Overall Comments

I love this guitar. This is only my 3rd acoustic. But for the price you can get these it is perfect in every way. Plus the Tric case is unbeleivable.

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

I ordered 2 casein picks from 'hermanmonker' on eBay. They arrived yesterday. I requested 2.5mm, style 4 (triangular.) I asked Steve, the proprietor's name, not to worry about bevelling. I prefer to do it myself. I spent 1/2 an hour tweeking them and-

I HAVE NEVER BEEN HAPPIER WITH A PICK IN MY LIFE!. My history with searching for the grail took me from making my own out of everything from old piano ivory, coconut shell, bone buttons, Wegens, Red Bear, every common and uncommon retail brand. Eventually I got real tortoise while in Europe. These are every bit as good as the real thing. From what I can tell so far, they don't seem to wear as quickly as tortoise. Best part, the price was under $20 for both, including shipping from England and Paypal fees.
Here's a link to the completed auction-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130413899634#ht_500wt_923

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

I have tried bridge pins made of plastic, ebony, brass, Tusq, and genuine bone. Of all these, the Tusq is the clear winner. It gives improved sustain and tone, superior to all others I have tried. The bone pins gave good sustain, but were somewhat darker in tone. I recommend Tusq bridge pins to anyone wanting to improve the tone of their acoustic guitar.
Note: Pins vary in size just a bit. I have to leave my pins slightly above the fully seated position; otherwise, they would be hard to remove when I restring the instrument.

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

As Bob Colossi stated in his web site, the elephant ivory saddle is good for instruments where you want to tone down the brightness. I have a Washburn jumbo 12 string guitar with maple back and sides. It was indeed too bright, and this saddle improved the tone somewhat, and has good sustain. I previously was using a Tusq saddle; Tusq gives a bright sound.
A luthier is not required for the installation. The buyer specifies what instrument he has, and Bob makes the saddle just a bit oversize. The buyer then sands it to give desired height and thickness. This was not a problem for me, and was indeed an advantage.
My lower-cost Washburn Chinese-made instrument now sounds like what I would expect a Gibson 12-string maple instrument to sound like.
Note: This is a specialty-application saddle. For most acoustic guitars, (where one wants to keep a fair amount of brightness) my choice is Bob Colosi's West African Ivory. The latter is harder than bone, and thus bright.

Overall Rating

8

Overall Comments

Tusq saddles are superior to the plastic saddles commonly used on lower-priced instruments. They have the advantage of low price, and gives one the ability to change the saddle himself (no luthier involvement). To my ear, Tusq is brighter than bone. My current favorite saddle is the West African Ivory, sold by Bob Colosi through www.guitarsaddles.com. However, my guitars are high quality instruments that deserve the best, and I don't mind spending some extra money to make improvements.

Overall Rating

8

Overall Comments

I asked Bob Colosi concerning his walrus ivory picks. I wanted a bright-sounding pick, which he claimed I would get with this choice. I was disappointed in the darkness in the tone I was getting. I hate to write this in a review, but since these are expensive, I wanted to save some other buyers possible disappointment.
Note: To get brighter tone from an existing plastic pick, try filing the point so that it is a bit more pointed, and file the flat surface of the tip so it is thinner at the tip. This will give brighter tone. You can start with a medium gauge pick, and file it to make it perform like a very thin pick. This gives the player a pick that is not flimsy, but bright. My favorite brands are the "Cool" picks (white version) and the Clayton fake tortoise-shell picks.

Overall Rating

2

Overall Comments

I was disappointed in the bone bridge pins. They give good sustain, but are somewhat darker in tone than the Tusq bridge pins. As I stated in my Tusq bridge pin review, I would go with the Tusq product for pins in most guitars. The one place I might still use these bone pins to advantage is on my bright-sounding 12-string guitar. If I want to further darken the tone (which I accomplished some already with Bob's elephant ivory saddle) I may use these pins on some of the strings.

