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How do you like that JCM? That's one of the amps I was looking at a few months ago when I was in the market for one. I liked it, and it was definitely great for the price. Wasn't quite as raw as I was looking for though.
DSL 100 is great. Classic tube marshall sound. I'm running it through and Orange 2x12 cab(vintage 30s). Love it so much, insane base yet still able to produce lovely shimmery cleans. Very adjustable as well with the DSL's EQ. The reverb leaves a lot to be desired though =\.
When I was buying it was a clear choice for me between the blackstar HT5(tbh I don't remeber exact model just was HT series) and the DSL 100. Blackstar was great, beautiful sound, very pristine modern clean tone. However I just preferred the natural grit of the DSL.
Have been using the amp for soft rock ---> heavy metal. Great sounds, the DSL Distortian channel is great, not particularily my thing(im abit of a pedal junkie) but if you're after a simplier setup I would definatly recomend.The clean channel is also surprisingly bright, it doesn't break up before about 2 o clock and with the crunch boost option on both channels you can get a ridicuosly wide range of tones. I prefer the crunch on with some mild distorion from pedals(mainly a blues driver / TS model) fo the softer rock stuff and then I'll turn down the gain and let it run clean for my heavier stuff with my pedals doing most of the work.
Probably irellevant but I do love the marshall look, everytime I walk into my study and see my Gibson sitting next to it I smile a little.
Sounds great with my tele and my gibson LPJ. For the price it's insane value.
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Italy12246 Posts
On November 10 2013 10:41 Absurd Bunny wrote:
I'm thinking of getting into playing guitar a lot more now, and I have a really basic starter squier electric guitar that I used for a beginner's guitar, what is a good "step up" guitar that I could get that isn't too expensive, acoustic or electric? Also, is there any tips/methods for learning bar chords faster? I feel that I'm not playing them correctly or how they're supposed to sound.
Depending on your budget and what music you are into, you could take a look at:
Classic Vibe Squires
Mexican Fenders
Low end Gibsons (LPJ/Juniors/Specials/Melody Makers; maybe even Studios cuz why not)
Epiphones
or if you're into heavy metal, basically any brand like Ibanez, Charvel, Jackson etc has a huge range of products so there's great budget stuff too.
Imo you should choose a guitar based on your budget and wether you like it or not. You should never feel like you "aren't good enough" to buy a guitar, if you can afford a les paul custom and you like it by all means go for it! When you're first learningone of the most impotant things is that you like your guitar and try to pick it up as often as possible.
For barre cords, just practice really. I remember i used to grip the edge of my desk at school with my left index finger to make it stronger but i highly doubt it was useful lol.
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I'm not good at all but have you tried rotating your hand slightly so you're not using the pad of your index finger but the outside part (between your index finger and thumb) where it's much more straight for barre chords? If you just lay your finger down naturally the indents in the pad where your joints are tend to skip right over strings making it not work at all. But like I said, I'm pretty nub so maybe someone else has better advice =)
Decided I'm picking up Rocksmith 2014 tomorrow to get back in the swing of playing. First one was fun but I've been a slacker and there's no reason I shouldn't get back on the horse.
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On November 10 2013 18:46 Teoita wrote:Show nested quote +On November 10 2013 10:41 Absurd Bunny wrote:
I'm thinking of getting into playing guitar a lot more now, and I have a really basic starter squier electric guitar that I used for a beginner's guitar, what is a good "step up" guitar that I could get that isn't too expensive, acoustic or electric? Also, is there any tips/methods for learning bar chords faster? I feel that I'm not playing them correctly or how they're supposed to sound. Depending on your budget and what music you are into, you could take a look at: Classic Vibe Squires Mexican Fenders Low end Gibsons (LPJ/Juniors/Specials/Melody Makers; maybe even Studios cuz why not) Epiphones or if you're into heavy metal, basically any brand like Ibanez, Charvel, Jackson etc has a huge range of products so there's great budget stuff too. Imo you should choose a guitar based on your budget and wether you like it or not. You should never feel like you "aren't good enough" to buy a guitar, if you can afford a les paul custom and you like it by all means go for it! When you're first learningone of the most impotant things is that you like your guitar and try to pick it up as often as possible. For barre cords, just practice really. I remember i used to grip the edge of my desk at school with my left index finger to make it stronger but i highly doubt it was useful lol.
