# The Great Ongoing Guitar Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 31, 2010, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172 "2010-01-31T23:20:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 85
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1682 "2011-05-21T14:09:00Z")
Shakester, so you’re changing the faceplate, or are there J-Bass shaped humbuckers out there? ---
**Author:** ![CBEscapee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b19c9b/32.png) [@CBEscapee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBEscapee)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1683 "2011-05-21T19:17:34Z")
Question about reading chord charts. If a chord is written with a slash between two chords, what does that mean? example: G Cadd9 G Cadd9 G/B How is this last chord played? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1684 "2011-05-21T20:18:52Z")
It’s not two chords with a slash. It means play a G chord, but play the note B as the bass note. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1685 "2011-05-21T20:22:13Z")
> [@CBEscapee](#): > > Question about reading chord charts. > > If a chord is written with a slash between two chords, what does that mean? > > example: G Cadd9 G Cadd9 G/B > > How is this last chord played? That last chord is a G Major chord with the note ‘B’ in the bass. Play a standard G Major chord, but don’t play the lowest note on the 6th string. Actually, in this context, it would probably sound better if you were playing the four-fingered version of G Major without the lowest note on the 6th string. With all those Cadd9s, you’re likely to be doing that in the first place, I just wanted to encourage you. There is such a thing as a chord over another chord, but it’s notated with a horizontal line between the two chords, like this: Bb C which I would take to mean a C Major chord with a Bb Major chord over top. ETA: Beaten to the post! ---
**Author:** ![CBEscapee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b19c9b/32.png) [@CBEscapee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBEscapee)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1686 "2011-05-21T22:48:03Z")
Thank you both. Actually the first version of the song used the 4 finger G chord which is obviously a simple change back and forth from the Cadd9 and that is the way I have been practicing it. D Cadd9 G (whatever the 4 finger variety is called) Cadd9 G D. I then ran across the other version with the G/B and was confused on what it meant and how to play it. Thanks again. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1687 "2011-05-22T03:19:10Z")
I just ran across this in a catalog – a Gibson Buckethead Les Paul. What caught my eye was that it had a _27"_ scale length. 27! I figure that was a misprint, so I googled and [yep, it really has a 27" scale](http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Les-Paul/Gibson-USA/Buckethead-Signature-Les-Paul.aspx). I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a scale length that extreme on a solid body. Is this really a usable length? Is it really more shredable, as Gibson would have you believe? Are there other non-baritone, non-bass electrics with scales that long ? ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1688 "2011-05-22T03:36:04Z")
I read in my latest copy of Game Informer magazine that in Fall of 2012 there will be a “game” (?) for XBox 360 which will improve one’s guitar skills. Can anyone shed a little more light on this? Thanks Quasi ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1689 "2011-05-22T07:37:09Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > Shakester, so you’re changing the faceplate, or are there J-Bass shaped humbuckers out there? There are (at least) three different kinds of J-Bass shaped humbuckers out there: 1. Stacks, which have two coils stacked vertically 2. Split, which are like the P-Bass ones - one coil per two strings - only they’re inline as opposed to offset like a P-Bass pickup. 3. Blades, which are very thin side-by-side coils with a single long thin magnet (“blade”) instead of individual pole-pieces. Those are the three most common ways of getting a humbucker to fit into a single-coil space. Those designs are used for other kinds of pickups, too, including guitar pickups. From what I’ve read, in bass forums, for J-Bass pickups the split style is considered to sound nicest by people who seem to know what they’re talking about, though all of the varieties have their fans. I’m a bit of a pickup nerd, as it happens; I find pickup design quite fascinating so I’m happy to have a new type of pickup to learn about. I know a bit about guitar pickups, bass pickups are not something I’ve really thought about much until now. There’s a _lot_ of mythology in the world of pickups and a lot of internet “experts” repeating the same misconceptions to each other until they become incontrovertible “facts”, but I’ve tried to separate the science from the mythology and I’ve corresponded with quite a few pickup builders (including a couple of well-known boutique pickup makers), so I feel pretty confident in my ability to pick out a pickup that I’ll like based on specifications and descriptions. ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1690 "2011-05-22T07:55:41Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > I just ran across this in a catalog – a Gibson Buckethead Les Paul. What caught my eye was that it had a _27"_ scale length. 27! I figure that was a misprint, so I googled and [yep, it really has a 27" scale](http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Les-Paul/Gibson-USA/Buckethead-Signature-Les-Paul.aspx). I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a scale length that extreme on a solid body. Is this really a usable length? Is it really more shredable, as Gibson would have you believe? Are there other non-baritone, non-bass electrics with scales that long ? Well, anything between “normal” guitar scale lengths and “normal” bass scale lengths _is_ a “baritone guitar”. Longer than usual scale lengths are rare but certainly not unknown. As to whether they’d be “more shreddable” - I doubt it. Longer scale length with standard tuning E to E would require more string tension, making them stiffer and harder to bend (and easier to break) which - to me - would mean they’d _reduce_ one’s ability to play fast. If the tuning is lowered to D or D flat the tension would feel more normal on a 27-inch scale. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1691 "2011-05-22T10:33:45Z")
Soloway jazz guitars are standard at 27" I think - I’d have check the Gear Page. Per Shakester I think they are designed for heavier gauge strings. Buckethead is a big guy - 6’7" or something?? So I think that factors into this design - huge hands. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1692 "2011-05-22T13:06:09Z")
I know about the different types of humbucking pickups, I just never saw them in the J-Bass style. Makes sense they’d be there. That Buckethead guitar also uses arcade cabinet buttons as killswitches, which is interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1693 "2011-05-22T14:03:44Z")
