Henk, What monthly subscription are you referring to?

Ok! I just tried it again and no problem. Agreed this is wierd Hello World

I think you're right. I believe I saw it was introduced at NAMM.

I just tested it as well and could add a comment. I didn't leave one but was provided the box to do so. I just didn't save it. (I just had nothing profound to add😉)

Anyone seen this? Know anything about it? I certainly do not. But at first glance it appears interesting. From the web page, " the smart amp and app that jam along with you using intelligent technology. Play and practice with millions of songs and access over 10,000 tones powered by our award-winning BIAS tone engine. " It appears to, among a lot of other things, use an app to grab just about any song from Spotify or Youtube or Apple music. It will then display the chord chart and you jam along. Or you can tell it, "Follow my guitar" by voice command and it will provide drum set and bass to your playing to jam with. And it has USB output to plug into your DAW. Plus what they call "Hyper-realistic amp modeling and effects". I am not in anyway recommending this because I just told you everything I know about it. But it seems to have a lot of potential as a learning tool. And, at $224 (US), I was somewhat surprised. I expected it would be more. Link to the product page. Your thoughts?

Probably would be a great topic for a Live Lesson, Steve.

Greg, As long as it is a custom backing track, yes. If you look at my list of files (second graphic above) the top six have a word "Change" in the far right. That means those are the custom backing tracks. If I click on that it will take me to the next window where I can make the desired changes to it. As the graphic above for "Wonderful Tonight". Then you redownload it with the changes. With the non-custom backing tracks you can still downlad. I failed to mention above with the regular (non-custom) backing tracks you can download four different ways: 1) With vocals 2) Without vocals 3) full Version 4) guitar only

I don't think we have had a conversation here previously about Karaoke Version Backing Tracks. Possibly, but I don't remember it. And, no, this is not about gear. But it's a learning tool. This conversation doesn't belong in Technique, so it doesn't belong there. Possibly "Open Talk"? But I stuck it here. And this is about backing tracks not jam tracks. You don't fire it up and try your improvisational skills. One picks your particular song. Then you pick the backing band members you want (more about that), hit "play" and then you have your band accompanying you. If one goes to the link I provided above and then click on the "Guitar" tab, it will take you to the list of guitar backing track. It will present you with lists: "Top (I assume that means most popular) Guitar Backing Tracks", "Most Recent Backing Tracks" and "Free". There are a few good free ones: House of the Rising Son, La Bamba, Amazing Grace. Of course the fun is choosing from their huge list of available tracks for purchase at $1.99 each. They claim 30,460 songs to choose from. I think it would be difficult to not find a backing track to the song you are trying to learn.These are, IMHO, high quality tracks that sound real, not the MIDI sounding Guitar Pro files or Ultimate Guitar Tabs files. When you click at the bottom of "Top" backing tracks it will take you to a menu where you can choose Decades, genre, key, language, etc. I just find it easier to use the search function and type in the name of the song, such as "Black Magic Woman". It came up with both Santana and Fleetwood Mac versions. Or you can type in the artist, such as Santana. It came up with, I believe, every Santana song ever recorded, including his duet with Willie Nelson, "They all Went to Mexico"! 😲 (That's from Santana's Havana Moon album. His worst ever. But I digress😴.) When you pick a song it will take you to a page where you can listen to a sample of the track. As you can see, you can choose with or without vocals, if you want to sing along, with all the parts or just the guitar, if you want to practice just the guitar. If you purchase this backing track you get all four files with those parts. But here is where it gets fun! They also offer custom backing tracks for $2.99. This is what I invariably purchase. You, well, customize it! The customization is nearly limitless. Change instruments, key, tempo, vocals. You make changes, download it. Make more changes, download it. Ad infinitum. And once you have purchased it you can come back and change it months or years later and download it again! Perhaps an example. Here is my list of songs I have purchased. I was learning Wonderful Tonight for my weekly guitar Jam. There are three guitar parts and we took the different parts for the jam and then switched during the jam. I added and removed different guitar parts and added and removed vocals and then took it to my jam. We practiced with the different parts. (and provided the files for my buddies). It's just three guys with guitars but if we had a bass player or drummer, in a real band setting I could see how helpful adding removing those parts would be. Sorry about the long post. You can see I'm a fan boy of these tracks. I hope you find this helpful.

