tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73279344540152342392023-11-16T01:42:55.426-06:00Booze and BluesBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.comBlogger159125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-22774712959414860712013-08-28T23:01:00.001-05:002013-08-28T23:01:54.801-05:00Walked into Guitar Center for the first time in months,and played a '69 Fender Vibro-champ. I now know what all of the Blackface-fuss is about. Didn't buy it, but sure wanted to.<br />
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That is all.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-81224349757931003432013-05-09T16:27:00.000-05:002013-05-09T16:34:14.958-05:00Presenting the slimmer, sleeker pedal board:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnGKv7QsDajxdYq2_8UjPeQpJ9w4faqPRmO7chZF6kwROttjmnzx9X_RueY2yb7hX8HW_Ay91__IcS3rlZbApsCDH7nh-PtsfcTgJz4NPs3mxlxzc_3_dzWPXM9OZa1oSWYvNoJQ4HYfBB/s1600/Pedalboard+(May+%2713).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="476" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnGKv7QsDajxdYq2_8UjPeQpJ9w4faqPRmO7chZF6kwROttjmnzx9X_RueY2yb7hX8HW_Ay91__IcS3rlZbApsCDH7nh-PtsfcTgJz4NPs3mxlxzc_3_dzWPXM9OZa1oSWYvNoJQ4HYfBB/s640/Pedalboard+(May+%2713).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I know, somehow it's less colorful than it has been in the past. So that's kinda sad.<br />
<br />
What you're looking at is the result of the last year of deciding exactly what I needed and what I didn't, then trying to find the best of each thing that I could. Notable is that I only have one delay pedal (for now), the newly acquired DD-20, after finally losing patience with the awkwardness of the DL4. I still really like the way that the DL4 sounds, but I've been using my DD-7 on my leading board and have realized just how little I need dual-delays to get the big delay sound that I use most often, and, well, the DD-20 just does more for less space, and has an extra preset. The thing I will miss is that it's missing an expression knob/pedal, which the DL4 had, but I wasn't overly pleased with how the DL4 worked with the expression pedal. If I get a legit analog delay, I will probably be set. Also, no POG. Again, I really liked the POG 2, but if I'm being completely honest, I never used it. And that thing was a beast in terms of real estate, so it got the axe. <br />
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I put an expression knob on my Tap-a-Whirl which is something I saw James Duke do and thought it was a great idea. Just cannibalized it from the expression pedal that I was using on the gone-but-not-forgotten DL4. And my drive section is what it is. I was kind of surprised that my favorite drive pedals didn't make it on there, those being the Signa Drive and the Morning Glory. I love both of those, but each of these pedals just add more "weight" to the signal when they're on, and I thought that was probably the most important thing for a drive pedal to do, at least from this board. If I had room for one more drive pedal, it would be the Fulltone Fatboost because I love what that does to push other drive pedals, but I couldn't find a non-awkward way to get it on there. The Timmy has a new chip in it, too; I couldn't quite get behind the one that was in there, so this guy told me to try swapping it out since it's got a chip socket instead of just a soldered chip, and I did, and it kind of blew me away. The actual chip cost me $1.04 with tax from a local electronics shop, and is a version of an LM1458 (I think...). Which seems like I should know exactly what it is, but I don't feel like opening it up to check. But it took me exactly 30 seconds to mod, and man, that guy rocks now. I used to find it a little harsh, now it's smoother. And weight.<br />
<br />
Anyway, the current chain (for the pedal nerds like me out there) is:<br />
<br />
Guitar -> JHS Little Black Buffer -> MXR Dynacomp -> Vox Wah -> Gravity Drive (a.k.a. Bluesbreaker clone) -> Fulldrive 2 (non-MOSFET for extra street cred...also it sounds pretty awesome) -> Timmy with new chip -> Ernie Ball volume pedal -> Boss DD-20 (with tap tempo) -> Cusack Tap-A-Whirl -> Boss Tu-2 -> Boss RV-5 -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Amp <br />
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<br />
...but it will probably change next week.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-10881302062168500032013-04-05T17:20:00.002-05:002013-04-05T17:21:17.944-05:00Long absence? What long absence?...been quite a while. Sorry. Maybe. I've been busy making music and such, which is I guess the whole point of this thing, but also, I just haven't had too much turnover in gear or change in drinking. Maybe I'm getting old and boring. Maybe.<br />
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I am currently in the process of auditioning drive pedals. Behold!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikleypEQkAAaDBh_fDLNzd7fCqvPMkTeB29hmDR__jUyPyDFVke15vPxLzYLzRihZSw4KQp-Wnx2JUEFCUeGAKcZHcvbcBWpLsZPVsb1RdIxggJbeF8rpB5by949oKc3x3rMqhiRTrfZ7f/s1600/Drives.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikleypEQkAAaDBh_fDLNzd7fCqvPMkTeB29hmDR__jUyPyDFVke15vPxLzYLzRihZSw4KQp-Wnx2JUEFCUeGAKcZHcvbcBWpLsZPVsb1RdIxggJbeF8rpB5by949oKc3x3rMqhiRTrfZ7f/s400/Drives.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
I traded an '81 TS9 for a Fulldrive 2 and a Fatboost, and am trying to figure out which 3 of the 8 drive pedals that I have are going to make it onto the board. I've been having a lot of fun with the Morning Glory, but I've never really sat down and done a large-scale shootout of pedals, more so just picked one, played it for a while, picked another one, played that one for a while, etc. And somewhere along the line I ended up with 8 overdrives. I've also streamlined the rest of my pedalboards, but that's a topic for another post, probably once I'm done figuring out which drives I want...Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-27002444749649863882012-08-15T15:14:00.000-05:002012-08-15T15:14:29.113-05:00Bermuda Highball<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLHbUZF_uaDGOazrKOkJrck4fYvSJrtlq00u5nUdU6wLf3cVxQN1HKWhkC34rg5f3SdE4tOIwP8cU2ahWbAARYZEK4mJB9HWk45VgHVviam1REMI6ADZ6Thdir0GJF1IUvJZ4LEKHEh2-/s1600/Bermuda+Highball.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLHbUZF_uaDGOazrKOkJrck4fYvSJrtlq00u5nUdU6wLf3cVxQN1HKWhkC34rg5f3SdE4tOIwP8cU2ahWbAARYZEK4mJB9HWk45VgHVviam1REMI6ADZ6Thdir0GJF1IUvJZ4LEKHEh2-/s400/Bermuda+Highball.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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<u>Bermuda Highball</u><br />
<ul>
<li>3/4 oz. dry gin</li>
<li>3/4 oz. brandy</li>
<li>3/4 oz. French (dry) vermouth</li>
</ul>
Build in an 8 oz. highball glass. Add an ice cube (or three) and top with Ginger Ale or Club Soda. Garnish with a lemon twist, if you wish. <br />
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Not sure why this one's named after Bermuda, though it is rather tasty. I chose to go with Ginger Ale, which, as I've said in the past, can cover a lot of a cocktail's sins, and it definitely made for a refreshing cocktail with a hint of sophistication. That's pretty much what you get when you add dry vermouth to something, though there's definitely a chance that I need to update my stock of vermouths; it's starting to taste a bit flat. That said, I do really enjoy any drink that calls for multiple base spirits, since it adds a lot more complexity than this drink would have with simply 1 1/2 oz. of either gin or brandy. This is definitely a good one.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-22895262495124888832012-08-08T14:40:00.001-05:002012-08-15T15:15:16.973-05:00Bermuda Bouquet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgocA4lxHLM6yFBHuDOfsPDbpfLuyuBJbTZBBW6HBKPzrryRjKCGzaRfVki-Y9AgB7-a6M0yy2Puba1aT3aX4eS4awwwsctywKHcz6ftcUHNUIDWvrJGJ5bhdw9vaXArhgF43_SHqymkHNr/s1600/Bermuda+Bouquet.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgocA4lxHLM6yFBHuDOfsPDbpfLuyuBJbTZBBW6HBKPzrryRjKCGzaRfVki-Y9AgB7-a6M0yy2Puba1aT3aX4eS4awwwsctywKHcz6ftcUHNUIDWvrJGJ5bhdw9vaXArhgF43_SHqymkHNr/s400/Bermuda+Bouquet.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<u>Bermuda Bouquet:</u><br />
