Want to save the shipping? Drive to Sherman Oaks.
(Amp Shop/Bass Exchange)
The Villex demo
(Ask me how I know)
Gud gawd.
Okay I realize that demoing a product is not a strength of mine, yet. There should be more finesse in this but here it goes.
Staring in position five on the guitar (neck pickup) with the VMB off, play four chords & flip a switch.
5 off then on
4 on then off
3 off then on
2 on then off
1 off then on
I watched the output on an oscilloscope and saw an increase of somewhere between 75 and 200 mV depending on the pickup and notes struck. Which means to keep G Ohm happy, we must reduce the current. Conservation maintained.
In the world of guitar pickups and their output, 200 mV is a huge increase.
When gain is employed it is not as noticeable. However this vastly expands the guitars palette. What was a weak sound, i.e. without gain is now a very usable option.
When I got my Alairex HALO what I noticed was that it doesn't have one "set" perfect position for me. Depending on what I want to hear I need to flip switches, or turn knobs.
What this little miracle does is it also make the guitar "unstable." Needing input from me to achieve what I want to hear.
Monday, August 5, 2013
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Next Up, Villex Passive Mid-Range Booster
Clapton...Beano boost...Mid tone.
Eric has said his signature sound is the emphasis on the middle frequencies.
If you buy the Fender Clapton signature Stratocaster you get an active mid boost circuit included.
Active versus passive - using a power source, in this case a battery to power and boost the circuit.
A passive boost, by strict definition is not real - what it does is shift the resonant peaks down stream...so they get away with using the hyperbole "...Mid Range Boost." Yeah.
No, the loudness factor is not what interested me, boost is not needed. So why is this interesting?
Clapton used a boost to the middle frequencies of his Strat, the quintessential 'quack' of a Strat. He used an active amplifier, made small to fit within the body of the guitar.
You unscrew the jack from the guitar. Cut the two wires and insert them into the opening in the top photo. Screw the wires snug. Replace the jack and attach it to the guitar.
Flip the switch and the circuit is in use, otherwise you have the stock sound you bought.
The ONLY troubling aspect in the entire process is the company and it's murky history. First in the U.K. and now in SoCal, a website that a would cause a 2nd grader to giggle, has a loop in the 'How To Order' page inducing anything but warm and fuzzies.
It seems your choice is to call a personal number and give someone your credit card information.
Whew...I found a dealer on eBay and that adds PayPal protection and also obviates the need to give someone I do not know my personal information.
In California...$105.99 + $9.54 tax and $3.99 shipping - $119.52.
Eric has said his signature sound is the emphasis on the middle frequencies.
If you buy the Fender Clapton signature Stratocaster you get an active mid boost circuit included.
Active versus passive - using a power source, in this case a battery to power and boost the circuit.
A passive boost, by strict definition is not real - what it does is shift the resonant peaks down stream...so they get away with using the hyperbole "...Mid Range Boost." Yeah.
No, the loudness factor is not what interested me, boost is not needed. So why is this interesting?
Clapton used a boost to the middle frequencies of his Strat, the quintessential 'quack' of a Strat. He used an active amplifier, made small to fit within the body of the guitar.
The ONLY troubling aspect in the entire process is the company and it's murky history. First in the U.K. and now in SoCal, a website that a would cause a 2nd grader to giggle, has a loop in the 'How To Order' page inducing anything but warm and fuzzies.
It seems your choice is to call a personal number and give someone your credit card information.
Whew...I found a dealer on eBay and that adds PayPal protection and also obviates the need to give someone I do not know my personal information.
In California...$105.99 + $9.54 tax and $3.99 shipping - $119.52.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Okay, Now I get The Tortured Artist
I love my shit.
I play well, although not often enough.
I can make the sound I hear in my head.
I have very, very good friends. Some are there at the drop of a hat. Some pop up from time to time.
I have more than enough to eat and drink.
The negative side of my personal balance sheet is abysmal.
I have no job. (12 years same firm)
I am at the end of unemployment benefits.
