Category Archives: Uncategorized

What Is Intonation?

October 25, 2011 — Leave a Comment

Intonation is the accuracy of your guitars pitch all the way down the neck. It is relative to each individual fret. If your intonation is correct then when you play the lowest string on your guitar (an E) then each fret up should be perfectly in tune: E (open), F (1st fret), F sharp (2nd fret) G (3rd fret) and so on. If your intonation is right then all the other notes on your guitar will be perfectly in tune with your open string. Intonation doesn’t always go askew on all frets; it’s usually only a few here and there and gets worst if not attended to.

If you want your guitar to sound good then you need to keep your guitar properly intonated so it is in relative tune to itself. Generally you should check your intonation every week or so, just to make sure that your guitar is sounding as good as it can. To check your intonation you need a tuner and you should do one string at a time. The procedure for checking your intonation is as follows.

1. Turn on your tuner and tune the string to the right pitch.
2. Strike the 12th fret harmonic; make sure it is tune with the open string. (they should be the same note).
3. Now strike the note at the 12th fret (not the harmonic) all three of these notes should be the same note. If they are, then your intonation if probably fine if not then you could have a serious problem.

If you have a problem with your intonation then you should take your guitar to the nearest guitar store and get a professional to fix it for you.

Good luck with your practice!

Posted by Ben Edwards

Posted in acoustic guitars, buying guitars, Electric Guitars, gear, Guitar Tools, maintenance | Tagged intonation, music theory, rock star recipes. online learning

Giveaway: How do you plan to rock the 4th of July?

July 3, 2011 — 5 Comments

It’s Independence Day. Time to fire up the BBQ, have a few drinks and strike up a jam on the good ol’ acoustic guitar.

Well, that’s one way of celebrating July 4th.

If Jimi Hendrix were alive today, he might fire up the Fender Strat with a rendition of “Star Spangled Banner”.

Here at Jamorama our marketing team plan to celebrate by kicking off a week long, ‘Ultimate Guitar Learning Package’ promotion and free prize giveaway, ending Sunday night.

I’ve just checked it out and I’ve gotta say it’s one very complete set of guitar lessons, software, and guitar tools – And with a 70% discount you’d be crazy not to go and check it out.

As a bit of fun, we’re giving away 2 “Ultimate Guitar Learning Packages” right here on the blog, and here’s how you can get your hands on one ‘em…

Tell us how you plan to rock this 4th of July!

We want to know the unique way you plan to spend (or did spend) the national holiday. We’ll pick our 2 favorite answers and announce the package winners here on Friday. Just leave your comment here on this post.

Please make sure you fill in the email field when you leave your comment so we can contact you if you win!

Looking forward to hearing your great responses!

jon Giveaway: How do you plan to rock the 4th of July?
Posted by Jon Coursey

Posted in Announcements

Perfect Waves – Amazing Guitar Song

November 14, 2010 — 16 Comments

Well things are humming here at Jamorama HQ as we get closer to the end of the year and New Zealand is warming up as we approach summer. Festivities really start to kick off around this time of year and all of a sudden it seams every weekend is full up with gigs, parties or BBQs.

While it still may be a bit cold to hit the surf, the idea of the beach is steadily growing more and more appealing for those of us coming out of a pretty cold winter and the Stephen Shackinger track entitled Perfect Waves paints a picture for me of that exact feeling.

This is a fantastic piece of music. The Fender Stratocaster he plays provides a beautiful tone that is very reminiscent of that Dire Straits kind of guitar sound especially from about 4:17. He is using delay over the verse sections which create that echo you can hear. Also his backing track is laden with all sorts of nice embellishment’s and some duelling lines that seam to track the lead line or play up the octave.

His use of interesting licks woven in and around the main motif are very well crafted and while this man is clearly very proficient on the guitar he is also very disciplined with when, where and how he uses some of his more flashy techniques.

Check it out and let us know what you think:

Posted in Artists, Electric Guitars | Tagged blues, effects, fender, music, stratocaster, tone

Tech Tip: Changing Between Chords

June 10, 2010 — Leave a Comment

Question. I find it hard to change between chords and when I do it sounds bad. Because of this I can’t make my guitar sound good. What can I do?

Answer. This is the most common problem for beginner guitarists. Don’t worry, nearly every professional guitarist has had your problem!

The best way to avoid this is to start with the easiest chord changes for your fingers. Also, there is a lot to be said for slowing down everything that you are trying to learn.

Before you try playing along with your favorite band, practice the chords and chord changes by yourself until they are flowing nicely. Play things slowly to get accuracy and once you have that you can start speeding up.

Playing things at full speed without first learning them properly will make your chord changes sound muddy and unclear. If you start slowly and build your chord changes progressively you will find that you can improve your playing and stay motivated. Remember, like anything, playing the guitar takes time and effort.

You can’t expect to wake up and play like a pro. If you keep working on it you will improve your playing and achieve what you want on the guitar.

Posted in

Learning to play the guitar with Jamorama in 2010

January 10, 2010 — Leave a Comment

2010 is here and the Jamorama Team are very excited about what 2010 has in store. It’s always awesome to hear about progress that has been made and read the feedback regarding your learning and playing.

During the Christmas and New Year period we really got the impression that many new guitarists out there are experiencing a sense of being alone in their pursuit of playing the guitar.

It was great responding to all those who needed help and lend support, ideas and encouragement for those just starting out. We are also excited that more and more of you are interacting with other Jamorama guitarists and the Jamorama Team on Facebook.

frustratedguitarist5 Learning to play the guitar with Jamorama in 2010

One of the main obstacles that budding guitarists face is the feeling of isolation. You can feel like the only one struggling and can easily be discouraged when you’re trying to play that new chord or strum pattern (for the hundredth time) and don’t seem to be getting any closer. Your fingers are sore and you think, ‘Why not just give up?’.

The great thing is you are not as alone as you think!

Jamorama on Facebook provides a place for you to come and connect with other guitarists learning the same techniques and experiencing the same learning difficulties as you. The whole Jamorama Team is very active in the online community and we also have some very helpful articles in the ‘Discussion area’.

So next time you’re struggling with a particular exercise, jump on Facebook and let us all know. There’s a high chance someone is having the same struggle or has just got past it. Remember, you are NOT alone!

Be sure to share your wins too – there is nothing better than finally playing that tricky riff you’ve been working on.

Connect with the whole Jamorama Team and other Jamorama guitarists today.