# General Mandolin Topics > General Mandolin Discussions >  My mandolin got eaten by a Stratocaster.

## Caleb

I turned 44 not long ago and for some reason found myself shelling out cash for a shiny blue Fender Stratocaster.  I've not played electric guitar in many years but I'm having a blast.  My poor mandolin hasn't been out of the case for days.  I'm now Jonesing for a Marshall amp.  What kind of madness is this?  Midlife meltdown?  Will it pass?  HELP.
 :Crying:

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Gene Summers, 

lflngpicker

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## lenf12

It could be worse. You could have taken up golf  :Laughing: 

Len B.
Clearwater, FL

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billhay4, 

Billy Packard, 

Charles Johnson, 

Charlie Bernstein, 

EdHanrahan, 

Gene Summers, 

GMorgan, 

Kevin Stueve, 

Louise NM, 

Paul Merlo, 

TC-in-NC, 

Timbofood

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## Roger Moss

"Gam zeh ya'avor"

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## Marcus CA

the best of both worlds

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Caleb, 

Elliot Luber, 

Timbofood

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## lenf12

> the best of both worlds


And you don't need a Marshall amplifier. A Fender will do quite nicely.



Len B.
Clearwater, FL

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Timbofood

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## Bertram Henze

It could be the beginning of cool multitrack recordings and videos.  :Cool:

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Jess L.

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## stevedenver

> I turned 44 not long ago and for some reason found myself shelling out cash for a shiny blue Fender Stratocaster.  I've not played electric guitar in many years but I'm having a blast.  My poor mandolin hasn't been out of the case for days.  I'm now Jonesing for a Marshall amp.  What kind of madness is this?  Midlife meltdown?  Will it pass?  HELP.


Not for several years...longer if you get in a band.

Marshall....? 2204.

Or a clone, freidman, etc.

Btw, fenders are lovely too. Use a pedal...or.....
Go big.....a matchless dc 30r.
Id skip the stacks....makes yer pant legs flap, and big grin,  but, hard to move, no longer practical...ive got a 6100 in blue...love it. Pita to travel with compared to a 1x12 50w combo.

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## Bertram Henze

> And you don't need a Marshall amplifier. A Fender will do quite nicely.
> 
> 
> 
> Len B.
> Clearwater, FL


...or a Vox AC 30

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## Caleb

> Not for several years...longer if you get in a band.
> 
> Marshall....? 2204.
> 
> Or a clone, freidman, etc.
> 
> Btw, fenders are lovely too. Use a pedal...or.....
> Go big.....a matchless dc 30r.
> Id skip the stacks....makes yer pant legs flap, and big grin,  but, hard to move, no longer practical...ive got a 6100 in blue...love it. Pita to travel with compared to a 1x12 50w combo.


Yes, Fenders are nice too.  Last time I had an electric rig I had a Crate Vintage Club, which is basically like a Fender Blues Jr.  Very nice amp, and it looked the "vintage" part since it was all blond and gold.  These can still be had on the used market for a song.  As far as pedals go, I'm a guitar-into-amp kind of player.  All those pedals are a distraction.  Just give me a good guitar and a good amp with reverb and I'm set.

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lflngpicker

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## Mark Gunter

I bought a new Gretsch acoustic last month, G9521 Style 2 000 slotted head 12-fret to play around with. It took me about a month to warm up to it, but I've had such a blast with it this week I've gone all week without touching the mandolin until this morning. No worries about it for me, though, my love for mandolin hasn't dwindled. Sometimes guitars just call out to me these days. I like the sound and size of the mandolin too much to give it up; someday I hope to be an adequate player on it.

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## lenf12

> I like the sound and size of the mandolin too much to give it up; someday I hope to be an adequate player on it.


Don't we all???  :Crying:   :Wink: 

Len B.
Clearwater, FL

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MikeZito

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## stevedenver

> Yes, Fenders are nice too.  Last time I had an electric rig I had a Crate Vintage Club, which is basically like a Fender Blues Jr.  Very nice amp, and it looked the "vintage" part since it was all blond and gold.  These can still be had on the used market for a song.  As far as pedals go, I'm a guitar-into-amp kind of player.  All those pedals are a distraction.  Just give me a good guitar and a good amp with reverb and I'm set.


Peavy classic 30 , good tube amp, very affordable, tweed too!
Hot rod devilles are superb, affordable imho, and i have one, amp that is...lol.

I happen to get chills when i hear a "fender through a fender", clean.

Otho, i am a les paul/tele guy. Like dirt too.
Id strongly suggest ceriatone, they build superb marshall, hi watt, matchless, and other clones, and use the right trannys for vintage sound. P-t-p wired, superb, a great quality and way easier to bias than older marshalls. Way less too. Just no nameplate, which i got over long ago.

Yeah 44 might have some impact.....seems the bug bit hard around that age for me too, disposble income, career stability, no longer young or cute.....etc...

Way cheaper than a new girlfriend or ferrari...just for perspective....lol.

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## Caleb

I know Marshalls aren't everyone's cup of tea, and the hybrids in particular, but back in the early 2000s when I was heavy into the blues, they had a line of amps called Valvestates with tube preamps.  I've always wanted one and plan on getting one to go with my Strat.  I'll keep you all posted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNgYFxxrVLk

I wish the guy had used a Strat...

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## F-2 Dave

Know what you mean. My telecaster stays tucked away most of the time, but recently after buying a super cheap MIM Duo-Sonic at a pawn shop, the guitar bug has bit again. The tele is out and plugged into the silver faced Princeton Reverb, ready at a moments notice to wail away (as soon as I have the house to myself). Enjoy your Strat.

