LR - Wednesday 14/12

[blargfromouterspace]

All plans for today were thrown out when my cars ignition barrel decided to seize up, just after my girlfriend and I did our weeks shopping at the markets. I was stuck at the side of the road for two damn hours waiting for the RAC. The car is still broke and is currently at the mechanic. Pretty pissed off right now.

Lunch was a banana smoothie with honey for taste and pysilium husk for fibre. After cyclone Yasi destroyed Australia's banana crops earlier this year, banana prices hit almost $18/kg, making a banana smoothie cost about the same as a glass of Dom Perignon. This morning at the market they were cheaper than I’ve ever seen them at $1.20/kg. Good ones too. Happy days.

Necessary music purchases.
Aside from the case mentioned in yesterdays report, I have a need for a larger amp for some of the bigger gigs we have booked. I’ve been on the lookout for a cheap used Fender Twin or a Peavey Classic 50 410, but todays car expenses will no doubt eat up the money I'd saved for it - a VW ingition barrel will be expensive.

Is there anything you need?

G&L
Geez they’re good.

Perpetual Earworm
Tying in with the poll, the Beach Boys (whom I prefer to the Beatles). Admittedly this is far from their finest moment, especially when you think about that cheesy Tom Cruise (yuk) movie it’s associated with, but nonetheless a soothing tropical sound which I gravitate towards. Hey look - it's 'Full House's John Stamos!

[youtube]9_5_AD9wXuY[/youtube]

Time for a cocktail!

[Philby]

Sorry to hear about your car woes Jamie. There's nothing like a car repair to make guitars look cheap.

Bananas: Now that bananas are under $3 per kg again my 6 y.o. claims he doesn't like them. When they were $30 per kg straight after the cyclone he claimed they were his favourite fruit and demanded to know why they no longer featured in his lunch box.

Necessary Music Purchases: I just ordered one of these online. Some of the uses I have earmarked it for are:

+20dB clean boost
run 2 amps in stereo
drive both inputs of 2 channel amp at once
blend Line A and Line B effects loops e.g. 2 overdrive pedals for interesting effects
control multiple effects chains

I can't believe I ever did without it, and it hasn't even arrived yet.

[louis cyfer]

Sorry to hear about your car woes Jamie. There's nothing like a car repair to make guitars look cheap.

Bananas: Now that bananas are under $3 per kg again my 6 y.o. claims he doesn't like them. When they were $30 per kg straight after the cyclone he claimed they were his favourite fruit and demanded to know why they no longer featured in his lunch box.

Necessary Music Purchases: I just ordered one of these online. Some of the uses I have earmarked it for are:

+20dB clean boost
run 2 amps in stereo
drive both inputs of 2 channel amp at once
blend Line A and Line B effects loops e.g. 2 overdrive pedals for interesting effects
control multiple effects chains

I can't believe I ever did without it, and it hasn't even arrived yet.

that boss pedal is pretty horrible. i am surprised you didn't go for a lehle. you can get anything you want from them, and the quality is miles better.

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

.

Didn't think I would have time for the LRs this week but so far it has been a tame week at work.

Bananas are great. I was sort of addicted to coffee and banana bread a few years ago. Everyday during the week that I could make it by I'd hit this coffee shop where they had the best coffee and banana bread. One of the best Christmas gifts I had ever received came from a friend who was aware of this and special-ordered a whole loaf for me. The friend was always so busy running around with kids to take care of. For her to think of this and go to the trouble to have it ordered and to pick it up on the way to work meant a lot to me. I mentioned bread yesterday, I managed to develop a banana bread as good as that from the coffee shop and started making my cup of coffee at home. I have saved hundreds of dollars since.

Gear Needs: I need to replace the money I spent on gear in the last 6 months.

The Beach Boys never clicked with me. There is a range of emotion in Beatles' music that has blended with my life.

Lunch today? I tend to drink less water when it is cold. I can tell I need to drink more. I know I will be having water at least. It is just after midnight here, off to bed now.

.

[Ahryn]

Bananas, Never been that big a fan of them but hearing about how expensive they got for you guys sure does make me glad that I haven't had to experience that too badly with my fruits of choice.

Music purchases, Not too necessary but I have found that my green screamer doesn't agree with my Lexington reverb the way I would like (possible as it is built as a modified tweed Champ/Princeton type clone?)

So I was seriously thinking of maybe trying a fuzz with it (like a Black Keys type tone kind of thing as I think they use heavy fuzz with tweeds) but maybe something a little kinder than normal fuzz with alot of low end but be very very tweakable.

Right now the Way Huge Swollen Pickle is on my radar (because the price is right and they are relatevly easy to find/try out in my neck of the woods) or maybe some form of ZVEX likely the mastotron.

G&L, the measuring stick I hold every other guitar against.

