Lunch Report for Thursday, April 4, 2013

[Boogie Bill]

Normally I try to write my Lunch Reports the night before and post them when I go to bed, but I drifted off and didn’t get it done. Which means I’m writing this in the morning…

…and I am NOT a morning person!

Morning is a good concept, it just happens at a bad time of day for me!

So when I get this done, my lunch will probably be…a NAP!

And the coffee maker is SO slow this morning!!! If she doesn’t get me some quick, I’m gonna FIRE her! LOL!

(Yeah, like that’s gonna happen!)


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My paramour, confidante and roadie, Miss Leslie, is a CPA and we have her business in our home. Now, we normally think of CPA standing for “Certified Public Accountant”, but she claims it stands for “Constant Party Animal”. I often whine that it stands for “Complete Pain in the A**!” But, I have to be good and be nice to her though; otherwise I would be living under a bridge somewhere in a box!

Needless to say, we are busier than a (Fill in the metaphor of your choice!) this time of year doing taxes/

The deadline is coming soon! I suppose if anyone REALLY needs help, Leslie can file in all 50 states. So you can e-mail me and we’ll help you figure it out.

And you can pay me off in G&Ls!!!! How cool is that!!!!

Got your taxes done yet?


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I always like to ask crazy questions and I have one for you today.

Often we do pics and everybody shows off what they are driving, and that’s a lot of fun. Cars are such an important part of our culture. But today, let talk about BASIC transportation….

SHOES!!!!

You don’t have to send pics of what you’re wearing. You don’t have to describe your obsession with women’s feet and show off your collection of 4” spikes.

Got a pair of 30+ year-old wingtips that you keep resoling to wear with your business suits? Do you only wear a certain brand? Do you live in Chuck Taylors 24/7/365? Do you have a job that keeps you in fine Italian leather, or do you only wear dress shoes as part of your Sunday best? Are you feet so messed up and hard to fit that you’ve taken to wearing your grandad’s orthopedic footwear? Do you spend $100s on the latest jogging shoes, or do you shop the bargain racks? Are your Harley-Davidson boots a necessity, or just part of your bad-boy image?

What’s on your feet?


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Can’t talk guitars without talking amps. Most of us here are playing tube amps, some production, and many of you like small boutique amps.

I was “Boogie Bill” long before I ever even thought of owning a Mesa product, but it’s all I play these days. I have six Mesa amps, and have them in different sizes for different venues. I tend to like higher-powered amps with headroom, as I tend to play very clean most of the time. When I do need distortion, the Mesas’ lead channels give me exactly the tone I’m looking for. I’ve owned vintage Fenders including a 1965 Deluxe Reverb, a Bandmaster piggyback from the same era, a 1964 Tremolux piggyback, a Super Champ, a Fender 75 and a Twin Reverb; a Marshall; a couple of Peaveys; and a SUNN solid state 212 that I made my living with for many years.

There are so many good amps on the market these days. I suppose if I had to go buy a brand new amp today (other than a Mesa) I’d look at a Carr, Fuchs, Allen, Dr. Z, PRS, Rivera or a Marshall, et al. Don’t get me wrong, I love my Mesas and don’t plan to change anytime soon, but these are a few that interest me.

And there is one other one that has me very intrigued: the Fractal Audio Systems AXE-FX II.

I recently bought some strings from a guy who has one and he gave me a short demo. To say that it blew my mind would be an understatement. He was running his with a 212 cab and powered it with one of the Real Tube MosValve amps. This thing is light years ahead of modeling amps like the Cyber-Twin and the Valvetronix. Some of the pros using it have gone into it as their main rig, while others are integrating it into their rigs, still using regular amplifiers. The newest version has tremendous processing power and speed, with a nearly endless ability to modify amp, cabinet, speaker effects and more. It really does FEEL like a tube amp.

Now right away, I can tell you that this thing ain’t cheap—I think they are around $2,800, and that doesn’t include the foot controller. While that is a lot of money, it is certainly cheaper and more compact than a room full of vintage and boutique amps. And while there’s a lot to be said for a great sounding little combo that you can just pickup and go, the AXE-FX II would be right at home in a recording studio. For the guy who’s in a cover band trying to cop the exact sounds—if he wants to deep enough into the programming—he can nail a huge variety of tones and have them at his feet with the controller.

