i've only really tried one made in the USA strat. while i'd say it was comparable, it's not quite the same. then again mine is 13 years old and my friends is only 2-3. the american felt a little tighter and heavier. although the tightness might be a result of his maple fretboard where all of my guitars have rosewood or ebony boards.

with the extra money necessary to buy an american strat i'd just pick up a mexican and use the extra money to upgrade the pickups and get a pedal or two. then again i haven't really tried other mexicans besides mine, so the new ones might not be of the same quality.

Ok, so ive been a guitarist for the past 7 or 8 years...

Gear I've got...

I play a Ibanez SZ 320 mahoganny which i quite like. It does the job..Ive played better guitars but this suits me fine. Its a semi pro range guitar and sounds sweet!

I play that through a Mesa Boogie Single Rectifier 100 watt and a Marshall Cab...sound is huge!

Effects : in order...

Boss TU-2 Chromatic Tuner..>G2D Classic overdrive..>Modified Boss EQ-7..>Electro Harmonics Memory Man with Hazarai.

I usually use my amps clean channel as dirty it up with my G2D overdrive pedal and get some nice sounding overdrive..not needing to much gain for most of what i do..sounds nice and smooth...

I would recommend an EQ pedal to everybody!they are really great if you can get a good one... Mine was crap until i moded it..

Ive also got a Maton EM 225...so beautiful. And sounds amazing through a PA..

I would love to get a tele.

I'm thinking of getting a Ibanez TubeScreamer TS808 though...anyone got one?what do you think of it?

i make sounds with a '96 Danelectro guitar with lipstick pickups. i use a fender sidekick reverb.


and they say "real guitarists" never stick with their first guitar, fuck that.

Right now, (Bassist by the way) Just a simple Fender Jazz Standard and Trace Elliot combo rig. It's sufficient enough to gig with, evidentally I'd be looking to gig in an ampeg and a couple of different Jazz basses if I had the money, But at the moment I don't. :/

I'm in my first piano competition this weekend at the Rivers School Conservatory and I am insanely nervous. Anyone have any tips for overcoming the nerves when performing?

YouTube - Queens Of The Stone Age - Feel Good Hit Of The Summer

:p:


seriously though, good luck. maybe try taking advantage of the nervous energy rather than overcoming it, see it for what it is and just run with it. it's normal to be nervous, get used to seeing the world while you're on edge, find out what you're capable of doing when you're senses are in overdrive. you might surprise yourself and find that it helps you more than you considered possible.

when you're facing the crowd focus on something in the back of the room like the fire exit sign or something. it gives the impression you're looking at the people without having to make specific eye contact.

most importantly. breathe. it seems incredibly basic but controlling your breath will improve your performance and presence. focus on taking full deep breaths before you get out on stage, it'll calm you down and make you appear to be more relaxed (and it might actually relax you too hehe)

Thanks for the tips. I tend to really stress myself out in these situations. Like have you ever had your knees shake or your hands quiver? This can be a problem when playing the piano as you can imagine. This rarely happens to me but it has before. I just hope I can be relaxed since this will probably be one of the largest audiences I've ever played for.

to be totally honest i've never been nervous before playing music for a crowd but i've also never been in a situation like yours. it runs counter to my personal views on performance (more power to you for doing it though)

a friend of mine was in the drama club in high school and they were all about breathing exercises and light meditation prior to performances. i'm left to assume those relaxation exercises can be applied to other types of performances as well.

either way good luck and let us know how it goes.

i am currently playing a PRS SE EG through a Line 6 Spider 2 amp. I am currently saving up for a Fender Deluxe. Then my effects goes as follows: Crybaby Wah, MXR Distortion +, Big Muff, Boss OC3, Digitech Digital Delay, and then a Digitech RP 300, it's not the best thing - but it has some decent delay on it.

Drummer in the house. i've been playing for about 6 years. i've got a 5-piece Pearl export, with pretty much the standard cymbal arrangement... 20" ride, 14" hats, and two 14" crashes (all zildjians btw).

I'm fairly good at the styles i play, however i havent really ventured outside of the realm of rock at this point. i'd like to be able to play jazz and other genres well. i also enjoy experimenting with unusual time signatures (i.e. 5/4, 7/4, 7/8, 11/8, etc). i'm not that great at it though lol:o: