Guitar Things Everyone Does Wrong

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#guitar #wrong #mistake
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Products Used
String Winder: sweetwater.sjv.io/PyRnWM
Fret Polishing System: sweetwater.sjv.io/LXOEWO
Lemon Oil: sweetwater.sjv.io/xkroRO
Trem Arm Springs: sweetwater.sjv.io/DKOaJq
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00:00 Capo Tuning
00:46 Dual Amp Inputs
01:22 Wrapping a Cable
03:52 Removing Bridge Pins
04:12 Fret Polishing
04:24 Fretboard Oiling
04:35 Proper Restringing
05:05 Cable Securing
05:41 Gatechecking a Guitar
06:20 Using the Case Locks
07:00 Volume Knob
07:50 Standby Switch
08:21 Securing the Whammy Bar
08:43 Metronome on 2 and 4
09:46 Outro
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[@travisnorman]

I am a bassist and I am frequently instructed to set my volume knob to my IQ number. Still trying to figure out what that means.

[@MaydupNem]

The knob clearly doesn't go high enough

[@travisnorman]

@@MaydupNem or low enough! 😂

[@tim.frbrg1]

set it to 7

[@BeesWaxMinder]

You've been in Mike's band too, then..?

[@paulwooton4390]

You're in the wrong band...it's a multiplier!

[@cjlister8508]

I learnt about putting the cable through the strap when I was about 16 and now, 20 years later, it's still one of the best little guitar tips I've ever received.

[@jerryjb]

I just noticed that the pros around me were doing it when I started playing a couple years ago so I started doing it to try and look like I knew what I was doing lol

[@cjlister8508]

@@jerryjb That's a good enough reason as any 😅 Still got the job done.

[@justaguy2365]

Check out D'addario dual strap locks. They hold the cable tightly and snap onto your strap knob. They're awesome..

[@octopoDEEZ_NUTS]

SAME! Haven't spoken with the guy in like ten years, but I think about him every time I plug in.

[@chiizuu752]

I refuse to believe that there are grown ass adults that don't know about something this common

[@Zundfolge]

Note that the cable wrapping thing also works with hoses.

[@Djarra]

It’s also how you coil ropes for climbing, and other things.

[@danielyarritu3719]

The case locks aren’t to prevent someone from stealing your guitar. It’s to prevent your 6 year old nephew from taking your LP studio out from the case and dragging it down the hallway!

[@joaopedrosobreira929]

Side tip for the trem spring: if you cant find them available at a store, you can use a spring from a click style pen, they arent as strong as the oficial fender ones, but they do the trick of holding the trem bar at the position you want rather nicely, and praticaly for free... been using this in my strats for years now

[@247snowflake]

And you can use Grolsch Beer rubber gaskets as strap locks!

[@therealshavenyak]

@@247snowflakeyou can actually buy the gaskets in bulk from home brew supply shops, or probably off Amazon. I got a pack of 100 for like $5 about 15 years ago and still have half of them, so I’m probably set for life.

[@gamekyuubi42069]

spring method doesn't work for mexican strats, the hole goes all the way through the guitar and the spring just falls out :(

[@joaopedrosobreira929]

@@gamekyuubi42069 hmm, i guess maybe if you could find a small short bolt with the same thread as the hole in the block, you could thread it in from underneat and have a surface for the spring to sit on... Depends on the clearence between the block and the back cover to acommodate the bolt's head, and the height of the bolt so theres room inside the hole for the trem bar's thread and the spring. I think it's worth a try, if it doesn't work it's only a couple of cents anyway

[@SBilson]

@@joaopedrosobreira929 Good idea. To fix another issue. When you put the guitar in your case should you leave the bar attached. Close the case and the bar is depressed putting tension on the strings and the tremolo springs. I don't think that's a really good idea. If you remove the trem bar guess what? In Fender's great wisdom there is absolutely NO retainer on that spring. After all these years. If your case or guitar gets turned upside down the little spring falls out and usually gets lost. Ok, I keep a bag of those springs around but you can go through a dozen of those darn things pretty fast. So I found a short bolt with the correct threads. Remove the bar and insert bolt. Next time open the case, remove bolt and screw in the bar. Oh yeah make sure you put the bolt in the small compartment in the case. When you're done put the guitar back in the case, remove bar, insert bolt. Easy, kinda. Now here's the rub. How do you know what the correct thread is? To those of you who already know this, sorry and bear with me. Whatever you do you DO NOT want to strip the threads on your bar or tailpiece. First it helps to know where the guitar is made. American, easy. Standard American thread. Better be, but then this is Fender after all. Mexican, I don't know for sure. Probably American but could be Metric, depends on where the parts come from. Someone who knows more about that can chime in. Asian for sure Metric. Either way grab yourself a couple of inexpensive thread gauges at a hardware store. One American and one Metric. Don't forget to take your trem bar along. Thread gauges can be a bit tricky to use if you're not used to dealing with them. A lot of the thread sizes are very close. But only one will be correct. Once you've figured out the thread then match the bar diameter to a bolt size. To be sure find a nut same size and thread and try to screw it onto the trem bar. Gently. There may be a little bit of resistance but if the nut seems to bind you've got the wrong thing. Start over. Go back to the thread gauges. Try similar sizes. Metric's trickier than American. They have a lot more pitches and particularly fine threads than American. Harder to eyeball. Some American pitches are very close to a few of the Metric ones. Just make sure you've got the correct bolt diameter and thread pitch. Now buy the shortest bolt with the same diameter and thread. Maybe get a couple just in case. Follow the procedure and that stupid spring will never get lost in the first place.