Just to put that price tag into perspective, I was thinking that I’d like to have a new Mesa Mark V 112 combo. Three channels, nine modes, built-in graphic eq, power-amp options—the epitome of versatility in a tube amp—and it costs $2, 395.00. For just a few hundred more, I can get pretty much all the tones in a Mark V or Dual Rectifier, plus those of Fender, Marshall, Vox, Sunn and more. I can have enough pedal effects that would cover an acre of floor space in a tiny box. And they keep updating the software, as new amps and effects come to market.

All of the guitar mags have reviewed this thing in the last few months and the reports have all been glowing. It has really caused a shift in my thinking. Even though it is really expensive, it’s not that much more than what a one-trick pony boutique amp from PRS, Fuchs Matchless or Bad Cat might cost.

What do you think? Is the Fractal AXE-FX II the future of guitar amplification?


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Okay, so I bought a nice used G&L Legacy Special, and I haven’t been able to play it much. It came with 10’s on it, and I like to use 9s on my G&Ls. It’s not normally a big deal, but this one, I’ll have to take to the luthier and have a new nut installed because the nut as it is can’t handle the 9s without buzzing. Bummer.

Now G&L uses D’Addario strings on their guitars, and I got no problems with that. I have used D’Addario strings for a long time—when they came out with the J-Series Phosphor Bronze string back in the ‘70s they were a huge improvement over everything else in the market. (I liked the SIT strings that they used to use, too.) There are so many great strings on the market today—really different from when I learned. You had a choice between La Bella or Black Diamond, or maybe Gibson Monel or Fender flatwounds.

For the most part, I use D’Addario PBs on all my acoustics, though I also have some Martin SP strings around. I use the XL Series on all my Gibsons in 10-46 gauge. I really like using the Fender Super Bullets on my G&Ls, because I like the bullet end—I think it does make a difference in the DF Vibrato.

I think it is easier to adjust a guitar from light gauge strings to heavier, than vice-versa. With that thought in mind…

Are you like me—do you think G&L should go back to shipping the guitars with 9-42 sets?

Or is the trend back to heavier strings in full force?

What are your string choices on your G&Ls?

Got to run, back tomorrow!

Take care,

Bill

P.S. And check out some of the responses I’ve made to your posts on the Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday reports.

[darwinohm]

I'm still working on the split pea/ham soup that Ginny made on Monday. It was my lunch at 10 AM.

Got your taxes done yet?

Yes, a month ago.

What’s on your feet?

Funny you should ask. For the first time ever I started have a problem with my feet. Had an itchy, sore rash on the bottoms of both feet. Assuming it was fingal, I treated it for four weeks and finally went to the doc. He said maybe its bacterial. We treated it for that. it helped but whenever I would gig it would flare up. I went to the doc two weeks ago and he looked at again and I asked him if it could be eczema. He looked at it again and said that is what it looks like. We treated it for that and it was healed up in three days. Magic. Here I had been screwing around with it for two months. We just got back fro a 3 mile walk and my feet have never been better. I wear walking shoes most of the time but wear anything that I like that fits. Ginny talked me into trying some Z-Coil shoes a few years back. They were a rip off as far as I was concerned and only created a lot of comments from my fiends like can you jump high????

What do you think? Is the Fractal AXE-FX II the future of guitar amplification?

I happen to have a Cyber Twin SE and it is a pretty advanced modeling amp and is awesome and can be programmed to do almost anything. They were a marketing failure. Musicians are creatures of habit sort of breed and do not like changes. You find a few who really like the new things but most don't. I just discovered that Roland and Fender have just released another version of the VG Strat. Look at the Gibson Robots, Firebirds and believe me there are guys that could benefit from auto tuners. Musicians see these things as gimmicks much like Harley Davidson owners see other bikes. If it doesn't shake, it isn't any good. I
personally like the Cyber Twin but unless you program it a lot it is not intuitive or easy and takes a fair amount of time. I suspect this new amp technology will struggle to survive. It will take a long time. We still think that tubes are the best thing since sliced bread. They do sound good. I was schooled on vacuum tubes and transistors and back then we thought that tubes were doomed. Wasn't long before the drugstore tube testers were gone. But we musicians haven't given up. I suspect the Telecaster and Stratocaster will be in style long after I am gone. I think that tube amps will be around as long as we are still able to carry them.

