Thanks for that reply! That's good news. I'm hoping someone might chime in with a view on the possible sound change/improvement too ?

Hey guys!

I'm currently on holiday from varsity and have been reunited with my Peavey Classic 30 (too loud for my digs). I've been playing quite a lot these days, and have become a bit unhappy with the bridge pickup in my Blacktop strat.

At home I also have an Epiphone LP100 (Les Paul), and compared to the Strat's bridge pickup, I very much prefer it. I'm looking for a much hotter/rocking sound from my bridge pickup on the strat, but don't necessarily want to buy another pickup unless it were on the cheap. Swapping them around would cost me nothing.

What are the thoughts from y'all? The Blacktop strat has a 5-way selector for the coil-tap functions - I'm assuming I'd lose this option if I put the LP100 humbucker into my strat?

Thank you Hasie and V8 - all questions covered. I don't know many people doing music at UCT, but I will be on the lookout for any that can give me some tips.

Greetings all

It's been some years since I've been on the forum, and I'm in need of some suggestions with regards to learning jazz guitar. There are a few things I'd like to ask:

1. Scales: which should I learn first? I know the minor pentatonic and have a very basic understanding of music theory, so I'd like to start learning a scale to use over some of the jazz chords and rhythms that I've learnt already (from JustinGuitar.com), while I learn some theory.

2. Resources: are there some good sites/books (other than those on Justin's site) anyone can recommend, and to learn some theory with? Being a student at UCT, I unfortunately won't be able to take lessons, so I'll be relying on the internet and any books I can buy.

3. Suggested tracks/artists - having been a rock player since the beginning, I tend to prefer jazz that is more...structured/less free-form (for lack of a better word) - at least for now. In other words, I enjoy jazz that is more based around a central motif/idea/'riff' e.g Dave Brubeck's Take Five. I love first minutes of So What, but towards the end I often skip to the next track. My favourite types of jazz are Spanish/flamenco style (Sketches of Spain is my favourite - Solea in particular), 'darker' or smoother sounding jazz (Miles' soundtrack to Ascenseur pour l'échafaud and Chet Baker's Almost Blue) and swing (Django Reinhardt's Minor Swing). Suggestions along these lines would be great.

4. [Bonus] For the Sabbath fans out there - what scale is Iommi using in Planet Caravan/Solitude/Zeitgeist? Planet Caravan's solo is my absolute favourite, and I'd LOVE to play in a similar style to Tony's jazz style.

I should mention, I'm not new to guitar - I've been playing for around 5 years and played in one rock band during high school (but disbanded to focus on varsity). I'm not new to jazz music either - Kind of Blue was played most Sundays during lunch at home, and I've come to recognise some of my favourite jazz musicians' styles. I will mostly be playing for enjoyment and possibly some open mic nights or small shows with a vocalist (maybe jazzing-up some covers).

Thoughts and suggestions would be very much appreciated!

The reason for bringing the acoustic is to do a popular song in a different tuning (Little Lion Man - playing it in standard just isn't authentic enough) through a Zoom effects pedal. But if space gets really tight we can leave the acoustic and one of the amps.

@Manfred: thanks so much, that would be a big help, because none of us are clued up about the live music scene in Cape Town. And a big thanks to the other posters as well!

Manfred Klose wrote: So do you do primarily cover music or original tracks as well ?

We'll play anywhere - basically we just want to make back our petrol money - See more at: http://www.guitarforum.co.za/performance/going-on-our-first-tour/?action=post;num_replies=5#sthash.crUuu6Kh.dpuf

Goodluck with that one ?

At the moment it's mostly covers with two or three of our own songs, but we have 7 more originals on the way.

Are we not likely to make anything at all? ?

singemonkey wrote: Take fewer guitars and fewer amps. Do you have 5 guitar players and a keyboard player?

Manfred's advice sounds great. Also tell us where you're playing and we'll try to make it out.

Ahh - I didn't think about venues having drumkits, thanks for that. That should help a lot.

