Selling Gear to Acquire Regret?
I've been thinking a lot about a major shake up to my collection, and this time it isn't about guitars... it's about amps. My recent obsession with That Pedal Show, along with the appearance of more than a few PRRI 68 reissues online have got me thinking about having that clean platform to play with.
Besides, pedals ARE cheaper than guitars.
For the majority of my guitar playing life, I've been a pretty pedal heavy player, relying on all the usual suspects from Boss and Fulltone to create sounds through some type of clean amp (Blues Junior, DRRI, Pro Junior, Supersonic, Ampeg Jet II, Dr. Z Maz 38).
Then I acquired my wee Marshall DSL-1C, and the pedals went away. Most were sold, and the ones that weren't went into storage. Guitar - Cable - Amp... that was putting a smile on my face. I recently pulled out my trusty Fulldrive 2 (the 10th Anniversary Edition) and started to play around with it a bit. Didn't love it with the Marshall at any setting, but through a solid state Peavey I was reminded why I liked it so much - I really did seem to interact with the amp. No, it didn't sound great*, but I could hear the potential.
*Digression - No, the Peavey isn't some god-send of tone, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. It's reliable, and the "transtube" wizardry gives a pretty convincing dynamic feel at EXTREMELY low volumes. I would be more than comfortable bring it to a jam session if I could find a pedal that boosted it without sounding harsh.
All this pining for a Fender combo (or something similar) has me thinking about what to sell to make it happen. The problem is, and has been, that I can't see myself parting with anything in my collection right now. The Les Paul Studio is always top of mind, but I played it last night and it felt and sounded....right. I'd regret selling it. The Marshall DSL1C? I know I'd regret that very soon after, especially given the limited nature of that amp.
This turned my attention to my old picture folder, the gear that has passed through my hands throughout the years, and the pieces I do and don't regret letting go of. Here are some thoughts on some of these.
Really? Starting off with a sub-$100 pedal?
Yup, and I'll tell you why. Everyone should have a reverb pedal in their bag, and this was a pretty good one.
There are lots of great amps out there without built in reverb (with effects loops) that sound so much better with a half-decent reverb in the FX loop. Sadly, I sold this one for $50 (what I paid) for reasons unknown. Stupid.
I don't regret selling this one. It came up locally for a good price (that I talked down a bit), and I was hoping for a pint sized version of my love affair with my Maz 38. The love affair never came to be.
Voiced differently than the MAZ, I never enjoyed playing through this, though I understand how the voicing would help cut in a band situation despite the low wattage.
Money no object I think I'd set my sights on the Maz8, but who has that kind of money?
I came across this amp in a straight up trade for the above mentioned Mini-Z. Talk about going from one end of the spectrum to the other.
Compared to the Mini-Z's spartan controls, this thing was like NASA's mission control. Two channels with independent tone controls, selectable "contour", and reverb. Also LOUD. Boogie watts are louder. I don't know why.
The contour control was a holdover from the DC series, which featured a 5 band graphic eq. Here, the contour provided a preset "V" shape with a gain boost. Great for achieving that 90's Metallica grind, not much use for anything else if you ask me.
I recall my brother coming over to check it out, and after plugging in with my Blacktop and hitting a few chords he smiled and said "THAT's the sound".
Yes, yes it was. But it wasn't my sound, so it got traded for a...
REGRET = ALL
If there is one guitar I regret selling more than any other, it is this one. Purchase over in Japan and brought back in a nice SKB case, this Stratocaster was loaded with Texas Specials (hence the "TX" designation) and sounded so good.
You'll note it's a stock photo. For some reason, I don't have a picture of it, despite having posted it on Kijiji to sell. May be on an old hardrive. I'll have to look.
It was far from a perfect guitar - the switch and pots weren't top quality, and I'm sure it could have been improved with a Callaham cold rolled block, but it was a really sweet guitar, especially through the Maz 38.
I thought I had come back across it the other day, with someone listing a near identical guitar, but with the pickups swapped. I asked a few overly probing questions and it turned out not to be. Another bitter reminder was all I was left with.
I know I already have 3 Strats, and while I wouldn't part with any for this, I would very quickly part with the Les Paul or the Marshall to get mine back.
Besides, pedals ARE cheaper than guitars.
For the majority of my guitar playing life, I've been a pretty pedal heavy player, relying on all the usual suspects from Boss and Fulltone to create sounds through some type of clean amp (Blues Junior, DRRI, Pro Junior, Supersonic, Ampeg Jet II, Dr. Z Maz 38).
