Open Mic

There is certainly no need to continue lessons with an instrutor if you feel they aren't doing much for you. Can you go less frequently - once a month? Maybe to ease into the transition? Or do you feel pretty certain at this point?

Years ago I quit lessons because I felt like I was going nowhere. I spent most of the time sitting there watching him transcribe music for me. We would move onto something else before I had what we just did even remotely down. I got frustrated, stopped practicing, and it went further downhill from there. One day I decided enough was enough.

Oh how I wish I knew then what I know now. However, on the plus side there are wonderful resources here today (GT, this forum, etc.) that as long as you are disciplined and focused you can get a lot out of.

If you find quitting leaves a gap, you can always go back, right?

Originally Posted by: maggiorThere is certainly no need to continue lessons with an instrutor if you feel they aren't doing much for you. Can you go less frequently - once a month? Maybe to ease into the transition? Or do you feel pretty certain at this point?[/QUOTE]
Well, the only option offered is weekly or none, and I'm pretty certain I've got what I wanted from this teacher, or rather, I'm pretty sure this teacher can't deliver quite what I'm after.

[QUOTE=maggior]Years ago I quit lessons because I felt like I was going nowhere. I spent most of the time sitting there watching him transcribe music for me. We would move onto something else before I had what we just did even remotely down. I got frustrated, stopped practicing, and it went further downhill from there. One day I decided enough was enough.

I know what you mean. My teacher decided, all of a sudden that we were gonna do something else, when we were halfway through Sweet Child O' Mine (which wasn't even my first pick for a GNR song to learn from a teacher. That would be some of the other Appetite stuff). One day, we got to the solo after third chorus, and she told me to practice that for next time. Next week, when I got there she just said "today were going to move on to something else". Really annoying.

The fact that she doesn't do a too good job at motivating me either just emphasizes the quality of the teacher I've found... The three Clinics I've been to have each done a much better job, even though they don't know me. Being that one was by Denmark's two best guitarists (in my opinion, that is) and another was by Bumblefoot from GNR, that probably helps a lot. Too bad I didn't have my guitar with me in either of those two cases. At least the Bumblefoot Clinic was at a guitar expo last year, so I could just go grab a guitar from any of the fifty booths and get some practice done :)

I agree that there are lots of great learning tools out there. GT for one has everything a player needs to learn to play any style of music they want, and a highly supporting forum as well. Rocksmith also offers very great learning tools. I usually use it mainly to make practicing techniques, chords and scales more fun (thanks to the Guitarcade mini-games), while using GT to actually learn new things. And I'm pretty sure there are other great learning tools around. I've seen a few rather good lessons on YouTube, both on techniques and songs.

With all those tools, and more at my disposal, from the comfort of my music-room, I highly doubt I'm gonna lose out on anything. Instead, I'll get the chance to go to more Rock or Blues concerts and support my local music scene and possibly get to network with the bands playing, so it'll be worth it. I've also decided to spend the next two months mainly in my music room, since I have very few other plans and two months off, and sitting in my music-room or trying to build some pedals or a small, simple Amp seems like a better way to spend those two months than just practicing as much as I do now :) and if I choose to build an amp, it'll let me keep my electronics skills up as well. It doesn't have to be a 100W 4x12" speaker tube amp. A small solid-state amp will be a good place to start :)

Of course, just as I was starting to feel mentality ready, my teacher had to go postpone the gig due to too many sick students! Typical... Oh, well. I suppose that gives me one less thing to worry about... Which also means I can focus on the awesome stuff, like learning to play songs, trying to figure out how to make drum and bass lines for songs/jamming over, building my own amp(s)... And generally having fun with the guitar like I did before this event :)

Kasperow,

Line 6 Jam link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIMszN0-B90

If this link sparks an interest check out a few more, it is crazy what you can do with this amp and a lot of it sounds like what you want to do.

It does only have 1 12" speaker, but it runs 75 watts through it and it gets dam loud. It also has an on board tuner. They run about $400.00 in the area I live.