[@SEEYAIAYE]

If you're going to the effort of cleaning your frets and the fretboard every string change, don't forget to grab a graphite pencil and scribble a bit into each groove in the nut, helps the strings move along them easier when tuning.

[@sholland42]

I use rem-oil on my nut and saddles, which is gun oil with Teflon in it. Done it for decades, works great. I did the graphite treatment previously and my bone nut would turn grey.

[@djlehara]

Yup yup yup

[@Kandralla]

Cable wrapping: Applies to all things wrapped. I don't think this was mentioned in the video but this will also make your cables (and extension cords) last longer. Every coil adds half a twist to the cable and over time with the normal method that results in the conductors slowly getting more and more twisted around each other inside the cable, and stretched until they break at the solder joint inside the connector. Over-under prevents that from happening because every other coil undoes the half twist the previous coil put in the cable. Guitar Strap cord holder: I did this because I noticed a lot of people in bands I liked doing it. Locks: it's not just guitar cases keyed alike. RV locks are often all the same... I mean, if it's not a passenger car or a house there's a pretty good chance the thing your buying has the same lock as all the other ones made that day. My favorite instance of this is police cars. There's some poor sap in charge of a key cabinet and making sure each spare key is matched to what car it goes to.... and (at least 5 or so years ago) if the department didn't specially request that all their cars not be keyed alike... they're most likely all the same damn key.

[@epmcgee]

I was messing around with the lock on my case the other day and realized that not only was it a dumb key, I could effectively lock and unlock the case with my nail.

[@cruzgonzales2898]

Lol police cars at least the crown Vic and before all have the same 3 options in la county. The newer suvs have key fobs so they’re all different now but definitely was a thing for a while to have the same keys assigned to every recruit and they just made copies as a class

[@DoctorEmpirical]

I'm a trapeze flyer. When we break down the rig in the fall, the over-under prevents hours of frustration when setting back up in the spring.

[@iggy8702]

I'm a computer network guy. That is how I wind network cables.

[@joshshultz1250]

The half twist thing is the only relevant part about over under wrapping. Everything else that people claim about it is objective BS. Claiming that cables will never get tangle or knotted just isn't true. It can and will still happen from time to time under any method but the part about twisting and therefor hurting the cable over a VERY long period is true. I'm just not sure how much that even matters.

[@andrewarcana]

I learned the over / under method when running sound for a magic show. Now I do that with everything: wired headphones, guitar cables, extension cords. Life is so much better after learning to properly wrap a cable.

[@blueleaftuber]

So I never do that but I kinda "roll" the cable in my hand. I guess it's the same effect?

[@thunder____]

​@@blueleaftuberdepends on what you mean by roll? If you're doing it properly, your cables won't come out twisted and unruly, they'll be nice and neat and compliant with however you try to set them. The thing is that, no matter how you do it, wrapping a cable introduces some amount of twist into the cable, but the "over-under" technique Sammy teaches in this video constantly reverses the direction of the twist, so every new wrap is undoing the twist introduced by the previous wrap, so by the end of the cable, there's ultimately little or no twist in the cable. Here's a test to see if a cable is wrapped correctly: Set yourself up somewhere where you have a clear floor space long enough for the entire length of your cable, and somewhere where there isn't anything fragile in the area. Then, take your cable, hold onto one end, and throw the other end. If the cable was wrapped correctly (and if you managed to avoid pulling one end through and creating a knot like Sammy demonstrated), it will unwrap and come out straight and neat. If it comes out twisted or bunched up, that means it wasn't wrapped correctly.

[@waltjames407]

People clutch their pearls when they see me do it, but I use the method where you repeatedly fold the cable in half until it's about 18 to 24 inches long and then tie the whole thing in a loose overhand knot. No tangles, no knots, have cables that are 20 years old that I've been doing this to the whole time. You can throw them in a bag like that and they won't tangle with each other like they would using any other method. People tell me that I'll ruin the cables that way, but I've yet to ruin one that way, been doing it for 30 years.

[@thunder____]

​@@waltjames407that seems cromulent enough for certain situations, so I'm not going to try telling you you're wrong. However, I can think of a few reasons why I personally still prefer over-under; these reasons may not be of any significant importance to everyone, so I'll try to explain my reasoning for the benefit of anyone who may read this. My first thought is that your folding method is probably quite a bit slower than wrapping; you need to first go through the cable to remove any existing twist before you can begin folding, which is something you can do as you go along while wrapping. Plus, with Velcro or twist-tie cable wraps, you don't need to take the time to tie a knot (although that does reveal an advantage to your method: it doesn't require a strip of Velcro or a twist tie). I often have lots of cables to wrap all at once, as I'm often working in the context of providing the rehearsal PA for my band or providing sound company services, so I typically have two or three dozen cables to wrap at a time, so it behooves me to be quick. Your folding method also sounds like it probably takes up a lot of space, depending on the lengths of your cables. I have cables up to 50ft in length, and those cables would take quite a bit of floor space to straighten out before folding, a luxury I do not always have when I'm tearing down a stage in a small impromptu venue. There are some very cool things you can do with over-under wrapping to manage cables and keep them neat even while they're in use. For example, when I plug a cable into the input of my pedalboard, I have it wrapped over-under in a pile next to the pedalboard so that any length that I do need from the cable comes loose neatly, but any excess length stays in that nice little pile and doesn't risk tangling up with anything else on the stage. Or when I'm running a cable to a microphone, I wrap the excess length into an over-under pile underneath or next to the mic stand, for the same reason. When I'm running a stage with two to three dozen cables in active use, that makes a huge difference when I need to tear down, troubleshoot, or rearrange the stage. Lastly, it can be immensely helpful (and can be a useful job skill for anyone looking to work for a sound co or for a local stagehand union) to know the industry convention for how to wrap a cable if you find yourself working with other people's equipment. I would absolutely not employ someone for my sound company who couldn't over-under wrap my cables. So if the folding method works for you for your own personal gear, great! I clutch no pearls, and your method sounds vastly preferable to wrapping over-over. But I hope I've made clear my reasons for why I still recommend most people learn to wrap over-under.