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Caleb

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## darrylicshon

I have many guitars, don't play them much, so I bought the Eastwood  Morris The Cosey , it's a lot of fun to play and it looks like a F style , it's the one in the middle

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## jaycat

I played a buddy's electric bass at a jam Friday night, and guess what, yesterday found myself at the local music shop forking over for a bass and bass amp. Spent this morning playing along with Muddy Waters songs...

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## MikeZito

For a very brief time, my mandolin took a back seat to a stunning Gretsch G5422G 12-string electric . . .  I guess 8 strings weren't enough to try to keep in tune!

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## Dave Greenspoon

Nice! Not the wisdom, nor the idiom, I expect to see here. Gam zu l'tovah!

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## soliver

It'll be ok, Caleb, once your Stratocaster is done digesting and poops out your Collings, you can just send it over to me. I'll take care of it for you.... I'll PM you my address  :Laughing:

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Kevin Stueve

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## Jack Roberts

I've been ignoring my mandolin for the past few weeks in favor of a hand-built dulcimer.  I've been trying to figure out the dulcimer, which is almost completely, but not quite, not the same as a mandolin...

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WaxwellHaus

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## Ivan Kelsall

Enjoy it Caleb. I do play my Tokai elec.Guitar every now & again & it's a real buzz !. I spend much of the time trying to programme the most ridiculous sound effects into my old Zoom 9002 effects processor,
                                                                                                     Ivan :Grin:

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## mando_dan

Funny, I'm 47 and for no good reason at all I recently bought a Fender MIM Mustang equipped with P-90s. Cheap but FUN guitar that oh so wants to play CCR AND Nirvana! My amp is little tube Bugera V5 that can actually be played at home acceptable volumes due to a built in attenuator that drops the voltage down to either 1 or 0.1 W. After swapping the two stock China-made tubes and replacing the stock speaker with an Eminence 820H it sounds superb! The funny part about all this- I'm a terrible guitar player, have zero free time, and have next to no expendable income for frivolities like this. Middle age hit hard....

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Caleb

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## Perry

> I turned 44 not long ago and for some reason found myself shelling out cash for a shiny blue Fender Stratocaster.  I've not played electric guitar in many years but I'm having a blast.  My poor mandolin hasn't been out of the case for days.  I'm now Jonesing for a Marshall amp.  What kind of madness is this?  Midlife meltdown?  Will it pass?  HELP.


I spent many year with mandolin even to the extent of not touching my guitar(s) sometimes for almost a year at a time. But then I picked up my guitars; learned to flatpick on them then started learning solo jazz guitar. 

I still play the mandolin and love it but there is something way more satisfying about a guitar especially in a solo (by yourself) context. 

I have several nice acoustics. On the electric side I recently got a Danocaster Tele and usually play it through a Headstrong Lil King which is a Princeton Reverb copy. Here is a sample of both:

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EdHanrahan, 

gtani7, 

Jess L., 

lowtone2

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## MediumMando5722

My main squeeze is an ‘87 USA Standard Strat w/ Texas Special pickups. They sound great set really low. I play it through an old Super Reverb, with a handful of dirt boxes. 11s, highish action, usually tuned Eb. You might say I’m into SRV  :Smile: 

What Strat did you get?

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## jaycat

Nice playing Perry.

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## Caleb

> My main squeeze is an 87 USA Standard Strat w/ Texas Special pickups. They sound great set really low. I play it through an old Super Reverb, with a handful of dirt boxes. 11s, highish action, usually tuned Eb. You might say Im into SRV 
> 
> What Strat did you get?


Sounds like a nice setup.  I bought a Squier Deluxe Strat in daphne blue.  It has the Duncan-type pickups, but I scrubbed off the logo from them.  I have always liked the high-end Squier stuff, and the Deluxe model had the neck shape I wanted.  Id made some offers on Reverb with no takers, and out of the blue one popped up on my local Craigslist.  Ive been having a blast with it.

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lflngpicker, 

Mike Black

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## Elliot Luber

> I turned 44 not long ago and for some reason found myself shelling out cash for a shiny blue Fender Stratocaster.  I've not played electric guitar in many years but I'm having a blast.  My poor mandolin hasn't been out of the case for days.  I'm now Jonesing for a Marshall amp.  What kind of madness is this?  Midlife meltdown?  Will it pass?  HELP.


I take a mandolin hiatus about once a year to play guitar solidly for a few weeks. It clears my head and eventually inspires me with a new perspective on mandolin. Also, it reinforces just how bad I have become on guitar. LOL

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## jesserules

> I turned 44 not long ago and for some reason found myself shelling out cash for a shiny* blue* Fender Stratocaster. <>What kind of madness is this?



Insufficient information.

Daphne blue? Lake Placid blue? Sonic blue? Mystic Ice blue? ...

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Jess L.

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## Caleb

> Insufficient information.
> 
> Daphne blue? Lake Placid blue? Sonic blue? Mystic Ice blue? ...


Daphne (see pic).

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## BrianWilliam

+1 for Stevie!

My strat has been in the closet under the stairs for 5 years. 




> My main squeeze is an ‘87 USA Standard Strat w/ Texas Special pickups. They sound great set really low. I play it through an old Super Reverb, with a handful of dirt boxes. 11s, highish action, usually tuned Eb. You might say I’m into SRV 
> 
> What Strat did you get?

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## Mando Mort

I multi-task between Mando, acoustic and electric guitars, electric bass and keyboards.  I enjoy playing them all!

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Jess L.

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## roysboy

As they might have said in Spinal Tap " Well......its two more strings than a mandolin isn't it ?"   ( or two LESS ...hmmmmm ? )

The place I happen to be sitting determines what I like playing best at that moment . A chair with arms means I'll pick up my mandolin . A chair or stool without arms meansI'll pick up the guitar . A Lazy Boy means " Don't wake me 'til dinner ".

