ezietsman
I've been thinking about this need we guitar players have to keep upgrading our stuff and making changes to our gear as (or more) often as we buy new shoes. I've also discussed it with some musicians who know what GAS is but think its the most ridiculous thing ever.
Why do we get GAS? I can think of a number of reasons but I'm thinking the most important ones are:
1. We start with cheaper gear and want something better. The difference between most R1000 guitars and R10k guitars (amps) is astounding. But from R10k to R20k not so much. (I'm talking ballpark here). This, I think is probably one of two valid reasons for acting on G.A.S.
2. The second valid reason for acting on GAS is the need to have a totally different sound for a particular thing you want to do. A LP + Marshall rig is prob not the ideal surf or funk rig. Acting on GAS for reasons of variety is justifiable too.
Now, in my opinion, here's the reasons for we act on GAS mostly.
1. We hear a sound on a recording and try to reproduce it.
2. We'd like our sound to be just a little bit more <whatever/>
3. There is a new shiny device widely touted to be awesome.
4. Bad-tone days.
1. is kinda silly, recorded guitars sound nothing like they do live.
2. goes a bit with 4 will get to that.
3. this one is the industry's fault. There is 1000s of overdrive pedals. Yet most of them sound similar. why do we keep changing? Does it really matter?
4. I think this one is the most important. I experience this fairly often. maybe 3 or 4 times per month. Some days you just cannot make sounds that makes you happy. I reckon if you have enough of these in a row it will lead to an onset of GAS which is aimed at remedying the said bad-tone. I've come to realise this is not the correct term. I now refer to them as sh1tty-playing days. The musicians I mentioned earlier agrees. They are classically trained string players (and most of them are much better at their instruments than most of us are on guitar). They have this too. When their instrument sounds funny/off/bad they look to their technique to see what's wrong. Then they fix it by practising. They NEVER think "O gosh, this sounds off, I need a new cello!!". It helps that a pro level cello/piano/violin whatever approaches/exceeds the price of a '59 burst in South Africa so GAS isn't an option anyway. Most string players don't even KNOW the brand of their instrument. They also absolutely don't care. Almost invariably they try out instruments and take the one that sounds best irrespective of the luthier, brand, country of origin, type of material etc. Why do we not do this? Why are we all fanboys/snobs etc?
My question is, why do guitar players look to gear first and technique almost never? Guitar too trebly? Maybe your picking technique causes that?
This is not a black and white issue, I left out lots of stuff.
Whats your thoughts?
Squonk
+1 , ..well at least in my case.
Lucky for me I have family commitments and an Irish wife ?, so funds for guitar are not that available, if not I dont know how much of GASaholic I would be by now.
I have 2 Electrics and 2 Acoustics, enough to tackle technique, tonal variations, songwriting etc.
Bob-Dubery
But hobbies are like that. Golfers always want a new putter after a while, or to replace their driver, or get the same brand of tee that Ernie Els uses or something. Fisherman, the obsessive ones, not the occasional social angler, always want a new rod or a new reel.
I suppose part of it is that we think that we can do more with the better kit. Another part might just be vanity, you know your guitar nerd friends are all going to say "wow!" when they see your '59 Les Paul and get all green with envy. Another part is because we get to know about the kit we get to love the nuances and capabilities of the better kit and get a yearning for it, and when we have the spare change we act upon that yearning.
deebee
It's just lekka to have various gee'tars to play on, but, one axe with clean, one axe with humbuckers, and you are made. A good pedal also helps. As for the name on the headstock, that is something that has never bothered me, if a gee'tar feels good and sounds good, that is all that there is to it for me. A nice 6 string, and 12 string accoustic are also nice trophies to have hanging on the wall. But, if you can afford to buys stacks and stacks of axe's, well, why not? ? ? 8) :? ? ? ?
ezietsman
I should prob add I was thinking more along the lines of seeking 'The Tone'.
