The Broke Guitar Player: Episode #1

Introduction: Functionality

I figured there’s no better introduction to this blog other then to jump right in with some basic points but I wanted to disclose some quick disclaimers and outline exactly what I want to do with this (hopefully) ongoing blog.

Introduction: For those who don’t know me, my main hobby of the last 4–5 years has been guitar, guitar gear, playing in bands, etc. and most of that time I was making small steps to try and improve my guitar tone and creativity through effects pedals, a variety of amplifiers, and my guitars. Most of what I learned was just from sitting on my laptop pouring over gear forums and talking to/observing people in touring bands, as well as just using my own ears and learning lessons over time from my own personal experience. However, my philosophy on gear formed and solidified itself when I found a blog called otherbandsstuff.com.

I would like to preface my main point by saying that I spent TONS of time obsessing over boutique pedals and effects boards, as well as top of the line amps. You know — those boards that have a combined value of over 5000 dollars, all the latest Strymon bullshit (I love Strymon bullshit, just saying) wired to run in stereo with a bypass looper on their custom made stained wood board being powered by 3 isolated power sources — hopefully you get the picture.

If you get anything from this post, you should realize that you do not need this. You don’t need boutique pedals, an expensive handwired single channel tube amp or gold coated cables. All of these things are awesome, but go back, look at otherbandsstuff.com and what do you see? You see rigs that for the most part look like they were put together in a basement by someone on a limited budget. To the layman these rigs look like shit. Surely the sounds coming out of these rigs can’t be as good as those coming out of the rig that carries the same value as a modern car and bares resemblance to an alien spaceship?

Except just look at the names on those photos; J Mascis, Real Estate, Tera Melos, O’ Brother (just from the last few pages); all touring artists that have made names for themselves playing their own original music. Many of these artists make a living playing their music (hence their lack of money for much nicer rigs, but I’ll come back to that) which showcases their ability to impress their audience and their peers. Most of these bands know what they’re doing and know how to make their music sound good. However, what should be highlighted is the fact that these rigs aren’t extravagant — they are functional. They are good enough to get the sound that the artist wants and that will be satisfactory for the audience but — following the trend of the starving artist, they don’t cost that much and are easily replaceable in case something goes wrong on the road.

Now this can go in the opposite direction as well. Way too often have I seen really good bands (always at the local level) with just no thought or effort put into their rigs even though they could definitely play. Fortunately this is usually just part of learning how to play music and be in a band, but often times I’ve seen dudes/gals that I know have been playing for a long time but get lazy or closed minded when it comes to their gear choices which leads to a lackluster performance. Luckily unless you’re a musician yourself people tend not to notice these things — but if you take the stage with a Line 6 Spyder half stack at a gig with touring band on the bill — there’s gonna be some judgment involved (as well as putting hands over your ears).

Also, musicians will notice the difference in a band that puts effort into their tones right away, but the audience most commonly will not notice what the difference is even though they will notice that there is in fact a difference in sound quality as a whole. They won’t know why or how, but they will notice that your finished product as a band is not as easy or pleasurable to listen to. You will never get past a certain point of notoriety unless you work to make your band sound good in ways other then your playing. While your technique and playing are in my opinion, more important then your gear — having a functional guitar rig can take you from sounding “good enough” to sounding “pretty gosh darn sweet” and push you over the line in terms of impressing your audience. Making your rigs functional takes time, but generally you can find decent equipment and instruments that sound good enough for similar or less value then what you would pay even for beginner gear — you just have to know where to look.