Anything mad you'd like to attempt?

axisus

I am actually trying something a bit mad at the moment - flashing neck LEDs, but there is one other idea that I'm fascinated by ....

There's an American company (name escapes me right now), and they make a fretted bass that at the push of a mechanical button turns to fretless. The concept fascinates me and I'd love to think about how you could engineer such a thing.

Anything crazy you'd like to have a go at?

Ravenous

axisus said:

Anything crazy you'd like to have a go at?

An eighteen string guitar. Like a 12 string, but triple-strung courses instead of double.

(And yes, I'm aware it's been done but I've never seen an example.)

Apparently you can get Charango variants with fifteen strings, which is almost there.

Alegree

Neodynium magnet humbuckers that actually sound good.

Bridgehouse

A guitar or bass with some sort of drone, like a hurdy gurdy...

Rabs

Id love to try one of those LP/SG hybrid things..  Like this

http://s1173.photobucket.com/user/Rabs2010/media/2008 standard/R03_zpsirsr2tr8.jpg.html?o=0

axisus

Rabs said:

Id love to try one of those LP/SG hybrid things..  Like this

http://i1173.photobucket.com/albums/r588/Rabs2010/2008 standard/R03_zpsirsr2tr8.jpg

That looks ..... weird. Not seen one like that before.

Rabs

axisus said:

Rabs said:

Id love to try one of those LP/SG hybrid things..  Like this

http://i1173.photobucket.com/albums/r588/Rabs2010/2008 standard/R03_zpsirsr2tr8.jpg

That looks ..... weird. Not seen one like that before.

Its built in a very interesting way...  I think its kind of funky  

Check this if you are interested.

http://www.mylespaul.com/threads/a-one-off-lp-sg-meld-guitar.325091/

CasperCaster

I have far far too many projects on the go, and actually need to rationalize quite a bit. But two things I would like to do if I ever get the chance are a headless guitar with a sustainer pickup, and a nice telecaster, but with the guts from a Variax, for those sitar/ banjo/ dobro/ 12 string moments, but without the hassle of taking out all of those instruments. 

axisus

CasperCaster said:

I have far far too many projects on the go, and actually need to rationalize quite a bit. But two things I would like to do if I ever get the chance are a headless guitar with a sustainer pickup, and a nice telecaster, but with the guts from a Variax, for those sitar/ banjo/ dobro/ 12 string moments, but without the hassle of taking out all of those instruments. 

Similar thoughts from me:
   
I bought a cheap headless guitar a year ago, my intention is to make it midi only with a spare midi pickup that I have.

I also bought a cheap Variax, with the intention to dump the gubbins into a telecaster.

Sporky

I fancy doing 5 and 8 string extended range guitars - the 5 would be in fifths to give about the same range as a normal 7-string, the 8 would be fourths all the way.

Funkfingers

Emmett Chapman did that already. http://www.stick.com/instruments/sb8/

Sporky

Yeah, but the Stick is ugly and plinky.

The NS Stick is better - both looks-wise and to play - but I'd rather build a non-metal 8-string guitar.

Nomad

An electric double bass that sounds more like a double bass than the cheaper commercial offerings, which seem to sound too much like a normal electric bass guitar.

Also had musings on a keyboard instrument of some sort, maybe a harmonium or something Rhodesy.

The bass is vaguely possible, but the keyboard is unlikely on account of having nowhere to put it and probably being too big a project to take on.

olafgarten

Nomad said:

An electric double bass that sounds more like a double bass than the cheaper commercial offerings, which seem to sound too much like a normal electric bass guitar.

Also had musings on a keyboard instrument of some sort, maybe a harmonium or something Rhodesy.

The bass is vaguely possible, but the keyboard is unlikely on account of having nowhere to put it and probably being too big a project to take on.

I know someone who got an old upright piano off gumtree for free and replaced the strings with metal bars. He toured it for a while in his band, but he sold it because it was too heavy. 

Sesh

I'm thinking of swapping a strat bridge for a Tele one on my beat up hohner jt60 and making it into some sort of esquire type of thing, but with the ATN circuit still intact. Not a particularly mad idea, but maybe stupid.