<ul>
<li>Juice of 1/4 orange</li>
<li>Juice of 1/2 Lemon</li>
<li>1 tsp. powdered Sugar (2 tsp. Simple Syrup)</li>
<li>1 1/2 oz. gin</li>
<li>1 oz. apricot brandy</li>
<li>1 tsp. Grenadine</li>
<li>1/2 tsp Curacao</li>
</ul>
Shake and strain into 8 oz. Highball glass.<br />
<br />
This one is interesting, and it once again brings to mind, just how much ice did people use in the Old Mr. Boston Cocktail Book days? The recipe calls for none in the glass, which I started with, and quickly noticed that we were left with about 5 oz. of liquid in an 8 oz. glass, which left a lot to be desired for presentation. I chose to drop in two large ice cubes, both to keep things cool and also to raise the liquid level. I chose large ice cubes (perfectly 1 in. square!) to minimize dilution and ice melt, which worked through the duration of the drink. It's so foreign to me to not just fill the glass in question with ice and strain the drink over the top. I think going forward, unless the recipe calls for something specific, I'm going to just put in a few large ice cubes. Agreed? Good.<br />
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Also assumed, mostly because it's getting annoying to have to continue to write out an oz. measurement, is that when something calls for 1/2 of a lime or some such thing, I'm just going to do that. I usually convert it to oz. and then add that much, which is good and precise, but I'm finding that sometimes it makes me over-think the drink. With this one in particular, I used my standard "1/2 of a fruit" measurement of 3/4 oz. of Lemon juice, and the drink came off too sweet. I made it a second time through, simply using half of a lemon, and it was perfectly balanced. So from here on out, for drinks from the Old Mr. Boston DeLuxe Official Bartender's Guide, I'm going to use medium sized Limes, large Lemons, normal sized Oranges, and so on. Basically, whatever seems to be the normative fruit size will be the one I use. It's not as precise, but I think it should suffice.<br />
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Anyway, on the actual drink, it's a nice mix of flavors, but as I said, using too little Lemon juice created a drink that was a bit too sweet. The Apricot Brandy was very forward, which may have contributed to the overall sweetness, but adding back in the correct amount of Lemon juice fixed that right up. Very nice and tropical, as the name would suggest. With the correct balance, this one is really quite delightful! Recommend.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-67808565077352193922012-08-08T14:16:00.000-05:002012-08-15T15:15:42.380-05:00Bennett Cocktail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoudaUc6tkbli2bC7hSVCjadP5cI5-9TWS2P3BLpX7sn_9lld0YNo_I41ACdiaVXbVXVoJ7kg6y8Gxc74ket1Qa3FBdBQep5zqByPpv9Ek-vyJWYOJZxJHd7FZd037lGn8cjRVf1Uxyl0/s1600/Bennett+Cocktail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoudaUc6tkbli2bC7hSVCjadP5cI5-9TWS2P3BLpX7sn_9lld0YNo_I41ACdiaVXbVXVoJ7kg6y8Gxc74ket1Qa3FBdBQep5zqByPpv9Ek-vyJWYOJZxJHd7FZd037lGn8cjRVf1Uxyl0/s400/Bennett+Cocktail.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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Here we have a nice twist on a gin sour. Kind of like a Gimlet with some orange bitters.<br />
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<u>Bennett Cocktail:</u><br />
<ul>
<li>1 1/2 oz. gin</li>
<li>Juice of 1/2 a lime (about 3/4 oz.)</li>
<li>1/2 tsp powdered sugar (1 tsp. simple syrup)</li>
<li>2 dashes orange bitters</li>
</ul>
Shake and (double) strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass. <br />
<ul>
</ul>
For this cocktail, I got to use a new vial of Bittermen's Orange Cream Citrate bitters. Somehow I've managed to keep myself to just two different kinds of Orange bitters, and these are a good one. They come with a dropper, which is boss, though I haven't decided how many drops is in a dash just yet. Maybe it's one. I put five or six drops in this one, approximating two dashes, and the flavor really came through. It was like drinking a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popsicle">dreamsicle</a>.Which is, by the way, delicious.<br />
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I was struck by how few drinks up to this point had used sugar or simple syrup. Most of the drinks in this book (so far) use a liqueur, or a flavored syrup like grenadine or raspberry syrup, to get the sweetness to balance out, rather than overpower, the sour elements. Just one very, very different aspect, as compared to modern flavor palettes. <br />
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As for the overall balance of the drink, I liked it. It's not to difficult to get a good drink when you use the time-honored combination of spirit, sour and sweet with a dash of bitters, and this one just tasted...right. It's like a Gimlet with a twist, which I can very much appreciate.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-20910192863310447122012-08-07T18:20:00.004-05:002012-08-15T15:15:54.417-05:00Belmont CocktailWell, time to get back on the wagon. What's first on the list? Something with Scotch? Maybe a new kind of bitters? A....a pink cocktail? Great.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVoGtusEQHs3rY-YlFjMmXfLxjSdrUPQIuQJ_3_S6JmCbrkF3bRoqA-rc6iL-im5XNkwJN7nvSLJAb-5_SBWYn4_9wNRYdqImriV-30K4R9SBWrpCnQXr0yaHw-OlTmYqPt0RVERyerHop/s1600/Belmont+Cocktail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVoGtusEQHs3rY-YlFjMmXfLxjSdrUPQIuQJ_3_S6JmCbrkF3bRoqA-rc6iL-im5XNkwJN7nvSLJAb-5_SBWYn4_9wNRYdqImriV-30K4R9SBWrpCnQXr0yaHw-OlTmYqPt0RVERyerHop/s400/Belmont+Cocktail.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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<u>Belmont Cocktail:</u><br />
<ul>
<li>2 oz. Gin</li>
<li>1 tsp. Raspberry syrup</li>
<li>3/4 oz. sweet cream</li>
</ul>
Shake and (double) strain into 4 oz Cocktail glass.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rVzavrnZPQDexNvo109saGUKJf_hCLgF4PNXpe2PHiRsx3q1qqVYoKhfqUlFcd3Dx89BrsLIZbV5hyPHWZWIUQcXFoLr9TXSup9APU6H3tSutfQcFlQCpzAUU1tjHBx962kYr252a9rw/s1600/Raspberry+Syrup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rVzavrnZPQDexNvo109saGUKJf_hCLgF4PNXpe2PHiRsx3q1qqVYoKhfqUlFcd3Dx89BrsLIZbV5hyPHWZWIUQcXFoLr9TXSup9APU6H3tSutfQcFlQCpzAUU1tjHBx962kYr252a9rw/s320/Raspberry+Syrup.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
This is a pretty simple one, but it does call for Raspberry syrup. There was at least one other drink that I've come across in the book (<a href="http://boozeandblues.blogspot.com/2010/12/albemarle-fizz.html">the Albemarle Fizz</a>) that called for the syrup, so I decided it was time to bite the bullet and make some. The process wasn't overly difficult, either, and I just kind of winged it, adapting one way that I've made Grenadine in the past. I took three cups of sugar and two cups of water, brought it to a boil, stirring it so that the syrup was clear. Then I added a 6 oz. package of Raspberries and lowered the heat so that it was simmering uncovered, like so:<br />
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I let that go for about half an hour, then double strained out the bits of fruit and let the whole thing continue to simmer to reduce it down to a syrup. I let it go for about 15 minutes, but you should be able to tell because it will start to get thick. Then I just cooled it, and voila. Raspberry syrup.<br />
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The whole thing took about an hour, which really isn't too bad. And the product we're left with is nice and raspberry-y.<br />