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## LostVenture

To the OP. 
You know that there are 24 hours in a day, right?
That's plenty of time to spend with all of your instruments.
I have 30+ electrics and 4 mandolins, always a couple of each in easy reach.
Just saying !!!

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## Bertram Henze

> You know that there are 24 hours in a day, right?


Not counting the night...

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Marcus CA

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## catmandu2

Ive been an acoustic musician for some 40 years.  But my first instruments were guitar and sax (my first real electric was a 68 tele, eventually replaced with this boutique tele).  E gtr and tenor sax - two instruments that top anything else.  Currently I spend all my time on bass clarinet playing with my kids - my daughter has claimed possession of my saxes, so I'm on clarinets  :Smile:

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## vetus scotia

This is one of those threads that, when it first appeared, I thought, 'well, I'll never contribute to that.' (Haven't owned or even played an electric guitar in 20 years.) Ten days later and I just picked up a Tele from my local music store. It is only a rental. For now. It is 'Fender month' at the shop, and I can easily convert my rental into interest free financing....

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Caleb

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## lflngpicker

Hi Caleb, I definitely get you, man.  I vacillate between my love of blues electric guitar played through a tube amp, my singer songwriter acoustic stuff (my main gig all through life) and my now five year mandolin obsession with folk and blues.   The age does play a role in all this though...  LOL!   Just go with it!  Get the Marshall-- now me I love my Peavey Classic 30 with the gray tweed and SRV matched tube set, but just sayin'!  Dan

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Caleb

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## CES

As we get back into youth worship services this fall, I'll be dusting off my Tele and amp, I'm sure, especially as a couple of our guitar players have graduated and headed off to college. At some point I want to get a jazz box and a solid body with double humbuckers, but we just downsized, so not until I move some acoustic stuff along...

I'm an acoustic guy at heart, but it's always fun to play around with these things, and amplification is so much simpler with them (than picking out the right mic or pickup for the room, working out the EQ, and squelching feedback)...

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lflngpicker

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## jim simpson

My wife asked why I got a new electric guitar (Italia Maranello) when I only play out with mandolin. I still enjoy electric instruments even though I haven't gigged out with one in ages.

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## Daniel Nestlerode

Hybridize your urges.  :Smile: 

I spent an hour playing along to guitar tracks on YouTube videos the other night.

Daniel

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indexless, 

lflngpicker, 

Mike Black

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## Mike Black

> Hybridize your urges. 
> 
> I spent an hour playing along to guitar tracks on YouTube videos the other night.
> 
> Daniel


I agree, Hybridize your obsessions! That's what I did.   :Smile: 

I'm loving playing, and can't get enough of, my 4 string electric octave mandolins.

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indexless

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## catmandu2

https://youtu.be/h6r25HyQSkE

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## Rush Burkhardt

Try this on for size! The Eastwood Teleolin!  :Popcorn:

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## Caleb

> Hi Caleb, I definitely get you, man.  I vacillate between my love of blues electric guitar played through a tube amp, my singer songwriter acoustic stuff (my main gig all through life) and my now five year mandolin obsession with folk and blues.   The age does play a role in all this though...  LOL!   Just go with it!  Get the Marshall-- now me I love my Peavey Classic 30 with the gray tweed and SRV matched tube set, but just sayin'!  Dan


Hello, Dan.  Like you I go back and forth from singing songs on acoustic to mandolin and now to electric.  I still haven't bought a good amp, but have been doing tons of research.  The market seems to be flooded with cheaper amps that try to sound like tubes, and tube amps that are expensive and sound great.  I still like the old Valvestate Marshalls but am starting to see other options.  I've actually been having a great time playing unplugged while sitting around the house -- just getting my fingers used to the bluesy shapes again.  Lots of fun.  I'll keep you posted on the amp front.  

I've been trying my hand at Strat setup too.  I'm not very good at stuff like that but am trying to learn.  But... I see a trip to my local tech in my future....  
 :Laughing:

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lflngpicker

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## Caleb

> Get the Marshall...


Ok, you talked me into it.

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lflngpicker, 

Mike Black

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## dhergert

> It could be worse. You could have taken up golf 
> 
> Len B.
> Clearwater, FL


... Or banjo.  Or bass.  Or Dobro.  Or fiddle.  Or drums.  Or accordion... Or...

Wait, you're playing ELECTRIC GUITAR????  Noooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 :Mandosmiley:

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## vetus scotia

> This is one of those threads that, when it first appeared, I thought, 'well, I'll never contribute to that.' (Haven't owned or even played an electric guitar in 20 years.) Ten days later and I just picked up a Tele from my local music store. It is only a rental. For now. It is 'Fender month' at the shop, and I can easily convert my rental into interest free financing....


So a couple weeks ago I returned the MIM Tele (I had put it in the basement to make room for the Christmas tree, and it was not getting played much). I thought I was over my momentary electric phase. But then I go to the store for some mandolin strings, and see that it is Gibson month. No one told me that the body of an Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plustop PRO would be so redolent of a mandolin! (Though it is fairly obvious now that I think of it). And the tone through a tube amp? Well, it is so pure it feels practically acoustic!

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## belbein

I think the Moderators need to step in and stop this madness before it spreads !!!

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## Caleb

My fling with the Strat/Marshall set-up was fairly short-lived.  I think it was a semi-midlife meltdown thing for me.  I'm back to my books, acoustic guitar and mandolin: but my 18-year-old son loves the Strat, so I'm glad I got it.

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lflngpicker, 

mando_dan

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## indexless

it hit me when I was 55, I'd been deep in acoustics and never picked up and electric after I quit a band in Boulder in 1979,No it's 11 years later and Telecasters.....(insert Homer Simpson drool here)...then amps, so many flavors, each it's own little bundle of sonic fun, enjoy it and play like you mean it

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## Peter Barnett

Party on dude!

