I took a deep breath and heeded the advice I recieved here

[smrybacki]

For the last 10 days or thereabouts, I have been "communing" with my POD HD500/JTV59 Variax/PE60s rig.  I was ready to just sell it off and stop screwing with it, no doubt.  But I read the advice and suggestions in this thread and thought it over quite a bit.  I figured before I just bailed out which to me is a measure of admitting failure (and I HATE to do that!) I decided to seriously dedicate some time to learning not only how to do things (which I knew mostly), but when and why to do them and what works best for certain genres I play.  In other words, I temporarily stopped worrying about learning new guitar riffs and songs and instead worried exclusively about getting to the point where I could quickly call up desired "base tones" of favored guitar amp emulations for various styles.  You know what?  It has paid off.  Now on my POD instead of all the crazy assed presets that come with it from the factory I have a relatively blank slate with several of these base tones on them on a setlist I am calling Basics.  It is designed as a starting point from which I can copy some base tone therein into new presets on other "performance" set lists, and from there add in whatever other effects (usually minimal really, but not always) I'd need to perform a particular song or even group of songs.

What that led to was kind of an explosion of creativity in terms of learning new songs.  For example, I had just been listening to Badfinger and so I took the basic grindy Deluxe Reverb tone I created, added in a dual channel with a Twin Reverb for some added sparkle to the raw grit of the Deluxe and I was surprised to find some good Badfinger tone in there.  yeah, I know they used Marshall but whatever -- this tone is happening IMHO.  And so I was screwing around testing sounds and the opening riff for "No Matter What" literally just popped out and I spent the next two hours working the song and structure out, including the relatively low key lead parts and signature trills.  It was great and has led to other great Badfinger songs but you get the idea.

So I guess sometimes with the gear we have and all it's capabilities and complexities, you sometimes just need to step back, evaluate your processes and see what can be done to shake them up when you've hit a rut -- just like we have to as musicians in general.  Doing that can lead you to unexpected places and in my case, snatched a victory out of what was headed towards a defeat.  Let that be a lesson to me.

[cruisinon2]

Fresh look at stuff never hurts...plus you can never have too many toys. Why sell it all if ya don't have to?

[NinoScholz]

Nice - and totally agree a blank slate is the way to go with this type of gear, so you know exactly what is going on with your gear. Otherwise it's more like a crapshoot.

[duncann]

Sometimes, questioning what you, the user, are doing wrong, and admitting to yourself that you're actually the problem, is one of the hardest things to do. Bravo.

 

Good lesson for everyone about nearly everything: Quit lying to yourselves.

[Brazzy]

Good Go'in smrybacki, I, for one, will likely never part with my devices as I don't think I would get any real compensation for them. Either I would donate them to a good cause or pass them down to family members that show interest. Other than that I enjoy them as long as they work good, lol.

 

Every day one should learn something new even it's small. RO/CO = Rock On/Carry On

[smrybacki]

Fresh look at stuff never hurts...plus you can never have too many toys. Why sell it all if ya don't have to?

Well, since my SO and I are think seriously of selling the farm (literally) in Central PA and moving to the suburbs of Denver -- I might just be leaning more heavily on this setup than I have to right now.  Apartment life and all that so yeah, hanging on to it and making it viable were pretty high on the list of priorities.  We have been here 16 years now since I retired from active duty and I tell you, the travelin' Jones just never has left...time to check out something new.

[Palico]

hmmm. I like your concepts created a "Basics". Sort of like when recording I have a template that has all the basic plugin inline and ready to go but largely turned off or to very basic settings.  I never thought of apporaching the endless array of options the POD gives us that way. Thank you for giving me something to think about!

[wilson69978]

Hello smrybaki: In my opinion you are absolutely right in this approach. Just blindly pulling up presets is a waste of time. They have to be edited To make them useful in almost every case anyhow.

 

With about a hundred fx models where to start?

 

Not to mention the amp models. Hey, there is a good place to start. I think you can not go

 

Too far wrong by picking an amp that suits the style you are playing and getting that sounding good

 

Before you add any effects at all.

