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Hello Semi-acoustic,

  As another Ovation player, and sometimes antiques refinisher....  (don't ask, it's my wife's business) I would try to contact the good old boys at Ovation Technical, and with the serial number of the instrument (from the tag on the inside of the body) they could likely confirm whether or not the finish is laquer.

  If laquer was used, a spot repair to the finish might be effected with good results.  Other finishes could require stripping and refinishing especially urethanes.  If you know a good Luthier in your area, he might also be a source of information on how a repair might be done, and most will gladly give you a ballpark estimate.  Earlier instruments would likely have nitrocellulose laquer rubbed into them, but in the time frame of your vintage, acrylic laquers, enamels , and urethanes started coming into wide use. Although the "lighter" finishes tended to be preferred on acoustic instruments to preserve the "acoustic" properties of the wood itself. 

  Do your research and ask questions... experimentation can result in a mess!

  I almost forgot the other part of your question....   Humidify if your average relative humidity in your area is much below 50%, store in whatever position you want, that should not make a difference.  If you have large differences in humidity and or temperature to contend with...  a case softens the shock of those changes.  Chances are that the crack you have was a result of a rapid increase in moisture content in the wood.  The finish is not as flexible as the wood can swell in a given time frame, and I think that's why you have that darn crack!

Take Care;  Doug

Hello HenryB,

  First off for those here on the "colonial" side of the "pond", how big is a village hall? Also are you a lone performer, or do you have a group that you need to support?

  Generally if there is a moderate sized venue and (I'm thinking local Pub here ) it is filled to about 75% of it's occupancy (because bodies suck up sound like a sponge), you could likely get by nicely with your instrument amp's 2X10 or 2X12 speakers for instruments, and in the 160-200 Watt range some kind of powered mixer for vocals and acoustics.  Couple that all to at least a pair of fair sized 2 way cabinets, and you should be in the ball park.  Larger venues will of course need more of everything just to ensure that those in the back can appreciate your efforts without killing the folks in the front rows!

Most larger Venues that host live entertainment will likely have some sort of in house PA system that you can feed into.  So do your homework and ask when you book your gig... one could sink a small fortune into power amps and speaker cabs, cables and equipment, just to haul it around and find most of what you need is already in place.

  Genre of music will also have some bearing on what you can get away with... Example:  Heavy Death Metal is supposed to be painful!  Double up on everything! If nobody's ears are bleeding when you are finished with a set.... you didn't play loud enough!
(feeble attempt at humour there)

I'm sure there are others here who could better advise you with a bit more information about what you want to do.

Have fun with your music.... it just keeps getting better!

Take Care;  Doug

Hi Wibble, just a thought....

Which pickup is active when this happens?  It might be that you are bending the string beyond the field of the pickup IF it is the neck.
Another thing is that after a couple years of "storage" my Epi ST275 selector switch was giving me intermittant contact in some positions that would go in and out with just a slap to the body....  cleaned the switch out with a shot of good old WD-40 and a shot of air from a can of PC duster, and it's been fine ever since.

Take Care;  Doug

Greetings Haagenater, and welcome to Chordie!

  I am thinking that the Hammer you are referring to is a "hammer on", is a method in which you depress the string with force causing it to sound without plucking that string.  I would refer you to look up Andy Mckee on you-tube as he uses a lot hammer-ons in his music, for a good example of hammering with the fretting hand as well as with the picking hand in one of his tunes called "Driftin".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ddn4MGaS3N4
Another would be Stanley Jordan and here's the link:  http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid … 7711475397

  Take Care; Doug

OK I'll admit I'm kinda "stupid" when it comes to percussion.... But I thought cowbells were "Standard Issue" in a set of drums.

Gibraltar rack, snare, couple three toms, high-hat, bass, crash, ride, clave, and a couple Holsteins waiting for cue! LOL

Take Care; Doug

Wow, Only Two Weeks!..... you sure?

Guess so.  I just took a look at the numbers of views on the topics in this section (not counting the Idea2 and early Audacity stuff that was moved over from Chat Corner), looks like pretty good traffic for a new section!

  It was a good idea Russell, but (there's that "but" word).... it would really be nice to see posts from a wider audience.  Perhaps now that the Olympics and those political conventions are over, traffic on Chordie will improve overall.

  So Far.... So Good!

Take Care; Doug

Hi Doctony,

  Your experiment with your students is interesting, but the results you get in the way of answers is not surprising to me.  I learned to play piano long before I started with strings.  It all reflects to the more "logical" ascending order of notes and tones.... that is usually the way every other instrument on the planet is taught!
  It is just "odd" that some "dipswitch" nailed a harp to a gourd and decided that because it was upside down the strings had to be referenced in decending sequence.
   I suppose it would make more sense if we read our sheet music from right to left!

  Take Care;  Doug

Hey Randy,

  I thought you might take interest.  Supposedly FLAC can compress cd recordings, and then uncompress and re-burn an EXACT duplicate.

  WAV is real clean and REAL big....

  Thinking I'll try it out and see if there is any detectable degradation through 5-6 cycles.  But have to upgrade my Audacity first!

  Take Care;  Doug

Hi everybody!

  Yes I did get to see Russell's goof!  Notice how it always happens at the last couple of bars of the take?!?  NEVER at the beginning!

  I'm thinking we find that guy "Murphy" and heat up a bucket of tar!  Seriously though, I didn't detect a the slightest hint of "longshoreman" in Russell.... heck Janet stubbed her toe the other night and I had to open all the doors to let the blue smoke out!

It weren't nuthin Russell!  But safely tucked away with all my other "blackmail" material!  By the way nice job on the video and the finished recording!

I did post a new topic, you might give it a read if you get a wild one...

  Those of you who are battening down the hatches.... we're thinking of ya!

  Take Care;  Doug

Yes Southpaw, Jerry Reed was one of those exceptional guitar players and sadly best remembered for his acting rather than his music.

If you can find some clips of Jerry guesting on the old Marty Robbins TV show they are well worth watching... he was a semi-regular, and their duets are outstanding!

He will be missed... God Bless.

Take Care; Doug

Hi Deedee and welcome to the recording forum,

If you are doing solo recording, mostly vocal and an instrument, your best first investment would be in a good quality microphone.
Your laptop and most software will do a pretty good job of capturing what you put into it, and a big part of that is how good an audio signal you can provide.  Acoustic/electric and electric guitars can go straight into the sound card with your guitar cable and an adapter, but you will need a mic for acoustic only and of course those vocals!
Dynamic microphones don't require any outside power source (or pre-amp), condensers do so you have to allow for that additional expense when shopping.  Try to find something with a frequency response between 20Hz - 15-20kHz. You should be able to find something in a reasonable price range that will fit your budget, and some kind of stand.  I like telescopic boom stands because they are more versatile and you can get a pretty good one for around $20.00 with a heavy enough base to be stable. 

Check out www.musiciansfriend.com for special deals etc. and if you need more info or advise.... you know where to find us!

Take Care;  Doug

Thank You  Topdown,

  I was waiting to see if anybody would remember Freddie.  A powerful and talented vocalist... not to mention Rock Icon!

Take Care;  Doug