I am not happy in my "natural" environment.
But life finds a way. I survive and even at times, thrive.
I am, Van Gogh.
I cry watching Grey's - I am moved.
I am riveted watching The Newsroom - I am infused with positive energy.
I frequently look at the ceiling and silently mouth, "Why?"
Okay, I fit the definition of a tortured soul.
And I am only halfway immersed. What bothers me the most. I could be a savant and communicate in a very different way than the rest of humanity.
But I am not. I have some of the disadvantages but none of the genius. I am a jack-of-all-trades.
A wonderful way to skate through life, but short of meaningful impact.
A tortured soul playing one? It boggles the mind.
I play well, although not often enough.
I can make the sound I hear in my head.
I have very, very good friends. Some are there at the drop of a hat. Some pop up from time to time.
I have more than enough to eat and drink.
The negative side of my personal balance sheet is abysmal.
I have no job. (12 years same firm)
I am at the end of unemployment benefits.
I am not happy in my "natural" environment.
But life finds a way. I survive and even at times, thrive.
I am, Van Gogh.
I cry watching Grey's - I am moved.
I am riveted watching The Newsroom - I am infused with positive energy.
I frequently look at the ceiling and silently mouth, "Why?"
Okay, I fit the definition of a tortured soul.
And I am only halfway immersed. What bothers me the most. I could be a savant and communicate in a very different way than the rest of humanity.
But I am not. I have some of the disadvantages but none of the genius. I am a jack-of-all-trades.
A wonderful way to skate through life, but short of meaningful impact.
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Pictures of My Guitar
Yes, I have been known to take a shot or five of guitars I buy. I know I may indeed off them sometime in the future, so it serves as a record.
But...
There is a website that among guitar players is HUGE with a capital G.
My Les Paul
As the name would suggest it is primarily a Gibson site but over the years has grown to encompass many brands.
It boasts of well over twenty five thousand members. Huge in forum numbers.
From the data I have seen the average age is forty six, the average number of guitars each member owns is four.
The site is privately owned but the income stream is not negligible by any stretch of the imagination.
The first and foremost occupier of time on this website is posting pictures of a new guitar.
Yes, are we all excited by the purchase of an expensive thing? Cars do this to people. Shelling out three or four thousand dollars for a guitars also qualifies.
But having seen one Les Paul, you have seen them all.
And yet what I have noticed is more often than not the people on the site are not musicians.
Wait, wait...what?!
A website about photography, do the members post pictures of their cameras or compositions they have made WITH their cameras?
Do saxophonists wax poetic over the patina of the brass? Or do they discuss the tone, how when they are playing Trane they are transported?
But guitarists, want to measure dick size. The fuck?
"Mine costs more..."
"Mine has the best flame maple top..."
"Mine has a long tenon (the method of attaching a set neck, a glued neck)..."
Are you kidding me?
In 1972 when you wanted to prove your were the better guitarist, you came to school and during Study Hall would show all your friends how you figured out Johnny Winter's latest.
I bought a Stratocaster, Augie had an SG, Corky bought a Les Paul...we didn't compare construction or flame or hardware...we compared chops.
What I can play that you can't.
So on the website I tried to cajole and prod and push and what I got in reaction was,
"Quit peeing in our cheerios..."
Some people got it. That an older member of the tribe is passing down knowledge earned with years.
And I know that youth is made to not "get it" until it is too late and they are my age.
Sure I have pride in the crap I own; that's human nature.
But what is more important?
What I own, or what I make of myself using the tools at my disposal?
It has been a frustrating week in many, many ways.
Laugh or cry, right?
Watch me.
But...
There is a website that among guitar players is HUGE with a capital G.
My Les Paul
As the name would suggest it is primarily a Gibson site but over the years has grown to encompass many brands.
It boasts of well over twenty five thousand members. Huge in forum numbers.
From the data I have seen the average age is forty six, the average number of guitars each member owns is four.
The site is privately owned but the income stream is not negligible by any stretch of the imagination.