This guy says it has a 24 minute record time, that is true, but you can save what ever you have recorded off to a SD card and have 24 minutes to play with again. It will record to a SD card in 3 or 4 different formats one being mp3. You can also bring what ever you have recorded back in from the SD card.

You can speed up or slow the tempo of anything recorded, you can change the key it plays the music in. So you could record yourself playing a blues rhythm let it keep looping and add a base line the second time through, then add piano the third time through. Stop save, now play it back in any key to see what it sounds like or to practice lead to. Heck you could hit record again and add a little lead to it, save it. Now play it back and add background lead to the first lead.

All the pre-recorded music on the amp was recorded in studios with live musicians playing. No computer generated sounds. I can feel the difference jamming with it.

There is a learning curve like anything else, but the book that comes with it is very good and it is a small curve.

I'm not 100% sure if that's what I'm after, but it's worth checking out next time I'm in a gear-shop. I already have one decent amp, but having a backup amp is always useful once I start playing actual gigs at venues, where I'll have to bring in my own gear.

The looping feature does seem pretty handy, though. I'm not sure how exactly it works, but YouTube probably has a bunch of guides on that.

Well, I'll have to check it out in-store. It looks like a pretty solid practice/recording tool, but I need to test it myself before deciding.

I'm still gonna try building my own amp, though. Starting with Transistors and then moving up to Vacuum Tubes when I feel ready.

Since the gig was postponed, it was regular lessons today. And yeah... it's official. I have nothing left to gain from my teacher... She literally just said "I don't know what to go over next. Is there anything specific you want to improve or should we just find a few songs?" Now I see zero reasons to continue spending money on private lessons there, when I still have two very great learning-tools available within my four walls.

Of course, I could continue paying just until the new scheduled date for the gig, but if I don't really learn anything from the lessons, what's the point? I could be spending my time and effort on starting or finding a band instead and have a lot more fun from that... For a much lower monthly price than my lessons!

What about the person you were playing with? If you bail now, you may leave them high and dry.

Agreed though that if your teacher said that to you that it's time to move on.

Yeah, I'm not really a big fan of just betraying others like this. The honorable thing to do would be to stay and continue rehearsing with him to prepare for the new gig. It'll cost some money, though (less than a single low-quality 12AX7-valve, though. And yes, I've checked), but if it means I get to try playing for strangers, it might be worth the money.

In the meantime, I'll keep practicing the licks, until the gig comes around. That doesn't mean I won't try to figure out how to make drum and bass lines in Ableton, though. Once I figure that out, preferably within the next two months, I'll be able to make my own music completely on my own (or I could buy a bass guitar and bass amp and record that and just learn to make drum tracks). Should make it easier to find at couple of musicians if I already have the music ready :)

Well, I finally got a new date for that music school gig-thing... May 6th. I'm not quite sure if the other guitarist is still up for it, but my teacher will let me know next time. I should probably start rehearsing for that gig.

On a bright note, I've been chatting a bit with a bassist, who might be interested in starting a band together. And to make things better: We have everything in common! The same taste in music (70's-80's rock), similar skill-levels (lower intermediate), same goals and ambitions, everything! The only downside is that he lives on the other side of the mainland, roughly 60-70 miles from me, but he's willing to drive all the way, so that shouldn't be a problem. We've agreed to find a date where we can meet and jam, and we've decided on two songs we will be learning for that jam: "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" (GNR version) and "Summer Of 69" (Bryan Adams). I already have "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" down pretty well. I can play the first solo and improvise the second. "Summer Of 69" shouldn't be too hard either, at least to learn a basic version that I can always improve upon as things progress. I'm going to check out see if I can find the tabs for "Summer" anywhere. If so, I'll check it out tomorrow and see if I can manage to learn it, then contact the other guy and ask him how long he expects to need for the songs.

Hopefully, things will work out when we try jamming together. Maybe if we get going, we'll have an easier time finding a Drummer, Rhythm Guitarist and Singer...

