Bob-Dubery
So here's the thing. The missus has a hobby, and so do I. Her hobby is pretty quiet, almost silent. Mine is a bit noiser. She likes to sit and knit whilst the TV is on, I like to sit and tinker with a guitar whilst the TV is on. You can see how this is not an entirely satisfactory arrangement.
So I start thinking about quieter ways of tinkering.
One is to buy a "silent" guitar. The one that you seem to get here is the Yahama. OK... so I have a silent practice guitar and whilst it does come with a PUP and couple of built in effects it doesn't offer me much else - I can do the rest already with my current guitars and stomp boxes.
THe other option is to buy myself a solid-body electric. However I see some pros and cons here.
The main con is that this is not going to feel like an acoustic guitar. Thinner neck, lighter strings. OK... not the end of the world.
A pro is that I can do more with this, After all, it's an electric guitar with pickups and will sound nothing like an acoustic. OK.... I don't play live much so maybe this is not that big a deal.
Another con is that I would need some kind of amplication. Ideally I would like to be able to record the output from the "amp" via the audio card on my PC. This, I think, rules out things like those little Vox practice amps.
So I'm looking at something like a Line 6 pod, but then do more problems arise? Can I use this with my existing pedals? I quite like them, and I understand them.
Your thoughts and recommendations please.
Conrad
From what I can tell about spending time with you and knowing what music you listen to, I would say that you would get very little benefit from an electric guitar. I think it might be hard for your to find a tone that you would find aesthetically pleasing and moving back from the electric to the acoustic is a more major adjustment than many people admit IMO. I'm saying this also because of the tones you seem to favour in your compositions.
I think (in your particular case) you would benefit more from the Yamaha silent guitar but I could be wrong since you might be hiding your Eastern European death metal collection from the world.
Just my opinion though with the little information I have.
Bob-Dubery
Conrad wrote:
From what I can tell about spending time with you and knowing what music you listen to, I would say that you would get very little benefit from an electric guitar. I think it might be hard for your to find a tone that you would find aesthetically pleasing and moving back from the electric to the acoustic is a more major adjustment than many people admit IMO. I'm saying this also because of the tones you seem to favour in your compositions.
I think (in your particular case) you would benefit more from the Yamaha silent guitar but I could be wrong since you might be hiding your Eastern European death metal collection from the world.
Just my opinion though with the little information I have.
Well what you hear in my little compositions is what I can play with what I have. When I play live that's usually solo and an acoustic works well for that.
Now it's true that I'm not fan of shredding, but there's a lot more to electric guitar playing than that. On the way to work this morning I was listening to a disc that features some protacted electric guitar soloing. I have even been known to listen to Jeff Beck, Led Zeppelin and even Jimi Hendrix. So I doubt I'd have much use for loads of distortion, but I can think of other things that an electric might be used for.
I suppose that I'm thinking that if I had an electric I'd do more with it. Though how much more remains to be seen. I might also spend lots of time twiddling knobs whilst I search for the magical tone.
AlanRatcliffe
Firstly, no guitar is completely silent - the strings throw off enough noise to be annoying to someone else in the same room (especially if you're getting off on a massive sound you hear in the headphones, while all they hear is the plink of the strings without the audio "enhancement").
I'm biased, but electric will add more to your sonic arsenal than yet another steel string, and it doesn't have to be distorted (think Knopfler, Thompson, et. al.), but it's down to what you want. If you're not going to be happy with the sound of an electric in your own music and end up never using it, then it's a waste of money. Only you can decide this I'm afraid.
Equipment? Vox Tonelab. Good sound quality catering more to clean to slightly driven tones than most modellers, more than enough effects without being overly complex, works well with headphones or can be plugged in to anything from your HiFi to a PA or even a computer for recording (so is extremely flexible for any setup you might conceivably find yourself). Will even work on acoustic (you can disable amp and speaker sims and use it as a DI with FX) and you can use your existing pedals in front of it or in the loop.
TomCat
Maybe a semi hollow might be worth looking at......(i.e 335 or Dot type etc).
Still gives you a low volume acoustic sound (although not the same as an acoustic)...but the added versatility of an electric......Also a hollow body has a nice woody tone to it when plugged in.
EDIT: BTW Tokai has a very nice one or you can look at some of the Ibbys (AF95)
Bob-Dubery
Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
Firstly, no guitar is completely silent - the strings throw off enough noise to be annoying to someone else in the same room (especially if you're getting off on a massive sound you hear in the headphones, while all they hear is the plink of the strings without the audio "enhancement").
