The SCAM With Guitar Gear Demos

[@meanbean7953]

Great suggestion! As a self-taught guitarist, I really appreciate hearing you promote your own sound. I've learned so much, including the fact that some of the greatest songwriters and guitarists are not formally trained. So many decades of great music from people that found their own sound and learned along the way what inspires them to play their best. Thanks, Keith

[@myuncle2]

Well said, hope you'll never change. Any DI recording is not honest, because in the room will be so different. That's why a nice cab will never be replaced.

[@model_number_band]

This is common knowledge - you know what I hate more. Click Bait posts...

[@rickclark4714]

Great players, multiple takes, close mic’d, it all sounds great. Then , in your bedroom, it’s a chainsaw over an AM radio. Or so loud before the good tone arrives it’s useless.

[@RaiderJay9092]

Attenuators are a tube amps best friend.

[@christopherguzzi1316]

Good advice. Another piece of advice, just know that most people are demo'ing gear with the idea in mind that they are selling a product or at the very least themselves, as opposed to a review of the gear. And even if it is an unbiased review and the gear works for them, it very well may not work for you. Everyone likes different gear, different styles of music, has different skills, etc. There is no short cut in music. You have to figure it out for yourself which has a cost one way or another. Whether that be expense or time. It's good to be inspired but it's also good to value yourself and your own sound and way of playing.

[@SergioAureo]

Unfortunatelly, everything in this world hovers about making people buy stuff, even if they don't really need it. Keep on keepin' on, Justin. Cheers.

[@christopherguzzi1316]

Great topic. It took me a minute early on to figure out the difference between a demo and a review. Every guitar player will likely go through a period where they have to trust others to educate them on a purchase . But thankfully gear is usually not expensive at that point. Plus return policies are often times quite generous and you can always sell things on Reverb, etc. And then once you can play some things and have more knowledge of gear and what you like and don't like you can shift your approach of relying on others more towards being in the drivers seat on guitar and related gear purchases.

[@jbbeaudry]

Thanks for the video. It's better than the title suggested it would be. Let's not confuse 'scam' for 'bias'. Scam is intentional, they want to fool you. Bias is, I think, a more suitable term. Those KZbinrs may get paid, but in most (recent) cases they disclose the fact. And they are doing their best to make the piece sound good. This amp, that signal chain, that other micing technique etc. If they manage to make it sound good in whatever setting, it means that at least in that particular setting the piece of gear sounds good, doesn't it? It's a credibility thing: if one consistently delivers bad tones while their competitors always sound good, chances are one of them no longer gets paid for making demos in the future. This applies to unpaid reviews as well by the way. Bias. One guy may say a lot of good things, that other guy may just do the opposite. I love the looks and tone of your guitar; a guy I used to play with thought LPs were the most hideous guitars ever made... Bias. (shame on him nonetheless) It's also important to multiply the sources of information when you're leaning towards a piece of gear. Try and get a spectrum of pros and cons, before you get a chance to see for yourself. Don't underestimate the smaller channels with just a few thousand subscribers, because they can give another perspective on things - another kind of bias. And accept the fact that, no matter how many reviews/demo you watch and what they say, ultimately you may be disappointed, because your ears and biases are different to theirs. It's not scam; just bias.

[@kennethc2466]

You typed all that, in defense of corporate propaganda, for free, on your own time? Go outside, tyke.

[@Neil-Aspinall]

I got sucked into the POD Express hype. I got one, and I cannot 'express' to you how cold, thin, raspy, fizzy, I could go on........ It just sounded bad.

[@drumitar]

I WANT TO BELIEVE !

[@josephhulsey7662]

Happy Thanksgiving Justin. Love your Marshall collection. Love my Marshall’s too! Appreciate the message in the vid. Really loved the intro jam. Tasty playing. Your hard work has been worth it. The music of it is keeler. Got me groov’n. I’ll remember you as a player. Thanks for sharing!

[@theleviathan89]

Nice R9! Which color is it?

[@agork]

You play and think a lot like me musically, which makes it kind of both fun and strange at the same time to watch.

[@JohnThomas-yy8sx]

Damn...I literally had to watch that intro twice before I could watch the rest of the video...happy Thanksgiving Justin

[@FiftyNinerWinder]

Awesome intro jam, killer Les Paul, and telling it like it is... can't ask for more than that!

