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REVIEW: Sheptone Pickups for Telecaster

Posted on 30 August 2010 by Dan Coplan

Photos by Dan Coplan.

A little over seven years ago, guitarist Jeff Shepherd faced a dilemma common to many of us. No matter how many guitars he tried, he just couldn’t find that elusive “TONE”! This need to solve a problem resulted in the founding of Sheptone, a boutique pickup company based in Port Orchard, WA. Through extensive research and analysis, Jeff built his company on the principle of “reasonably priced substitutes for over-priced vintage pickups.” His product line includes a variety of humbuckers, soapbar and dogeared P-90′s, Stratocaster and Telecaster sets, and 4- and 5-string P- and J-bass pickups*. I’ve been working on restoring a ’76 Tele, so Jeff sent over a compatible set for review.


THE PICKUPS

Sheptone’s pickups are vintage-style construction. The bridge pickup for the standard Tele set is potted to reduce feedback and has staggered pole pieces reminiscent of the mid 50′s (flat pole Blackguard style also available). The neck pickup, also potted, came with a protective chrome cover (nickel is also an option). These pickups are potted upside down with the cover on to eliminate squeal by filling air gaps with wax. Both pickups use #42 enamel wire and Alnico 5 magnets. As a matched set, Jeff winds the neck pickup reverse wound/reverse polarity (RW/RP) to eliminate noise when the pickups are used in combination. Included with the pickups was a stamped certificate noting details including materials used, measured resistance, and “Guitar Tested” affirmation.

THE SOUND

I’ve never been a huge fan of the Tele sound. The bridge pickups tend to be too thin and bright for me and while I like the sound coming from the neck, it’s always felt a bit mild. This was the perfect test for running Sheptone’s pickups through the wringer.

Plugging my newly restored Tele into an Egnater Tweaker, I challenged the bridge pickup to restore my confidence in its usefulness. Thin, fragile tone be banished! Not only did the sound coming forth sound rich and full of harmonic content, I can honestly say I never thought my guitar could sound this good! The twang was still there, but rather than the bright, limited frequencies I’m used to, this twang had depth and life and a punchiness that hinted at Strat-like characteristics. Dynamics play a major role as softer attacks result in a smoother sound while harder picking brings out the clucking in your chicken pickin’ or the snap in your funky rhythms. Next stop: the neck pickup.

Give me some Mr. Bubble. I bathed in the warm, round, lushness provided by these windings. The sound was so big and full, I couldn’t believe I was playing a Tele. Lower register notes and chords vibrated in sympathy with my body as I literally felt the music. High registers rang out like finely tuned chimes. The two together…let’s just say I’m ordering food delivery for the next week because I ain’t leaving the house!

THE FINAL WRAP

It’s not often I gush about gear, even when I’m excited about it. Sheptone’s pickups, however, have to be the most significant contribution to quality tone that I’ve come across, possibly ever. Granted, when shopping for pickups it’s difficult to know how they’re going to sound without prior experience, but trust me, you owe it to yourself to check out a set (if not two, or three, or more) of Sheptone’s vintage-style pickups for your favorite axe.

PROS: Phenomenal sounding pickups. Your social life will blossom as fans will be mesmerized by your tone.

CONS: Your social life will vanish as you find it impossible to tear yourself away from jamming.

* Sheptone is currently working on updating and improving their website. There are more pickups available than what is presented on their site currently. You’re encouraged to contact Sheptone directly regarding their full product line and custom orders.

Retail – $169

Sheptone’s website: http://www.sheptone.com

Follow Sheptone on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sheptone

Sheptone on Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/sheptone

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Dan Coplan is senior staff writer at SMG. Dan is a Los Angeles based cinematographer and self-admitting guitar junkie. Email: dancoplan@sharemyguitar.com

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REVIEW: IK Multimedia’s AmpliTube iRig

Posted on 27 August 2010 by Dan Coplan

The AmpliTube iRig from IK Multimedia lets you jam to a host of amps and cabs anywhere, anytime!