[@thunder____]

Oh also, over-under can be useful for things other than cables. My brother works in maintenance at a golf course, and he uses over-under wrapping for things like hoses.

[@robmcnabb3123]

That metronome tip was one of the hardest adjustment I had to make in college studying guitar but once I learned how to do that, my swing feel drastically improved.

[@SBilson]

Seems like a great way to learn. Freakishly hard at first. Easier to use the first click as the downbeat so it takes you out of your comfort zone. Hey, I might learn something new!

[@clmbrr.1316]

Hey, SammyG! Gonna do an ACKCHYUALLY moment over here: The Standby switch debacle has been going on and off (no pun intended) for a few years now on the tube amp repair/building community. There's no actual consensus if using the standby switch to mute the amp is really that bad. People who says that this is bad for your tubes, normally use the "cathode poisoning" argument (when you flip the stdby switch, what you're really doing is turning off the high voltage supply on the tubes themselves, allowing for their filaments to stay on. Some claim that the filament heat and the lack of high voltage on the plates could damage the tube's cathode) and this is actually, very hard to verify. Being someone who builds amps for about 15 years, I always use the standby switch when I'm not playing, since by cutting the high voltage supply, it prevents the tube from conducting signal, thus prolonging their lifespan. Also, the switch is really useful if you're doing routine maintenance, since it increases (a little bit, at least) safety. Keep up with the great tips! The capo one is actually really useful to me, thanks!!!!

[@siggiarabi]

not to mention there are tube amps with no standby switch

[@mikee6666]

The guy that made my amp was an electrician his entire working life (now retired), is a collector/repairer/restorer of old valve radios, and has designed and made countless guitar amps. Basically, a bona fide expert, and what he doesn't know about tubes isn't worth knowing. He uses the standby switch for muting amps during breaks. That's been all the proof I need to follow suit. He also confirmed for me that there's no reason to use the standby switch when first turning the amp on. His words - "What a load of nonsense!" Lol.

[@keresztesbotond740]

I'm not really an expert when it comes to vacuum tubes, but as far as I know what tends to kill tubes (and most "old" electronics for that matter) is the constant on-off switching, as when switched the cathode goes through a heat cycle (ie. it heats up to several degrees and then cools off) which it can whitstand a finite amount of. I have heard that during WWII they were hesitant to build tube computers, as that was a relatively new idea at the time and the few that have been tried went through tubes at a very fast rate. Apparently the solution was to never turn the computer fully off, but to reduce the cathode heating current, which prolonged the life of the tubes. As for the stanyby switch on the amp: Given my knowledge of electronics I don't see how it harms the tubes. It is built in for the same reason as mentioned above so that you don't subject the cathode to more heat cycles that needed. The "cathode poisoning" argument franky sounds like audiophile BS to me. Also I've seen a video some bloke made a few years ago on the topic of having your amp on standby when you are turning it on. Sadly I can't find the video but he actually took measurements and the conclusion was, that it only makes a difference if your rectifier circuit is also tube based. So for amps that use a solid state rectifier (ie. all amps that were built from the 70's 80's onwards) it doesn't matter if you have the switch on standby or not, the transient curve on the supply rails looks the same.

[@bbwibb02]

I remember one time a buddy of mine learned about the lemon oil thing but he got a bit confused. He didn't polish the frets in between string changes, but instead used it on his new strings he'd just put on. Now his strings were all sticky and squeaky and he wondered why anyone would recommend doing that.

[@christianb9077]

Well, it surely improved the smell of the strings.

[@TophsCM]

Not to be a total shill, but after playing 20 years and never having any kind of lessons except reading tab, Sammy's lessons really unlocked a lot of things. Like a night and day difference for me. It took a while, and I still revisit stuff, but they are really effective lessons.

[@SomeDudeOnline]

oh my god.... you just made me realize that I've been playing for 21 years. I don't think I've thought about it at all for well over 5 years.

[@Ilurk247]

Same here, been playing since 1976, something I saw recently that was a big help is learning the caged system. Pretty sure Sammy has one on this channel but this video was really a major help in actually understanding what was going on with something I had figured out on my own: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZoLTY2mBmKmlfdk

[@samuraiguitarist]

My man!!!! This makes me very happy

[@epmcgee]

This made me check out what he actually offers. Seems like crazy value, tbh.

[@florkgagga]

I am thinking about taking a course now, after watching for 3-4 years on off and being a beginner for the last 30+ years (I'm 52), back then I thought I'd join my brothers band as the bassist. Still struggling with discipline though and I know I won't have a proper future in music - except for peace for my soul. With all the troubles in the world and the ups and downs in family life, music is the thing that always puts a smile on my face, be it classic, punk, a capella, jazz.... I do cringe at some too heavy metal or some too folky (eastern Europe) but I have friends who love it so I guess I will have a listen or two; knowing about theory definitely will help digesting more of it.

