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[cvtele]

Welcome cvtele!

Another in a long line of us who came back to the guitar after an extended absence. Nice set of gear....how do you like the tweaker?
So what course have you looked at the most since joining?

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone. I've had the Tweaker for about 6 weeks and really like it. I can definitely get some very nice tones out of it. Almost (but not quite) enough to make me sell my Princeton.

So far I've bounced around to a bunch of courses but do need to focus in and complete some. Really liking Fretboard Breakthrough and the Blues Jam courses.

[cinder cherman]

1- How many years have you been playing?
Since I was 12, so, 26 years ago. I started with folk fingerstyle, then indie, then a long break, then funk, now moving on toward chord harmony.

2- Favorite styles?
Chic-like funk, chord harmony, textural effects.

3- Describe your guitar and rig.
Fender Am.Dlx Tele & Hot Rod Deluxe amp, Diamond compressor, Eventide Modfactor, counting the seconds till Strymon Timeline is released.

4- What do you think about TrueFire?
Excellent choice of courses and teachers, great value for money compared to lessons or all the book tutorials I've bought and never got through, I *love* that each course has sample lessons to try out - there are courses I'll buy that I'd never have considered to be my thing otherwise. Blog seems well kept up and varied - interesting stuff like asking tutors what they play to test guitars in a store. Apart from being well presented and maintained, it feels like there's creative thought going into it, which is all too rare.

5- How can we make this forum better for you?
I've no good suggestions. I'd like a Howard Morgen pop-up every 40 minutes that says "Take a break my friend, get yourself a coffee. Now if you add cream and sugar, is that a substitution?"

[bluesonsix]

Hey guys brand new here so I thought I would chime in ...

1- How many years have you been playing?
25

2- Favorite styles?
blues & jazz mostly. Some funk, surf, rockabilly, early R&B and R&R.

3- Describe your guitar and rig.
Guitars: Fender Strat, Tele, 335, Guild Archtop
Amp: Vintage Sound VS115 (BF Vibroverb Clone)


4- What do you think about TrueFire?
What I've seen so far has really been excellent. Truefire has really sought out some monster players who also happen to be excellent teachers.

5- How can we make this forum better for you?
no thoughts yet since I just signed up. Still getting used to everything.

[Scrat]

Hi everybody, nice to meet you all.

1- How many years have you been playing?

2 years, when spare time presents itself.

2- Favorite styles?

Classic rock, classic metal, slow blues, R&B, world-influenced electronica.

3- Describe your guitar and rig.

Korean-made Fender Strat with Seymour Duncan single-coils, Fender Super Champ XD, BYOC Mouse, MXR Flanger, MXR Carbon Copy, a few other toys, all adding up to a pretentious embarrassment of riches given my lack of skill and experience.

4- What do you think about TrueFire?

Just what I hoped. I sometimes lurk in the shadows of another site's forum where Jeff McErlain mentioned his Kings of Tone course, leading me to TrueFire. So far I'm very impressed with the quality of instruction. Most of it is way over my head, but some of it is only a little over my head, so that's where I start. I expect to learn a lot here.

5- How can we make this forum better for you?

Better? I just got here, but I'll let you know if I come up with anything.

Scrat

[Hutch82]

Welcome Scrat good to see you on board hope you enjoy digging in to all things Truefire if you have any questions just ask away we a friendly bunch of guitar nuts Curious about your r n b, electronica tastes who you into ?

H

[wvgman]

Hope you find a load of things here that benefit you in your pursuit of guitar playing pleasure! I know TrueFire and the forum has been a great resource for me. Great info, extraordinary lessons, and good folks to talk to about all things guitar. Hang out and have fun! Glad you are here!

[Scrat]

Thanks for the welcome. Glad to have found this place.

Hutch82, R&B-wise I gravitate to songs featuring smooth female vocals. (What, Disturbed and Aretha Franklin don't mix?) I like the mellower side of TLC, Aaliyah, Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, Mary J. Blige, Sade... Not educated in the genre, just acquired a taste for it from my wife's collection. Over on the electronica side it's a lot of Bluetech, Desert Dwellers, Phutureprimitive, Aes Dana, and most recently The Orb w/ David Gilmour. Instrumental stuff I can have on the headphones at work and disappear the rest of the world to concentrate.

