Guitar Musings

In a past post about guitarist nail care, I threatened that I might try Nail Envy to strengthen my nails, avoid chips and breakages.  I finally followed through with my Twitter threats and bought both Nail Envy original and matte.

After the first application, I immediately noticed the difference in strength of my nails.  It not only protects my nails from cracking and breaking, I have noticed the tone in my playing has improved with a fuller sound similar to using an extra thick guitar pick.  I’m able to attack the strings with authority and without worry.  Nail Envy leaves a shiny finish, once applied so if that is something that concerns you, buy the matte.  That’s what I did because I got tired of all the “girly” nail jokes and seriously, my nails were reflecting light like mirror. The matte finish is just as effective as the original, in strength, but applying it requires more patience.  It takes a bit longer to dry and until then it has a rubbery like consistency for about an hour or so and was easy to scuff or damage during that time.   After it completely dries, no problems at all.

Definitely give Nail Envy some consideration if you need to strengthen your nails.  I have been using for 3 weeks now and am completely satisfied with the results.

Update(12.2.08):  After a few weeks of using this product I thought I would give a followup.  Still working  well but keep in mind that there will be a build up on your nails and you will have to accasionally use fingernail polish remover to clean your nails and re-apply Nail Envy. Also, the matte finish tends to yellow over time so if keep that in mind as well.

Links:

Nail Envy Original Finish
Nail Envy Matte Finish

If you follow me on twitter, you know that I recently purchased a Fostex MR16HD multitrack recorder.  I was inspired by the “Big Red Button”  post by Hercules Castro, so I finally bit the bullet and ordered one.  Anyway, UPS delivered it the other day and thought I would share my first impressions during the unboxing.

First Impression?

While removing it from the box, I was surprised how compact it all was, about 15’’.   I don’t know what I was expecting but I still envision those huge consoles in the studios that you see in the magazines and TV.  I ended getting the black unit which, aesthetically, is more pleasing to my eyes.

Knobs and Buttons

The overall unit is pretty impressive with man buttons and knobs but not too much to make it intimidating.  Keeping consistent to the Fostex claim of keeping it simple to let you get inspiration down.  The sliders for the main volume and each track feels a bit cheap to me.  I’m not saying that they are cheap, it’s just that I’m more used to the “weighted” feel of other consoles that I’ve worked on.  The screen seems a bit small to me but is probably enough to do the job. I’m just the type of person that prefers more real estate.

Powered on

Powered it on and heard the 40 gig hard drive spin up.  At first I was afraid that the noise of the hard drive would interfere with the quality of the recording.  After the unit completing booted up, I could barely hear the hard drive, thus taking my worries about noise away.  The unit comes with a sample song called “ Fostex Fever.”  It’s your basic 80’s style keyboard, multi-vocal groove song to show you what the unit can do.  Pretty cheesy song but it gave me the capability to mess around with the levels, EQ and effects for each track;  a good tutorial to get me started.

Now it’s time for me to record something. More thoughts on the functionality of the unit in future posts so stay tuned.

Links:

Fostex MR-16HD 16-Track Digital Recorder at Musicians Friend.  Already fifty bucks cheaper than what I paid last week.

Official MR-16D information from Fostex

I was on the Acoustic Guitar Magazine forum the other day, sharing my thoughts on the Guitar Tool Kit  for the iPhone.  One mentioned that this program was yet another reason to buy the new iPhone.  I wouldn’t go that far but if you have an iPhone or iTouch, the Guitar Tool Kit is a handy program to have around.

Features and Thoughts:

• Tuner:  Has many different tuning modes from standard tuning to modal or open tuning.  Initially, I tried the tuner on the 1st Gen iPhone and it didn’t work so well. The response was terrible and wouldn’t register the low E string and was rendered useless.  I now own the 3G iPhone and the tuner is working much better.  I’m thinking that the 3G has a better microphone.  Any thoughts on this?  As a test, I set my Korg tuner next to the iPhone to see how close they responded and the tool kit did very well.  The tuner does not work on the iTouch because of the lack of a microphone.  But you can use the “Tones” option which is a graphic representation of the six strings and you can run your finger over each string to act as a reference.
• Metronome:  My first impression of the metronome was annoyance.  The tones for the beats sounded like a trash can and there was no way to change those tones to something more pleasant.   After I  installed the update, the option to to change the tone was there so now the  metronome is usable and quite nice to have.  The current version of the tool kit only offers 2/4, 3/4, 4/4 and “no time signature” as options for time signatures.  I would like to see a way to customize the time signatures and even an option on where you want the accents within the measures.
• Chord Chart:  Very handy little program with lots and lots of chords for you to reference.  What is nice is that you can move up and  down the fretboard to get your desired chords in different positions.  I would like to see is an option to illustrate where the root of the chord is located on the chart.  Even better, the 3rd, 5th, 7th etc… location as well.