[@johnr8820]

These were honestly incredibly useful tips…I’m not a beginner but I still have long ways to go before meeting my musical potential, technique and music theory knowledge don’t come naturally for me, but my passion and deep love for music keeps me going ✌🏻

[@BenAck912]

Using those metronome settings at [more than] double the speed would also be ideal for practicing ska music.

[@jordanshain3698]

Also, with that using your strap to hold your cable tip, it takes the tension off of the input jack on the guitar.

[@Semitotal]

Polishing frets is no joke. I started doing that with every string change and the guitar is such a joy to play after I actually look forward to changing my strings now! Also I have the same string winder and it's the bomb.

[@wildcard9724]

Nev'r Dull also works wonders! Also leaves the tiniest bit of "lube" too. Just be sure to mask each side. I use blue painting tape.

[@artistlovepeace]

I love that you've become two Samuraiguitarists to get your lessons across. You'r e a great channel. Thank you for sharing so much wisdom and inspiration.

[@MrBeardsley]

On amp inputs: With most tube and some solid state amps (the old Traynor TS series springs to mind), running higher output pickups into the unpadded input lets you hit the preamp harder and get more dirt and saturation out of it. Though with really high output pickups (like active EMGs and even some passives like the Bare Knuckle Warpig) it can cause over-compression that flattens your dynamics even if you roll the guitar’s volume back, and forget about getting any clean sounds without changing inputs on some amps. Like anything else it takes some experimentation to figure out what works, but it can be a good way to find new tricks with your old gear.

[@duncan-rmi]

I always thought- still do- that the pairs of inputs were to allow channel mixing, & that the attenuation on the second socket of each channel's pair was to give you some flexibility in mixing them. everyone I knew with a plexi knew that trick. you can also use it to hang a tuner off of it, if you didn't have a floor-based tuner, & these weren't at all common back in the day- people had these big peterson strobe tuners sitting on their amps- so, you're playing through channel one mostly, say, but you link the second jack across the front of the amp to channel two, & the second jack of channel two goes up to the peterson, & now your channel switch mutes you & lets you tune silently. the tuner's connected all the time, of course, but when you want to tune up you can do it quietly.

[@ryla22]

A tip for wrapping up cables: Instead of doing that weird hand thing just give the wire a twist for every loop you make. It does the exact same thing but its quicker and easier, especially for shorter cables that dont have much weight weighing them down. My high school music teacher taught me that one, he learnt it from touring with bands like april wine.

[@YostPeter]

Exactly how I've always wrapped my cables. Goes very quickly for me.

[@MichaelCrutcher]

This. It's how sailors wrap rope, so that it can be thrown without tangling. Twisting with the coil follows the coil of the rope or cable.

[@poit57]

I wasn't quite sure what he was demonstrating in the video with the over/under motion. I figured out the twisting-as-you-wrap method on my own when I started playing at my church as a teen and having to do setup and tear-down every week. It's easy to feel how much to twist. Too much or too little of a twist and the cable won't hang flat from the other hand that is holding the wrapped cable.

[@NealFosterHD]

Yeah but the real question is what is everybody doing with the ends if the cables once they are wrapped up? Just leave it like that?

[@YostPeter]

@@NealFosterHD Little Velcro loops are great, but if I don't have those then I kind of "wrap" both ends around the whole coil a couple times. (Like stripes on a barbershop pole) Pull that a little snug and it kind of stays.

[@mikkabrightheart2268]

The thing about 2 input amps not being meant for 2 inputs simultaneously is wrong, there are resistors and switching jacks arranged so that when 2 guitars are input to 1 channel both inputs have identical input impedance but when only 1 is the inputs have different impedance... It's not that they're not meant to be used that way it's that they're designed to work both ways

[@SMart7751]

Not according to the Fender manual. But perhaps in other manufacturers’.

[@mikkabrightheart2268]

@@SMart7751 Idk why it won't let me link rob Robinette, if you Google fender amp input impedance the rob Robinette page explains the whole thing It works the same with 2 input fender amps as it does with the 4 input ones it's just that the 2 input amps run a Brite switch instead of a whole Brite channel or a deep switch in the case of at least one of the bassman models also you can run one as an out if you're plugged into the other which is handy if you wanna run stereo 🙃

[@florkgagga]

Man, I could very well get into a situation in the next few years where I share this tip to a bunch of kids like the knowledgeable uncle I'm supposed to be (but am not, I only dabble in music and gear) - it's probably something one can find out with time but it's nice when you get an ever so slight push in the right direction from strangers who mean well.

[@jonkerrmusic]

The 1-fret restringing trick is GLORIOUS - thank you, and thank Rhett!

[@KitchenFaucet_]

On top of using your strap to secure your cable, secure your strap too with any sort of grolsch tab or strap-lock: if you have a weak strap-end, there’s a chance the cable might eventually cause your strap to slip off the strap button

[@davidgooley1544]

You may need to add a little of the weaker threadlocker on some guitars when adding straplocks. My Epiphone Les Paul screws were juuuuust a bit bigger than the straplock ones... otherwise a small hit of plumbing tape around the straplock screw

[@iutchube]

Great content as always, Sammy. A part 2 would be great😊

[@the_funkguy]

This is by far one of your best videos. I‘ve been playing since 10 years and been following your channel god knows since when, completely blown away.

[@molin1]

I have been doing the cable behind the strap for years, but if you're new to it keep in mind you are turning a quick breakaway point into a locking point. So you can wind up pulling other stuff out or down, or even tripping someone if you are not mindful of your surroundings.

