Secondhand guitars...

Why I prepare secondhand guitars.

 Everybody wants an own guitar, of cause an own new guitar. I agree with that, but I prepare to buy secondhand guitars. The biggest reason why I like secondhand guitars is the price. The guitar’s price, especially guitars with good quality are expensive. In this reason it’s hard for me to buy a guitar, which I like. Therefore, I can buy a secondhand guitar in low price, a guitar, which I like, but couldn’t buy because it was expensive. 


 Some people say that if you buy a secondhand guitar, it’s bad, because that guitar is skilled by former owner. But I think this difference could feel people, who are play guitar very well, like a good musicians, guitarists. So, it doesn’t influence so much for us, amateurs. 

 In Korea, there is the biggest portal website, where many people who like music deal their instruments. In this site you can find many guitars, and sometimes limited edition.
(http://www.mule.co.kr/)






 However, dealing of used guitar can be dangerous. You should be careful!  Nevertheless, if you want to try secondhand guitars, there are my short advices:
 1. Find actual(real) price of guitar, which you want to buy.
 2. Compare prices of new guitar and secondhand guitar on the market.

If you do that, you can buy a secondhand guitar in a good price.

Nakwonsangga, Seoul, Korea

Nakwonsangga, Seoul, Korea

 Hello, in today’s post I want to introduce about one place, in Seoul, Korea. Here you can see a lot of musical instruments, not only guitars, but also the others. This place called ‘Nakwonsangga’(낙원상가). It locates in Insa-dong, Jongnogu.

 In this place you can buy pianos, violins, guitars, amps, and the others instruments and equipments for your instrument. As I know ‘Nakwonsangga’ is a biggest and oldest place in Korea, where sell the musical instruments. 

 Many people, who live in countryside and can’t buy guitars, come in to the ‘Nakwonsangga’. Others shops also come here and buy instruments for sell in their shops. Moreover many famous Korean musicians come here, and some of them, when they were unknown, spent their time here.

 If you come to the ‘Nakwonsangga’, you can hear guitar playing all day long. Of cause you can play too, but be careful, the guitar sellers play very well, and you can be daunted.

 I like this place, because when I come here I can feel that music is ‘alive’. Maybe it looks strange, but I feel like this. So, if you are interested not only in guitars, but also in music, I recommend you to visit here!  

The guitar amp – the Marshall MG-15CDR

The guitar amp – the Marshall MG-15CDR

 When we talk about guitars, especially electric guitars, we can’t let the amps. The amps and the electric guitars are inseparable from each other. Of cause we can just play without an amp, but if we do that, we can’t hear an electronic sound of our guitar. Therefore it’s mean that if we don’t have any amps, our guitars are of no use! So, in today’s post I want to introduce one model of the amps.
 There are two big companies, which make good amps. There are the Fender and the Marshall, and I want to introduce one model of the Marshall amps. The model name is Marshall MG-15CDR.

The number 15 means the output of the amp. So, this model’s output is 15W. I like this amp, because it’s suitable for an apartment, and also for a small concert. If you use an amp with output low than 15W, in my opinion, the sound of your guitar will be not so nice, nevertheless if you have a good guitar. 
 Therefore the Marshall MG-15CDR is good. This amp is also good for a small concert. I’m sure it can guarantee the output, and you can hear the sound with good quality. 

 Moreover what I like more in this amp is that the Marshall MG-
15CDR has the Reverb function. Not many 15W amps have this function. When you use reverb, the sound is more clearly and nicely than if you don’t use.

 However I have the bad news. The Marshall MG15CDR has been discontinued. So if you want to get this model, you should buy secondhand. But if you buy this model, you will not regret!

The Kraken guitars

The Kraken guitars

 I posted about guitars, and introduced concretely about some models. So, today I want to write about one company, which makes for you your own guitar. The name of this company is KRAKEN.
The merit of the Kraken guitars is that you can get a unique guitar. It’s mean not only externally, but also internally. You can choose starting from a body shape of the guitar to electronic components, like pickups. The order is simple. Visit to the main site of this company, and you can give an order. Of cause you can get counseling, before the order. As I know, you also can get the expected estimate for your guitar, and I heard that it’s not so expensive.

 But in my opinion, the Kraken guitars have some disadvantages, and one of this is the quality of the sound. I heard also that this company puts emphasis on the appearance of the guitar, not on the quality of the performance.

 For this reason I don’t like the Kraken guitars, but I think it’s nice that you can choose and get the guitar, which could be the sole guitar in the world. So, I recommend this type of guitars for people, who want the pretty unique guitar, but ready to endure the quality of the sound. However, maybe in the future the company will bother more in performance, and then it will be very nice to get the Kraken guitar. Get your own unique guitar~

The Crafter (acoustic) guitars – the Crafter Gloria

The Crafter (acoustic) guitars – the Crafter Gloria

My last post was about (mini) acoustic guitars. So, I want to continue about acoustic guitars, and introduce one model of them. 
Actually, I want to tell why I like the guitar first, and why I chose it when I decided to learn to play a musical instrument. Firstly I decided to learn piano, but I want take my instrument everywhere, and play everywhere I want. So, I thought that the guitar is a convenient instrument to carry, and chose it to learn.

