Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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marqueemoon
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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by marqueemoon » Thu Jun 23, 2022 8:54 pm

johnnysomersett wrote:
Thu Jun 23, 2022 8:23 pm
marqueemoon wrote:
Thu Jun 23, 2022 4:32 pm
I’ve been experimenting with guitar>cable>amp in my 3 piece band where I sing.

I’ve even tried guitar>amp sim pedal>PA a few times. Didn’t hate that either.
Does your amp have a dirty channel? If so, I could live with that
No. No master volume either.

Just a hot P90 into not very many watts.

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JSett
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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by JSett » Thu Jun 23, 2022 9:04 pm

marqueemoon wrote:
Thu Jun 23, 2022 8:54 pm

No. No master volume either.

Just a hot P90 into not very many watts.
Makes sense. To be honest, if I could find an efficient and easy way to go from exactly 6 to 10 and back again on my guitars volume into the amp I could do the same with my Bassman...but I do definitely need a 'louder' button to stomp on and off.

To be honest, as much as I love the ideology of guitar>cable>amp, my 3-pedal board is not that big a deal and is super convenient.
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by JSett » Mon Jun 27, 2022 8:35 am

Sold a couple. Feels good. Current crop is now. down to 4 electrics, 1 bass, 1 acoustic:

CIJ 66BB Jazzmaster
'64 LPB Jag
'64 FireStang
Reverend Warhawk

2008 CIJ Jaguar Bass
1973 Yamaha FG160

Amps are down to just my 67 Bassman, 65 VibroChamp and Orange AD5 (oh, and the old Pignose).

This all feels like a much more sensible amount :)
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by sal paradise » Mon Jun 27, 2022 8:51 am

4 sounds reasonable.

I’m looking at moving & realised I have more than I’m ok with- 6 electrics, acoustic & a bass.

Do I really need a mustang with a telecaster pickup for live use when a) I’m not playing in a band, b) certainly am not using my tele for recording & c) even if I were, who cares if I used a Les Paul instead?
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by JSett » Mon Jun 27, 2022 9:07 am

johnnysomersett wrote:
Mon Jun 27, 2022 8:35 am
Sold a couple. Feels good. Current crop is now. down to 4 electrics, 1 bass, 1 acoustic:

CIJ 66BB Jazzmaster
'64 LPB Jag
'64 FireStang
Reverend Warhawk

2008 CIJ Jaguar Bass
1973 Yamaha FG160

Amps are down to just my 67 Bassman, 65 VibroChamp and Orange AD5 (oh, and the old Pignose).

This all feels like a much more sensible amount :)
*Edit: oh, there's also the Danelectro Convertible that lives in the front room as a sofa guitar.
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by sal paradise » Mon Jun 27, 2022 9:25 am

johnnysomersett wrote:
Mon Jun 27, 2022 9:07 am
johnnysomersett wrote:
Mon Jun 27, 2022 8:35 am
Sold a couple. Feels good. Current crop is now. down to 4 electrics, 1 bass, 1 acoustic:

CIJ 66BB Jazzmaster
'64 LPB Jag
'64 FireStang
Reverend Warhawk

2008 CIJ Jaguar Bass
1973 Yamaha FG160

Amps are down to just my 67 Bassman, 65 VibroChamp and Orange AD5 (oh, and the old Pignose).

This all feels like a much more sensible amount :)
*Edit: oh, there's also the Danelectro Convertible that lives in the front room as a sofa guitar.
Can’t be very comfortable to sit on?
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by JSett » Mon Jun 27, 2022 9:27 am

sal paradise wrote:
Mon Jun 27, 2022 9:25 am
Can’t be very comfortable to sit on?
Depends which way your crack is aligned
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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del
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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by del » Tue Jun 28, 2022 2:08 pm

My new Duo Sonic has very much inspired me to think about minimalism and simplicity in my playing and gear setup.
It seemed to demand that I minimize my outboard gear, so I’m down to a silicon fuzz face and a Hermida/Lovepedal EPH-3 delay (an echoplex-ish pedal) into a Traynor YBA-3 (1x15 bassman-ish combo).

Mercy! It’s a delightfully roaring setup!
The Kinks - The Fall – The Bad Seeds - Spacemen 3 - The Gories - Royal Trux
"The idea is to put a pick in one hand and a guitar in the other and with a tiny movement rule the world." - David Fair

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by sal paradise » Fri Aug 26, 2022 1:23 am

Argh! Splitting up with partner & looking to get myself a 1/2 bedroom flat has led me to reduce my guitars.

