Well, since the iTunes listing for “Bugz” was up for renewal, I decided to lump it into an EP along with “Idiot Christmas” and “Cliff Driver” for convenience, since these songs were all written and recorded around the same time period. Check it out on Bandcamp or use the player below.
Figure. Artwork, this is the artwork.
It’s interesting and a little embarrassing that I never really understood what science was until I was 20 or so, and I didn’t pick it up in school. Maybe it was never explained like it is in the video below, or maybe I just wasn’t paying attention or thinking hard enough. I like to hope I was the minority, but I have a feeling a lot more people made it through school without ever learning science either. That would be bad.
Last winter I decided to buy a 7 string guitar after fooling around with putting huge strings onto and detuning the hell out of a 6 string Strat. The purpose of this new 7 string guitar was to provide Strat (-ish at least) neck pickup tones, twangy yet heavy bridge pickup tones, a tremolo, and the added range of the lower 7th string. I was considering various Ibanez 7-strings because I like my other Ibanez, and Floyds can do cool B-bender and D-tuna type things when semi-blocked, but it’s rare to find one with 22 frets and a single coil pickup in the neck. I did find one on eBay, an S7420 or something, but it was all black and mahogany. I already had a mahogany Ibanez, so I wanted to get something made from a different wood. I also really like maple fretboards, which cannot be found on any Ibanez 7-strings as far as I know. After a bit of hunting around, I end up grabbing an Agile Sentinel 725 for $499.99 from Rondomusic.com, shown in Figure 1. It seemed like the best option for the price, and had the ability to be improved with minimal effort.
Figure 1. Agile Sentinel 725 in natural ash (from Rondomusic.com).
When I first got the guitar, I set it up and tuned it to G# standard and drop-F# because those tunings fit best with some songs I had started writing. As I will discuss later, tuning this low and staying in tune/intonated was pretty difficult.
The guitar was a bit noisy, and would produce a noticeable “pop” when one of the pickup screws was touched while amplified. This was probably a grounding issue, which I also addressed with later mods.
Unsurprisingly, a budget-ish guitar like this one came from the factory with pretty sharp fret edges protruding from the fretboard. To keep from slicin’ up the ol’ frettin’ hand, I took some emery cloth to the fret edges because they were a little sharp. This took about 5 minutes – quality of life significantly improved.
The first order of business was to find a good set of strings. The stock ones were obviously way too thin for the tunings I was going for, so I had to experiment a bit. Tuning this low on a 25.5″ scale guitar is tricky. I should look up the theoretical explanation as to why a thicker string should be longer to avoid “bad” harmonics, but we’ll just assume that is true for now. First, I tried using D’Addario Nickel XL 0.011-0.056+0.074 or something. I ended up switching to Elixir 0.010-0.52+0.068 strings (6 string hybrid set plus one for the largest string) because chords with the D’Addarios were just too dissonant sounding. The strings themselves had some loud “bad” harmonics (those beyond the 6th or 7th harmonic or so, i.e. ones that are not part of the major chord). I should have done a spectrum analysis to show this, but my ears could tell a low G#5 chord sounded pretty bad. Even with the Elixirs, small deviations in tuning or excess fretting force can turn an otherwise pretty chord into a dissonant mess.
To be honest, I don’t like traditional tuning machines. I’m not good at winding them. Locking tuners make strings way easier to change while improving tuning stability; giving the string less ability to “resettle” on the tuning peg in a way that changes its tension when using the tremolo. They just make a lot of sense. I bought 7 Schaller mini locking tuners from Warmoth.com, who conveniently sells them as singles. The mounting screw holes were close enough to work, but since I use a 0.068″ top string I had to drill out that tuner. I just used a regular 0.073″ drill bit in a drill press. I did have to make sure the string clamp screw was loosened to the maximum so the little ball-shaped clamp piece would move out of the way then the drill entered the hole. This was not a problem at all, which makes me wonder why they don’t just make the tuners 0.075″ or so from the factory. See Figure 2 for a picture of the tuners installed.
Figure 2. Schaller locking tuners installed.