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And so then there's the drink. I'm not sure what is up with people from the turn of the century, but I can't get behind Gin + cream. Cream has such a weird texture/mouthfeel that doesn't jive well with the bitterness of the alcohol and botanicals that make up Gin, and I really can't understand why someone would do something like this to such a good spirit. On the other hand, I have had the Ramos Gin Fizz which was just sublime. Maybe this is just a bad cocktail? Can't get over it. Next.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-32246131493575774452012-08-02T12:00:00.001-05:002012-08-15T15:19:50.008-05:00New Speaker, Old CocktailsIn the course of cycling through gear, some guy offered me a trade involving an Eminence Cannabis Rex, and I thought, sure! I'd been tentatively thinking about replacing the speakers in both of my amps, more so to see what kind of a difference it would make than anything else, and this was one of the "good" ones on the list for the Blues Jr., so I decided to go for it. So I opened that puppy up, made the swap (which was way easier than I'd been expecting, if not a little tedious) and also messed around with my reverb tank, while I was in there. The reverb tank repair didn't take, but the new speaker sure did...<br />
<br />
I've been using my Blues Jr. a bit more than my Valve Jr. for when I've got my big-boy electric guitar rig going, mostly because I've found that some of the things that I do to add clarity and punch also add a little bit of harshness to the signal. The combination of my buffer, compressor and BBE Sonic Stomp all make for a crystal clear clean tone, despite the endless effects pedals around, but with all of that clarity, I had to start turning my brightness and sparkle controls all the way down to keep my ears from falling off. I haven't had a chance to run my new speaker through my big rig just yet, but in plugging it in to make sure things worked, this speaker definitely delivers. It's just mellowed things out a bit. Not detracting from the high end or anything like that, but everything just sounds so much more pleasing to the ear. The speaker has also been broken in, which is good, and it's got plenty of bass, which I always appreciate. I've got some more testing and tweaking to do, obviously, but I think it's fixed the issue, which is a great feeling!<br />
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I also recently got an e-mail from a prominent cocktail blogger saying very nice things about my site, which was awesome but at the same time made me realize it's been months since I've posted about anything non-guitar-related. Not that that's the end of the world, but things have been a bit one-sided. So to update that side of my personality, I've been drinking about as much as usual, but not really anything exciting or new. I see a huge upswing in the abilities of bars to accommodate the drink snob like me, but it's still probably going to be years, if ever, before we get back to the bar, circa 1957. Not that it's the bar's fault; that lies mostly in the hands and tastebuds of my peers, who would still rather have alcohol be a means to an end, rather than an experience for the palate. Call me old-fashioned, but if I'm going to have an adult drink, I'd prefer it didn't taste like something a kindergartener would enjoy.<br />
<br />
But to that end, my time spent drinking out almost always gravitates towards the safe choices. It's impossible to mess up a Gin and Tonic, the old liquor on the rocks takes literally no thought on the bartender's part, and the varieties of craft beer available in the St. Louis area make me wonder if I could ever make it through every beer in existence. My opportunities to drink from the comforts of my own home bar have been more limited, too, though more due to my own laziness than anything else. My liquor collection is as impressive as ever, and I now have access to 7 different bitters, orange flower-water, Allspice Dram and Falernum, but have yet to really experiment with a lot of it. Part of it is, after a night of work, I just prefer the ease of a beer or a scotch, rather than rattling up the shaker. Part of it is that I'm less than satisfied with my ice-making capabilities. I think I'm getting old and crotchety. And still only 26!<br />
<br />
Perhaps I'll get back to a place where I'm drinking something exciting more regularly. Everything is a cycle, as they say.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-3405439867011524892012-07-17T09:52:00.000-05:002012-08-15T15:17:15.564-05:00Pedalboard Update - JulyHere's what I'm running with right now:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvyefgxYiBb4Ty-rlTQrjWhcMBgwSfuwa6jMCfnmhPzQ42Q4ppODyj8nKwhfBppwkg26C6T9_kBWhb_7ljg0q8vbcfnnL7tgu92qYUbcDg24NnN6G-Zo4rtklyEU23Yp4bKEAzjkdoVvF9/s1600/Pedalboard+%28July+%2712%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvyefgxYiBb4Ty-rlTQrjWhcMBgwSfuwa6jMCfnmhPzQ42Q4ppODyj8nKwhfBppwkg26C6T9_kBWhb_7ljg0q8vbcfnnL7tgu92qYUbcDg24NnN6G-Zo4rtklyEU23Yp4bKEAzjkdoVvF9/s640/Pedalboard+%28July+%2712%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Guitar -> (Fuzz Face) -> JHS Buffer -> MXR Compressor -> VOX Wah -> EHX POG 2 -> Bluesbreaker -> Morning Glory -> Signa Drive -> Tap-a-whirl -> Boss CE-2 Chorus -> Volume pedal -> Boss DD-7 (with tap tempo) -> DL4 (with expression knob) -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Boss Tuner -> Boss RV-5 -> amp<br />
<br />
I did what we all do and got sick of what was already kind of working, in favor of something that might work better. It looks really different because I moved a lot of stuff around, but the only actual new pedals are the Cusack Tap-A-Whirl, which I'm still getting used to, and the JHS Morning Glory, which is awesome. And also the Fuzzface, though that's not a normal part of the board, since I don't normally need fuzz, but it's really easy to plug in if I need it. I also cleaned up some of the mundane stuff. I moved the buffer underneath the pedalboard, like so:<br />
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So that all I need to do is plug in to the bottom of the board, and it looks pretty slick. I got a second Pedal Power 2+ and mounted it underneath, so now every pedal has it's own channel on a power supply. And because I now need to run two power cables, plus an amp send line, from the board, I home-made a pedal snake by getting two long power cables and zip-tying it all together. I think I need to get some kind of covering for it, though, since you can't run it through your hands. I'll look into that.<br />
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The only thing that I know will absolutely change in a bit is I've finally caught up with 2008 and ordered a Timmy. So that's going to go in the place of the Bluesbreaker pedal, which is great but isn't as versatile as the Morning Glory, which based itself upon the Bluesbreaker anyway. But for now, I'm using the Bluesbreaker as I would the Timmy; as a cleanish boost and to push the other overdrives. I love the expression knob on the DL4, since it lets me control whatever I want, which right now is just repeats on all of my delays. And so far the layout is working out pretty well, since it's protecting the pedals I want to protect (compressor, sonic stomp) from my foot while giving me good access to the rest of them.<br />
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As far as amps go, I'm digging my Valve Jr. for plugging straight in, but with the pedalboard I'm finding I like the ability to tweak some of the brightness out, so my Blues Jr. lets me do that. I've really only been working things out with my new Strat, though, so we'll see what happens when I try out my other guitars. But for a good Strat, this setup is pretty killer.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-44673507370517305612012-06-16T01:21:00.001-05:002012-08-15T15:16:29.335-05:00Yet Another Strat...I got a new Strat today. Well, maybe "new" is a little misleading. Maybe "got" is, too.<br />
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Like I think I said before, I've loved my little Strat that I built, that was actually the impetus for starting this blog, but I've started to get just a little dissatisfied with some of it's quirks. Even with a good, professional setup, it never really clicked with me. Sure, it plays fine. Sounds okay. The tuners are solid. All in all, it's a very serviceable Strat. But it's just hasn't delivered that jaw-dropping tone that I've wanted it to. Not that I blame it; I had basically no idea what I was doing when I built it, let alone what it was that I wanted it to sound like. I was just picking pieces because of what other people told me and what was affordable.<br />
