We all know that strings eventually loose their brightness as they corrode over time. Those rust spots can really dull the sound, and most players will opt to buy a new set of strings when they reach this point. For the guitar player, this is a relatively small investment, but for the bass player this can be fairly expensive depending on the brand and style of strings they choose. Here is a recipe to get more playing time out of your bass strings.
Ingredients:
1 pot of boiling water
1 set of corroded strings
Steps:
Once the water is at a full boil, place the rusted strings loosely in the pot. Let water boil until the corrosion has worked loose loosened and come off the strings. While the water is still boiling, carefully remove the strings from the water using a long set of tongs. The air will cause the hot water on the strings to vaporize almost immediately leaving the string completely dry and for the most part free of corrosion. Put them back on your guitar, and play your heart out.
When doing this process, you do not want to coil the strings up before adding them to the water. This will allow water to be trapped between the coils when they are removed, and this water can quickly cause rust to appear again. Keep them as loose as possible. Also, if you let the water cool before removing the strings, it may not vaporize completely, and the remaining dampness will also cause corrosion to quickly appear once again.
This boiling process will make your strings once again sound newer and brighter. It is by no means as good as a brand new set of strings, but it will give you more playing time for your invested money. While I recommend this mostly for bass strings, I have heard of guitar players who have used the same process, but for me personally, guitar strings are inexpensive enough to just buy a new set.
As an added note, I have heard of one player who adds a little cooking oil to the water. He believes that the oil coats the strings giving them even longer life. I am not convinced that this works, and I do not recommend it personally, but I am willing to hear from others who may have tried this extra step, and their experiences with it.
Here is a little money saving tip for running cables to powered monitors and PA speakers. In the past it was a firm rule that you should only use “speaker cables” for these applications. Speaker cables are built heavier to carry the boosted signal coming from a power amplifier where as line level cables such as instrument, patch, and microphone cables are not designed to handle this increased load. Since most of the studio monitors as well as many of the PA main speakers on the market today are self powered, the rule does not apply in powered speaker applications.
Since the signal in powered speakers is not amplified until after it reaches the speakers internal amplifier, you will money and get the right connection by using line level cables instead of the generally more expensive speaker cables. I personally prefer to use balanced XLR cables since their signal is stronger and much more resistant to unwanted noise and interference. If you do decide to go this route, you will want to make sure your speakers as well as your signal source are set up for XLR input or output. If this isn’t the case, a TRS (Tip-Ring-Sleeve) cable will work just fine.
If you are upgrading from unpowered speakers to powered models, you really should consider switching out your old speaker cables for line level cables. Speaker cables will still work, but have an extreme likelihood of affecting the sound quality in adverse ways. Using the correct cabling for the appropriate hookup will always yield the best result in every musical application.
I would like to note that if you are still using unpowered speakers with a power amplifier, you will still need to follow the important rule of using only quality dedicated speaker cables to make the connection.
After several weeks of feeling run down, feverish and flu like Mark went to the hosipital on July 1st and was diagnosed with an agressive form of leukemia. Mark was receiving chemo and was in good spirits. After being in the hospital for 2 weeks he was leukemia free. However, because his immune system had been severly compromised his body was unable to fight off infections. He passed away late Saturday afternoon.
Mark was loved by everyone and is already deeply missed
Family, friends and musicians.
A memorial will be held on:
August 9, 2009
1:00 PM
Friendly Valley Country Club Auditorium
19345 Avenue of the Oaks
Santa Clarita, CA 91321
This is a celebration of Mark’s life. There will be food, spirits, music and laughter! Musicians are welcome to bring their instruments for a jam session.
A photo album will be put together for the Morris family so please bring any photos of Mark or yourself you would like to share with them. Cards will be provided so that you can write down your favorite memories of Mark.
If you need any further information please contact us here. http://www.myspace.com/markmorrismemorial If you are planning to come it would be helpful if you email/comment an RSVP.
I met Mark at an evening Music trade show event several months ago, as we spoke I instantly felt the passion for music he had inside. We talked for quite awhile about sound venues he had worked at in my area of Northwest Washington. He was definitely a connoisseur of high end sound gear and knew his way around the studio. I will miss his expertise and down to earth attitude. I Know that where ever Mark is there is Music.
