One of the original Mousegeetars in the Disney vault
Today is April 1st, and it’s time to start on a new project. We will need several grades of sandpaper, some varnish remover, different sizes of paint brushes, some wire cutters, and Bondo™.
1961 Gibson ES-335
Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. We will also need a 1961 cherry red Gibson ES-335. I guess we can substitute a newer Epiphone version. If you must.
1961 P.A.F Humbucking guitar pickup
First of all we need to remove that neck pickup. Just set it aside to use for another project. Save the potentiometers too. We next use the Bondo™ to fill the rectangular hole left where the pickup was. Use a scraper to level that adhesive.
Variety of Sandpaper
Now this next part is very important, so pay close attention. We are going to start sanding the guitars’ upper body with 80 grit paper and then finishing with 0000 paper until the surface is smooth as silk,
Cherry wood stain
Afterward we apply some Cherry Red stain from Stew Mac with a rag or cloth. Brush on the upper surface and blend in with a smooth bristle brush the rub the finish in with a cotton cloth.
Cherry Wood Spray Paint
Next apply Stew Mac Cherry Red spray paint to the guitar’s upper body. Do this in a well-ventilated area. I advise that you wear a mask, or respirator so your nasal foliage doesn’t turn cherry red. Chicks really don’t dig that look.
Guitar Lacquer
Once everything has dried, spray a nice thin coat of nitrocellulose lacquer on it. Once it has dried I suggest doing this at least three times.
Mickey Mouse Decal
I have looked and you can buy large Mickey Mouse decals on Pinterest for less than a couple dollars. Very delicately soak the decal in a pan of water and then place your Mickey Mouse decal on the instrument top side carefully covering the upper and lower bouts with Mickey’s mouse-ears.
Once everything has dried, restring you guitar and start playing your favorite Mickey Mouse Club songs. Yes sir, ♫ You’re and honorary Mouseketter! ♫
This is unbelievable Gibson will now be available under the name Xibson, after being purchased and renamed by Elon Musk.
When recording,
guitarists have been going direct into the board for as long as I can remember, letting the engineer and producer shape their sound. Due to digital recording, we now have audio interfaces and apps that include effects, reverbs,
compression, auto tune, and amp types and cabinet simulators. You can use these to record music and even play music live without lugging a heavy amplifier to your gig.
When I was younger,
I used to lug around a 1965 Deluxe Reverb, then later a 1969 Bandmaster with head and
cabinet to gigs. Back then I had to take the back seat out of my VW Beetle to fit the cabinet in the car.
A few years ago when we moved I stored most of my equipment away but for an
old Line 6 Spider 3 and a Roland Microcube which I use at home. I know some of you might scoff at this choice, but the Roland Microcube is a nice bedroom practice amp, and I picked up the Line 6 Spider for less than $40!!
More and more pro players are ditching the amp these days. Unless your venue requires rental from a backline company you can now plug directly into the house sound system and create the sound that you love.
An advantage is no load in, or load out and no repairs if a heavy amplifier breaks down. Many guitarists and bass players have figured this out as of late, and in fact, this practice has been going on for quite a few years.
Towards the end of his career, Pat Martino played through a Clarus Acoustic Image Amplifier directly into the venue's sound system and cabinet. His rider stated a speaker cabinet/monitor must be provided.
I saw Al DiMeola years ago at a guitar clinic. He used a Roland guitar synth, and his signature Ovation, which featured a hex midi guitar connection, was plugged into the guitar synth and then into a small Tascam mixer which had loads of reverb that he ran through the house sound system.
Instead of lugging that amplifier around, you can instead use an analogue pre-amp and power amp pedals, digital
pedals or software through a DAW that emulates the sound of a guitar amp. The
output from the pedal is then connected to the PA system or recording
interface, which enables you to play without a physical amplifier or cabinet
onstage.
This way you get a
consistent, balanced sound, as the DI interface projects the sound the audience hears,
and you hear in the monitor. The stage volume is lower. No more ringing ears,
feedback, or fight with the guy running the mix.
Long cord runs are no longer a
problem. And let’s not forget the load in
and load out. All you are bringing to your gig is your pedal board and a DI connection.
A
friend used to bring his pedal board rig, and a small powered monitor with an
XLR cord that he ran to a direct box. This went into the house soundHe
could hear his guitar in the monitor while the soundman ran the audio. This simple arrangement worked just fine.
To play gigs without an amplifier you will
need a preamp to shape the sound, which can even be your pedal board, or multi-effects unit.
You will also need a power amp to boost the sound, and a direct box to get that balanced signal.
One of my buddies plugs his effects board into Quilter Micro
Block and a speaker cabinet. He gets great results. A friend that owns a music store quit buying used Marshall amps and cabinets. He site the diminished demand for them as there are other ways to achieve that same sound.
There are quite a few power amp pedal such as a Electro Hamonix 22 MM MXR Micro amp or you can use a low watt practice amp. A powered monitor
will work. If you have an interface with a cabinet simulator, well 'Bob’s yer
uncle.' And there are so many DI boxes to chose from. Some are passive, and some are active.
