This is all very true. Alassandro makes a 20' guitar cable that retails for
$1999. I asked George Alasandro what the difference in sound between his
$150 cable and his $1999 cable was, and he told me the more expensive
one had about 1% better sound. He said he sells a lot of these cables to
pro studio guitar players where that 1% makes all the difference in the
world. To me and the average guitar player, we would not even hear the
difference. The difference in the cables is that the $1999 cable has a
solid silver shield as opposed to the traditional copper.

I think that many musicians get stuck in the train of thought that a
more expensive piece of gear sounds much better than the cheaper
equivalent. This just is not always true, although sometimes it is. Take
the Alesis 3630 compressor. You can not find a better dual channel
compressor for the price of $99. This compressor has been around for 15
years, and Alesis told me that it would not be going away any time soon.
Same with the Greg Bennett guitars from Samick. 2 years ago, I would not
have ever considered buying a Samick guitar. Their quality was awful.
The guitars the Greg Bennett designed are absolutely wonderful. The Rio
Grande acoustic I just reviewed was awesome and it retails for under
$450. I would put it in the same class as the $900 Breedlove Atlas that
I reviewed earlier this year. Sure, its not a Martin or Taylor, but I
can't afford their prices at this point, and the Rio Grande satisfies my
taste in sound and playability.

I will admit that I have never been a software type of guy, but I am
just now starting to get into it because it is the way things are really
starting to go. I would love to try out the MicMod software you
mentioned. I think I will pick it up when I get the Creation Station.

Also on a final note, there is a really good book by Huw Price on
recording bass and guitar that you might want to check out. Sounds like
you have a pretty good grasp on this already, but I learned a few new
tricks from this book. It is very comprehensive, yet easy to understand.
It is put out by Backbeat Books, and it really goes in depth on the
different ways to mic and record acoustic and electric guitars and
basses. I don't remember the name right now, but if you look on the
Backbeat Books website (www.backbeatbooks.com), you should be able to
find it.

This has been a great topic and I have enjoyed discussing gear with all of you.
Thank you for the taking the time to share your knowledge with me. I am
always on a quest for more information on gear and techniques. It is a
journey that I do not see ending any time soon.

Gary Allen