IK Multimedia Production formed in 1996 by capitalizing on the explosive growth of personal computers to better enable the needs of the music industry, including consumers and professionals. Since then, the company has grown to international status with a wide range of computer based products including audio interfaces, emulators, virtual instruments, remixing tools, effects processors… the list goes on. Their latest innovation takes advantage of iPhone/iPod/iPad technology with a hardware interface and amp/FX emulator for guitar: the AmpliTube iRig.

THE SETUP

The AmpliTube iRig comes in two parts: the hardware (iRig) which allows you to connect your guitar to your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad (hereafter referred to as simply “iPod“), and the software app (AmpliTube).

The iRig is literally the size of a lipstick case with a 5″ cable extension that plugs into your iPod. A 1/8″ jack on the cable end provides headphone/amp/powered speaker output and the opposite end provides a 1/4″ instrument jack. The whole thing weighs about as much as a pack of gum.

The layout of the AmpliTube app is very cool with a richly designed graphical interface representative of the variety of pedals, amps, and mics available. Easy access icons at the top include Tools (tuner, metronome, audio demo), FX1, FX2, FX3, Amp, Song, and Add Amp/FX. Each of these choices affects what is shown in the main display. A small row at the bottom allows you to save presets and set up the app with preferences for latency, feedback, and auto sleep. A small question mark in the upper left corner accesses several pages of a graphically friendly and easy to understand help section.

ROCKIN’ THE iPOD

Plugging my LP-295 Goldtop Les Paul into the iRig, I booted up the app, clicked on Tools, and engaged the tuner – simple enough. An optional mute button allows you to quiet the output while tuning which is a nice touch if you’re playing through an amp or powered speaker. There is also a mini tuner display at the bottom of the main screen for quick access. I then clicked on Amp to dial in my amp, cabinet, and mic settings. I was using the LE version of the app (there is also a free version with fewer choices and a full feature version) which includes a lead amp, one cabinet, and a choice between a dynamic or large diaphragm condenser mic. These are represented by 3D-style graphic representations of the actual gear. Cycling through the choices is as simple as clicking on the image. After making my picks and dialing in my tone, I wailed away on some of my favorite riffs. I was damn impressed. I didn’t believe an amp/FX emulator working through something as compact as an iPod could sound this good. Granted, the sound isn’t as full as the real thing, but for what it is, it’s great. And I barely noticed any latency (delay between picking a note and hearing it after processing) at all, even with all three stomp pedals active. There’s a setting to reduce latency even further at the risk of clicks and pops, but I didn’t feel the need to make this adjustment. Even when I did, I heard a few initial clicks but then it all seemed to settle in just fine.

Next, I explored the effects pedals available to me: delay, distortion (available as a free bonus for registering the app), wah, chorus, and noise filter. The effects are great. Each is relatively basic in form but with thoughtful touches: The delay can sync to the metronome’s tempo. The distortion has an additional character control (this pedal sounds awesome with the lead amp, by the way!). The wah pedal is controllable by touch, auto, or by tilting the iPod – whoa! Perhaps the most important pedal, however, is the noise filter. Without it, the sound, even when not playing, is actually quite noisy. But engaged, the noise can be completely eliminated depending on how you set the threshold. At its minimum setting, higher frequencies are a bit muffled and definition is compromised so there is a trade off. This pedal is so important, however, that I feel it should be an additional control included with each amp, or simply implemented into the app behind the scenes, rather than as a separate pedal.

After literally spending hours just playing with the various combination of effects and tones, I downloaded a few songs over my network connection to play along with. This process was easy and downloading was fast. I spent even more time jamming with my favorite tracks – too much fun! Controls include play/stop, an interactive time-line so you can fast forward or rewind, volume, and a loop function. The only additions I wished for were a way to slow down song tempo without affecting pitch as well as a way to offset pitch for songs in lower tunings. But overall, the ability to play with imported files is fantastic.