 

Make several copies of the same amp with different drive, volume, and tone settings.

 

Play with them for a while. You will be surprised how much variation in tone you get just from

 

This alone. When you start to understand how the amp is responding you can then start to add

Effects to colour the tone.

 

I have never used huge amounts of effects so this is a big learning curve for me as well.

 

As usual less seems to be more. But not in the case of line 6. I think a lot of the fx presets

Need to be tamed down a fair bit. Maybe they set them like that so you can hear what they do at these

Extreme settings.

 

To each there own I suppose, but I think a bit of reverb and short delay compliment an amp nicely.

 

I know there are no rules for effects but there is something called conventional wisdom, and I don't

Think it hurts to understand what that is when it comes to say, the order of effects in the chain.

 

Once I get a handle on this, I can start to break some rules (at least I will have a better understanding

Of where the sound is coming from and why it sounds the way it does)

 

Cheers everyone!

[smrybacki]

hmmm. I like your concepts created a "Basics". Sort of like when recording I have a template that has all the basic plugin inline and ready to go but largely turned off or to very basic settings.  I never thought of apporaching the endless array of options the POD gives us that way. Thank you for giving me something to think about!

No problem....and may the tone ever be in your favor.

[ColonelForbin]

No problem....and may the tone ever be in your favor.

 

Nice play on the phrase there!

[ColonelForbin]

Well, since my SO and I are think seriously of selling the farm (literally) in Central PA and moving to the suburbs of Denver 

 

Do it!! I miss Colorado more than I can say; Denver is a great city; Boulder is an amazing city! Real estate is probably more affordable / available in Denver.

You'll find the elevation a little tough on the lungs at first, but you'll acclimate. Check out Pearl street in Boulder, and 16th street in Denver - pedestian malls, closed to car traffic. Awesome little spots everywhere, great hiking, biking, and skiing / snowboarding. Believe me, I wonder why the heck I ever left every day I spend out here in Chicagoland.. Mt Sanitas trail is killer, great views of the front range. Check out the Dushanbe Tea House in Boulder, it's pretty awesome.

[Charlie_Watt]

I live outside of Boulder half the year and in Arizona the other half.  Been doing that for three years now.  I really like Colorado best in the summer.  If you like the outdoors, you will Love Colorado!

[smrybacki]

I live outside of Boulder half the year and in Arizona the other half.  Been doing that for three years now.  I really like Colorado best in the summer.  If you like the outdoors, you will Love Colorado!

 

 

Do it!! I miss Colorado more than I can say; Denver is a great city; Boulder is an amazing city! Real estate is probably more affordable / available in Denver.

You'll find the elevation a little tough on the lungs at first, but you'll acclimate. Check out Pearl street in Boulder, and 16th street in Denver - pedestian malls, closed to car traffic. Awesome little spots everywhere, great hiking, biking, and skiing / snowboarding. Believe me, I wonder why the heck I ever left every day I spend out here in Chicagoland.. Mt Sanitas trail is killer, great views of the front range. Check out the Dushanbe Tea House in Boulder, it's pretty awesome.

Well thanks fellas...we are looking forward to it for sure.  Got to sell what we have first, but hey that'll happen...

 

Anyone want to buy a 5 acre horse farm in Pennsylvania with an indorr riding arena?

[maxnew40]

It is just like spices when cooking. Just because you have 30 different spices doesn't mean you should try to use them all in every dish. I play in a 60s and 70s cover band and I think 70% of the stuff we play is guitar with no modulation or delay effects at all.

 

-Max

[smrybacki]

I play in a 60s and 70s cover band and I think 70% of the stuff we play is guitar with no modulation or delay effects at all.

A lost art, no doubt!

[maxnew40]

A lost art, no doubt!

I have watched some bands playing 60s and 70s stuff with tons of gain and the tone completely obscured by a whooshing wall of modulation effects (totally ignoring the original tune). I always figured those guys had just bought a new multi-effects unit and haven't figured out how to use it yet.