Are you like me—do you think G&L should go back to shipping the guitars with 9-42 sets?

Or is the trend back to heavier strings in full force?

What are your string choices on your G&Ls?

I have used D'Addarios for several years now and like the 10-46. I have played 9s and I put 9s on Steves ASAT a couple of weeks ago. It is all what one gets used to. They feel too rubbery to me. I like bending 10s better. All my Teles were 9-42 at one time but I have changed all of them to 10-46. Steve prefers the hybrids 9-46 but I just cannot warm up to 9s. All of my G&Ls are 10-46. Great questions this week Bill-- Darwin

[willross]

Got your taxes done yet?

Yes.

What’s on your feet?

Sneakers(Asics, Adidas, etc.) & deck shoes mostly.

What do you think? Is the Fractal AXE-FX II the future of guitar amplification?

Don't know. Not familiar, yet... I'm a Soldano kind of guy. Here's a couple pics:





Found a cool video of my actual Lucky 13 #0007

[youtube]BRBQcu_Qbm8[/youtube]

That guy is also one of the publishers of The Blue Book... It's my amp now!

Are you like me—do you think G&L should go back to shipping the guitars with 9-42 sets?

Mine have 10's and all others have 10's, except my Parker has 9's.

Or is the trend back to heavier strings in full force?

10's and 9's for me.

What are your string choices on your G&Ls?

D'Addario's and Thomastik work for me.


Cheers,

Will

[GDub]

Got your taxes done yet?

Almost...

What’s on your feet?

Blundstone boots (I LOVE my Blunnies!), Altra "zero drop" running shoes, or, for house shoes, Birkenstocks or flip-flops. For gigs I wear a pair of Danner 8" tactical boots. As a kilt wearer I need the "flexibility" a tactical boot offers .

What do you think? Is the Fractal AXE-FX II the future of guitar amplification?

I recently bought a Fender Super Champ X2 head to pair with my fabulous, but unfortunately long defunct, Tone-Tools 1x12 cab. Unlike my other amps, ALL my guitars sound really good through this setup--even my custom order S-500 with which I never bonded! The X2 is the recent iteration of the Super Champ XD, which I've had (in combo form) since it was first introduced. Both are great bang for the buck, gig worthy, low watt amps! The X2 has, IMHO, better modeling voices than the XD--I'm actually using a couple of the "voices" a lot.

For bigger venues, or when I'm in the mood, I use my old trusty '94 Rivera R55 1x12 or the Mesa Express 5:25 1x12.

What are your string choices on your G&Ls?

Pyramids or Newtones--.011s. They're pricey, but I like them. I used to use Snake Oil Brand (SOB) on my Legacy but their shipping got flaky so I stopped buying them. Too bad because they were very good strings.

--GDub

[blargfromouterspace]

I'm sick as a dog today. Damn flu. To make things worse I pulled a muscle in my neck the other day whilst carrying 30kg of cabbage (for sauerkraut) from the markets and when I sneeze it hurts bad. I'm taking the day off and sulking.

Shoes - RM Williams. One of the few Australian made shoes left that I'm aware of. However they aren't cheap by any stretch of the imagination. They're kind of like G&L in that they're very well made and you can get them made to order for the same price as a standard pair and they're addictive - I just ordered a second pair the other day! In summer I wear a pair of German flip-flops (we call them thongs here, but I know thats a different item of clothing in the US), that are kind of like Birkenstocks. I wear them everywhere. I have a pair of beaten up Blunnies for working in or for bush walks.


Strings - I'm on 10s mostly, 11s on the Korina Jr. Thinking about going up to 11s on the others too. Ernie Ball have been good for me. Haven't broken one for years.