My regular classical was built to a scale of 640 mm which is 25.2 inches. My baritone classical is built to a scale of 650 mm which is 25.6 inches. There are some Hausers and Ramirez classicals built to 660 mm which is 26 (well, 25.9843, but I’m not a luthier so I rounded off). Those are considered the upper limit in the classical world. For many years, the thinking went ‘longer scale length plus higher tension means greater volume’. Some folks cling to this notion, others have explored other ways to get volume without the greater length that makes for harder playing, especially for people with smaller hands. (“But only hands small!”) We used to joke about how someone built an instrument that had a 666 mm scale length, but it was the Devil to play. 27" is 685.8, which just makes my jaw drop; I could kiss that third fret G Major with the ‘B’ on the first string pulling gracefully off to the barred ‘G’ goodbye… ---
**Author:** ![BigShooter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f07891/32.png) [@BigShooter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigShooter)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1694 "2011-05-22T17:28:07Z")
> [@Quasimodem](#): > > I read in my latest copy of Game Informer magazine that in Fall of 2012 there will be a “game” (?) for XBox 360 which will improve one’s guitar skills. > > Can anyone shed a little more light on this? > > Thanks > > Quasi indeed… [Rocksmith](http://rocksmith.ubi.com/rocksmith/en-US/) ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1695 "2011-05-23T00:01:56Z")
Oh, yeah. Ubisoft. Yes. That’s… dubious. > **[Ubisoft's Rocksmith wants to teach you to play a real guitar](https://newatlas.com/ubisoft-rocksmith-game-teach-real-guitar/18143/)** > > One of the big criticisms leveled at rhythm-based guitar games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band was that they don't actually teach you to play guitar. Ignoring the fact that this was never the intention of the games and not necessarily a bad thing,... I dunno. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1696 "2011-05-23T01:48:13Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > 27" is 685.8, which just makes my jaw drop; I could kiss that third fret G Major with the ‘B’ on the first string pulling gracefully off to the barred ‘G’ goodbye… I can’t quite picture what technique you’re describing – do you mean that you find that scale length enticing or intimidating? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1697 "2011-05-23T02:27:21Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > I can’t quite picture what technique you’re describing – do you mean that you find that scale length enticing or intimidating? Thanks. Intimidating. Actually, beyond intimidating; I know without trying it I couldn’t play well on a guitar that large. Well, I’d probably just tune it down a semi-tone and capo at the first fret, which would make it all rather moot… The specific bit I was referring to happens a fair amount in the repertoire. One of the Sor studies in Op. 6 has this riff, and Brouwer uses the same position in ‘[Cancion de Cuña](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkRb_y4V6q4)’. (This guy does it the way I describe at about :29.) Take G Major, barred at the third fret. Now, use just the top 4 strings, and use 1 for the barre, 2 to finger the ‘B’ on (3) at the fourth fret and 3 to finger the ‘G’ on (4) at the fifth fret. That leaves 4 free to finger a ‘B’ on (1) at the seventh fret, and pull off gracefully to the ‘G’ which is on (1) barred at the 3rd fret. In Sor’s day, the guitars were much smaller - what we would now call ‘parlour’ guitars, typically 620 - 630 mm (24.4 - 24.8 inches, roughly) which would have made that technique much easier. Brouwer just has bigger hands, and expects guitarists to make that stretch beautifully. Putting two frets and three strings between 3 and 4 without dropping a clam on the rest of the chord is a stretch. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1698 "2011-05-23T03:20:26Z")
> [@BigShooter](#): > > indeed… > > [Rocksmith](http://rocksmith.ubi.com/rocksmith/en-US/) I guess that you’re supposed to pretend the view of the strings is a mirror, but it was really bugging me that it looked like upside-down TAB… Can that be changed? Does anyone know? I know, I’m supposed to be able to read French tab (highest string written at the top.) and Italian tab (lowest string written at the top; drives me crazy!) for lute but I think decipher is a more accurate description… ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1699 "2011-05-23T03:21:50Z")
Eh, imagine how I feel, I have the worst trouble stretching for a simple F5 chord. A5, I can do pretty okay, but F5 still has my fingers too high in the fret. It’s getting better. The more I play, the better I do. ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1700 "2011-05-23T08:24:59Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > 27" is 685.8, which just makes my jaw drop; I could kiss that third fret G Major with the ‘B’ on the first string pulling gracefully off to the barred ‘G’ goodbye… Sitting here with my new bass on my lap: 34 inch scale. Of course, there are only four strings, and bass chords are not all that common. The neck is long but less wide/chunky than most classical guitar necks. Those bassists that play physically demanding bass parts tend to be big guys with big hands. Some things you just have to be be born for - like with various kinds of athletes. You don’t get skinny weightlifters and stocky sprinters. All the practice in the world won’t make your fingers grow longer (it will help you stretch them further, but there’s a physical limit to that). I just attempted (on my acoustic) the chord you described… I can do it, but not easily. I’m tallish (178 cm / 5’11.5") but my hands aren’t that big, plenty of people have much longer fingers than me. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172/1701 "2011-05-23T13:49:02Z")
Double bass is even longer, 42.3"-43.3" (1050–1100 mm) scale length, though lots of players use 7/8 or 3/4 sized instruments. In classical technique for double bass, fingers 3&4 are used together - a standard A Major scale fingering would involve going 0-1-4 on the A string, 0-1-4, (shift up) 2-4 on the D string. Stand-up players just get used to doing a lot more shifting; your entire hand will only cover a whole tone. I played double bass in my university orchestra for a couple of years - it was a small enough school that they needed a bass, and I got free lessons and an ensemble credit in exchange for one evening rehearsal a week. It was fun - I’d love to get a bass and start playing again, but I think I’d better not say that in public or my family will kill me… D’oh! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172.md?page=84) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-guitar-thread/527172.md?page=86)