Scrat

[jimiclaptoncarl]

Welcome cvtele, cinder cherman, and Scrat!!!

Hope you guys enjoy the forum!!

[zaphod123]

1- How many years have you been playing?
35 years on and off. Unfortunately it was a lot more off than on...

2- Favorite styles?
A lot of different styles. My favorite players are Brian Setzer, Alex Lifeson, and Eric Johnson.

3- Describe your guitar and rig.
I have a few different guitars:
1962 Fender Jazzmaster
1980's Zion Turbo
Reverend Club King RT
Warmoth Telecaster
Carvin AE-185
1970's Epiphone Acoustic
Ovation Viper
Ibanez Classical
Yamaha Bass

Amps:
Early 70's Fender Twin Reverb
Laney AOR 30 Combo
Line 6 Flextone 3

Effects:
I mainly use a Digitech GNX 3000 with the Supermodels addition. I also have various stomp boxes and a few older rack mount effects.


4- What do you think about TrueFire?

I liked it enough to purchase a year subscription after the 1 month trial! I like that the lessons are geared toward empowering you instead of just playing someone's song.

5- How can we make this forum better for you?

More offers to post and get free stuff!

It is great that the instructors hang out in here and answer questions and the SWAT members are great, too.

Are there any other TrueFire members in SoCal?

[cubanjack]

1- How many years have you been playing?
I began playing guitar for the past 35 years ago - took a long break for almost ten years, then picked it up again one year ago.

2- Favorite styles?
Blues has always been my favorite style but I also like classic rock and heavy metal.

3- Describe your guitar and rig.
Guitars:
Schecter Hellraiser C1 with EMGs
Fender Deluxe Roadhouse Strat
Fender Squire Bullet

Amps:
Line 6 Spider IV 75watt Combo
Carvin Valvemaster 100watt Head

Effects:
my primary effect pedal is a Boss ME-50


4- What do you think about TrueFire?

This is the best instructional site I've ever seen. There is so much information it's hard to decide where to begin.

5- How can we make this forum better for you?
Keep it motivational.....

[wvgman]

Good to see you here, Zaphod and cubanjack!

Hope you find all you are seeking here and that you enjoy all the great things at TrueFire. The forum is a great place to exchange ideas and learn more about the courses and all other things related to guitar. You will find a lot of the instructors stop by from time to time and give some extra insights to things as well.
Have fun, hang out, and make yourself at home!

[Hutch82]

Welcome to Truefire cubanjack sorry I have this image of Johnny Depp with scarves hanging from your Schecter cool...anyway good to have y'on board. Enjoy the Truefire experience and all the other guitar heads around here. See you around

H

[cbearw]

Hi All!!
My name is Tom. I'm 57 and live in Western Canada.
I've been mostly a mandolin player for the last 40 years with some pretty big gaps of "down time" along the way. I have almost always had an acoustic guitar kicking around and played mostly folk and a bit of bluegrass flatpicking on it. About six months ago my younger brother loaned me a Martin 0-15 parlor sized guitar. I haven't played the mandolin much since. I fell back into playing what I started out playing on the guitar which was mostly folk only I began to access some instruction on U-tube. Eventually I stumbled onto Truefire.
My favorite styles are still folk and blues and a bit of jazz as well as a bit of country and bluegrass as well as some celtic. I still love Cat Stevens/Yusuf and James Taylor after all these years. Since discovering Truefire I'm leaning more into the blues fingerpicking styles and blues in general.

My guitar is the Martin small bodied mahogany pre-war scalloped braced 0-15. It is as light as a feather and has all kinds of sustain, clarity and tone. Just a little sweetie. I would like to get an electric guitar one day and try some of the blues stuff on it.

When I found Truefire I took the free membership for a month or so. Got half way through David Hamburgers Fingerstyle Blues Handbook 1 course and my membership ran out. . By then I was hooked and had to join up at level 2. I am currently halfway through David's Fingerstyle Handbook 2. I love the way David breaks down this material. He's just a supurb instructor and is always there when I need him! He's one of those patient types that makes something difficult very easy to play with a bit of practise. I've also surfed around to a few of the other courses and they all look really good. So much killer stuff but my little brain can only absorb so much! Truefire is definitly a guitar players dream come true!! I love Truefire TV and have been watching the video lessons and printing of the tab and that seems to be working for me. I got the power tab working but really haven't tried it out very much. I think Truefires moto of "practise smart and play hard" sums it all up very nicely. Thanks to Truefire I know I'm practising smart and making the best use of my practise time being plugged into the best instruction available anywhere on the planet!