 

-Max

[cruisinon2]

Well thanks fellas...we are looking forward to it for sure. Got to sell what we have first, but hey that'll happen...

 

Anyone want to buy a 5 acre horse farm in Pennsylvania with an indorr riding arena?

How much? I hate NY...

[smrybacki]

How much? I hate NY...

Asking $340k...comes with a 9x40 pole barn that includes 4 stalls, hay storage, tractor bay and tool room plus tack and feed rooms.  Also there is a 70wx110lx16h' indoor riding arena, 2 run-in sheds, 5 paddock fields plus a 12x12 storage shed for lawn stuff and what not.

[Rewolf48]

You want to see how little £230K buys over here!

[smrybacki]

You want to see how little £230K buys over here!

Sure!  I assume "over here" implies the United Kingdom?  Moving there is a real possibility one day as well.

[cruisinon2]

Sure! I assume "over here" implies the United Kingdom? Moving there is a real possibility one day as well.

In the tri-state area $340K might buy you a detached one car garage, on a postage stamp-sized piece of property, for which you'd pay $10K in taxes...

[Brazzy]

In the tri-state area $340K might buy you a detached one car garage, on a postage stamp-sized piece of property, for which you'd pay $10K in taxes...

 

So true! So inflated! And really, is there any room for people in that area anyway? LOL

[cruisinon2]

So true! So inflated! And really, is there any room for people in that area anyway? LOL

Nope...packed in like sardines. Yet houses keep going up. Everything that used to have grass and trees on it when I was a kid, now has a "gated community". Who's buying them I don't know...most people round here seem to think that living either right on the edge, or slightly outside of one's means is the way to go...their golden years are gonna suck, and will be a rude awakening.

[smrybacki]

In the tri-state area $340K might buy you a detached one car garage, on a postage stamp-sized piece of property, for which you'd pay $10K in taxes...

Ouch...tri-state meaning NY-NJ-PA?

[cruisinon2]

Ouch...tri-state meaning NY-NJ-PA?

 

NY, NJ, CT usually...I consider PA to be outside the "stupid bubble", lol.

[Brazzy]

Nope...packed in like sardines. Yet houses keep going up. Everything that used to have grass and trees on it when I was a kid, now has a "gated community". Who's buying them I don't know...most people round here seem to think that living either right on the edge, or slightly outside of one's means is the way to go...their golden years are gonna suck, and will be a rude awakening.

 

I concur with you "C". I watched an area that was otherwise empty get developed and 35,000 people populated the area. It took about 3 years after the first signs of building for it to fully bloom. This was almost 30 years ago.

[duncann]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8x98KFcMJeo

[Brazzy]

Video Link

 

Hey that's my teacher. He's the reason for the large grasshopper tatoo on my lower back, lol. Good Vid "D".

[smrybacki]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8x98KFcMJeo

Wow.  I already suspected this intuitively, but the numbers don't lie.  The only variable (and it is significant) is US (humans) and since people are predominantly selfish and short sighted - I'd like to say that I enjoyed knowing you all now while there's time.

[duncann]

A good question is how close are we to the 60 minute threshold? I mean in about 4 billion years the sun will basically swallow the planet earth. That's a long time. So if we're at 55 minutes, how does that equate in terms of human lifetimes and not time spans relating to evolution? Does 5 minutes equal 100 years? Or less than 1000?

 

But the brutal reality of numbers and mathematics remains.

[smrybacki]

A good question is how close are we to the 60 minute threshold? I mean in about 4 billion years the sun will basically swallow the planet earth. That's a long time. So if we're at 55 minutes, how does that equate in terms of human lifetimes and not time spans relating to evolution? Does 5 minutes equal 100 years? Or less than 1000?

 

But the brutal reality of numbers and mathematics remains.

One thing I've learned in my 56 years is this; time is ALWAYS shorter than you think.

 

Now there are very few reasons why I am glad to be the age I am, but knowing I won't be around to see how thing turn out given the way the world is progressing is one of them.  My wife and I did our part -- we have 1 son to replace the two of us for a 50% reduction.  We also were licenced foster parents to many kids over the years we were in the Air Force in California, Ohio, New York and Alabama so our conscience is clear as to doing for others along the way.