Having single coils on a 7-string is pretty nice, and somewhat unique, especially with the low tuning. I imagine humbuckers would bring on the “mud” a little more easily, and the singles sound heavy enough. Like I said before, Strat neck pickup tones are a personal favorite of mine, especially on a slightly overdriven clean channel.
I never use the middle pickup so I figured I’d ditch it to save weight and clean up the looks a bit. I would have used the stock Agile pickups, but I really wanted white pickups to match my planned white pickguard; how superficial! I ended up purchasing Ria Grande Muy Grande 7 String Strat pickups since they seemed to be Warmoth’s most readily available 7 string single coil white pickups. Despite my negligence of the middle pickup, I do however, like the 4th position on a Strat for its “quacky” out-of-phase sound. To get a similar effect, I installed a Super Switch and wired it as shown in Figure 3 [1]. This had some interesting results. The 3rd position became the quacky one, while the 4th position became a sort of half-cocked wah type tone; pretty cool.
Figure 3. Super switch wiring for five tone Tele configuration [1].
Replacing the pickups required a new pickguard. This is where it is useful to have access to CAD tools. I traced the stock pickguard, scanned it, and then converted the lines to vectors in Adobe Illustrator before importing to a Solidworks sketch. This worked well enough to get the overall shape, but many of the splines and circular arcs had to be simplified and/or remade. Nevertheless, their positions were located nicely from the scanned trace. The Rio Grande pickups have a slightly larger hole spacing than the Agile pickups, so I had to account for this in the design. I also took out the tone knobs since I never use them, and moved the pickup selector switch down to where those used to be. This helps prevent any unintentional pickup switching during fits of extreme br00tz. After a little tweaking and test fitting with paper printouts, I had the design finished and sent a drawing over to John Polk at Terrapin Guitars, who got it made in short order. Figure 4 shows the trace, Solidworks model, and finished product.
Figure 4. Pickguard trace (top), 3D model (middle), and finished product (bottom).
The pickup cavity was slightly undersized, so some extra wood needed to be removed. I wanted to use a router, but in interest of time I just used a utility knife to carve it out – Not the prettiest technique, but it worked.
Based on some reviews I read out on the Internet, I assumed the Muy Grande pickups were slightly muddy. Thinking this would be doubly worse with a detuned 7 string, I took the preemptive measure of getting a 500 kΩ volume pot to replace the stock 250 kΩ pot, higher resistance letting more high frequencies through. This turned out to be a good decision. With the goal of letting more high frequencies through when the volume knob was turned down, I got a push-pull volume pot to wire in a selectable treble bleed circuit. I used the stock capacitor that was wired to one of the original tone pots, whose capacitance was quite a bit higher than recommended by some sites. This makes the mod sort of useless, as it changes the volume taper so much. I’ll need to experiment with different values later, but at least the circuit it in place.
Since single coil guitars are notorious for being noisy, I decided while everything was apart to shield the entire body cavity and pickguard with copper foil and connect all grounds (including the foil itself) to a single point, more or less. This resulted in a quiet guitar (even with non-noise-canceling single coils!) and fixed the “popping” issue I was having.
Figure 5. Pickguard (top) and body (bottom) after applying copper foil shielding.
Vintage tremolos are not known for their tuning stability. This becomes even worse when alternate tunings are thrown at them. I heard about the Tremol-No, and I was a bit skeptical. The Tremol-No is supposed to allow one to quickly make the tremolo fully blocked, half-blocked, or free-floating in a couple seconds, and it does work quite well. This install was simple, though they didn’t include a solder lug for the ground wire. I ended up simply sanding a little of the black oxide finish off the button head screw and soldering the ground onto there. The unit is shown installed in Figure 6.
Figure 6. Tremol-No installed.
The Agile came from the factory with a graphite nut, which is nice, but the string trees were vintage style. I grabbed some roller string trees from Warmoth and swapped out the stock ones. It was cheap and easy, but I have no way of quantifying any added tuning stability. I ain’t even mad.
Figure 7. Roller string trees installed.
