Hello all.. new inspired member here..

jmadden5124

jmadden5124

Member
Just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. Im new to the forums. My name is Joe. I'm a 39 year old single father from Syracuse, NY. I work for the telecom industry as an analyst by day.. but I am a guitar porn addict by night.

I watch all of these videos from some of my favorite content creators.. Agufish, Ola Englund, Pete Thorn, EytschPi42, Andertons, etc.. and I become extremely jealous because I wish I had the gear and could play guitar like some of these guys. I find it fascinating.

I've never learned or tried to learn guitar but after watching countless YouTube videos I've decided I want to learn.

A buddy of mine suggested I spend a couple hundred bucks on an acoustic and simply try to learn. That advice while maybe wise just didnt seem exciting to me. So instead I bought a PRS USA built custom 22 S2 solid body, singlecut guitar.. a Marshall DSL100H amplifier, a Mesa 2x12 rectocab, a badcat attenuator, and a bunch of boss pedals.

Then black Friday came along and I snatched up a Fender MIM single coil standard strat and some fishman fluence pickups and Grover locking tuners, a Graphtek nut, new strings.. all of that stuff is getting installed right now as we speak at a local luther.

Part of me wishes I never went the way of the Marshall/Mesa combo. I wish i started out with a Fractal Axe FX unit instead. So I'm considering selling the Marshall and picking up an Axe FX III.

Is it crazy to think I can learn guitar playing through a modeler? I really want one. The YouTube guitar universe is dangerous and if I'm not careful I can spend very penny I have on this stuff. I'm already probably $4-5k in and dont even know how to play. lol. I thought at first I'd grab an AX8 and run it through an interface but why not go all in and just grab an Axe FX III?

I still love it and no matter the cost, I am determined to learn to play.

As naive and ignorant I may be when it comes to guitars.. I love sound, love the thought, and idea of becoming some kind of guitar virtuoso.

Prince was always my favorite artist. His guitar playing and style had always had me captivated for years. That dude can play.

So what do you all think? Am I crazy? Or am I on the right path to guitar bliss? I regret nothing.

Thanks for listening to me rant.

Joe
 
Crazy ? No. Optimistic ? Maybe. Pretty late in the game but it's never too late to learn something new. Nothing wrong with using a modeller to learn. My parents would have loved the idea of me playing through headphones instead of having to endure the annoying squeal coming out of my stereo.
 
Hey Joe,

It can never hurt to be motivated by the sounds you are making - Having the Axe FX will allow you to have the best sounds available... now you just have to learn to use those fingers! :)
Welcome
Pauly
 
I started late in life as well - I played drums from the time I was 6 until around 30. Started taking lessons and playing guitar around 33. I'm 48 now. I say stick with what you have - take lessons - practice, a LOT. I practice 2 hours a day and feel like its still not enough. Once you get to be a more proficient player, I think you can appreciate the axe more and its capabilities. The axe can be overwhelming - and you may spend more time goofing around with it that actually playing. Who knows - you might get really frustrated with playing and give it up. That said - if you have a ton of money laying around then go for it ! Good luck !
 
Welcome! I’m proof it’s never too late. I never could play any instruments nor tried until I was in my forties.

I just started one day with acoustic and it took me 2 years to get over the learning hump and start to open mike and jam. I even co-wrote 10 original songs in my first band. Now in a cover band and play semi-professionally as a weekend warrior as rhythm guitarist in a 5 piece band since 2012. I still can’t play lead but play some small riffs and ‘piano’ parts and mandolin and harmonica on some of our covers.

I’ve been playing almost 10 years now and don’t know what I would to keep my sanity and reduce stress if I didn’t play. I got an AX8 in May and love it. Sold all my pedals and amps.
 
jmadden5124 said:
Just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. Im new to the forums. My name is Joe. I'm a 39 year old single father from Syracuse, NY. I work for the telecom industry as an analyst by day.. but I am a guitar porn addict by night.

I watch all of these videos from some of my favorite content creators.. Agufish, Ola Englund, Pete Thorn, EytschPi42, Andertons, etc.. and I become extremely jealous because I wish I had the gear and could play guitar like some of these guys. I find it fascinating.

I've never learned or tried to learn guitar but after watching countless YouTube videos I've decided I want to learn.

A buddy of mine suggested I spend a couple hundred bucks on an acoustic and simply try to learn. That advice while maybe wise just didnt seem exciting to me. So instead I bought a PRS USA built custom 22 S2 solid body, singlecut guitar.. a Marshall DSL100H amplifier, a Mesa 2x12 rectocab, a badcat attenuator, and a bunch of boss pedals.

Then black Friday came along and I snatched up a Fender MIM single coil standard strat and some fishman fluence pickups and Grover locking tuners, a Graphtek nut, new strings.. all of that stuff is getting installed right now as we speak at a local luther.

Part of me wishes I never went the way of the Marshall/Mesa combo. I wish i started out with a Fractal Axe FX unit instead. So I'm considering selling the Marshall and picking up an Axe FX III.

Is it crazy to think I can learn guitar playing through a modeler? I really want one. The YouTube guitar universe is dangerous and if I'm not careful I can spend very penny I have on this stuff. I'm already probably $4-5k in and dont even know how to play. lol. I thought at first I'd grab an AX8 and run it through an interface but why not go all in and just grab an Axe FX III?

I still love it and no matter the cost, I am determined to learn to play.

As naive and ignorant I may be when it comes to guitars.. I love sound, love the thought, and idea of becoming some kind of guitar virtuoso.

Prince was always my favorite artist. His guitar playing and style had always had me captivated for years. That dude can play.