 

If I say anything more, things will escalate very quickly so I won't.

[Brazzy]

Wow.  I already suspected this intuitively, but the numbers don't lie.  The only variable (and it is significant) is US (humans) and since people are predominantly selfish and short sighted - I'd like to say that I enjoyed knowing you all now while there's time.

 

I learned about the snowball effect when I was a little kid, lol. It always starts off a tiny little ball but roll it around in that perfect kind of snow and watch how it starts off, It was slow going getting that little ball rolling around to get it built up but slowly it started to build up but then suddenly it was so big I couldn't move it anymore, lol. This was the nice way my dad explained the nature of population to me.

 

When I saw "The Gangs of New York" movie and how they built the first multilevel wooden dwellings in order to house the growing the population and then look at it today it's a neat contrast.

 

I remember seeing something about science saying that there was a narrowing of the genes which represented a time in history which much of the human race died off. The story was the genes pool in a long time span was shaped like an hour glass the narrow part represented the period where a great number of people died and the ones that survived and procreated carried on human life and then the genes pool widened again. I can't remember the whole story but that gets the point across. Maybe a search will yield better info.

 

IMO, It's going to be a long time before overpopulation is at critical mass.

[cruisinon2]

IMO, It's going to be a long time before overpopulation is at critical mass.

Those inclined to panicking over the state of the world have been predicting doom and gloom over one issue or another, essentially forever. Back in the 70's it was Deputy Undersecretary of Hand-Wringing, Paul Ehrlich who wrote a book called "The Population Bomb"...he was convinced 40 years ago that we were already at the tipping point for population, and that the planet simply couldn't sustain one more kid...ridiculous predictions about famine, food riots, and a massive die-off. And the population at the time was roughly half what it is now. Oops...a swing and a miss, Paul.

 

The only thing our species is really good at is wild conjecture, and incredible hubris when it comes to overestimating our impact on the planet. Clashing ideologies, stupidity, and greed are much bigger threats to our civilization than natural selection, imho.

[Brazzy]

The only thing our species is really good at is wild conjecture, and incredible hubris when it comes to overestimating our impact on the planet. In all likelihood we will end our own civilization through some combination of stupidity, greed, and the love of power, long before nature gets around to selecting us for extinction.

 

Right On cruisinon2! Us killing ourselves off is more likely. The creative mind is vastly vassssssst and that's ghastly, lol.

[smrybacki]

I learned about the snowball effect when I was a little kid, lol. It always starts off a tiny little ball but roll it around in that perfect kind of snow and watch how it starts off, It was slow going getting that little ball rolling around to get it built up but slowly it started to build up but then suddenly it was so big I couldn't move it anymore, lol. This was the nice way my dad explained the nature of population to me.

 

When I saw "The Gangs of New York" movie and how they built the first multilevel wooden dwellings in order to house the growing the population and then look at it today it's a neat contrast.

 

I remember seeing something about science saying that there was a narrowing of the genes which represented a time in history which much of the human race died off. The story was the genes pool in a long time span was shaped like an hour glass the narrow part represented the period where a great number of people died and the ones that survived and procreated carried on human life and then the genes pool widened again. I can't remember the whole story but that gets the point across. Maybe a search will yield better info.

 

IMO, It's going to be a long time before overpopulation is at critical mass.

 

 

Those inclined to panicking over the state of the world have been predicting doom and gloom over one issue or another, essentially forever. Back in the 70's it was Deputy Undersecretary of Hand-Wringing, Paul Ehrlich who wrote a book called "The Population Bomb"...he was convinced 40 years ago that we were already at the tipping point for population, and that the planet simply couldn't sustain one more kid...ridicous predictions about famine, food riots, and a massive die-off. And the population at the time was roughly half what it is now. Oops...

 

The only thing our species is really good at is wild conjecture, and incredible hubris when it comes to overestimating our impact on the planet. In all likelihood we will end our own civilization through some combination of stupidity, greed, and the love of power, long before nature gets around to selecting us for extinction.

