for those with multiple Andy's....

[michaelomiya]

...do you favor one over the other? I ask because after rehearsal yesterday, the singer comes over an asks why I only ever bring the same 2 Andy's to play (she knows I'm a guitar/amp junkie).

I sat there goin'...."I don't know". My S&S Cobra and my Magenta DTC (floyd) get the most action. both 10's, but other than that different woods, config, necks, etc.

could be that I've bonded, but I love the others as well and I believe equally. there's not a 'dud' in the bunch (these are TAGs we're talkin about). I think it may be that the Cobra/DTC cover every musical style in the list (cobra-70s/80s/rock, DTC-pop/funk/blues).

Anyway, do you guys tend to gravitate to certain Anderson's in your arsenals (over others)?

[markus]

My bass player/singer asked me that same question recently! "How do you decide which of your four Andersons to bring to practice?"

I didn't really have a good answer for him either, but after thinking about it for some time, I think I really go through bonding cycles with my Andersons. Recently my Drop Top has been my favorite and now I'm back to my Classics. I don't really understand why I pick one over the other... :confused: I guess sometimes it's the sound, sometimes the beauty and sometimes the memories that are attached to a particular guitar...

One thing is for sure, I haven't picked up any of my other guitars in a long time, which prompted me to sell most of them... so I can buy even more Andersons. :D :D :D #5 is on order for August.

[tom]

sometimes it's based on what i think i'm going to need to play, sometimes it's a different one so that i will be forced to play differently. many times it's just so i can try something new out to see if it's worth pursuing further.

[Ray K.]

I've stated on this forum before that my HDT is my #1 guitar for live use. The primary reason is it is by far the most versatile guitar of all that I own. There isn't much I can't play with that one.

Having said that it's the only Anderson I currently own. I also had a Cobra a couple of years ago, but for whatever reason I just could not get it to cut through the mix as well. I might have been able to swap pickups, etc. But, I decided to cut my losses and sold it without any penalty.

I know the original question is about TAGs, but I do use some of my other guitars at times, either exclusively or for a song or two for very similar reasons that Tom mentioned. At times I do it just to get me out of my "comfort zone" as my HDT nearly plays itself so I sometimes need a little challenge. It's a good way to grow as a better player.

Ray K.

[michaelomiya]

sometimes it's a different one so that i will be forced to play differently.

oh tom and RayK, (for me) new guitars/out of comfort zone = "potential danger ahead":p I do all I can to ensure that playability and tonality is at maximum. I figure why fight perfection?

For example I don't necessarily like bringing out my '68 Historic RI, since I wear that so low (ala Page) that playing in them high registers is work, and soloing becomes sloppy (I know, "who makes any money playing up that high?":rolleyes: :p )

I go Anderson all the way: great tone + great play = great gig.

[tom]

by pushing ourselves to play differently, i don't mean suffering with a bad playing guitar. sometimes a guitar that needs a little more coaxing to get to sing can be a welcome challenge. i can't think of any guitar as being perfect since music is not an absolute thing. there are many great tones, and i don't necessarily want the same one every day. it's like a great bottle of wine, if i drank the same one every day i'd not only not be able to focus on work, but i'd get tired of it. so we buy alternate wines to suit what we feel like having at any given time...i'm feeling like a nice rhone blend right now...

[michaelomiya]

by pushing ourselves to play differently, i don't mean suffering with a bad playing guitar. sometimes a guitar that needs a little more coaxing to get to sing can be a welcome challenge. i can't think of any guitar as being perfect since music is not an absolute thing. there are many great tones, and i don't necessarily want the same one every day. it's like a great bottle of wine, if i drank the same one every day i'd not only not be able to focus on work, but i'd get tired of it. so we buy alternate wines to suit what we feel like having at any given time...i'm feeling like a nice rhone blend right now...

haha thanks for clarifying tom! personally I'm gonna crack open a nice shiraz right now...it's gonna help me play/fight with my non-TAG's during practice tonight! :D

[guitarzan]

I like having a few different guitars on hand just to suit the moment. Each one has something special about it and each one makes me feel a little different while trying to draw music out. I really wish I was one of those guys who lived and died with one beloved guitar, but I don't think I have that gene. I think I have multiple guitars so that I can keep just one wife (God willing). :)

[guitarzan]

To add to that- I've always been a bigger fan of sportsmanship than athleticism. Meaning, I get more form the character of the athlete than his or her athletic prowess. In the same regard, I look at each guitar and I think of the stories that accompany them. The ones with the weakest stories have the greatest chance of getting separated from the wheat, so to speak. It must be the influence of my English major kicking in. And the fact that I get more emotional as I get older.

[dannopelli]

I think for me, (five), it is a matter of what suits me for the day.

I am a bit of a cave man.

mmm... me like this one today!

[Thoth105]

I choose based on what I think the ground I need to cover is (excuse the syntactical barbarity, but I've been working for 12 hours). So, most of time, I take my HSH drop top as that covers just about every base for a rehearsal. I'll take a random guitar for back up based on whatever whim I'm suffering from that day.