Epiphone custome are as great as mexican fender in my opinions. You should be carefull with epiphone as the low price ones are REALLY shitty.
I'll go for Ibanez, it's polyvalent, not really expensive. They do really nice things.
Yamaha is not that expensive but i can't say for the models because i don't know the models.
Also his post is spot on. If you are not an awesome player, go for the guitar you like. You may take a few years to see the difference with the quality of a guitar.
For the "barré" you can try to practice it on a accoustic nylon guitar (because it's the harder thing to do on it) if you have access to one. But yeah. As he said. Practice.
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Bosnia-Herzegovina72 Posts
Barré practice has to be the most tedious thing of all guitar wise. I'm still not always confident in some of the hard ones so i often cheat my way out of it! :D
Btw how come more people don't upload clips of them playing something? It would be fun to hear what sound or style other TLers fancy, regardless of your playing level.
Props to the ones who did, I'll put up something myself as soon as I stop being lazy and finally change strings. ^^
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On November 11 2013 23:11 Batcha wrote:
Barré practice has to be the most tedious thing of all guitar wise. I'm still not always confident in some of the hard ones so i often cheat my way out of it! :D
Btw how come more people don't upload clips of them playing something? It would be fun to hear what sound or style other TLers fancy, regardless of your playing level.
Props to the ones who did, I'll put up something myself as soon as I stop being lazy and finally change strings. ^^
Because a lot of us i assume (me included) knows their way around guitar things (like : buy this thing or this one it's awesome) but when it comes to playing.... well. I could play but it would be ... not that good :p
But maybe good Tlers can do that :p
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Bosnia-Herzegovina72 Posts
Heh most people worry too much about it, I do too!
But it's not a competition, there's always someone out there who can make you look "not that good".
It's nice to hear what a fellow guitar player is having fun with, even if its the simplest thing ever. Not like you're at a gig, just comrades here! :3
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I can probably put up some clips. I'm constantly tweaking songs and sounds and I don't like to put out stuff thats unfinished in my mind. So I just have a lot of half done songs hanging out in pro-tools. It's tough to get working on them because it requires a large dedication of time... time that can be spent playing games...
I also have to get a drum program because just hearing guitar isn't enough.
As for lower end guitars that are step ups from squier, I definitely recommend ltd's. The lower end ones are spectacular for the price. There's a lot of brands that I think have great higher end stuff but the lower end lacks, for instance I can't stand playing lower end ibanez stuff (played an rg8 the other day and it made me sad). Jackson dinky's are pretty cool too. I don't really play fender or gibson stuff so I couldn't give you an accurate assessment of how they play, however I have a kramer made around 2000 which was done by a gibson factory in korea and that guitar is fucking awesome. And as everyone has said made in mexico fenders are excellent as well, not for me, but I know many people who have success with them.
As for bar chords whats the issue you're having? I remember them being difficult if the string gauges were heavy and barring one of the first few frets was difficult.
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Northern Ireland26225 Posts
On November 10 2013 12:15 pjw wrote:Show nested quote +How do you like that JCM? That's one of the amps I was looking at a few months ago when I was in the market for one. I liked it, and it was definitely great for the price. Wasn't quite as raw as I was looking for though. DSL 100 is great. Classic tube marshall sound. I'm running it through and Orange 2x12 cab(vintage 30s). Love it so much, insane base yet still able to produce lovely shimmery cleans. Very adjustable as well with the DSL's EQ. The reverb leaves a lot to be desired though =\. When I was buying it was a clear choice for me between the blackstar HT5(tbh I don't remeber exact model just was HT series) and the DSL 100. Blackstar was great, beautiful sound, very pristine modern clean tone. However I just preferred the natural grit of the DSL. Have been using the amp for soft rock ---> heavy metal. Great sounds, the DSL Distortian channel is great, not particularily my thing(im abit of a pedal junkie) but if you're after a simplier setup I would definatly recomend.The clean channel is also surprisingly bright, it doesn't break up before about 2 o clock and with the crunch boost option on both channels you can get a ridicuosly wide range of tones. I prefer the crunch on with some mild distorion from pedals(mainly a blues driver / TS model) fo the softer rock stuff and then I'll turn down the gain and let it run clean for my heavier stuff with my pedals doing most of the work. Probably irellevant but I do love the marshall look, everytime I walk into my study and see my Gibson sitting next to it I smile a little. Sounds great with my tele and my gibson LPJ. For the price it's insane value.
