Layout Image
Subscribe to Fat Chords

Get the latest blog posts delivered via email

Archive for Guitar

How to Quickly Clean Your Guitar

by Fat Chords
March 10th, 2011

How to Quickly Clean Your Guitar

One of the biggest secrets to having a great sounding guitar, is to keep it properly cleaned at all times. A guitar is a big investment, as many high quality ones can costs upwards of ,000 or more. So it only makes sense that you take proper care of your guitar. Here are a few simple tips anyone can follow to keep their guitar strumming along beautifully.

Dust is the common enemy of most guitars. A build-up of too much dust on any guitar can adversely affect how it sounds and its overall performance. So it only makes sense that you regularly dust your guitar as often as possible. I suggest using a soft cloth that won’t leave much residue behind. Or better yet, you can buy a speciality guitar dust cloth in your local music shop.

You will also want to pay special attention to keeping your fretboard as squeaky clean as possible. There are many specialty cleaners made for this type of job, which can also be found in any local music shop. You will want to make sure the cleaner isn’t abrasive and is water based.

Next you will want to polish up your guitar using a specialized guitar polish. Try to avoid using off the counter polishes such as Pledge or other household polishes. Be sure to polish everything you can, including the neck and bridge.

To keep your strings in good shape, I suggest using something as simple as steel wool. After cleaning the strings, be sure to remove any leftover residue from the steel wool. Many guitarists forget to do this and it can really gunk up your guitar.

Another big enemy of your guitar is actually your hands. The strings and fretboard will pick up the dirt and residue from your hands, and this can build up significantly over time. While it isn’t always possible, it is a good idea to clean your hands before playing your guitar.

These are some basic tips for cleaning your guitar, but the most important is obviously where you store it. If your guitar is constantly left out of its case, or in a moldy basement, it is going to require regular maintenance. This is why I suggest always keeping your guitar inside the case when it isn’t being played.

This is one of the easiest tips I can offer, and will save you many extra hours of cleaning your guitar over the coming months and years!

William gives tips on tricking out pro skateboards on his blog.


Article from articlesbase.com

Categories Articles
Comments (1)

Fender Stratocaster Guitar Table Lamp

by Fat Chords
March 8th, 2011

Fender Stratocaster Guitar Table Lamp

Price: $ 29.99

Fender Stratocaster with Upgrades!
US $300.00 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Feb-05-2012 8:42:11 PST
Bid now | Add to watch list
2007 Fender VG Stratocaster
US $950.00 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Feb-05-2012 8:42:26 PST
Bid now | Add to watch list
Categories Reviews
Comments (0)

Where to go for left handed guitars and left handed bass guitars? Part Four ? lefty Iceman guitar

by Fat Chords
March 8th, 2011

Where to go for left handed guitars and left handed bass guitars? Part Four ? lefty Iceman guitar

These days, with more and more major guitar manufacturers ceasing to make their products in left hand, one might well ask the question “where do I go for left-handed guitars and left-handed bass guitars these days?”

In actual fact, there are guitar and bass models that are popular with guitarists that you cannot get left handed at all. Some have never been available in left hand.

Fortunately there is one guitar brand in the world that makes left handed guitars and left-handed bass guitars only: Gaskell Guitars.

Gaskell Guitars (http://www.gaskellguitars.com) is from Australia, and was started by New Zealand-born left-handed guitarist Kevin Gaskell.

Gaskell Guitars is international renowned for “lefty guitars and basses, designed by a lefty, for lefties only.”

Gaskell makes guitars and basses that are otherwise not available in left hand option by original manufacturers. Here is another one in our series of articles on this subject:

Ibanez, a renowned Japanese guitar manufacturer that is strongly identified with excellent quality “superstrat” style guitars (Fender Strat style bodies with Floyd Rose tremolos) have a model called the Iceman. It is more widely known as a “Paul Stanley guitar” by the more casual guitarists.

Today, it has been re-popularized by Sam Totman, from Dragonforce.

It was designed by Ibanez and Greco working together in 1974. It was released in 1975 by Ibanez as the “Iceman” and by Greco as the “Mirage.” Greco sold theirs to the Japanese market only and Ibanez sold theirs internationally.

Even though it has been in and out of production for 35 years it has never been made in left hand by Ibanez!

Gaskell Guitars makes a left handed Iceman style guitar!

Gaskell’s is called the “Ice-Axe” and is inspired by the 1990′s version.

No matter where you live in the world you can get a Gaskell guitar or bass without too much hassle. And now you can get an Iceman style guitar for the first time!

I suggest you look at their website for more info. It is worth it! You will be surprised!

Left-handed guitars and left-handed basses only. Designed by a lefty, for lefties. How much more better than that can you get it?

Kevin Gaskell is the business owner and designer of Gaskell Guitars which is a manufacturer of left handed guitars and basses, located in Sydney Australia. Gaskell guitars are available world wide. http://www.gaskellguitars.com


Article from articlesbase.com

Categories Articles
Comments (0)

Guitar care is the most important parts of being a guitarist!

by Fat Chords
March 8th, 2011

Guitar care is the most important parts of being a guitarist!