For more than a few years guitarists have been using the Fractal Audio amp modelers and preamp system digital audio workstations or DAW's. The AX-FX iii has eight channels for recording, with EQ, with thousands of cabinet simulations. Brand new it costs $4900.
Another option, perhaps more affordable, are some products from a company called Two Note. Two Note offered the Torpedo C.A.B M+ speaker simulator, which featured a preamp and power amplifier. It has since upgraded it to The Opus which still features amp simulation, cabinet simulation, multi-effects plus pre-amp, and power amp capability for around $300.
The Two Note products use Bluetooth technology to change effects and updates.
The Atomic™ Ampli-Fire is a floor pedal that is an Amp-In-A-Box. It comes with nine preset amp features that include cabinet settings, but you can customize your sound. Channel switching allows you to change on the fly in a live setting. This pedal is perfect for recording too. The Atomic-Fire Box ML-II is current on sale new for $199 USD.
Another option is the Strymon Iridium Amp Modeler, new for $399 USD. This box offers 3 amplifier models, plus nine different stereo cabinet models. This little box includes adjustable reverberation up to 256 milliseconds. The amp models are "Round" based on Fender Deluxe Reverb, "Chime" based on a Vox AC-30, and "Punch" based on a Marshall Plexi (Super lead model 1959).
However there are plenty of other amp simulators on the market.
However one of the most popular and least expensive models is the JOYO FD American Sound Amp Simulator, which is designed to simulate a 1957 Fender Deluxe amplifier. From videos I have seen, this unit performs wonderfully and delivers sounds from clean to distorted and everywhere in between. which can simulate the sounds and cabinet of this amplifier.
This amp-in-a-pedal has the smooth, subtle overdrive everyone expects from fender-style tube amps near full volume, although it can also be used as a clean boost you get more liquid sound.
The circuitry in this pedal is based somewhat on that of a Tech 21 NYC California Blonde Sans amp, which was discontinued and is only available on the used market.
The great thing about the JOYO amp simulator is that it sells on Amazon for only $40 USD.
The Chinese manufacturer Joyo also offers a series of other amp simulators that have the same price point, although the JOYO FD American Sound is by far their best seller.
The JOYO Overdrive Guitar Effect Pedal Amplifier Simulation Distortion Pedal for Electric Guitar - Bypass (Oxford Sound JF-22) emulates the sound of a 1970's British made Orange Amplifier.
The JOYO JF-13 Acetone Guitar Effect Pedal Amp emulates the British Rock Sound of a Vox AC30 amplifier. All of these pedal sized amplifier simulators are available on Amazon for only $40 USD.
If you intend to record or put together a amp simulator board to use in live settings, one important thing to remember is the signal chain for your effects.
For bass players, Joyo offers the Dr. J Bass pedal D-53 that simulates an overdriven mic'd bass amp simulator. This pedal includes a DXL output with ground lift switch.
You definitely want the amp simulator at the end of the chain.
you probably want the tuner at the beginning of the chain so it gets a clean signal from your guitar
as a starting point. As an example, dynamic effects (compressors), filters (wah), pitch shifters, typically go at the beginning of the signal chain.
Gain based effects such as and overdrive/distortion pedals come next.
Modulation effects such as chorus, flangers, phasers typically come next in the chain.
Time based effects such as delays and reverbs work best at the end of the signal chain.
Volume pedals can go at the beginning or end of your signal chain to provide slightly different functionality in different locations in your chain.
I wish you all the best in your venture into leaving the amp at home.
I am old enough to recall the British Invasion. Back in February of 1964 The Beatles first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Those countless teens that were not fortunate enough to be at the show watched The Beatles perform on television that Sunday night. After that many of them decided to learn to play guitar.
This resulted in a guitar boon that lasted for about three or four years. Musical instrument sales of guitars soared, and the majority of those instruments were made in Japan by various manufacturing companies, then shipped in bulk to the United States and Europe where brokers relabeled or ‘badged’ them.
Most of these guitars, basses, organs, and drums were of inferior quality to the American made instruments. The Japanese manufacturers attempted to model the guitars off US made designs. They usually based them on pictures of American guitars since receiving an actual American made guitar was expensive, and had a tariff.
So we not only had The British Invasion of musicians anad bands but we experienced The Japanese Invasion of guitars as well. Though I might add some of these mid 1960’s instruments were also made in Italy, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Russia.
Norlin vs Elger 1976
In 1976 Gibson sued Ibanez in the lawsuit Nolin vs Elger Music. Briefly, the Hoshino company of Japan, purchased Elger Music/ Medley Music of Bryn Mawr Pennsylvania was owned by Harry Rosenbloom. Although his store was located in the same state as Martin Guitars, Rosenbloom could not get a Martin franchise.
Rosenbloom hired two luthiers to build guitars under the Elger brand name.