I'm pretty new to the forum but I did ask a question just yesterday and was promptly helped out by some of the kind regulars here on the forum. I think the forum and the community of great contributers is another feature that makes Truefire such a great place. I hope to remain a member for many years to come and will recommend Truefire to as many of my musical friends as I can.

[wvgman]

Glad to see you here on the forum. I can tell already that you are going to love TrueFire. That Martin sounds like one really sweet guitar! Hang out, have fun, and make yourself at home. Lots of good folk here with loads of info on all things guitar.

[docbop]

Don't know if this the right place, but sure it will be seen by right eyes.

Has TF ever considered doing a class on Pat Metheny? Be cool to cover his basic approach to music, common lines, approach to neck, chord voicings, sound. I think it would make for a great class covering a living legend of Jazz guitar and composition.

[Hutch82]

Don't know if this the right place, but sure it will be seen by right eyes.

Has TF ever considered doing a class on Pat Metheny? Be cool to cover his basic approach to music, common lines, approach to neck, chord voicings, sound. I think it would make for a great class covering a living legend of Jazz guitar and composition.

You're right about the living legend docbop try this post in the Artists and Educators thread might live better in there

H

[docbop]

You're right about the living legend docbop try this post in the Artists and Educators thread might live better in there

H

Thanks, did it.

[Ibanetsch]

1- How many years have you been playing?

-28 years

2- Favorite styles?

-rock, rockabilly, blues, jazz, bluegrass

3- Describe your guitar and rig.

Ibanez RG321 (2 mahogany oil, 1 grey)
Ibanez RG3EX1
Ibanez S470
Ibanez 7321
Ibanez Artcore AS73

2 Fender American Teles
Fender Highway One Strat,
Gibson Les Paul Tradiational,
Gibson Les Paul Special DC Faded,
Gretsch RHH6120

Marshall JCM 900
1975 Fender Twin Reverb

4- What do you think about TrueFire?

-so far I'm loving it! Tons of information and lessons. Couldn't be happier. Best online lessons I've ever seen, and I think I've seen them all!

5- How can we make this forum better for you?

-still have a lot to look at and read, but it looks good so far. Maybe an updated look, but that doesn't matter much to me. Fancier isn't always better. It's the content that matters.

[wvgman]

Glad to see you here, Ibanetsch! Be sure to send an e-mail to nancy@truefire.com and let her know you posted this and ask for the freebies. Have fun here! It is a super cool place for all things guitar!

[Ibanetsch]

Yep, I already emailed her. Thanks wvgman!

[herby]

Welcome from me too Ibanetsch. This is a great place. Jump in and and join the fun.

[rjung1]

How many years have you been playing?
I have been fooling around with the guitar for some 20 plus years now with some extended breaks throughout that time. I've recently decided its time to get serious and try and take it up a notch.

Favorite styles?
Anything I can actually play....
I mostly play blues and classic rock stuff, would like to expand into rockabilly, surf, jazz and country more and also develop fingerstyle skills on acoustic.

Describe your guitar and rig.
'52 RI Tele
G&L ASAT Tele
'62 RI Strat
Gretsch 6120 Brian Setzer
Amps
Fender Deluxe Reverb, Princeton Reverb, Champ
Carr Mercury
Peavey Classic 50

if thats not embarrassing enough (for my level of playing) add a bunch of pedals! My GAS has exceeded my discipline....

What do you think about True Fire?
I think True Fire is wonderful and just what I need. I signed up as a level 2 last November and have been just hitting the courses. It was overwhelming at first and I bounced around a bit - like a kid in a candy store, but now I am focused on certain core areas and enjoying the tremendous educational resource the Fire is.

How can the forum be improved?
I don't have any suggestions. For me the forum has been a wonderful supplement to the courses/lessons. I have not posted, but that doesn't mean I not lurking!