In all the years I ever went to an open mic night. the more 3 chord songs you know the better. It's hard on an open mic night to get 5 guys there that have played say, Welcome to the Jungle. But if you say has anyone played ZZ Top or easy stuff like that where it's just 3 chords and a variation in the chorus your golden and will be able then to solo and shred a bit on the jam parts. Also look around at the crowd. Are they all younger, older. If you walk up and want to play something from say 2005 up and the guys onstage are in their late 30's. You may not be able to find a song you all can play. Hence that's why the more standards you know the better. Also standards are things everyone that is there just to listen will enjoy your efforts more.

May 6th - cool!!! It must be hard to have this dragging out. I'm sure it will go well for you.

Awesome that you seem to have some leads on people to get a band together with. It's exciting playing in a band! I'm going through this myself now so I know how hard it can be to find like minded people to play with. The drummer is furiously getting leads on people after hearing nothing for a month. Her husband is a professional musician and she has hired bands throughout the years for events in her town, so I think we'll have people before we know it.

Originally Posted by: maggiorMay 6th - cool!!! It must be hard to have this dragging out. I'm sure it will go well for you.

Awesome that you seem to have some leads on people to get a band together with. It's exciting playing in a band! I'm going through this myself now so I know how hard it can be to find like minded people to play with. The drummer is furiously getting leads on people after hearing nothing for a month. Her husband is a professional musician and she has hired bands throughout the years for events in her town, so I think we'll have people before we know it.

Yeah, it's a bit of a pain in the behind to have it dragging out. Especially since I no longer know what I'll end up playing! One thing that I think could be really cool would be to play some kind of Rock-instrumental with a home-made backing track, but I'm not sure if they'll let me. I hope they will, since it's also in their interest, to show others how good some of their students are at playing, so I might as well play some of the stuff I play best, or at least some of the stuff I prefer to play. Yes, they teach students to play covers of songs exactly as on the recording, but everyone else is doing that. I'd rather show off what I have come up with by myself, not just play a cover of something (for some reason, though, I always have trouble coming playing when I try to record it. I'm consistently roughly a 16th note behind the drums and bass, but when I play for myself, with a backing track, without recording it, there's no such problem. Hell, I can play in front of others, and not be nervous, but once I have a camera or recorder going, the performance fright cripples my playing... It's weird, to say the least...

I'm looking forward to hearing from the bassist. We've agreed to just learn to play a basic version of the two songs ("Knockin' On Heaven's Door" and "Summer Of 69"), just so we can try jamming together as soon as possible. At least, this time around, I'm not the one worried about if I can keep up with the expectations :) In one of the emails he sent me, he just outright said: "I just hope I'm good enough to fill out the bass-role..." And that's despite me already twice stating that I don't expect to find some kind of absurdly talented musicians :) In fact, if he can find all 12 notes on the Bass Guitar in the lowest register, I'll be happy. I'm still looking for a Rhythm Guitarist and a Drummer, who are at the same level as the Bassist and me (beginner to lower intermediate), who want to play the same kind of music as we do. I'll probably be creating a new thread, when I hear more from either potential band-mates or the music-school :)

Originally Posted by: KasperowYes, they teach students to play covers of songs exactly as on the recording, but everyone else is doing that. I'd rather show off what I have come up with by myself, not just play a cover of something (for some reason, though, I always have trouble coming playing when I try to record it. I'm consistently roughly a 16th note behind the drums and bass, but when I play for myself, with a backing track, without recording it, there's no such problem. Hell, I can play in front of others, and not be nervous, but once I have a camera or recorder going, the performance fright cripples my playing... It's weird, to say the least...

I can appreciate that. For the thing I did, it was totally open ended. Even the instructor suggested changes to the song structure to make it more interesting. I was left totally to my own to come up with chords, chord voicings, solos, etc. It was really fun to be creative in that way. Some songs lend themselves to that more than others, but when it does, it's really fun to branch out.

How are you recording? It seems strange that you would have that problem. It could be a technical issue. You could be dealing with latency in your recording gear.

Originally Posted by: maggiorHow are you recording? It seems strange that you would have that problem. It could be a technical issue. You could be dealing with latency in your recording gear.