Good point. I knew that they're not entirely silent, but I hadn't thought that they might still be annoying. A dummy run would be a good idea.
Conrad
Good point. I knew that they're not entirely silent, but I hadn't thought that they might still be annoying. A dummy run would be a good idea.
Is there no way you could get your wife some noisy knitting needles? That will even the playing field.
singemonkey
I agree with Alan. I play solid body electrics 80% of the time, but I wouldn't feel comfortable playing or practising in the same room in which my girlfriend is watching something. They are as my uncle once remarked, "surprisingly loud."
You've told me the style of guitar you've been thinking of, and I think it's a good choice for an alternative to your acoustics. And like Richard Thompson, you might benefit from putting a P90 soapbar pickup in the neck position - which imo has a more "acoustic" kind of tone. It's thicker than the very zingy sound of Fender single coils, but carries more of the string harmonics than a humbucker. I think that's why RT has tended to favour them.
Alan's advice sounds good and is an elegantly simple solution, but you should also consider the live rig made by amplitube. The amplitube simulations are the best in the business right now. You'd need to use it with a laptop, but it would also be a great live option plugged straight into the PA at quieter (non-rock) gigs in which you don't really need load monitors. There's a simple wah style pedal they make which interfaces with amplitube in a meaningful way - allowing you to control it with your hands off the keyboard. Then you can dial in a great Twin Reverb simulation and you're good to go for RT, or John Renbourn-like sounds.
And speaking of Renbourn, if I'd suggest another guitar, I'll second the suggestion of one of the Tokai ES semi-acoustics. If you've heard those live Pentangle recordings that demonstrate just how well this kind of instrument fits into an acoustic setting... The MIJ ESs are expensive, but well worth it, being on a par with Gibson's offerings. Spending less, the MIC Tokais are good, but the new Epiphone Dots look better made than the the Epi Les Pauls and are also an option. Just an alternative for your indecision invoking pleasure ?
Jack-Flash-Jr
Come over to the (electrified) dark side 8)
Don't fight it, we'll accept whatever excuse re: TV watching you choose to throw out there ?
AlanRatcliffe
X-rated Bob wrote:
Good point. I knew that they're not entirely silent, but I hadn't thought that they might still be annoying. A dummy run would be a good idea.
It
will be annoying - and for both of you, because the TV noise will leak in to your 'phones too. If you must be in the same room, perhaps if she had a pair of (wireless) headphones for the TV?
Bob-Dubery
Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
X-rated Bob wrote:
Good point. I knew that they're not entirely silent, but I hadn't thought that they might still be annoying. A dummy run would be a good idea.
It
will be annoying - and for both of you, because the TV noise will leak in to your 'phones too. If you must be in the same room, perhaps if she had a pair of (wireless) headphones for the TV?
Well I want to watch some TV as well. I don't want to sit there with cans on. I could do that in the garage. I might have some helpful observation to offer. EG "That inspector Morse is a stingy so-and-so".
Warren
X-rated Bob wrote:
Well I want to watch some TV as well. I don't want to sit there with cans on. I could do that in the garage. I might have some helpful observation to offer. EG "That inspector Morse is a stingy so-and-so".
Not sure how you'd make use of an electric guitar then?
PeteM
Bob, I think you've found an excuse to satisfy you GAS needs. Once you go electric, think of all the wonderful toys you can justify your spending on. ?
I too tinker on the guitar in front of the TV whilst my wife is trying to watch. It annoys the hell out of her whether I play my acoustic or the electric - even borrowed my mates fender and that didn't help. I think our wives are just victims of our insatiable desire to tinker. We have to learn to take it on the chin and they have to keep complaining - that's life. ☹
Tokai-SA
Pod or Tonelab will do the job, Bob.
Plus, you can plug the Pod/Tonelab direct into your soundcard and record away.
If you want to use your pedals just use a clean amp sim on the modeller with your pedals upfront.
djpauw
Alan touched on this, but here is my "out of the box" view...
get the wife a set of wireless headphones for the TV
simpler and cheaper solution than anything else the way i see it
chris77
He-he, I just pictured my missus after I come home with wireless phones for her so that her 7de Laan doesn't disturb me while I play.... Man, she. is. Pissed!?
singemonkey
Yeah. If I was her I'd be looking at the headphones and saying, "Sc#$% you, buddy..."