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## Daniel Nestlerode

> My fling with the Strat/Marshall set-up was fairly short-lived.  I think it was a semi-midlife meltdown thing for me.  I'm back to my books, acoustic guitar and mandolin: but my 18-year-old son loves the Strat, so I'm glad I got it.


See?
You shoulda grabbed a 4 or 5 string emando.  You'd still be playing it.   :Wink: 

Daniel

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lflngpicker

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## lflngpicker

> Ok, you talked me into it.


Did you hold on on to the Marshall, Caleb?  Looks like it is in great shape! Let me know if you want to sell it one day!  :Smile:  So your son loves that Strat!  Good for him.  :Smile:

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## Caleb

> Did you hold on on to the Marshall, Caleb?  Looks like it is in great shape! Let me know if you want to sell it one day!  So your son loves that Strat!  Good for him.


Yes, I held on to the Marshall.  It was exactly the model I was looking for and it's a keeper.  I'm not a tube purist and was quite taken by the Valvestates back in the early 2000s when I was heavily into electric guitar.  I never got one then because I had a wonderful little Vintage Club blonde amp by Crate (sold off when the acoustic thing got hold of me).  My son loves to get the Marshall out and play through it.  I think I paid a guy $200 for it via my local CL.

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## lflngpicker

> Yes, I held on to the Marshall.  It was exactly the model I was looking for and it's a keeper.  I'm not a tube purist and was quite taken by the Valvestates back in the early 2000s when I was heavily into electric guitar.  I never got one then because I had a wonderful little Vintage Club blonde amp by Crate (sold off when the acoustic thing got hold of me).  My son loves to get the Marshall out and play through it.  I think I paid a guy $200 for it via my local CL.


Caleb, I too had a Vintage Club blonde -- mine was the 20 watt version.  So Valvestate-- I haven't played through one of those before but I am aware of the preamp tube/solid state combination nature of it.  I will check one out sometime!

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Caleb

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## Caleb

> Caleb, I too had a Vintage Club blonde -- mine was the 20 watt version.  So Valvestate-- I haven't played through one of those before but I am aware of the preamp tube/solid state combination nature of it.  I will check one out sometime!


Wow, cool coincidence there with the Crate, Dan!  I think mine was only 10 watts but it was insanely powerful and loud since it was all-tube.  The downside is that it was one channel, but I used a compressor pedal and a tube screamer (and some reverb) with it, and I could easily just dial back the volume on my Strat to get cleaner tones.  But when I dialed it back up I'd get the coolest bluesy tones.  It was a lot of fun and it was part of a wonderful musical season of life for me that I sometimes miss.  But that's mostly about the people I was playing with and not the gear.  Another thread there!  

Again, I'm not tube purist or any kind of amp purist, but I love the sound of the Valvestate.  It reacts to touch and feel like a real tube amp, and long before all the technology got so crazy and realistic.  If you can find one from the late 90s/early 2000s, do grab it up.  You can get them for a song, and they were made in the old English Marshall factory; and, if taken care of, will probably last a good lifetime.

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lflngpicker

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## MikeZito

For the past 9 months my mandolins seemed to have vanished behind this dizzying array of electric mayhem . . . but this past weekend I somehow managed to break though this fortress of amplification and find my beloved Kentucky KM272 quietly and patiently waiting for my return.

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Caleb, 

lflngpicker

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## Michael H Geimer

Strat has not been picked up since getting this EM200 from our Classifieds last week. Also putting in a good word for the fantastic Vox AC30 as tube amp of choice for this household.

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lflngpicker

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## Charlie Bernstein

> I played a buddy's electric bass at a jam Friday night, and guess what, yesterday found myself at the local music shop forking over for a bass and bass amp. Spent this morning playing along with Muddy Waters songs...


Yup. Willie Dixon was The Essence - the granddaddy of 'em all!

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## Caleb

> For the past 9 months my mandolins seemed to have vanished behind this dizzying array of electric mayhem . . . but this past weekend I somehow managed to break though this fortress of amplification and find my beloved Kentucky KM272 quietly and patiently waiting for my return.


Love the Gretsch... and the RIC too!

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## MikeZito

Hey Caleb:

   Yes, the Gretsch is an amazing guitar - it is the _only_ 12-string I have ever owned over the years (and I have owned at least 6 or 7) that has just the right tone to match my singing voice, and was only about 1/3 cost of my former beloved Rickenbacker 12-strings . . . and whenever i bring it to a gig, people love the black and gold look.

    Even though the previous owner of my Ric 620 committed a terrible sacrilege but putting unknown humbuckers in it, the guitar still has a distinct tone - and cost me 1/3 of what a 620 would normally go for, because it had been so uncommonly modified.

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lflngpicker

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## Caleb

> Hey Caleb:
> 
>    Yes, the Gretsch is an amazing guitar - it is the _only_ 12-string I have ever owned over the years (and I have owned at least 6 or 7) that has just the right tone to match my singing voice, and was only about 1/3 cost of my former beloved Rickenbacker 12-strings . . . and whenever i bring it to a gig, people love the black and gold look.
> 
>     Even though the previous owner of my Ric 620 committed a terrible sacrilege but putting unknown humbuckers in it, the guitar still has a distinct tone - and cost me 1/3 of what a 620 would normally go for, because it had been so uncommonly modified.


You’ve got just about every tonal possibility covered with your collection!  Very nice.   Have you considered taking the Ric back to stock pups?

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lflngpicker

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## lflngpicker

Caleb, Good to know about the tonal spectrum and tube like tone from the Valvestate.  Thanks for that! And love those guitars, Mike!  Thanks for the lineup pic!   :Mandosmiley:

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Caleb

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## MikeZito

Caleb:  I already have a Ric 360 to give me the traditional 'Rickenbacker Tone', so I am leaving the humbuckers in the 620.  The tone is something like the mating of a Ric with a Les Paul . . . jangle with some extra heft at the bottom end.

