How to Make Your Heavy Guitar Feel Lighter! --- by Matthew T. Mruzek MD
Is that Les Paul giving you a backache? What about that Fender Stratocaster you bought back in the 70's? Here are several steps to make that old guitar feel lighter!
1. First, you will need to head up to your local Guitar Center. Ignore the guy who asks you if you need any help. If you read my blog, you should never need that guy's help!
2. Once you are inside the store, find the section where they sell used amps. Guitar Center gets used amps in all the time, the selection is always changing. If you find anything by Line 6, you should buy it. These amps have an awful reputation, and are now selling for about a quarter of what they cost new!
3. Now, repeat step two every week or so. Other brands to watch out for are Crate, Bugera, and Peavey. You will want to buy as many cheap amps as you can! Buy as many big ones as possible!
4. When your band has finally booked a gig, make sure you borrow a truck or van from someone. You will need the space for transporting your collection of amps to the club!
How many amps do you need? Well, my double guitar weighs 20 pounds, so I usually take at LEAST 2--4x12 cabs, 1 8x10 bass cab, 1 6x10 Fender Super 6 reverb amp, 1--30 pound bass head, and 1--20 pound Fender head. My pedals weigh another 25 pounds.
In general, the heavier your guitar, the more amps you need.
5. Once you are at the club, refuse the help of any of your bandmates (yeah right). Also, nod in agreement to anything the sound man may say to you. Make sure you turn the amps down very low during sound check. When the sound guy goes to the bathroom, you can turn them up!
Why Does this Work?
The human body is an amazing machine that can take tons of abuse and still recover. After moving several hundred pounds of amps, the blood flow to your main arteries will increase and your muscles will be "warmed up". This is similar to when you warm up a tube amp before playing on it! Your guitar will feel much lighter to you after moving your amps, and won't have to work as hard.
*Also, keep in mind, the heavier your guitar, the louder you need to turn it up. This is because the frequencies of the notes need to work harder to reverberate while stimulating the pickups magnetic coil.
I hope you found this tutorial helpful in making your guitar feel lighter. If your guitar still feels heavy after taking the above steps, you may want to consider working out.----
Matthew T. Mruzek MD
1. First, you will need to head up to your local Guitar Center. Ignore the guy who asks you if you need any help. If you read my blog, you should never need that guy's help!
2. Once you are inside the store, find the section where they sell used amps. Guitar Center gets used amps in all the time, the selection is always changing. If you find anything by Line 6, you should buy it. These amps have an awful reputation, and are now selling for about a quarter of what they cost new!
3. Now, repeat step two every week or so. Other brands to watch out for are Crate, Bugera, and Peavey. You will want to buy as many cheap amps as you can! Buy as many big ones as possible!
4. When your band has finally booked a gig, make sure you borrow a truck or van from someone. You will need the space for transporting your collection of amps to the club!
How many amps do you need? Well, my double guitar weighs 20 pounds, so I usually take at LEAST 2--4x12 cabs, 1 8x10 bass cab, 1 6x10 Fender Super 6 reverb amp, 1--30 pound bass head, and 1--20 pound Fender head. My pedals weigh another 25 pounds.
In general, the heavier your guitar, the more amps you need.
5. Once you are at the club, refuse the help of any of your bandmates (yeah right). Also, nod in agreement to anything the sound man may say to you. Make sure you turn the amps down very low during sound check. When the sound guy goes to the bathroom, you can turn them up!
Why Does this Work?
The human body is an amazing machine that can take tons of abuse and still recover. After moving several hundred pounds of amps, the blood flow to your main arteries will increase and your muscles will be "warmed up". This is similar to when you warm up a tube amp before playing on it! Your guitar will feel much lighter to you after moving your amps, and won't have to work as hard.
*Also, keep in mind, the heavier your guitar, the louder you need to turn it up. This is because the frequencies of the notes need to work harder to reverberate while stimulating the pickups magnetic coil.
I hope you found this tutorial helpful in making your guitar feel lighter. If your guitar still feels heavy after taking the above steps, you may want to consider working out.----
Matthew T. Mruzek MD
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