Then I acquired my wee Marshall DSL-1C, and the pedals went away. Most were sold, and the ones that weren't went into storage. Guitar - Cable - Amp... that was putting a smile on my face. I recently pulled out my trusty Fulldrive 2 (the 10th Anniversary Edition) and started to play around with it a bit. Didn't love it with the Marshall at any setting, but through a solid state Peavey I was reminded why I liked it so much - I really did seem to interact with the amp. No, it didn't sound great*, but I could hear the potential.
*Digression - No, the Peavey isn't some god-send of tone, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. It's reliable, and the "transtube" wizardry gives a pretty convincing dynamic feel at EXTREMELY low volumes. I would be more than comfortable bring it to a jam session if I could find a pedal that boosted it without sounding harsh.
All this pining for a Fender combo (or something similar) has me thinking about what to sell to make it happen. The problem is, and has been, that I can't see myself parting with anything in my collection right now. The Les Paul Studio is always top of mind, but I played it last night and it felt and sounded....right. I'd regret selling it. The Marshall DSL1C? I know I'd regret that very soon after, especially given the limited nature of that amp.
This turned my attention to my old picture folder, the gear that has passed through my hands throughout the years, and the pieces I do and don't regret letting go of. Here are some thoughts on some of these.
Digitech X-Series Digiverb
REGRET = YES
There are lots of great amps out there without built in reverb (with effects loops) that sound so much better with a half-decent reverb in the FX loop. Sadly, I sold this one for $50 (what I paid) for reasons unknown. Stupid.
Dr. Z Mini-Z
REGRET = NOPEI don't regret selling this one. It came up locally for a good price (that I talked down a bit), and I was hoping for a pint sized version of my love affair with my Maz 38. The love affair never came to be.
Voiced differently than the MAZ, I never enjoyed playing through this, though I understand how the voicing would help cut in a band situation despite the low wattage.
Money no object I think I'd set my sights on the Maz8, but who has that kind of money?
Mesa/Boogie F35
REGRET = NOPEI came across this amp in a straight up trade for the above mentioned Mini-Z. Talk about going from one end of the spectrum to the other.
Compared to the Mini-Z's spartan controls, this thing was like NASA's mission control. Two channels with independent tone controls, selectable "contour", and reverb. Also LOUD. Boogie watts are louder. I don't know why.
The contour control was a holdover from the DC series, which featured a 5 band graphic eq. Here, the contour provided a preset "V" shape with a gain boost. Great for achieving that 90's Metallica grind, not much use for anything else if you ask me.
I recall my brother coming over to check it out, and after plugging in with my Blacktop and hitting a few chords he smiled and said "THAT's the sound".
Yes, yes it was. But it wasn't my sound, so it got traded for a...
Fender Supersonic 60
REGRET = NOPE
A Fender, but not the typical Fender. I'm pretty sure this was based on the early "Prosonic" design, which I recall being dubbed "Fender's Boogie". Appropriate then how I came about owning it.
A Fender, but not the typical Fender. I'm pretty sure this was based on the early "Prosonic" design, which I recall being dubbed "Fender's Boogie". Appropriate then how I came about owning it.
Unlike the Prosonic, this had two channels, the first offering a Blackface/Tweed clean channel (tweed sounded much better), and a lead channel with two gain controls - one for the top end of the spectrum, the other for the bottom. It allowed for some pretty great tone shaping options.
At 60 watts though, this sucker was loud. As I've mentioned previously, this was the amp I traded for the 1985 Contemporary Stratocaster, which in turn lead me to writing this blog.
Fender Stratocaster ST62-TX (CIJ)
If there is one guitar I regret selling more than any other, it is this one. Purchase over in Japan and brought back in a nice SKB case, this Stratocaster was loaded with Texas Specials (hence the "TX" designation) and sounded so good.
You'll note it's a stock photo. For some reason, I don't have a picture of it, despite having posted it on Kijiji to sell. May be on an old hardrive. I'll have to look.
It was far from a perfect guitar - the switch and pots weren't top quality, and I'm sure it could have been improved with a Callaham cold rolled block, but it was a really sweet guitar, especially through the Maz 38.
I thought I had come back across it the other day, with someone listing a near identical guitar, but with the pickups swapped. I asked a few overly probing questions and it turned out not to be. Another bitter reminder was all I was left with.
I know I already have 3 Strats, and while I wouldn't part with any for this, I would very quickly part with the Les Paul or the Marshall to get mine back.