Finally, I ran the output from the iRig into an Egnater Tweaker. It rocked! That’s all I have to say about that. I can’t wait to see the looks on the faces of my band mates when I rock our set through my iPod!

THE FINAL WRAP

Wow – what a cool offering from IK Multimedia! Overall, I’m truly impressed with this product. It’s version 1 which means it’s only going to get better, but I found little to criticize. The output should be boosted. Even when I had my iPod and AmpliTube controls for volume and gain cranked, the level was only comfortable. This is great for ear health, but I want to be able to “turn it up to 11” and dial back as I see fit. The default amp for the free and LE versions of the app are lead. Considering you get a free distortion pedal when registering, I feel the default should be the clean amp. Of course, you can buy the clean amp for an additional $5…  Sounds are a little synthetic, but as good as they are, especially considering the source… hardly a factor. Finally, I recommend getting an arm or waist band for your iPod if you want to jam while standing as the various parts and cabling are a bit tricky to manage otherwise.

PROS: Amazing take-anywhere setup. Thoughtful, attractive interface. Great features. Three affordable app choices including FREE! A wealth of additional effects, amps, and cabinets available for purchase.

CONS: Output level on the low side. Default lead amp means you’re likely going to drop another five bucks right off the bat to get the clean amp. Noise filter should be implemented into the app rather than taking up a stomp effect.

MSRP – iRig: $39.99, AmpliTube Free: $0.00, AmpliTube LE: $2.99, AmpliTube FULL: $19.99

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Dan Coplan is senior staff writer at SMG. Dan is a Los Angeles based cinematographer and self-admitting guitar junkie. Email: dancoplan@sharemyguitar.com

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The Yellow Jackets® Rectifier Converter

Posted on 26 August 2010 by Guest Post

YJR, the Yellow Jackets® Rectifier Converter

Yellow Jackets® is pleased to announce a new tube converter, its first new product introduction in years.  This new device is a rectifier tube converter, the YJR, which converts your 5U4, 5AR4 or 5Y3 tube to a solid state rectifier.  It is easy to install and requires no adjustments to your amplifier.  The YJR improves your amplifier by giving you a tighter sound because it reduces the voltage sag in your amplifier’s power supply.

The YJR is made in a gold plated tube socket and uses premium components for optimal quality and sound.  It is hand made in the USA as are all other well respected Yellow Jackets® tube converters that musicians love.  Yellow Jackets® are known for their high quality and ability to change the tone of your amplifier without the need of a technician.

Yellow Jackets® have been manufacturing tube converters for over a decade.

yellowjacketstc.com

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A Day in the Life of the 4 Amigos Guitar Show!

Posted on 13 August 2010 by Mike Kolbenson

In one word, awesome. In two words, awesomely awesome!

Share My Guitar Show!

Last Saturday, 8/07/2010, I made a trip down to the Santa Monica Civic Center to check out the 4 Amigos Guitar Show which I had heard about from another article on SMG, and I’m glad I did. There was a reasonably sized auditorium full of headstocks; a sight that could make any fretted instrument enthusiast go wild.

Before I headed out to the show, I knew that you can buy, sell and trade equipment (aside from the oogling), so I grabbed two pedals and took them with me just in case anything sparked the “I CANNOT GO ON WITHOUT THIS!” kind of feeling, thinking that I would be able to bargain. I brought a Line 6 DL4 Delay Modeler knowing that I could get about $175 in a pinch but was reluctant to release it from my arsenal. I also took my Digitech Death Metal pedal which I have not used in about 2 years, so I figured I could probably trade it for a less expensive octave pedal around $40 – $50.

