For the guitar gear junkies among us

[holaknopfler]

That looks absolutely great. Really nice colour and the amp too, loud loud loud

Here is a little video, sound is not too good:

 

[Jackal]

That sounds great, Lars. You really got that Knopfler thing going. I really love that rhythm style.

[holaknopfler]

Thank you very much Jackal! It was a lot of practice to get the tone as close to Mark. It's all in the fingers! Here's one with the dobro:

 

[Jackal]

The dobro sounds nice too. A bit tinny, but that's the camera mic I guess. I used to have one myself, but sold it a few years ago. Great for slide.

I've never really bothered to learn much note for note. I know the Money For Nothing lick and the Sultans intro plus a few bits and pieces. I'm more into getting the "feeling" of the various guitar players I like. The only things I've learned or tried to learn by tabulature or by ear to get almost down to the note are Yakety Axe (the original Chet Atkins version), A Little Bit of Blues (Jerry Reed), Both Sides Now (Randy Scruggs version of Joni Mitchel's song). The rest is just a big stew of bits and bobs that I try to make my own

[holaknopfler]

The dobro sounds nice too. A bit tinny, but that's the camera mic I guess. I used to have one myself, but sold it a few years ago. Great for slide.

I've never really bothered to learn much note for note. I know the Money For Nothing lick and the Sultans intro plus a few bits and pieces. I'm more into getting the "feeling" of the various guitar players I like. The only things I've learned or tried to learn by tabulature or by ear to get almost down to the note are Yakety Axe (the original Chet Atkins version), A Little Bit of Blues (Jerry Reed), Both Sides Now (Randy Scruggs version of Joni Mitchel's song). The rest is just a big stew of bits and bobs that I try to make my own

I totally agree with that. I don't like to learn the complete sultans of swing solo so I can play it note for note(i'm to lazy for that also) but it's no fun. Just put something from your own in the sound that you like. It's just nonsense when people say: 'Hey Lars you play like Mark Knopfler' No I don't because I'm not Mark Knopfler. I've learned it myself with influences from Mark,  Chet Atkins, David Gilmour, BB King etc. The whole point is that I've created my own sound, such as every guitarplayer does when you play for some years. That's how it should be!:)

[vgonis]

Lars what a nice sound you create! Thank you! Pretty close to our hero, could have fooled me.
I also see you have a thing with Coldplay!
Jackal, nice guitar, tell me more about the extra two switches next to the standard knobs.

[Jackal]

VGONIS, the top switch is for activating the bridge pickup so I get the neck+bridge and neck+middle+bridge combinations. The bottom switch is for splitting the neck humbucker. I usually only use one coil on the humbucker, but for jazzy stuff or fatter distorted stuff, it sounds great with both coils.

[vgonis]

Nice! I usually go with the middle+bridge combination pickups and I guess that a double neck coil might have helped greatly to make use of it. I am in novice state (and my finances are pretty bleak) to invest more than my Squire+ Marshall MG15+Digitech RP80 guitar processor pedal. Still I prefer my classical guitar, I can control it a bit better. 

[Jackal]

The electric takes a while to be able to control, especially if you're used to strumming an acoustic. When I was a teenager and listened A LOT to Dire Straits, I almost only used the middle+bridge combination. Now I think the neck+middle and middle+bridge (out-of-phase positions) sound a bit "overused", but I use them, depending on the song. Mostly I use the neck.

[koobaa]

Nice set, Jackal

(...)The rest is just a big stew of bits and bobs that I try to make my own

That's the way to go for sure, but I admit that I used to learn some parts note for note in the past, just because I really wanted to know how he (MK) was doing it. I remember I spent a fair amount of time learning the middle solo of Calling Elvis (you know the one with a lots of twists and turns that flows so nicely between verses) and it was a lot of fun when I finally nailed it. I like to learn some licks note for note, it is a good way of learning new stuff and trying to apply the technique somewhere else. I know I will never be Mark Knopfler, but knowing some tricks helped me to improvise later on. Similarly to you, Jackal, I also learned a few fingerstyle tunes from tabs (that was too hard to learn by ear) and I have lots of fun in joining those bits and pieces together when I play my own stuff.

[Jackal]

I agree, Kooba. Especially something a bit difficult is good so you feel you are making some progress. I'm just a bit lazy, so the thing has to be very interesting if I'm going to learn it note for note. I'm more like this that I listen to music and suddenly I hear a lick or little line that I thought sounded great, and then I'll grab the guitar to try to play it. If I can get close, I'm happy. I'm mostly interested in improvising, and sometimes I record some chord progressions to practice on. I also enjoy playing a solo so that I am outlining the chord changes, like a jazz player would. Not that I can really play jazz, but I'm trying to get it. I also do some ear training where I try to identify the chord changes, which can be tricky in a blisteringly fast bebop piece. And I try to play some solo lines in my head and the same time visualising the fretboard. Later when I play it to check, I usually get it right in my head It's useful, because then you don't have look at the neck so much when you play.

[Jackal]

Awesome unit! A 30W (solid state) amp with a wonderful overdrive, all in a stomp box! Check out this clip:

 

I also recommend that you check out Tim's other videos. Some of the sweetest playing I have ever heard.

[Fletch]

Interesting. I'm about to trial a Blackstar stomp box amp emulator in one of my bands - hope it sounds as good as that through the PA!

Otherwise I'll stick to my Deville mic'd with a SM57 which is just fantastic for gigging. Oh, and I'm still very much in love with the Boss CS2 - cant live without it!!

[Jackal]

GAS!

I'm in the middle of refinishing my guitar (want it black), and I decided to buy a new bridge. I use the tremolo arm a lot, so as you know, the standard vintage tremolo bridge gets very wiggly after a while. So, I went for this:



except my model is 510T SS2, i.e. it has saddles with rollers.

Unfortunately Gotoh is discontinuing this model, so I got the last one from the dealer. It's pretty high-tech stuff. It has a special block where the strings only touch one point, the tremolo arm is non-screw, and the hole for the arm is kind of prolonged so the arm is tighter and doesn't wiggle. It loses some of the vintage feel of the old bridge, and I'd prefer bright chrome, but I take function and quality over looks any day. Looking forward to testing it eventually. I'm so sick of that wiggly trem arm.

[Fletch]

Good luck with that Jackal. My two American Strats have very few tuning probs using the stock gear during 3 hour gigs, but my new Mexican is in need of further pimping!!!! I put some Texas special pups in and it sounds heaps better - I gigged with it twice before and really didn't like the standard mex pups - very harsh, is the only subjective word I can think of.
Just need to get some stability with the trem and I'll be very happy!!! But...... Must be chrome!