The finished guitar is shown in Figure 8. Overall, I’m glad I did these mods. Taking out the middle pickup and tone knobs made the guitar feel cleaner and simpler, yet still quite versatile. I’m not totally happy with the lack of “twanginess” in the bridge pickup, so I think I might try to find a bridge pickup with more mid-high frequency response. I also need to mess with different components in the treble bleed circuit. Despite the minor issues, the guitar is quiet, stays in tune, sounds good, and plays well. I think it’s a keeper.
Figure 8. The finished guitar.
So after spending 10 days in Japan with the Explorer sitting dormant at home and the iPod plugged in without the trickle charger plugged in, the battery died. I really needed to get the engine started in short order so I figured I’d try the charger’s “Engine Start” mode. This quickly became a lesson in observing manufacturer’s specifications. The connectors I used on the trickle charger have a maximum current rating of 8A or so. The Engine Start mode of the battery charger will produce 50A. Needless to say, the connection was a little smoky after one start (see photos below for detail, before and after repair, top and bottom respectively).
This mishap unknowingly opened the circuit through the trickle charging connector, letting the car’s battery die once again, this time the morning of my MS thesis defense. Not to fear however; Since the truck has a mechanical diesel engine mated to a manual transmission, I managed to pop-start it in reverse down the sloped driveway where it was parked. All would have been good except for the fact I needed to shut the truck off to run into a store and buy refreshments for the aforementioned thesis defense. Unfortunately, the drive between my apartment and the store was not long enough to charge the battery adequately for restarting, and I ended up walking the 1.5 miles, with my computer and refreshments in arms, to make it to the defense in time.
In conclusion, manufacturers put current ratings on connectors for a reason.
A generic version of my mileage spreadsheet is now available for download. It includes calculation for miles per gallon, fuel cost savings, carbon dioxide emission savings, and even the miles required until the initial engine swap investment is paid off. A screen-shot is shown below.
“Transitional Farms” is a ~4.2 song EP-type-thing; and with the exception of “Touring Kuntucky”, is a bunch of older material recorded in 2008-2009. In November 2010 I hired Travis Orbin to record live drums to replace the ones I had originally programmed. He obviously did a killer job, as usual. Check out Travis’ YouTube channel for his high quality drum session videos.
Click on a track name for more info:
1. Touring Kuntucky in a Pig
2. Death Country
3. Gots2bSwift
4. Alley Cat Shank
5. 13 Days
“Transitional Farms” is currently available for download from most online music stores, including iTunes.
This tune was written and mostly recorded in 2009, right before I moved away from the town I’d lived in since I was two years old, along with just about everyone I knew (boohoo what a sentimental wimp). In fact, I wrote most of the lyrics and recorded most of the vocals roughly thirteen days after I had moved. It just sort of worked out that way I guess. Miracles bro.
The main guitar parts are all chords arpeggiated in various sequences of thirteen notes. For example, the first sequence is (from lowest note to highest, without regard for scale degree or anything like that): 1-2-3, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4-5-6. The second is: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4-5. The third is: 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3-4. The total number of digits is 13 for each one! Miracles bro.
The hi-hat accent pattern during the chorus is sort of a natural result of drum programming. It’s very easy to mindlessly copy and paste a 4 note pattern over the 13 note pattern when programming in the key roll. Similar to the “blooz” part in “Bugz”, it’s interesting to try to keep track of the accent and where it lands with respect to the thirteen note sequence. Miracles bro.
Like the rest of the songs on “Transitional Farms”, Travis Orbin is on the ol’ drum set being a pretty cool guy. Miracles bro.
Lyrics:
Time to go to bed
Time to go to sleep
Dreams that lie ahead
Won’t be your relief
One foot in this world
The spiral makes another swirlWrote down all you said
Counted all your sheep
Packed up all your things
Things you’ll need to keep
Soon you’re surely see
It costs a lot just to be freeI won’t miss you
In other words
Our paths will cross someday
I will find your wayQuestioning the best
What’s inside the chest
Seems eternally
Like we’ll never be
Gone for thirteen days
And drifting slowly out of phaseQuestioning your strength
Is it well-received?