[@TheRealWulfderay]

Hey Sammy, I had to change my strings yesterday and your 1-fret tip helped so much! Thanks!

[@TheRealTrulyJulie]

You are a fantastic teacher!! Love your acuity and the density of useful information in your video, unlike most other creators who ramble on for hours and keep repeating themselves. This is beautifully put together, very clear, great pace, great demonstrations, super helpful 👍👍

[@marconteurs94]

This is the best video ever. I've been playing the guitar for 20 years but the capo thing was totally unknown to me. Thank You so much for your passion and hard work man. Much love from Italy!

[@davidgooley1544]

Tip to capos... put the top don all the way and release the back... stays in tune better.

[@marconteurs94]

@@davidgooley1544 Thank u man

[@derrickbaranowsky5715]

Great barrage of useful tips. The only thing I disagree with is that using your standby once the amp is on is harmful. All the standby is doing is turning off the voltage to the amp while leaving just the voltage to the filaments of your tubes to keep them warmed up. Turning off the voltages to everything but the filaments doesn't harm anything. But you are absolutely correct that the main thing to do is use the standby to have things in "standby" when you power up the amp. The design reason it was put there was to prevent the sudden inrush that happens when you first power up the amp. That was to protect capacitors that often were already specked pretty close to the limits of the voltage they could handle, and some feel this also extended tube life but that's an internet can-o-worms debate... Moral of the story, have the amp on "standby" when powering up, and use standby if you want for things like breaks between sets because it won't hurt anything. It can prolong the life of your output tubes because they aren't conducting while your on your breaks.

[@telecasper]

Should you also do Standby -> Off when you turn off or can you directly switch it off..?

[@derrickbaranowsky5715]

@@telecasper I do so that the amp is always in standby when you go to power it up, but it is not necessary.

[@jakeanderson193]

Thank you for mentioning this, I had heard the history of the standby switch at some point online and yeah it basically a mute switch, good for keeping your tubes warm, doesn't cause any harm except putting hours on your tube. This is also the only one he didn't seem to explain at all which left me further sceptical.

[@squicker]

Yes, the standby switch thing was not true at all.

[@ogmakefirefiregood]

I once forgot my foot controller cord at a gig. So I set my amp to overdrive and used my volume knob to clean up the signal. Clean to distortion is 90% of your changes anyway. Worked great.

[@jimharringtonsr.2793]

My guitar teacher is an old rock n roller. First day lesson: How to dial in amp. Set to 75%ish, then set amp up to lightly distort, then slightly back it off. Now your volume is more of an distortion control than volume.

[@Ilurk247]

Great stuff, I learned some new things, the capo, the stringing, and the cord thing are a big help, I was waiting for the proper way to use the line in/line out jacks. Thanks for sharing.

[@cement01]

Lots of great tips for beginners and old hands alike - the capo one I had never heard of, the cable thing I knew there was a better way of doing it but didn't know what it was, the volume thing I've only recently heard about, so that was a good reminder and the metronome thing I'll be trying out. Always love these type of videos, as I think there are plenty of beginner how to vids, but not many for long term players who may still have a lot of bad habits. Cheers.

[@HendoNewsPro15]

I love that I learned the string wiggle trick from my dad YEARS ago. I cannot sing the praises of the string wiggle enough.

[@joephillips4082]

I've played guitar for 60 years and I still picked up some useful tips here. Excellent video.

[@DavidShepard-ke9su]

WOW! Thank you! Been playing guitar for 40 years plus, and I learned a few really handy things today!

[@howamidriving27]

You can also just take the spring out of a clicky pen for the whammy bar thing. Might take a little trial and error to find the right size one, but it works just fine.

[@seancollins3106]

a 12 pack of the fender springs are under $10. I'd rather do that than screw around taking apart pens hoping to find the right one...

[@KozmykJ]

The Fender springs are really tough and apply just the right amount of resistance though.

[@theharvardyard2356]

@@seancollins3106 must be nice, I have to work in the sun for an hour to make $10

[@joybuzzer]

that capo trick is a real game changer. Thanks for that.

[@Tonetwisters]

I'm a guy who started playing guitar on a casual basis, in 1959. As I recall, there were a lot of players who played through the same amp because they had a guitar but not an amp. I think that was more Leo's provocation for making the lower gain second input, and the reason those old Gibson amps had so many inputs. I played out for 35 years and never did that guitar cord-through-the-strap loop thing, and never had any problems. But if it works for you, that's a good thing. BTW: A group called The Beatles started that cord/strap thing. And good on you on coiling up cables. You can also put your cable over the top of an open door to make it straighter. You can also use 0000 Steel Wool to polish frets and clean the fret board. Use that oil every time you change strings. I disagree on the "Standby Switch". And drop a 4mm ball bearing into the trem arm hole and THEN the spring!

[@NewLifeWithGuitar]

I only started learning how to play guitar a month ago & I'm documenting my journey on here but already this was super helpful! Stuff for me to take on board moving forward.

[@rockinrob2004]

Just found your channel, subscribed right away. Thanks for many of those tips, some I knew being an old timer, like life though I learned some new ones. You have good a flow & vibe. Cheers! 🎸

[@BotsWeekendCovers]

Its nice to be almost 60 and still learning! Thank you sir!

[@Doowopsid]

Yep, 72 and still learning

[@redmed10]

Great tips. Remembering a tip from another video when cleaning frets. Use a finger board protector that fits over fret to protect to save the fingerboard from any stuff that comes of frets.