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Then I started playing real Strats, legit vintage ones, and I heard what a Strat was supposed to sound like, felt the smooth action of the neck and really just had an overall mind-bending experience. So I couldn't take it much longer. I had to fix things.<br />
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I decided to do a lot more "hands-on" research this time around. I went out to a really nice guitar store in the area and tried out as many Strats as they'd let me. Most specifically, I was looking for tonal differences between fretboard materials (they were all alder Strats, which was probably what I was going to go with anyway), and then tried out a few different neck profiles. Between the Maple or Rosewood neck, all else being held constant, I was pretty amazed at the tonal difference. It was subtle, but definitely there. The Maple neck was a little snappier, the Rosewood one a bit more restrained. I really like both, and could honestly see owning one of each at some point in the future, but I decided that for my one-and-only, I'd go with Rosewood again. Then I tried a few different neck profiles, and found the one I like. The thing that made the most difference to me? The radius. I'm a 9.5" guy all the way. Just feels right.<br />
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After that, I started thinking more about specifics. I came across a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLMnWxw1Qpg">John Mayer video</a> where he talked about the hows and whys of making his "Black One" Stratocaster at the Fender factory. The thing that struck me was when he talked about making his guitar with no paint on it. That really, really got me thinking about finish. I'd always heard that finish mattered, but I'd only ever owned guitars with a poly-finish, like most modern guitars. Then I got my Mustang, which is from '66 so it's got a nice thin nitro-cellulose lacquer on it. I love the way that guitar sounds. So nitro it is.<br />
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I wanted to not repeat some of the mistakes that I made with the first Strat I built, so I went searching for guitars that could fit my standards and not be so expensive that I'd feel bad for customizing them. My search brought me to the Fender Highway One guitars, mostly because they've got the 9.5" radius neck and a body with some nitro on it. Now, digging in a bit more (and confirming it mid-relic-ing), I found out it's more of a compound finish, with a clear poly covered by a colored nitro finish, but either way, it's a thinner finish than most Strats out there.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivL82wcbzqijNjKgjks3LDipQhDN87FhiJUCHKkPVtg_V93LkVbF9hxY2_y2UZHGtWdAkwMJoi1c9oYms1eNYQ0EDMeuN6FgO-7NkPThEc_0w3AunGx2EheJf0IQxfqCrimGgP1nvZpLSU/s1600/IMG_0545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivL82wcbzqijNjKgjks3LDipQhDN87FhiJUCHKkPVtg_V93LkVbF9hxY2_y2UZHGtWdAkwMJoi1c9oYms1eNYQ0EDMeuN6FgO-7NkPThEc_0w3AunGx2EheJf0IQxfqCrimGgP1nvZpLSU/s400/IMG_0545.JPG" width="298" /></a>So to make a long story short, I bought one off of eBay (from 1993, so it's got the medium-jumbo frets, which I prefer, and a vintage-sized headstock, which I'm ambivalent on), swapped out the guts for those in my other Strat, and then got to relicing it. Here's how it turned out:<br />
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As you can see, it's not nearly as relic'ed as Mayer's Black One. Like he said, the idea isn't so much about the look as it is about letting the wood breathe. I also think that the whole "heavily distressed" guitar look can come off looking a bit cheesy, particularly when there's paint worn away in areas where there never would be, if the guitar were just worn from normal playing. The upper horn is a pick thing, the lower slant where the arm makes contact makes sense, and the back around the belt buckle is definitely something that happens, along with dents and dings along the edges and around the jack. But how are you going to wear out the paint inside the horns? That just doesn't make sense. So that's about the extent to what I did. Don't get me wrong; this is definitely pretty heavily distressed. But I could definitely relic it more. I also wiped the whole thing down with some lacquer thinner to just thin out the paint that much more.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4xBFBVe9bu3i-JJ7YTkZoq2wmB8gief4oerqYKsT37K8ykWI67wMuG6GTYTmaKM5Xrygyc_1WuxdpfM_61sNUpXhuOIW8CJYDW5DQNavIbruu6JGokMsE2CyYMel8Atw_tgPRP5kRcaH/s1600/IMG_0546.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4xBFBVe9bu3i-JJ7YTkZoq2wmB8gief4oerqYKsT37K8ykWI67wMuG6GTYTmaKM5Xrygyc_1WuxdpfM_61sNUpXhuOIW8CJYDW5DQNavIbruu6JGokMsE2CyYMel8Atw_tgPRP5kRcaH/s400/IMG_0546.JPG" width="297" /></a>Then, I rubbed the whole thing down with some black wood stain. The parts that are just wood colored are still covered in the poly coating, but the places that came up black are where I scratched all the way through to the wood. It added a lot of depth to the relic work, making it look way, way more realistic. It also added a nice tint to the plastic parts, aside from the pickup covers which were the same ones from the earlier Strat. If I don't like the way that they look next to the other parts, I'll relic up some white ones and pop them in. I also sanded the neck so it plays really smoothly.<br />
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The end result is a guitar that really sings. It's clear and aggressive at the same time. The pickups do most of the heavy lifting, but this guitar sounds an order of magnitude clearer than the guitar that those pickups came from. It's not quite at the same level as Mayer's guitar, which frankly is the best sounding Strat I've ever heard, even over YouTube, but it's close. Maybe chucking some of his Big Dipper pickups in there would take it to the next level, but I'm extremely satisfied. Maybe someday you'll all hear it...Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-79187668497712566392012-05-04T13:05:00.001-05:002012-08-15T15:20:11.137-05:00Quick updateWas in Nashville over the last few days. Played a $15,000 Strat from 1963, and a $12,500 Strat from 1959. I get what it's all about. Maybe someday....<br />
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Legit updates coming someday. Maybe.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-77671896559891526342012-02-15T14:11:00.000-06:002012-02-15T14:11:59.301-06:00In with the new gear, out with the old.I've been living the dream of selling off cheap stuff to fund expensive stuff. In the last few months I've been extremely happy with both my new amps (the Valve Jr. that I modded, and the Blues Jr. that I had BillM mod for me), and I've really settled on a pedalboard configuration that works pretty well for me. Not perfect, mind you, but well. For instance, I could see myself getting one of those Line 6 M9s to take the place of my DL4, tremolo and chorus pedal, while also giving me more mods and delays and pitch shifting and all sorts of fun sounds. Mostly because it's pretty rare that I use stuff like my chorus, and I feel like it's just eating up space, but I want to have access to it when I need it. But the biggest area where I've changed things out has been my guitars:<br />
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Two new members of the family, with three gone. Basically, I swapped my Gretsch out for a short-lived Strat (sounded okay, but it had noiseless pickups in it which weirds me out in a single-coil guitar) which then got traded for that Tele. It's a 1989 MIJ tele. I was average on it until I put it head-to-head against my Squire Classic Vibe 50's telecaster, wherein I discovered that this one sounds way, way better. Less brightness, better depth of tone, more usable. I'm still not in love with the colors, but it sounds great.<br />