This went on for a year until Mr. Rosenbloom found it was far too expensive to employ luthiers, so Harry inked a deal with Hoshino to manufacture guitars for his store and label them as Elger guitars. At the time Hoshino/Ibanez had been making pretty good copies of Gibson guitars at the time. From 1969 to 1986, Gibson guitars were owned by The Norlin Corporation.
The Ibanez company bought Medley Music from Rosenbloom and began using it as their USA distribution center. This resulted in Gibson/Norlin suing Elger for patent infringement. This famous suit was settled out of court, but brought about the term "Lawsuit Guitars". The suit never made it to trial and was settled out of court.
Yet only seven years later, in 1983 Gibson/Norlin decided to hire a Japanese firm to build it's Epiphone line of guitars. These were produced by Tokai, Burny, and Greco. Then in 1988 Gibson hired a Japanese firm to build models called "Orville" guitars. In the proceeding years Epiphone as moved most of its production to China.
Then in 1982 Fender inked a deal with the the FujiGen Gakki factory in Japan to produce some of its guitars. This happened at a time when Fender/CBS was up for sale. Then in 1985 Fender was sold to a group of investors. After the sale Fender did not have an onshore manufacturing site as the Fullerton California site was not part of the deal. Around this date all Fender guitars were made in Japan.
Within a few years there were American made Fenders built in Corona California and the cheaper guitars, basses, amps were built in Eseneda Mexico as well. Later Fender moved it's Squier line are made in China and Indonesia.
With the advent of all the well known USA guitar manufacturers using Chinese, Japanese, and Asian labor to build budget instruments it was bound to result in the same Chinese companies manufacturing their own line of guitars, basses, and amps and retailing those instruments at extremely low costs.
The Yako Musical Instrument Company is located in ZangZhou China and has a branch in Taiwan. Yako manufactures hundreds on brands including Squier. In the past Fender built it's Modern Player series under the Fender brand name in China.
AXL Musical Instruments also manufactures Squier instruments and is located in Shanghai, China. Squier Affinity guitars are manufactured in China as well as in Indonesia.
Cort Crafter, and Samick of Korea all have associations with Fender as well as other companies. All of this to say that because of Gibson and Fenders offshore production, Because of the decisions of the major US guitar manufacturers which also include Gretsch, and Guild, which is now owned by Cordoba Guitars, we are in the midst of a Chinese Invasion.
Amazon was quick to pick up on guitar and musical instrument sales and set up affiliations with these same Chinese manufacturers that the USA manufacturers have contracted with for Squier and Epiphone such as the Yako Musical Instrument Company, to sell guitar and basses under Amazon brands.
Interestingly Yako and AXL both build guitars for Gretsch and for Cordoba, which owns Guild Guitar brand. This same company builds guitars under the Donner brand as well.
If you shop on Temu for guitars and basses, these instruments are built by Yako. Fesley Guitars are made by the same Chinese company, Yako. Incidentally, Yako is the same company builds Fender's Squier guitars.
Firefly Guitar are made in China, but by a smaller unidentified company. They are made in small batches. These guitars are of better quality than some of the other Chinese brands and tend to sell out quickly.
One of Amazon’s most popular brands are Glarry Guitars. They are made in Fuzhou City in China. Glarry Musical Instruments makes many other musical instruments mainly for export and rebranding.
The popularity of Glarry Guitars arises from the very low price point, of sixty to one hundred-sixty dollars for their line up, and most bore resemblance to Fender Instruments.
I purchased a Glarry T-Style guitar. It took me a good while to set it up. The strings that come on the guitar are awful. I was never a fan of Telecaster bridges so it took some work to get all the strings set to a comfortable height. The neck truss rod needed to be tightened up about a quarter turn to the right.. The neck could still use some sanding, since it is rougher than the typical satin finished neck. Also some of the fret ends need to be filed down. After putting all the work into it the guitar is now comfortable to play, however the neck is a little clubby. If you are planning to buy one of these guitars for your kid, I advise that the set up is not a job for a beginner.
Michael Angelo Batio is an extraordinary ambidextrous heavy metal shredder that plays specially built guitars with two to four necks. He is a sponsor for the Chinese brand of guitars called Sawtooth.
The multi-neck instruments are made for him, but the single neck versions are available on Amazon. These are definitely better instruments than most Chinese brands and run from the $150 to $225 range.
One company I haven't mention is Hotone. They make small amplifiers and effects. This one is a puzzler. Is it pronounced "Hot One or Ho Tone?" let me know in the comments.
Amazon sells guitars and musical instruments under many different brands, that are generally made at one of the aforementioned factories. Many of these instruments rival Epiphone and Squier guitars and basses.
With some tweaking any these guitars and basses can be updated to very nice instruments.
As I look at the videos below I am reminded of the humble beginnings of Leo Fender's factory in Fullerton California. That facility, Leo Fender opened in 1946, was housed in a warehouse that had little or no ventilation, climate control, humidifiers, air purification, or air conditioning. The current Fender factory in Corona California is much improved, for the guitars, and the employee, The videos below show some of these Chinese factories, but for the CNC machines and other updated equipment, being housed in the same conditions that Fender employees worked in back in the 1950's.