I'm actually using a rather simple "recording-rig", if I'm allowed to call it that. The signal-chain pretty much just looks like this:

Fender Mustang II v.2 Amplifier -> Mini-USB-to-USB cable -> Fender Universal ASIO Driver -> Ableton Live 8 Lite Fender Edition

That's it. I use nothing else in my recording-rig (aside from the obvious guitars and pedals, but they're not part of the recording-chain). The Inputs are, by default, set to 1/2 (Stereo), 1 (Mono) and 2 (Mono), and I haven't really touched that. The Outputs are set to the same, and again, I haven't touched that (maybe I should try using Channel 1 for Input and Channel 2 for Output... Sure, I'd be recording in Mono, but maybe then I'd be able to hear the changes in MIDI-tracks as I go... Not sure about that, but it might fix one problem I'm facing...).

I think the program says there's a latency of about 30ms. That really shouldn't be enough to warrant a 16th-note latency on my playing. It could, of course, be that I just don't come in right on the beat. If that's the case, recording stuff and moving the guitar-tracks a 16th-note forward would solve the issue until my timing improves.

How are you playing back what you are recroding over? I assume you are using multi track recording software. Are you playing back through the device you are recording with? If not, you should be, otherwise you'll likely have latency issues.

One of my problems is that my recording-rig apparently isn't set up right (I'll have to fix that tomorrow, when I go into the studio/rehearsal space/music room). I can see what I record, and I can hear my playing when I export the .wav-file, but I can't get it to let me hear what's in the program, when I try to record. It's a bit hard to explain, actually. I have two individual cables going from amp to computer; the USB and a mini-jack, which lets me use the amp as a regular speaker, which makes it nicely easy to find songs and jam along to them. I've tried removing the mini-jack, and just run with the USB connection, and it doesn't work right. There are too many problems right now to list them all, but I'll find a set-up guide that covers how to use the Fender Mustang amp as an audio interface, follow that guide to the point, and see if things work. If it does, it's time to record and produce some music. If not, I'll keep trying to find out what's wrong until I fix the problems!

Add 1: I just checked, and as I would kinda expect, Fender has made a guide on how to use their Fender FUSE-compatible amps (Mustang and G-DEC) with Ableton. That should take the top off my problems...

Add 2: Well, my Recording-Rig is now properly set up. Sure, there's a 31,4 ms Overall Latency (15,1 ms Input Latency and 16,3 ms Output Latency), but that's something I'm willing to live with for now. At least I can get the Guitar-signal into Ableton, and hear what the Midi Tracks (Drums and Bass-line) and recorded Audio Tracks are recording (Rhythm Guitar and Lead Guitar). Now we'll see how it goes.

Ive been using Fender FUSE with Reaper and it works really well together. The Fender Mustang Amp gets setup as a Mic and goes thru the USB cable. I turn monitoring off in reaper and listen to guitar from my amp and backtracks from my speakers. But play back in reaper I hear both.

So you are recording from one device (your Amp) via USB and playing your backing track through another audio device?

I'll have to give Reaper another try. Adobe Audition won't let me do this and I have to monitor through my Zoom G5 through my amp. Basically, recording and playback have to be through the same device. It's not too big of a deal, but not ideal.

Are you using a Windows PC?

I grab the backtrack (mp3), load it as an audio track in reaper. then i plug in my Mustang amp via usb. Computer recognizes it as a microphone. I select that as my input in for my track in reaper.

I turn monitoring off my my guitar track and un disarm my audio track. Then I hit record. It plays the audio track and records direct input from the amp with whatever presets I am using the FUSE software.

Then when I want to hear it, I just hit play and it plays both tracks. Works pretty well.

I am on PC, win7.

The kicker was to not try to listen to guitar playing thru reaper while recording. The delay is terrible, but it does not record with the delay, only outputs the delay. I listen my guitar sound from the amp itself when recording.

Originally Posted by: ThorfinnFriskenThe kicker was to not try to listen to guitar playing thru reaper while recording. The delay is terrible, but it does not record with the delay, only outputs the delay. I listen my guitar sound from the amp itself when recording.

That's the key!!! OK, now I understand. That's the problem I had when I was trying to record from one device and playback (monitor) on another.

Thanks for your detailed description - because now I know Reaper won't help. I think this will also help out Kasperow!!