[wvgman]

Glad to see you here, rjung1. I think you will find you are in a boat that many of us share as far as getting back to playing after an extended time away from it. THis is a great place for folks like us. Lots of good folks to talk to and share guitar info here. Hang out, have fun, and make yourself at home! By the way, that is some nice gear you have listed here. Very nice! And we all do have chronic GAS as well.
Enjoy!

[OldGtrNovice]

I'm Mark. I've always been a guitar rock fan, Gary Richrath saw to that. I was in high school when REO's live album came out. "Hold the Line" by Toto also hit the airwaves around that same time. I got my first acoustic guitar in about 1978 but the fingers didn't work so I gave up. I got the bug about 10 years later and bought a Charvel Model 3a (white, hss, Kahler) for $350 and again could not find the discipline to move forward. I sent that gtr to LA with my brother and it never came back (still breaks my heart). Anyhow, I again started reading guitar stuff a couple of years ago and a friend loaned me his Strat for a while. Now, I'm hooked. I've bought three Guitars, three amps and lot of other gear since December and I'm far from done. Ive always had a serious gas issue. I'm a music and a guitar fan. I played the clarinet all thru high school (funny how my band directors never taught us about minor pentatonics :0) )and I've been singing, playing drums, and doing live audio most of my adult life. *I started taking lessons in February to push me forward. I read a lot, watch Marty Schwartz videos, and mess around on my own but I'm really looking forward to getting some formal training. I'm in my late 40s and I am so excited about being a guitar player.

I'm mainly a rock and country guy. I am a big fan of 80s hair band music. Reb Beach and Vito Bratta rock my world.

I have an Ash MIM Tele, a Powerhouse Strat, and an Ibanez S470. I've replaced the pickups on all my guitars. I use a PodXT Live and I run it through a Boss CS-3 and a GE-7. I also have a BBE Green Screamer, a Vox Satchurator, and a Boss Tremelo. I mainly play thru an E-H 44 Magnum into a Jet City 1x12. I also have a Vox VT30. Yeah, I'm a tone freak and a gear head. 20 years of doing live audio will do that to you.

I LOVE Truefire. I stumbled across the 50 Funk licks and now I'm hooked.

[Hutch82]

Great to see you on the Truefire bus Mark I'm sure you'll bliss out with all the stuff to dig into and hey you got the funk, it wont let go you know. Enjoy yourself and get in that regular practice groove don't forget to check out beboy's fantastic charts and theory pdf's too

http://truefire.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1304

See you around

H

[wvgman]

Hi Mark, or OGN as I think I callled you in another post! Glad to have you on board here at the forum. Hang out, have fun, and make yourself at home. A lot of guys here played years ago and got away from it only to be coming back to revisit their former passion. Practice smart and Play hard as they say around here!

Oh, some very nice gear you have there too!

[Wolfboy1]

Lots of new guys I seemed to have missed and some awesome gear as well. To all of you, email Nancy for your free swag, post pictures of your gear and a sincere WELCOME

[herby]

Hello Mark... Great introduction and after reading it I can tell you that you're going find a LOT of guys on here that you've got a lot in common with. This place is a gold mine. Dig in buddy.

[drewrey2004]

Hello to all. My name is Drew and been playing on and off for about 4yrs. I'm 27 yrs old. Started with listening to my father who is a phenomenal guitarist. Grew up listening to him play mostly puerto rican music but he exposed and expanded himself to a lot of blues, rock, and a little jazz. Always looked up to him but never was able to get him to teach me. Thank God for truefire. It has so much information that helps explain how to play what we hear in our heads. Got hooked and purchased level 2 after watching Rhythmology from Brad Carlton who is an amazing teacher. My musical mind, after learning a little theory, has opened so much since then. A lot of AHA moments after watching these lessons. Thanks Truefire for all the help and encourage to keep on going.

[herby]

Welcome Drew. You'll fit right in. Truefire is the place of AHA(!) moments.

[beboy]

Hi Drew, Welcome to the forums!

I think you are going to like it here. Your description of Brad Carlton and a lot of AHA moments seems to describe how a lot of us on thses forums feel.

Please let us know if you need anything.

