The Official Guitar Thread

Borzak

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The difficult times we are in....
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jooka

marco esquandolas
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Curious what people are using for strap locks on an acoustic. I've seen one that looks pretty good and mounes to the output jack at the rear. Another that is kind of clipped on that doesn't look so sturdy. Now I just leave the strap on now without a strap lock. I'm not really moving around with my guitar at all but would be nice to have, mostly just used to it on the telecasters.


I've never had strap locks on an acoustic. Curious on how it goes if you get some. Came across this thumb pick I'm gonna need to try out. I've tried thumb picks before but not since I was maybe 18 or so. It's basically a jazz 3 which is what I already prefer but on your thumb. Being able to change the angle is cool

 

Alex

Still a Music Elitist
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I'm a Jazz 3 user as well. Been using them for over 15 years. Regular picks feel so large and unwieldy now.
 

Borzak

Bronze Baron of the Realm
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I've never had strap locks on an acoustic. Curious on how it goes if you get some. Came across this thumb pick I'm gonna need to try out. I've tried thumb picks before but not since I was maybe 18 or so. It's basically a jazz 3 which is what I already prefer but on your thumb. Being able to change the angle is cool


I play fingers only most of the time, mostly my thumb to strum and finger to pick. I like the low volume on the acoustic since I don't play in a gig or a band. Just me. I will ocassionaly use the same pick I use on my electric, it can get pretty loud.
 

Noodleface

A Mod Real Quick
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I've used jazz iii for maybe 15 years. Recently I went on a pick quest and started using these. Now jazz iii feels weird.

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jooka

marco esquandolas
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I have 3 picks I kind of rotate around at times. A jazz III, a big jazz III and a Petruucci that's different from Noodleface Noodleface . Lately I tend to grab the big jazz III over the others but all of them have a good textured feel to them


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jooka

marco esquandolas
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So I just found a different Petrucci pick. I'm not even sure where I got it, was just in my pick dish. Feels pretty nice in the hand.

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looking for suggestions on getting to the point I can correctly fret without looking at my left hand, if I know the tabs I can play but if I have to read it while playing I'm fucked because I keep missing placment, is it just practice till my muscle memory knows or are there tricks I can practice

Muscle memory. Just do chords changes. You start to see progress slowly. Your fingers hit the positions cleanly, you land right on the beat and then you take off for the next chord right on time. That has been my experience. Arpeggios -- scales -- are also super fun to just get into a zone playing. You can invent runs that go up and down the finger board, then play it over and over till your muscles don't work. Sometimes I'll just make up a simple little riffs using three strings, and just play it until I got it all clean.

Jerry Garcia never practiced songs. He would have his practice amp and guitar in his hotel room and just do scales arpeggios and chord progressions.

I think the thinking is, "this way I am ready for anything."

Many ways to do it though: singers prolly want to practice songs! But an instrumentalist, I'm down with the "just do it until it hurts" school. By this time next year you will be stunned at how much muscle memory -- and detail -- you have developed. Key is, no cheating: I am alos of the belief, you need to at least put in 20 minutes a day, every day.

Thanks for posting about your getting started! This fun stuff.
 
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Alex

Still a Music Elitist
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Didn't know we had so many Jazz III folks here! Only other user I've come across is my guitar teacher from high school. We both started using them because of JP.
 

Kovaks

Mr. Poopybutthole
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Muscle memory. Just do chords changes. You start to see progress slowly. Your fingers hit the positions cleanly, you land right on the beat and then you take off for the next chord right on time. That has been my experience. Arpeggios -- scales -- are also super fun to just get into a zone playing. You can invent runs that go up and down the finger board, then play it over and over till your muscles don't work. Sometimes I'll just make up a simple little riffs using three strings, and just play it until I got it all clean.

Jerry Garcia never practiced songs. He would have his practice amp and guitar in his hotel room and just do scales arpeggios and chord progressions.

I think the thinking is, "this way I am ready for anything."

Many ways to do it though: singers prolly want to practice songs! But an instrumentalist, I'm down with the "just do it until it hurts" school. By this time next year you will be stunned at how much muscle memory -- and detail -- you have developed. Key is, no cheating: I am alos of the belief, you need to at least put in 20 minutes a day, every day.

Thanks for posting about your getting started! This fun stuff.
Thanks for the suggestions, I have been doing about 15 to 20 min of picking exercises to get better at hitting the right strings at different speeds without looking, followed by 15-20 min of scales and then trying to follow tabs for a song. Been seeing some progress, and it is lots of fun, time Flys. My left hand is getting more conditioned but I noticed my right had is getting sore so I have been working on getting more loose and not gripping the pick. Found alot of good stuff on Banjobenclark.com
 
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jooka

marco esquandolas
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Didn't know we had so many Jazz III folks here! Only other user I've come across is my guitar teacher from high school. We both started using them because of JP.


I got my first jazz III from a teacher at Berklee, Jim Kelly in like 93?
 

Borzak

Bronze Baron of the Realm
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I've never had strap locks on an acoustic. Curious on how it goes if you get some. Came across this thumb pick I'm gonna need to try out. I've tried thumb picks before but not since I was maybe 18 or so. It's basically a jazz 3 which is what I already prefer but on your thumb. Being able to change the angle is cool


I looked those up. They come in enough sizes and hardness that I'll have to sit down and think about what I need LOL.

I'm gonna pick up one or two and try it, I play a lot of rock a billy.
 
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Thanks for the suggestions, I have been doing about 15 to 20 min of picking exercises to get better at hitting the right strings at different speeds without looking, followed by 15-20 min of scales and then trying to follow tabs for a song. Been seeing some progress, and it is lots of fun, time Flys. My left hand is getting more conditioned but I noticed my right had is getting sore so I have been working on getting more loose and not gripping the pick. Found alot of good stuff on Banjobenclark.com

Never take advice from me about the pick hand btw. Some guitarists friends used to tell me I had a really nice and quirky left hand, but my right hand -- especially how cramped and "tight" I tend to get, just makes them cringe. I've never been able to figure out how to have a "loose, relaxed" right arm/hand. That's my truth, my journey.
 
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Anyone ever try to master using a stone pick? I tried on and off for years, but eventually it is just way too limited and a real hassle to "mute" the picking just right on straight acoustic (or else the stone loudly "clicks," and gets irritating really fast.)

Think Pat Metheny used/uses a stone pick? For some kinds of attacks, it can make your acoustic ring like a bell, but it's just a pita.


"But ... they're pieces of hard stone." "Exactly!"
 

Springbok

Karen
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My go-to picks lately. The orange dunlops are probably my favorite strumming picks of all time, as evidenced by having none with the logo still on it.. These Andy James picks are nice and big, great for flat picking with my sausage fingers and learning new licks on the electric. The Tortex flex is a great in-between pick and use it on the dreadnought a bunch.

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sukik

Bronze Baronet of the Realm
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I switched from a .88(orange) to 1mm(blue) tortex a few months ago. I've found that I can use it for both rhythm and single note practice so I'm sticking with it for the foreseeable future.
 
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pharmakos

soʞɐɯɹɐɥd
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i use those same Dunlop Flex but the orange ones

for some reason i like those thinner, and i like my regular OG fuzzy texture Tortex green... with the pointed tip for some songs

always one of those three tho, even after trying a few variety packs.