Shifted a mustang, squier cv bass & remembered that I have a strat body & neck hidden away somewhere.

It still leaves me with 5 guitar- Gibson G45 acoustic, squier cv Tele, JM, LP & a Mustang.

Is that too many? It feels too many. But at the same time it feels like not enough. So weird

I’ve also got an electric piano, a DSL5, a Blackstar lunchbox head & a 2x12 cab…
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by rhythmjones » Fri Aug 26, 2022 9:25 am

We're thinking of moving so I've started the process of downsizing. Even if we don't wind up moving, downsizing my music gear collection is probably a good idea.
- Mitch

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by Larsongs » Fri Aug 26, 2022 9:16 pm

Why is downsizing a good idea? Why get rid of great Instruments & Amps you like that you worked hard to get? I don’t get the minimalist downsizing as a mindset? Are you all afraid it’s the end? Or just have no interest in having great Gear & playing anymore?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Fri Aug 26, 2022 11:44 pm

Larsongs wrote:
Fri Aug 26, 2022 9:16 pm
Why is downsizing a good idea? Why get rid of great Instruments & Amps you like that you worked hard to get? I don’t get the minimalist downsizing as a mindset? Are you all afraid it’s the end? Or just have no interest in having great Gear & playing anymore?
Well, in a bid to make my gear actually accessible, rather than just piled up in a heap, with the guitar/amp/keyboard you want to retrieve always buried under or behind several other big lumps, I've just moved from a small storage unit (£60 a month) to a larger one (£132 a month). I also invested in a bunch of shelving units I could've done without having to assemble, if not just buy.

It now occurrs to me that if I still have the larger unit in a year's time I'll have spent close to £1600 - not counting the shelves - on what can only be described, for someone in my position - I'm not in a band, and I may never be again - as sheer self-indulgence.

If I was still renting a flat, that money would've been better spent on a flat with more space, but it feels a bit like I'm renting a bedsit (with no power supply) for my musical gear, while not being any closer to actually being able to use it.

Going off at a tangent, a friend once told me about someone he knows who has had a succession of high-end acoustic guitars which he (says he) buys on the best deals he can find, then sells the current one to fund the next one. This guy's view is that getting to know a different guitar on a temporary basis is just fine. Then he moves on to the next one.

I'm gradually coming round to this guy's perspective, in theory at least. For years I had an electric, an acoustic, and a bass, and it never occured to me that I didn't have all my bases covered. Over time I've built up a collection so large it now needs its own bedsit at £132 a month, aka a used Johnny Marr Jaguar a year. As if that wasn't bad enough, I have some guitars and amps that I've never really used, despite having convinced myself that I need to own them.

For me at least, I think it's time to start letting go of the collector mentality and try to pare things back as far as I reasonably can. Selling a significant amount of gear would give me a slush fund which would allow me to have a revolving 'guest' guitar if I felt the need, as well as a smaller, cheaper storage unit. Win-win, except for probably having to take a big hit on some of the shelving units I've bought over the last couple of months.

Not the greatest time to sell expensive guitars, what with the economy tanking for most, but beginning to let go would do me a power of good. Either that or find a new place to live that come with a music room.

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by sal paradise » Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:32 am

UlricvonCatalyst wrote:
Fri Aug 26, 2022 11:44 pm
^^^
All of this. Plus the added bonus of gear acquisition not solving the deeper issue.

I want a Tele Deluxe more than anything. Being a lefty makes that a real desire. Yet I know that as soon as I can get my hands on one I won’t cover it anymore- clearly not that rare otherwise how else would I have one.

My secret & near-lifelong love of Les Pauls culminated in getting an ‘89 OBG custom last year- a dream kinda guitar! What did I do: buy a KC mustang a few months later (that I’m planning to put a PAF into).

It’s a little game & I’m exploring how to love the experience, not the gear itself. As signofthedragon says: “gotta play em all”
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by JSett » Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:37 am

I'll happily admit I'm hooked on the the chase and the resulting endorphin rush. Better than most drugs
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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Re: Gear minimalism as a thought process...

Post by sal paradise » Sat Aug 27, 2022 1:33 am

johnnysomersett wrote:
Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:37 am
I'll happily admit I'm hooked on the the chase and the resulting endorphin rush. Better than most drugs
I wish it was. But guitars & records are definitively less destructive for relationships & my body.
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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