It is sure to be a great live lesson, Steve! And great to be back to a Live Lesson after the holiday pause. I'm looking forward to it.

This was just discovered somewhere😉

Terry, welcome to you and good luck. Please keep us up to date on your progress. And, ^^^, exactly what @DianeB said.

@Wim VD1, @gotto's word "breathtaking" was descriptive and accurate.

Dan, Absolutely! Break it up! I have often heard "Take it slow to get it fast." Which, of course, refers to slowing down a passage until one gets it perfected and then gradually increasing the speed until you get it to the published tempo. I wish we had similar jargon for taking a "chunk at a time". I don't know that I have seen a lot of discussion about this but I, none-the-less, believe just about everyone does this. Do exactly as you described is my advice. Take one measure. Get it comfortable. Then take the second measure. Get it comfortable. Now play measures one and two. Then add measure three. etc. I don't know if you saw my post of Jingle Bells Blues. That's exactly what I did with it to learn it. I never did get it above 90% tempo but I'm ok with that. What follows next in that version of that song is a bluesy solo. And, again, that's the way I'm trying to learn it. The solo has about a dozen licks and I'm about half way through them. I'm not taking a measure at a time because some of the licks span a couple measures or more. But I'm still taking it a chunk at a time, a chunk being a lick. And, digressing a bit, a couple of these licks are above my skill level. One has a triplet pull off. So a couple of these licks I may have to "dumb down" for me to complete them. But I'm trying to challenge myself. But my point remains I'm taking it section at a time.

@Wim VD1 Wim, @gotto Greg, and @Nutty 1 Mandy thank you for looking and commenting.

We saw the Guess Who at a reservation casino just about an hour from here a few years ago. Great, fun show!

Thanks, Doug. I'm a BTO fan (as well as The Guess Who). Although this is not my favorite. More of a Taking Care of Business is my speed.

@Plantsman13, I saw that as well. I almost wish he had taken it a little further. But his point is well taken. So many resolutions, New Years or otherwise, or goals are, in fact, not goals. Having had a couple goal setting meetings over my career it is somewhat pounded into me. To be a goal it must Be realistic Be time defined Be quantitative Be measurable Saying, "My New years resolution is to lose some weight" is not a goal. It may be desirable, but not a goal. Saying, "My goal is to lose 12 pounds by April 15" is a goal. Realistic, time defined, quantitative and measurable. To relate it to guitar, to say, "I am going to improve my blues playing" or "I'm going to work on my strumming" are both admirable probably to any guitar player, but not goals. To say, "I am going to learn to play this, this and this blues song by April 15" or "I am going to complete this strumming course by June 15" would both be goals. One could probably state something like n number of new strumming patterns by d date. I think this sums up what Griff was saying. Now stepping down off my soapbox🙄

Consider this a progress report! I really wanted, intended to support @Nutty 1's Monthly Recording Challenge with a Christmas song. I just didn't get it done in time, sorry Mandy; this was (is) more challenging than I anticipated. So my fall back is, if I can get it done, to post it in this month's Challenge which is Blues. The title of this is, after all, "Jingle Bells Blues". I have completed the Chorus and Melody and am now ready to tackle the solo which I know is going to be very chewy. There are a couple riffs that I may need to "dumb down". And it is going to take awhile. And, my intent is to record a separate track with my playing the rhythm. It came with a couple different backing tracks. This is my playing over the one with drums, bass and rhythm guitar. I'm going to record my playing rhythm over the one with just bass and drums. Then I'll mix my playing chorus, melody and solo. And, in the interest of full disclosure this is at about 90% speed. Maybe by the time I get done I can do 100%. You'll see when I came from the melody back to chorus I struggled with the first chord. Technical stuff: PRS Pauls into a POD HD 500X. Amp sim of a Fender Twin Reverb, 2x12 cab, a little bit of distortion with tube screamer, a little delay, and a little reverb. Suggestions, criticisms are encouraged.