At least in the cover band. If my "real" band ever plays live, I'm screwed because I have so far used 14 guitars and 6 amps on the recordings. :eek:

[King Cobra]

Sounds like a tough problem for you guys.........I feel for ya everytime you have to agonize over which Andy to play. :rolleyes: :D

[Ahess86]

I take as many of them as I can fit in the car on a given day with all the other gear, which is usually 3. How do I decide? Decision is based on the sonic territory I need to cover for the given gig. And I just may have my favorites :) Even though they're all top notch quality, some are just flat out better for me than others, but I love them all.

[John Price]

After trying every Anderson model over the years I found myself going back to the classic! This is one guitar that brings out my personality as a player and if I had to choose one guitar over all it would be the classic. It gets the job done for me!

OK!
I do have another classic arriving soon but it will have different pickups than the one I'm using now....SC's...... I guess I'll be torturing myself in a few weeks over what classic to take on the job.........:D

When does it end??

[Devnor]

I have guitars coming thru my nose but I always seem to gravitate to the old red Classic.

[dannopelli]

I have guitars coming thru my nose but I always seem to gravitate to the old red Classic.

Me too,but mine is Sunburst.

[Suriel Zayas]

Me too,but mine is Sunburst.
+1 and cherryburst. :D

[bud]

I really wish I was one of those guys who lived and died with one beloved guitar, but I don't think I have that gene.

Aww come on, you are much too hard on yourself. I have seen you stick with the same guitar through an entire song :D

[michaelomiya]

I have guitars coming thru my nose but I always seem to gravitate to the old red Classic.

Dev, and that red one's a GOOD one!! :P

[guitarzan]

Aww come on, you are much too hard on yourself. I have seen you stick with the same guitar through an entire song :D

yeah- but maybe only once or twice. Normally, by the time I get to the bridge my hands start to shake...

[Casper]

I carry 2 Andys on the gig. I got a Hollow ProAm last year and its is loaded with SA2s and an H3. I upgraded my 96 Ash classic to where the pickups are similar in output (SC2-/SD2/H2+. The tones are slightly different,but both sound excellent in any capacity and both guitars can cover the gigs. Both are 1 5/8", but the Classic has a 62 RB and is a bit heavier than the ProAm. So for me, Its nice to switch after a set just to see if the gig gets that extra bit of clarity by switching up. The neck difference is small enough to where it doesn't radically change the feel either..
Shaun

[mslugano]

I always bring enough to cover all bases, especially if I am doing covers. That usually means three guitars...my TAG T Classic for twang, detuning and Zep, a Classic with sc's for Jimi, SRV and other bluesy trem stuff, and something with a HB in the bridge for rock. For non-covers gigs I only bring the TAG T Classic and a Classic S (with either sc's or M's).

I am about to buy a Huber Orca to cover the singlecut territory. Once I have that, it will be a T, an S and the Orca to cover ALL bases.

So to answer the original question, I guess my choice of which to bring comes down to sonic necessity.

[michaelomiya]

I am about to buy a Huber Orca to cover the singlecut territory

:eek: WOW! that's gonna be a beaut of an axe. sure you wanna 'risk' hurtin' 'er at a gig?:p :cool:

[mslugano]

:eek: WOW! that's gonna be a beaut of an axe. sure you wanna 'risk' hurtin' 'er at a gig?:p :cool:

I figure, if it can't be gigged, it can't be bought.

[mdrs]

My Andys call my name. That's how I know which to play. Can't you guys hear them as well?

:)

[michaelomiya]

My Andys call my name. That's how I know which to play. Can't you guys hear them as well?

:)

Don, I definitely hear voices...I guess some of 'em are my TAGs!!;)

[mdrs]

Don, I definitely hear voices...I guess some of 'em are my TAGs!!;)

What they are saying, and how you answer makes all the difference......

:D

[picnic]

I think of my three as all my #1. The three different groups I play with for fun, not pro, get together weekly. Classic rock covers from The Beatles to ZZTop. I usually can remember which guitar I took out the previous practice and take something different. I'm not looking for a specific tone, just something that sounds good to my ear. I take my Fargen Blackbird if there's stairs or my Mesa LSS if there's no stairs. Couple of pedals for color.
Versatile, never redundant and definitely not boring

[Pietro]

Just saw this thread.

My current no. 1 is a tie between my two Andersons (of course) and my PRS is a close 2nd to them... but...

I play at my church, where I work, which is where all but usually one of my guitars is. (I try not to play at home much.) and so the last 2 nights' rehearsals I pulled out a guitar I don't play a lot, an old US Masters, with an added powerbridge of course, and it had some wacky short, turned out one of my wires was being pinched... moved it out of the way and it was fine...

Anyway, it's currently my only 25.5" scale guitar, strung with 10s, with a pretty unique neck shape that I love, and it takes a little more work to get what I want from it...

...boy was it worth it. Loads of fun.