Overall Rating

3

Overall Comments

Bob Colosi's West African Ivory saddle was just what I needed for my Tacoma JR55 jumbo (rosewood back and sides) six-string guitar. After going back and forth between this and bone, I finally realize the benefits of this saddle. When you go to a jumbo instrument (like mine), you gain tone, complexity, and resonance, but at the cost of decreased brightness. Rosewood has some of this same difficulty; it has wonderful overtones and complexity, but doesn't tend to give the brightness that maple back and sides would give (maple lacks in the overtone/complexity area). I was considering selling this instrument, as it just wasn't quite bright enough. I re-installed the ivory saddle, after correcting a flatness problem I discovered on the bottom of the saddle (my error when I previously sanded to size...). The results were delightful! It dialed in the brightness that was lacking, without removing tone and complexity of sound.
This saddle is not for every instrument: If your guitar is already bright, this may make it just too bright. However, if you want to "dial-in" the tone on a guitar that is too warm / dark in tone, this may be a Godsend. For the price, it is a steal.
An added bonus: West African ivory is the hardest saddle material that is usable in the tonal range of the guitar. With this hardness, it should last a really long time!
This review supersedes my previous review for this item. (prior review has been removed and replaced with this one)
Note: The Bob Colosi saddles are made for your specific make of instrument. He deliberately makes them about .001 to 003" thicker than needed, and a bit of extra height. The buyer then sands down the saddle to the precise thickness for his specific instrument, so it will just slip in without forcing, but not have slop front & back. The height is then sanded to proper height, making sure your sandpaper is on a really flat surface! (that was my initial mistake...). use your old saddle as a guide, and dray a line across the bottom of the saddle where you want to sand it to. If you overdo it, you can salvage the saddle with an ebony shim from Bob Colosi. (yes, I have had to do that on other saddles too!). The ideal string height is 2mm for the high E string, and 3 mm for the low E string, at the 12th fret. I like to go to 2.5 mm for the high E, in case a groove wears in the saddle over time, and I need to sand it out.
A warning before I sign off... All bone and ivory saddles give the hazard of inhalation of the fine dust, which can supposedly lead to lung problems. The dust that gets into the lungs does not come out, and is not absorbed by the body. I do my saddle work outside. You should be cautious in this area, and use a face mask to be safe. Wash your clothes after the sanding job, and wash your hands. I am not offended by this risk factor, but it does need to be weighed into the equation.
I am thankful for the service Bob Colosi gives to the guitarists looking for ideal tone.
-Ken W in Portland, Oregon

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

HOWDY! I don't usually do things like this, but I just wanted to throw in my 2 pennies about Blue Chip picks. I've been using Wegen bluegrass series picks in both 1mm, 1.2mm and 1.4 for quite some time now and must admit to spending an embarrassing amount of money on every type of pick I could get my hands on over the years. I have also used real tortis shell picks from time to time. Recently I was given an opportunity to try a TD-50. I must admit, the pick is truly excellent. In my opinion it does sound and play like a real tortis shell pick. In fact, after using the BlueChip pick for a few days, I actually started to like it better than real tortis picks! Another advantage the BlueChip picks have over tortis is consistency.Often, real tortis picks will vary in tone and playability, even when they are the same shape and thickness.The pick also has not worn at all after many hours of hard use. The wegen picks seem to produce a slightly brighter sound so I've used the 1.4 and 1.2 alot . However, I usually never go much thicker than 1- 1.15mm in tortis. The BlueChip picks seem to be more dense than the wegens and produce a slightly darker more rounded sound. Because of the darker tone I decided to try a TD-40 which is an even 1mm. I very much prefer this thickness for the faster songs. The 1mm gives much better note separation ( especially on the bass strings)and just sounds awsome. While the wegen picks with the holes and textured surface still gives the best control when my hands get sweaty, I'm really falling in love with the sound of the BlueChip picks. If your looking to try a new pick, I recommend the BlueChip picks. They are a bit pricey,but hey, as popular as they are right now ,if you don't like it , you should have no trouble selling it. Anyways, thats my two pennies!

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

Mike Rowe's invention of a no drop guitar strap is a terrific strap. I was looking for a strap that would not eventually fall off the end peg after the leather attachment hole eventually stretches from use. There are products you can buy to lock the strap on the end pin of a non acoustic electric guitar, but I couldn't find anything that effectively locks the strap on a 1/4 jack style peg for an acoustic that you want to plug into an amplifier. Then i stumbled across Mike Rowe's video where he demonstrates his strap concept. I contacted Mike and we went from there. He uses a unique guitar shaped tab ( see his web site at http://www.rowemusicparts.com/guitar_strap/index.html ) that attaches to the shoulder strap with what he calls snap connectors to keep the strap ends from ever slipping off. You can watch a video demo on his web site. It is a great strap and you'll never have to worry about the strap end slipping off again. The wide strap design is comfortable and Mike can add engraving to suit your wishes. Mike is very accommodating and easy to work with. The Jenny's Creek Strap is the safest one I own and ends the worry of the guitar crashing to the floor because of the strap letting loose. I've got other nice leather straps, but all eventually slip off the the jack end peg. If you are looking for a solution to keeping your strap on your acoustic guitar that has a plug in end pin, take a close look at what Mike has to offer.

