Wanker Rant: On Buying More Guitar Than You Can Play

Never ceases to amaze me at the wankers who buy more gear than they have the ability to play. Great! They have the money, but they never take the time to really get acquainted with the gear they have. I know a dude who's got some beautiful-ass guitars, and you know what? No matter what guitar plays, he still sounds like shit because he doesn't have the technique to take advantage of the great gear he has.

The dude also just spent hundreds of dollars upgrading his amp with NOS tubes and new speakers because he wasn't satisfied with its tone. Shit! He hadn't played that amp enough to break in the original speaker cones in the first place before he up and went to get it "refitted" as he put it. New amps usually sound pretty harsh when they're new. They need several hours of play time before they mellow out. I don't think that dude played that amp more than a handful of hours - and he had that amp for a couple of years!

Look, I understand that if he's got the money, it's his prerogative to spend it the way he chooses. But great gear will only get you so far. At some point, you've got to play your fuckin' equipment and at the very least get to a point with your technique so you can make an informed decision about what direction you want to take tone. After all, 90% of your fuckin' tone is in your hands.