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Things To Know When Shopping For A Guitar Amplifier
Guitar amplifiers are a major part of your tone. Some amps can do many things well, while others excel at producing specific tonal qualities. When shopping for a guitar amplifier, you will have to choose between a Tube or Solid-State model, and whether you want a combo, or separate head and speaker cabinet. Tube based guitar amplifiers use old fashioned vacuum tubes to produce their power and process the guitar's signal. They are very loud, and generate a large amount of heat during operation. Generally, tube amps provide a warm tone that when pushed hard will produce a natural, overdriven distortion that is very sought after by many guitarists. Tube amplifiers will require maintenance as the vacuum tubes need periodic replacement. Solid-State guitar amplifiers rely on transistors and integrated circuits to amplify and process the guitar's signal. Although they can't match the raw power and smooth, natural distortion of a tube amp, Solid-State amps tend to be much more versatile. Modern electronics are often used to produce a broader range of tones than found in most tube based guitar amplifiers. They also run cooler, and are relatively maintenance free. Choosing between a combo or separates is often a personal decision. Combo guitar amps use a single cabinet to house the electronics and speakers. They take up less space, and are generally easier to transport. Separates give you greater flexibility with respect to speaker size and type. Since there's more room for components, some argue that separates are built to higher standards than combos, but this is not always true. One really big advantage of separates is that the head can be isolated from vibrations produced by the speakers, extending the life and reliability of the electronic components. Whichever type of amp you choose, keep in mind that your guitar and amp work as a team. Plugging an expensive, well voiced instrument into a cheap amplifier won't allow the instrument to reach its full potential. A good amplifier will last you for many years... so don't skimp! © Written By: Michael Casamento Michael Casamento is the founder of Guitar Pages Online - a comprehensive resource for guitars and guitar related merchandise on the Internet. For more information visit:http://www.guitarpagesonline .com This article may be freely reproduced so long as the above resource box is included in its entirety.
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Are iPods Changing the Way We Listen to Music They're everywhere, and not only are they everywhere, they look cool too. Since its launch in 2001, 10 million have sold and 8 million of those were in 2004. So welcome to the next generation. 8 tracks, records, cassettes, CDs, and now the iPod. Karaoke Singing This article is designed to help anyone to enjoy karaoke and improve their singing performance whether it be as a "virgin" karaoke singer or as someone starting out on a singing career. It contains tips designed to help old hands and newbies alike achieve a better karaoke singing style. The best piece of advice is to bear in mind that one of the whole idea behind karaoke is that it doesn't matter how good(or bad) your singing is - you are singing for your own enjoyment. The people in the karaoke bar are there usually because they enjoy karaoke too, so it is not expected that you perform like the next American/Pop Idol. In fact some of the most boring karaoke nights I have been to have been spent watching a succession of pretty decent singers. If I wanted that I would go and see a show. College Radio: The Most Important Radio Level for Musicians For the self-promoting independent artist, the idea of taking on a radio promotion campaign can, in itself, become overwhelming. But, this idea is usually based on such artists attempting to obtain worldwide airplay on a local budget. Do you really need college to learn to play music? Music courses are a great way to learn about virtually any area of music; history, theory, and musical instrument instruction -- you name it and somewhere music courses specialize in it. Though generally found through colleges, universities or high school programs, music courses are also offered via one-on-one instruction with a private teacher or community-based workshops. Some churches even offer music courses as a complement to their choirs; the music courses may be offered to the general public, but they're often geared toward the choir members and congregation. How to Create Backing Tracks If You Dont Play All the Instruments... or Any Congratulations! Your singing has become amazing, and it's time the world knew. You've also written some songs that are just kick you-know-what. They need to be recorded, MP3ed and put on the net ASAP. But you've got two problems. First, you can't afford a studio, let alone a band for all this stuff. Second, you don't play all, or any, of the instruments. Why New Musicians (Rappers) Fail: Three Reasons and Solutions Despite the title of this article, the purpose of it is actually to HELP new emcees AVOID some common traps on their journey to learning how to rap better. You can come up with a million reasons why new rappers fail?or why any artist fails for that matter, but we've boiled the list down to three specific to new emcees. Why Play Guitar? As a full-time guitar instructor, I am constantly faced with people in all walks of life who, for all different kinds of reasons, believe that playing the guitar will add something to their lives. Most people that are just starting the guitar for the first time are young (pre-university) although certainly not all. One of my favorite students last year was a 65-year-old retiree who wanted to learn enough to be able to start a bar band with his friends. ?Who Else Wants to Get Screwed When Signing a Recording or Songwriting Deal?!?!? You've got your recording (or songwriting) contract in hand and everything's coming up roses, right? You get your check, finally, but it's not quite what you expected. If you sign not knowing what's owed you then you might be shorted some well-deserved income. So make sure that anything you sign contains a statement to the following areas (preferably in your favor): Play Too Loud And Well Cut The Power! "Turn it down!" RAP Music and Brain Washing Issues I am not sure if anyone has been watching out there, about the types of music that we are listening to. Let us look at them for a minute. Our grandparents listen to music like; "Happy Days are Here Again, the Skies Above Are Clear Again." Kids today listen to RAP, which actually starts with a 'C' except the 'C' is silent in this new spelling and pronunciation. Its really, CRAP. A radio station in TX is actually called K-RAP. Perfect. SOUNDS GOOD TO ME - Eliminate Throat Tension As a vocal coach, I hear it all the time. I love to sing but when I do, I get hoarse and need to shout to be heard after only a few hours. Some days I just want to give up. What am I doing wrong? What can I do about it? Shut Up And Sing What is it with these performers and their politics? Do they really think that people who pay $100 or more to hear them