We believe that guitar care is one of the most important parts of being a guitarist! With some simple steps, you can ensure that your guitar looks, feels and sounds good for years to come. First, find a proper way of storing it – don’t just leave your guitar lying around, it can tip over and fall! Invest in a floor stand or a guitar case – this will do your guitar good in the long run. Clean your guitar often – wipe the neck after every use with a soft cloth, to prevent accumulation of sweat and oils from your hand, and give the fretboard a nice polish every time you change strings. We think a time period of about 1-3 months for changing your guitar strings is fine – when you feel your strings wearing out or sounding dull is a good time to change them. Ensure that your guitar doesn’t have to undergo extremes of temperature – that could really damage the instrument! We also suggest that you take it to your local guitar technician about once in a year, just to get it looked at. Finally, the best way to take care of your guitar is to play it! By using it regularly you’ll be more aware of what’s going on, and therefore be better able to care for it. These simple tips can help you and your guitar in the long run. Good luck!

Guitar lesson 1: Caring for your guitar

Bought a new guitar but don’t know how to maintain it? Worry not! We’ve got help for you. As a guitarist, guitar care is one of the first few things you should learn. Here are some things you should take into account while caring for your guitar:

Don’t keep it lying around. This seems so obvious, right? But you won’t believe the huge number of avoidable accidents that have happened to guitars simply from bad ideas like being leant against the wall. Buy some form of storage for your guitar – the most common ones being floor stands and cases. Invest in one of these, and you won’t regret it. Cleaning. This is one of the most important parts of guitar care. The types of cleaning you should do are: Neck. Wipe along the neck of your guitar with a dry, soft cloth after every use to protect your fretboard – the sweat and oils from your hands can accumulate quickly and damage it. Fretboard. Each time you change the strings (see next tip), give your fretboard a nice clean. The best way to clean your fretboard is to give it a polish every now and then. Remember, it’s hard to clean fretboards when they do have strings on, so the time when you change strings is perfect to get all the accumulated dust off. Changing strings. When you notice your strings are getting slightly worn out or sounding dull, it’s a good time to change your strings. Lots of people are scared about this step, but there’s no reason to be so! Changing your guitar strings periodically (about 1-3 months) can really help the sound of your guitar.  Temperature. Make sure you protect your guitar from extremes in temperature. Remember, a guitar is mostly wood, so it will be sensitive to changes in temperature. Get it looked at. Once in a while, at least. Even if you have been taking regular and good care of it, there will be some parts that might need tweaking and readjustment! About once a year, take it to your Jazz Guitar Lesson– that should do fine. Play it! There’s no better way to keep your guitar in tip-top condition than this! Playing regularly is the perfect way for you to ensure that you take notice of your guitar. Forgetting all about your guitar means that it’ll sit in a corner, gather dust, and soon become rusty and unusable – you don’t want that, now!

Just follow these tips and you’ll be sure to have a great-sounding guitar for years. Happy playin’!


Article from articlesbase.com

Categories Articles
Comments (0)

All Guitarists Need to be Able to Read Guitar Music-is This True

by Fat Chords
March 7th, 2011

All Guitarists Need to be Able to Read Guitar Music-is This True

Many of you reading this have obviously asked yourself whether or not you need tobe able to read guitar music. The truth of the matter is that it all depends on your goals and wants. There are those that need to learn and there are those that don’t.

So if it so happens that you fall in the category of those that need knowledge on guitar theory then you know what you have to do. But on the other hand, if you don’t fall in this category then you don’t need to worry about learning to read music.

Let us look at the two categories in a little more detail; those that should and those that don’t need to.

The People That Need To Read Music

If you fall under this group then you probably want to take up music as a professional career; starting guitar lessons at a tender age and/or want to be able to play classical guitar. Let us look at music as a career.

Guitar as a Career

Wanting to have the guitar pay the bills one day is a dream for a number of guitar players. If this is the case for you then please be aware that you will need to learn music theory. Unfortunately there are no two ways about that. Without the ability to read music you are killing your career before it even begins.

Starting To Play as a Teenager

It is advisable for those starting out at a tender age to learn to read music. Not only will this help you in the future understanding of music, but it will open doors to a sophisticated understanding of music that will give you a competitive advantage over those that can’t.

Classical Guitar

Classical guitar is different from blues, rock or folk. Unlike these kinds of guitar playing, classical requires a little bit more sophistication. Maybe the reason for this is because of the origin or how the whole kind of play unfolds. You can dig a little deeper on this and figure it out for yourself.

The People That Don’t Need To Read Music

Bet a lot of you are relieved to read this. One can only imagine the look on your faces if it was a requirement that anyone wishing to play the guitar had to learn to read music. Don’t be alarmed, if you only wish to play the guitar for fun there is no need to learn music.

Should I Learn to Read Guitar Music?

The answer to this question is simple; if you want to become a career guitar player then it is highly encouraged to go ahead and learn music. But if becoming a career player is not on your agenda then don’t bother. All in all, it would not hurt to know how to read music.

Samuel Malama is well known for the guidance that he gives guitar players of all levels. Some guitarists have even cited his unself guidance as the reason for their success. Find out why guidance is cardinal for the success of a guitar player by clicking the link easy way to learn guitar or visit http://www.zoblazo.com/the-easy-way-to-learn-guitar/


Article from articlesbase.com

Related Music Theory Articles

Categories Music Theory
Comments (0)
Next Page »