Dan: That pic is only part of the family - check out my profile for a few more pictures  . . . that will still leave the collection photographically incomplete.


_To get back on the subject of this thread_:  How does everyone else find their way back to the mandolin after electrics get in the way?  With me, it was just a matter of feeling like their was something missing in my music (even though I had been busy with guitars, bass, keyboards, writing, recording) - and inexplicably suddenly realizing it was the lack of mandolin that was causing the musical hole.

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lflngpicker

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## catmandu2

Good heavens, I'll wax poetic over spilled electric gear!  I just remembered all the synths I've owned...my first was a DX7 - that I never learned to program - nor my second, a SC Prophet 600.  I had a Rhodes then too...  Ah life!

Where is the lament emoji?!!   :Crying:

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## lflngpicker

He Guys, Loving this electric and amps discussion!  Michael G-- the Vox AC30 along with the Fender Princeton tube version are both on my dream list.  The AC30 can handle anything!

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Michael H Geimer

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## Greg P. Stone

OK, I got back into the tube amp game with a Peavey Classic 20, an 18 watt using EL84s with the original 10" Eminence proto Ragin' Cajun. Also picked up the matching extension cab. After a few years my main tube amps became a pair of Ampex 2010 6V6 10 watt tube amps with 8" JBLs. I swear that these sound like my old Twin Reverb. I still use the Ampex's but ... the #1 amp for me until death do us part is now a 12 watt Tweed Deluxe 5e3 clone with a 12" Jensen which they tout as a reproduction of the original. To make it perfect I need to do the negative feedback mod.

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## Caleb

> _To get back on the subject of this thread_:  How does everyone else find their way back to the mandolin after electrics get in the way?  With me, it was just a matter of feeling like their was something missing in my music (even though I had been busy with guitars, bass, keyboards, writing, recording) - and inexplicably suddenly realizing it was the lack of mandolin that was causing the musical hole.


For me it's all about simplicity.  Electric guitar is cool and fun, but it's a serious hassle (especially when one doesn't have a music room) to drag all the stuff out and get it all set up. But I can go grab my acoustic guitar or mandolin and, after tuning, start playing.  Plus (and not to get weird) there is something earthy and simple and fundamentally basic and human (to me) about acoustic instruments and what happens when we play them.  No amps or cables or feedback or loops, just simple sound.  I don't feel as if I've described it well at all, but that is what always ends up calling me back to acoustic instruments.

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Charlie Bernstein

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## Charlie Bernstein

> For me it's all about simplicity.  Electric guitar is cool and fun, but it's a serious hassle (especially when one doesn't have a music room) to drag all the stuff out and get it all set up. But I can go grab my acoustic guitar or mandolin and, after tuning, start playing.  Plus (and not to get weird) there is something earthy and simple and fundamentally basic and human (to me) about acoustic instruments and what happens when we play them.  No amps or cables or feedback or loops, just simple sound.  I don't feel as if I've described it well at all, but that is what always ends up calling me back to acoustic instruments.


In the house, acoustic and electric are equally easy as long as you don't plug either in. For gigs, acoustic and electric guitars both mean a lot of peripherals for most people, although it's very true if you're just playing an acoustic someone else mic, it doesn't take any more than that.

Rehearsals are where I find the big difference is. At acoustic practices I just need an instrument, electric practices need a lot more lugging and set-up.

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## Caleb

Well, the midlife meltdown continues...  First, my mandolin got eaten by a a Stratocaster, and now the Strat has been eaten by a Les Paul.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know its an Epiphone and not a real LP, but it does have Less autograph on it, so there.  Ive never owned a LP or any guitar with humbuckers till now. 

I put the Strat on Craigs List not long ago to see if I could get some trade offers.  A fellow came along with this LP.  He said it was only a few months old. I checked the SN and he was right (made Dec 2018).  Through the Marshall its an absolute beast.  Ive been learning a bit of Rockabilly and early Rock and Roll lately and really wanted a Gretsch, but this trade was too good to pass up, and the LP absolutely nails early Rock sounds. 

As far as quality goes, this guitar is _extremely_ well-made, came stock with Grovers and very decent pickups, and the finish is absolutely flawless.  Its really incredible what one can get for the money these days (the plain top Standard sells for 5 bills new). When I started playing guitar back in the early 90s, an import guitar of this quality did not exist (well, maybe Fender Japan, but they were pricey).  

Anyway, Im having a blast.  An old friend just got a drum set and is learning to play (more midlife meltdown!) while Im relearning how to play Rock and Roll, so I see some semi-regular jam sessions on the horizon with the only goal being fun. 

Now Im geeking out on fancy reverb pedals...

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## roysboy

> Well, the midlife meltdown continues...  First, my mandolin got eaten by a a Stratocaster, and now the Strat has been eaten by a Les Paul.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know its an Epiphone and not a real LP, but it does have Less autograph on it, so there.  Ive never owned a LP or any guitar with humbuckers till now. 
> 
> I put the Strat on Craigs List not long ago to see if I could get some trade offers.  A fellow came along with this LP.  He said it was only a few months old. I checked the SN and he was right (made Dec 2018).  Through the Marshall its an absolute beast.  Ive been learning a bit of Rockabilly and early Rock and Roll lately and really wanted a Gretsch, but this trade was too good to pass up, and the LP absolutely nails early Rock sounds. 
> 
> As far as quality goes, this guitar is _extremely_ well-made, came stock with Grovers and very decent pickups, and the finish is absolutely flawless.  Its really incredible what one can get for the money these days (the plain top Standard sells for 5 bills new). When I started playing guitar back in the early 90s, an import guitar of this quality did not exist (well, maybe Fender Japan, but they were pricey).  
> 
> Anyway, Im having a blast.  An old friend just got a drum set and is learning to play (more midlife meltdown!) while Im relearning how to play Rock and Roll, so I see some semi-regular jam sessions on the horizon with the only goal being fun. 
> 
> Now Im geeking out on fancy reverb pedals...