sing want to hear them utter political opinions? The audience pays hundreds of thousands of dollars to see and hear a performer PERFORM. You want to spout politics, run for freakin office, you moron! When performers use a paid venue to play politics they are abusing the paying audience, the venue, the sponsors and everyone connected to their artistic performance. It's an inappropriate venue and inapproprite behavior to voice your political viewpoint, you jerk! And they wonder why people boo. Does Your CD Cover $ell (Or Suck)? Oh, I know the last part of the title (Suck) isn't a very pleasant description to apply to anyone's CD cover. But, in the interest of plain old honesty, and to face our demons head on, I wanted to (again) utilize a worst case scenario that we can only improve from. Free, Legal Music Online Almost everyone has heard about the massive crack down on Internet music piracy that has been occurring over the past few years. Napster was taken down (although it has now returned as a pay service), other file sharing programs now require users to pay for a license and the RIAA and other similar organizations are doing their best to hunt down copyright offenders and put an end to their crime sprees. The consumers on the other hand argue that their actions hurt nobody, that there is no damage done to anyone by their not buying an album. Furthermore, they claim, MP3s allow them to sample a CD before purchasing it, thus actually helping sales. Interested in Improving the Sound of Your Stereo? Consider Records Introduced in 1982, the compact disc was intended to provide better sound than the 40-year-old long-play record album, popularly known as the LP. Using a laser rather than a diamond needle for playback the compact disc was smaller, more convenient to use, and less susceptible to damage than the LP. A bonus was that the format was said to offer "perfect sound forever." "Forever" isn't that long these days; improvements in digital sound have come along in the last twenty years and the music industry introduced two new formats this decade that are designed to improve upon the "perfect" sound of the compact disc. Those formats are the Super Audio Compact Disc (SACD) and DVD Audio (DVD-A.) Over the years, various audio publications have criticized the sound of compact discs, describing the sound as "harsh", "brittle" or "sterile" compared to the sound of the LP. After years of research, SACD and DVD-A were introduced several years ago and introduced sound that was said to be cleaner and more natural than that of the compact disc. In addition, these formats offered multi-channel sound, and artists such as Pink Floyd offered special multi-channel versions of their albums to entice sales. It hasn't worked, and sales of both formats peaked in 2003. What is interesting, however, is that both formats still trail the LP in sales!According to the Recording Industry Association of America, the combined sales of SACD and DVD-A were less than those of the LP in 2004. The music industry is in a slump at the moment, and sales of all formats were down last year. But sales of LPs were down 13% from 2003, while combined SACD and DVD-A sales were down 33%. It would appear that the new formats are failing, even though they are said to be superior to the compact disc. The LP, on the other hand, continues to have steady sales. While the major labels are still somewhat hesitant to release new product in LP form, labels that specialize in reissuing older material, such as Classic Records, are releasing as much product as their manufacturing capacity will permit. It is worth noting that much of this reissued product comes in the form of high-quality, limited edition LP pressings that often carry premium prices of up to $50 per title. Why are records continuing to sell while the new formats fail? There are several reasons why records are outselling the new, "superior" digital disc formats: Format wars. Like VHS vs. Beta in the 1970's, the SACD and DVD-A formats are largely incompatible. While players have been introduced that will play either one, most players play either one format or the other. Worse, neither one will play on a traditional CD player. You must replace your player to play either one.Multichannel sound is difficult to use and requires purchasing new amplification equipment. SACD and DVD-A both have multichannel capabilities, but neither format's players have digital outputs. Both must be connected to amplifiers or receivers with special SACD or DVD-A analog inputs. Most of the music fans who preferred the sound of records to compact discs still prefer the sound of records to either SACD or DVD-A. Most will agree that while the new formats sound better than compact discs, the unique "digital" sound of compact discs is still there. Many listeners aren't interested in sound quality. Arguments can always be made about the sound of compact disc vs records vs SACD vs DVD-A, but millions of consumers are content to listen to music in MP3 format on portable players. MP3 format is inherently inferior in sound quality to all of the other formats, but MP3 players are selling as fast as companies can make them.The day will never come when records again become the dominant music format. The convenience of portable players for CD, SACD, and DVD-A discs and MP3 files outweighs the advantages in sound quality that records offer over those formats. Nevertheless, it appears that a small but steady market for records remains very real, and that that market exceeds that of the new "improved" SACD and DVD-A formats, which will probably soon go the way of the forgotten Elcassette, Minidisc, and 4 track tape formats of the past. So You Wanna Learn How To Start a Record Label? Well, you love music so much that you have decided you want to start a record label of your own. This can be a very exciting step and a fun one. The good news is, anyone can start their own record label if they know the right steps. It won't be an easy road by any means, but it is possible if you really desire to do it. The Need To Perform I can't believe how much of the year has gone by, but all the same, it's unbelievable how much I've grown through the year and most of it, from demolishing my need to perform. Mp3s ? The Future of Music? Mp3 music is audio that has been digitally encoded and compressed to make the amount of data smaller without compromising the overall sound quality. It's a revolutionary technique with incredibly good results; mp3 music is frequently indistinguishable from music found on a CD (though some audiophiles with very sensitive ears dispute that statement). Music Bytes - Tips For Saving On Professional Software For Musicians, Part I If you are outraged by the prices software giants demand for their tools, it's time to check out shareware. Small independent developers often provide similar solutions that cost three to five times less AND you get to try them before paying. How to Make State-of-the-Art Video Singles Cheaply When it comes to promoting their new music releases, I have found that most musicians only consider radio as the vehicle for exposing their music to the public.
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