Friends, I am NOT panicking nor is this wild conjecture.  Math is what it is and exponential doubling is a fact of life.  When I was born, there were @ 2.9B people on planet Earth and today (56 years later) there are over 7 billion. See this Wiki entry for the figures.  I went to China some 28 years ago and it was packed then...can't imagine what it is now nor the Indian sub-continent for that matter.

 

It's really not a matter of IF, it's more of a matter of WHEN we will run out of resources to sustain our way of life.  I don't know when that will be and neither does anyone else.  All we can do is the math and the math don't lie -- if things remain on course, sooner or later the population doubles.

[duncann]

One thing I've learned in my 56 years is this; time is ALWAYS shorter than you think.

 

Now there are very few reasons why I am glad to be the age I am, but knowing I won't be around to see how thing turn out given the way the world is progressing is one of them.  My wife and I did our part -- we have 1 son to replace the two of us for a 50% reduction.  We also were licenced foster parents to many kids over the years we were in the Air Force in California, Ohio, New York and Alabama so our conscience is clear as to doing for others along the way.

 

If I say anything more, things will escalate very quickly so I won't.

 

You sir, have probably done more than a hell of a lot of people can claim. Thank you.

 

IMO, It's going to be a long time before overpopulation is at critical mass.

 

Most definitely. And when the time for critical mass is here, it's obviously not going to be a switch-flip. It's going to be a slow, slow, slow process. And one in which homo sapiens sapiens will adapt. But it won't be a nice time to be alive in human history. And in the meantime, I'm sure there is plenty of other stuff to worry about.

 I always thought it might be interesting for the planet to be hit by a gamma ray burst. That would be something humans can relate to for its instantly gratifying nature. :lol:

 

Those inclined to panicking over the state of the world have been predicting doom and gloom over one issue or another, essentially forever. Back in the 70's it was Deputy Undersecretary of Hand-Wringing, Paul Ehrlich who wrote a book called "The Population Bomb"...he was convinced 40 years ago that we were already at the tipping point for population, and that the planet simply couldn't sustain one more kid...ridiculous predictions about famine, food riots, and a massive die-off. And the population at the time was roughly half what it is now. Oops...

 

The only thing our species is really good at is wild conjecture, and incredible hubris when it comes to overestimating our impact on the planet. Clashing ideologies, stupidity, and greed are much bigger threats to our civilization than natural selection, imho.

 

The root emotion for all of this is fear, and a particularly insidious form of it is when it's used to control others. At one time, fear may have been a useful evolutionary device. But now, it seems to do more damage than good to a civilization. I wonder how long it will be before evolution discards it. If there's one thing to apply a sense of instant gratification to, it's gotta be the elimination of fear.

[smrybacki]

Man, I know this has strayed MASSIVELY off topic, but it is one hell of an interesting discussion all the same.  Thanks for that.  If the mods move it, I'd like to continue it.  Such deep and soul searching discussions are good for all so long as we all realize how unique each of our own perspectives really is -- and in so doing avoid taking an alternative view brought by others personally.  If only the Internet at large practiced this way of thinking, flame wars would disappear.

In any event, I'd never heard of David Suzuki before, but I really like the guy.  I am listening to a lecture he is giving for UWA in Perth just now and he makes some powerful points.  And as a self-styled elder, he brings a once valued input to bear in a time when we actually listened to the people on the earth who had the most experience as oppossed to shoving them into a home somewhere to be shut of them.  This is not a Pollyannish view really.  At the root of it is our exploding technology I believe which of course tends to elude our eldest citizens, aand the "old ways" are being left further behind every day.  Ironically, people love the movie plot of a Doomsday scenario, but I wonder how many would actually survive something such as the grid just shutting down?  Most I have heard always submit their handiness with (and willingness to use) firearms, but in the long run it will be people who know how to do the old things such as planting, clothing making and other such seemingly mundane things still who fare best I believe.