Pretty much this, hoping to try out some other gear at some stage when I go visit my brother in London.
The clarity of the cleans is pretty awesome and I like the kind of base tones I have got with my (currently loaned to me) amp. The reverb channel isn't working properly, footswitch is god knows where though and I don't have much of an effects rig so I think when those are acquired and fixed I'll be able to get a lot more out of it.
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On November 10 2013 09:53 Elegance wrote:
Scored a nice Japanese Jackson DKMG for cheap! I hope this doesn't get me hooked onto them (except I actually do hope it does...) You will be unable to fight it off for long. I succumbed to Jackson fever many years ago. I've owned 4 and currently have 2.
Nice score. DKMG's are archtop right? Those were more expensive from what I remember. I have a DK2 myself. Those mid-late 2000s era of import Jacksons were really great, a lot nicer than what they have now. They aren't nearly as flashy as the new ones (I consider that a good thing), but they are much more solid instruments. Your guitar would have been made in Japan. Most of the new ones aren't from what I understand, though I have been out of the loop.
Edit: New Pro series is made in Mexico, others are made in Indonesia, no Japan... Not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand Mexican Fenders (Fender owns Jackson now) are usually quite solid. On the other hand Jackson/Charvel had 25 years or more of history of having incredibly high quality Japanese imports. Like old Ibanez (Don't even get me started on new Ibanez), Jackson's Japanese imports were always highly regarded. The Indonesian models are not very good at all from what I have played. My old beat up '92 Soloist I paid $500 for could run circles around the cheap ones they sell now.
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The other day, saw a post from Andy Mckee saying he was listening to Michael Hedges again, which was the first I've ever heard of him, first time I'd ever heard Aerial Boundaries... Between the two of them, I've recently been inspired to pick up my ovation celebrity again. After awhile, realized that since some years had gone by, my preference had changed a bit, and looked around online for some full bodied guitars that had a decent mid/high range but still a good amount of low's. Something I couldn't get from my ovation without plugging it in and playing around with the equalizer.
Stopped by guitar center the other day to pick up some strings, and ended up staying for 2-3 hours just playing some of the guitars in the acoustic room. Came across a Taylor 110 for $349, a little worn, but surprisingly sounded better, and felt better to play than the other 1-2k taylors/martins I had tried out for fun. I decided I probably wouldn't come across another for that good of a price, and that it was a worthy investment, so I bought it, but can't take it out of store until the 26th (some policy where they need to make sure the guitar wasn't stolen first or something)
So stoked, can't wait to have it set-up and to play it again. Meanwhile, getting used to playing again on my ovation, re-learning And'y Mckee's "Drifting/All Laid Back and Stuff/For my Father/Rylynn" right now.
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On November 12 2013 16:52 Ben... wrote:Show nested quote +On November 10 2013 09:53 Elegance wrote:
Scored a nice Japanese Jackson DKMG for cheap! I hope this doesn't get me hooked onto them (except I actually do hope it does...) You will be unable to fight it off for long. I succumbed to Jackson fever many years ago. I've owned 4 and currently have 2. Nice score. DKMG's are archtop right? Those were more expensive from what I remember. I have a DK2 myself. Those mid-late 2000s era of import Jacksons were really great, a lot nicer than what they have now. They aren't nearly as flashy as the new ones (I consider that a good thing), but they are much more solid instruments. Your guitar would have been made in Japan. Most of the new ones aren't from what I understand, though I have been out of the loop. Edit: New Pro series is made in Mexico, others are made in Indonesia, no Japan... Not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand Mexican Fenders (Fender owns Jackson now) are usually quite solid. On the other hand Jackson/Charvel had 25 years or more of history of having incredibly high quality Japanese imports. Like old Ibanez (Don't even get me started on new Ibanez), Jackson's Japanese imports were always highly regarded. The Indonesian models are not very good at all from what I have played. My old beat up '92 Soloist I paid $500 for could run circles around the cheap ones they sell now.