[@jeremy.thejeweler]

Bench jeweler here. Those fret polishing cloths don’t get dirty because they are cleaning the dirt and grime off your frets. Sure, there will be a little of that, but the cloths are actually impregnated with a very fine polishing compound and they turn black as the compound comes out of the cloth and is combined with the very small amount of nickel or stainless or whatever your frets are made of that is removed. The blacker the polishing cloth gets, the better it will usually work. We use the same exact types of cloths for jewelry, and you can probably save some money and just order cheap jewelry polishing cloths from Amazon or wherever. They’re often less expensive and much larger than the fret cloths. Many people will use the cloths on their jewelry (or frets) and just end up rubbing and rubbing to death because they see that the cloth is turning black so they think that what they are polishing is just relentlessly dirty so they try to rub and rub because they think that they are still removing the dirt and grime. This is not the case. Also, NEVER try to wash a polishing cloth. Again, the dirtier it looks, the better it works. I use them almost everyday and I have some that I have used for years. Great video as always, Samurai. Have loved your channel for years. Hope you’re well!

[@creationinspired200]

You have the best persona it comes off as no BS straightforward while holding the humor exactly where it should be your a lot of fun to watch samurai!

[@NickDevXT]

The volume knob tip is one that changed my whole world. My pedals are configured to give me the max distortion I'd want with the volume all the way up, then I control the level of crunch / distortion with my volume knob. (Also makes it easier to balance the volume differences between single coils and humbuckers on an HSH setup)

[@BooleanCorporation]

I use that trick (?) with my Les Paul, setting up my neck pickup as a built-in clean switch, while leaving the bridge pickup ready to melt some faces.

[@pascalfragnoud2846]

@@BooleanCorporation With a Les Paul, or any other guitar that has separate knobs for each pick up, you can also use the middle position then set the 2 volumes independently to get completely different sounds. Like, 50% on neck and 100% on bridge sounds radically different than the other way around, and you can get every nuance in between. I think that's the thing I miss the most from my old Les Paul (it burned in a house fire) now that I only have one volume knob.

[@stoneysdead689]

Learning to use the volume knob really is a breakthrough when you first figure it out. For years I tried to get certain tones, couldn't find them- it was all about turning that volume down. It's hard to explain to someone who doesn't play but- these tones are hard to find because you have to set the amp at a place where it actually sounds like crap- then when you turn the volume down on the guitar- viola- there it is. Plus, now you're set up t crank the volume for the solo and you get that lift in volume and extra saturation and sustain that makes a solo sing. But like I said- it's very unintuitive because until you turn that volume down- if you play anything other than single note, lead lines- it sounds awful. Plus- it gets even more complex because when you turn the volume down on a guitar- unless you've set up a treble bleed- you start losing top end. It's nuts how it al plays together and everything has to be just so- or it won't sound right. Sometimes it can make you want to pull your hair out- then you keep going until it all starts sounding the same- you can't distinguish tones anymore. You have to take a break to give your ear time to readjust. Modelers make it easier though- God loves a good preset.

[@darwinsaye]

Yeah, I was a ‘tone and volume on 10’ guy for years because I couldn’t the stand the treble loss. I always wanted to be able to use the guitar volume to go from clean to driven, so eventually I figured out two ways I like. I did the vintage Gibson wiring mod on a couple of my guitars. When I roll down the volume with that, you don’t lose treble, and you actually lose a bit of bottom end, so it’s perfect for going from a bright acoustic-like clean on 6 or 7, to full thick fuzz on 10. For guitars that have standard modern wiring, I learned a trick. Instead of setting my amp controls to sound perfect with the guitar on 10 and 10, I turn the guitar volume down to 5 or 6 and the tone to 10, then dial in a nice, clear, bright, clean tone at the amp. The only thing about this method is, when you roll the volume up to 10 for your driven tone, you have to roll back the tone about half way to compensate for how much treble you dialed in at the amp for your bright clean tone. This is how I dealt with treble loss with my Telecaster before I ended up doing the 50s Gibson mod to it. I like having guitars with both wiring methods though, because as I said, the 50s mod drops some lows when you roll down, which is great for cleaning up, but sometimes you might want to just lower the volume but keep the thickness in the sound.

[@HomoChomsky]

I'm a fan of the Kinman-style treble bleed, and I've been meaning to try the modern Fender's series+parallel take on the concept. I keep it on a push-pull pot for the few instances where a traditional volume control is more appropriate (like with vintage fuzzes). So much of the electric guitar's dynamics come from adjusting its controls. Nice rabbit hole to fall into.

[@mikee6666]

Treble-bleeds are a must have on all my guitars, always add it as part of my set up now on new guitars. The four mods I always add: - master volume and tone - treble-bleed - blender knob - phase swap switch With those mods and through exploring the full range of the volume and tone control, it provides an unbelievably range of guitar tones. Honestly, most gigs nowadays I go through just a tuner into the amp, and set-and-forget the amp settings. Clean through to dirty, I can usually get just about any tone or effect I need throughout a gig directly from the guitar controls.

[@Doowopsid]

You are so right about trying to find the right tone. I will try the turning the guitar volume control down. My biggest challenge is getting the treble just right especially playing the open D chord. Thanks

[@GabrielCSousa]

The cable wrapping i actually learned from one of your videos years ago! Even taught some younger bands here in my city how to do it. Thank you!

[@mrcarrino]

I’ve seen tons of tutorials, but this probably had the most new or useful stuff packed into the least amount of time as possible. Amazing! Thank you!

[@arquivodiverso]

great video! i have to adjust some things... about the whammy bar, you can also buy some plumber tape and wrap at your taste the part that goes in the guitar.