 In Korea there are many companies, which produce acoustic guitars. But I like the Crafter guitars. This company makes guitars from cheap to high price costs. So not only professional musicians, but also amateurs & beginners can find ‘their own’ guitar. 
 The Crafter is one of the oldest Korean companies. So I think the sound is guaranteed. Of cause if you buy not the cheapest guitar. =)

 To return to the subject, I want to introduce the Crafter Gloria model. This guitar has own tuner, which could be controlled by 4-Band EQ (Presence, Treble, Middle, Bass). You can also remove a howling from using the Phase button.

 The interesting point in this model is that the Gloria has a built-in tuner. So you shouldn’t have a tuner, and this is helpful for beginners.
 Maybe price is a little expensive ($330), but I’m sure you can use this guitar in the small size concert, and the Gloria will not dash your hopes.


SPECS:

 GAE Jumbo Cutaway
 Solid Engelmann Spruce(A) Top
 Mahogany Back & Sides
 Nickel Tuners with Bean Buttons(18:1)
 Abalone Position Marks &  MT-2 Abalone Soundhole Inlay
 New LR-T RX(LCD Tuner)PreAmp with L.R.Baggs Element Pick-up
 Combo Jack (55Jack + XLR Jack)
 D'Addario EXP 16 Light (0.30, 0.41, 0.61, 0.81, 1.07, 1.35mm)
 Deluxe Bag(DXB-DG)
 647.70 Scale
 Gloss Finish

The mini guitar - K. Yairi RAG 65

The mini guitar - K. Yairi RAG 65

I like guitars. Of cause I like not only electric guitars, but also acoustic guitars too. So, in this post I want to introduce one pretty acoustic guitar. This model of guitar became popular in Korea, because one of the Korean musicians appeared in a TV show with this guitar. 

The name of this guitar is K. Yairi RAG 65. These guitars produced only in Japan. But as I know, most of interesting in K. Yairi RAG 65 is that this company made only 4 guitars in one year. So, it’s difficult to find and buy these guitars.

 I introduce this model, not because I like this guitar. I want to talk about mini acoustic guitars. Mini guitars are comfortable to carry, and there are great to take to travel. When I want to go to a picnic, I want to take my guitar, but it’s inconvenient to carry, so I don’t take it. However, if I have one of the mini guitars, I will take it everywhere I will go. 

Of cause mini guitars don’t make a loud sound in comparison with normal acoustic guitars. Maybe they can never catch up with guitars, which have normal size. Nevertheless mini guitars have many good points, like a thin neck, which is convenient to play. Nowadays mini guitars also produced with nice specifications, so I think mini guitars have their own advantages, and it’s foolish to compare with normal size guitars.

The UNO guitars. (The UNO Les Paul D-classic)

 The UNO guitars. (The UNO Les Paul D-classic)

  I want to introduce the one brand. Brand’s name is UNO guitars. It’s a Korean company, and this company makes guitars whit LP shape. If you read my post about the Gibson Les Paul model, you can read that many companies make guitars with Les Paul body shape like Gibson’s guitars. So, LP means guitars with Les Paul body shape. 

As I say before, I like the Les Paul type of guitars. I also played the UNO guitars and I was impressed by sound. The sound was clean and heavy. I think that with this guitar match with Jazz or Blues genre of music. 






 One of the important think of these guitars is price. These guitars are not expensive compare with the Gibson’s guitars. Of cause the UNO Les Paul guitars cannot make a sound like the Gibson Les Paul guitars, but I’m sure you can’t find the other guitars with Les Paul body, which have appealing sound and good price. So, if you want to have Les Paul type of guitars, but you don’t have money, I recommend the UNO Les Paul guitars. Especially I like UNO LP D-classic models, and I think if you play this guitar you will not regret.

SPECS:

Model: LP D-Classic 

Series: LP Series 

Body: Mahogany with Quilted Maple Top 

Body Binding: White Pearl 

Neck: Mahogany with Ebony Fingerboard 

Neck Scale: 24 5/8”

Neck Nut Width: 42mm

Neck Radius: 12”

Neck Inlay: White Pearl

No. of Frets: 22

Bridge: Gotoh Tune-O-Matic

Knobs: Speed Knobs

Tuners: UNO

Neck Pickup: Duncan 59”

Bridge Pickup: Duncan JB

Controls: Two Volume Two Tone 

Case: UNO Hard Case

The Gibson Les Paul

The Gibson Les Paul

Gibson’s guitars are one of the famous guitars in the world. This brand has many fans, include many popular guitarists. I think that most of the famous guitarists use or used the Gibson’s guitars. Because of this popularity, these guitars also have many imitations. 