Yeah I've heard Jap Jacksons are the bargains of the centuries usually. My Jackson is probably somewhere mid 2000's. It is the archtop version with real EMGs rather than the passives (not that it really matters, but I don't mind EMGs). Jackson's Japanese factory closed down completely a few years back. A real shame. I hear the Mexican ones are fairly good...but the fretwork etc. are usually not onpar with their Japanese counterparts. As for the X series, they used to be made in Japan and now are made in India and the fretwork etc. are not on par. If I end up getting addicted to Jacksons after this guitar I'll probably try and snag up a SLS3, SLSMG or SLAT (6 or 7 string) in the future
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Italy12246 Posts
On November 12 2013 16:52 Ben... wrote:Show nested quote +On November 10 2013 09:53 Elegance wrote:
Scored a nice Japanese Jackson DKMG for cheap! I hope this doesn't get me hooked onto them (except I actually do hope it does...) You will be unable to fight it off for long. I succumbed to Jackson fever many years ago. I've owned 4 and currently have 2. Nice score. DKMG's are archtop right? Those were more expensive from what I remember. I have a DK2 myself. Those mid-late 2000s era of import Jacksons were really great, a lot nicer than what they have now. They aren't nearly as flashy as the new ones (I consider that a good thing), but they are much more solid instruments. Your guitar would have been made in Japan. Most of the new ones aren't from what I understand, though I have been out of the loop. Edit: New Pro series is made in Mexico, others are made in Indonesia, no Japan... Not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand Mexican Fenders (Fender owns Jackson now) are usually quite solid. On the other hand Jackson/Charvel had 25 years or more of history of having incredibly high quality Japanese imports. Like old Ibanez (Don't even get me started on new Ibanez), Jackson's Japanese imports were always highly regarded. The Indonesian models are not very good at all from what I have played. My old beat up '92 Soloist I paid $500 for could run circles around the cheap ones they sell now.
I heard great things about Charvel's new low end series though (i believe it's called Desolation?). Never tried one myself though.
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I have a Yamaha FG 700, but I am not really able to play it. The e-minor chord is difficult enough to play in a way that both strings are pressed down hard enough while no other strings are touched.
So far I fail to play a c-major, g-major and d-major chord.
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My fav guitar is my Lag Arkane Master
http://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/normal/lag-arkane-prestige-ap2000-orange-blossom-259233.jpg
its one of the first they made ... curved pickup switch is really nice beefy pickups. Sadly they dont make it to that spec anymore. What i really like though is the neck, omg. It literally plays so much nicer than any ibanez neck and i love ibanez. the guitar is light yet made out of good materials and the finish is amazing. I was goign to buy a PG fireman or somethign similar and then fell in love with this beast. Cant find it anywhere, they used to be hand made. If you are ever going to buy a guitar thats >1k you really want to check out hand made guitars instead of the ibanez / gibson / etc route ... I know i was amazed at the difference.
2nd is my ibanez universe - when i can get a decent setup done on it.
I got a dean or 2 i really like and oddly my yamaha pacifica is still a beast to play. It just has amazing tone.
Had about 10 guitars though :D
I am a fan of charvel though (for all you jackson fans out there ;p)
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On November 12 2013 22:15 [F_]aths wrote:
I have a Yamaha FG 700, but I am not really able to play it. The e-minor chord is difficult enough to play in a way that both strings are pressed down hard enough while no other strings are touched.
So far I fail to play a c-major, g-major and d-major chord.
I don't really get what you are saying. It's kind of harder to play on a "folk" guitar than on an accoustic guitar at first because strings are tight while on a accoustic you have more spaces but you'll get used to it i guess.
