Posts: 7404 |
Turtleneck Posted Sun 20 Jan, 2008 6:29 PM |
By now I'm sure everyone has seen and heard my Old Kay guitar on the video. I borrowed a new (well, not brand new, but new compared to mine) guitar just to see if it performed better and to play something that didn't buzz like a bee hive on certain chords.
The first thing I noticed was the new guitar weighed about half as much as mine. I didn't know if that was bad or good. I tuned it and played a few chords. My husband said it sounded like I was playing a shoe box. So, I'm no expert on what makes a good guitar vs. a bad guitar, but I'm guessing this new instrument is a piece of you-know-what.
The main thing I wanted to talk about though, is string placement. The strings on the new guitar were WAY above the...what do you call it...the neck? They were so high I really had to press very hard to make the chords. Very uncomfortable and impossible to make fast changes. The strings on Old Kay are very close to the wood and very easy to press. Are all new guitars like that or is the new one I borrowed just weird? |
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Nikki Posted Sun 20 Jan, 2008 7:29 PM |
Turtleneck wrote: By now I'm sure everyone has seen and heard my Old Kay guitar on the video. I borrowed a new (well, not brand new, but new compared to mine) guitar just to see if it performed better and to play something that didn't buzz like a bee hive on certain chords.
The first thing I noticed was the new guitar weighed about half as much as mine. I didn't know if that was bad or good. I tuned it and played a few chords. My husband said it sounded like I was playing a shoe box. So, I'm no expert on what makes a good guitar vs. a bad guitar, but I'm guessing this new instrument is a piece of you-know-what.
The main thing I wanted to talk about though, is string placement. The strings on the new guitar were WAY above the...what do you call it...the neck? They were so high I really had to press very hard to make the chords. Very uncomfortable and impossible to make fast changes. The strings on Old Kay are very close to the wood and very easy to press. Are all new guitars like that or is the new one I borrowed just weird?
Sounds like the new one you borrowed was a piece of crap. What kind was it? I'm not an expert, but my Kay is valued probably at around $200. My brother has a $700 Takamine acoustic...it's beautiful and doesn't have a bad sound, but there is a certain warmth to the sound of my guitar that I prefer over his expensive one. So I don't think the age or the cost matters...it's all about how it's built.
My boyfriend has an acoustic Garrison made in Canada. Gibson recently bought them out. It's probably the best sounding acoustic I've ever played. I think they do something special to the inside...the way it's made is different. He explained it to me once...but it kinda went in one ear and out the other, lol...so I'll have to ask him about it.
EDIT: Oh yeah, and I think you can change how high or low the strings sit by adjusting the bridge. (I think?) Mine are a bit high for my liking right now. |
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Posts: 10115 |
ricv64 Posted Sun 20 Jan, 2008 8:17 PM |
high action great for slide but ouch . what nikki said. go to a guitar store and pretend your shopping for a new one & try em all . put your finger on the 12th fret to check the action or how bowed the neck is . if it has a truss rod you can adjust it . maybe try lighter strings , I don't know # 10's are kinda standard .
Nikki got a Kay too , must be a Michigander thing ?
Kalamazoo ! |
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Posts: 7404 |
Turtleneck Posted Sun 20 Jan, 2008 8:36 PM |
ricv64 wrote: high action great for slide but ouch . what nikki said. go to a guitar store and pretend your shopping for a new one & try em all . put your finger on the 12th fret to check the action or how bowed the neck is . if it has a truss rod you can adjust it . maybe try lighter strings , I don't know # 10's are kinda standard .
Nikki got a Kay too , must be a Michigander thing ?
Kalamazoo !
Ric, when you start with your guitar lingo, you lose me. What do you mean by "action?"
Bowed neck? Aren't they all flat/straight?
I'm too intimidated to go to a guitar store.
Kays are made in Chicago, I think. At least that's what the sticker inside mine says. I guess it's a midwest thing.
Nikki, it's a Yamaha (sorry Lindsey!) I think it must be student-grade or something.
I think I'm just gonna find a repair shop and see if they can glue my old one back together.
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Posts: 10115 |
ricv64 Posted Sun 20 Jan, 2008 9:06 PM |
Ric, when you start with your guitar lingo, you lose me.=oops
" What do you mean by "action?" " = space between the string and the guitar , your kay had low action
" Bowed neck? Aren't they all flat/straight? " = No , thats 200lbs per etc... of pressure , there should be just a slight , very slight bend . most guitars have a thing called a truss rod inside the neck which helps with the pressure , they are adjustable
I'm too intimidated to go to a guitar store. = Why ? , most often the salesguy knows just as much as you . repair & tech guys
" Kays are made in Chicago, I think. At least that's what the sticker inside mine says. I guess it's a midwest thing. " O K , I know people who lurve those
" I think I'm just gonna find a repair shop and see if they can glue my old one back together."
= go around and talk first
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Posts: 1431 |
heyjude Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:16 AM |
ricv64 wrote: high action great for slide but ouch . what nikki said. go to a guitar store and pretend your shopping for a new one & try em all . put your finger on the 12th fret to check the action or how bowed the neck is . if it has a truss rod you can adjust it . maybe try lighter strings , I don't know # 10's are kinda standard .
okay. i've put my finger on the 12th fret. action doesn't look high. that's good, right?
anything else i should be looking out for? |
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Posts: 10115 |
ricv64 Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:21 AM |
heyjude wrote:
anything else i should be looking out for?
cuco
PS on older instruments , look behind the headstock for any hairline cracks |
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Posts: 1431 |
heyjude Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:25 AM |
ricv64 wrote: heyjude wrote:
anything else i should be looking out for?
cuco
PS on older instruments , look behind the headstock for any hairline cracks
what?? mine is still very new. |
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Posts: 10115 |
ricv64 Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:28 AM |
heyjude wrote: ricv64 wrote: heyjude wrote:
anything else i should be looking out for?
cuco
PS on older instruments , look behind the headstock for any hairline cracks
what?? mine is still very new.
that was for those with their grand parents Kay's |
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Posts: 7404 |
Turtleneck Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:35 AM |
ricv64 wrote: heyjude wrote: ricv64 wrote: heyjude wrote:
anything else i should be looking out for?
cuco
PS on older instruments , look behind the headstock for any hairline cracks
what?? mine is still very new.
that was for those with their grand parents Kay's
Well, those of us with our grandparent's Kays have more than hairline cracks. We have big gouges, chipped veneer, worn off varnish, mismatched pegs, back and front coming apart from the sides, good vibrations in all sorts of areas. Oh, and my personal favorite--spider webs inside that I can't reach, even with a Swiffer. |
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Posts: 10115 |
ricv64 Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:41 AM |
| HA ! you said good vibrations . those spiders must be deaf |
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Posts: 1431 |
heyjude Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:44 AM |
ricv64 wrote: HA ! you said good vibrations . those spiders must be deaf
or, spiders just dug the sounds and rocked to it! yeah! ;-D |
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Posts: 7404 |
Turtleneck Posted Mon 21 Jan, 2008 12:46 AM |
| I think those spiders abandoned ship a long time ago! |
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