@Magnit, what a great way to bring in the new year, with a new guitar!! Congratulations. They do look like single coils and of course the neck is always going to sound a little more mellow and the bridge a bit more twangy. But from what I have heard that twangy bridge p.u. is especially characteristic of the Tele. If you want to know exactly what model of pickups you have send an email to Fender customer service with your serial #. They will get back to you, in my experience in just a couple days, with all the details about your guitar. This neck profile concept just has me thoroughly confused. I've become a real PRS supporter and have always been a huge Santana fan. So it follows that my next guitar should be a PRS signature Santana. Early last year I finally tried a Santana at Chicago Music Exchange. None of the stores here in Omaha carried one. I was shocked and disappointed! The neck on (what I thought would be) my dream guitar felt like a tree trunk. I played it for a very little bit and put it back. Then late last year I was looking at a PRS guitar here locally. While I was there I saw a PRS 594, which has the same neck profile as the Santana. I thought why not try it? It felt good! Different but good. So I am, as I said, thoroughly confused. 🤔 So I don't know if, as we become more experienced, we learn to accommodate different necks. Or, as we become more experienced, our preference changes. Or, if it's "different horses for different courses". I played my PRS hollowbody a couple days ago and it has a very thin neck. It felt great! 🙄 Congratulations again on the new guitar.

Great topic to start the new decade @Nutty 1 and @Wim VD1. And, Mandy, how did you find that perfect Peanuts cartoon to use?!?!😉🤣

And, since it's my thread, I will start. And, unfortunately, I should go back and find last year's resolutions and just "cut and paste"! 😡☹️ But here they are: 1) I am going to finish Learn and Master Guitar. I made some progress this last year. I only got through a couple sessions. But this year I think I can realistically finish. 2) I am going to get on stage somewhere, sometime and and play a song. I'm doing my weekly jams but those are not in front of an audience. When I do this will most like be at a jam but it will be at a jam with an audience. My neighbor has an annual birthday part with his band playing where people can join in. It may be there. 3) I am going to learn a complete song and play it for my wife. Not a song that I like but one that she likes. Maybe "Sleepwalk".

We are, everyone is no doubt aware, about to ring in the new year which means it is time for our annual tradition: Guitar Related New Year's Resolutions! And, as is also our tradition, we (meaning "I") did not post this soon enough. So we are going to keep this thread open a while past New Year's Day, but post your resolutions and soon as possible after the first of the year. And there is only one real rule here. Keep it guitar related! Yes, a weight loss goal is admirable. Going to quit smoking? Great! Going to manage your time better? All admirable, but not guitar related, What are you going to commit to accomplishing this year in your guitar learning journey? Let us know.

Ron, Ron, I'm not sure exactly what you requesting. We can't, and as mod I certainly can't encourage anyone to, send you the copyrighted L&MG course materials. If, when you say "LMG course", you asking about the book? The pdf of the main L&MG course, the manual, is available for download here. The bonus resources book can be downloaded here. Of course that doesn't get you the DVD's. You have to be considered a good Legacy customer having bought two complete sets. If I were you I would call Legacy customer service and ask what they would do in terms of a "back up" set of DVD's. I would think they would cut you a break for a third purchase. But I can't speak for them. Let us know that you get this resolved. That is going to be a great time playing guitar with grandsons. I just did a duet of Jingle Bells with my granddaughter over the holidays. What fun!

@revster, I'll bet that 12 string sounds beautiful. Enjoy it a long time.