# When you try out a new axe...



## Jammin Jim (Jun 1, 2009)

Hey Guys,

When you go into a music shop and pick up a guitar to try are there any particular licks or riffs you use? Do you try to impress the "listeners" there? Do you get nervous? I am a bit curious how the guitar playing audience thinks.
Cheers.


----------



## guitarsmark (Jun 1, 2009)

Hey Jim,

I just run through a bluesy pentatonic minor riff. Nothing huge, depends on the people around, but normally some bluesy stuff.

Mark


----------



## Luke98 (Mar 4, 2007)

I'm usually a bit nervous, but shouldn't be. Customers are usually there to buy, so the salesman should be tapping his feet to even the most tonedeaf people.

I usually play Fly By Night, because of chords and picking, as well as just some simple chord riffs.


----------



## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

I tune it, compare octaves all over the neck for intonation and nut/bridge placement. Then some chromatic and scale runs followed by some improvised chord melody. I want to hear how chords sound, string to string balance and separation, and how single notes bloom. In short, tone and timbre examination. 

All this assumes the setup is okay, including fret dressing, relief and action.

Peace, Mooh.


----------



## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

I usually do "All Along the Watchtower" by Hendrix, then a couple of Brad Paisley's more difficult numbers, a few riffs by Clapton, a perfect knock-off of Santana and by then, the store clerk is so mesmerized by my skill, he just gives me any guitar I ask for!:smile::food-smiley-004:

And if you believe that, I've got some ocean front property...........


----------



## unison thrush (Nov 17, 2007)

It makes me laugh every time I walk into a a store and someone walks by and picks up a guitar and within seconds is playing as fast as they possibly can. Just the most useless wanking ever. Drives me nuts, haha. I hate playing in stores though. People look, he's not shredding.....he sucks, haha. 

I tend to pick up a guitar, test out the guitar with chords etc, features. I'll play a few chords, etc, dial in the amp a bit more, play a few more things, dial in the amp some more. Good to know the tones the guitar is capable of.


----------



## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

I sometimes get a bit nervous if they're standing over me & watching.

But I will play it unplugged before I play it plugged in. If I don't like the feel or sound of it unplugged, there's no point in plugging it in--I'm not going to be buying it. Some salesmen get this--some just look confused when I politely decline their offer to plug in.

As for what I play--I play a few riffs & chord patterns that I came up with. Some of them developed from playing in stores. That way nobody can tell me I'm playing it wrong. I play loudly & softly. I play open chords, barre cords, power chords.

I do a bit of noodling around with scales. I bend, do hammer-ons, pulloffs & vibrato. 

I play single notes up & down the neck as well--listen for dead spots & check intonation-especially on acoustics.

I play harmonics as well.

Just whatever I think of.

I'm not out to impress anybody--although I've had people tell me they liked what I played.

I'm trying to get a feel for what it's like to play that guitar and how it sounds, not show off or play everything I know.

I must wind up playing a lot of the same stuff, because if someone's with me they comment that I do that.


----------



## violation (Aug 20, 2006)

I'm usually nervous so I'll play unamped for a couple minutes to get comfortable. Then I tune the guitar and play some Pantera, Metallica and/or Ozzy Osbourne for rhythm. For lead stuff and I usually stick to some repetitive-pattern pentatonic business... once you have your fingers around it it's pretty hard to mess that stuff up lol.

For the single dudes out there, if you see a hot chick in the store play this lick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6LotiAcF1w#t=0m50s and then improvise the rest. Do some down-tuned shit with pinch harmonics too, every single time it gets their attention. kkjuw


----------



## puckhead (Sep 8, 2008)

Walk Away Renee, as arranged by Johnny Marr (for Billy Bragg's cover). Originally it was a song by Left Bank.
Sound really nice, and obscure enough that no one would know if I messed it up :smile:

If the amp is on a dirty, then it's usually just Mr Crowly


----------



## Swee_tone (Mar 23, 2009)

I used to get real nervous, but after a while you realise nobody really pays much attention unless it is cranked loud or you play amazingly well.

Most store employees/ guitar players have heard the same noodling, blues scales, pentatonic runs, or chord strumming so many times, it kind of doesn't register anymore.
Now if you have a crowd gather around you, let's hope you have some chops to fall back on!
Sometimes when I walk into a store and I see a young guy with the amp cranked , guitar tuned down, wailing out some metal speed riffs, I find it comical. :rockon2:
I'm glad he's having fun, there's alot of humour in it, for sure!

This isn't some sort of competition ...so dont worry about it.... relax, just do what you desire and enjoy this whole thing for what it is!


----------



## dufe32 (Feb 5, 2007)

I pick up the guitar, play unplugged for a couple of minutes to see if I can get a "good vibe" from it, and then plug it and play at very low volumes, if they don't have my amp, I try to find a similar one to get the "real sound". I find it stupid to get in a store and try a guitar in a Mesa Boogie Roadster when at home you play with a Peavey Rage, if you know what I mean. And I'll play mostly on the clean channel, some chords and a little bluesy lick, nothing fancy. I'm so tired of wannabes and wankers playing lightning fast at high volumes to impress people in the store, so I keep it low profile. After all, I'm buying an instrument for my needs, for myself, not for people walking in the store. And who am I to try to impress the folks at the store?


----------



## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I play some E-C-A progressions on the clean, throw on the dirt and attempt some melodic metal.

not to impress anyone (im nowhere near as good as i'd like, and it gets repetative lol) - that's the two main applications im going to use gear for, so i'd like to know how it performs for them.

I don't care about being impressive lol. I do find it odd that I seem to play better in a store then at home though, i get more creative :S


----------



## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

FlipFlopFly said:


> And if you believe that, I've got some ocean front property...........


.......in a desert hwopv

Dave


----------



## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

greco said:


> .......in a desert hwopv
> 
> Dave


You got it Dave. I guess that means you're not buying it; the playing bit or the ocean front property. Oh, well, I tried.

I agree with dufe32. Are we trying out a guitar and/or amp or are we trying to impress someone.


----------



## Cadence (Nov 20, 2007)

*Thank Goodness!!!*

I mess around with scales and barre chords unplugged and some pentatonic stuff before I bother trying it with an amp (and then usually at low volumes)

Gotta admit... I'm sort of relieved to hear I'm not the ONLY one out there who gets nervous playing in a store. I'm happiest when they set me up with a cable and an amp and then leave in some little corner somewhere. I'm used to playing all by myself in my apartment for fun and get embarrassed when the neighbors say they've heard me at it. (and they're complimenting, not complaining even!) Guitar-shopping is an intimidating process for me. Good thing it's worth it! :smile:

Cadence


----------



## Emohawk (Feb 3, 2006)

I usually just play unplugged in the shop. It's more about how the guitar feels & resonates. If the feel's there I might plug it in, but most likely not. Too uncomfortable for me. And my playing sucks...


----------

