29a.ch - Jonas Wagner's Blog

Converting midi to wav using fluidsynth is not entirely trivial. Here is how I do it:

# convert opensolo.mid to fluidsynth.raw using the soundfont /usr/share/sounds/sf2/FluidR3_GM.sf2 
fluidsynth -l -i -a file -z 2048 /usr/share/sounds/sf2/FluidR3_GM.sf2 opensolo.mid
# convert fluidsynth.raw to fluidsynth.wav using sox
sox -b 16 -c 2 -s -r 44100 fluidsynth.raw fluidsynth.wav

You can use this together with the midi export of tuxguitar to export tuxguitar and guitarpro files to wav files.

Changes

• Compatibility with python 2.6
• New keyboard shortcuts
• Back button
• Improved setup routine
• Added file command line argument

Compatibility with python 2.6 means that this release should work with Ubuntu 9.04 etc.

Today I bought some Schaller Security Locks for my guitars. Well actually I bought one set of Schaller Security Locks and some Fender American Standard strap buttons for my other guitars because they are compatible with the Schaller system.

The Schaller Security Locks are not a theft protection mechanism as the name might convey. They protect you from accidentally dropping your precious guitar because of a loose strap and allow you to quickly swap guitars. You can find more information about them on Schallers website.

I've installed them on the following guitars:

• Schecter C-1 Classic
• Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus
• Schecter B-2 Stealth

It was really easy to change them on the Schecter C-1 Classic and the Epiphone. I just unscrewed the old strap button and then attached the new ones. It took me less than five minutes to change them.

There were complications when installing them on the B-2 though because on the B-2 one of the strap buttons was attached to a screw of the bolt on neck. So I had to put a little piece of wood in the hole to make it tighter. That took me about 15 minutes.

So now I can use a single strap for all of my guitars without worrying about a loose strap. Great!

I'm using elixir nanoweb strings for quite some time now, and I'm very happy with them. So I'll write a review about them.

Technology

Elixir strings are steel strings coated with what they call a nanoweb. When I first read about them I thought oh that's just typical marketing bla bla. But it caught me attention anyway. By looking up the corresponding patents I found out that this nanoweb is a thin layer of PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene) also known as teflon. It's commonly used to coat frying pans. But it was also used to build nukes in the Manhattan project. PTFE has the second lowest friction coefficient of any solid material known. Only diamonds are less sticky. PTFE is also very resistant to corrosion. That would mean that elixir strings won't rust because of sweat and are very slick. So in theory this is a great material for coating strings. So let's look at how good they are in practice.

Feel

These are clearly the most slick strings I know of and I love it. In comparison other strings will feel like sandpaper after a few days of use. This makes slides easier and smoother. I guess it does also reduce unwanted string noise.

Sound

Their sound seems to be a little bit less brilliant and more mellow than a fresh pack of D'Addario EXL strings. When playing with distortion I didn't notice any difference.

String life

The D'Addario's I used before began to sound dull and feel sticky after just a few days. The elixir strings will last until their coating is severely damaged which, in my case, takes several months. A user of the german musiker-board made interesting pictures of damaged elixir bass strings. Because of the super slick surface there will be less dirt sticking to the strings. I'd say that for me elixir strings last about 4 times longer than normal nickel coated ones. I haven't broken a single elixir string so far. But if you are a frequent string breaker the longer string life won't be of any use.

Conclusion

The thing I love about elixir strings is their feel and that they last so much longer. They cost about 3 times more than the D'Addarios but they last about four times longer. Now add the time you need to change the strings and do the math. Unless you tend to break your strings (in which case you should check your guitar) very often you should consider this strings.

Today I hooked up my BOSS GT-10 to my computer. And do you know what? It just works. So here's what I've tested so far:

• Ubuntu and Arch Linux
• Play it Slowly (of course!)
• Ardour / jack

Everything works as expected so far. There are some xruns when using jack at low latencies (~ 5ms). I guess one could get rid of them using a realtime kernel or some fiddling. But doesn't matter anyway because I do monitoring using the GT-10.

MIDI Support for the GT-10 seems to be included in the Linux Kernel since 2.6.28

I'll try to do some re-amping and midi later

And there it is, a new version of play it slowly. It fixes all known bugs and even adds some features

• Saving of state (file, speed, ..)
• Improved error handling
• Pitch scale is using semitones
• Speed scale allows steps of 0.05
• New command line argument --sink
• Fixes all known bugs

If you've got suggestions please write a comment

Guitarmasterclass.net teaches you various techniques, licks and songs through video lessons. Each lessons is divided into several short videos. The lessons contain tabs and often also backing tracks and guitar pro files. Every lessons features 2 free videos the other ones are for registered membery only. There is also a free lick of the day worth checking out!

The quality of the videos is quite variable. There are really great lessons, but there are also some incomplete or confusing ones. Still there are more than enough of great lessons. Just pick the ones that suit you best.

Because of licensing issues there are no lessons on songs from popular bands. There are interesting "In the style of some artist" lessons however. From these "in the style of" lessons you can learn more about the artist than by just playing his songs.

Most lessons consist of some licks/riffs and tabs without much talking or theory. I'd personally like to have more explanations and theory.

The Site site isn't very structured. You'll have to figure out what lessons to learn on your own.

But for me, personally, there is one very important thing about this website. It is fun. It's fun to pick a video, look at it and then just play it and improvise on top of it.

Plus

• It's fun!
• Lots of videos
• New videos
• Backingtracks
• GuitarPro files
• Cheap compared to other websites
• Some free lessons

Minus

• Unstructured
• Small Videos
• No licensed songs

Who is it for

I think guitarmasterclass.net is a great site to learn some new licks and to get some inspiration. However I don't think that it is enough to learn how to play guitar from scratch.

If you are just beginning you should also consider different websites or a real teacher.

If you do already take private lessons you should really consider guitarmasterclass.net. It's a great addition to private lessons for a small price!

If use the link bellow to sign up you'll be granted a 10$ discount!

I've just released the first version of play it slowly. A software that allows you to change the speed and pitch of audio files.

I really love my Ibanez S470. Its very well made and plays really well. But there is one thing about it that I didn't like. The INF 2 bridge pickup. I wanted a clearer, more aggressive tone with more harmonics. After some research I came to the conclusion that replacing the bridge pickup with a DiMarzio Evolution should do the trick.

Replacing the pickup was relatively simple. The biggest problem was that DiMarzio and Ibanez use different color codes. Here's how they relate:

With the new pickup the sound is now more clear, aggressive and tight. The harmonics are screaming. The new pickup is far more sensible to changes to the volume or tone controls. It does also really highlight sloppy playing. What I do not like about this pickups is the clean sound. But I like the warm clean sound of the neck pickup a lot. So that doesn't bother me.

Now the questions is, was it worth it. For me it totally was. I really love the guitar and this was a real improvement to it's sound. I think the Evolution suits the S470 really well.