mcbrandt wrote: ↑Mon Feb 05, 2024 11:57 am
seenoevil II wrote: ↑Wed Jan 31, 2024 7:12 pm
But, I only ever want to play my Guild full sized classical. Made of exotic woods in Hoboken, after long years in exile in Pennsylvania, it has returned home to my plangent strums in the Garden State.
I'm jealous. That's my end goal right there, just being happy with only a classical guitar. I'd love to get to the point where I don't like electric guitar anymore.
I guess at the very least I can say I'm more than content with just one electric, a random amp, and 4 pedals. Apart from owning an old ES-125 or something partly as an investment, I really haven't had any GAS or desire for any other guitars or instruments. The one electric just has to be a Jazzmaster.
Don't get me wrong. I still
own a billion guitars. I have trouble selling my guitars. Both literally and emotionally. And something tells me that I'll snap outta this at some point. Especially as I work on guitars, and getting into their construction makes me wanna play them. For instance, I'm repairing my 1979 Guild D-25. It's gorgeous and gorgeously made, so I'm for sure gonna want to play that when it's finished.
Call me pretensious, but I almost exclusively play my own material when playing guitar. I don't really play other music simply for pleasure (to my detriment). Thus, the guitars I play are as much about where I am as a musician as anything else. And right now, I guess you can say I'm in a minimalist phase musically.
As for the firebird, that's as much about neck geometry as anything. I thumb wrap a lot which is almost impossible on a classical. Also, the higher fret access.
And here's the kicker. I'm not sure I could be this happy playing just my classical, mini classical, and firebird if I didn't also own (oh god):
3 flat top acoustics
1 archtop acoustic
1 electric 12 string
2 semi hollow thin line electrics
2 fully hollow jazz boxes
1 strat
1 tele
1 jazzmaster
1 les paul
Like, if they all vanished, I think I'd have some kind of discomfort at not having those options even though I don't use them.... or so I thought. I think it's a case of suck it and see. You have to have everything before you can decide if you need anything in particular.
There are things my firebird can't do. It can't do tele bridge, it can't do strat, it can't do neck HB jazz. It's also not perfect. The neck is too thin and whippy. My particular FB isn't even a great vintage or specimen. It's got a weird raddle coming from the pickups and the bridge kinda sucks. But it's all I need right now for what I'm doing.
I do think I could get to where I have just one of each "species." Like, my Guild D25 is the best acoustic by far, so ditch the rest. Then, maybe just my firebird for electric, and maybe one big jazz box, my classical, and a bass.
Then, the ultimate scenario (which I could only forsee in some bizarre circumstance where I'm forced into some kind of itinerant lifestyle). I can see having just one guitar. Probably a full sized jazz box (with our without a cutaway) with a neck pickup and great acoustic projection. Like a vintage gretch clipper or electromatic or an old Levin jazzbox from sweeden, or a vintage Guild. Something with a Dearmond 2000 pickup. Maybe a Gibson es-150 (later, non charlie christian version) with a staple p-90 swapped in.
Like I've said before. My GAS has always been about finding "the one." Except I'm a serial monogamist. But unlike people, you don't need to "break up" with guitars. So, all of my exs just live in boxes throughout my house.
If it wasn't for disappointment, I wouldn't have any appointments.