[@chairmankaga101]

I learned the “flip flop” cable coiling technique when I was interning at a PBS station. Allegedly it’s better for the wiring inside the cable as well as making it easier to uncoil. Different technique, as this involves a sort of half twist at the wrist, but looks like the same result.

[@Doowopsid]

One of the best guitar related videos ever! Lots of great and helpful tips here and so glad to see you using the same simple and effective method of restringing that I’ve been using for years. No need for all the fancier methods which also make it harder when you need to remove the string. Nice job!😊

[@captain_green278]

dude, this way of wrapping cable is the thing Ive trying to find all my life. Always unhappy with my cables and you just save me. Thank you!

[@artistlovepeace]

Same thing happened to me. As your stepping on your guitar cord and pulling the plug out. I was playing Purple Rain at the talent show in 91 or 92 and just about to play the solo and whoops had to go back and plug it in again. No body noticed and people were still screaming. Mainly my friend Christina... and I played the solo and survived. Love you Samurai Guitarist for telling the truth.

[@Chou87]

Admittedly, I never knew the capo thing, definitely keeping that one. The over-under technique is painfully underrated. I have a bunch of friends in stage production, and this technique allows them to hold one end of the cable and literally throw the coil across the stage. I'm talking 200 ft cables just unraveling perfectly as they fly through the air. Truly a thing of beauty. As for restringing, that technique works best for angled headstocks. When I get a straight headstock on the bench, I measure slack with fingers. Pull the string through the tuner, and... 2 fingers for 6th and 5th, 3 fingers for 4th and 3rd, 4 fingers for 2nd and 1st strings. Usually a thumb for a 7th string, and 1 finger for an 8th. Perfect attack angle to the nut every single time! (Fine print: -1 finger for staggered tuners). If you ever do another one of these videos, could you add in that locking tuners on a straight headstock still need overwraps for proper attack angle? That one drives me nuts every time a client brings me a Fender with lockers and there's a quarter turn on the machine head.

[@TVsBen]

I learned the over-under cable method from Joe Gilder at Home Studio Corner years ago, but your additional un-knotting method is new to me. That's awesome!

[@voladel]

The cable/strap thing is why I use a right angle jack with any guitar which has a flat socket. My bass actually guides the cable up towards the strap button. Medium length cables I over/under long cables I use the climbing rope method of folding the cable in half again and again until it is the length I want for storage and secure it with a hook and loop strap. Thank you for the capo tip!

[@Dom_Smalls]

Holy crap, I never knew about being able to SHARPEN things with the capo on. I knew about pulling on the body side to flatten, but I am borderline obsessive about being in tune and it's been such a major pain for me, I don't think there's anyone I've played with on stage that tunes more often than I do-- sometimes during song, too!

[@santiagoramones]

As a musician and audio engineer, thank you for educating more people about properly wrapping their cables. Of all the things I learned in my music education, that might be the most valuable one.

[@MrChopsticktech]

How is it valuable? If l wrap my two cables a different way than someone l don't see how it affects anything.

[@captainchaos3053]

I never ever ever wrap my cables. I just leave it on the floor.

[@santiagoramones]

@@MrChopsticktech I deal with cables every day. If you wrap cables with your elbow every day, you will damage the cables internally as you're putting pressure on specific points of the cable repeatedly. If you wrap your cables the spiral way, the cable will "learn" the spiral and won't lie flat, as well as continue to get twisted in one direction, also damaging the cable internally. If you wrap them over-under, you're following the natural coil of the cable, not twisting the cable more in one direction than another. Also, you can throw one end of the cable and have it all come out straight. If you put it on the ground, you can grab one end and pull in the direction you're going, and the spool will naturally unfurl with you and not get twisted. Over-under cables are less damaged and you can use their full length.

[@santiagoramones]

@@captainchaos3053 "Captain Chaos" is a fitting name.

[@captainchaos3053]

@@santiagoramones I aim to please.

[@WarrenPostma]

My father taught me how to do the over-under with extension cords in 1978 when I was 8 years old. Thanks dad.

[@user-lf3kr1nq2d]

I love that you are both thorough yet concise as you cover each point. Subscribed!

[@JollySaintNick]

As for the metronome. I always preferred it going on 2 and 4. On slower speeds the 1-4 setting is great, but faster than about 100 the ticking drives me nuts.

[@PrinceWesterburg]

You are no longer Samurai Guitar, you are now Sensei Guitar!

[@flazuki5288]

that restring technique is so simple yet so effective, gonna do that from now on. Thank you!

[@calvinbass1839]

All good stuff! Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed day.

[@ParallelZuVega]

How are you still making fun and entertaining videos to this day? You still rock, just like when I found your channel years ago - thanks for the tips!

[@johndodge1299]

I still remember being so surprised when B.B. King stepped on his cable mid-solo at a concert in Montreal. He had to stop, pick it up, and plug back in like a noob. Otherwise it was a completely inspirational show. One of a few 'changed my life' type of concerts that I have seen

[@Nine_Divines]

This must have been during his younger years or maybe he must have really been "rocking" that night to get that cable caught under the leg of his stool..😁

[@sholland42]

I’ve wrapped my cables over my strap for years, but I have had one pull out of a pedal during a gig. Singer kicked it out by accident, the bastard.

[@mikepretorius6350]

Know what you mean, also when top artists hit the wrong note every now and again, i like that, it keeps it "real"

[@charleso.8998]

I jokingly told a guy that a knot in a cable strangles the power to the amp and it wont sound as good. He told me weeks later that it may have been the best advise he ever got...