Are you saying that you touch more than the A et D strings while doing a E-minor ? Are you positionning your hands right ? (not on the actual chord but more on the back on the ... neck ? (dunno the word in english) the back of the guitar i mean.
+ Show Spoiler [like this] +
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On November 12 2013 22:33 FFW_Rude wrote:Show nested quote +On November 12 2013 22:15 [F_]aths wrote:
I have a Yamaha FG 700, but I am not really able to play it. The e-minor chord is difficult enough to play in a way that both strings are pressed down hard enough while no other strings are touched.
So far I fail to play a c-major, g-major and d-major chord. I don't really get what you are saying. It's kind of harder to play on a "folk" guitar than on an accoustic guitar at first because strings are tight while on a accoustic you have more spaces but you'll get used to it i guess. Are you saying that you touch more than the A et D strings while doing a E-minor ? Are you positionning your hands right ? (not on the actual chord but more on the back on the ... neck ? (dunno the word in english) the back of the guitar i mean. + Show Spoiler [like this] +
although with time you should be able to do that ... you are probably not using the finger tip.
My fingernails are often at right angles to the fret board. Acoustic guitars can be a lot harder to play ... but their strings are also spaced further apart. It is fairly easy once you get good to play and strings and have the others ring out. But it is soemthing you specifically have to practise doing. However a lot of the time you also want to be muting all other strings either with left or right hand so they don't ring out.
That chord - and others up there are odd because you dont need to barre.
Practise.
Put one finger on one string and move your wrist and angles till you get it for one ... dont use your thumb on the neck. once you get one string add the other. You need to concentrate on being able to waggle your other fingers whilst doing it also (especially on an acoustic) to ensure that you are keeping hand tension low. People miss it out then later they hit a brick wall usually tension related - you hear things like its hard work.
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On November 12 2013 22:48 MrTortoise wrote:Show nested quote +On November 12 2013 22:33 FFW_Rude wrote:On November 12 2013 22:15 [F_]aths wrote:
I have a Yamaha FG 700, but I am not really able to play it. The e-minor chord is difficult enough to play in a way that both strings are pressed down hard enough while no other strings are touched.
So far I fail to play a c-major, g-major and d-major chord. I don't really get what you are saying. It's kind of harder to play on a "folk" guitar than on an accoustic guitar at first because strings are tight while on a accoustic you have more spaces but you'll get used to it i guess. Are you saying that you touch more than the A et D strings while doing a E-minor ? Are you positionning your hands right ? (not on the actual chord but more on the back on the ... neck ? (dunno the word in english) the back of the guitar i mean. + Show Spoiler [like this] + although with time you should be able to do that ... you are probably not using the finger tip. My fingernails are often at right angles to the fret board. Acoustic guitars can be a lot harder to play ... but their strings are also spaced further apart. It is fairly easy once you get good to play and strings and have the others ring out. But it is soemthing you specifically have to practise doing. However a lot of the time you also want to be muting all other strings either with left or right hand so they don't ring out. That chord - and others up there are odd because you dont need to barre. Practise. Put one finger on one string and move your wrist and angles till you get it for one ... dont use your thumb on the neck. once you get one string add the other. You need to concentrate on being able to waggle your other fingers whilst doing it also (especially on an acoustic) to ensure that you are keeping hand tension low. People miss it out then later they hit a brick wall usually tension related - you hear things like its hard work.
I think you quoted the wrong man 
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On November 12 2013 22:51 FFW_Rude wrote:Show nested quote +On November 12 2013 22:48 MrTortoise wrote:On November 12 2013 22:33 FFW_Rude wrote:On November 12 2013 22:15 [F_]aths wrote:
I have a Yamaha FG 700, but I am not really able to play it. The e-minor chord is difficult enough to play in a way that both strings are pressed down hard enough while no other strings are touched.