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But then that gave me leave to sell off my Classic Vibe since I really, really don't need 2 teles. Then, I sold that along with a my Epiphone Les Paul, some pedals that have been sitting around, some guitar cases, and a lot of other random stuff that I'd been trying to sell for ages, and splurged on a Gibson ES-335. And I love it. And it was way easier to justify having sold over a grand worth of gear, specifically with an eye towards getting this guitar. And, of course, I got a good deal.<br />
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Not that I'm done, by any means. I'm just not very good at being "done" at buying gear. But I'm feeling myself starting to settle in, just like I did with my pedal board, just like I did with my amps. I've got parts on the way to push the ES-335 over the top: PAF pickups and 50's style electronics so that this thing will sound like an original 1959 ES-335, with all the bite and mojo and tone faeries and etc. And I can see myself taking a <a href="http://www.fender.com/products/americanspecial/models.php?prodNo=0115602">Fender American Special strat</a> and replacing the electronics in that with the electronics in my current strat and then going from there. I know, I know. I said I'd keep it forever. But spending so much time with it, I love how it sounds, I just can start to see a lot of the flaws, all errors in terms of construction and materials. The pickups are incredible, just incredible. It just doesn't feel perfect yet. Besides, if I were going to have a "backup" electric, I think it would be a strat; my playing just seems to fit a Strat the best.<br />
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I am a lot closer to completing my gear journey than I was a month ago. At least, that's what I keep telling myself....Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-51005502939578530402012-01-12T20:25:00.000-06:002012-01-12T20:25:32.512-06:00Drink Spotlight: Champs Elysees<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyFMqq7k_T_Ab9G7WFjRIMKtJzO34_gcIrMnPeNUflNFK_AnQdK2jod8GXWjIXKAucMd-CFjKxlqbXBwI0uEJE_6NeDfQijCmMhuFvoCZocN9KkKZG4dr_Fe3TtduirM4BRaeDR1ujaQaY/s1600/Champs+Elysees.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyFMqq7k_T_Ab9G7WFjRIMKtJzO34_gcIrMnPeNUflNFK_AnQdK2jod8GXWjIXKAucMd-CFjKxlqbXBwI0uEJE_6NeDfQijCmMhuFvoCZocN9KkKZG4dr_Fe3TtduirM4BRaeDR1ujaQaY/s400/Champs+Elysees.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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...it's not exactly like I haven't been drinking. I mean, it's been the holidays! I've just found not very much drive to continue in my quest for making every drink ever. I'm sure someday I'll come back to it, but in the mean time, I thought I'd feature a few more drinks. The first one is this: the Champs Elysees.<br />
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It's funny how drinks come in and out of style. I mean, here in St. Louis, there really aren't many craft cocktail bars around. Unfortunately, it's still way, way easier to get a delicious craft beer in this town than anything resembling an exquisite cocktail. That is, of course, unless you're at my house! But supposedly, this may be one of the next big cocktails get revived, so I thought I'd give it a shot. And I've been looking for something to do with my Chartreuse....<br />
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<u>The Champs Elysees:</u><br />
<ul><li>1 1/2 oz. brandy or cognac</li>
<li><u> </u>3/4 oz. lemon juice</li>
<li>1/2 oz. simple syrup </li>
<li>1/2 oz. Chartreuse</li>
<li>1-2 dashes aromatic bitters </li>
</ul>Shake and strain into cocktail glass.<br />
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If you're looking for an analog, this cocktail is quite similar to the <a href="http://boozeandblues.blogspot.com/2009/12/drink-spotlight-sidecar.html">Sidecar</a>. It's built very similarly, but where the sidecar uses triple sec as a sweetener, the Champs Elysees opts for equal parts Chartreuse and simple syrup. The Chartreuse is an herbal liqueur, so it has a very definitive sweet component, and it makes for a fairly balanced cocktail. The cocktail is definitely tilted slightly towards the "sweet" side, but not overbearingly so. The herbal nature of the Chartreuse offers a lot of complexity to the Sidecar, and the dash of bitters, just a bit of spice. It's a good thing, too, as brandy is good but not particularly assertive, so it makes a good base for more intense flavors.<br />
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I'd highly recommend this one. It's a good introduction to Chartreuse and it's delicious!Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-25757383531002674842011-12-22T14:20:00.003-06:002011-12-23T09:52:38.442-06:00All I want for Christmas is a modded Valve Jr.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp7Xhi8rBaC25n1_Ua_NQvfRZ3-vUo2myA2_fNLIDNTxVqgaGUNo5qowiQIF60qZaZMiyKHVv25WIZpq2JyxejsMIGuyJPxKxo7le_VhuveMi7G9vefMfLfxn7V5y19tse21wWXqg4yNvQ/s1600/Valve+Jr.+Combo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp7Xhi8rBaC25n1_Ua_NQvfRZ3-vUo2myA2_fNLIDNTxVqgaGUNo5qowiQIF60qZaZMiyKHVv25WIZpq2JyxejsMIGuyJPxKxo7le_VhuveMi7G9vefMfLfxn7V5y19tse21wWXqg4yNvQ/s320/Valve+Jr.+Combo.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Ok. So. Sorry about disappearing for all of November. And like most of December. On the plus side, it means that I've been really busy playing and working retreats and finding as many jobs as I possibly could and could not be bothered to do anything else. Certainly not much drinking and writing about it. I'm way behind on that project, and so it might scale itself to a life-long goal, rather than a scant year or two....<br />
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But it wasn't all work! Gear has moved around, as it is wont to do. The biggest changes include some trades: I traded my Musicmaster amp for a 1981 TS9 and a cmatmods Signa Drive, and I traded my Gretsch for a Strat. I've updated my pedalboard that I used for leading (which I'll show you guys in a later post) and I picked up, modded, and am now in love with, another Epiphone Valve Jr.<br />
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If you remember way back, I had a head/cab Valve Jr. back in the beginning of my guitar-playing days. I mostly got frustrated with it because of the fact that it is a head/cab which for whatever reason just seems like a big hassle to me. But then I found a little Valve Jr. combo on Craigslist for $75, and I thought to myself, why not?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFrvGL_pLRnUrzVFpkxzrZm8X4gatIX_aDafOrcFhOOMrwM81hodkZB6Skacg5CCHyoNDPqFwXNPTcGnVyqAwZYIIgWtZqhqD6B3pdZLeA9lhxTrB99pGaUrD26NDDOeopS322NNqYA3l/s1600/Epiphone+Valve+Jr..JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFrvGL_pLRnUrzVFpkxzrZm8X4gatIX_aDafOrcFhOOMrwM81hodkZB6Skacg5CCHyoNDPqFwXNPTcGnVyqAwZYIIgWtZqhqD6B3pdZLeA9lhxTrB99pGaUrD26NDDOeopS322NNqYA3l/s400/Epiphone+Valve+Jr..JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Pictured: the most cumbersome 5 watts ever.</span></div><br />
I figured, worst case, it will teach me a lot about amps and soldering and general electronics work, and if I screw it up, I'm only out a little. So I grabbed this little guy and a soldering iron and got to work.<br />
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I used the kit from <a href="http://turretboards.com/">Watts Tube Audio</a>, choosing to go with the "Voxy" mod simply because I like AC30s but am almost never in a situation where I can crank one to get power tube distortion. I also planned on adding a "bright" switch because I like that. So I drilled a nice hole for the switch. Note to self: no matter how much of a pain it is, REMOVE THE CIRCUIT BOARD BEFORE DRILLING IN THE CHASSIS. I drilled right through a little capacitor on the stock board, which I was going to remove anyway, but it kind of gave me a wake-up call. Don't do that.<br />