[@rockrep]

Great tips. Love the capo and cable winding tips.

[@demongeminix]

Hahahaha, flipping the bird on 2 and the slight pause.

[@bossogg6915]

Pretty much everyone on the North American continent pronounces Capo wrong, "Kaypo". Capo is an Italian word meaning head (see the Godfather or any other "mafia" movies). The word should be pronounced Capo "cap-oh" but without a gap in between, as in "Capo de toutti capos" meaning head of all the heads.

[@zurflueh]

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capo_(musical_device)

[@HoneyTone-TheSearchContinues]

In Italian, the plural of capo is capi.

[@guithawk-ij8is]

Great video! I have owned my 67 Fender twin reverb over 40 years and never knew what the 2 inputs are for! Really useful tips 😊

[@ballsdynamite]

Two years working at a guitar store taught me a lot of things, most important of all, restringing guitars. Your method was they same one I was taught, although experience taught me that a little less slack on the high strings was often necessary.

[@richiebricker]

I dont get knots with my Over, Over method

[@gooseonfire735]

ive always done the restinging method you showed us, since day one. No idea why! but yes when i saw this i definatley had an "ahaha, i do that" moment

[@MrChopsticktech]

I hate restringing. I would rather pay someone to do it for me. Or my cousin does iu free and l let him keep the guitar for several months.

[@gooseonfire735]

@@MrChopsticktech understandable, i do that when it comes to wiring, i do not trust myself with a soldering iron!

[@billowspillow]

@@MrChopsticktech What a shame - restringing for me is like a nice quiet moment of bonding with my guitar.

[@VV55VV]

Thank you! You're untieing your over-under cable is wonderful 🎉

[@ICantStopMakingNoise]

This is the best video you've made in a while - and I've enjoyed the others plenty. But this one felt super informative, really accessible, deep enough, but also not dragging , and I genuinely did not know most of what you shared.

[@mrfarenheit0323]

I see new sammy g content I click. Simple as

[@williamhurrelbrink3324]

Thank you for the helpful tips! A couple of these I am totally guilty of doing completely wrong. Unsolicited side note, many professionals that roll any kinda cable or wire rope or hoses use the over and under method.

[@avielp]

Wonderful, useful and simple tips! Thank you!

[@cdaddy8968]

Thanks for the tips, great content.

[@Jef-sj6zc]

Cool man ! I already knew al lot of your tips , but some not. They are very practical and usefull . Very handy video for every guitarist ; well done !!!

[@skyusstarlet6514]

Really great video man, thank you! 🙏🙏🙏❤️

[@kenpike7814]

Love this channel. One of the very best guitar channels around and mixes a bit of fun with a bit of education. Thanks guitar samurai. You're a legend

[@marlin6668]

Great advice!!! I knew a few of these, but I really love the tip about the little springs for the trem bar. Very cool…

[@MikeYeary]

I'm an amputee, so no feet to hit pedals, so I crank the gain on my amp (Friedman Runt 50, so 11 on the gain is perfect, not too much) and just turn my guitar volume down to about 3-4 to get "cleans". With the volume down, and playing a bit lighter, you can usually find a sweet spot where your cleans are clean enough for 'Us and Them ' and then you just turn your guitar's volume up, and boom, you've got enough gain for 'Mississippi Queen', or whatever. You get the point. I also just recently got a Charvel DK24, and I love that the cable input is on the back and angled upwards, so it's engineered with looping your cable through your strap in mind, which I thought was really cool.

[@davidconboy5822]

Alot of tips and tricks. Great content and information. I'm a Newbie player and really appreciated your insights. Thank You. 😊

[@Doowopsid]

Thanks for this video. Learned some cool tips. Liked and subscribed and hope to watch more of them!

[@timkarvelis3523]

if you ever have trouble syncing to a metronome. try setting the met to your goal bpm that you want to play at and just play until your body naturally syncs up with it. if this was confusing just try it it actually helps. it was taught to me by my grandfather when he was teaching me clarinet.

[@BosseCory]

You're doing the lord's work. As a sound guy, I've always wanted to do one of these for beginners playing live.

[@tomhenninger4153]

Sami G - this video ROCKS! THANKS YOU! I've been playing guiatr since the 70's and have not heard a lot of the tuiips you showed us. ROCK ON!

[@trevscribbles]

That capo tip is something I would simply never have considered. You absolute gem of a creature

[@jerrelleverett1284]

great info! thank you!

[@HamachingoTech]

Volume knob is kinda like a second tone control, on pretty much all guitars (yes, that includes the high end custom ones), the tone knob only lets through the high treble when it's all the way up. Which is handy on one-channel amps, you get your clean/crunch tone where you typically wants some treble roll-off and then you just turn it up for solos where you need that aggressive transients for attack.

[@colindeer9657]

Excellent advice. Thank you. Cool video.

[@Nickshreds890]

Thank you! I've been wrapping my cables wrong for a while! Thank heavens I finally learnt how to actually wrap them haha . This was really helpful, I've played guitar for a long time but I was never taught how to wrap a cable.

[@thomassabino5440]

Thank you so much for all those helpful tips

[@nellayema2455]

Good tips! I've enjoyed your videos for many years. Keep it up, sir!

[@jspanos500]

Thanks for the video. I'm terrible about fret polishing; mainly because I wasn't sure what product to use.

[@ozboomer_au]

Really helpful video... 'specially about the amp usage clues. Fanx! for posting.

[@jelliott2k]

Great tips! Thanks! ❤