[blargfromouterspace]

that boss pedal is pretty horrible. i am surprised you didn't go for a lehle. you can get anything you want from them, and the quality is miles better.

What do you really think Louis? Why pay for a Lehle when a Boss does the exact same thing? And as afar as quality is concerned I strongly disagree. The only thing likely to break on a Boss pedal is the switch - a $2, easily replaceable part which gives way every 15 years or so.

Ahryn - Every man needs a fuzz!

Michael - A coffee and a piece of banana bread sounds really good right now

[Sprinter 92]

All plans for today were thrown out when my cars ignition barrel decided to seize up, just after my girlfriend and I did our weeks shopping at the markets. I was stuck at the side of the road for two damn hours waiting for the RAC. The car is still broke and is currently at the mechanic. Pretty pissed off right now.

Sorry to hear about your car problems. I was a VW mechanic for two years and I know everything on them is expensive to repair and usually a giant pain in the ass. I don't miss working on them.

Necessary music purchases.
Is there anything you need?

I'd like to have a better acoustic guitar. I'm leaning towards Collings or Larrivee.

G&L
Geez they’re good.

Yep, they're good, but I seldom play my G&L's these days.


Sprinter 92

[sam]

Bummer about the car, those unexpected expenses just ruin the day.

Bananas have been a staple round my house for years, glad price is down.

Necessary music purchases.
Need is relative, but I do believe I need a new wah, just can't decide which one.

G&L - Geez they’re good.
Yep, certainly the evolution of Leo.

Beatles all the way!

[sirmyghin]

What do I need? Well, I just put down a 50% deposit on a 7. I guess I need to pay that off on completion .

My gear needs are next to non-existant, wants however I could use a set of monitors something fierce.


Not a fan of bananas, they are already, and I can actually eat them nowadays, but it took years to get over the direct, heavy conditioning against them imposed at a young age by banana flavoured medicine, and vomit prolific illness. In my earlier years the smell would make me lose it if too close to me. Then that gradually faded and I ate some in a fruit salad recently, 20+ years later. Still not a big fan of it alone though.

[louis cyfer]

that boss pedal is pretty horrible. i am surprised you didn't go for a lehle. you can get anything you want from them, and the quality is miles better.

What do you really think Louis? Why pay for a Lehle when a Boss does the exact same thing? And as afar as quality is concerned I strongly disagree. The only thing likely to break on a Boss pedal is the switch - a $2, easily replaceable part which gives way every 15 years or so.

Ahryn - Every man needs a fuzz!

Michael - A coffee and a piece of banana bread sounds really good right now

the quality problem is not in how long it lasts. it's in the circuit components. the sound is not very good. it is not isolated either. noise issues.

[zapcosongs]

Bananas: Pretty much the perfect food. Even comes in its own wrapper! With a handful of nuts, you've got a meal! (Don't say it... ;+) btw, banana bread is so easy to make, even I can do it (and I'm a moron!).

Sorry to hear about the car. Bastids!

No gear needs at all right now. Just need more time to enjoy what I am so fortunate to have.

G&L: Yep!

- ed

PS: Louis, I hear that sertraline builds muscle mass!

[darwinohm]

Jamie, car trouble is always a PITA. Hope you can get it repaired without a holdup. I am kind of wimping around today. I still haven't fully recovered from last weekend.

I use a Radial Big Shot for switching amps. It is passive and has no power source. The gain setting could be a help at times.

I don't have any gear needs at the moment but am always watching for something on the fringes. I am laying in the weeds on something and will wait until after the first of the year.

Hope the car doesn't mess up your gear plans Jamie. Speaking of gear, last weekend us old dudes realized that we could use some roadies!! -- Darwin

[Kit]

Car trouble is aggravating. A few months ago I dropped almost $1900 on a valve head gasket job and a few small repairs on my 7 year old car. That was painful.

I really don't have any musical needs. Wants, I do have. I wouldn't mind having a Vox AC15C1 or something that has a similar sound; essentially I'm looking for an EL84-voice amp to go along with the 6V6-voiced amp that I have.

I like the Beach Boys, but my favorite is the other band in your poll. With the Beach Boys I prefer their music from their 60s heyday.

Kit

[repoman]

Bananas - I LOVE a good piece of banana bread and enjoy a banana smoothie once or twice a week. But just never was a fan of a plain 'ol banana. It's a texture thing I guess. My wife's banana bread recipe calls for about a bucket full of lard. Probably not the healthiest on the planet but it sure tastes good!

Wants vs Needs - Nothing I need musically right now. But want? Oh yeah, there's lots of those


good luck with the car,

Jeff

[Philby]

that boss pedal is pretty horrible. i am surprised you didn't go for a lehle. you can get anything you want from them, and the quality is miles better.