My sincere condolences to Marks Family, Friends and Co-Workers. Bert Edkins
On Saturday July 4th, 2009 the world lost a great man and pioneer of the guitar manufacturing industry. Just weeks after his wife passed, George Fullerton (the "G" in G&L Guitars) passed away from congestive heart failure at the age of 86.
George Fullerton and Leo Fender
George Fullerton met Leo Fenders in 1947 and would help Leo design the first affordable mass produced solid body electric guitars and basses. George worked with Leo pioneering some of the most popular guitar designs including the Telecaster, Stratocaster, Precision Bass, and Jazz Bass. George would work beside Leo until the sale of Fender Musical Instruments to CBS at the end of 1964. George stayed on with the CBS owned Fender Musical Instruments for five more years after the sale before leaving over concerns of the declining quality of the guitars being produced. In 1979, George and Leo came together once again to start G&L Guitars with the goal of creating exceptional instruments for the musicians of the world. Today, G&L still turns out phenomenal guitars and basses that are used by some of today's biggest names.
After Leo Fender passed away in 1991, G&L Guitars was passed over to the leadership of John McLaren of BBE Sound, Inc. George Fullerton remained with G&L Guitars as a permanent consultant.
In 2007, George collaborated with Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to introduce the 50th Anniversary 1957 StratocasterŪ guitar.
I had the opportunity to briefly speak with George at two NAMM shows. From these meetings, I saw a man who gave all he had to the guitar players of the world while at the same time putting forth a very humble disposition. George Fullerton has been very instrumental in guitar design since before 1950, and today the world mourns the loss of a quiet legend of the industry. His well known and loved guitar and bass collaborations with Leo Fender will live on, but he will be sorely missed by all who knew him.
George Fullerton's memorial service will be held that the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove on Saturday, July 25th at 10:00am.
Almost all electric bass guitar players have encountered those pesky hums and just plain awful noises coming from our amplifiers. I found this video on the Taylor Guitars website, and I thought you might enjoy it. Although it is geared toward guitars, it applies to bass as well. This is one of the best explanations I have ever found.
I hope you enjoyed this and got as much out of it as I did. More great videos can be found at www.taylorguitars.com
GuitarGearHeads.com / RhythmPlayer.com Washington Test Facility Control Room
When selecting a computer for your recording needs, there are many questions you will need to ask yourself. You will first need to decide what you want to accomplish with your recording capabilities. If you just want something to scratch out some song ideas, you can probably use your personal computer with a simple interface such as the "Stealth Plug" from IK Multimedia, or any of several other inexpensive options on the market. If however you are looking to do multi-track recording with mixing and mastering options as well as the multitude of plug-in effects available, you are going to want to invest in a dedicated recording computer. For this, I suggest that you do some research far beyond the scope of this blog. These computers are usually not an off the shelf desktop or laptop model. One important word of advice: Do not consult a salesman at your local "Best Buy" or other retail computer store. If you do, you will likely not get a computer that will work for your needs. The sales staff at these stores are well versed in computers, however most are not likely to be up to speed on the unique needs for a studio computer.
There is a lot of controversy on whether to go Mac or PC for a dedicated recording computer. In truth, both have pros and both have cons. For instance, if your power supply goes bad in the middle of an evening recording session, you can run to any computer store and get a new one for a PC, but may have a much harder time finding one for a Mac in a short amount of time. Even so, Mac has been the choice of professionals for many years due to the incredible stability and functionality for recording. In recent years however, PC's have really come of age in this industry, and there are many options available. Probably one of the most well liked and used recording PC's is the "Creation Station" computers from Sweetwater (www.sweetwater.com). These computers are designed specifically for recording and have been optimized by people who actually know what is required for this purpose. While they probably won't win over the hard core Mac users, they really are impressive computers and a great value for the money when compared to other recording computers on the market.
Another issue you will face is portability. If you are going to be traveling or taking the computer to gigs, a laptop is going to be your best bet. For this I would suggest a MacBook Pro. These are powerful units with a lot of power and versatility. You will want to consider a 17" display since the recording programs will be able to show a bigger picture of what is going on in the recording environment. You will also likely have a lot of windows open with plug-ins and other related programs, and the larger screen will be extremely helpful. For PC, the Creation Stations do come in rack mount versions, but you will need to carry a separate display with you.