So would I recommend this program? Definitely!  It’s not going to replace your current equipment but at only $9.99, it’s nice to have when you’re on the go and need something in a pinch.

Links:

Guitar Toolkit Homepage

Purchased an Acoustasonic a few weeks back because my old Peavy BackStage practice amp finally died and I must say I haven’t been disappointed. A nice little package with enough effects and drive to please most guitarists.

First thoughts:

I was happy to see that the Acoustasonic had the ability to sit on the floor at an angle.  Makes it so much easier to adjust my settings without having to hunch over to see the controls.  I plugged my Seagull S6 in and was impressed with the nice clean sound.  It did feel a bit punchy at times , I’m thinking it was because the LR Baggs system on my Seagull was driving the sound too much.  After working on both the amp and guitar, I found a tone that I liked.  Since I don’t currently play live, I can’t really give an opinion on how it would perform out in the field but it does have a line out so you can plug right in to sound reinforcement.  This makes me think that the possibilities are only limited to the mixer you plug into.  I was also skeptical with the claim that this was specifically designed for acoustic players.  I see that a lot and used to think that was just a gimmick.  To test, I plugged in my Stratocastor and it sounded like crap. I could never get a tone that I liked and eventually gave up after about 15 minutes or so.

The effects are solid and fun to play with.  You get a Vibratone (slow and fast), Chorus, Reverb/Chorus combo, Chorus Delay combo, Delay, Reverb/Delay(combo) and Reverb (hall, room and plate).  The only problem with this is that these are preset channels and if you want to customize your effect or try different combinations, you are out of luck.

Summary:

I love this amp.  It’s small enough to where I can keep it in my living room without getting in trouble and but it’s not wimpy sounding like a lot of practice amps.  If you are in the market for an affordable acoustic guitar amp, the Fender Acoustasonic 30 is worth taking a look at.

Pros:

• Clean sound and easy to dial in
• Nice array of effects to play with and can switch between effects quickly
• Line out for recording and playing live
• Ability to tilt amp to view controls (helpful on the old back)

Cons:

• Can’t tweak the effects at all.  This can be a deal breaker for many.
• My Stratocastor sounds like crap on it. (not really a con, maybe)

Links:

Fenders information regarding the Acoustasonic 30:
http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=2213300010

A few weeks back, I wrote a post about a guitar repair shop finder on the web, mentioning that I purchased the book “The Acoustic Guitar Adjustment, Care, Maintenance, and Repair,” so I could get a better idea of the inner-workings of my post about a guitar repair shop finder on the web, mentioning that I purchased the guitars.  I have become a firm believer that the more you know about your instrument, the better you will play.  At least that’s one reason why I feel I have improved.

First Thoughts:

After I started reading this book, I began to think that I might have went a bit over my head.  With some chapters like “Disassembly and Reassembly of Guitar bodies,” “Pearl Inlay Technique” and “Finishing and Refinishing”, I was wondering whether I would be able to use any of this information.  This book was definitely meant for someone with some experience in woodworking.

What I Found Useful:

After getting over the initial intimidation, I did find some chapters that I could use for myself.  I was able to utilize “String Action and Tension Rod Adjustment” and “Intonation and Bridging” to tune up and lower the action on my Seagul S6. 

Final Thoughts:

This book is obviously meant for a more experienced repairperson with more than a basic knowledge of guitar repair.  If you are curious about some of the techniques and tools used for some of the more extensive repairs, you might find this a good reference.  It has certainly increased my knowledge/appreciation of my instrument and the Luthiers who repair them.

Links:

http://www.repairmyguitar.com/