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

Ever have a strap pop loose and drop your guitar? I still remember the bass that landed on my foot one time. That simply won't happen with this strap.

It's an ingenious design that's so simple you wonder why someone didn't invent it sooner. You lace these little tabs (guitar shaped!) onto your strap buttons, and pop the main strap on or off, attaching with these amazing leather buttons that latch into slots in the taps. Hard to describe... visit http://www.rowemusicparts.com/guitar_strap/ and look at the photos. Be sure to watch the video. Would you try that with your present strap? I don't think so!

This baby isn't cheap but it is some of the best quality leather I've ever seen in a strap, and the workmanship is superb. I talked to Mike Rowe and learned that he sources the manufacture to a local Amish leather works that's been making tack and other stuff for 3 generations. You can tell. If there's any downside at all, it's that the new strap is pretty stiff. But that will pass with time and use, and this strap should last a lifetime.

There are 2 designs - straight and curved. I have the curved and it's very comfortable. Comes in black, brown or tan. There's no fancy work, which I like. I understand that some custom stamping is available. Talk to Mike if you want it. He's a great guy to deal with... very inventive in his product designs... and he stands behind what he sells.

If you have a guitar that you value highly, you really should look into this strap.

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

Good application for creating and editing professional grade sheet music with full guitar tablature. Multi-track capable. Built in MIDI capability for playback of written scores. Gives audible feedback on each note entry. Great for composing original music, or for tabbing in music from recordings. Fairly easy to learn and use the many features offered. Well thought out user interface.

Now for the bad:

Guitar Pro is a memory and resource hog. It uses a substantial percent of the computer's resources, and it will run slowly if there are any other applications running. This limits its usefulness in that it would be expected to be used in conjunction with audio recording/editing software such as Audacity.

Guitar Pro also has problems with memory leakage. After about fifteen minutes of use, error warnings of low memory will begin to appear, and the application will become sluggish. (The error messages are in French.) Even after shutting Guitar Pro down, it takes Windows about five minutes to fully recover.

These problems showed up on three different computers that I tried Guitar Pro on.

Support from Guitar Pro regarding this problem has been useless. After about a dozen email exchanges with their customer support, describing the problems in detail, their final response was that they could not resolve my problem.

It is a shame that such a potentially useful application is rendered pretty much useless by software bugs and inadequate customer support. I have to give it a thumbs-down.

Overall Rating

2

Overall Comments

For this I gave up the Sunrise S1/SB 1 preamp. I bought my Sunrise in 1994. During that 10 years, I did over 1000 gigs with it, solo, duo, groups. I played with guys that spent serious time effort and money into their rigs. Nothing ever sounded better and most importantly, nothing was as easy or reliable to work with. It outlived several Vintage J-45s, a Guild Jumbo, a Yairi and finally came to rest in a Lowden 10 years ago. In the mean time I got a '55 Gibson C&W. It was just unwilling to wear that 3 pound pickup. So I did an internet search, called and pestered people and took a chance on the K&K. I plugged it into my SansAmp D/I and was amazed. Long story shortened-When I sold the Lowden, I put the Sunrise on eBay, used the money to get my National's neck reset, frets dressed on the Gibson, bought another SansAmp D/I and a K&K PureReso BB for my National. I couldn't be happier unless they gave them away free. I've since moved the Western to a newer Larrivee. I will by from them again. Probably for the upright or my mandolin.
http://www.kksound.com/fantawestern.html

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

Clip-on headstock LED/LCD tuner. Available for about $29.95 at most places. This tuner is the successor to the PT1. It compact and light. The contact surfaces are non-marring. It has two buttons, one for on/off, the other sequentially cycles the "A" pitch from 440 up to 450, and down to 430 in 1 hz increments. It will automatically power off after a brief period of lack of input.

The PT10 reads all the strings well, whether the string is struck hard or soft. When you hit a string, the PT10 immediately displays the pitch. The LCD display simulates a meter movement, with a range of plus or minus 50 cents with the center indicating in-tune. The LED backlight shows red until you get the meter needle centered, and then it turns green. It is easy to read an any light situation.