What do you really think Louis? Why pay for a Lehle when a Boss does the exact same thing? And as afar as quality is concerned I strongly disagree. The only thing likely to break on a Boss pedal is the switch - a $2, easily replaceable part which gives way every 15 years or so.

Ahryn - Every man needs a fuzz!

Michael - A coffee and a piece of banana bread sounds really good right now

the quality problem is not in how long it lasts. it's in the circuit components. the sound is not very good. it is not isolated either. noise issues.

The only noise/sound issue with the LS-2 comes from not using the recommended Boss power supply. If it's good enough for B-grade hacks like Radiohead to have in their live rigs (several) then it's good enough for me. Thanks for the advice though.

[blargfromouterspace]

Sorry to hear about your car problems. I was a VW mechanic for two years and I know everything on them is expensive to repair and usually a giant pain in the ass. I don't miss working on them.

Damn!

Hope the car doesn't mess up your gear plans Jamie. Speaking of gear, last weekend us old dudes realized that we could use some roadies!!

But packing and unpacking the PA, drums, lights, stands and amps is the best bit

[gitman001]

Hey Jamie,

Hope all works out well with the car.... its never fun dealing with that.

Gear Needs: I need to replace the money I spent on gear in the last 6 months.

+1 on that!!!

I think the new year will bring a new head. Maybe another Z, but nothing officially on the radar.

Scott

[KenC]

Jamie,

Cars:
I'm sorry to hear about your car. Last spring the Subaru I had loved for 11 years had a complete transmission failure and left me stranded IN the road. It just locked up completely and skidded to a halt. Fortunately I had been driving past a park and decided to take a detour through it, so there was no traffic around me. The bill for that was $2000, on top of a $2500 clutch replacement a few months earlier. I just couldn't trust the car after the transmission failure, and ended up replacing it a couple of months later. I admit that I did think of those repair bills in terms of gear I could have gotten!

Bananas:
Bananas are a favorite. Fortunately our supply here in the States is steady.

Gear needs:
I've been very free of gear lust lately. I found a good deal on-line a couple of months ago on what I thought would be a late 80s ASAT in decent condition. It turned out to be from the first month of post-Broadcaster production, and in very good condition after a cleaning and setup. I really thought I had found my perfect guitar. I stumbled across another unbelievable deal on a rarebird last week, the same night that my wife commented about not knowing what to get me for Christmas. Long story short, I suggested the guitar and for some unknown reason she agreed to it. She was home to accept the delivery, so it's hidden somewhere and I won't get to peek/play until Christmas morning. So I guess my gear need is to control myself for another eleven days...

I am also waiting for a Moogerfooger flanger/chorus to arrive at my local shop, which has been on back order for several months. I'm not sure how much I will use it, but this is a very limited production pedal. If I don't end up hanging onto it, I'm sure it will be worth more than I'm paying for it within a couple of years.

Beach Boys vs. Beatles:
I was just thinking this morning about giving my son a copy of Abbey Road and letting him absorb side two. I think I have a slight preference for the Beach Boys, though. My mother took me to one of their concerts when I was twlve (in 1977, when they tended to start their shows intoxicated and end them by fighting or falling off the stage). It was outdoors, and a major thunderstorm hit during the first set. Almost everybody left, but the band kept playing to the couple of dozen of us who stayed. That was a peak concert experience, especially for my first rock concert: standing at the edge of the stage, with Brian Wilson singing Good Vibrations no more than ten feet away. To this day I have to rate it as the best show I've ever seen.

Ken

[louis cyfer]

Hey Jamie,

Hope all works out well with the car.... its never fun dealing with that.

Gear Needs: I need to replace the money I spent on gear in the last 6 months.

+1 on that!!!

I think the new year will bring a new head. Maybe another Z, but nothing officially on the radar.

Scott

i bought 4 amps this year. no plans to buy any next year unless i can pry the dumble sss from my buddy's hands.

[Boogie Bill]

Sorry about the car troubles.

I'm eating a lot more bananas lately, trying to better regulate my digestive track--a problem caused by all the meds I'm taking.

One of my buddies uses the Boss Line Switcher to switch between to efx chains, and he's used that rig for years. Cool system.

No real "needs" right now, but I do have a bunch of stuff that I should sell. I would like to get a Martin D-18V (and dump my Taylor 710CE); and possibly get a new Mesa amp--either a Mark V, Stiletto Ace, ElectroDyne, or Royal Atlantic--but I doubt that's going to happen anytime soon.

My last three purchases were some used Carvin LM15A power speakers and a pair of their powered 18" subs. I bought a Fishman Aura DI to help clean up my acoustic guitar tones. And I bought an Olympus LS-11 hand-held stereo recorder as a practice aid and to help me evaluate my playing at jams.

And yes, I LOVE my G&Ls!

Bill

[zapcosongs]

KenC - Are you the one who snagged the 1st body style SC-3? - ed