Education

This section has THREE main foci:

1) Do It Yourself (DIY) This is an explosive area now-a-days. Most of the amps and pedals marketed in guitar magazines are reissues or retakes of simple circuits. These products are built as inexpensively as possible and for whatever reason are lackluster to the original equipment. The prices of vintage gear or boutique gear is going up by the minute. Now enter this internet and information age; it is realized that anyone smart enough to operate a soldering iron can in fact build this gear themselves at a fraction of the cost.

I want a original tweed 5E3 Deluxe real bad. I can't afford one and the Victoria model costs way out of my budget. I can satisfy my gear lust and will my dream amp into existence by building it. The cost of doing so is nominal compared to what I have spent on gear in the past. There are plenty of DIY resources on the web to make this happen. If worse comes to worse most DIY companies offer building it for you and it's still cheaper than buying a vintage Marshall.

Let me make a point right here. I want the best tone possible. If actually having to buy the vintage Marshall or Fender is the only way then so be it. IF the DIY market was just about saving money then I would not care so much. My bottom line is that I want the TONE.

The DIY market is one of the greatest things to happen for guitar players. It is extremely practical. A new option for working musicians besides Peavey! Besides you get that feeling of satisfaction knowing that yes you built this. Mixing vintage circuits with modern technology can also build superior sounding amps and effects. It is now possible to take the voodoo out of the system and build superior sounding gear.

Who knows. You might just learn something. Jimi Hendrix had a box of Fuzz Faces that he constantly rotated in his live shows because every one sounded different under different conditions. Since you built that fuzz kit you know all about germanium transistor matching and temperature effects. You have come a long way, baby. Or, the next time your buddy wants to sell off that vintage Fender because "its one without any mojo" you can buy it off him cheep and simply change the transistor.

But let me warn you: When your in the know like we are it gets real annoying when some hearing damaged old fart tries to tell you their is no difference between tubes. Or better yet, anything made before 1965 can't sound good.

2. Guitar lessons and building your skills up to be a better musician. I can't say much hear, I spend more time reading about NOS tubes than practicing. It is nice to get a refresher on the basics from time to time.

Oh and 3. Real players should learn about their gear and how to set it up properly. It is not that hard.