[rjbasque]

Hey Drew, welcome to the Fire.
The information well here at TrueFire runs very deep. The biggest problem is too many quality choices. Rhythmology is a fantastic course, with your Level 2 membership I would look at CAGED Cracked as a companion course, because the scale/chord concepts are covered in a little more detail (5 movable chord form/scales).

If you have any theory questions, instructor Chris Buono has a theory Q/A thread which he monitors. Also some of us can also help on some stuff as well.

[drewrey2004]

Thanks everyone for the welcome. I'm excited to learn more.

I actually went through the Caged Cracked course and that's where I had one of the first AHA's that got me hooked. I'm digging into Brad Carlton's Improv A La Mode. There is so much information on here. It's easy to lose yourself and get overwhelmed. I found that starting with applicable theory in his course that covers modes is a good foundation to start with along with what we learn in Caged Cracked.
For example, I've never really played piano before but it was needed at my church, so I stepped up and gave it a try and all I know is what I've learned from the modes course and Caged Crack and it went pretty good. Not a master on the keys at all but was able to fill in the void where needed.
It's tempting to drop the guitar and stay on the piano with how easy it was to play but my love is with the guitar.

[wvgman]

Welcome aboard, my friend! There is no reason you can't keep playing both piano and guitar. I have seen a lot of great guitarist who have piano training in their background and the theory things always seem to be better visually understood on the keyboard. Glad you are having a blast with TrueFire and we are glad to see you as part of the forum as well. Make yourself at home and have fun!

[Wolfboy1]

Hi Drew and another WELCOME

Glad your are here and stop back often....your Dad sounds like a cool guy

[pencil]

1.About twenty years 2.Rock/blues 3.Vintage strat /sea foam green/play through a fender can 4.Trufire is a blessing for guitar players anywhere in their quest to master electric guitar.5.The forum is kind of run by the members .To be able to talk about everything is good enough for me.

[gadlaw]

1.About twenty years 2.Rock/blues 3.Vintage strat /sea foam green/play through a fender can 4.Trufire is a blessing for guitar players anywhere in their quest to master electric guitar.5.The forum is kind of run by the members .To be able to talk about everything is good enough for me.

Welcome pencil, and indeed you are right, this forum is run by and for the customers of TrueFire - united in Guitar education and from around the world. Pretty awesome actually.

Stay tuned, there are going to be great new courses coming in the next few months and more great things happening. Don't forget to send that email to Nancy.

[wvgman]

Glad you checked into the roll call thread! Check out everything TrueFire has to offer and chime in anytime here on the forum. We love to hear some new thoughts and ideas. Hang out, have fun, and make yourself at home. Glad you are here!

[herby]

Welcome to the wonderful world of TF Pencil. Jump into the vids, the forum and everything else offered here, and enjoy!

[Wolfboy1]

Welcome pencil. Yes it's run by customers for the most part. The tech stuff is done inhouse by REN. Brad W. owns the show and he shows up almost daily. Slasner is an inhouse jack of all trades but almost everyone else, including all SWAT guys and Friends of the Fire are customers who liked the product and the service so much they made positions for us.
Have fun and visit when you can.



(actually somehow they got us to do the work.....did you ever read Huckleberry Finn?)

[Leedelta]

Welcome newbies.

Dont be afraid to look around and ask questions or suggest ideas.

Here are a few places to check.

For new music ideas head to "Music you are listening to right now"

To get an detailed overview of some of the courses head to "Truefire Blogs" where us customers are writing/have written blogs about certain courses.

The "Gear" section is about GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) which most of us have. So if you are thinking about some new gear there is a chance somebody on the forum owns or has played it!

Have fun.

[daemery]

a) How many years have you been playing?
30 years on and off...

b) Favorite styles?
Currently excited about Blues and and working thru the "West Coast Blues" Course
Have taken classical lessons as a kid and Flatpicking Blugrass lessons as an adult
c) Describe your guitar and rig.
Currently playing a Ovation Celebrity Acoustic
and Ibanez AF73 Electric thru a Vox VT20 Amp or a Fender Mustang which ever is closer to the guitar!!
d) What do you think about TrueFire?
Really like the quality the West Coast Blues Course and look forward to working on more courses in the future.
e) How can we make this forum better for you?
I am just beginning to navigate my way thru the forum so I'll reserve the right to add constructive criticism in the future..