Having lots of toys is fun, but obsessing about tone, and the GAS that goes with that. This is what I'm interested in. X-Rated makes a good point, learning the nuances leads one to want to try different things. Maybe knowing too much is a curse sometimes?
Jack-Flash-Jr
There's another reason... genuine connection with the instrument/pedal/whatever. I am more likely to move through instruments until I feel there's a real match for me, luckily it's hardly ever linked to what's best on the market... I can pick up a 25 grand guitar or bass and feel nothing (that said, there's mininum standards of comfort, tone etc.)
I've procured two basses in as many months because my starter bass which I used for six months or more, although of good pedigree, was not up to scratch in the sound dept anymore. The second ('76 Ibby J-Bass) ticked that box but I mainly got it because for what it was, it was a bargain. I suppose I hoped I'd fall in love with it beyond the honeymoon period. I just didn't. My new Fender J-bass ticks all the boxes, including the most important one... it just feels right on me when I'm playing. Bass one and two never did. Let's see what happens, watch this space.
I'm as intuitive with pedals as I am with guitars and amps... does it do what I want it to? Yes. Can I do what I want to with it? Yes. Does it FEEL right to me? Man, I love that Pitchblack and my modded TS-9 beyond all practical reasons.
Edit: I should add that I love the EZ18 too (it's been at my hip for a lot of gigs now and even makes Singemonkey sound good) and EZietsman may find an empty space where it was on the stage sometime soon ?
PeteM
I think we are all just kids and like new toys... no deep-seat psychological reason. I hope I never grow up.
shaundtsl
Like squonk, I also have family commitments, I have two kids and a wife (although she is not Irish). So the gas funds are limited. I have to force myself to think that I have enough (But going through the forum classifieds doesnt help much), because I most certainly have not yet out grown the gear which I have.
Having the extra cash though, I would probably have a lot more gear at my disposal, but I do feel I have quite a lot to be happy with for the time being.
PeteM wrote:
I think we are all just kids and like new toys... no deep-seat psychological reason. I hope I never grow up.
:goodtimes: Heres to never growing up!
Attila
The truth of the matter is we spend way more to satisfy the GAS craving as its a quick fix and WAY too Little on improving our playing abilities the not-so-quick-fix without a good tutor, and may I add ... some introspective
Show of hands who spent R2k on lessons in the last 24 month :-\
and a show of hands who spent R2k on something you had to have and now gathers dust ...
PeteM
ezietsman wrote:
Maybe knowing too much is a curse sometimes?
Knowing too little too.
ezietsman
PeteM wrote:
ezietsman wrote:
Maybe knowing too much is a curse sometimes?
Knowing too little too.
I'd always opt for educating myself better. Maybe this whole GAS thing lies in the region between "knowing a little about gear and music" and "Ultimate guitar playing zen master"
PeteM
ezietsman wrote:
PeteM wrote:
ezietsman wrote:
Maybe knowing too much is a curse sometimes?
Knowing too little too.
I'd always opt for educating myself better. Maybe this whole GAS thing lies in the region between "knowing a little about gear and music" and "Ultimate guitar playing zen master"
I think it is about being comfortable with what is inside you and then challenging yourself to get the best out of whatever tools you have.
Keira-WitherKay
i have after almost 25 years in pro music scene come to reaise that as an artist our interests change thru the years and we need the tools to express them, so we do need to find different tools to do the job, so it's a process...... just go with it............
and the bottom line is try buy what makes your ears and you happy ......... from the start
super example i just a few months back bought a usa strat which sounded exactly like i wanted it to....... but i really wanted a tele (shape wise) and despite the strat being great and had a tone i could use and an awesome feel ( ask Dr gonzo he just bought it from me last week, now he's raving about it ) but it just was NOT a telecaster .....so i gave in and after not finding a 2nd hand one just splashed out on a USA standard telecaster brand new and i'm smiling ........ so i knew i really wanted a tele but was seduced by the cool strat only to get what i originally wanted to start with ..now i'm happy . but yes i sold the strat but i did lose some money on the deal in the long run .......
so what i'm saying is buy what you want.......... if you can't get it save but the endless "cheap " and not so cheap copies of guitars we want ( which between us we know good and well won't have that tone and feel and vibe of the real article) just leads to continual buying .
so yes gas is just part of the process...........
aubs1
I like this thread ...... :applause:
PeteM wrote:
I think we are all just kids and like new toys... no deep-seat psychological reason. I hope I never grow up.