Time projects a length
Harder to perceive
Is this even relevant now?I have been in bed
I have been asleep
Longer than I ought
Time to be complete
So complete
Alley Cat Shank by Pete Peterson
Here’s another old tune. I wrote and recorded most of this right after “Gots2bSwift”. Once again, Travis Orbin is on the drum set.
The main rhythmic part the song was stumbled upon when I was drum programmin’ one day. It goes a little somethin’ like this: 1, 3, 1, 2… repeated over and “filled up” to make it 4/4, similar to a lot of Meshuggah riffs.
Lyrically, it’s loosely based on some true stories that aren’t my own, and that’s all I can say…
Lyrics:
I’m an alley cat baby and I’m goin’ astray
I ain’t no saint best get out of my way
I see these fat cats scammin’ and it just don’t feel right
Ya better get ready ’cause I’m lookin’ to fight‘Cause I’m an alley cat baby and I’m goin’ astray
I’m an alley cat baby and I’m goin’ todayI’m an alley cat baby as I walk through the street
A keen observin’ undeservin’ and I’m feeling complete
I see these hopped up rats runnin’ all over town
Untrustin’ and disgustin’ and I’m bringin’ it downI don’t feel like gettin’ outta bed today
There’s nothin’ you can do
I missed a test and I think it’d be best if I shank my sorrows for you
I’m gonna shank
I’m going to shank
Shank my sorrows away
I’m gonna shank
I’m going to shank
Shank shank shankin’ my sorrows awayTime to bring it down alley cat style
This tune, the third track from “Transitional Farms”, was also written and mostly recorded in 2009, with Travis Orbin’s more recent drumming superimposed. It’s inspired by one of my favorite stories, which is also one of my favorite movies, “Gulliver’s Travels” (the one with Ted Danson in it). When I first read the book in 11th grade I was hooked. Jonathan Swift’s light and humorous misanthropy really resonated with me and still does to this day.
The main chord progression in the song is a series of simple two note chords made from the same six notes, all part of the major scale. It’s fun to play when simultaneously weaving in the little melody (also made up of notes from the major scale).
It’s interesting to look at how the notes in the chords are related to each other with respect to the key and what intervals they are with respect to the roots of the chords themselves.
F Major Scale:
F G A Bb C D E f
Chords:
1: F+C; 1+5; F(1st in key) and its 5th
2: E+C; 7+5; E(7th in key) and its minor 6th
3: G+Bb; 2+4; G(2nd in key) and its minor 3rd
4: F+A; 1+3; F(1st in key) and its major 3rd
5: G+A; 3+2 ; A(3rd in key) and its lower minor 7
6: G+Bb; 4+2; Bb(4th in key) and its lower 6
7: E+Bb; 7+4; E(7th in key) and its diminished 5
8: F+C; 1+5; Back to the tonic power chord again. “Tension” resolved!
Lyrics:
Hard to see I’m just staring at a gray sky
I’ve been gone for years and many hoped I’d died
Seen some things that I will never see again
Will you remember me the way that I was then?Find my body washed up on a new and strange shore
Tiny men they’re fighting in their tiny war
Can’t relate and I’m not welcome anymore
On my own still searching yet don’t know what forFall into a higher level
Mixing things that could be special
Then my plan blows right up in my face
We are sorry you must leave this place
Even though you don’t take up much spaceNo! They stared into the sun
They said their world is done
Intelligent conversation in one direction
End of the world
BallI! Have got to find my way
Perfection still gets old
Try but they just won’t get the message
I’m out into the coldHey man! We are the mighty Strolbrogs!
We kill everything!
Taste what immortality brings!Horsies, yahoos, mental, health
I am only gonna hurt you baby I suggest you give me some time and gimme spaceLost, alone, far from home
Things I’ve seen, you won’t believe
Leave? We just can’t let you leave now
I have grown to the stars
Things I’ve shown won’t go farBabe, I sure miss you
And I assure that you can be sure every single thing that I have told to you it true
Wow!You’re losing with me
The possibility to reconcile with all that’s shallow and vile embedded in society
I’ve got perspective between myself and thee
Just stay one of another kind of sort of on the cover of a page of a script
Thoughts are adrift
Give you a lift
Drive off a cliff