So what do you all think? Am I crazy? Or am I on the right path to guitar bliss? I regret nothing.

Thanks for listening to me rant.

Joe
Click to expand...


Hey Joe! Welcome. It sounds like money isn't an issue and you sound like you have a strong desire to learn to play. I think you've already got enough quality gear to get you going. These Fractals are great! But they're complicated too. My advice is to take on the guitar with the gear you have. The quest for tone can get in the way of actually playing and right now that's what you need......to play. Spend time with your instrument. Unplugged on the couch watching TV. Cranked. Whatever but get your fundamentals down, take lessons. The Fractal/modeling world will still be here when you're ready. The chase for tone is addictive. But you've got the gear to get great tone.

But if you want a Fractal, then by all means.... it is the sh!t. It doesn't make me a better player, but it does inspire me to play more. And playing more is what is making me better.
 
Personally I think starting with the Axe is way way overkill. As a Dutch saying, if you want to learn how to cycle, you should start with an old bike. Now that doesn't mean that you should buy old crap, just don't splurge on way expensive things just because your guitar heroes have them. They have that gear for a reason, it works for them. It might not work for you. One of the most important rules is to remember that just because guitarist X has Y gear, getting the same gear does not give you the same tone. A lot of the tone and sound is in the fingers and way of playing. Brian May recounted that he once gave Mark Knopfler his Red Special guitar and rig and......., he still sounded like Mark Knopfler playing, not Brian May.

In the end every guitarist goes through several stages, first you have to learn to play, which may be the biggest hurdle for some. And it has been said that it takes 10.000 of practice to become good at something. All I know for sure is that perseverance helps. Once you know how to play comes the 'I want to sound like....' stage. Everybody goes through that stage. Many stay in this stage forever, although some of them get really good at it. And then comes the finding your own voice stage. This is where a lot of people go even crazy about tone and gear. And finally comes the acceptance stage, where you discover you had your own voice and tone all along, that it is a blend of your favorite heroes and something of your own and you finally become comfortable with your playing style and sound. I for one will never become a shredder, I just don't have the discipline for that, and I'm fine with that. A few songs aside I don't even like shredders. I know what I'm comfortable with, how I sound and I no longer compare myself to others in a negative or positive way. I'm me!

In short, for a starter the Axe is way way overkill, you have to learn how to play first, not learn how to also get a good sound from it. That at least requires stage 2. Since you've splurged on the Marshall stay with that for a while, learn how to play, go crazy on copying your heroes and find out who you are. As for tone, here is one final wisdom, in the great scheme of things tone doesn't matter that much. Because 99% of your future audience will just not hear it. They will not hear the difference between the greatest sweetest sounding Dumble amp and a cheap Boss DS-1 into a cheap solid state amp. They will be far more busy paying attention to your vocalist. On the plus side, having the Axe will let you skip a lot of buying, trying out and selling again of a lot of gear when you're searching for that elusive tone. Dammit, still not short.
 
The day I started playing electric guitar was the day the quest for a better sound began. I wasted years on crapy DIY hw and still recall the first day I lay my hands on a decent amp/FX. It was such a huge motivation boost. This said I would never underestimate the importance of decent gear for your musical development. You don't necessarily have to have the top notch pro-gear. Just avoid the cheap junk.
 
Welcome Joe!

As a new player learning try not to get too much GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) FAS products are the best but it sounds like you need to ask yourself do you really need an Axe III ? I'm not trying to deter you from that buy but given the learning curve you are in with guitar are you sure you want to compound it with the top of the line modler.

That said you do have a 15 day trial period with FAS products which is cool! but personally I don't think is not enough time to get you head around that particular unit.

The other thing you want to ask yourself is what are you really going to do with it? Studio, live gigging or just be a bedroom player? Maybe you might want to start out with AX8 or even a used Axe II just to see if you even like it. It's not for everyone and to lay out 2+k to get started in the modeling world is a big step given where your at with guitar in general.
 
I’d download S-Gear on my computer, which sounds fantastic and has several amps and effects, get some decent studio monitors (don’t need to spend more than a few hundred) and start playing and see where it takes you.

Too many people buy high end golf clubs, ultra expensive racing bikes, fishing boats etc, and then find they lose interest in the hobby in 6 months, only to sell at massive loses.

Start modest, with easy to use gear that can sound great any home volumes, and see where the hobby takes you. Always can buy better and fancier gear later, when you know your going to really get use out of it.


That’s my $0.02 in a penny obsolete world
 
The equipment won't be the issue, so don't worry over it too much. Every guitar I have can sound better in the hands of a better musician. The important thing is to just play, learn, play, learn, and have fun with it. There's a lot of time and work involved, but when you're enjoying what you're doing it becomes a labor of love.

It's not wrong or right to get the Axe FX, but it might be a better option if you are in a place where the Marshall is just too loud. The AX8 is another option (sort of an Axe FX on the floor) that you can purchase at a much lower price point.

Just start playing, use some of that internet time looking up lessons, and you'll be on your way!
 
Welcome! Some pretty solid advice contained in the previous posts. I would add the following:

You can absolutely achieve your guitar playing goals or anything else for that matter. If your just starting out and your stated goal is to become a virtuoso or even competent musician, I would suggest that gear would be a low consideration for achieving that goal. You see this all the time in golf where people think they can buy a better game through gear... you can't. It's the archer not the arrow.

Get whatever tools you need to start obtaining the knowledge...but understand it's the knowledge not the tools that make the difference.

Music is innate in all of us, playing an instrument will reward you the rest of your life.
 
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