Jivin

Yeah just look how big Good Charlotte have gone... thats gotta be inspiration enough for even the most untalented person

Thanks for that nate, that really helped to put things in perspective. - Dan

I swear by cort acoustics for my limited work. I got an amazing deal on a Cort SF-5X, which is now a discontinued model. The new model like it doesnt have a solid back, but mine as a solid mahogany back and sides, solid AA grade spruce top and Fishman Prefix Plus electronics... its an amazing guitar for the price i got it for Thats my recomendation anyway. Im not sure how much £300 equates to in my currency, but id imagine it would almost be enough to pick up something nice www.cort.com

I have to ask, cause ive been meaning to for ages... The conferderate flag... doesn't it carry a bit of a racist, pro-slavery connotation? Im the first to admit I dont know much abou the american civil war or whatever it was from.. or american history full stop, but thats just what I had heard... that it was like the flag of the southerners and it sort of represented the people who wanted to keep african-americans as slaves? Meh, i might go do some research now...

Awesome work man! Looks like you salvaged your guitar from a burning house great stuff

I put my vote in for Humbuckers, cause thats generally what I like for the majority of stuff I do, however when I want to clean up my sound, I really am of the opinion you cant beat the crisp sound of a single coil. I've played a lot of different guitars, but unfortunately i dont actually -own- guitars with a lot of the combinations I still want to try, like the dimebucker/jazz combo. My fav humbuckers are ones ive only just discovered for myself recently, the Mastertone SPA (Super Phat Ass) and vHO (Vintage High Output) combo. They are active pickups, and as I understand it they are manufactured here in Australia. Ive been playing a les paul that has a set in it that belongs to a guy im housesitting for, and godamn, i love it Ive only had limited experience with EMG's, but these babies go hard! Still dont clean up as well as i'd like, but they have this raw edge to them that i love. Im not one of the people that thinks EMG's sound sterile, but there are people who think these are the missing link between passive and active pickups. Im not quite sure its like that, but I love these a bit more than the sound of EMG's, i think its just cause they are australian

Ones like this were selling for $500 new before the newer model came out here in australia, so i didnt think so. It does come with a hardcase as well. I actually got it for $215AU in the end though, so we'll see. The guy said he is very confidant its not ply, but who knows Thanks again for all your input - Dan

My setup is pretty simple I have my guitars running through a Boss GT-6 into a Kustom 100w solid state combo. Its really loud and easy big enough for small to medium gigs which is all I do and its obviously heaps big enough for home, so it keeps me happy Sometimes for gigs i line out to a rented cabinet. As a standalone unit the Kustom doesnt really cut the mustard. For clean tones its great, but its distortion is really weak. For the money I paid I shoudl be annoyed, but for some reason ive never worried about it. The speaker quality is also top notch, so as a modelling amp getting fed by the GT-6 (which i love) it gives me great flexibility and i can rely on it night after night.

Thanks man like i said, even though it sounds a bit silly, I dont mind upgrading almost everything on it over time, so its all good Thanks again for your advice - Dan

Hi, I'm looking to buy a cheap strat basically to muck around with, (cheap since i dont have a huge use for one, so I cant justify a fender), but ive come across a great sunburst 'standard' squire strat that I quite like, and even though id be willing to upgrade a lot of its hardware in the long-term, i was more curious as to what quality the basics of these things are? I understand they wouldnt be anything fancy, but for the money (its like $250AU in great condition), is the construction and wood selection ok? Thanks in advance, - Dan

I vote for cort

Thanks mate, Strange, I searched "KTM-9" on all forums and nothing came up? Oh well. Thanks again, ill be sure to check out MIMF now. - Dan

Gday, Ive just read about the KTM9 Water-based clear lacquer over at LMI and it sounds pretty good! From the raps they are giving it I am keen to give it a try. Check it out here I did a search here but I was suprised to find it hasnt been much of conversation topic here at PG. So, does anyone have any opinions on this stuff? Is it worth me ordering some from the states and giving it a go? Thanks a lot, - Dan