I'm not sure if we can take fewer guitars - it's my electric plus a backup, one acoustic, the singer's electric guitar and finally the bass. But I'll see what we can do, I just needed to be sure a trailer would be okay for the guitars. Not to mention safety vs having all the gear in a panel van instead of a trailer.

It will be between the 18th and 27th of April and I will definitely let the forum know when it's finalised! Any other tips for planning or while we're there?

EDIT: Manfred, we're mostly a rock band. Kind of modern, but not your average AC/DC wannabe group. We can play everything from Hendrix and Zeppelin (including a mean cover of Stairway start to finish) to the latest Red Hot Chili Peppers and even club/electronic music. We can adapt our setlist on the go as well

We'll play anywhere - basically we just want to make back our petrol money ? ?

Manfred Klose wrote: Most venues have basic drum kits you can use.

phone up the venues you will be playing at, and also other bands you will be playing with.
then you only have to take cymbals and basics, unless it is a necessity for the drummer to use his own kit

I don't like to have all the guitars in the boot of a car. - See more at: http://www.guitarforum.co.za/performance/going-on-our-first-tour/?action=post;num_replies=0#sthash.D5jEYQtw.dpuf

borrow a small trailor somewhere

Thanks Manfred, although I assumed keeping the guitars in a trailer was the same as keeping them in a car boot?

Also, is there a thread on the forum that has a list of venues in Cape Town?

Hey guys

My band is currently planning to have a one week tour in Cape Town during our April holiday. We don't have an album or EP out yet but we should have at least an EP out before we go. At the moment we are having trouble finding a way to get the four members plus all the equipment there (6 amps, 5 guitars, pedals and a drum kit etc).

Has anyone been in a similar situation or have any ideas for us? Everyone will contribute for petrol, accommodation, food etc. Basically it's just getting there that is the problem - we can't find a panel van that's affordable to rent and I don't like to have all the guitars in the boot of a car.

Any suggestions will be appreciated!

Hey guys.

We are planning to play a gig at a 4-star hotel here in Plett but have absolutely no idea how much we should charge.

There are three of us in the band, we have a pretty broad repertoire of songs, so we can adapt it to suit older/younger audiences. Although, we would prefer to go for the guys our age because they are the ones who will like our Facebook page etc.

For reference you can look here:

http://www.tsogosunhotels.com/resorts/beacon-island/pages/overview.aspx#.UqCaEPQW2So

http://www.beaconislandtimeshare.co.za/

We have played two live performances and are a decent show (interacting with the crowd, making jokes, not nervous etc). The guy who will arrange it on their end is a cool, mellow guy and is keen to have us because there are lots of teenagers on holiday there. He said that the hotel doesn't have a budget for this kind of thing, but it is pretty upmarket (cheapest rooms are R1200 per night).

Thanks for the input, and any other advice you might have!

They all light up, although before the whooshing sound I noticed that there was a rattling sound coming from the middle preamp tube (V2 I believe), which would stop if I pressed my finger against it. I know for certain that it was this tube because I had a custom "tube tamer" put in for the power tubes and none of the other preamp ones made that sound.

Could it be the preamp tube?

Hey guys.

On Sunday morning my Classic 30 started making a constant 'whooshing' sound (like when you put your ear to a seashell), and when I tried to play it would occasionally make a crackling/shorting sound, like when you're using a crap/old/broken lead.

Is it the power tubes? I'm not sure when last the tubes were changed, but it's never done anything like this before. I've tried pressing my finger against each of the tubes but there's no change in the sound when I do that.

Thanks all!

You tried it on a Peavey Classic? And where did you order from (I'm assuming you ordered the actual Peavey one?)

I saw a TSA15 head and cab going for about R3000 on Gumtree a few months ago. You could get a Classic 30 for around R3500, and they're plenty loud.

I'm gonna say +1 on a Peavey Classic 30 or Roland Cube.

Got my C30 for R3000 (although no reverb) and it's absolutely fantastic. Gets you nice cleans and takes pedals very well. It also has an effects loop.