The coolest thing about a 'mid-life meltdown 'is that the description of it is in the term.
its like an accepted insanity ....like when 12 year old boys' hormones put them off the rails for about 8 years or so . Electric guitars and associated gear is STUPID cheap in these times and decent quality , drums ,amps , pedals etc ....CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP . AND its the most forgiving instrument on the planet . Playing is sheer fun .

 Acoustic instruments ..( mandos ,fiddles , acoustic guitars etc ).....EXACTLY the opposite ...expensive ,delicate, not forgiving in the least and demand a commitment to even come CLOSE to having fun and mastering them . I lived in both worlds ....the acoustic thing is a non-stop challenge . 

 Geek On ,my friend ...Geek On

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Caleb

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## Caleb

This should have been titled the "Midlife Meltdown" thread.  I kept the Les Paul for a while and enjoyed it, but I honestly felt like a hack with a LP in my hands.  I guess because I was an 80s kid, a LP conjures up images of really great players like Slash (et al) and I couldn't shake it.  I will say it was an extremely comfortable guitar to play and I loved how fast and effortless the fingerboard/neck was.  

Anyway, I sold it off and ended up with a Squier Tele that I found on my local CL for a crazy price.  The guy had already changed out the pickups.  I got it home and did some fretwork, changed the crummy tuners, and converted it to a one-pickup Esquire style (pic was taken just before the change).  It's a screamer through the Marshall and it really nails the 1950s tones that I love.  

This thread started when I was 44 and I just turned 46 a couple days ago.  So far electric guitars have been the extend of my Midlife Meltdown -- no convertibles or girlfriends, so it's all good.  
 :Laughing:

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## MediumMando5722

After spending the last year convincing myself electric guitar wasn’t my home base, I’m back to two Strats and a Les Paul Standard. The Strats are a ‘96 MIM Tex Mex, a partscaster built by an old friend, and the LP is a “replica” (Chinese counterfeit) relic’d by the same guy. The parts guitar will hold its own against my long-gone USA, and you’d never know the LP was a fake if I didn’t tell you. 

My time is split between these and my F-5, and I’ve recently figured out how to love them all equally. We’re gonna try incorporating the electrics with my bluegrass group soon. I can do all the mando chopping on the guitars, and I’m way more comfortable playing lead on them.

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Caleb

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## Woyvel

Hello everyone, my name is Woyvel...and I'm a mandolin player.  

I was a guitar player, and suffered from GAS (gear acquisition syndrome).  As the pandemic grew near in March I decided to get a new guitar, and on a whim, bought a heap mandolin as my "quarantine hobby".  I'm afraid it's become an obsession.  {sigh}  

I've since bought two more mandolins, one costing more (without a trade) than I've ever spent in 40 years on a guitar. I'm now looking for a 4th, electric mandolin.  I haven't picked up a guitar in over a month now.  I've spent more time with my mandolins than that new guitar I bought in March.  Now I'm...[gulp]...looking to sell or trade in more guitars to buy the right electric mandolin.   Thank you.

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## j. condino

Some of my recent guitar justified distractions: a squeeky clean 1966 fliptop and one of my new Les Paul style guitars currently on the workbench...

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Caleb

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## slimt

Got my Strats.   :Smile: .   And my Mandolins.    And just bought a 00042 authentic Martin

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## Caleb

> Got my Strats.  .   And my Mandolins.    And just bought a 00042 authentic Martin


Wow, very cool collection.

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## darylcrisp

i stumbled into electric over this past winter. had never really had the itch for it, love acoustic instruments so much. but, i had a couple electrics for setups and i really enjoyed the whole time with them. traded a taylor acoustic for a USA  PRS custom 24, and then had to have this 70's tele in vintage blonde with humbucker in the neck. researched amps extensively, was going to build a tube amp using a kit from stewmac, but i didn't want the weight or the issues. Fender had just introduced the Deluxe Reverb tonemaster and after i heard and played thru it, i picked one up. i'm all set, and done now. i do have a driving urge to build a partscaster with two humbuckers though. picked up this faded surf green squire tele when i caught it on sale for $119. needed some fretwork, outside of that its really quite nice, and fun. put some 11's on it and raised the action a little and made it slide dedicated . i just turned 60 so i don't know whats going on with all this electric infusion in my life, but its really cool and i haven't dropped a lot into it. feel like a total beginner, its so different than playing an acoustic guitar-the touch, the feel. its a neat side step.

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## Rob Roy

What! No one told you serious mando heads all play tele's?  Edit: I see you ended up with a tele after all. A Marshall might be a little intense. To keep the peace, you might better go with a Princeton Reverb and a couple of pedals. Both my strat and tele love mine. Rock on!

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## Caleb

> What! No one told you serious mando heads all play tele's?  Edit: I see you ended up with a tele after all. A Marshall might be a little intense. To keep the peace, you might better go with a Princeton Reverb and a couple of pedals. Both my strat and tele love mine. Rock on!


I like Fender amps but this Marshall is perfect for the sound I’m going for.  I can get a 50s rock/blues tone with no pedals.

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## lowtone2

> I like Fender amps but this Marshall is perfect for the sound I’m going for.  I can get a 50s rock/blues tone with no pedals.


 In the 50s, rock/blues tones came from Fender amplifiers, and pedals didn't come around until the 60s. Just sayin...

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## Caleb

> In the 50s, rock/blues tones came from Fender amplifiers, and pedals didn't come around until the 60s. Just sayin...