I Must Be Dreaming

The first thing I noticed when I walked into that auditorium was the sheer amount of rare and vintage gear up for grabs. Then I noticed some of the pricing on said gear and I was overwhelmed. One booth easily had over $200,000 worth of guitars, with each guitar commanding about $12,000! Oh but the guitars were definitely of quality, I even managed to find numerous incarnations of my next dream guitar, a Gibson ES-175. A Florentine cutaway never looked so sexy.

Parts!

I quickly realized this was as serious as a lighthearted guitar convention could get.

This place also had all sorts of parts for new or old guitars like: replacement necks, switches, pots, bodies, and pickups… anything and everything to restore or modify your guitar!

Well, I Never!

I also came across a few booths that had nice pedal collections and I saw things that I never knew existed before, like this Foxx Turtle Tone Machine.

This beast is a Volume/Fuzz/Octave/Wah all in one!

While browsing through pedals I came across something that caught my eye, a cheap octave pedal, to be more specific an old DOD Octoplus.

I tried it out on a Strat copy at the booth. I wasn’t too impressed and the man working the booth, although kind enough, really wasn’t into my trade (I don’t really blame him). But, man were there pedals….

Here are some of the other cool finds I found!

Sheet Music Guitar

Myself at the Roland station where they were promoting the MicroCube amp.

1966 Gretsch, Beautiful.

Time To Go

Although I didn’t want to leave, I felt that if I had stayed any longer, I wouldn’t be able to pay next months rent. This was time well spent, close up and personal with fine instruments from yesteryear. Not many chances come by when you can see a magnificent sight like this, as well as talk to fellow guitarists about one of their greatest loves!

If there is a guitar show like this coming to your area, I would highly recommend you report there ASAP to simply ingest the guitar knowledge floating through the air, and maybe you might just pickup something when your girlfriend turns around… just kidding.

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Mike Kolbenson is a staff writer at SMG. Mike is a recent graduate from Purchase College, SUNY and absolutely in love with all things guitar. Email: mikekolbenson@sharemyguitar.com

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Amp Review: The Orange AD30HTC 30W Amplifier

Posted on 14 July 2010 by Nick Arrietta


The Orange AD30HTC 30W Amplifier is something to get excited about!

Orange Music Electronic Company is a British electric guitar and public address amplifier manufacturing company, famous for its distinctive bright orange Tolex-like covering on amplifier heads and speaker cabinets. Orange also manufactures amplifiers for bass guitar, speaker cabinets for instrument amplifiers and combination (combo) amplifiers.

Out of the box

The Orange AD30HTC amplifier gives you a very British sounding crunch tone. Being that is was made by the Brits, rightfully so. The mellow gain is perfect for rhythm guitar tones and riffs. For a 30 watt amp it is surprisingly loud and full. The AD30HTC breaks up nicely at higher volumes and is crisp at lower volumes. If you are a metal or hard rock guitarist, this is not the amp for you. However, if you are a rock guitarist looking for smooth crunch and fast attack, then this IS the amp for you. Once the tubes heat up, it’s a rocking little amp!

Specs

The AD30HTC all-tube guitar amp head offers 2 dual stage channels with completely separate signal paths for smooth channel switching. It’s like having 2 valve amps in 1. The Orange AD30HTC amp’s channel 1 has a thick, creamy, classic tone when pushed to higher volumes. Channel 2 has a tighter, springy and slightly faster character with more mids and a bit more gain.

Features

  • Channel 1 and 2 controls: gain/volume/bass/middle/treble
  • Configuration: channel 1/ channel 2—clean thru distortion
  • Output: 30 watts – Class A
  • Tubes: Preamp – 4 X 12AX7, Output – 4 X EL84, Rectifier – 1 X GZ34
  • Speaker: 2×12
  • Dimensions: 21-3/4″W x 10″H x 9-1/2″D
  • Weight: 39-3/4lb.

