Ask Zac

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com Although I started on the guitar in 1985, by 1992 I was a full-fledged Telecaster guy. In the ensuing decades, I have not deviated an iota from my love of the senior solid-body guitar. Here I tell how I fell for the Telecaster, and how...

Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac After my past Mostortion episode, John Lomas, the designer contacted me. When preparing that episode, I had not been able to track him down. Recently, we spoke on the phone, and I was able to get "The Rest Of The Story" on this Nashville favorite. Also, I wanted to keep up the pick and finger exercises with a couple of Atkins/Travis licks I learned from...

Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Here is the best playing advice I have ever received. Also, I had to share James Burton's outro on "Ooh Las Vegas" that Heitor Crespo at Ultimate Elvis Guitar was kind enough to show me how to play. Please support the channel by going to my store at www. AskZac.com Gear Used: 2014 Crook Custom Vintage Paisley with Duncan La Brea pickups http://www....

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Most guitar players make many gear purchases based on what their heroes use. This is fine in itself, but what is more difficult, is to know when their gear is not working for us. And to keep from getting too philosophical, I also dissect some of the licks and parts to  "Quarantine Man Blues" th...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com As you can tell from my videos, I am a dyed-in-the-wool Telecaster guy. However, if I am playing electric, and the faithful Tele is not cutting it, I am going to first reach for a Strat. Besides the different sounds it offers, I also ge...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com For years, I lugged around a huge pedalboard that weighed as much as a combo amp. After making multiple trips to my car for all my gear, I started getting weary of the big board. Through doing the Truetone Lounge interviews, I got to se...

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Sometimes saying "yes" can change your trajectory in fantastic ways. I am so glad I said "yes" when I was offered a column with Vintage Guitar Magazine 16-years ago. Like many, I started cleaning out and fixing things around the house during this crazy time of isolation. While looking...

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Pick and fingers is a fabulous "picking hand" technique. In the beginning, it can seem clumsy, and daunting, but it is very rewarding once mastered. In this episode I spell out my first experience seeing a guitarist using this technique in the mid-1980s, and how a Danny Gatton Instructional vid...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com I bought a mandolin after seeing two of my favorite guitarists, Albert Lee & John Jorgenson play mandolin on TV in the early 90s. I loved the sound, and the real change of color and tone they offered the bands they were playing in b...

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Like most of you, I have been listening to a lot of music lately while stuck at home. With all of the "Top 10" lists, I thought I would list off the 10 albums that influenced me the most, and why. The Albums: Bob Wills - Tiffany Transcriptions Vol 5 Merle Travis - The Merle Travis Guitar Speedy...

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac It might seem subtle, but it isn't. Tremolo before overdrive produces a much more interesting tone because the tremolo is fluctuating the amount of signal going into the overdrive so the sound is getting dirtier and cleaner as the signal goes up and down. It is amazing how much we take for granted w...

To Support the Channel, go to my store at  - www.askzac.com Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac After my amp videos on the Deluxe Reverb and the Fender Harvard, I had a number of requests for a head-to-head comparison of them. I also answer questions about brass vs steel saddles on Telecasters, good Tele-type guitars at a reasonable price, under $3,000 option for a bender equipped guitar, and why L...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com Ever since I heard "Rainy Night in Georgia," and I found out who the guitar player was, I have been a fan of Cornell Dupree. In this episode, I give a bit of history and show some of his playing techniques, such as sixth, 4th&...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com For many years I had heard about Fender Rock-N-Roll strings, and how they were used by Duane Allman, Eric Clapton, Cornell Dupree, Roy Buchanan, Jimi Hendrix, and many, many others. They were pretty much the standard for light gauge str...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com At an early age, I fell under the spell of Steve Cropper watching the Blues Brothers movie. From there, I went back and became familiar with all of his incredible work with Atlantic, and Stax/Volt records with Otis Redding, Wilson Picke...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com I love maple cap neck Telecasters, and I give you the why, and the history of these guitars that were only made in large quantities from 1966-1968. The maple cap necks began to appear after Fender switched from maple necks to maple neck...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com I first played through a mid 60's Deluxe Reverb amp as a 13-year-old in South Texas in 1986. It took me over 24 years of wandering, but I finally came back to the Deluxe Reverb in 2010, and have been happy ever since. In this Ask Z...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com Here is my take on the new La Brea Brad Paisley pickup set. Gear Used: 2014 Crook Custom Vintage Paisley http://www.crookcustomguitars.com/ Strings: D'Addario 9.5-44 strings EXL120+ https://amzn.to/3a5qxVi Amp: 1965 Deluxe Reverb w...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com Today we talk about B-Benders. I cover some of the untold stories of the B-Bender, showing some of the missing pieces of the story, including that of the Dean Porter bender, and the Dave Evans Pullstring. I also spend some time showing...

To Support the Channel: Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Or check out my store at  - www.askzac.com In today's Ask Zac, I show James Burton's intro to the Gram Parsons tune "Ooh Las Vegas," and breakdown the Ask Zac intro music. I also cover some of my thoughts on setup and getting a good Telecaster tone. Link to the Dan Erlewine setup book I rec'd https://amzn.to/2Qimg9...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com A good friend of mine gifted me a Squier Bass VI, and I have had so much fun learning about the instrument, and how to use it in both performance and recording environments. In this episode, I share both the Danelectro 6 string bass and...

To Support the Channel: Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Or check out my store at  - www.askzac.com I focus on the Boss VB-2 Vibrato in the continuing "favorite pedals" series. It is a killer pedal, that Boss improved upon with their more recent VB-2W "Waza Craft" version. Where the old one had noise/hiss issues when bypassed, the Waza Craft version has a special bypass mode...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com The Ibanez Mostortion is one of my all-time favorite dirt boxes. Besides giving some history, I also demo it with my Ron Ellis pickup-equipped Danocaster Blackguard and even share some great ways to use the powerful EQ section of the Mo...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com Everyone needs a crazy thrown-together parts guitar. Why?  Because you never have to stop modifying them! In this episode, I give the story behind my Tele that I have toured all over the world with and changed everything on it except th...

To Support the Channel: Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac Venmo @AskZac  Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com In the latest Ask Zac, we answer some viewer questions concerning who played lead guitar on Conway Twitty's "Tight Fittn' Jeans" and what a typical day as Brad Paisley's guitar tech looked like. While reminiscin...