Amps - I'll keep my valve amp, thanks. I don't have the need for a million different sounds, just one really good one.

[louis cyfer]

usually brooks beast, but the new balance 1012 works well too. i like the ecco boots for hiking.

i don't care for the fractal. i'd rather play than spend days programing, going through many screens to dial basic tones. and the feel is still lacking. the brands you mentioned, i have tried them all, they can't hold a candle to the two rock. the prs amps i was very disappointed with. the fuchs ods would be my next choice. the fryette memphis is also very good, and the 3 monkey orangutan. also i like the joe morgan amps.

thomastik power bright 10-50 for me.

[Sprinter 92]

Got your taxes done yet?

Yes

What’s on your feet?

I wear Double H brand steel toed work boots 95% of the time. I wear them at work and when working at home in the yard, barn or pasture. The rest of the time I wear New Balance tennis shoes.

What do you think? Is the Fractal AXE-FX II the future of guitar amplification?

I've never heard of this amp. It doesn't sound like anything I'd be interested in.

What are your string choices on your G&Ls?

I use Darco 10-46 guage strings on my G&L's.

[cuzwilly]

I had lunch at McDonalds #1 the Big Mac meal. the thing about Mcdonalds you can get the same crappy hamburger almost anyplace in the world.

taxes done got a small refund.

I wear boots steel toes at work pointy toed cowboy boots at home.

I do use amp modeling some I like Line 6 . I use a HD 500 floor pod I also have a Carvin SX300 solidstate but nothing bets tubes. I still use my Dean Markley cd 60 or my peavey classic 30 more than anything else. tubes just sound and preform better than modeling to me. But I was brought up on tubes my first amp was a small Silvertone tube amp my parents got from Sears.

I use D'Addarios 10's on my guitars the one with the wound G. I do have 9's on my Will Ray but I think Im going to change it to 10's. 9's seem to light for me.

[Skyhawk]

I use to collect amps: as of now I have a Carvin vintage Nomad, A 1973 Earth solid state amp, Fender Champ reissue, Fender Super Champ (the newer model with diff. settings.)

Yes............guitars should be shipped with nines for the reason you said.

I use Fender bullet nines.
LS

[yowhatsshakin]

Hey Bill,

Feel your pain not being amorning person. Took me a decade to become one myself and like it now.

Got my taxes done a week and a half ago. Strangely enough wasn't too bothersome this year. It has become easier and easier to use a) tax software, and b) import relevant documents in said software. Saved me a lot of computation with paper and pencil.

Currently there are only socks on my feet. It is how I like to play guitar: no shoes, just socks. But ordinarily I wear hiking shoes to supprt my floppy ankles.

There is a lot that digitization has brought to the music industry: modelers (amps and effects), algorithms, AD/DA converters. So in 2000 I got myself a Lexicon MPX-G2 with MPX-R1 MIDI controller and Tech 21 Midi Mouse to control my Mesa TriAxis/2:90 rig. Great effects at the time, beautiful reverbs, stereo chorus and rotary cabs, the whole thing. But I have come around over the last decade. I just like real tube amps with real cables and real stomp boxes better right now.

I like the 10's on the G&L's, thin enough for serious bending but beefy enough to give some girth to the sound of a guitar. I still keep 9's on many of my Leo-era guitar but that is in part because I'm too lazy to properly set them up for 10's. And then I have some with 11's on them: my ASAT Classic in open-G, Legacy Special, and my PRS Hollowbody II (with a wound G). All D'Addario by the way ...

- Jos

[blargfromouterspace]

House shoes, beyond slippers, is such a strange concept to me. When I get home I can't wait to take my shoes off, regardless of how comfortable they are!

[bloodied_fingers]

Taxes:
Hahaha.. I was saying to my wife the other day:

Me: "Honey, we gotta get our taxes done."

Wife: "Seriously?"

Me: "Yeah, I think they're due soon, right?"

Wife: "Honey, I filed the taxes, we got our refund and it paid for your new guitar."

Shoes:
Usually something that slips on easily. I do spend a little money on running shoes.

