New member from Maine...

[mainestratman]

Hi all,

I've been lurking these forums for a few weeks... checking out the lessons and backing tracks, mostly.

A little about me, I guess... over the last 20 years I've run the gambit.. starting out in blues, expanding into blues-influenced rock, onto 80's and 90's "hard rock" and metal, and find myself back at square one.. and re-learning blues has been very interesting with all sorts of other influences tossed into the mix.

I don't have much of a blues rig any more... a Les Paul Classic Antique and Marshall JCM2000 half stack... with everything on 11, I've got enough gain to kill pigeons... but I've found that dialing back is resulting in some wonderful blues tones... the clean channel with maxed gain gives me just a hint of dirt, the crunch channel scaled back gives me a great Tube screamer-esqu tone, then I bump the lead channel up another notch for some creamy lead and sustain.

At any rate... I'm here... my obligatory introduction is here... and I'm back to reading the forums.

Great site!


Jon

[Monkus]

Welcome !!!! :applause

[FrankenFretter]

Welcome, Jon! Nice setup you have. Planning on making any changes now that you're back to playing the blues, or is your current setup working well enough for you?

[mrmudcat]

welcome........ where in maine are ya?????

[evenkeel]

Hey Mainestratman!! Welcome to the gang. :applause

Mrs Keel and I used to live in that beautiful state. Left in 2000. Former resident of Portland and then Peaks Island.

[Robert]

Welcome, nice intro!
You've come to the Maine Guitar Place on the interweb... :D

[Brian Krashpad]

Welcome Jon!

I'm just about at the other (Southern) end of the coast from Maine.

Although, not exactly on the coast.

[mainestratman]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the warm welcome.. reminds me of some well-worn 6l6s... ;-)

Let's see.. changing my gear.. probably the most I'll do is get a more portable amp... looking at a Classic 30, since I've always wanted one. I'll have to start with something for less $$$ though... Maybe that Vox everyone is raving about or a Cube 30.

I highly doubt I'll ever go back to strats. Yeah, I know all the arguments for them, I made those arguments for 16 years... lol But really.. that Les Paul is everything I've ever wanted in a guitar... that, and going back to a longer scale length sucks. ;-)

I'm in part of the northern reaches of Maine. Hop on I-95 north and take the next to the last exit before Canada. No.. I'm not joking.. and yes, we have electricity and indoor plumbing and everything up here! Well, everything but drummers. And venues. ;-)

LOL @ Brian.. you.. you're in the *other* Maine... the one we refer to up here as "Northern Massachusetts"... lol

[BigBadWolf1171]

welcome to the site jon, im new here as well. all around nice people with great help on the site.

[luvmyshiner]

Welcome aboard Jon.

[Tig]

Welcome from Texas, mainestratman!
As you know by now, this group is a great bunch, give or take a few boneheads like me. :crazyguy

[mrmudcat]

Hey I lived up there awhile back in caribou last exit to houlton then through mars hill etc,etc,...............I have been living in palermo(china lakes vacation region) until this past spring............I have since moved back home and will not return!! I do love the summer up there,all 3 weeks:happy

[peachhead]

Welcome to the Fret, Jon!

[mainestratman]

Thanks, all. :-)

[sunvalleylaw]

Hi Maine, and welcome!

[kidsmoke]

Welcome aboard. I'm a newbie here as well.

Very familiar with your part of the world, Family from up the Fort Kent way, have spent a lot of time playing in Millinocket and Baxter, grew up on the New Hampshire seacoast. Beautiful country.

[Brian Krashpad]

LOL @ Brian.. you.. you're in the *other* Maine... the one we refer to up here as "Northern Massachusetts"... lol

No, I meant ALL the way down the coast, not just all the way down the coast in Maine.

I'm in Florida. You know, gators and such. Never been further north than Philadelphia-- and that was over 35 years ago.

[mainestratman]

Oh.. derr... that would explain why it says FLA under your avatar. Heh.

I like gators. :-)

[ZMAN]

I am very familiar with Maine. My daughter lives in Augusta. I spend a lot of time there. You are quite a ways up 95. Pretty close to New Brunswick.
I am one of your Cannuck neighbors but about 600 miles away, in Ontario.
Before you make any changes I would have a listen to Joe Bonamassa new DVD "Live at the Royal Albert Hall". You have just about the perfect set up for Joes style of blues. I am a died in the wool blues guy, and I really like the Gibson, Marshall tone with a little slap back that Joe uses.
Oh and I was wondering who it was that was bringing up all these 2 year old threads. I was confused. But I realize it had to be a Mainer LOL

[mainestratman]

It's a small world.. almost everyone either has lived or vacationed in Maine or know someone who has. :-)

And yeah.. I'm pulling up old threads.. been reading through everything.. the forum is a lot more exciting reading than my paramedic class tonight... lol

I've given a ton of thought about going back to the Strat/tweed combo or whatever, but I *really* love my LP/Marshall... like unnaturally love it ("No on 1" was a gateway to letting me marry my guitar, dammit!)... lol

But anyway... yeah.. I'm gonna hold onto it... I love the flexibility of my setup... although my g/f is insisting I get a "Bad Monkey" pedal just because she loves the name of it. (Then again, this is the same girl who caught me drooling over the '59 ES335 reissue and told me I should get it because "it's pretty!")

I did jump over to trust ol' YouTube and did a search for Joe Bonamassa... and yeah... the LP/Marsh stays. :-)

[ZMAN]

Yes a good friend of mine purchased a 1990 ES335 in Ebony. He had it until he ran into hard times. I gave him what he paid for it, and it is one of my favourite guitars. (See my Avatar) Very sweet tones from those pickups.
Heading down in April to Maine hopefully you will be able to see the ground by then. You guys have more snow than we do in Canada.

[mainestratman]

Actually, we have almost no snow... it's been raining the last two days, 40F+ temps..

April is a good time of year, if you don't mind a little mud. ;-)