[wvgman]

Glad to see you here, Daemery! THis is a great place to talk and learn about all things related to guitar and TrueFire. Friendly folk and lots of info. Hang out, have fun, and make yourself at home!

[pencil]

Some say twenty years some say six years some say thirty years.But has anybody really recorded time practicing,playing not time sleeping or driving.So when someone tells you i've been playing and he tells you a number you know that in twenty-four hours he played two hours for twenty years so what does that add up to thirty days.

[wvgman]

Until I had to go out on the disabled players' list last month, I had been keeping track of my daily practice sessions and recording the time and general content of each session. Hope to get back to it as soon as my wrist is well enough.

[gadlaw]

a) How many years have you been playing?
30 years on and off...

b) Favorite styles?
Currently excited about Blues and and working thru the "West Coast Blues" Course
Have taken classical lessons as a kid and Flatpicking Blugrass lessons as an adult
c) Describe your guitar and rig.
Currently playing a Ovation Celebrity Acoustic
and Ibanez AF73 Electric thru a Vox VT20 Amp or a Fender Mustang which ever is closer to the guitar!!
d) What do you think about TrueFire?
Really like the quality the West Coast Blues Course and look forward to working on more courses in the future.
e) How can we make this forum better for you?
I am just beginning to navigate my way thru the forum so I'll reserve the right to add constructive criticism in the future..

Constructive Criticism and brilliant suggestions are always welcomed here!
And welcome to the forum. And how are you liking that Fender Mustang? Those interest me because they seem fairly simple to deal with while providing a great deal of flexibility. I have a G-Dec 30 and enjoy it very much.

[pencil]

twenty years of playing guitar at say two hours practice a day would equal 1.66 years of guitar playing time this is a update.

[wvgman]

I agree that in the given context, "time actually spent" playing guitar is far less than the "duration of time spent" engaged in playing guitar or any intermittent activity, but applying the same logic to some situations is not necessarily a good idea. For example:

A doctor gives you 30 pills and tells you to take one each day and it takes you one full second to take one of the pills. 15 days later you are rushed to the emergency room with severe cramps and impaired speech. The person with you tells the medical staff that you have been taking this medication. When asked how long you have been taking it, they reply "15 seconds."

My point is that, yes, in a ten year period of "playing guitar" some have actually played for 36,500 hours (an hour a day X 10 years, roughly) and others have only played 608 hour (approximately 10 minutes per day X 10 years). However, the way we usually communicate concerning the duration of time one has been involved in playing guitar is rarely as specific. The general question "How long have you been playing?" is generally understood to denote the time elapsed since you began undertaking the study of the instrument. It is the "common usage" of the idiom in English.

If you were found playing your guitar and someone asked you that question, "How long have you been playing?" and you replied, "About 10 minutes," the questioner would probably think you were attempting to be a smart mouth. That is just how commonly the question is used to inquire about the duration of your study as opposed to the hours and minutes actually spent playing.

I really do not think it is an issue that we should allow to get us all wrapped around the axle. If it is such an issue, maybe we should pursue it in a different thread under the section of Practice and Technique rather than in the introductions thread. If you wish to start a thead on the issue under that section, I will be glad to voice my opinion on the matter over there.

[herby]

a) How many years have you been playing?
30 years on and off...

b) Favorite styles?
Currently excited about Blues and and working thru the "West Coast Blues" Course
Have taken classical lessons as a kid and Flatpicking Blugrass lessons as an adult
c) Describe your guitar and rig.
Currently playing a Ovation Celebrity Acoustic
and Ibanez AF73 Electric thru a Vox VT20 Amp or a Fender Mustang which ever is closer to the guitar!!
d) What do you think about TrueFire?
Really like the quality the West Coast Blues Course and look forward to working on more courses in the future.
e) How can we make this forum better for you?
I am just beginning to navigate my way thru the forum so I'll reserve the right to add constructive criticism in the future..

Welcome daemery. Happy to have you join this fun guitar-loving group. Jump in and enjoy!

[Wolfboy1]

And yet another "Welcome Daemery!"

I have never even looked at "West Coast Blues" (I am a repulican ya know). Glad to hear your are enjoying the course, come by and visit when you can and....thanks for posting!