Shades of the Stonebridge 6 string I didn’t buy on sale for $800. Still kicking myself for not getting it when I had the chance… FWIW, I found that playing a nicer instrument does want me to play more and probably due to that, play better. I suspect it’s the thought process that you should be playing worthy of the instrument. The problem can be that same train of thought can overly intimidate you so it’s a bit of a balancing act. On a bit of a side note, is it weird that I can read music notation when I’m playing tin whistle but not when I play guitar? Anyone else do this?
I used to look and look and look when I was younger.
At 17 I found the holy-grail of guitars, a Rayhorn Zerosette o-seven, and I got the holy-grail bass guitar, a full flame maple anniversary Alembic Spoiler, at 18. Then I had to quit playing cause of carpal tunnel in both arms. I started shopping for synths instead, got an ARP Ody whiteface semi-modular. I found out the much cheaper Blofeld was better for me, so I sold the ARP. Then I sold the Rayhorn, since I didn’t feel I could justify having it without playing.
Then I kinda stopped. I lent away the Blofeld, moved on to some fx and mics, then I moved over to mixers, modding, hacking and making my own equipment/interfaces.
I’m keeping the bass, that’s it. And I have my holy-grail guitar, an Ibanez Roadstar 2, that I bought for around 50 euros.
Dinsdale - that all sounds great. Simply sounding better as a cello totally counts! I can relate to wanting to play with more emotion/better - if, as you say, it sounds better, trust me, playing with cleaner technique translates to what you hear. Very cool!!!
For something completely different -
Try a didgeridoo.
First point - all didges are different. There is no perfect didge ‘sound’. While they all require the same basic technique to play, each requires their own unique minor modifications to that technique.
Can be played solo, or in a group. Used in many bands, either as a lead or backing instrument. Can accompany anything.
Reasonably cheap - a good musical one can be had for $100. Make sure you get one made for music, and not just a tourist souvenir.
Cool! Thanks for this.
Obvious question from the world of guitar geekery: so, does that mean you have a “The One” didge (can I call it that??) that you picked out after a DidgeQuest (groan! ;))? Or do you have a bunch to cover a bunch of uses?
I’ve played the flute going on 40 years. Started on a basic flute, perfect for someone justearning. When I was 14, my parents bought a used Armstrong. It had been the daily training flute for a member of the Minnesota Orchestra. It gave extremely warm sounds in the lower register. The higher registers, not so much. It had a nickel body, silver head.
When I was 18, my grandfather took me to a local music store, told me to pick out a new flute. The first time I picked up a Miyazawa, I swooned. The tones were so pure. The lower registers had such a deep tone. The higher registers were so clean and clear. Instant love.
Since then, I’ve tried other flutes just to compare. Haynes are lovely, but can be woody in the higher registers. Muramatsu are lovely. Tried their 14k gold flute- absolute heaven. I can’t explain. I’ll never have a reason for one, nor the money, but it was a joyous experience.
Unfortunately, my Miyazawa needs new pads, and I cannot afford it, so I’m back to my Armstrong.
Thanks for the story. How much do new pads and a general setup cost for a top-tier flute?
Replacing the frets on a guitar can be a few hundred bucks. If the neck has fancy binding, so the T part of the fret - the tang- has to be notched so the fret end hangs over the binding - it can be double.
Yeah, I hate budgeting for a big refurbishing.
PS: my first instrument was the flute, forced on me by my parents since the sax and drums were both too loud. I dug the flute as a tone, but was never going to admit it. But I did get to sit next to Madeleine in the flute section. Swoon.
A hang, man! Get yourself a hang: Hang Massive - Once Again - 2011 ( hang drum duo ) ( HD ) - YouTube
I don’t feel the need to have the perfect instrument. I just really want one better than the piece of junk I play.
Found a beat-up ChromaHarp at a junk store. Mr. CelticKnot, former music teacher, got it playing the chords we need for the genres of music we play, but chord buttons could have been designed as instruments for torture rather than music. The plan is that my Christmas present will be a new Autoharp, customized to play the chords we use, turned around for the weird, left-handed way I play it, and whichever one we buy will have comfortable buttons. Since I merely play back-up to the multi-talented Mr. CelticKnot, I don’t worry so much about the perfect sound.
The price quote I received to replace the pads with specific Miyazawa pads and to clean it up was $1100 a few years ago.
Argh!
My old sax was stolen. I paid a lot more for a (still fairly cheap) new one. Not anywhere as good. Not in the same class.
I know that modern instruments are better for less money, but that doesn’t seem to apply to saxophones.
Once you start - you’ll amass a collection. Generally, you stick with the one that suits your playing style best - but, oh, the research is fun. Most of the makers work from home. There’s really not THAT much difference in sound between them all (there’s a huge difference in the bullsh!t we talk about them, though).
Every now and then, someone comes across a piece of wood that is just perfect - the species, the structure, the age, the size, the termite hollowing - and a ‘perfect’ didge is produced. These are generally offered to the professional players first.
You can’t just order a particular note, timbre or feel. You get what nature provides (and what the makers can do with it).
You should play guitar 
I post some of the silliest bullshit topics when I find them on guitar messageboards. O how we love our bull.
