Upgrading Your Gear Must-Haves For the Intermediate Guitarist

Upgrading Your Gear Must-Haves For the Intermediate Guitarist Suzy S. Is your guitar gear stage-ready? If youve been playing for a while and youre ready to start performing, your set up might need some upgrades. Follow this guide from guitar teacher Nathan D. and enjoy rocking out   So perhaps youve been playing steadily for a few months to years, and youre taking this whole “guitarist” thing seriously. Maybe you now have a band, and want to start playing out. Theres plenty of necessities to get or upgrade guitar gear as you start to go a bit more pro, and countless sticker-shock options as well. What do you need to know before going on a crazy, card-maxing shopping spree? Ideas For The Road A floppy gig bag will need an upgrade, so definitely buy a hard-shell case to protect your instrument. Consider the hardships of packing your guitar into your tour vehicle and traveling. It will pay for itself after a hard drop out of a van door or trunk, or even a single pass through the TSAs often brutal gauntlet. Buy a few supplies for your case. I keep a spare string winder, a pack of strings, a tuner (or pitch pipe, as they dont need batteries that can leak if left unchecked), and a few extra picks. A pen and some paper wont hurt, either. You never know when youll have to trade info with a promoter and run out of business cards (bar napkins easily get thrown out). If you live in dry climates, I shouldnt even have to tell you to have a humidifier in your guitar case. However, if youre going on tour or vacation, its not the first thing you might think to pack. You dont know what the weather will be from state to state (or continent), so its worth the twenty dollar or more investment. Suggestions For The Active Stage Rocker Consider installing strap-locks onto your instrument, especially if youre in an act that flails around a lot. Be aware of the current size of the strap screws in your instrument. You may be drilling a deeper or wider hole for larger screws to properly secure the locks. Have it done by a pro if you dont want to potentially split your body apart (or ask a reliable carpenter friend). Its not worth putting strap-locks onto a guitar strap that will break at your next practice. Please dont repair your straps with duct tape. If it looks shoddy, get a new one. Also, if you notice that your shoulder gets fatigued after wearing your guitar for an hour, immediately upgrade to a wider strap with some padding. If youre tired of pulling your cable from your amp (regardless of its length), become entangled with mic stands and bandmates, or have ever pulled your amp to have it fall directly onto pavement, you might be a candidate to go wireless. There are budget packages that run for only a couple hundred dollars or less, just check the reviews on your favorite retailers websites. Its incredibly fun to run the full distance possible through or around your audience while playing, whether its an outdoor show or in a bar. Playing With Power Heres the big one: your practice amp probably wont cut it live. Even if a microphone and PA is used in conjunction with it, relying on a tiny, low-watt amp and/or stage monitors doesnt always work out very well. Dont be the player on stage that insists on using a microphone on a 20 watt amp, constantly glaring at the poor sound guy, angrily shooting a finger repeatedly upward, and yelling to crank you up in the stage mix. Youre going to need at least a couple hundred watts to be loud enough. If you cant hear your playing while on stage with drums and other instruments (and actually want to play with a band), youll need a new, more powerful amp. Prepare to shell out several hundred dollars to a grand (or more). Note the differences in buying an all-in-one versus a speaker cabinet setup and separate amplifier (or head unit). You can always upgrade the amp if you buy separate units, but in any case you can always upgrade the speaker(s) down the line. If youre handy, you can also build your own speaker box with plans found online. Dont rule out using a small yet powerful amp to power any speaker box, as my $300 200 Watt ZT Lunchbox (its the size of a lunchbox) is actually powerful enough to power my 4X12” Marshall cabinet. However, its built-in 6.5” speaker actually is enough for me in most small venues. Bring your instrument to the store to try out different amps, dont just go by reviews. You dont want to pay return shipping on a 100 pound amp if you decide to buy online without even trying it in person. Your sound doesnt need compromises, plus your wallet could take a big, non-refundable hit for a simple mistake. When you purchase or construct a new, more powerful amplifier setup, you can always keep your little old amp for low-volume practice, or sell it to a beginner. For more great amps check out this list from Music Skanner. Last Words To You Rockers My final, very important advice is have ear protection. Your ears are your most important organs as a musician. Tinnitus is not fun. Im in my early thirties and I have already started developing it in my left ear, and sometimes it wakes me up at night. Theres plenty of options in foam, rubber, and silicone models that are under twenty dollars. That being said (and hopefully heard), a wide assortment of guitar gear possibilities await you. Has some of that anxiety calmed of what to do next? I hope some of these suggestions help you out. Youre at an exciting stage of being a musician! Keep playing! Nathan D. teaches guitar, bass, drums, and more in North Wales, PA. His specialties include  rock and heavy metal styles, but he teaches every genre.  Learn more about Nathan here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo  by  Andrew_D_Hurley