So far I fail to play a c-major, g-major and d-major chord. I don't really get what you are saying. It's kind of harder to play on a "folk" guitar than on an accoustic guitar at first because strings are tight while on a accoustic you have more spaces but you'll get used to it i guess. Are you saying that you touch more than the A et D strings while doing a E-minor ? Are you positionning your hands right ? (not on the actual chord but more on the back on the ... neck ? (dunno the word in english) the back of the guitar i mean. + Show Spoiler [like this] + although with time you should be able to do that ... you are probably not using the finger tip. My fingernails are often at right angles to the fret board. Acoustic guitars can be a lot harder to play ... but their strings are also spaced further apart. It is fairly easy once you get good to play and strings and have the others ring out. But it is soemthing you specifically have to practise doing. However a lot of the time you also want to be muting all other strings either with left or right hand so they don't ring out. That chord - and others up there are odd because you dont need to barre. Practise. Put one finger on one string and move your wrist and angles till you get it for one ... dont use your thumb on the neck. once you get one string add the other. You need to concentrate on being able to waggle your other fingers whilst doing it also (especially on an acoustic) to ensure that you are keeping hand tension low. People miss it out then later they hit a brick wall usually tension related - you hear things like its hard work. I think you quoted the wrong man
yeah well i started saying why do you want open strings to ring out ... then i realised what chord they were talking about ... i though it was a simple root + third interval pattern on the neck
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On November 12 2013 21:15 Elegance wrote:Show nested quote +On November 12 2013 16:52 Ben... wrote:On November 10 2013 09:53 Elegance wrote:
Scored a nice Japanese Jackson DKMG for cheap! I hope this doesn't get me hooked onto them (except I actually do hope it does...) You will be unable to fight it off for long. I succumbed to Jackson fever many years ago. I've owned 4 and currently have 2. Nice score. DKMG's are archtop right? Those were more expensive from what I remember. I have a DK2 myself. Those mid-late 2000s era of import Jacksons were really great, a lot nicer than what they have now. They aren't nearly as flashy as the new ones (I consider that a good thing), but they are much more solid instruments. Your guitar would have been made in Japan. Most of the new ones aren't from what I understand, though I have been out of the loop. Edit: New Pro series is made in Mexico, others are made in Indonesia, no Japan... Not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand Mexican Fenders (Fender owns Jackson now) are usually quite solid. On the other hand Jackson/Charvel had 25 years or more of history of having incredibly high quality Japanese imports. Like old Ibanez (Don't even get me started on new Ibanez), Jackson's Japanese imports were always highly regarded. The Indonesian models are not very good at all from what I have played. My old beat up '92 Soloist I paid $500 for could run circles around the cheap ones they sell now. Yeah I've heard Jap Jacksons are the bargains of the centuries usually. My Jackson is probably somewhere mid 2000's. It is the archtop version with real EMGs rather than the passives (not that it really matters, but I don't mind EMGs). Jackson's Japanese factory closed down completely a few years back. A real shame. I hear the Mexican ones are fairly good...but the fretwork etc. are usually not onpar with their Japanese counterparts. As for the X series, they used to be made in Japan and now are made in India and the fretwork etc. are not on par. If I end up getting addicted to Jacksons after this guitar I'll probably try and snag up a SLS3, SLSMG or SLAT (6 or 7 string) in the future Ah yes I know which model you have. That's a really nice one.
Thanks for filling me in. I was out of the loop, I was quite into Jacksons around 3 years ago but quite playing guitar for a couple years until I started again a few months back. I was must have been thinking of Ibanez when I thought Indonesia. The old JS series was made in India from what I remember. They must have just moved all non-Pro production there. I don't like that move. I played one of the X Series Soloists and was not impressed. I think the old X-Series was made in Korea. The Japanese Jacksons were kinda expensive for the price but you got a solid, well-made, no frills guitar, and that is what Jackson used as their way of differentiating themselves, high quality guitars with few compromises. This move screams of just trying to compete only on price against ESP and Ibanez, but in doing so they sacrificed the quality they were known for. Before I played that Soloist I had never played a Jackson I didn't like, but after playing it I was kinda puzzled as to what went wrong. All the doom saying back in the day about FMIC harming the Jackson brand seems to be coming true.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://content5.videojug.com/68/688e4c43-72bf-ad0a-9f55-ff0008cd09a1/guitar-chords-e-minor.WidePlayer.jpg)