The Low Down

The Orange AD30HTC is a great addition to any setup giving you that classic crunch and thick bright tone. If you are looking for the classic tone with a bit lower gain then, this is the amp for you. The AD30HTC has amazing channel switching with absolutely no lag time. The clean tone is beautiful and bright yet you can create that warm thick tone if desired. It’s a bit pricey for the average guitar player, but it has a very unique tone that you can’t get with other amplifier manufacturers. This baby sounds best with single coil pickups.

Pros: Great British tone, Lightweight, cool color.

Cons: Expensive being a specialty amp, not enough gain options.

MSRP - $1629.00

Till next week thanks for reading and keep on shredding!

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Nick Arrietta is a staff writer at SMG. Nick is a professional Music teacher from California and has been playing the Guitar for 24 years. Along with teaching music he is a touring guitarist, studio musician and songwriter. Email: nick@sharemyguitar.com

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Review: Gator Cases G-Slinger Deluxe Double Gig Bag

Posted on 12 July 2010 by Mike Kolbenson

Gator Cases G-Slinger Deluxe Double Gig Bag allows for storage of two guitars and more!

Wait… I can only take one guitar? AAAHHHH!

I made a decision, and I booked a one-way ticket to Los Angeles. On Continental Airlines, a passenger is allowed two bags under 50 pounds each or suffer extra baggage fees. I allotted one piece of luggage for a guitar because I figured I would also need clothes. As a guitarist for 9 years, I have acquired some pieces of equipment with which I have made a special bond. How could I only choose one?

A big influence in my choice of gear was what would survive the probable abuse from aircraft cargo personnel, but as soon as the idea of choosing only one guitar to take with me occurred, I searched for some kind of compromise. There had to be something, what kind of cruel world would force me to choose only one guitar!

An epiphany occurred while browsing through a local music shop circular; I could use a double guitar case, thus making the decision of what to pack slightly easier. My budget was modest and I knew the plight of heavy hard-shell cases all too well, but I desired similar protection. Combing the Internet, I found a plethora of double guitar bags, but I wanted one that could withstand the hardship of flying commercially. I researched for a bit and decided that Gator Cases met my demand. Not having much experience with their products, I felt as though I was rolling the dice.

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AMP-ED: The Reverberation Effect

Posted on 07 July 2010 by Guest Post

Guest post by Kurt Prange. Kurt is the Sales Engineer for Amplified Parts in Tempe, AZ. Kurt began playing guitar at the age of nine in Kalamazoo, MI. He is a guitar DIY’er and tube amp designer who enjoys helping other musicians along in the endless pursuit of tone.


    Photo by Fern Richardson

The Reverberation Effect

A listener standing some distance from a sound source will perceive sound that is actually a combination of direct sound and indirect sound that has been reflected from the boundaries of the listening area. The reflections are referred to as reverberation. Reverb can enhance the perceived sound from a source by adding depth, color and liveliness.

Reverb can be thought of as being composed of two parts:

1) Early reflections – shape the listener’s conception of room size
2) Cluttered reflections – convey the liveliness of a room

Imagine you are inside a large hall and you clap your hands once. The length of time required for the arrival of the very first reflections is called the delay time (usually on the order of tens of milliseconds, e.g. 33 ms) and is related to the volume of the room (or distance of the reflective surfaces from the listener). The number and density of reflections increases rapidly with time and they become cluttered while simultaneously decreasing in level until they are no longer audible. The length of time required for a sound to decrease in level by 60 dB is called the decay time (usually on the order of a few seconds, e.g. 3 s) and is related to the acoustical properties of the reflective surfaces in the listening area. For example, poured concrete walls will reflect more (absorb less) acoustic energy than drywall.

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Shipping A Guitar Takes Extra Care

Posted on 25 June 2010 by Corey Palmer


Photo by by Gérard Farenc

Whether you are a musician on the move or have sold an old guitar on eBay, it is important to know how to ship a guitar properly. These delicate devices need to be properly packed for shipping so that they are not damaged.

For proper shipping of a guitar, it is obviously necessary to pack it properly.