When it comes to what is inside a recording computer, bigger, and faster are paramount. Recording programs and plug-ins can take up massive amounts of processing power, while audio tracks can eat up a lot of hard drive space. For this reason I would recommend a minimum of 2 gigabytes of RAM, and at least a 500 gigabyte hard drive. Keep in mind that these would be my minimum requirements. More is better, but also comes at a higher price. There are several outboard plug-in processors available that will relive the stress on your processor, but many of these units cost almost as much as you will pay for the computer itself.
Depending on where you will have your computer located in your studio, noise could be an issue. If it will be in a control room separate from where recording is taking place, this is not quite as big of a deal. If it however will be located in the same room where the recording is taking place, it can be a huge problem. Most condenser microphones are sensitive enough to pick up noise from the cooling fan, and hard drive, and will show up as audio contamination on your tracks. Many dedicated recording computers are designed to be extremely quiet for these situations, but you will want to listen closely to the computer while in operation before you make your purchase decision.
One last thing I want to touch on is internet connection. In a perfect world, your dedicated recording computer would not even come close to an internet connection. It is far too easy these days to get a virus that can wipe out your irreplaceable recordings, or wreck havoc on your programs. While anti-virus software can help reduce this risk, it does have two downsides. First off, it can cause malfunctions in recording software, and secondly, it is just not 100% guaranteed to stop every threat. Unfortunately, being hooked to the internet is almost a must these days because of registering software, and downloading updates to programs and plug-ins. For this reason, I recommend that you use this computers internet connection only for these tasks, and kill the connection when not in use. Use anti-virus software, but also turn it off when not connected to the internet. This is not a cure all, but it will definitely help. You will also want to consider purchasing a separate hard drive for backing up your track data, and other important information. You can never be too safe in this area.
In closing, I would like to point out that I have approached this entire subject with a great amount of generalization. There is no setup that will work for everyone, but there is a setup that will work for each individual and budget. There is much more detailed and in depth articles on the internet to help you make your decision. This is just a staring point to get you to think about where you are going, and what you will want to look at in your journey to a computer purchase decision. I wish you all the best of luck.
GuitarGearHeads.com / RhythmPlayer.com Washington Test Facility Control Room
Digital Audio Workstations are certainly not new by today's standards, but looking at the entire musical instrument and recording industry, it is still a fairly young industry. When it comes to setting up your computer based recording studio, your first concern will be to find a dedicated recording computer (which I will cover in more detail in part two). Your second and equally important purchase will be the software with which you will use to record. This is not a decision to be taken lightly, because the workflow layout of the software you choose will make the difference between an enjoyable experience or a frustrating project.
DigiDesign was the first company to bring computer based recording into the mainstream of professional recording studios with their awesome line of Pro Tools products. Even today among the fierce competition in this field, they remain the company that is the standard of professional level DAW software, and now hardware also. There have been several companies that have made inroads by providing software that is much more affordable for home studio use, and built on their early programs while closing the gap between pro level and home studio level software. Today you can get a program that will do just about anything you would ever dream of doing to record and edit your music. A few big hitters in this arena are Steinberg (Cubase), Cakewalk (Sonar), MOTO (Digital Performer), Apple (Logic Studio), and Ableton (Live).
With the incredible processing power and functionality of these programs, they are becoming powerhouse professional level contenders, and a few are actually making their way into professional studio environments. Add to this the vast variety of plug-in software programs that can be integrated into these programs, and you have recording, mixing, and mastering capabilities in the home that were reserved only for high end professional studios as few as just ten years ago.
I can not and will not discount DigiDesign as a valid option. They have a great reputation, and they have earned it over the years with hard work, and a spectacular product base. But when it comes to affordability, the other options are much more feasible and practical for most home users. This in part is because their software is able to integrate with a variety of control surfaces, giving you much less expensive options for building up your entire Digital Audio Workstation. DigiDesign has opted to build their software around their own line of hardware, and for the most part it does not integrate with other control surfaces on the market. To put it in simple terms, everyone would love to have a Pro Tools based studio, but building a comparable studio is a very expensive task to say the least. They do offer more affordable options, but from what I can see, the affordability factor creates a much less versatile setup, especially when it comes to the number of inputs available during recording, and the much more expensive versions of the same plug-ins you can buy for the other programs.