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For the bright switch, I did a lot of research to figure out the best way to do it. One of the easiest ways to do it is to wire a small capacitor (in the order of pico-farads) across the volume pot and give it a switch. It's the same idea as a "treble bleed" mod that a lot of people will do to their amps or even their guitars, just with a switch. The idea there is that the resistance in the volume pot at any position other than wide-open sucks some of the highs out, so the treble bleed switch just adds those back in. The effect is lessened the more the amp is turned up, but that's just because those frequencies start to poke back through anyway. The first capacitor I used was apparently not rated for high-voltage applications. It was promptly destroyed and fuzzed out. So that was fun. Lesson learned, I got a 100pf capacitor rated at 250v, and it's been working fine.<br />
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So I got to soldering the board up. That all went well enough until I plugged it in and turned it on and promptly fried a power tube. To this day, I'm not sure if it was just a tube that was on it's way out or what, but it started sparking and generally doing a lot of scary things that you don't want to see in an amp. I triple-checked my wiring, reflowed some solder on some sketchy joints, installed a new power tube, and this time brought it up to full-voltage slowly (using a variac), and it seemed to fix the problem. I left it at full voltage for a while to make sure nothing died, and when I was satisfied, I screwed everything back in.<br />
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The only other major change I made to the amp was installing a 12ay7 tube in the pre-amp slot, rather than the stock 12ax7. If you don't know anything about tubes, that's okay. Basically, 12a_7 tubes are all electrically compatible. The important part is that a 12ay7 tube has a lesser gain structure than a 12ax7, meaning that an amp with one in it doesn't get quite as dirty as it would normally. I did the same thing with my Blues Jr. and it expanded the amount of control that I had over the volume. And also, the tube I used was a nicer NOS tube, so it just sounds better (and smoother) in general, since a lot of the distortion you're getting, even full-out, is preamp tube distortion. But now I get more use out of the volume knob, and can actually get a clean tone out of humbuckers, something that was all but impossible with a 12ax7.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Osl70qvf_MI" width="640"></iframe><br />
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Here's a quick video. It's just a really simple showcasing of what the amp can do, just my Tele straight in (or rather, through the JHS buffer and my pedal board, but with no other effects on). I play the same phrase on the bridge, middle and neck position, with me toggling the bright switch and turning the volume up. Since the amp is only 5 watts, I can turn it all the way up and not get things hurled at me. It's still loud, mind you, but it's not uncomfortable to be in the same room with.<br />
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I took it out to a Mass last weekend, and my sound guy was blown away at the clarity. I played it with the bright switch engaged, and used my Tele and Strat, and we put a '57 in that taped-off square, pointing towards the center of the speaker. When I went to plug it back in afterwards, I noticed that it kind of stopped working. Or, more specifically, that the tubes weren't glowing. So I made sure to go over the connection between the power transformer and the tubes (kind of a sketch one anyway) with a lot of solder, and now it's nice, clean, and reliable.<br />
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I should probably do a proper demo, putting some effects and stuff on there, but I just wanted to get a baseline tone out there. That's not even my clean tone, since 99.7% of the time I also have a Dynacomp and a BBE Sonic Stomp going. But expect more videos in the future, since this was way easier to do than I would have thought....Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-23399786451778538752011-10-29T14:34:00.000-05:002011-10-29T14:34:39.644-05:00Baseball HeavenI'm not sure if this was obvious or not, but I'm a Cardinals fan. Now and forever. And last night I got to go to game 7 of the World Series and celebrate with 50,000+ fans (in the stadium and on the streets of St. Louis) as we won our 11th World Series. There really are no words for the way that this silly, frustrating, glorious game makes me feel, for the emotional roller-coaster that has been the past two months. Living and dying with every win and every loss. Cheering with everything I have and barely being able to even hear myself in a crowd of tens of thousands. Seeing people in this great city put aside their differences, if only for a short while, and cheering, united. No black, no white, only Cardinal red. And to be able to hug random strangers in the stands, to high-five everyone you meet, to feel such an incredible surge of fraternity with everyone in the city, just incredible.<br />
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This year in particular taught the lesson that nothing's over until it's over, and that fighting and striving and never, ever giving up, on your dreams, on yourself, does pay off. And that, win or lose, it's how you played the game that matters, and there's always a tomorrow to redeem yourself, if you have the courage to reach out and take it. There's always the next season, the next game, the next inning to turn everything around and go from the underdog to the champion.<br />
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And that is why baseball is the greatest game.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8opxIMyAVOiNsPlS4QeHWf1SCy5nzUKifs7v6HSGJdVFMjONwTOaMbPmNxk3s4B0E2NOzz3z0m4gQ2x5VuRQxYpyfnRDTNA-AowgPZnyYgVlalO5OOb_VWAATIfwyexpS5JmOef1Q9D9/s1600/Cards+Win%2521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8opxIMyAVOiNsPlS4QeHWf1SCy5nzUKifs7v6HSGJdVFMjONwTOaMbPmNxk3s4B0E2NOzz3z0m4gQ2x5VuRQxYpyfnRDTNA-AowgPZnyYgVlalO5OOb_VWAATIfwyexpS5JmOef1Q9D9/s400/Cards+Win%2521.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-15108763612307152562011-10-21T11:21:00.001-05:002011-10-21T11:21:36.459-05:00I wasn't sure this day would ever come...In spite of my sporadic posts (which is, I promise, the last time I'm going to talk about that), I've actually been quite busy with moving around guitar gear lately. Too busy, in fact. Maybe one of the reasons why I haven't been posting much is because I could never figure out what gear to talk about, since I was getting so much new gear so often. And it's come to the point where I'm now doing one of the most difficult things I've ever done related to guitars:<br />
<br />
I'm down-sizing.<br />
<br />
I looked up the other day and I had 9 guitars. 9! I don't have 9 sets of hands! How could I have that many? The fact is, it just kind of happened over time. But it made me realize just how much money I had tied up in cheap guitars, with about four different plans to upgrade them and make them my own. But I can't justify 9 guitars. So I'm selling off two of them to make some money to, you know, actually upgrade some of the others.<br />
<br />
Best example: I've had an Epiphone Les Paul forever. But what I really want it some kind of ES-335. So I bought and Epiphone Dot, with the thought that I'd eventually upgrade all of the hardware and the pickups and end up with a very good guitar. But what I've realized is, that was kind of my plan all along for the Les Paul. So what am I going to do? Sell the Dot and another guitar and finally make the upgrades that I've wanted to make. I still want an ES-335 someday. But if I upgrade the pickups on my cheapie Les Paul, then someday when I do get a nice Gibson ES-335, I can just swap out the pickups and have a guitar to drool over. And in the mean time, I can get pretty good tone from my Les Paul, and I can then sell it with the original pickups and not lose any money.<br />
<br />
I'm not sure why it took me 9 guitars to figure all of that out. I've been putting money in to my pedalboard for years, only having recently slowed way down and concentrated more on upgrades than on buying new things because they're shiny. Amps are the same way; I got nicer tubes and am on the waiting list to have Bill M mod my Blues Jr., and in the mean time I've been digging my Musicmaster way, way more for how clear of a tone it puts out. And that's even with a 35 year old speaker. Something about the hand-wiring, I'm sure.<br />