[@christopherguzzi1316]

Even if someone buys it with their hard earned money that doesn't make it is unbiased. They have invested money and time into the gear. It may work for them today based on a number of things. That doesn't mean it is right for you. And they may ditch that gear next month or 5 years from now because they find something that works better for them. Or because they get a brand deal. It's good to have advice and hero's but it is also good to devevop.your own skills and style. Which will sound good regardless of the gear.

[@robbieandkimberly]

You're a true gentleman and deserve the best 👍

[@castleanthrax1833]

People should realise that most KZbin gear demos are just paid advertisements. Sure, they are usually honest about what they're saying, but they'll emphasise what's good, and downplay (or even ignore) the bad things, especially if they want to maintain a good relationship with the supplier. You wouldn't expect an ad in a magazine to tell you if that piece of gear has flaws, so you shouldn't expect the KZbinr to do the same... they may or may not. It's the nature of advertising. Edit: I forgot to mention how great I thought that intro was.

[@borowland5744]

Justin, have you used one of those Headstrong amps like a lot of Nashville cats are doing?

[@jasonmaltz7040]

Great video and sweet Les Paul! Happy Thanksgiving Justin!

[@guitarthink]

Pickups sound amazing! What amp was that?

[@Neil-Aspinall]

POD Express? Nah it can't be, it sounded pretty good.

[@onethousandtwonortheast8848]

I was second. 😊 1:42. That was a sweet lick.

[@Paul-lj3qw]

Excellent opening Justin.👍🇺🇸

[@locutis3311]

I think you are being unfair why can't they like the gear and then be compensated for their work by selling the product. Everybody complains about KZbin , you are getting free content !!. It costs money and time to make videos musicians have such entitlement issues. THERE IS NO SCAMM, it is their job.

[@ConcezioPellegrini]

EXCELLENT Video and AWESOME insight. Liked and Subscribed. THANK YOU.

[@what1864]

great advice, words to live by on youtube .....

[@dewey7330]

Well said sir. Like what ya like.

[@darwinsaye]

Whenever some new piece of gear comes out and I see the professional demos of it, I always go and try to find some non-pro demos of the same gear done with a camera mic in a regular room. Close mic’ing is the biggest deceiver in amp demos. With close mic’ing you basically can achieve a sound that sounds like you would hear on an album. You can make a 5 watt Fender Champ sound like a Marshall stack. Then some newbie player will run out and buy that Champ and when they hear the sound of that little speaker and cabinet in person, feel ripped off. Mind you, you shouldn’t have to worry about this if you’re a seasoned player, because you will know how all of this works, but for the novice players, it’s a real problem.

[@Dave-rk2nl]

Thank you

[@hammerstonefitness2720]

tone is in the gear...click affiliate links....we all the know the youtuber doing this. Great vid Justin!

[@bringit2ya122]

Good advice!

[@love4thetruth]

Truth is the only one who cares what you are actually playing through is you. The people who are hearing you can care less.

[@bobboitt3126]

Killer intro 👍 drop d and that little lick that fakes a slide sweet!

[@nevusofota]

I think you’re making an unfair correlation that if a gear reviewer sells a piece of gear after giving it rave reviews then those rave reviews were disingenuous. That is a false assumption.

[@marcpost4034]

Possibly….but when KZbin reviewers demo gear, they usually get it sent to them by the supplier as part of their social media marketing program. In most instances, Reviewers are just part of the distribution chain.

[@nevusofota]

@@marcpost4034your statement has nothing to do with mine. Different points. I’m directly referring to statements made in the video that reviewers flip free gear. My point is, who cares? That reviewer could have still personally really liked the gear and selling it doesn’t indicate that their high praise in their review was a lie.

[@nevusofota]

@@marcpost4034”Reviewers are just part of the distribution chain”. So, what’s the problem here. View them as commercials, as I do. Some reviewers, such as Pete Thorn, only review gear they feel they would use. He turns down many requests by companies, he has limited time so he can be picky about what he chooses to review. So in his case I know that if he’s reviewing it then it must be decent. Also, I rarely listen or pay attention to opinions during these reviews. The proof is in the sound coming out. I also use these reviews as objective instruction manuals and as a reference. This form of advertising is here to stay, embrace them and learn to use them to your benefit.