I have been debating changing this to a guitar only profile, but I know the moment I do, I will want to make some sort of gun update. I just haven't been in a gun space at all. I haven't even been shooting in a few months. I have been way more wrapped up in the wonderful world of guitar.
80/20 - For as long as I can remember, I have been playing 80/20 strings on my acoustic guitars. I could never put my finger on it but they always sounded a little brighter and more jangly than phosphor bronze and I felt like their life was a little better as well.
As my friends are all aware, I have an obsession with brass nuts on my guitars. My plan is to eventually have all of my guitars converted over. The harder material results in a better tone in my opinion. Yes tone is subjective, but bear in mind that older instruments used to have ivory and bone nuts because the material was somewhat dense. Compare that to a piece of plastic and you will be surprised at how much difference it makes.
During the course of my research of brass, I started seeing people listing "Bell Brass" as a material they used. What is bell brass!? Bell brass is a misnomer. It doesn't exist. What they actually mean (or are cleverly deceiving you into believing they are talking about) is bell bronze. Bronze, like brass, is a copper alloy but instead of zinc, it is mixed with tin. Bell bronze is a ratio of 80% copper to 20% tin. This is where 80/20 comes from. This also explains why they are brighter. They are bell bronze instead of phosphor bronze. I am not suggesting that 80/20 strings are right for everybody, but if your guitar is a dark sounding guitar, you may want to give them a try.
Bell bronze is also used in high end cymbals.
"Tremolo" Blocks - In the course of additional research I came across a website selling a replacement trem block for a strat (or just about any floyd rose style guitar) made of brass, steel, or titanium. Tremolo is another misnomer for vibrato. We can thank Leo Fender for this one.
So what is the difference? Tremolo is a frequency based shift in volume while vibrato is a shift in the pitch of the note. Both are used interchangeably but they are not the same. If pitch is involved, it is vibrato. If volume is involved it is tremolo.
The trem block (calling it a trem block irks me to no end) has a rather dramatic effect on the sound of the guitar. This is because the density of the block will actually change how the guitar sounds.
Have you ever noticed how a heavier guitar sounds darker than a lighter guitar? This is because the lighter guitar can more easily resonate the higher notes which have less mechanical energy than the lower notes. This is true of all guitars. Having a heavier block will sound darker.
BUT...there is more. Some materials have the ability to absorb the signal rather than transfer it. This has to do with the elasticity of the material itself. A material which has a particularly high elasticity will not sound as "clear" as a more dense and hard material.
Most import guitars (and even some non import) use zinc alloy blocks because they are cheaper. The original blocks Fender made were steel. So how do you know which is which? Looking at them really doesn't tell you much, but a magnet will let you know quickly and easily.
The difference is quite noticeable. Even acoustically, an electric guitar with a steel block will sound better. I have not tried a brass block yet, but plan on it.
Bear in mind that the block size is not the same for every guitar and not every manufacturer of blocks sells for every model.
Additionally, the actual materials used (there are a lot of alloys that can be called steel or brass that are very different from each other) are not all the same. Costs vary from as little as 25$ or so up to 75$ or more.
All Original? - A friend of mine is selling an old Ampeg Gemini II. They, by their own admission, don't know too much about it and asked me to help field some questions they were receiving from potential buyers.
One of the questions was, "Does it have the original tubes?" For some reason that question almost infuriated me (yes I am quick to rage). What difference does that make? The amp is 40+ years old. Why not ask, "Does your guitar have the factory strings on it?" "Does your car have the same tires on it after 40 years?" Routine maintenance includes tubes, changing power cords, recapping power supplies, etc. I fail to see how having a suspect part in an amp will increas its value to anybody.
It is a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation.
Does it have all of the original tubes? Yes. Then I am going to need to retube it.
Does it have all of the original tubes? No. Then it isn't worth as much.
Believe it or not, when tube amps were in their prime, tubes were sold everywhere and people didn't make a habit of keeping bad tubes around. Vintage equipment was unheard of. It was called used. So when somebody changed the tubes in their amp, they didn't keep the old bad ones around thinking it might make for a better collector's piece in 20 years.
If you don't know what to look for when buying an amp, don't ask stupid questions. Take somebody who might know with you. Not once have I ever not bought an amp because the original tubes weren't in it. In fact, I don't think I have ever bought a used amp with the original tubes in it.
Yet these people who clearly don't know any better would rather have an amp or guitar "ALL ORIGINAL" but in unworking or unplayable condition than have something that works and had a part that wasn't given any more thought than cost from the start replaced. It isn't like Fender or Ampeg picked the caps and resistors they did because they were the best of the best. They picked them because they were cheap and tubes were most likely no different.
Maintained is not the same as modified. Some modified equipment is done quite professionally and a lot of it is butchered. Nobody likes to see the latter. But why not judge a piece of equipment for how it sounds instead of how much it is worth to a collector?
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