 My favorite model in the Gibson’s guitars is the Les Paul model. This model was designed by Ted McCarty and popular guitarist Les Paul. It’s one of the most well-known types of guitar in the world, along with the Fender Telecaster and Stratocaster.


 I like the Les Paul guitars. I like the shape of this model. But what I like most is the tone of this type of guitars. The Fender guitars have more clean and funky tone. But the Gibson guitars have more heavy and deep. Nevertheless these guitars have beautiful sound. 


 I like very much Gary Moore, and as I know he played in these guitars many time. This is my first time, when I heard the sound of the Gibson’s guitars. How I heard, I like this sound at once. Of cause Gary Moore played very well, but I think I was impressed more in the guitar’s sound. 




 However I like the Gibson Les Paul, but this guitars are so expensive for me. How I say before, these guitars are one of the well-known electric guitars, and because of their popularity many miner brand imitated the Les Paul model. So, if you want to have this type of guitar, but you don’t have a lot of money, I recommend buying one of the imitation models. But you should know that these guitars couldn’t make sound like the Gibson Les Paul guitars.  In my case, some day I will really buy the Les Paul guitar.

The Fender Stratocaster(the American Standard model)

The Fender Stratocaster

 Actually this type of guitars isn’t my favorite, but as I know the Stratocaster is the most famous model in the world. You can see the body shape of the Stratocaster in other brands of guitars, not only in Fender’s guitars. Many popular guitarists used this type of guitars, and also have their own signature models.

About specs:

This guitar has 3 single coil pickups, which are selected by a 5-way switch. So you can choose which tone you like more(5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup). The neck of the guitar has 22 frets, and the neck material is maple.

But I don’t like this guitar, because I prefer more unique body shape like Telecaster models. This guitar is also expensive for me, so I can’t buy it easily. However if you want to get the Fender Stratocaster, but you don’t have much money, I recommend you to buy the Stratocaster models were made in Japan or Mexico. 

Ibanez SAS46FM

I used this model just 3 months. It was my first using of Ibanez guitars, but I was disappointed. I didn’t like sound, because it didn’t have a clean tone, and also this model had the thick neck. I heard that Ibanez’s merit is thin neck, which helps in a fast playing of guitar. Actually, The Ibanez SAS36FM, which I bought, was Korean edition. So, maybe in this reason the sound was different, than I heard in the internet. 




The Ibanez SAS36FM has Mahogany body, true duo humbucker pickups. In saying more about pickups, the original Ibanez design triple-coil construction (one single with one stacked) makes Ibanez the first to achieve switching between genuine single-coil and humbucking tone in one pickup. 




I put picture about switching system of pickups:

Fender Telecaster American Standard

The Fender guitars are one of the famous in the world. Many guitarists use these guitars. I want to introduce one type of model. This is the Telecaster model. This model has a dual-pickup and solid-body. The Telecaster also have the beautiful clean tone and it is ability to produce cutting tone or warm, bluesy tone depending on the selected pickup. If you look at specs, you can find that this model has two kinds of pickups. One of them is bridge pickup, which type is Single-coil pickup, and the other is neck pickup, which type is similar whit bridge pickup. The Telecaster is used in country music, electric blues, funk, rock and roll and other forms of popular music. So, I can say that this model is suitable for all genre of music, and from this reason I recommend the Telecaster.

 

PRS SE Custom 22

It was my latest guitar...

The color was gray & black.

This guitar has a beutiful clean tone.

The SE Custom is a flat-top double cutaway with a mahogany back, maple top.

Also this guitar has 22 frets.

Of cause we should check pickups.

PRS SE Custom 22 has  'PRS Designed Treble Humbucker with Zebra Bobbins' and 'PRS Designed Bass Humbucker with Zebra Bobbins'.

What I like in this guitar is the price. PRS SE Custom 22 has good performance for low and middle price.

So, if you want to buy not expensive guitars, and you don't have a lot of money, I recommend PRS SE Custom 22!

2011 Seoul International Firework Festival

in Yeouido Hangang Park, Seoul, Korea
08.10.2011

It was Korean team, and I think Korean team was better than other teams.

Seventh 2011 KRX Expo (KRX EXPO 2011)

Why all the events, which I want to go, open in my midterm!!!

Seoul International Firework Festival

The 9th Seoul International Firework Festival OCTOBER 8, 2011(Sat) 13:00~22:00 Yeouido Hangang Park JAPAN, PORTUGAL, KOREA (Three countries participated )

I hope, I can go.... but...yeah....I should study...(((