<br />
So yeah, this isn't an exciting post. More like a "responsible" one. How boring.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-22059883089238152132011-10-15T13:28:00.000-05:002011-10-15T13:28:29.657-05:00New Gear: Tom Anderson Crowdster<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNLzMpxpYOfa3gxj498QQt9VaYKt6fZiFhfdBCFZvbbMCwqufeM54xeZXOphnXaxoJhQeOZjKbVSdt8EimssS-Yvy9AyYnGoEFqjUq1j3JKCaCOf_H-aSE-8iunFkMeOogr1N0GC-Njwzl/s1600/Crowdster.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNLzMpxpYOfa3gxj498QQt9VaYKt6fZiFhfdBCFZvbbMCwqufeM54xeZXOphnXaxoJhQeOZjKbVSdt8EimssS-Yvy9AyYnGoEFqjUq1j3JKCaCOf_H-aSE-8iunFkMeOogr1N0GC-Njwzl/s400/Crowdster.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Apparently I can't stay away from red guitars. Well, this one was only semi-intentional. I've actually had this baby since the beginning of the summer; I'd saved up lots of money and decided that it was time to take the plunge, and I must say, it's awesome. I put on strap locks and it's good to go. Months of working later, it's still just as great as it was in May.<br />
<br />
I really, really like working with it, since it never feeds back, but it does open up a few interesting points. One, you never realize just how much of your own monitoring of your guitar playing comes from the sound of the guitar hanging around your belly. I never use monitors if I can help it, just because most of the time it's just me, and I can monitor myself by turning the house sound up loud enough to fill the room, but when I'm playing with a band, I need a lot of my acoustic in the monitor mix just to hear myself. Also, this guitar has a surprising amount of low-end. Even though it won't feedback at high levels, it's big and boomy without any eq-ing, but just a few slight tweaks and you get great acoustic tone.<br />
<br />
And, of course, there are the handful of times that I need a legit acoustic guitar, with no amplification. Luckily for me, those time are few and far between. On account of how I'm such a huge rock star. Boom.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-51263225304765356372011-10-06T12:12:00.000-05:002011-10-06T12:12:31.811-05:00Pedalboard Update - October 2011I figured I needed to put SOMETHING up here, so here goes. A lot of my gear has made rapid shifts in the last few months, what with buying lots of guitars and getting other ones setup, but the pedalboard has been relatively constant for a while now. Actually, strike that. It's been completely consistent. I can't really even remember the last iteration of my 'board that I put up here, but this one is only one pedal off from what I've been rocking for about 2 months, so there's that.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKCINYHwN2UOo9mouGugEOSjBl2aq-aiR9w9DbtLu6JugKKkCCr1nvaIxIALgMn47-e2tHjwNEOxHpCqlLX1uB0ARl6d0KXbVJ_evV52IWPlHH7YmorPoeAS3LScyshAvGOuvaWUoKGfh/s1600/Pedalboard+%2528October+%252711%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKCINYHwN2UOo9mouGugEOSjBl2aq-aiR9w9DbtLu6JugKKkCCr1nvaIxIALgMn47-e2tHjwNEOxHpCqlLX1uB0ARl6d0KXbVJ_evV52IWPlHH7YmorPoeAS3LScyshAvGOuvaWUoKGfh/s400/Pedalboard+%2528October+%252711%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The main thing that's changed has been the positioning of a lot of the pedals. I usually find myself using the overdrive pedals to give me a different flavor, then use the RC booster almost entirely as a solo boost, which is why it's extremely easily accessible there at the bottom of the board. Next to it is the CE-2 because I love that pedal but it's on/off switch is really, really old, so sometimes it doesn't exactly respond when it gets stomped on. So it's in the bottom row so that I'm not all off-balance in the event that it doesn't go on or off right away. The sonic stomp and the Dynacomp are both always on, so their position doesn't matter as much; I really liked the Dynacomp in the position that I've had it in forever because it's out of the way, but I've been running out of room so I had to get creative. I did take off the speed-knob attachments though, so now it's nearly impossible for me to turn those knobs accidentally with my foot while I'm going for another pedal. And I was able to work a legit fuzz in to the board. I really like this one so far, but I need to play with it a lot more to really figure out how to dial in the fuzz sounds I like. But this one (the Barber Trifecta) plays nice with buffers, so it was nice to not have to put it first in the chain or anything like that. But as for the signal chain:<br />
<br />
Guitar -> JHS Little Black Buffer -> MXR Dynacomp -> VOX Wah (Modded for true bypass) -> Xotic RC Booster -> Gravity Drive -> Analog.man TS-9 (modded to TS-808 specs) -> Barber Trifecta Fuzz -> Boss CE-2 Chorus -> Voodoo Labs Tremolo -> Ernie Ball Volume Pedal -> Boss DD-7 (with external tap tempo) -> Line 6 DL4 -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Boss Tu-2 Tuner -> Boss RV-5 Reverb -> Amp<br />
<br />
Overall, I'm pretty happy with this setup. I got another Keeley modded BD-2 that I love, but between that and the Gravity Drive (which is a Marshall Bluesbreaker clone), it didn't make the cut. I had it over my Fuzz, but now that I have a fuzz, I couldn't find the room for the BD-2; it will probably find a permanent home on my leader-board, which is my next project. But this setup lets me do everything I need to do. I've got a low-gain drive (Gravity Drive) and a medium-gain drive (Tubescreamer) along with a dirty fuzz (Trifecta) for when I need that. I've got a solo boost that will further drive whatever drive I have on, or that will make my clean tone sparkle for a lead or push the amp a bit more. I can stack the drives too, if I want (I like both the gravity drive and tubescreamer on at the same time). I can use a Wah and delay for some ambiance, or fuzz and delay for pad work. I can use tremolo, chorus and/or delay to do crazy stuff. My tuner also functions as a kill switch if I need to stop all of my delay or feedback or what have you. And with my buffer, compressor and Dynacomp, my clean tone is rich and full in spite of the 50+ feet of cables between my amp and guitar. The only thing I can't do is POG-type stuff, but I'm not sure what I'd cut to make room. Maybe the fuzz? We'll see how much use it gets.<br />
<br />
Oh yeah. I also got a VOX coily cable. Because I want to be Jimi Hendrix. But mostly because it's really convenient to not be stepping all over my cable all day long. I do like what this particular cable does to my tone, though.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-82731550519481160452011-09-21T11:06:00.002-05:002011-09-21T11:10:35.110-05:00...someday I'll come back to this blog....So here are the things that have changed in my life since I last wrote here:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Started using my Musicmaster to play out a little more. It's awesome. It makes me rely on pedal-based overdrive since it doesn't have a Master Volume, but I've been doing that anyway. It's also way lighter than my Blues Jr. and it sounds wonderfully hand-wired. If that's even a thing it can sound like.</li>
<li>Took my Strat in for a complete setup and my Mustang in for repairs. Free plug for Skip Goez. He knows what's up.</li>
<li>Am switching bank accounts. Bank of America has earned my ire.</li>
<li>Wrote a whole new Mass for the upcoming changes. The non-Catholics here probably have no idea what that means, but it's kind of a big deal. I will hopefully have some YouTubes up at some point; right now I'm working on finding some compositional software to get it all written out professionally. Any suggestions?</li>
<li>Speaking of writing, I've had two different book ideas pass through my head, and I need to get started on two talks that will be happening shortly.</li>
<li>Have a Barber Trifecta Fuzz on the way that should be here today....and my board has changed, as it is wont to do, ever so slightly since the last update. But I've been playing out a lot more and I like where it's at now. But yes, the fuzz will require shuffling everything around, since fuzzes don't like buffers and as it stands right now, the buffer is the first thing in the chain.</li>
