The changing ear

Hoping to get some general feedback from anyone who understands my, er... problem (?)

It seems like my rig is feeling "dead" lately. I've check all the tubes-OK, speakers-OK, stored settings on the effects the same thing I've been running for months, always new strings, use several guitars, cords-OK, unplugged & replugged everything, etc...
It just doesn't seem to have the smack like it did.
I used to be able to fire it up and it sounded the same every time (which was HOT!).

Is my ear just changing? Losing my hearing? I've added some new styles and techniques but my playing is mostly the same. Now I'm tweaking knobs to no avail. Maybe I'm missing something or am I just ready to change it all up?

Sincerely,
That deaf, dumb and blind kid. (well, I still feel like a kid)

There are sooo many possibilities that it can be pretty hard to find the culprit sometimes. I read a thread that discussed some of these problems just the other day, but I don't remember where it was. Here are a few things to look into: Are you playing at a different time of day than usual? Has the weather changed much? Are you playing in a different room? Are you playing at a different volume? Have you rearranged the furniture or added some pieces? Changed Strings? Not played in a while? Played other gear and then back to your gear? Any one of these could have an effect on what you're hearing. Let me know if any of this has occured, and then we can try to resolve this problem.

Originally Posted by: fastelvisSincerely,
That deaf, dumb and blind kid.

Sorry to bother you, but I hear you play a mean pinball.

PRSplaya makes some good points here. I suspect maybe it's furniture in the room, or maybe a mirror? In fact, if you have any mirrors in the room at all, get rid of them. The rules that apply to the reflection of light also apply to that of sound, so mirrors in the room can seriously mess up the acoustics.

but then how do you know if your posing right? :confused:

Originally Posted by: Jimmi431but then how do you know if your posing right? :confused:

Well, it's ok if you don't NEED a particular acoustic set-up. You could also film yourself with a video camera.

hey, what an idea! and then i could show it to my friends!!! i'm gonna be the talk of the town!!! :cool:

You may have less voltage coming from your outlet.

I moved into a new house recently and my amp sounds rank sometimes. Come to find out the house has old wiring and the amp is not getting the proper juice.

Primativ - Jeeez....Wall voltage, that's a good thought. Of course I'm not sure what it was before. I need to notate input voltage on my Monster PS when I hear any differences. This unit should smooth out most fluctuations though.

The entire practice room hasn't changed and the humidity is the same - 28% - which sucks but hell, it's winter and the furnace is running. Maybe this has finally sucked some life from the guitars.

My rig hasn't changed because it usually does sound the same. Now it fires up inconsistently, often with a noticeable drop in clarity and presence. I do use several guitars but hang 90% on my primary axe. I play at all different times of the day- frequently. Change strings on my primary about every 2, maybe 3 weeks (always Dean Markley). Since my GT-3 wiring is complex, I think I'm going to run back through that first. Need to plug in my other GT-3 to see if that changes things.

I have to change volume to keep the neighbors happy.
Satriani+all knobs to the right+2am = cops

No mirrors but could the love swing be blocking some of the highs?

No mirrors but could the love swing be blocking some of the highs?

haha depends if there is any one on it when your playin, also could cause you to have to compete with the sound ;) if this is a problem try cuttin back on the wah, should help. :D

humidity not only effects guitars, but also speakers. Is your rig consistently souding bad, or goes and comes?

Originally Posted by: Jolly McJollysonYou could also film yourself with a video camera.

Sorry, you can NOT do that. One needs a FILM camera to FILM self. Or videotape yourself with a video camera.

Just wondering what you do with digital cameras ?

Pixel your self ??

Pixel? Hmm, I think you can put it this way. Or flash. How about flash? Anybody wants to flash? ;)

Originally Posted by: Dr_simonJust wondering what you do with digital cameras ?

Pixel your self ??

DIGITIZE!!!

Originally Posted by: Akira*que German techno band*

HA! Brilliant!

Oonst oonst oonst oonst DIGITIZE! oonst oonst oonst DIGITIZE! oonst oonst oonst!

PRS - I think you may be hitting it with the speakers & humidity. -Thanks.

I must clarify, the rig never sounds "bad", just not quite there sometimes. The difference is fairly subtle but playing it all the time, I really noticed the change in the last month or so.

I unplugged all the effects and patched my LP straight in - everything set clean. Comparing both Classics side-by- side, I do hear a slight difference in my primary amp but neither one is really sounding very good to me. I will double check all the tubes but I think it's the Blue Marvel speakers. They are breaking up far too quickly and too much. Especially when the volume's up. Need to pull them for close inspection as I suspect some small fractures in the cones. It could be the very low humidity in my house has made them brittle.

This should probably be a different thread but, thinking about trying some different speakers in one of the amps.
Anyone have any experience with the Eminence Red Coat series?
I did not want to throw any dough out for something I might not like. I can pick up a couple of green-backs on loan so thats not a problem.

Originally Posted by: fastelvis... This should probably be a different thread but, thinking about trying some different speakers in one of the amps...

[font=trebuchet ms]I'm sure by now you've seen how wildly some of the threads here can shoot off on a tangent. No prob!

I can recommend Weber VST speakers from personal experience. Ted Weber himself will answer your e-mail questions. He knows his stuff well enough to take a lot of the guesswork out the selection process. Given that the qualities of sound are so hard to describe, I'm very pleasantly surprised at how well my purchase turned out.[/font]

Let me know what you decide about the speakers, because I've been wanting to change the speakers out in my classic 50 for a good while now. I've been thinking about the Vintage 30 / G12H30 route, but then, I've also been thinking about a pair of Eminence Governor's. :rolleyes:

Originally Posted by: Lordathestrings[font=trebuchet ms]I'm sure by now you've seen how wildly some of the threads here can shoot off on a tangent...[/font]

Tangent?!?:eek:
At least a tangent [u]touches[/u] the cirlce [u]at some point![/u]

Originally Posted by: Jolly McJollyson...The rules that apply to the reflection of light also apply to that of sound, so mirrors in the room can seriously mess up the acoustics.

HUH?!? :confused: :confused:
This seriously sounds like the proffesor who taught me relativistic mechanics in uni saying something that absolutes makes NO sense.
How different is a mirror from a plain wall in as far as the acoustics of a room is concerned? I'd love it if someone explained that.