SWEET.....The Gibson GA20RVT Amp

GA20RVT
15W Class A
12AX7, 6V6
Hand Built
Point to Point
2 channels plus mix input
Tube Reverb
Tube Tremolo
Pentode/Triode Switch
12 inch Eminence Legend Speaker, Asymmetrically Placed
Metal Film Resistors
DC Powered Filaments
Hand Wired Turret Board
Two-Tone Vintage Brown and Tan Tolex

Where's the "Vintage 30"!The reviews are good,but,i wondered the same thing...the "speaker"chosen to use??????

Reviews.....http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar+Amp/product/Gibson/GA20RVT/10/1

Versatility...the bottom line

If you are versatile,you will work....
If you are serious about playing music for a living,then being versatile,that is,being familiar with and being able to play a variety of styles is a must.Do no get "stuck"into just one style of music,it only dercreases your odds of getting a call for a fill in gig or a show coming to town that is needing a guitarist for that occasion.You will also benefit as a teacher being a versatile player,not all students want to learn and play the same thing!This may include different styles of music,along with different techniques of playing.And besides,playing one style of music can become very very boring.A good place to start,for a beginner is the Blues,it lays a solid foundation for rythm,chords and melody.
And the only way to be versatile is through listening and woodshedding.And,do not get left behind by ignoring the trends,keep up with todays happenings,along with the past.....
Peace and Prosperity,Greg/G

Great Reading over at Modern Guitar.com....e-zine

Check out these articles over at Modern Guitars e-zine...
...Gibson Guitar to Introduce Three New Slash Signature Guitars
...1986 Jimmy Page Interview
...Leslie West Interview
...Gibson Guitar Celebrates 50 Years of the Flying V
...Kenny Wayne Shepherd Interview
...Robben Ford Interview
...Dweezil Zappa Interview
.... http://www.modernguitars.com/

For The Curious

Power In A Box...the Pandora PX4 by Korg

I was recently given this little effects "box",from a friend.My first impression was...hum...just another little effects box with fuzzy,thin sounds.Whoe...was i surprised!The box is the Korg Pandora PX 4.Although it is not the latest of the series,it has some great sounds in it,along with rythems with bass also,and a loop effect.The size of this unit is very small,say 6 by 8 inches,approximately.It has some great tones/ cab sims,along with your typical effects,like auto wah,chorus,flange,delays,reverbs and even harmonizers and an octave divider.The cab sims are very good,in fact some reminded me of the "Redbox" i have used fairly often.The cleaner sounds combined with a "tweed"cab has a great tight,thumpy,low end sound.And the edgy were good also,and when combined with the cab sims were very usable.As for the the more heavier distortion patches,they also were good.The effects like chorus were good but lacked that super "thick"type" chorus,but are usable.And as a plus there are some cool "synth" sounds.Overall,for a "small/very small box,the Korg Pandoras PX4 is a very cool unit indeed.And the cost on- line is around $150.00 US dollars or less!So if you are looking for an inexpensive/great sounding desktop guitar effects unit,check the Korg Pandora PX 4 out,i think you will be pretty amazed also.
Link with specs,demo sounds and video...http://korg.com/gear/info.asp?a_prod_no=PX4

Harmony Central at NAMM Show

Harmony Central has the best video coverage,i have found,of the NAMM show.So here is a link to their page with videos of the NAMM trade show.The coverage is constantly updated so check back often to their page.And there is video of past shows also.
Winter NAMM 2008 Coverage at Harmony Central...
http://namm.harmony-central.com/WNAMM08/

NAMM Show Update

As promised ,here are a few updates on the NAMM show for 2008.This will begin to show why the NAMM Show is the biggest trade show in the United States......... so "stay tuned" :-),for more updates...
Carlos Santana Joining PRS for 2008 NAMM... Guitar Historian Tom Wheeler will be joined by Carlos Santana, Paul Reed Smith and many other gifted PRS artists for the unveiling of 12 new PRS models, including the newly named Santana MD model, on Friday, January 18 at 1:00 p.m. The expose, scheduled in PRS Guitars' re-positioned Winter NAMM booth (#5320), will highlight PRS Guitars' distinctive and evolving models and present artists with the opportunity to speak to the press about their personal experiences with their favorite PRS instruments.
Joe Yamada at NAMM 2008 Anaheim...Members of NAMM are invited to attend the "Whisperings Artist Appearance" at the 2008 Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim, California. On Saturday, January 19, 2008 at 3:00 PM join Whisperings artists Joe Yamada,David Nevue, Joe Bongiorno, Louis Landon, Catherine Marie Charton, Michele McLaughlin, Christian Calcatelli, and Gary Girouard at the Galileo Music exhibit (#6300). NAMM members can read more about the Whisperings Artist Appearance at the Whisperings website. The NAMM Show is open to NAMM members and their guests (closed to the general public).
Megadeth...Shawn drover scheduled to be at NAMM
Ibanez To Introduce SV Prestige At Winter NAMM ...
Winter NAMM 2008: Ampeg's New See-thru Dan Armstrong Transparent Bass
Godin Guitars to Heat Things up at Winter NAMM 2008...With winter NAMM fast approaching, Canadian based Godin Guitars ready’s itself for what is to be one of the companies biggest showings of new product at NAMM…ever! Here's a sneak peak at the new guitar models to be unveiled ...Watch the Godin Passion RG-3 video at: http://www.godinguitars.com/godinwhatsnewp.htm

