Hot Damn! I found a Tenor Guitar!

[slavemason]

I had been looking for a tenor guitar for years. I know I could have found one on Ebay, but I hate to buy an instrument without playing it first.
I went to Nashville, TN to attend a cheerleading competition (my niece was the cheerer) and drink some beers with my brother. One trip downtown, I went into a music shop to ask for directions to the Ernest Tubbs record store and there it was. I was afraid to look at the price since everything else was so expensive. I nearly shit when I did, only $99. Needless to say, I bought it.
For those who don't know about the tenor guitar, here's a pic.
http://www.tenorguitar.com/images/photos/martin/O18T.jpg
Did anyone else get any instruments to celebrate the birth of Jesus?
Let the "So what(s)" begin...

[Royal Tenenbaum]

I got a harmonica. :rock

[Helm]

What's so great about this guitar?

I got a volume pedal. Which is great because I constantly tap with my fret hand while I play with the volume knob on the guitar to vary my leads so it'll be nice to be able to pick while adjusting volume from now on. Easy ghost bends! Hurray for feet!

[slavemason]

I suppose if you're a guitarist, nothing. But I'm a bassist and I'm stuck to four strings. I can play a little bit of guitar but I usually get frustrated early. The neck just seems so crowded with six strings.

Harmonicas are great instruments. There's always room in the pocket for one. I used to work at a water filtration facility that granted me opportunity to play the harp in a dam. It was pretty much a big triangle, concrete on the tops and water on the bottom (since it leaked). I've never heard reverb like that anywhere else.

I've wanted a volume pedal for a long time but they seem too damn expensive for a pedal and a potentiometer. Maybe I could gut my Wah pedal and make one.

[Helm]

Heh I thought that neck was too long. Yeah, an accoustic bass is a good deal since it reverbates so much more warmly than it's electric counterpart.

As to the volume pedal, it costed 30 euro. And I agree you can make one real easy, but the 100 euro morley model doesn't use a pontesiometer but is digital, which means it will never wear out... It's a good deal, in the long term.

[slavemason]

Helm, I was hoping you would pick up on this thread. You're the only one that seems to be an addicted player here. They're surely others here but it seems like most are still looking for their first guitar or something.
Anyway, I think the picture may have given a false impression. Check out this site for the low-down. http://www.tenorguitar.com/glance.html The neck is only 23 inches long. It's closer to guitar size than bass, maybe smaller than a guitar. I'm not sure.
One of the tunings listed is the first four strings of a guitar. I've opted to drop the E string a whole step, so now it's tuned like the first four strings of a five string banjo. This will give me an opportunity to brush up on chords and voicings without driving my wife nuts with the banjo, apparently they're just too damn loud for her. She's not home now so I think I'll go hammer on it for a while.
Here's another couple of tenors I thought you'd like.
http://www.tenorguitar.com/images/photos/gibson/SG.jpg
I've never heard of the digital volume pedal, I'll have to look further into that.
While I've got your attention (if you come back) Macabre is playing less than a mile from my house some time in March. Murder Metal Bliss flooding the Bible Belt. I can hardly wait. :chatter

[Helm]

Heh I'm a dedicated player, but sspad can play Peace Sells but Who's Buying solos fast and clean! :scary

I play bass as well, really. Only I was playing a 5-string I borrowed from a friend (which I basically double tapped most of the time. It's excellent for that sort of thing) and now I play a fretless cheapass yamaha bass that's at least nice-sounding. That one's a hand-me-down from a retired bass player friend. It's good because I need a bass for home recordings.

Now what I would really like to buy if I had 3.000 euro would be a 10 string warr guitar. I'm pretty good at tapping (all my guitar solos are double tapped. I'm a drop-the-pick kind of guy when it comes to solos and leads. At least I don't sound like millions of other lead guitarists) and it's a bass/guitar with the tonal versatility of a stringed instrument, and the pitches of a classical piano. Bliss!


As to Macabre, I really like them. I like the insanely catchy choruses with the silly vocals (doooog guuuts, dooog guuuts!) and I like how when they get to the shredding they get down to buisness like a bay area band. Very unique. I wish I'd see them live but greece is not a place a band like Macabre would go to.

[slavemason]

http://uweb.superlink.net/~rayash/zebra.jpg
Is this is what you're talking about?
I don't see how you would be able to play chords on such a beast. I think I'd have to play it lieing flat in my lap or something. It looks to be a real back breaker. Also, what's with the two inputs. Are the pickups split to route the lower frequencies to a bass amp or something?

I'm rather ignorant to technique talk, does "double tapping" use both hands or something?

[Cap'n Crunch]

I got a new bass. Our band doesn't have a drummer though. We need a new one. :(

[Helm]

Yeah that's what I'm talking about. You can play chords on it if you tap strong enough with the fret hand. And yeah double tapping means both hands on the fretboard. I just love this instrument. And you're on the money about the two outputs. It's pretty heavy, but heavy is good >:

[slavemason]

I saw this band once and the guy was playing alot of double tapping. He was an incredible guitarist. He would have the guitar in his lap and play it like a piano, chording with one hand and playing melodies on the other.
I was impressed. Unfortunately I was growing tired of it thirty minutes into the set. It all started to sound the same after awhile. I would suggest using this double tap sparingly. Make them pay attention and listen for it, instead of playing it ever other measure.

Cap'n, good luck finding a drummer. You'll need even more luck finding a good one.

[torch of war]

I got a new bass. Our band doesn't have a drummer though. We need a new one. :(

Say, you wouldn't happen to be in a band called Days of Rage would you?