Bad Blogger

OK. I'm gonna get this over with as quickly as possible. I haven't posted in almost a year. I think it's been almost 10 months, or something like that. Anyway, apologies all around. I hope I can regain some interest from all of you in the near future (and perhaps, eventually some renewed blog-trust.) There are many reasons why I haven't posted in such a long time. I may share those reasons with you... if you want to know the mild saga.



Anyway, I have lots of material for this forum. I will be sharing many stories from the guitar shop in the coming months. Things have been crazy.

Cheers.

-Ryan Elewaut
Owner

Non-FlagView

Last weekend was the annual NAMM Show in Anaheim California. NAMM is one of the largest trade shows in the world, and is exclusive to all people involved in the music products industry. This was the sixth year in a row that I've attended and, quite frankly, it's getting a bit old. This year I decided to make a vacation out of it. I haven't had a true, relaxing vacation in over 5 years... so I thought it was over due. I only attended the show on Thursday and Friday, the pic from the beach should be all you need to figure out why I didn't go to the trade show on Saturday or Sunday. Here are some shots from the show... and the beach. Don't hate me.

Hey Baby Jude

I just had to share this with y'all.

Spastic Cartoon

The band playing here is called Spastic Ink. Apparently a lot of their music is composed around animated video, Disney or otherwise.

Listen to how the music follows the video... even down to the rhythms and pitches of the dialogue.

Humidity Discussion

What happens to a guitar when it's dried out?

Here's one example.

The critical geometry is completely affected. Setting up the guitar is difficult. In addition to this, the entire structure of the instrument is under abnormal tension. There are many different pieces of wood glued together inside a guitar, different types of wood, with grain lines pointing in all different directions; when these various components of the instrument dry out, they contract in different directions and to varying degrees of subtlety. This creates undo tension throughout the structure of the instrument and it therefore doesn't play the same, and it doesn't sound the same either.

It's true that not all guitars or like instruments need the be humidified to prevent cracks or "visible" damage. However, when someone brings me a guitar that is dried out, even if they are happy enough with it's playability, the damage is visible to me.

I've also seen many older instrument that have been dry for a long time. Some say the guitar has been "acclimated." Rarely is a guitar properly "acclimated," and some guitars refuse to "acclimate." Some of the older instruments don't show much extreme trauma, but none are in pristine condition. Most have had crack repairs and other work done to remedy the effects of being turned into guitar-jerky.

Keep in mind, a guitar with the correct geometry, kept at the right humidity, plays and sounds the best. Too much humidity makes the guitar play and sound horrible as well. However, too little humidity is generally more detrimental to the structural integrity of the instrument. And besides, you will never have a problem with excessive humidity if you live in northern Arizona. So get a humidifier already!

My next post will discuss how to properly humidify your instrument.

Humidity Warning

I've removed the blog-hydrometer for now because the humidity in your home is nowhere near the humidity outside. Your indoor humidity is much, much lower than outside. Any and all heaters (some more than others) dry out the air in your house. At the store we've had to get out extra humidifiers to keep the humidity in the acoustic room at a high enough level.

So, check those humidifiers. Think about supplementing your case humidifier with a room humidifier. Remember, we live in one of the most arid climates in the US. The effects of this environment on wooden instruments should not be underestimated.

Next week I'll write more about the specifics of what happens to instruments and the adverse effects of extremely low humidity levels like we have here in norther Arizona. If you need more info about keeping your instrument properly humidified, contact me at the store or by email.

FlagView of the Day

Flagstaff, not too long ago... before the snow.


FlagView is back. I've decided, however, not to attempt a FlagView post (almost) every day as I once hoped to do. This will help with maintaining my sanity as I attempt to try, once again, maintaining a (somewhat) consistent blog.

eBay Offerings

We've been offering a lot of bargains and special items on eBay recently. I want to have at least a couple items up for auction every week. These bargains can be bought at the store for the Buy-It-Now price, or you may enter a bid at the store if you like.

Click here to view our eBay page. Click on Items for Sale on the left, under our logo, to view current auctions.

Announcement!

We have some big plans for the beginning of 2009. There will be many events, concerts, workshops, seminars and other activities offered by the store. We are getting more organized with our email newsletters and I hope to incorporate that into the blog somehow. Stay on the lookout for new things around the corner at Custom Sound Instruments.

If you'd like to be on our email list for the e-letters, send an email to csiflag@gmail.com with "add me to your list" in the subject field.

I realize most people looking at this blog will be more interested in posts about repair and interesting instrument related stuff. So I'll keep the announcement postings to a minimum. But while I re-habituate myself to posting on this blog, I'm gonna make it easy on myself with some basic info on what's been going on at the store and what's coming up next.

I Missed You Too

OK. I know. I haven't posted since the summer time and now it's the middle of winter! Bad blogger, bad!

I wouldn't blame you if you never checked this blog again. I got sidetracked and gave up on the blog to give more energy to some other pressing issues at the store. But don't give up on this blog just yet.

I'm back! And I'm dedicating myself to spending at least one hour a week to post on the blog. I'm now able to schedule my posts, so that will help me make the posting more consistent... Talk to you soon.

Thanks.

Free Concert

Hey. Still haven't had much time to post lately. I have some new repairs that will go up soon. Right now I want to let you know about the Rock Camp Concert that will take place on Saturday July 26th. The show will start around 7pm. We have three bands playing that night. The first two acts will feature our students from Rock Camp. They are awesome... you'll be surprised at how tight they sound. The band Mokshya will play a full set after the kids to headline the night.

