Having moved house recently, i’ve decided to trim down my guitar collection, and rather unusually, this has begun with the purchase of a new guitar. I figured if I get one new awesome guitar that covers all bases that I need better than my existing guitars, i can sell them and not be missing anything. Continue reading
Okay, so you’ve seen a guitar on eBay that you want. Sure, there are good pictures and the listing looks legit, but how do you know that the guitar is structurally and electronically sound? The best way to be sure before you pay is to collect in person and check it out before you hand over the cash. Continue reading
I see this question asked a lot online, and I can imagine the scenario. You’ve bought a guitar with a floating tremolo system and you can’t keep it in tune for the life of you. You’ve locked the top nut and everything looks right, but yet when you use the bar even a bit, things start to drift. Floyds can be a pain at the best of times, but a guitar that won’t stay in tune can be virtually unplayable, especially in a live music scenario. As with many things tech, it’s hard to tell the problem without actually seeing the guitar, but here are some of the common reasons and places that you can start. Continue reading
When you’re looking to buy a new guitar you’ll notice that an awful lot of the guitars on the market today have a floating tremolo system, often called a Floyd Rose (after the name of the first bloke to make them). Whether it’s actually a Floyd Rose trem, or many of the other variants available on the market, you are presented with a certain set of consideration to think about before you know if you really need one or not. Continue reading
Ah, the age old question. You want a guitar but you don’t know what to buy. With so much choice these days, you can be forgiven for not really knowing where to start. I thought I’d write a blog to try and answer this as best I can. I’ve been buying, selling and playing guitar (bass and 6 string) for long enough to have a decent idea of what to do. Continue reading
Since the licensing laws for live music were relaxed in 2012 many new pubs, clubs and bars have started putting on live music. The new law states that as long as your capacity is 200 or less, you don’t need a licence at all – a big improvement from the previous barrage of red tape. Continue reading
Ebay is a very popular place to buy musical instruments these days. A huge number of all the guitars for sale in the UK at any given time will be listed on eBay, from private sellers AND retailers – especially second hand instruments. Buying from eBay can be a great experience, but it can also have its pitfalls. I wanted to write a blog to look in detail at buying from eBay, and I’ll probably add to this blog as time goes by. Continue reading
It’s a commonly asked question in the world of guitar music – what kind of guitar should I buy for a child or if I’m a beginner? Well, let’s look at a typical scenario. Bear in mind though, all these principles apply to all guitars – electric, acoustic or bass.
Pricing any service is tricky and depending on any client’s point of view, any one price can look expensive or cheap. Many new guitarists (or parents of guitarists) think that guitar tech work is expensive, usually because the cost of the instrument was so low. It’s the whole “How come it costs £50 to set up a £90 guitar?” scenario. You can read that blog here – So You Think I’m Expensive?
I know sometimes that guitar setup and repair work can seem expensive, usually when the instrument didn’t cost much to start with. Unfortunately, cheap instruments aren’t magically cheaper, quicker or easier to work on than more expensive guitars so a £50 setup on a £100 guitar seems unreasonable, whereas the same work on a £500 is more manageable.
Jim's Guitar Workshop 