First time jem purchaser!

werx · #1 04-06-2007, 11:45 PM

Hey! I bought my first jem about a month ago and I just found this website. I'm mainly a classical guitarist, I'm majoring in it at Depaul in Chicago, but I love playing rock, folk, bluegrass, heavy metal, and most other genres. So far, I'm really enjoying my JEM7V. The only things I have a problem with, is that the neck pickup sounds really weak and hard to listen to when playing fast, and that my amp (a vox effects 30 w) sucks.
To get a good shred sound, what would you guys suggest? For the neck pickup, do I need to replace it? And for the amp, I'd prefer just to get a combo amp for now, because I can't fit a head and cabinet in my dorm. As for the specific tone I want, I like a variety of different guitarist's tones (petrucci, becker/cacophony, vai, satch, etc.). If anyone had ideas on where I should start to accumulate equipment exactly, I'd appreciate it if they shared them =) .

Hacksaw · #2 04-06-2007, 11:59 PM

HI! Im new here too!

cool on the guitar! probably should wait and get the amp before deciding on the neck pup. ( at least I would). now on to your question! makes somewhat of a difference what suggestions would be made if you wouldnt mind giving us a budget range. that would help. there are so many choices!!

are 1x12 combos what your looking for? or 2x12?

1x12 little combo amp would be a soldano astroverb, they go for about $600 and up used. no clean channel.

1x12 peavey ultra with a g12H-30 speaker works pretty good for around 300-450 used. (included price of a speaker, really gets rid of the boxy sound of the 1x12). has clean channel and 3 overdrives. really gets saturated. so thats a start anyway. I havent seen any JS combos yet so I cant comment on those.

I am sure others here have some great suggestions!

**elcid** · #3 04-07-2007, 12:20 AM

Best thing to do is just play through as many amps as possible.
There are lots of good shops around Chicago.
Definately hit Midwest Buy and Sell for used stuff. I picked up a killer 1964 Modded Fender Princeton for $500 from The Music Store in Irving Park Rd. They are hit and miss, but always worth checking out. Music Exchange is another good shop for high end stuff, and there is one more shop that I cant think of right now that has alot of really nice stuff. Of course there's 3 or 4 Guitar Centers to check out, but I wouldnt buy anything from them, and Music Gallery in Highland Park is another sweet high end shop

werx · #4 04-07-2007, 01:24 AM

Thanks guys, I think I'm gonna go to the guitar center a few blocks from here tomorrow and check out amplifiers. My problem usually is that I either can't hear the tone of what I'm playing because of how loud it is in there, or it doesn't sound quite right without a little reverb or something. It also doesn't help that the guys at guitar center seem to never have any useful information about anything. I'll also checkout that Midwest Buy and Sell place as soon as I can.
As far as being a guitar techie, or having any knowledge as what makes a good guitar setup, I've got like nothing. To get a shred sound, what would I need in a setup? I've heard mentions of preamps, multi effects pedals, using 10+ boss/digitech pedals, multiple amplifiers and other equipment I can't even think of.

**elcid** · #5 04-07-2007, 01:44 AM

It's all preference man. I would never go back to using multi effects, separate preamps and power amps and so on. I like a good single channel tube head and a few pedals. Even the pros have different ideas on what to use, Yngwie is a single channel Marshall head, Petrucci uses multiple amps and rack mount effects, Al Dimeola can do it on an acoustic.

Phishphood42 · #6 04-07-2007, 02:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by werx

Thanks guys, I think I'm gonna go to the guitar center a few blocks from here tomorrow and check out amplifiers. My problem usually is that I either can't hear the tone of what I'm playing because of how loud it is in there, or it doesn't sound quite right without a little reverb or something. It also doesn't help that the guys at guitar center seem to never have any useful information about anything. I'll also checkout that Midwest Buy and Sell place as soon as I can.
As far as being a guitar techie, or having any knowledge as what makes a good guitar setup, I've got like nothing. To get a shred sound, what would I need in a setup? I've heard mentions of preamps, multi effects pedals, using 10+ boss/digitech pedals, multiple amplifiers and other equipment I can't even think of.

Jem+Legacy= Shred godliness

It only makes sense to match the Vai guitar with the Vai amp

. If you want, throw in a keeley DS1 as a boost to tighten it up a little.

werx · #7 04-07-2007, 02:26 AM

I've got no experience with heads or cabs. Can you get sound from a head without a cab?

**elcid** · #8 04-07-2007, 02:45 AM

Nope, you need speakers to get sound. You dont have to have a 4X12 cab, but you need some kind of speaker cabinet. You also need a load (which the cabinet provides) attached to the head to not blow things up.

Hacksaw · #9 04-07-2007, 04:11 AM

legacy 2x12 !! that will do nicely! ;D or does anyone think they are to directional, or boxy sounding?

crush · #10 04-07-2007, 05:25 AM

I would go for a JSX combo. I don't know why, but I love that amp. I wish I had the money to buy one

But I think it's a pretty good amp. And you can have it in your dorm, since it's not thaaaat big. Congrats on your JEM7V.

jb4674 · #11 04-07-2007, 09:10 AM

The downside to the legacy is that you have to order it from Carvin direct. You can't really play with it to see if you're going to like the sound or not. I agree with Cid. Try out different amps and see what your ears tell you. Although I've never been to Chicago, I've heard of Fred's music and they seem to have a lot of stuff, I'm not sure if they're close to you.

I don't necessarily agree with what phish said with regards to the Legacy. you don't have to have the same amp Vai uses to get good sound out of your Jem.

On my own bias, I'll have to admit that the JSX combo is a nice amp and I like it a whole hell of a lot. I have one at home and it's incredible.

As far as your Jem goes, did you get it new or used? Have you tried adjusting the pickup height? You mentioned that the pickup sounds weak? How so? Usually the neck pickup tends to give you a little more low end (at least that's what my ears usually tell me). Try raising the height on the pickup. Sometimes when a pickup is sitting too low or too high on a pickguard, it tends to lose some of its sound and definition.

Jimmy

fractionallz · #12 04-07-2007, 12:16 PM

Try the guitar center in Naperville. Theres a guy by the name of Kurt who will cut you a great deal if you find something you like. They also have a nice assortment of old fender, marshall and orange amps.

sroyboyk · #13 04-07-2007, 01:38 PM

Congrats on the guitar. Don't change the neck pickup. Get a decent combo. If money is not an issue, get a roadking or a roadster. If on a budget, get a jsx.