Ideally I want the best of both. Obviously if i had to pick just one, it would be playability, but there is no reason why I cant have both

Couple of things Firstly, it does sound like you've gotten better, which is great to hear! Im no expert, I reckon im still a beginner myself, but I think you definitely have some timing issues you need to get sorted, and im saying that primarily related to your rendition of Seek and Destroy Practice with a metronome, if you dont want to spend $20 on one, use a free electronic thing off the net. You seem to have made a few mistakes in figuring out the song too, assuming you meant you figured out seek and destroy by ear. Keep it up though - I must say you have balls of steel to keep posting your stuff here in public. You've got lots to learn though.... but just think of the potential!

I'm not an experienced luthier, but I am experienced with design I woudl say you would be right with either... but my preferencew ould be to stay with chrome. That said I dont remember 100% the colours.. ill check and edit back edit: I would say definitely stick with the chrome. Chrome is generally always pretty safe and in this case not only does it go well it gives a bit of contrast. Black hardware would be a bit overbearing i think. Like it would look alright, but it would sorta blend in an odd way, so im not entirely convinced black is a good idea, unless your going for a really dark look Chrome would add a subtle touch of class and would still be killer imo btw, i cant wait to see it all finished! nothing quite like the finished job with hardware back in! Its gonna look really sweet Congrats on a job well done - Dan

In no particular order... cause id have a hard time putting htem in order - Stevie Ray Vaughan - Dimebag Darrell - Zakk Wylde - Carlos Santana - Mark Knopfler - James Hetfield - Kirk Hammett - Brian May - Mikael Akerfeldt

Settle down man, no need for insults. Sure westheman might be a bit edgy, and who can blame him with the amount of fools that pass through here, but he wasnt rude... He deserves the same courtesy.

Looking great dude! Keep it up!

Overall I think it looks great! However, the pickups look more yellow than gold in the pics, and it sorta looks cheesy good work overall though, nice guitar!

Good to hear basey, cause I didnt mean any offense, just isnt my cup of tea thats all In a nutshell, I just think it lacks symmetry and looks a bit wonky. The way the top half of the body is so chunky and runs so far along the fretboard and then the bottom half is so much shorter and the lower horn is like a little limp sausage hanging out from the bottom In my opinion, simply rounding off the bit that juts out at the back and making the lower horn a bit more significant woudl go a long way in giving it some of the balance i think a good guitar needs. Also, IMO the bit that juts out at the back seems too high up... as in it just adds to the lack of balance by being away from the center like that. Still, despite all that, its just the way I look at it, and im probably part of the minority Congrats again, the quality of it looks superb! - Dan

Not a fan of the design at all But the construction looks top notch - looks like you did a quality job! - Dan

Whoa, So, just so I can recap... your epiphone les paul has a maple neck, an alder body (or something similar), and a veneer top. I dont mean to sound like a naysayer... but doesnt that a lot of the 'les paul' out of it? I thought epiphones generally had a really good rap... as in, people would say they didnt think getting a gibson was worth it over the epiphones as far as value for money goes. im confused :|

Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge, and a '59 or Jazz in the neck workhorse combination that should be able to handle most of the stuff you mentioned. From memory daron malakian uses JB's in the bridge, as does dave mustaine i think? Still, just my opinion. There is some people around here who know a lot about the DiMarzio pickups, im sure they will give you some suggestions from their range

I went when they came to aus I had my doubts going in, because since st. anger came out ive seen some pretty dodgy shows, but they really turned it on, and it was bloody awesome! best concert ive ever been to.... even though, we dont get all that many quality metal acts coming through here. I was a bit annoyed cause at my show they didnt play puppets, justice, battery or fade to black, but i wasnt too annoyed cause they played most of the ones they missed at the Big Day Out show the day beore which I was at best 2 days ever i did feel a bit annoyed having to go to big day out though :| bloody teeny bopper fest.