The first and foremost step is to loosen the strings of the guitar by at least one step. While shipping, the strings might experience high tension and this can cause them to snap and cause unnecessary tension on the neck.

The next step is adding proper padding to the guitar in its case. Each section of the guitar’s main body requires a separate amount of padding. The lower portion is usually padded with one layer of bubble wrap or something similar. If you can fit it, I would even say to go for two layers. Rule of thumb here is that if the guitar can move around in its case, it can probably get broken during shipping.

The guitar’s neck is quite delicate and needs to be packed the most carefully. The padding of an electric guitar neck should be very thorough. The materials used for padding can be cotton cloths, folded newspaper, packing peanuts or anything else you see fit. Again, the guitar should not be able to move inside the case.

After packing the guitar neatly and snugly in its case, it is placed inside another cardboard box for shipping which is also filled with packing material. This is important as it prevents the guitar from all the bumps and jerks that it will be exposed to during shipping. In many cases, air bags can also be used, but they do not provide complete protection.

That’s about all there is to it. Make sure your strings are loose and that everything is properly padded. Taking a little extra time will make sure that your guitar makes it to its final destination in one piece. Oh, and get the insurance!

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Corey Palmer is a guitarist from Woodstock, NB Canada who has been playing for the past 20 years. During this time, he has been a member of many different bands ranging from rock, metal and even a little country. He currently jams with a band called gNosh. Email: coreypalmer@sharemyguitar.com

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Review: TC Electronic’s PolyTune Pedal Tuner

Posted on 23 June 2010 by Dan Coplan

TC Electronic’s PolyTune is the World’s First Polyphonic Guitar Tuner!

TC Electronic is a Danish company founded in 1976 by musician brothers Kim and John Rishøj. They started by seeking ways to improve the quality of guitar pedals and as the business grew, they expanded into rack-mounted effects, audio interfaces and processors, software, and computer hardware. With a focus on innovation and quality, TC Electronic is recognized as leaders in their field. They’ve attracted a lot of attention recently with their release of a guitar/bass tuner in pedal form that allows players to tune all strings at the same time!

FRESH OUTTA THE BOX

The PolyTune is cased in a rugged metal housing with standard input and output jacks on either side, a heavy duty metal footswitch, large LED display, and 9V power jack on the back. Also on the rear are two small switches to change how the pedal functions: visual feedback in ‘Needle’ or ‘Stream’ mode for both guitar and bass, dropped tunings down to 5 semitones (no setting for alternate tunings – straight dropped tunings only), and reference pitch adjustment from 435Hz to 445Hz. A power out jack allows the pedal to serve as a power supply to other pedals through a daisy chain cable. Word of warning: You can easily confuse this for the input power jack and fry the pedal. I immediately put a piece of tape over it just to be safe. A USB port offers a way to service the unit (not meant for the end user). A single almost dime-sized screw on the bottom, easily loosened by a coin, allows access to the battery. Not easily visible, but present in the lower right side of the display, is an ambient light sensor meant to adjust the brightness of the display according to the environment.

GIMMICK OR THE REAL DEAL?

The first thing I noticed was the bright display. Several small red and green LED’s combine to give visual feedback. The LED’s are dimmable which aids in more accurate feedback. Clicking through the various functions was intuitive as my changes were clearly displayed. I would prefer a little better resolution, however, as the LED’s are spaced pretty far apart (relatively speaking) which rides the fence between a cool Christmas lights display and smooth, refined legibility.

Author’s 1st attempt tuning right out of the box. Quicker results achieved with just a little practice.

The moment of truth! I strummed all six strings and an arched row of lights across six columns immediately lit up. This, too, was simple to understand as a single row of green pairs designates notes in tune. Red pairs above and below at various distances from the middle reveal degrees of sharpness and flatness for each string. Plucking individual strings immediately engages the chromatic mode and I was given more refined feedback to dial in each note perfectly. This auto-switching feature is great, the response is quick, and it works well. One additional gripe I have about the display is I would like to see some sort of bold and clear indicator for each string whether it’s in numerical form like ’6 5 4 3 2 1′ or note form like ‘E A D G B E’. With all the lights going at once in polyphonic mode it can be a bit tricky for your eyes to decipher which string is which.