Can't say anything about the other amps though.

Forgot about Mr Valve, thanks Alan!

Hey guys. I'm looking for a footswitch for my Classic 30 - would this do the trick?

http://www.gumtree.co.za/cp-musical-instruments-in-claremont/marshall-2-way-footswitch-523328068

I only need it for channel switching.

Also, I had a custom 'tube tamer' made (I have the old C30) which has worked beautifully for the tube rattle, but I've noticed that the middle 12AX7 rattles when I'm playing. It stops when I touch it with my finger and sounds like there is something inside rattling.

Can I replace this one tube, or must I replace all three 12AX7s? I'm looking to reduce that harsh 'ice-pick' sound that many Classic owners speak of.

And is there anyone in South Africa that sells tubes?

Thank you for all the input. We're having a meeting on Friday to discuss with the drummer before making a decision. I really appreciate the help, some great advice here!

Hey guys. The band that I've been playing in has been going through an 'unstable' patch recently and I'd really like some input from some of the more experienced guys.

It started off with myself and our singer + rhythm guitarist just jamming some Metallica songs at his workshop around May this year, but we always had the intention of becoming a gigging band, and a while later we asked a friend who had started bass a few months before May to join us. After that we added a drummer and in the past two months things have gotten more serious - we've started putting some of our own songs together and building up our repertoire, practicing everything and getting some decent equipment. We have some open mic experience and have gigs starting in three weeks. I'm really excited to play but at the same time I cringe at what's to come.

Here's the problem. Since we've started our bassist hasn't been pulling his weight at all. He is super lazy, doesn't learn or practice his parts (I've taught him some basic basslines that he could do so that he could at least play something with us, but he goes home, doesn't bother to write them down or practice them at all, forgets them, and comes back the next week and I have to reteach him. This happens all the time). His attitude is all wrong, we have about 10 songs that we always jam, but he takes no initiative in learning them, or doing anything at all. Basically we must either beg and babysit him, or nag him everyday to learn his bits.

Now before I go further I'm adding that he has been playing his instrument for less than the rest of us, so some of the things he does I don't bring up. Mind you, when I started guitar I sat for hours during my Christmas holidays with a classical guitar and tab until I could play Stairway to Heaven smoothly. Also, I made it absolutely clear to everyone what direction we were taking and that one day we were going to have to get really serious about the future of the band. I really thought that more of an effort would have been made - he does no afterschool activities at all, is going to bass lessons, but still doesn't know where G and D are on the fretboard :'( <---another thing I've begged him to learn, even if it's only every second note on one string! :'(

I'm feeling really demotivated at the moment - I hate arriving at practices knowing that there's going to be some shit excuse and that I'm going to have to count time for myself, the singer, and the bassist, and then write all the parts for the guitar, and then all the parts for the bassist. And remind him that he's playing the wrong part or that he's out of tune. Think of it like this: if I had four arms, I would be playing lead and rhythm guitar with two, and bass guitar with the other two.

Let me give you an example of said lazyness: when our drummer joined us we decided to add Californication to our list and everyone went to go learn their parts. The three of us had our parts down in a week, but we could only add the bass guitar in 4 months later - and this is no exaggeration.

What's more, our bass player will be leaving the day after our second gig (29 November) which means we will have no bassist for the entire holiday - for which we've been to practicing hard to get as many gigs as possible.

There is one more thing I'll mention - we've been considering some names for the band - long story short - we had 40 minutes before school to decide on a band name. Both the bassist and myself were sick at the time; I came to school for the morning to decide with the singer. Our bassist didn't come to school that day and left it up all up to myself and the singer - when we asked for suggestions and ideas over Whatsapp we got no help at all. He was sick - so was I - but this is probably the thing that has got to me most.

I'm tight with our drummer and singer, and I want this to work, but I can't help but feel our bassist is 'riding the fame' if you know what I'm trying to say? :/

I'd really appreciate some thoughts on this matter. It was a long read, and I'm very grateful for any thoughts ?

Thanks, 12's then!