowmix]

Louis,

I would love to own a pet, but I just don't want that 24x7 commitment. Every so often I like to leave the area for a few days. That would become difficult if I owned a pet.

S500s are the only G&L 6 string guitars that I own. Here is a good description of the differences between the pickups.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVR7zt08SK4

If there is tone issues, it is usually either
a. The pre-amp tubes in amp
b. My playing ability
c. Strings

I don't blame the guitar for tone issues. Instead I focus on becoming a better guitarist.

[darwinohm]

Louis, I am a day late but it is good to see your compassion for animals.We have always had cats or a dog. The problem with pets is the relatively shot life span and you lose them. That is very difficult. The cats have been hard on my fabric covered bass amps. They use them for scratching posts. Thgis is not a problem with Tolex covered or grill cloth. It is kind of like a badge of honor. I have a 4-10 bass cabinet with a large port in the back. They like to go in the bass cabinet and sleep. I cover the port when I am not using it.

I have Legacys and an S-500. The difference is the pickups and switching. I like them both but I like all my guitars. -- Darwin

[Dave_P]

Hey Louis it's nice to see all the work you do with animals. All three of my dogs have been rescues. My first was Link got him when he was 1 1/2 months old from a rescue league in AZ, here he is at his first trip to the dog park. 6 or 7 years ago now, he still loves to run but he doesn't get the same air time anymore :


Then we adopted Angel from my wife's boss, I consider her a rescue because the way they treated her was abusive in my book. Never allowed in the house (in AZ, think 116 degree days and 30 at night) never took her to a vet, never had a bath. Poor girl was mistrusting for a while and pretty hyper. She settled in though and we bonded. I love all the animals I've cared for, but some you just bond with more than others, and she was my best friend. Unfortunately she passed last summer from what the vet thinks was an aneurism, we were out for a walk around the neighborhood, she started acting funny and was gone within 10-15mins.
Here's Link and Angel together, I'll give you three guesses what word I said to get their attention


Third was Marvin, he came to my window (really) an emaciated stray (starvin' marvin) we took him in our back yard and gave him food and water called the humane society who picked him up and later told us they were going to put him down for some bs reason I can't quite recall. Anyway we went down and adopted him, he was an escape artist. He could literally jump clear over the 6' high wall behind the house. He settled in though too, we tried a few families that ended up not being good fits for him. When we moved back to RI though we had the perfect person, she had visited us out in AZ and fell in love with Marvin. So off he went, but it's good to know he is in a nice home and well loved/cared for.


Had a tough time giving him up, not sure if I could do the foster pet thing I get attached too easily.
Never had any problems with them messing with my gear

I've briefly played a Legacy and a tribute s-500. I liked the sound of the s-500 but didn't play it too long because the setup was horrendous (GC) The legacy I liked quite a bit, but they were asking too much. Never had a chance to try a Comanche, would like to one of these days though. From other threads I gather Legacy is classic strat tones, s500 is kicked up a notch or two but in the same realm, comanche has been described as a blank slate in which to create your own sound. Just get one of each

-Dave

[zapcosongs]

This is a great thread. Warms my heart!

I forgot to mention that our dog (referenced above) came as a foster. Well, it was clear after a day or two that he wasn't going anywhere else, ever. Still, when he mis-behaves from time to time, we joke that we're just fostering him. He has a good laugh with us at that! - ed

PS: His name, btw, is Snowball. I'm not crazy about the name, but that is all he had when he came to us, so who were we to take that from him...???

[louis cyfer]

meowmix
i think you are misunderstanding what i am talking about. i am not talking about tone issues, rather differences. the same player will sound different with different pickups. and when they prefer the sound, they will play better. i am all with you about becoming a better musician, not just a better guitarist, and a lot of the tone is in the hands, but some of it is in the equipment with everything else equal.

darwin
how short are you talking about? with cats it's 16-20 when they live indoors. only 5-7 when outdoors. it is difficult to lose them. i focus on the good times together, and would never give that up.
i have a fender rumble bass amp that the cats shredded. that fabric covering attracted them.

dave
i love those pics. the 3rd dog looks like the one i have hugging the cat. also an escape artist. he can easily jump the fence. he also likes to go into any house with an open door and sit down on the coach and make himself right at home.