..........the bass in the above picture is the Dan Armstrong clear acrylic bass.The bass player i played with in the 70's had one,so they heve been out a while(acrylic),it is way ahesd of it's time.Along with the looks,it also has some great tone also.And the Ibanez guitar/SV Prestige, is new,will be introduced at the NAMM show.It has a non-locking bridge(more popular these days)and rounded edges,nice change.Ibanez is a great guitar company.Every Ibanez i have ever played felt great in my hands.

The Little Tuner That Could...AP Tuner

Do you need a great desktop guitar tuner?I do,that way i do not need to drag out a tuner from the guitar case,or find it!And i do not have to open a big music software program to just tune my guitar while playing through my computer with my toys!

The AP Tuner is by far the best desktop tuner i have found.It can be used,as is,no tweaking,or it has the ability to be tweaked/temperments,hertz,soundcard and more.And it is not sluggish,it holds the note being played(others do not) and the face of it is very pleasing and visual.And,well,it's free too.Of course a donation would be a kind thing to do.I got to say this is my all time favorite desktop tuner,and i have tried lots...trust me.

....For beginners....you GOT TO PLAY IN TUNE....and for the pros(i know most of you are...right!!)...you can not beat this for a desktop tuner,especially if you are recording via computer

http://www.aptuner.com/cgi-bin/aptuner/apmain.html

....605269 AP Tuner downloads since September 2003

NAMM Show

It's back.....the NAMM(North American Music Manufactures trade show) show.For those who do not know what this is...well...it's the musicians ultimate "candy store"!There is booth after booth after booth, of all the music companies in the world,yes,world,showcasing their product(s)...Fender,Gibson,M-audio,Roland,Apogee,Taylor,Neve,Mackie,Soundcraft,Yamaha,Neuman,you name it,if they are anybody,they will have a booth at the NAMM show.And if that's not enough,there will be world class players,engineers and celebaties demoing the instruments/equipment!And if you are lucky,you can go to some of the private showings at one of the rooms...concerts,more demos....the celebaties.It is the ultimate place to be for musicians/engineers/anyone that is a part of the music industry.
...this ones only for dealers/music industry people ,it's starts this weekend in Anaheim,California,but you can get a glimpse into this great annual event...
http://www.thenammshow.com/
..Your Guide to NAMM Show Concerts, Events, Celebrity Appearances and More!.
http://www.thenammshow.com/files/pdfs/NS08_Playback_Supplement.pdf

Come back for updates on this incredible event

Fender American "Standard" Strat Gets New Bridge and Name

Hi Everyone....
Ok,lets get blogging.Fender Strats have always been my choice for an "all-around" guitar.And getting detailed,a pick up set up with H/S/S,or,humbucker/single/single.To me with that combination you can just about play any style of music.Of course jazz is a little of an exception and metal or hard/heavy rock.But overall a Strat is hard to beat....period.Play it for blues,rock,funk,country,it truly does fill a lot of styles!Recently the Strat has gone back to being called "standard"Strat,but with a new bridge design,and the saddles sound like they may be like the originals,with a curled lip on them,supposedly the holy grail saddle for tone.There are some other changes also....
...Listen to "For The Curious"/Nimbit widget(below),those are my tunes,all done on Strats,but the acoustic pieces and on "Strut"also combined with the Roland MIDI guitar set up..There are jazz pieces,funk,rock,blues...all on Strats... :-)

Fender Introduces New American Standard Series
Fender announced yesterday that it has reshaped the American Series Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jazz Bass and Precision Bass guitars into what it calls the American Standard Series...
... http://www.modernguitars.com/archives/004119.html
Fenders Site...
...http://www.fender.com/