Gibson releasing "self-tuning" Robot Guitar

The_Dude · Post by **The_Dude** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 10:59 am

http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/11/sel ... g-rob.html

I'm not a musician but I'd like to hear a musician's opinion on this. Do you think it'll be worth a damn? $2500...

Silencio · Post by **Silencio** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 11:22 am

I see it as R&D. How many people want it for this price? Not many. Is it worth exploring? Yes, it is.

I think the concept is a good one. There are digital guitars that do tuning simulation, but what they miss is the unusual string tension and relational vibration between string when the guitar is actually tuned to an alternate tuning.

I'd love to see an acoustic that would do this.

jschall84 · Post by **jschall84** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 12:13 pm

my fat, lazy, american ass just got fatter just thinking about that. i dont even have to tune my own strings?? now i just need a nanny so i can sh*t in a diaper!

Silencio · Post by **Silencio** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 12:21 pm

I don't think you grok the value of the technology, jschall. It's not intended to save your lazy American etc. from tuning a guitar. It allows quick, precise retuning between standard and alternate tunings on stage.... a real boon if you're Joni Mitchell, Shawn Colvin, Micheal Hedges or a similar player.

I'd love to have something like that for this duo thing I'm working on right now. Push a button, silenty and surely tune the guitar to play "Get Out Of This House," and then tune it right back to standard without the usual mood-killing "BRRRRAaaannnnng brang brang brang" retuning noise.

bassjones · Post by **bassjones** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 12:34 pm

or having 14 guitars on stage for various tunings... I trust that's the intent, I fear many people will buy it and never learn to tune their own instrument.

jschall84 · Post by **jschall84** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 1:56 pm

i know i know, its a cool idea, i just hate modern technocrap. ive got an oldschool outlook on things i guess. i just see this technology going bad during a show and some stuped rich kid going "what do i do now?"

Silencio · Post by **Silencio** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 2:01 pm

"modern techno crap." "old-school outlook." "stupid rich kid."

Your prejudices have more to do with your reaction to the tech than the actuality, I suspect. So, you don't use electric guitars, amp, microphones, effects, anything tha might go "bad" during a "show" I take it... just acoustic guitars and bongos?

Good for you.

zenmandan · Post by **zenmandan** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 3:42 pm

The Gibson Guitar page has several videos about this. Some of them are kinda funny.

LC Pwince · Post by **LC Pwince** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 4:25 pm

It's not like it's gonna play itself. If it were to go haywire in the middle of a tune, that would suck.

bassjones · Post by **bassjones** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 4:35 pm

LC Pwince wrote:It's not like it's gonna play itself. If it were to go haywire in the middle of a tune, that would suck.

given recent Gibson qc issues... never mind.

bwohlgemuth · Post by **bwohlgemuth** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 5:09 pm

jschall84 wrote:i know i know, its a cool idea, i just hate modern technocrap. ive got an oldschool outlook on things i guess. i just see this technology going bad during a show and some stuped rich kid going "what do i do now?"

Oh, and "GIT OF MY LAWN!"

=^-..-^= · Post by **=^-..-^=** » Fri Nov 16, 2007 12:14 am

This is not new with Gibson. Some other company has been retrofitting guitars with this kind of servo motor tuning thing for a few years.

Now if we could put servos on drum lugs so the toms could could be instantly tuned to the key of the song. . . hmmmm . . .

LC Pwince · Post by **LC Pwince** » Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:22 am

bassjones wrote:
LC Pwince wrote:It's not like it's gonna play itself. If it were to go haywire in the middle of a tune, that would suck.
given recent Gibson qc issues... never mind.

Sorry, but I strongly disagree. I'd take a Gibson over about any other guitar out there right now. There QC is much better now than it was in the Norlin era.

bassjones · Post by **bassjones** » Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:39 am

ever play one of the new tobias basses? iffy fretwork, less than stellar finishes, nothing major, but not what I expect from a $2000 plus instrument either. About every 5th one is great, but about every 5th one is an expensive piece of firewood too. And Gibson's sent some out like that.

kylek · Post by **kylek** » Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:11 pm

not to hijack, but go PRS and never look back