FlagView of the Day

The Orpheum theater, downtown Flagstaff. Many good shows come through this venue.

Long Time No Post

Yea, I know it's been awhile. Things have been busy and hectic at the store. We closed on the fourth of July... unfortunately we weren't really celebrating the holiday; we were doing inventory and finalizing our new computer system to manage the store better. Time to get completely organized. All the extra work and seemingly less time to get anything done has added to our backlog of repairs and orders. So, I hereby officially apologize to all you repair customers and the like who have been waiting so patiently. I know we're droppin' a ball or two. Just bear with us for now. We're trying to finish picking up the pieces from the expansion and remodel.



Rock Camp starts this week. Wednesday at 5pm is the first session. There are still a couple spots available! Call the store if you're interested.





















Apparently our street is going to be closed Monday and Tuesday for construction. If you are coming to visit us, park on a side street and walk on over.






Repair seminars will be postponed by a couple of weeks. Look for the schedule to be announced later this month.








New Instruments & Featured Items at the store:
-Schecter 8-string octave bass.
-Norman 12-string acoustic.
-4 New Seagull Acoustics
-USA Fender strat, used
-SWR 4x10 Goliath Cab


-- Ryan Elewaut

Solstice Concert Recap

The concert last Friday was awesome. Thanks to everyone who came out and to the bands Ink Child and Mokshya for playing. We're going to do this more often through the summer.

Pro Deal CoOp

We have officially started the Custom Sound Pro Deal CoOp... a cooperative special ordering program that gets you insider pricing on everything from strings & accessories to pickups & effects. We highly encourage comparing the prices offered through the ordering CoOp with other online stores. The prices you get by collaborating with us on orders will exceed your expectations. Keep reading for some basics and what to expect.


How it works:

The program is designed as a special ordering email system. You pay an annual membership of $35 and are immediately enrolled into a special, private email list. We never share your information with anyone. At that time, we will start sending emails informing you of our ordering schedule, letting you know what products are being ordered and details as to available wholesale prices.

For example, if you compare our CoOp prices to "online prices" (musicians friend, guitar center, music 123, etc.) you will get deals that are 23% lower, on average, through the CoOp. This means that a $160 order will save you more than the annual membership cost, if you compare that same order to the prices of a typical online store.

Local Flagstaffonians can come in the store, if they prefer, to order and pay for the program. If you live out of town you can call or communicate exclusively through email and paypal. Call us at 928-779-1000 or email us to get started...

I'll update this post in the next day or two with a printable, detailed one-sheet on the program. Give us a call or send an email (csiflag@gmail.com) if you would like more information immediately.

-- Ryan Elewaut

Free Custom Sound Concert

Come join us for the first annual Summer Solstice Concert at Custom Sound Instruments. The show is free and will be held behind the store on Friday, June 20th, starting at about 7pm. The bands Mokshya and Ink Child will be performing, along with other guests.

This is going to be an awesome heavy show with some loud, rhythmic and experimental bands.






-- Ryan Elewaut

FlagView of the Day

Downtown Flagstaff.

The Weatherford Hotel & Charley's Bar.











-- Ryan Elewaut

Freakishly Good

Just thought I might make mention of Mr. Danny Gatton while I have a minute here. The only thing I can say about this guy, when ever he comes up in conversation... WOW! A true virtuoso. If you've never heard of Danny Gatton, this is a must watch. People like this are on a different level. Gatton is a perfect example of what I call an elite level of musicianship. This is what's achieved when extreme technical proficiency constantly connects with the soul of the musician. The instrument becomes a mere extension of the player's mind, body and spirit. Rest in peace Danny.



-- Ryan Elewaut

CustomCasters

We are now building CustomCaster electric guitars. These are solid body, bolt-on-neck style guitars designed to your specification, exclusively by Custom Sound Instruments. We have a couple demo models available to try at the store, but all instruments are built to order. The purpose of a "built to order" guitar is to fine tune all aspects of the instrument to fit your exact needs.

Buying a CustomCaster is different than buying an ordinary guitar. When people buy guitars they are usually fitting themselves to an instrument. When we build a guitar with the musician, we are fitting the instrument to you the player. We spend a fair amount of time sitting down with you (or exchanging emails) just to spec out the options and figure out exactly what kind of guitar you want... pickups, tuners, strings, neck style, body, electric modifications... the list goes on and on. Often, people don't realize the amount of variables that can be tweaked to make a truly customized instrument... one that suits your tonal palate, fits perfectly in your hands, and one that looks unique and speaks to your personality.

We have compared our demo models to similar "mass-produced" instruments... and frankly, there's no comparison. We'll put these guitars up against any main stream bolt-on style guitar, anytime. And the prices will surprise you. In most cases we can build a much better guitar for about the same price, if not less, than say a USA Fender. And better yet, it'll be absolutely one of a kind.



-- Ryan Elewaut

FlagView of the Day

Just to be clear, not all of the FlagView images are taken by me. Some are given to me by friends. Some I just have in my collection of photos. Here's a perfect example of a summer day down Lake Mary Road... just outside of Flagstaff.









This is the large meadow out past Lake Mary. You can see the San Francisco peaks in the distance.

-- Ryan Elewaut