Friday blues

Because it's a sad life & you are living with the blues. 

Blackened

When you are all cooped up at home, swapping pedal knob becomes an epic adventure. Black makes it look flushed.

Goodbye, April...

Knurled preference

The top hat-type Gibson knob was a default model in my Melody Maker SG. It made way for that knurled metal version you see there. Reason- it didn't promote a quick grip. I'm pretty much annoyed if I have to use all my picking hand fingers to turn a knob so if it doesn't supplement my needs, it will be replaced. No love lost.

More grip, please

When you get more acquainted with your instruments, you'd know the parts to replace. Some of us do this for a cosmetic intention, the rest of us do it on accounts of functionality. The knobs you see above are from my Rally Neosound Jr. Because I constantly reach out for these knobs (especially the volume knob) to mute play after certain passages- & I do need quick muting- the shape & form of these knobs just don't help.

Here are the replacement knobs which are not more expensive but they complement my needs. Note the grooved upper half of the knobs & less skirting in the design. These are the details that promote grip.

Super glue = knob cure

So you have some favourite knobs which are coming off your guitar pots because the grooves are no longer good to hold them there. Don't throw these knobs away, you can 're-groove' them for subsequent use. 

Purchase a tube of super glue, the Alteco 110 brand I'm using above costs $1.50 for a pair- cheap, eh? But it's good for the job & it lasts in the tube longer than some other budget brand names which dries up regardless if you re-cap your tube. Squeeze out ample amount of super glue & line it along the groove wall, leave it to dry- go for a coffee break, visit the loo, do some sit ups or leave it undisturbed overnight- in other words, give it ample time to dry. You don't want to re-attach your cap when it's still wet. Ta-da! Your old, worn out cap, is ready for re-use.

Knob grip

The default knob in my Ibanez GRGR010 is a flimsy, cheap unit. This is not an excessive criticism of the brand name but an understanding of where the GIO offerings are in the Ibanez tier. It's light plastic that would crack if you step on it. Ironically, the design mimics the (selected) Prestige Colette version which sports a rubber grip for effective handling.

So a little shopping around & I bought a replacement knob which sports a rubber grip. The skull design was purely coincidental to the guitar's skull theme.

Knobs

This year, Ibanez introduces a revised knob design for selected guitars- the Collet knobs. These were made to stay put & not drop out of their instruments & promote grip, they certainly look the works. Upon trying, the knobs were definitely marked to the touch & it took quite an effort to make them come off. Simple & effective.

Screws, knobs...

My RG1550, nothing new...

New are the knobs & pickguard screws:

• Locking knobs: As depicted above, I prefer these knobs for security; they won't come undone & promote better grip
• Flathead screws: For a flushed feel, no protrusions. The old ones were rusty so I replaced the whole set

The Seymour Duncan pickups in this guitar:

• Neck: Full Shred
• Mid: Classic Stack
• Bridge: Screamin' Demon trembucker
  

Chrome

Plastic presence...

Now chrome.

It's a simple substitution but it made my day; I'm less clumsy with smaller knobs.

Volume, up!!

Apologies if I'm hitting hard at rookies but there is a need to turn the guitar volume up when trying the instrument, in fact, turn it all the way up!

Why is this crucial? The guitar's volume knob doesn't control loudness as primarily as the amp's volume knob. Its more exclusive job is to vary the amount of current flowing through so when you have an amp's drive/distortion channel engaged or using a distortion pedal for that matter, a turned down guitar volume won't manifest maximum ouput. Instead of hearing a full-on drive/distortion, you'd hear a crackle-grade buzz. This is the reason why a BOSS Metal Zone sounds like it's milder DS-1 Distortion sibling; something is amiss- it's the guitar's volume knob not turned up!