<li>Turned 26. So that was fun. </li>
<li>Still have to do a review of the Gravity Drive. Long story short, it's a Bluesbreaker clone! And I love it.</li>
<li>I never thought I'd do a bullet-point-format post? I guess I am getting to be like Karl....</li>
</ul>Splendid.<br />
<br />
BenBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-38564320126724034962011-08-13T08:54:00.000-05:002011-08-13T08:54:59.435-05:00Fender MustangI figured since I'll be out of town again this whole next week, I should probably actually say something about the previous teaser post, rather than just leave you hanging. Basically, I traded a few spare pedals and a few hundred dollars for a '66 Fender Mustang. And I know I say it with every new guitar purchase, but I'm in love, all over again. I've never played a legit, vintage guitar (unless you count one of my good friend's pre-war Gibson, which is magnificent, but which I've only held and strummed for about a minute), much less owned one. I'll just say, I can see what all of the fuss is about. It needs some going-over electronically, which will be good because it will give me motivation to finally take my Strat in for a professional setup, but man, it sounds amazing, and it plays perfectly. It's definitely cooler than me. Look for some clips once I get it back from Skip.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-49871094052704979242011-07-28T08:14:00.000-05:002011-07-28T08:14:11.404-05:00Teaser post.I'm going to be out of town for more than a week. Here's something to tide you over.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz1v54hnDUsAD5T5iTkHLx-aPiJIefh9tvPDVPRWK-aMmDiUHpnKgaWmq2dV_i0PToCVz2aPXFfDe__LXjUnAL_1fC86XnXBF0HGQZstcxTXZSqR922wpGzqZmH3FvAGEDNV3WapYD6oI_/s1600/Mustang.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz1v54hnDUsAD5T5iTkHLx-aPiJIefh9tvPDVPRWK-aMmDiUHpnKgaWmq2dV_i0PToCVz2aPXFfDe__LXjUnAL_1fC86XnXBF0HGQZstcxTXZSqR922wpGzqZmH3FvAGEDNV3WapYD6oI_/s400/Mustang.JPG" width="298" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz1v54hnDUsAD5T5iTkHLx-aPiJIefh9tvPDVPRWK-aMmDiUHpnKgaWmq2dV_i0PToCVz2aPXFfDe__LXjUnAL_1fC86XnXBF0HGQZstcxTXZSqR922wpGzqZmH3FvAGEDNV3WapYD6oI_/s1600/Mustang.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-56661420561397205762011-07-25T17:29:00.000-05:002011-07-25T17:29:57.643-05:00Beauty Spot Cocktail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM4lPckOaAE7ypMmrgpVqZQ91MXDfGd-FFjynXcym69uctocaE0vp9k0nnnI2v25FFSq38cs7W7wAlGji9YxsrrPfoWbdlKRSTq27LSe6mIWtzOOtmgekcuPlBSvRt79p-9-FHSDoaVicf/s1600/Beauty+Spot+Cocktail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM4lPckOaAE7ypMmrgpVqZQ91MXDfGd-FFjynXcym69uctocaE0vp9k0nnnI2v25FFSq38cs7W7wAlGji9YxsrrPfoWbdlKRSTq27LSe6mIWtzOOtmgekcuPlBSvRt79p-9-FHSDoaVicf/s400/Beauty+Spot+Cocktail.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Another twist on the Bronx.<br />
<br />
<u>Beauty Spot Cocktail:</u><br />
<ul><li>1 oz. Gin</li>
<li><u> </u>1/2 oz. dry vermouth</li>
<li>1/2 oz. sweet vermouth</li>
<li>1 tsp orange juice</li>
</ul>Shake and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass with dash of grenadine in the bottom.<br />
<br />
A few things to learn from this one. First, it's maybe my favorite variant of a Bronx, being basically a "perfect" Bronx cocktail with some grenadine thrown in. Here, "perfect" is shorthand for having equal parts dry and sweet vermouth, rather than one or the other. As you'll probably see if I ever get around to it, it's a pretty common term. But the dash of grenadine is a nice touch, adding both in terms of presentation and flavor profile.<br />
<br />
Next, and I can't stress this enough, fresh orange juice. The difference between just taking an orange, cutting it in half and squeezing out a bit of juice, versus using the preservative-and-sugar-laden store-bought stuff or the stuff from concentrate is, well, incredible. Something gets lost in translation when you use the frozen concentrate stuff, and the juice from a carton tastes like an approximation of orange juice. What it lacks in flavor, it makes up for in sweetness. Both of which are not strong qualities in a cocktail ingredient. So use fresh juice whenever you can swing it, which, in North America, is pretty much year-round.<br />
<br />
And lastly, you'll find the Bronx is fine. It's not my fave, as I tend to find a drink that includes orange juice to be somewhat lacking, but this one came together nicely. Probably a 4 out of 5, if you'd like an arbitrary ratings system....Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-31774662008242438502011-07-20T19:22:00.000-05:002011-07-20T19:22:51.181-05:00Beals Cocktail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1rqADWqDiQ1QE-oVp8yo8NwEC9FKoKtiSUSNCtvFERhleVF_YyPkAi_g_Gz_1c3IPqehWCieRB5nL_gS48wOY941hG3RuxzqjPJKBYDzEY6Vezb6NGqLQCYdZ7h1NnmItEj0MPm7FIca/s1600/Beals+Cocktail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1rqADWqDiQ1QE-oVp8yo8NwEC9FKoKtiSUSNCtvFERhleVF_YyPkAi_g_Gz_1c3IPqehWCieRB5nL_gS48wOY941hG3RuxzqjPJKBYDzEY6Vezb6NGqLQCYdZ7h1NnmItEj0MPm7FIca/s400/Beals+Cocktail.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Here we have another scotch-based cocktail, but this one is a bit more balanced.<br />
<br />
<u>Beals Cocktail:</u><br />
<ul><li>1 1/2 oz. scotch</li>
<li><u> </u>1/2 oz. dry vermouth</li>
<li>1/2 oz. sweet vermouth</li>
</ul>Stir and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass.<br />
<br />
I've often heard that if you want to take a dominant ingredient and make it play well with others, you have to introduce an equally dominant ingredient. Fight fire with fire, if you will. Well, there's not much to dry vermouth, but sweet vermouth has a bit more...character. Dry vermouth is understandably more refreshing and light, whereas sweet vermouth is, well, sweet. And deeper in flavor. Simply adding a bit of sweet vermouth really does do a lot to balance things out. It's still very, very heavy on the flavors in the scotch, but it's bearable. Not my favorite, but yeah. Bearable. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but then, there really aren't a lot of "good" classic scotch cocktails. For a reason.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-3106541983190267542011-07-19T20:16:00.000-05:002011-07-19T20:16:02.965-05:00Beadlestone Cocktail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rDoRSbxrzB_1dlUFpSBZV9Tr6XfFYgRVHOj6pNJ2k4GyBaxdlS1jiSPu9yk2HgbPQMlI0bQLYoN9RUfMzJS7aKfXDx6krbmWLwbDD5eJCn774Av6N26WHhg8hW31XBKf8bonT3TLG4nm/s1600/Beadlestone+Cocktail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rDoRSbxrzB_1dlUFpSBZV9Tr6XfFYgRVHOj6pNJ2k4GyBaxdlS1jiSPu9yk2HgbPQMlI0bQLYoN9RUfMzJS7aKfXDx6krbmWLwbDD5eJCn774Av6N26WHhg8hW31XBKf8bonT3TLG4nm/s400/Beadlestone+Cocktail.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<u>Beadlestone Cocktail:</u><br />
<ul><li>1 1/2 oz. scotch</li>
<li>1 1/2 oz. French (dry) vermouth</li>
</ul>Stir and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.<br />
<br />
Man...scotch is hard to mix with. I know I keep saying that, but even I, who happen to love scotch, had a rough time with this one. Granted, the old half-and-half isn't exactly the golden ratio of mixology, and with something as mild as dry vermouth, it's no wonder that this didn't quite work out. Not sure what else to say, other than "no."<br />
<br />
I tried to get cutesy with the picture, though. So I guess that's something....Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7327934454015234239.post-82171665610016883192011-07-14T16:17:00.000-05:002011-07-14T16:17:12.006-05:00ProToolsSo I went to start doing some recording when I realized that I didn't have ProTools on my computer anymore! That was kind of a shocker. But, now it's remedied, and I'll be doing some recording.<br />
<br />
That's really all I had to say. I've gotten like 4 new pieces of gear since I last updated all that, and am rapidly approaching a fifth, so there's some stuff in the back-logs that I'll get to once life slows down just a tad, but for anyone in youth ministry, I'm sure you can appreciate just how busy summers can be!Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15309109457986753395noreply@blogger.com0