You will want to remember that no matter which DAW software you opt to use, it will be a much more complex learning curve than the small portable recording devices that were extremely popular before computer recording applications. To simplify this, most of the above mentioned companies offer scaled down and simpler versions. These can be a great jump off point for the world of digital recording, and you can always graduate to the flagship version as you feel you are ready to tackle more multifarious operations.
I do recommend that you look at DigiDesign, Steinberg, Sonar, MOTO, Apple, and Ableton in your quest for the right software. These companies have been around for a long time, and have built their reputations on years of experience. Do your research, and try to get a little hands on time with each program if possible. This will ensure that you are making an informed decision on the software that has the most logical workflow for your particular needs.
Also keep in mind that a huge part of this decision will be based on whether you have opted to use a Mac or PC as your recording computer of choice. Most software today is available in a cross platform versions, but you will want to make sure you are getting something that will work with your computer.
In my attempt to be frugal and still get custom length, quality cables needed for my new drum microphones. I recently went to my local music store with a set spending limit and bought two twenty five ft. mic cables and some connectors. Back at my studio I realized some of the connectors were to cheap for the type of cables I wanted to build and the mic cables were too short to make all the cables i needed, remember I was trying to stay within a budget.
I remembered that Gary with GuitarGearHeads.com had suggested that I check out a new company called VIPCABLES.COM that sells a large selection of elite Pro Co cables. I contacted them and asked about pricing for the materials I needed to finish my project. I found VIPCABLES pricing was fair and I was able to order Ameriquad 424BK pro quality mic cable in any length of my choosing and Ampheno XLRl connectors right from my studio. When my order arrived I was surprised to get my original ordered cable and an extra hundred ft. of a new DynaMike LNT Level 1 Microphone cable and Neutrik XLR connectors that PRO CO Sound was just adding to their product line.
I found the DynaMike cable was really easy to work with. It looked and felt heavier in gauge than the other cables I had bought. The twisted pairs of wire soldered up nicely in the pin sockets without overheating and melting the jacket. The braided shield was flexible yet strong, but what I liked most about this cable though was that it had the feel of a heavy duty extension cord and at the same time was very pliable. When rummaging through a pile of cables the DynaMike cables stood out. I also found this cable resisted the usual cable memory, other cables I have tended to keep the shape I wrapped them in.
The DynaMike cables worked great for my drum mics with no audible junk noise and made my cabling project a success. I definitely will be buying more in the future as my cable needs grow. Thank you Pro Co Sound and VIPCABLES.COM for giving me the opportunity to try out this new cable. I highly recommend these companies for all specialty cabling needs.
Internationally renowned bassist Brian Bromberg stops by the Epifani booth to play through the new DIST cabinets, Nick Epifani sets up the cabinet configuration. As always Brian's bass finesse left me in awe. The new (Dual Impedance Speaker Technology) DIST speakers were powerful with the low and low-mid frequency hitting hard while keeping tonal clarity.
Picture By: Bert Edkins 2009
The DIST speakers are touted as powerful and tonally superior to any cabinets previously available. Cabinet structure, proprietary neodymium speaker design with complex crossover and wiring network are only a few things that give these speakers a leading edge in todays market. These features also allow the user to select the ideal impedance - 8 or 4 Ohms giving optimum power handling to the single or multiple cabinet system. The DIST cabinets come in a 410 - 210 - 115 & 112 configuration.
I stopped by the Spector booth to watch Quintin Berry play and check out this years bass display. Quintin sure has a style all his own, he laid down some bass grooves that had the spectators begging for more. As for the basses I was impressed by the highly figured woods and spectacular translucent finishes used this year, they always make me do a double take.
I got a quick chance to ask Stuart Spector about the early history of Spector Basses. It truly amazes me all the people who were a part of Stuart's life in the in the early and mid 70's guitar and bass manufacturing scene, such names as Mike Kropp; Vinnie Fodera ; Ned Steinberger and many other greats in todays music industry. If you, like me are fascinated with personal success stories and oral histories by Stuart Spector and others I would recommend checking out these links: http://www.spectorbass.com/aboutus_history.html http://orh.namm.com/ohArchive.php?page=29