The first and foremost occupier of time on this website is posting pictures of a new guitar.
Yes, are we all excited by the purchase of an expensive thing? Cars do this to people. Shelling out three or four thousand dollars for a guitars also qualifies.
But having seen one Les Paul, you have seen them all.
And yet what I have noticed is more often than not the people on the site are not musicians.
Wait, wait...what?!
A website about photography, do the members post pictures of their cameras or compositions they have made WITH their cameras?
Do saxophonists wax poetic over the patina of the brass? Or do they discuss the tone, how when they are playing Trane they are transported?
But guitarists, want to measure dick size. The fuck?
"Mine costs more..."
"Mine has the best flame maple top..."
"Mine has a long tenon (the method of attaching a set neck, a glued neck)..."
Are you kidding me?
In 1972 when you wanted to prove your were the better guitarist, you came to school and during Study Hall would show all your friends how you figured out Johnny Winter's latest.
I bought a Stratocaster, Augie had an SG, Corky bought a Les Paul...we didn't compare construction or flame or hardware...we compared chops.
What I can play that you can't.
So on the website I tried to cajole and prod and push and what I got in reaction was,
"Quit peeing in our cheerios..."
Some people got it. That an older member of the tribe is passing down knowledge earned with years.
And I know that youth is made to not "get it" until it is too late and they are my age.
Sure I have pride in the crap I own; that's human nature.
But what is more important?
What I own, or what I make of myself using the tools at my disposal?
It has been a frustrating week in many, many ways.
Laugh or cry, right?
Watch me.
Monday, July 8, 2013
The Joy Is Unimaginable
How can anything that is not related to sex feel so good?
Answer:
It does relate to sex.
That was easy.
Food, the act of eating and sharing with others is as intimate as removing clothes and uttering words seldom heard in broad daylight.
So too, is music. Intimate, revealing, laying bare...literally. Either your soul or your body, but no one rides for free.
It is an act of love to give of ourselves this way. To play the music and sing the songs; to accept what you hear and be moved by it. It is very much a two way street.
I frequently am moved to tears of joy while playing. Often someone will ask, 'If I am okay?'
Two people seeing the same thing and taking two different things from it.
I am more than okay.
Knockin' On Heaven's Door got me thinking of my father, and the tears flowed. But I was in a happy place, reliving good times.
However, our culture and society have dictated a more "manly" approach. Tears? In public? And not at a funeral? Unacceptable..
At the same time, a heartfelt expression will bring any crowd with a pulse to their feet.
I saw an cute player weep after every love song and watched the female component of the audience melt.
I don't know if his expression was heartfelt - the guy in me saw a cynical use, an alterior motive. I still could recognize the power of sharing your emotions.
When I was a kid and did this is usually cost me greatly. I put myself way out there and it felt, invariably that my feelings got trampled in the end. I built a wall about me to protect myself.
Now that I overtly put my emotions out there, I seem to reap so much more than I sow. It is not that times have changed. It is that I, me, e has changed. I revel in sharing; I know this. Now I can do so with little reservation. What a difference in my life.
To give a piece of me...to you.
Answer:
It does relate to sex.
That was easy.
Food, the act of eating and sharing with others is as intimate as removing clothes and uttering words seldom heard in broad daylight.
So too, is music. Intimate, revealing, laying bare...literally. Either your soul or your body, but no one rides for free.
It is an act of love to give of ourselves this way. To play the music and sing the songs; to accept what you hear and be moved by it. It is very much a two way street.
I frequently am moved to tears of joy while playing. Often someone will ask, 'If I am okay?'
Two people seeing the same thing and taking two different things from it.
I am more than okay.
Knockin' On Heaven's Door got me thinking of my father, and the tears flowed. But I was in a happy place, reliving good times.
However, our culture and society have dictated a more "manly" approach. Tears? In public? And not at a funeral? Unacceptable..
At the same time, a heartfelt expression will bring any crowd with a pulse to their feet.
I saw an cute player weep after every love song and watched the female component of the audience melt.