THE FINAL WRAP

The PolyTune works as advertised. I found that even though I started tuning in polyphonic mode, I almost always checked each individual string for greater accuracy. If I were in a huge rush on stage to get in the ballpark between songs, this pedal would save me time. It does also help to get a badly tuned guitar in rough tuning quickly. The auto switching feature is great so you can decide for yourself. If you’re a cutting edge Poly Tuner – go for it! If you’re old school, go string by string – doesn’t matter. The PolyTune will get you there quickly and reliably one way or another.

PROS: Big bright display. Tunes polyphonically and chromatically on the fly. Additional tuning features available. True bypass.

CONS: No clear reference for each string in polyphonic mode – lots of lights can make it tricky to single out individual strings. LED resolution is a bit coarse.

MSRP – $149

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Dan Coplan is senior staff writer at SMG. Dan is a Los Angeles based cinematographer and self-admitting guitar junkie. Email: dancoplan@sharemyguitar.com

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Review: The Spider Capo By Creative Tunings

Posted on 18 June 2010 by Nick Arrietta

The Spider Capo allows for custom tunings like no other!

Creative Tunings

In the summer of 2004, two musician friends in Woodstock, NY had a “what if…” conversation. Jazz guitarist Peter Einhorn and classical guitarist Frederic Hand wondered… what if it were possible to capo each string of the guitar individually? What if you could play in hundreds of different open string tunings? Imagine the extraordinary creative possibilities. Both had utilized alternative tunings such as dropped D and DADGAD. They knew that the potential for other tunings was mind boggling.

Out Of The Box

I wasn’t sure what to think when I first opened the Spider Capo. It looked nothing like a traditional capo, however once I realized what it was intended to do, a light bulb lit up. The Spider Capo has six individual levers to either select a new note or leave the existing open note to ring. The tuning possibilities are vast to say the least. It takes a bit to properly align the lever over the strings as you have to position it near the bottom of the fret to get it to work. Once you hit the sweet spot its go time!

What Does The Spider Capo Do?

The Creative Tuning Spider Capo allows you to capo each string individually, making hundreds of open string tunings possible without needing to detune your instrument. With the Spider Capo, you can play all the bar chords and riffs you already know, plus unlimited new chords which where previously not possible with standard tunings. You can also change guitar tunings while playing, finger above and below the capo, play melodies with open string accompaniment. You can easily use the Creative Tuning Spider Capo in all music settings whether live, recording or just jamming. The Spider Capo allows you to experience new tunings, keys, harmonies, and textures.

Final Thoughts

After spending about a week toying around with the Spider Capo I found it to be a great tool for just about any style of play as well as a great writing tool. The Spider Capo easily allows you to detune mid song, as well as switch on and off grace note during play. It’s a great innovative idea created by creative tunings. Bravo! Everyone should check one of these out, you will not be disappointed. I have already purchased another one so I am experimenting with two Spider Capos simultaneously!  This is a great product and I would recommend it to anyone looking to expand there musical ideas.

Pros: Easy to use, on the fly changing, compact, allows both post and pre-note access, works well with both acoustic and electric guitars.

Cons: A little bit pricey.

MSRP – $29.95

Till next week, thanks for reading and keep on shredding!

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Nick Arrietta is a staff writer at SMG. Nick is a professional Music teacher from California and has been playing the Guitar for 24 years. Along with teaching music he is a touring guitarist, studio musician and songwriter. Email: nick@sharemyguitar.com

Like this post? Then you won’t want to miss the other awesome posts we have planned. Subscribe to Share My Guitar and get new posts delivered daily…for FREE!

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