Unlike several other tuners this one has good pitch resolution. If it says the string is in tune, it's in tune. I rarely have to sweeten any chords after using it. Because of this extra accuracy, you might find it to be a bit fussy, but if you are patient, it will get you in tune.

The clip location dictates that the tuner must be mounted on the back of the headstock if you want the display to be right side up. That's not a problem for me because I prefer it there, but some users, particularly slothead owners might not like it. The button placement is on the clip side of the tuner, and that can make turning it on and off a little awkward. Also, if you inadvertently hit the other button, you will change the center frequency, and you have to cycle it through all the way to get back to 440. It doesn't seem to default to 440. Even turning it off doesn't bring it back to 440.

Overall, I am quite satisfied with the PT10. This is the best clip-on tuner I have tried so far.

Overall Rating

9

Overall Comments

I own two of these units. I would gladly buy another if I needed it. Of all the preamps and D/Is I have tried, there is no comparison to the versatility of this device. I currently use it with K&K under the saddle piezo (Larrivee D03R), K&K biscuit bridge peizo (1936 National Triolian), BigTone peizo (Dell Arte Dark Eyes). I used it for years with a Sunrise magnetic pickup and found I liked it better than the Sunrise solid state buffer box. I use them for live performance and recording. I have even used it with electric bass, straight to the PA. The model I have is discontinued and replaced by the Acoustic Paradriver. The older model shows up used on eBay for less than $100. Features-Active and Passive mode, 3 band EQ (parametric mid shift), Phantom power and ground lift, 2 1/4 inputs, 2 outs (1/4 and XLR). I highly recommend adding one of these to any acoustic rig. I call it the "turd polisher" because it can make almost any pickup sound great.

Overall Rating

10

Overall Comments

I recently won a Blue Chip pick (yes, the $35 one) in a drawing from the most generous Stefan Jadefjord on the Flatpick Guitar Network. In my "entry post" I said that I could never get it under the wife-radar and about the only way I would ever have one is if someone gave it to me. I am the kind of guy that shops around for months before I buy a $10 USB key just to be sure I have the best deal. I am not prone to splurging and spending money on things that I can make myself or make due without. I'm not really tight, I'm just careful with my finances to make sure the income is as much as the out-go.

I considered the Blue Chip one of those "luxury" guitar accessories that were only for professionals and people with lots of disposable income. How could it possibly justify a $35 price tag?

Well, I've played with it all weekend. The thickness was perfect, but I wouldn't have chosen the shape I was given (the triangle with one rounded edge). However, I doubt I will ever buy another teardrop shaped "bluegrass" pick. The triangle is so much easier to handle in the same way I guess that a bigger pen is easier to write with.

The material itself behaves exactly as advertised. Pick-to-string contact noise is minimal (I can hear it, but I really have to listen) . The material seems to stick to my fingers except once when my hands got exceptionally sweaty. A quick swipe of on the britches leg fixed that though. A few back and forths with a Dunlop Ultex revealed that the Blue Chip is indeed superior when it comes to friction. After playing around with the Blue Chip, the Ultex sounded like sandpaper against the strings.

Will it make you a professional? Not likely. Will it improve your playing? It depends. If your right-hand technique is suffering (pick slipping around, not cleanly releasing from the strings) then it is possible. It won't solve your problems, but it does make a little difference.

In summation, there was no way in heck that I'd ever spend $35 for a pick. Now, I believe I would replace it if it ever got lost (after much begging and pleading). If you run into someone with a Blue Chip at a festival or jam, ask to borrow it for a couple songs. You'll see what I mean.

www.bluechippick.net

Overall Rating

9

Overall Comments

I actually got this capo to use on a banjo with a radiused fingerboard, but the neck was too thin, so I started using in on guitar. Before this capo I used Shubb for many years. Here are the pros and cons I see in this capo:

Pros:
Lightweight
Well made, likely to stand up to use
Possbile to adjust presure very precisely
Steinberger desgn, looks kind of spiffy

Cons:
It's black. Disappears in low-light situations and gig bags.
Difficult to set straight from a playing position. I always end up setting it at an angle.
Too slow to adjust in a performance situation.

I guess you can say I have mixed feelings about this capo. I pretty much use it as a studio capo. For live gigs, I'll stick with my Shubbs.

Overall Rating

5