I don't know if his expression was heartfelt - the guy in me saw a cynical use, an alterior motive. I still could recognize the power of sharing your emotions.
When I was a kid and did this is usually cost me greatly. I put myself way out there and it felt, invariably that my feelings got trampled in the end. I built a wall about me to protect myself.
Now that I overtly put my emotions out there, I seem to reap so much more than I sow. It is not that times have changed. It is that I, me, e has changed. I revel in sharing; I know this. Now I can do so with little reservation. What a difference in my life.
To give a piece of me...to you.
Friday, June 21, 2013
A Lot To Be Said About The Mix
Someone with a learned ear and good taste to boot told me my mix was off.
In short, "Not enough guitar."
What am I selling? Me or?
I had to think about it. It was not intros or laying low for the first verse, no, my mix was low. And in truth...it was.
I had always mixed my guitar to other input at 7:9.
My guitar is loud and the mic is not bad and in many cases this has worked well.
Constant Change - works here
Ms Bonnie Meadow - but not here
So I took a hard look at mix levels and moved them; reset them to something like 8.5:9
The thought also occurred that because I mix for the lowest, worst, cheapest set of speakers, i.e. in mono I am further muddying things for the listener. If a change in mix level doesn't do it, stereo may.
Music, like any art is such an organic process and yet the amount of time we must spend harnessing technology to capture our art can be an interference to say the least and a complete distraction at the worst.
One of the many quirks of my Fostex 16 is if I leave it in record mode for too long a period of time a capacitor charges that shouldn't, and prevents the unit's power button from functioning. And it remains charged so that subsequent attempts to turn the unit on will fail.
I need this?
This weighing on my mind while I am trying to put pen to paper? You see the dilemma.
(You short out the plug and discharge the capacitor)
Many are the times I have been trying out a new piece for a first run, not taping and the results are wonderful...only to fail to be repeated once I press the Record & Play buttons.
Laugh or cry...
I'm going to record for too long a period and deal with the cap when it happens.
Mix may be set. And if not, there is always stereo. Or boost? Or punch up the guitar in post? Or?
You wouldn't think it was a purple beast from that shot, would you?
How about now?
Same guitar, different lighting.
In short, "Not enough guitar."
What am I selling? Me or?
I had to think about it. It was not intros or laying low for the first verse, no, my mix was low. And in truth...it was.
I had always mixed my guitar to other input at 7:9.
My guitar is loud and the mic is not bad and in many cases this has worked well.
Constant Change - works here
Ms Bonnie Meadow - but not here
So I took a hard look at mix levels and moved them; reset them to something like 8.5:9
The thought also occurred that because I mix for the lowest, worst, cheapest set of speakers, i.e. in mono I am further muddying things for the listener. If a change in mix level doesn't do it, stereo may.
Music, like any art is such an organic process and yet the amount of time we must spend harnessing technology to capture our art can be an interference to say the least and a complete distraction at the worst.
One of the many quirks of my Fostex 16 is if I leave it in record mode for too long a period of time a capacitor charges that shouldn't, and prevents the unit's power button from functioning. And it remains charged so that subsequent attempts to turn the unit on will fail.
I need this?
This weighing on my mind while I am trying to put pen to paper? You see the dilemma.
(You short out the plug and discharge the capacitor)
Many are the times I have been trying out a new piece for a first run, not taping and the results are wonderful...only to fail to be repeated once I press the Record & Play buttons.
Laugh or cry...
I'm going to record for too long a period and deal with the cap when it happens.
Mix may be set. And if not, there is always stereo. Or boost? Or punch up the guitar in post? Or?
You wouldn't think it was a purple beast from that shot, would you?
How about now?
Same guitar, different lighting.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Uplink: Hack Elite
With the incredible noise generated this week over "uncovered spying on our emails, phone calls and internet use...", pardon me but welcome to 2001 and 2007 - I uncovered a great time waster for the puzzler in all of us who enjoy and use technology.