Me too ..... ?
Kalcium
Attila wrote:
The truth of the matter is we spend way more to satisfy the GAS craving as its a quick fix and WAY too Little on improving our playing abilities the not-so-quick-fix without a good tutor, and may I add ... some introspective
Show of hands who spent R2k on lessons in the last 24 month :-\
and a show of hands who spent R2k on something you had to have and now gathers dust ...
This is so true. I had a similar realisation about a month ago. Been selling and trying to sell gear for a little while now...still havent got round to taking lessons though...
ezietsman
As a simple demonstration. Look at your own gear. How do you sound on it?
Can you make a Marshall MG10 sound like this?
I can't even make my shmanshy amp and guitar sound like that.
Jack-Flash-Jr
Some people are just collectors/owners... I know of a family friend who bought a Harley just to have one and look at it. Don't think he ever rode it :?
We can't all be Gary Moore and not everyone on here wants to be. Some people just want to have a Gibson and endlessly tweak it, and then get another for their wall and so on, which is fine with me. There's enough room and instruments for admirers, collectors, players, hobbyists and professionals...
Edit: I suppose collectors look at instruments as art, whereas other folks (like me) look at them as tools... and everything in between...
vic
Having "too much gear" is a relatively new thing. Way back it was unheard of to have more than ONE electric guitar. The same for amps etc. Take George Harrison and Co as an example.....you see them with the same old Gretsch duo jet, Violin bass and Riccie on so many early pics spanning over at least 2 years or so...and by then they were Pros playing 6 nights a week....trading their AC15's for AC30's only when they started recording (or so the story goes)
singemonkey
vic wrote:
Having "too much gear" is a relatively new thing. Way back it was unheard of to have more than ONE electric guitar. The same for amps etc. Take George Harrison and Co as an example.....you see them with the same old Gretsch duo jet, Violin bass and Riccie on so many early pics spanning over at least 2 years or so...and by then they were Pros playing 6 nights a week....trading their AC15's for AC30's only when they started recording (or so the story goes)
It's true though, using them as an example that they upgraded until they had pro quality gear, even when they didn't have great money. They didn't just make do with the old hofners and kays (or whatever) they started with (with the exception of Paul's bass). So when every pro quality guitar (gretsch, rickenbacker, Fender, Gibson) came with great pickups and people were all using hand-wired tube amps with fantastic drivers, tone wasn't so hard to come by - one might argue ?
Jack-Flash-Jr
singemonkey wrote:
vic wrote:
Having "too much gear" is a relatively new thing. Way back it was unheard of to have more than ONE electric guitar. The same for amps etc. Take George Harrison and Co as an example.....you see them with the same old Gretsch duo jet, Violin bass and Riccie on so many early pics spanning over at least 2 years or so...and by then they were Pros playing 6 nights a week....trading their AC15's for AC30's only when they started recording (or so the story goes)
It's true though, using them as an example that they upgraded until they had pro quality gear, even when they didn't have great money. They didn't just make do with the old hofners and kays (or whatever) they started with (with the exception of Paul's bass). So when every pro quality guitar (gretsch, rickenbacker, Fender, Gibson) came with great pickups and people were all using hand-wired tube amps with fantastic drivers, tone wasn't so hard to come by - one might argue ?
Good point... the benchmark for entry level has certainly dropped with the advancing decades as well. Even for lesser mortals, as Keira said buy good off the bat and buy less in future. I've had my tele for 16 years and for 14 of those years it was my only guitar.