I bet getting a didgeridoo going especially when grooving with other folks, can be really transporting.
When I was in 5th grade, I decided I wanted to play the trumpet. I had no problem finding a group to learn to play with. My elemetary school had an orchestra that met in the mornings before class started, and they accepted – nay, expected – all of their members to be green novices with hardly any musical training or knowledge of their instrument.
But now, as an adult of 52, if I want to find a group to learn how to play the French horn with, I’m out of luck. I know of no adult orchestras or bands for beginners. I don’t think playing with an elementary school band is a viable option for me right now, what with me being somewhat oversized for 5th grade.
So … what is an adult novice supposed to do, if he wants to play a new instrument?
Hehehe, yeah. There’s an amazing amount of chat and silliness about guitars that don’t amount to anything. Can you play it? If yes, it’s a good guitar. If not, you might need to be a better guitarist, or it might need to be a better guitar. Who knows which it is? Much like when people talk about fast cars, if you can upgrade the driver, you’ll be able to do more with what you have. Work on that.
My solution to this would be to start a band. If you live in a large enough metropolitan area (and it appears you do), you’ll be able to find people around your skill set who want to play the kind of music you want to play. Figure out what you want to play, come up with a realistic goal for the band and find a space to practice. Start small, if you’ve never played live, a living room concert would be ideal. After you’ve figured out your goal, make a realistic flier or a Cragislist ad, and put it out there.
Don’t expect the first attempt to be successful. I was in at least three bands before I was in one that survived long enough to play a show. That band was bordering on disaster about half the time, and got by on the front man’s charisma more than once. It developed into a nice tight band after about a year. We changed drummers like underwear, but still kept the machine going for a few successful years. After that band, it was another decade before I’d be in another band that worked that well.
Don’t discount the Craigslist ad, the best lead guitarist I’ve ever been in a band with arrived through one! But even when they’re a good time, bands are work - bands you’re leading are doubly so. If you’re lucky you’ll end up networking with folks in an already established novice band/orchestra.
I know there are “amateur symphony” types of groups around. There’s one in my county where folks show up and saw through the classics. More power to 'em!
Yeah - there are all kinds of amateur groups around me - from Dixieland brass that rides floats in local parades, to community concert bands. The expectations vary greatly. But I’m sure some exist which will allow a pleasant, well-intentioned novice to fill in an extra music stand, and only play the few notes/parts they can.
But more likely would be to take lessons with a wind instructor, and ask them if they had any other students who were willing to form a small ensemble. My wife did that when taking violin lessons. She and 3 others formed an adult string quartet, which performed at the school’s recitals.
Short of “forming a band” or finding a wind “jam session” (do such things exist?), find someone who plays ANY instrument and who is willing to play with you. I play upright bass and am working on my bowing, so my wife and I work through the Suzuki books. They are too basic for her on fiddle, so she works on her cello chops.
I also like bluegrass, so I found a local mando/banjo picker who was willing to work on things together. Don’t restrict yourself to “conventional” combinations. Heck, see how French horn combines with piano. Or ukulele. Or whatever someone is willing to play with you. Find someone else who is a beginner, and work through “Hot Cross Buns” and “Twinkle Twinkle” together.
I am not too much of a gear hound. I know exactly what I want.
I presently have a 1960 Les Paul, a Taylor CE 214 (iirc) and Fender bass. I am running a B-52 AT 212 100 watt tube amp.
What I want.
A 12 string. A nylon string. A double octave shred guitar. My B-52 amp in a 5 or 10 watt head with a 1x12 cabinet.
The 12 string is for pretty pieces. They are fun to play and can be interesting to use for acoustic solos. The nylon string for classical. I used to be ok at classical and would like to work on it more. The double octave shred is for, well, shredding. I love my Les Paul and it is great but playing fast on it is a bit on the hard side. The action is fairly high and I run out of neck sometimes.
Now the amp, well, I have twins. And a wife. Which means my volume levels have to be reasonable. My amp sounds best at about 4 which is really freaking loud. So what I want to do is build an amp iso box. However, my amp is a combo which leads to over heating issues. Luckily I found the circuit diagram for my amp. (A note about my B-52. They were cheap, ~300 or so for a 100 watt combo and the early ones had over heating/quality issues). The circuit was designed by Bruce Egnater apparently and it is freaking awesome. The gain is sweet and nasty but doesn’t get mushy or cluttered. Anyway, my next project is to take the diagram and build a new amp but cut the power stage down to something like 5 or 10 watts, pop it in box and run a speaker in an iso cabinet. This way I don’t blow up my amp as they don’t make them anymore and I can record with decent tone. (On a side note, anyone know anything about reading circuit diagrams? I can look up the stuff but I am not very good at electronics and want to get someone who knows something about it to take a look…)
Once I get that complete I suspect I will be done buying gear for a long, long time. The reason being is that, these days, I want specific tools for specific things. I want a nylon string because I want to work on my classical chops. I want a double octave because I want easier access to higher registers. I want a 12 string for lush tones when recording. I want the amp/iso box for recording. Shiny doesn’t mean much these days, playability and usefulness are the only things I worry about.
So I guess that puts me in the ‘good enough for my needs’ category.
Slee
Pardon?