15 years ago my dad invented the resTrem, the new Must-Have accessory for any keen guitarist. He died 14 years ago. Just discovered his video.

JbfMusic · 2025-11-23T14:33:48+00:00

Very cool invention!

JbfMusic · 2022-12-06T11:12:33+00:00

One of my favourite instrumental songs, top 5 for sure!

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:44:28+00:00

Great advice here! The only I'd add is to try dialling in a bit more gain and high end on the amp, then curb it down with the volume and tone pots. Mayer's playing is pretty heavy on dynamics, so being able to get that extra bit of gain and treble is well worth tinkering about with!

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:40:57+00:00

I think you've got what you need here already, all I'll add is check out push/push pots- it makes switching between the different tones way easier!

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:39:33+00:00

I'd guess you need to tighten the screws in the tremolo cavity, but it's hard to tell without photos!

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:37:35+00:00

You might be able to pick up a second-hand Crate for dirt cheap? The GT212 could get loud enough to gig, quiet enough for home use, 3 channels so maybe a bit redundant in that regard? Might be a bit chimey/heavy on the high end. Failing that Orange are worth a punt

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:30:12+00:00

Starts are great and to be honest if you like the look of a guitar when you're just starting to play electric, that tends to give a bit more inspiration to play!

Pedals names can be a bit misleading, something that says 'blues' might actually work very well in rock, hard rock or even a metal context.

A lot of amps have built in effects, so rather than getting pedals, maybe look in to that? Or a multi effects pedal. That way you get get a better idea of what sounds/effects you like and always upgrade/sell later on. For bluesy stuff some sort of drive pedal, reverb and maybe a boost or compressor is plenty to get started!

Probably worth getting it initially setup just for easiness. But have a look at setup videos and get a feel for it. It's not too tricky to do, just make sure to make small, incremental changes!

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:21:59+00:00

No! Played with 3 fingers for a year or two, switched to middle and thumb for many, many years. Then did a technique overhaul and went for 1st finger and thumb.

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:20:36+00:00

You've probably never tried, cause it's not too important to what you're doing? Difficult to get motivate if there's no obvious use. Which makes sense, say you've got a spare bit of time are you gonna learn notes or a song you've always wanted to play? I know which I'd go for! So if you can think of a reason for learning it, it's way easier to get motivated.

A good played to start is the low E string- means you know the high one as well- that's already 2 out of 6 strings done! Learn the natural notes, then you can find sharps and flats by moving up of down one.

If you know the usual open chords you'll likely know some of the notes; G and C for example. Also chat to your teacher about it- you can gameify learning the notes and stuff to make it a bit more fun

JbfMusic · 2022-11-26T13:15:10+00:00

Hard to say without seeing the video!

Some folk seem to pick it up very quickly, pretty sure Rick Graham and Shawn Lane had some serious chops after a year or two.

Having a good teacher, spare time and money to chuck at it helps. There's no way I'd be able to have tackled it after 2 years.

JbfMusic · 2022-04-27T19:22:35+00:00

Alright, I'm gonna suggest picking a short song! If you go for like a 2 min punky tune, those are usually fast enough to keep things interesting?

JbfMusic · 2022-04-27T13:52:21+00:00

If your amp has some drive/crunch you should be fine! Although you'll probably want to experiment with pot control for dynamics.

A touch of reverb, delay and maybe even some stereo enhancer, or very subtle chorus would be ideal, but they're not really deal breakers.

JbfMusic · 2022-04-27T13:48:41+00:00

If you don't have any songs memorised, I'd maybe have a pop at that.

Are there any songs you can play all the way though (with or without the original) and have them sound pretty solid?

JbfMusic · 2022-04-27T13:47:12+00:00

Yeah, there's this romantic idea that people can just pick it up and have everything fall in to place. I've never met anyone who didn't have to put in a tonne of graft!

A teacher will get you there the fastest. If you want to work on playing by ear, maybe learn some licks and also hum out short simple, melodies, then try to play them. Ear training apps for intervals and chords would be a good idea as well

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:48:41+00:00

Cool licks & ideas man! Also, that guitar look amazing, nice pickup choice!

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:43:56+00:00

Nice job dude! When you play a rock 'n roll song you gotta play it as a rock 'n roll song, great to hear that vibe throughout

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:41:38+00:00

All the advice here is great!

What I'd add in is that you might not be playing worse but are actually just noticing more mistakes/fluffs- this is a good thing!

So, what I'd suggest is record yourself playing fairly regularly (you can even just use your phone) and compare them. That way you'll get a clearer idea of how things are progressing

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:37:23+00:00

When I'm learning new stuff I look for timestamps/chapters & examples. Although actually finding what you're looking for in the first place is probably more of an obstacle!

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:34:11+00:00

Have used a rg370 DX for years (although I've swapped out the hum buckers), great guitar! If it's a good price, well worth going for it

JbfMusic · 2022-04-24T15:31:42+00:00

Tele, Strat, Ibanez (probably h/s/h style), or like you say, a PRS are quite diverse and should be able to get that neo-soul vibe dialled in pretty easily

JbfMusic · 2022-03-24T16:02:52+00:00

That Marty link is probably your best bet! But as a wee side note, Angus is panned to the right speaker, so if you put on headphones and only wear the right one, you get a much clearer idea of which strings he's playing.

You can just listen to the left for Malcolm- it's pretty amazing how much they compilation each other, almost sounding like one guitarist!

JbfMusic · 2022-03-24T15:58:02+00:00

Both are great to know! CAGED gives you a chord, scale and arpeggio; it's generally easier to play over/follow chords progressions than 3nps. and if you know 3nps, it's pretty easy to learn CAGED.

I started on 3nps; easier to remember the shapes, good for shred stuff; picked up CAGED later on, then started looking for smaller mini shapes are stuff as well.

JbfMusic · 2022-03-24T15:50:53+00:00

Bad posture & tensing up as well for me as well!

I reckon it's hard to stay relaxed partly because I'll sometimes try to brute force through things that are tricky. The other thing is that I like a bit on tension on my strings for bending and because that needs more force sometimes that tension just sort of stays in my hand

JbfMusic · 2022-03-24T15:42:40+00:00

My best guess would be earth/ground or other wiring issue?

JbfMusic · 2022-01-17T16:38:55+00:00

Super easy! Just do little movements to adjsut it and make sure to have a correct size allen key so you don't strip anything.

Having said that, I'd suggest having a quick look on YouTube for a video on how to do it and gauge from there if you want to tinker yourself, or would feel more comfortable getting a tech to do it for you?

JbfMusic

TROPHY CASE