[cruisinon2]

Ironically, people love the movie plot of a Doomsday scenario, but I wonder how many would actually survive something such as the grid just shutting down? Most I have heard always submit their handiness with (and willingness to use) firearms, but in the long run it will be people who know how to do the old things such as planting, clothing making and other such seemingly mundane things still who fare best I believe.

Most wouldn't last long...with the exception of those with military, or other formal survival training. We're 9 meals from chaos. Most people have 3 days worth of food in the house, no disaster plan, and in the more congested areas...no place to go, or the means to get there (other than the shoe-leather express).

 

Also, I suspect that those who rant the loudest about their survival skills will be among the first to go, lol. For those who do know how to survive, the biggest risk will always be other people looking to take what they have. Under the radar is your best bet.

 

I know it's fiction, but "The Walking Dead" is less about zombies than it is the horrible things that people will do to each other when they are truly desperate.

 

On the other hand, I was in NYC for that big blackout in 2003, when much of the NE went dark. People were remarkably well behaved...at least by NY standards, lol. City kinda became a party that night. But how long would that have lasted? Lights were back on in 24hrs or so.

[duncann]

Man, I know this has strayed MASSIVELY off topic, but it is one hell of an interesting discussion all the same.  Thanks for that.  If the mods move it, I'd like to continue it.  Such deep and soul searching discussions are good for all so long as we all realize how unique each of our own perspectives really is -- and in so doing avoid taking an alternative view brought by others personally.  If only the Internet at large practiced this way of thinking, flame wars would disappear.

 

In any event, I'd never heard of David Suzuki before, but I really like the guy.  I am listening to a lecture he is giving for UWA in Perth just now and he makes some powerful points.  And as a self-styled elder, he brings a once valued input to bear in a time when we actually listened to the people on the earth who had the most experience as oppossed to shoving them into a home somewhere to be shut of them.  This is not a Pollyannish view really.  At the root of it is our exploding technology I believe which of course tends to elude our eldest citizens, aand the "old ways" are being left further behind every day.  Ironically, people love the movie plot of a Doomsday scenario, but I wonder how many would actually survive something such as the grid just shutting down?  Most I have heard always submit their handiness with (and willingness to use) firearms, but in the long run it will be people who know how to do the old things such as planting, clothing making and other such seemingly mundane things still who fare best I believe.

 

I found this forum to be really tolerant, of both respecting others' opinions and for allowing discussions like this to go way off topic.

 

Good points about technology and fading traditional beliefs. The beliefs of older generations being slowly phased out is probably something that's occurred throughout history. But with the introduction of technology - and technology itself growing at an exponential rate - that really speeds up the phasing out of the old. On top of that, now nearly everyone has the opportunity to announce their thoughts to the entire world (not that the entire world hears it though). And the potential for becoming a self-proclaimed expert is greatly increased. Well, that comes at humanity's own peril when large populations start to ignore the actual experts. And this could very well be one of our greatest downfalls.

 

In a sudden grid shutdown (hmm...revolution?) people who have agricultural skills would fare well, and benefit the continuance of humanity. That is if the people who give in to fear and violence don't shoot the farmers and steal their food and land. And this is the category of person who would see the experts as walking conspiracies - in fact they would probably blame the experts for a sudden grid shutdown. But not to worry, these fear and conspiracy ladened people just happen to be experts themselves at farming. Hooray.

[Brazzy]

Man, I know this has strayed MASSIVELY off topic, but it is one hell of an interesting discussion all the same.  Thanks for that.  If the mods move it, I'd like to continue it.  Such deep and soul searching discussions are good for all so long as we all realize how unique each of our own perspectives really is -- and in so doing avoid taking an alternative view brought by others personally.  If only the Internet at large practiced this way of thinking, flame wars would disappear.

 

I kinda like it when a thread gets "aswered" and then goes into something all together different. I agree, it's all about discussion and learning so maintaining a good attitude is the best thing for anyone. I think we call it 'civility".

 

I think your all pretty cool and civil while you engage in controversial discussions. That's saying a-lot. :) Have a Great Day Everyone and hammer that guitar when you can.