A game, "Uplink," being the original title, licensing issues ensued and so we have essentially the same game sold under two names, and "Uplink: Hacker Elite."
In this game you are a hacker.
No manual. There is a sparse tutorial that shows you how to establish a link online, crack a password and copy a file. They really don't delve into the facts that in following the tutorial you left a digital trail of breadcrumbs and will soon be found out.
In this game, if you are arrested, the game is essentially over. There are no Save Game options, the game loads from the last place and when you exit, that becomes your save point.
(Yes, you can root around, find the user profiles and copy them as backup)
But the idea is there is no do over, no reload. You lose, you lose. So be careful.
But they don't explain this.
So you either play by trial and error until you are arrested; although how you managed to ignore the several daily messages asking for payment of the fine assessed, is beyond me, or you go online - IRL and start looking for a manual, a hint, something!
The game itself is fascinating to play. You go to a bulletin board and peruse available jobs and the rating required for the jobs. Accepting one or if your rating is not up to snuff you can contact them by email, although that rarely works; you then set about to accomplish the job.
Steal a file
Copy research papers
Delete files
And as the game progresses, so do the missions. There is a plot line, but also this sandbox of work.
Later missions involve changing data, transferring funds, erasing identities. As you start to get the idea, any computer in the game is open to hacking. You can change your identity, transfer fund into your account. Ruin the reputations of your rivals. The way you approach it is up to you.
You can upgrade the Gateway itself, the various components, CPU, memory, the Modem Security measures etc. One security measure is a suicide device - when you are about to be caught you destroy all the evidence. The game is so very open to exploration that no two people will have the same experience.
You can upgrade your software, naturally.
Good Old Games
Has the game available for download for $5.99. Or you can get the original CD from the UK developers for $15.
Introversion - Uplink
I find myself frequently saying,
"Just one more, I need $2,000 more for my new CPU."
Yes, references to moves (Nakatomi is from the Bruce Willis Movie Die Hard) abound - one Easter egg is the Wargames computer is out there, somewhere.
A game, "Uplink," being the original title, licensing issues ensued and so we have essentially the same game sold under two names, and "Uplink: Hacker Elite."
In this game you are a hacker.
No manual. There is a sparse tutorial that shows you how to establish a link online, crack a password and copy a file. They really don't delve into the facts that in following the tutorial you left a digital trail of breadcrumbs and will soon be found out.
In this game, if you are arrested, the game is essentially over. There are no Save Game options, the game loads from the last place and when you exit, that becomes your save point.
(Yes, you can root around, find the user profiles and copy them as backup)
But the idea is there is no do over, no reload. You lose, you lose. So be careful.
But they don't explain this.
So you either play by trial and error until you are arrested; although how you managed to ignore the several daily messages asking for payment of the fine assessed, is beyond me, or you go online - IRL and start looking for a manual, a hint, something!
The game itself is fascinating to play. You go to a bulletin board and peruse available jobs and the rating required for the jobs. Accepting one or if your rating is not up to snuff you can contact them by email, although that rarely works; you then set about to accomplish the job.
Steal a file
Copy research papers
Delete files
And as the game progresses, so do the missions. There is a plot line, but also this sandbox of work.
Later missions involve changing data, transferring funds, erasing identities. As you start to get the idea, any computer in the game is open to hacking. You can change your identity, transfer fund into your account. Ruin the reputations of your rivals. The way you approach it is up to you.
You can upgrade the Gateway itself, the various components, CPU, memory, the Modem Security measures etc. One security measure is a suicide device - when you are about to be caught you destroy all the evidence. The game is so very open to exploration that no two people will have the same experience.
You can upgrade your software, naturally.
Good Old Games
Has the game available for download for $5.99. Or you can get the original CD from the UK developers for $15.
Introversion - Uplink
I find myself frequently saying,
"Just one more, I need $2,000 more for my new CPU."
Yes, references to moves (Nakatomi is from the Bruce Willis Movie Die Hard) abound - one Easter egg is the Wargames computer is out there, somewhere.
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