Shake it up boys... just for the sake of shaking it up...

[guitarzan]

Just saw this thread.

My current no. 1 is a tie between my two Andersons (of course) and my PRS is a close 2nd to them... but...

I play at my church, where I work, which is where all but usually one of my guitars is. (I try not to play at home much.) and so the last 2 nights' rehearsals I pulled out a guitar I don't play a lot, an old US Masters, with an added powerbridge of course, and it had some wacky short, turned out one of my wires was being pinched... moved it out of the way and it was fine...

Anyway, it's currently my only 25.5" scale guitar, strung with 10s, with a pretty unique neck shape that I love, and it takes a little more work to get what I want from it...

...boy was it worth it. Loads of fun.

Shake it up boys... just for the sake of shaking it up...

This is more my style, Pietro. I absolutely agree with you.

I have two Fender strats, each with different pups, neck shape, radius, nut width, and string gauge. I have 2 Andersons at my house, each with different body woods, bridges, neck shapes, pups. I have a fat-necked Tyler that is different from any of the other strat-style guitars. I have a Taylor Solidbody and a Taylor T3B, both of which hang, feel, and play differently.

And I gig all of them regularly. I used to think I had a variety of guitars because I needed them to stay working as a guitar player- but as a sideman, people are more concerned with me getting the parts than me playing one particular guitar over another. So I've found that, for me, I actually prefer the little wake-up that each new guitar gives me. It makes it so I can't default to the same little trick bag. I'll play a Bigsby in a totally different way than a Floyd or a vintage trem. I know it sounds stupid, but I guess it kinda keeps me focused on my capabilities. Like I mentioned earlier, I wish I was the one-and-only-true-love kinda guitar player, but I'm not. I'm the classic case of GADD (Gear Attention Deficit Disorder). I'll be holding a guitar and loving it to pieces, and asking myself at the same time, "hmmm... I wonder if I can love that one too?"

[mdrs]

So many guitars, so little time...............

I'm not a gigging musician. That being said, I totally agree about variety. I tend to be a Les Paul guy, but I probably play other guitars more!! I like thin necks. I like fat necks. I like Strats, LP's, Andys..........But, I also like acoustics, P-90's, various wood combinations, etc. etc. etc..

I play differently depending on what guitar I'm playing. Strats bring different things out of me, then does my HDT, or my CT, or my Classic, or my LP JR, and so on.

Picking up a different guitar inspires me. Each one seems to have different music in it. And, it's good therapy to find out what music that particular guitar possesses!!

Don't even get me started on amps..............:)

[picnic]

I brought my three TA's to another Fender Forum jam I hosted on Saturday. Lots of players from CT to MD to PA. all sorts of gear, classic rockers and cool peoplle to play with on a song list that I put together. We usually manage to play about 50-55 songs over the afternoon into the early evening and then just rum out of gas. These FDP jams are a blast.

I brought my three and just rotated guitars on the 25 or songs I was on. Mostly played through the LSS with a couple through the Fargen. Great tones all day and a lot of fun.

[michaelomiya]

I brought my three TA's to another Fender Forum jam I hosted on Saturday. ...I brought my three and just rotated guitars on the 25 or songs I was on. Mostly played through the LSS with a couple through the Fargen. Great tones all day and a lot of fun.

Picnic, very interesting...on the topic of TAG's - what was the consensus from the FF guys? (almost afraid to ask...'cause if they are anything like my LP Forum friends....):eek: :p

[picnic]

The FDP gang is a nice bunch of people, like here. No issues, well moderated. There wasn't any other TA's at the jam, but a few guys tried mine and liked them. If FOGG ever shows at one of these jams, I'd have some company 8^)

Most guys have all different kinds of stuff. I played on a Beatles tune with two other guitarists both sporting fireglow Ric 360's, one a 6 and one a 12 stringer. That was very cool and fun. Some Fender amps are brought, but there was Egnater Rebel, Swart AST, Mesa's, Peaveys, Reverend.

Everyone swaps gear around. I played PRS, homebuilts, Rics, Naked Body guitars, . The Rebel is one cool little amp. I played an Andy and a Suhr through one at NAMM08 when it was introduced and really liked it. The Swart's a great amp too. It's owner and I have done gear swaps including my Mesa Lonestar and two TA's together. The Swart is a fine amp too.

Stage shots

http://inlinethumb37.webshots.com/32164/2988522320090991389S500x500Q85.jpg

http://inlinethumb23.webshots.com/45078/2790845790090991389S500x500Q85.jpg

Flanked by a pair of Ric 360's, doing The Beatle's "You Can't Do That" was one of my favorite moments of the day
http://inlinethumb61.webshots.com/41724/2773253270090991389S500x500Q85.jpg

[dannopelli]

LOOKS LIKE FUN!

Put me on the next mail list!

[blues junkie]

Thats why I only own one guitar, my Hollow Cobra S. I would'nt want to agonize over which T/A to play if I had more than one. At least that's what I tell myself to help with the longing to own another T/A.