Very good point.  I’m not sure why this combination works so well for the tone I like but it does.  Serendipity.

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## Caleb

The Midlife Meltdown continues...

So first it was a Stratocaster, then a Les Paul, then a Tele-turned-Esquire -- all of which failed to make a lasting connection for whatever reason.  The other day I came across one of the newly-redesigned Epiphone Les Pauls.  I've always been a sucker for goldtops but had never owned one.  We'll see how long this one lasts!
 :Mandosmiley:

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## Greg Connor

Ahhhhhh ... the joys of instrument acquisition!  I am an acoustic player like most people here, but lately Ive been plugging in the electric guitars, as well as  buying electrics, amps and pedals.  

Why?  Who knows!  Im 69 years old.  I should be acting my age.

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Caleb, 

John Soper

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## Caleb

> ...pedals.


Pedals!  I'm trying hard not to venture down that rabbit hole, but I would really like one of those fancy reverb units that can do all the ambient and spacey tones.  One of those looping devices looks like fun too, especially since I have no one to jam with.

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lflngpicker

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## Greg Connor

> Pedals!  I'm trying hard not to venture down that rabbit hole, but I would really like one of those fancy reverb units that can do all the ambient and spacey tones.  One of those looping devices looks like fun too, especially since I have no one to jam with.


Looper pedals are an absolute blast! Perfect for practicing lead breaks and really nice for playing out.  Get one with a separate “off” button.  It will save you some embarrassment when you are performing.

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Caleb

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## Chris Cochran

There are some great LIGHT WEIGHT solid state amps now, with tone about as nice as tube amps. Try a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb or Twin Reverb.

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lflngpicker

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## lflngpicker

> The Midlife Meltdown continues...
> 
> So first it was a Stratocaster, then a Les Paul, then a Tele-turned-Esquire -- all of which failed to make a lasting connection for whatever reason.  The other day I came across one of the newly-redesigned Epiphone Les Pauls.  I've always been a sucker for goldtops but had never owned one.  We'll see how long this one lasts!


Caleb, I am with you, brother! I bought a new Epiphone Casino (hollow body with P90's) recently and I love it.  Epiphone makes really good quality electric guitars.  I have owned several and the Les Pauls are competitive quality wise, when you consider their counter part can be three times more money.  They aren't three times better, IMHO.

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Caleb

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## Steve Lavelle

At the beginning of the pandemic I bought a cheap HH Squire ($160), figuring I might have a little fun. I have since repalced everything but the neck, and a new one is on order. Now all the big pieces of wood will be torrefied (Swamp ash for the body, maple/rosewood for the neck), the Fralin's can both split with push-pulls, and the switch gives me 6 positions (3 conventional choices and series in phase, series out of phase, and parallel out of phase). Bought nut files because cheap guitars all have the strings too high at the nut. I sold a Nashville Tele and a 335 about 10 years ago thinking I was done with that stuff. Could be worse, I had a sailboat when I was in my 20's, that was real money!

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Caleb, 

lflngpicker

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## MediumMando5722

Have you had a PRS yet? If not, treat yourself to one with the next guitar.

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## Caleb

> Have you had a PRS yet? If not, treat yourself to one with the next guitar.


I've never owned a PRS but I do like them.  

......................................

Another failed attempt at a love connection... I've already gotten rid of the goldtop Les Paul and have purchased another guitar online.  I'll post some pics and info when it shows up.  
 :Crying:

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## CES

I picked up a Blues Jr 15 watt amp a couple weeks ago and have been having a blast with it. I’m still debating my next guitar purchase. I like my Tele and can growl it up with an overdrive pedal, but I want a beefier option. I’m intrigued by the Jazzmaster with ‘62 pickups, but PRS is making some nice stuff now as well. Given the Weber story from today I should probably just find something in stock and roll with it...

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lflngpicker

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## lflngpicker

> I picked up a Blues Jr 15 watt amp a couple weeks ago and have been having a blast with it. I’m still debating my next guitar purchase. I like my Tele and can growl it up with an overdrive pedal, but I want a beefier option. I’m intrigued by the Jazzmaster with ‘62 pickups, but PRS is making some nice stuff now as well. Given the Weber story from today I should probably just find something in stock and roll with it...


That is one of my two favorite high quality, portable tube amps for gigging.  The Blues Jr and Peavey Classic 30 are my two favorites.  I hope you continue to enjoy it! I was a bit shocked by the Weber story. Glad I have mine.

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## lowtone2

I've just turned 70, and it apparently does not get better.

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MediumMando5722

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## gtani7

I started out with a little dinky Blackheart 5w tube head and Egnater 1x12, which cost $300 altogether and sounded great.  Now up to 4 cabs, 3 heads, which cost more than $300.  With 4x12, a couple 2x12's and 15 bass cab, need more room...

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## Caleb

> I've just turned 70, and it apparently does not get better.


Very cool guitar.

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## MediumMando5722

Check out the little Orange micro heads sometime. I had a Dark Terror, which is a single 12AX7 preamp tube and 20 solid state watt power amp, volume, gain, and a contour control for tone, which sweeps through EQ curves from scooped mids/boosted bass & treble to the opposite. Paired with a 12” speaker in a home made open back cabinet, it was awesome. Skip the Orange 8” matching cab, it sucks. 

With the aforementioned PRS guitar plugged straight in, just about any style is covered. Add an overdrive, and it was just insane. For blues jams, I velcroed a mini Tube Screamer to the cabinet, put a Wah in front, and it was a guitar in one hand, rig in the other setup that was great.

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## Caleb

Midlife Meltdown continued...

I think at last I’ve found a love connection.  It dawned on me a while back that I’ve been playing acoustic guitar so long that most electric guitars just feel awkward to me.  Most times they feel toylike.  So I decided to try a different approach: enter the Ibanez AF75.  It feels a lot like an acoustic guitar but does way more.  I love it.