Amp:
Im probably not qualified to comment on this, since I've only ever owned my traynor tubemate. Which is a helluva a lot less expensive than most everyone else I see listing their gear.

But I toyed with a couple cheap-o pedals and I have now settled on a Boss ME-25 to get lots of sound variety. I like the idea of my modeling and effects being decoupled from the amplifier because when I learn to tweak the effects piece then it can go with me to a new amp, and vice-versa changing my amp doesn't rob me of the knowledge I had of my effects/modeling stuff.

I'd really like to get a nice tube amp but imo my hybrid sounds pretty damn good.

Strings:
I'm using Ernie Ball Power Slinkys. I can't stand .9s, they feel like little razor blades on my fingertips and I'm always bending them when I shouldn't be..

I haven't tried anything bigger than .11s yet, but they feel right to my hands and being new I have enough issues to sort out - so I'm not actively searching for anything different

[GDub]

House shoes, beyond slippers, is such a strange concept to me. When I get home I can't wait to take my shoes off, regardless of how comfortable they are!

By "house shoes" I meant around the house shoes--which includes working or hanging out in the yard, short trips for food and supplies, etc. When it's cold but dry I often wear Birkenstocks. I live in Havaianas flip-flops (thongs) throughout the warm months. I garden in Birkenstock rubber gardening clogs--without socks. I go barefoot in the house when it's warm, but we keep a "cold" house (intentionally drafty) during the cooler months here in sunny Northern California so something needs to be on the feet. And since I'm not a slipper wearer, Birks with thick Irish wool socks are de rigueur .

[Boogie Bill]

Some comments…

Darwin

Good to hear about your feet. Got to take care of them, especially as we get older. I’m diabetic, so it’s a real concern.


Will

Gorgeous Soldano, and I’ll bet it sounds good, too.

Mike does some amazing work. Talked with him years ago when I lived in Seattle. I have a couple of Blond Mesas, a Mark III combo and its matching Theile cab; and a 212 Maverick combo. The 1964 BF Tremolux I owned was a blond in smooth tolex. Really beautiful and one of the best amps I’ve ever owned. Really miss that one!


Gdub

Have to check out that Champ X2. I used to own an old Super Champ—that was a killer amp, I’d love to find another one—but they are really pricey! The X2 might work as a good substitute.

And I can see how wearing a kilt could affect one’s choice of footwear!


Jamie

I love those custom boots—Beautiful!!! I want some! And I really like your amp comment. Truth.


Louis

I would definitely add your list of amps to my list to try someday. Another one I thought of is Divided By 13. I loved Fryette’s old amps…fell in love with a Pitbull stack back in the day. Holy moley!


Sprinter

Yeah, steel-toed boots would be a necessity in your line of work. One of my friends was a maniac, er…mechanic, and the ONE DAY he didn’t wear his boots an alternator fell and broke two toes. I cringe just thinking about it.


Cuzwilly

I have always wanted a pair of cowboy boots since I was a little kid. Can’t wear them—I have a 6E wide foot and very high arches and insteps. The medical term is “Pes Cavus” and the best thing I can say about my feet is that they kept me out of the army and from going to Vietnam. I will never be a runner—it just kills me to run. I have to wear a thick arch support in my shoes, and if it’s not right it’s murder, not only on my feet but my ankles and knees, too.

I can’t wear Birkenstocks or most other sandals, and I don’t go barefoot around the house. Years ago I went one day without my arch supports and I got such painful plantar fasciitis I nearly committed suicide!

I order street shoes from a company near Boston, Hitchcock Shoes, which specializes in wide widths. And I have a New Balance store just down the street from me, so I have been living in their top of the line walking shoes for past couple of years.


Jos

I would love to have a Triaxis set up, but they are expensive. The cool thing about that is you can dial your tones into the preamp, and then use a Simul 2:95 on a big gig, or a Formula 20/20 power amp in a club. And like I said, there’s something to be said for having a small combo amp that you can just pickup and go.

And house socks? My ex-wife had the coldest feet on the planet! Nothing ruins the look of a sexy negligee like a pair of wool army socks!! LOL!


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Thanks guys for your contributions!

Bill