Question about touch instruments in general

[Consul]

Okay, I'm new here, and by way of introduction, my name is Darren Landrum, and I'm a drummer with some experience on guitar and keys. I became fascinated with touch instruments ever since getting blown away by Trey Gunn and the rest of the KC crew when I saw them in Denver. Touch instruments really look perfect for what I'm after, which is progressive rock music.

So now, I want one (or five) of my own and to learn how to play them. Being a prog-head, I'm open to experimentation and new ideas and experiences. So far, I have found a handful of makers of touch instruments:

Stick Enterprises (Emmett Chapman)
Warr Guitars
Mobius Megatar
Austin Douglas (a part of Warr, really, but still an option)
Solene

I'm just wondering if there are more worth looking into. Also, has anyone looked into making their own?

So far, I'm leaning toward a Chapman Stick as they are relatively inexpensive and seem to embody a lot of advancement in instrument making. However, the Warr Guitars definitely, as I found out, have great tone and versatility.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

[murphy]

Well, I'll chime in. Welcome to the forum.

All the instruments you mention have really good reputations from what I've seen/heard. There are other alternatives out there but for my money that is the short list. Maybe I'd include a Dave Bunker unit on the short list. Bunkers are two-necked though, a little different animal but amazing technology.

The Solene (this is what I own) stands out on the list because in my mind it is not exactly interchangeable with the others in terms of range and character. I'm a guitar player really and to me the Solene is a godsend for guys who have been tapping on guitar already and want something that makes it easier and more fun. It's range is that of a 7-string guitar whereas these other instruments are strung in one way or the other to encompass both bass and guitar range. The aluminum fretboard makes it play and sound unique. Check out the Solene site to see/hear more. www.flash.net/~solene
I love my Solene and would recommend them but not necessarily to someone who wants to sound like Trey Gunn or someone who wants to play walking bass with one hand and comp with the other. Not that it can't be done. I should disclose that the inventor/builder of the Solene is a friend of mine. Great guy.

Of the other instruments, the only one I think I've ever heard complaints about is the Stick. To be fair though, Stick owners probably outnumber all other tap instrument owners at least 5 and maybe 10 to 1 (w.a.g.). There's also a lot of used Sticks out there changing hands and some are over 20 years old. The early Sticks were kinda crude compared to both modern Sticks and the other instruments mentioned. All those things would contribute to the fact that unhappy Stick owners/ex-owners can be found.

All indications are that Warr's are absolutely awesome. If price is no object....

If it were me looking for a stick-type instrument (by that I mean not Solene or Bunker) and I was buying new, I'd be looking at a Megatar or ADG. More than anything because of price but also reputation.

enough of my opinions...a couple of things to think about..

If you are buying new, the wait necessary for some of these instruments is very significant. I imagine a person who suddenly had a fire lit under them to try tapping wouldn't want to wait 8 months or whatever for an instrument. My impression is that Warr and Stick have the longest waits but I don't know, just be aware of this factor. Some of these instruments can ship in weeks and some can take the better part of a year.

These things come in different tuning styles. You'll see references to crossed-hands tuning, inverted fifths, etc. Since you already play guitar and other instruments you may find one approach makes more sense/is more natural to you so find this out first.

Also, different instruments have different scale lengths which has a big effect on how they play and what they sound like. Some have a guitar scale and some have a bass scale and maybe some are in between, I dk. Check out the differences and form an opinion.

Lastly, try to get your hands on any of these and try them out. Also, if you're not already, start working on your tapping on guitar and/or bass. Getting a little tapping going on a familiar instrument should give you some idea of what your priorities are.

Hope this is helpful.

murph

[Consul]

My skill with guitar is not such that learning the new instrument from scratch is out of the question. All I can play are chords, doing folksy kind of stuff. I'm much better on drums, though. ;)

I have seen and heard the Solene, and in fact, the four offered mp3s sit in my regular playlist because I like how they sound. It seems a very nice instrument, and one I would consider down the road.

For now, though, my eye is on either a Stick or a Warr (or the ADG). Like I said, starting from scratch is not an issue. The ADG definitely seems the best balance between cost and tone, if what I know of guitar physics is true.

You're right about one thing, though. I need to try out the different possibilities before I make a decision. Unfortunately, I live about a day's drive from LA, where I could actually take that opportunity, so it would cost me some real money just to learn what I need. That means trusting opinions and taking the plunge. Something I am not a stranger to, living in a backwards state (Colorado) that gets no real music technology shipped to it.

What can I say? I love the mountains. I would rather be living in Portland, Oregon though.

I had thought about making my own, since a woodshop is on my list of things to have once I get settled into a new place (I just moved for a new job). However, that sounds like it could get as expensive as just buying a nice, high-quality instrument.

As for the wait periods... Well, that's part of the price you pay for custom instruments.

Thank you very much for your input!

[rjgoos]

I am a Stick player, and my opinion is....so many instruments, so little time!!

If you read the archives here, you'll find that all of the manufacturers have enthusiastic users, so I think they are all doing something right.

A traditional way to start is with a used Stick. They come up for sale periodically on eBay, for example. If you decided later that you didn't like this style of play, you could probably re-sell it for about what you had in it. The same goes if you really liked it, and eventually wanted a new one.

I don't know what the exact delivery time is for a new Stick, ADG, or Warr, but it is measured in months. I've been told that the delivery time for a new Solene is measured in weeks, not months. Perhaps Traktor could tell us what the delivery time is on a Megatar these days.

But I think that the choice of a TUNING is more important than the choice of an instrument. Daniel Schell's tunings page (www.clicmusic.be/tunings-tg.html) is probably the most comprehensive out there.

RJ Goos

[Consul]

Hey, thanks for the link! That will round out my education by a good bit, I think.

Yeah, isn't it the same old story? I see some guy on an instrument that blows me away, and all of a sudden, I want to be just like him. Feh, I'm 27 now. I'm too old for that!

Of course, being a musical experimenter and into progressive rock, I see touch instruments as largely untapped (pun intended, but regretted) frontier to explore.

Or I'm a wannabe-musician with delusions of grandeur. Take your pick. :D

Thanks all for the input. At the very least, I think I'll enjoy exploring the possibilities.

[rjgoos]

Well, I think it is safe to say that it's hard to go wrong.

The Chapman-style 4ths/5ths tuning is fascinating and leads to chordal possibilities not available in a guitar.

The various types of 4ths/4ths tunings are very familiar to anyone already familiar with the guitar, and are easier for sight reading music than a 4ths/5ths instrument.

Other times, I think that maybe I should have started with a single-region instrument, like an 8 string in straight 4ths.

Other days, I have a good time just tapping a 6-string Strat.

IT'S ALL GOOD, maybe that is the moral to the story.


RJ Goos

[Consul]

Hey, I'm looking forward to the journey.

Thanks a lot to murphy and rjgoos for your input. I'll have to see if I can track down anyone with these instruments so I can at least try them out before buying.