Dan’s post about his Casino got me thinking in this direction.  Thanks, Dan!

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## lflngpicker

> Midlife Meltdown continued...
> 
> I think at last I’ve found a love connection.  It dawned on me a while back that I’ve been playing acoustic guitar so long that most electric guitars just feel awkward to me.  Most times they feel toylike.  So I decided to try a different approach: enter the Ibanez AF75.  It feels a lot like an acoustic guitar but does way more.  I love it.
> 
> Dan’s post about his Casino got me thinking in this direction.  Thanks, Dan!


These Ibanez's are absolutely the real deal.  I have owned a couple and loved them. (I get what you mean about the archtop and its similarities to acoustic guitars, and yet their ability to go bluesy, jazzy, country or rock out!)  Problem is I flip instruments when I want another guitar, mandolin or amplifier.  You enjoy this and congrats, Caleb!

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Caleb

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## CES

> That is one of my two favorite high quality, portable tube amps for gigging.  The Blues Jr and Peavey Classic 30 are my two favorites.  I hope you continue to enjoy it! I was a bit shocked by the Weber story. Glad I have mine.


I really wanted a Deluxe Twin Reverb 22 watt ‘62 reissue, but I mainly play at home and in church, and just thought it would be too much based purely on online research. Though I rarely go there, I hit Guitar Center so I could try a couple out. The youngster who jumped me when I came inside was actually very helpful. Told him I was looking for a tube amp I could play at home and church, no stadiums or big clubs given my talent level and day job, and that I wanted the Deluxe but thought it might be too loud, so I was interested in a Jr unless he had other ideas. I almost laughed when he set the master volume at 2, until I hit the first chord, and, man that thing is loud! I’ve gone as high as 4 when home alone (for a song or two), but 3 rattles the windows, lol, and any more than that for long and I’d need ear protection. My Red Dirt OD pedal works nicely with it as well.

My problem is my broad musical interests. If I just loved metal or blues or funk or punk or country or whatever, it would be a little easier to build a rig, but I’m all over the map, so I’m just keeping it simple and accepting some compromises. But, a semi-hollow PRS may be in my future...

And, yes, I’m very glad I have my Weber OM...

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lflngpicker

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## urobouros

I went the other direction.  I started with electrics & stumbled down the 8 string rabbit hole just in time for the pandemic.  Like most of my hobbies (obsessions) it started small.  The KM-150 was my gateway mandolin & now I have a couple mandolas, a bouzouki, an OM and a couple mandolins with another arriving on Sun  :Mandosmiley:   And then there are the electrics...to be fair, there was more running than stumbling down the rabbit hole  :Whistling:

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lflngpicker

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## lflngpicker

> I really wanted a Deluxe Twin Reverb 22 watt ‘62 reissue, but I mainly play at home and in church, and just thought it would be too much based purely on online research. Though I rarely go there, I hit Guitar Center so I could try a couple out. The youngster who jumped me when I came inside was actually very helpful. Told him I was looking for a tube amp I could play at home and church, no stadiums or big clubs given my talent level and day job, and that I wanted the Deluxe but thought it might be too loud, so I was interested in a Jr unless he had other ideas. I almost laughed when he set the master volume at 2, until I hit the first chord, and, man that thing is loud! I’ve gone as high as 4 when home alone (for a song or two), but 3 rattles the windows, lol, and any more than that for long and I’d need ear protection. My Red Dirt OD pedal works nicely with it as well.
> 
> My problem is my broad musical interests. If I just loved metal or blues or funk or punk or country or whatever, it would be a little easier to build a rig, but I’m all over the map, so I’m just keeping it simple and accepting some compromises. But, a semi-hollow PRS may be in my future...
> 
> And, yes, I’m very glad I have my Weber OM...


Hi Chuck, It is hard to beat the Deluxe Twin amp with 22 potent watts!  I have played one and it was amazing!  I listed those I could barely move and afford.  I guess I would say my realistic dream amp is a ‘65 Princeton, which can be had for around $800 used, I believe.  I admire those PRS semi hollow guitars and that does give one flexibility in style and application.  So glad about your Weber OM.  Weber will be back, but it was hard to read that such a leader in domestic mandolin production was taking a year long hiatus.

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## CES

Yeah, the Princetons are awesome! I almost got the Deluxe Reverb and one of the gadgets that cuts volume without killing the tone (totally blanking on the name, but demos online were impressive, but they were another 400-500 dollars. Im very happy with the Jr so far, though.

The PRS Ive been looking at gives enough sonic capabilities that I think it would keep me from getting three or 4 more guitars for specific purposes, lol

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lflngpicker

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## mandroid

cancel

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## Mandoplumb

Gave up mandolin for an electric guitar ????
Id see a doctor, something is wrong with you.

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## Caleb

> Gave up mandolin for an electric guitar ????
> I’d see a doctor, something is wrong with you.


Did not give it up, just adding variety to life.

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lflngpicker

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## Billgrass

I stumbled into a opportunity buy on a Gretsch Chet Atkins. Put 11s on it and I just love the sound. Also my wife lets me play while we watch TV.

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lflngpicker

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## kookaburra

> The Midlife Meltdown continues...
> 
> So first it was a Stratocaster, then a Les Paul, then a Tele-turned-Esquire -- all of which failed to make a lasting connection for whatever reason.  The other day I came across one of the newly-redesigned Epiphone Les Pauls.  I've always been a sucker for goldtops but had never owned one.  We'll see how long this one lasts!


That's a great looking goldtop Caleb!  I also like what Epi did with the headstock on the new design.

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Caleb, 

lflngpicker

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## slimt

My Mandolin got eaten by a Strat.  Then the Strat got eaten by a Harp Guitar.  :Grin:

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lflngpicker

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