JayPoison
Joined: Oct 31, 2020
Posts: 30
Lyon, far from the beaches
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 07:07 AM
I've only been a lurker for a good decade and rarely post - from my point of view as a younger fan / musician, this site is an absolute goldmine and I made 99% of my surf culture on here, and I know I still barely scraped the surface.
I think some of you guys have been on here for so long that you're inevitably biased about how the "golden age" used to be, I can guarantee you that everything on here, especially on the archives, is still insanely precious to anyone who takes the time to read and I still tell people to look around here if they want to truly know what surf music is.
Hell, the reason I founded my own surf project three years ago is literally because I got all the info I needed on making surf music from reading your posts for years. I'm writing my fourth album right now, it's all thanks to you guys.
if I may share an anecdotal bit of hope for the old guard : i'm a photographer, and spent last weekend taking portraits at a modern alternative event, essentially people from goth or anime subcultures dressing up. The topic of music came on, and I made them listen to what I do, and you'd never believe how many of them absolutely loved what they heard, especially the young goths. They asked me to send them a list of stuff they could listen to, and I did my best to give them both classics and modern bands, and I haven't stopped hearing from them for the past three days. There's a new generation of very curious and tech-savvy youngsters with little regard for trends, and while they're mostly used to social media, a site like SG101 is an international treasure for them, because this is the most complete resource on surf music in the history of the genre.
— Fear The Bat People !
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revmike
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 3743
North Atlantic
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 08:42 AM
Well said Jay Poison
Rev (jaded old guy lol)
— Canadian Surf
http://www.urbansurfkings.com/
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ArtS
Joined: May 09, 2008
Posts: 1252
Isle of Kent, MD
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 08:48 AM
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chiba
Joined: Sep 02, 2022
Posts: 371
Central VA
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 09:07 AM
JayPoison wrote:
Hell, the reason I founded my own surf project three years ago is literally because I got all the info I needed on making surf music from reading your posts for years. I'm writing my fourth album right now, it's all thanks to you guys.
This is great to hear (read). Keep it up!
— --
Project: MAYHEM by Hypersonic Secret now available!
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ElectricLimnology
Joined: Nov 20, 2017
Posts: 104
Southeast MIchigan
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 10:34 AM
For what it’s worth this is the only forum I’ve ever belonged to. My family had a PC when I was a teenager and America Online appeared in our house around the time I graduated from high school (my father still prattles on about being one of the first 10k AOL users. He still uses their email). So interacting with strangers on the internet isn’t exactly novel to me. I lurked for a few years and learned about Quilter amps through this forum (sorry vintage guys) before formally joining the forum in 2017. I don’t speak much but do a lot of listening. I’m not on FB and although I do passively post to a couple Instagram accounts for business and music SG101 is it for me. I check it everyday. SG101 is the only place like itself on the internet and I would miss it if it went away.
The only reason to archive or otherwise mothball this forum would be technical or financial. It’s obvious that Facebook has had a deleterious effect on culture worldwide. I hate FB more than anyone but that “the state of SG101” can be attributed to it is more a question of degree given that these types of forums have always had limited user-ship oriented around niche interests. I do think FB causes people like myself to maintain a lower profile in online situations and I wonder if that has something to do with what is being observed in this forum. It’s like the interested are here but they just don’t want to get into weird interactions like on FB.
Things change. People get old and drift away or die. Others have to direct their attention to more pressing affairs. Frankly I have important things I should be doing right now. Some people simply run out of things to talk about. The history and gear of the original surf music craze is a very narrow lane of interest and self limiting as a subject. Therefore it is not unreasonable to expect talk of new gear and new bands. Like many of you my eyeballs roll when a new kid gets on here and wants to talk about death metal. But my eye balls also roll when a vintage gear guy insists that an old Jaguar and 1960 blonde showman is “his sound”. My eyeballs roll louder for the death metal kid but if he is excited about surf guitar music and genuinely jazzed about another genre of music he likes then let him talk. We don’t all have to respond. Eventually he’ll learn to read the room and get back on track. To take it personally, get all bummed out and want to shut the whole thing down is silly (I realize there’s more to it than that in terms of forum activity, I’m being rhetorical). People in this forum are overwhelmingly nice and polite. Go look at “The Gear Page” where you can see know-it-all assholes calling each other names over guitar pedals. That doesn’t happen here. For that reason alone I believe this forum should persist.
Some of you mention a lack of interest in the history and roots of the genre, or the loss of the originators as a reason to archive. This sentiment is antithetical to the interest of history. Think about it.
Most of this has already been stated and restated so I digress.
In closing:
1. “like” buttons are stupid.
2. This forum for better or worse is the center of the surf-music-reverb-rawk universe in its various forms be it vintage, retro or progressive and we need it.
3. The universe is in flux.
But most importantly, if you don’t want to talk about relating death metal and modeling amps to surf music, start a new topic. BE THE CONVERSATION YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE.
— The Vicissitones
Diesel Marine
The Rasputones
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synchro
Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4129
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 10:37 AM
JayPoison wrote:
I've only been a lurker for a good decade and rarely post - from my point of view as a younger fan / musician, this site is an absolute goldmine and I made 99% of my surf culture on here, and I know I still barely scraped the surface.
I think some of you guys have been on here for so long that you're inevitably biased about how the "golden age" used to be, I can guarantee you that everything on here, especially on the archives, is still insanely precious to anyone who takes the time to read and I still tell people to look around here if they want to truly know what surf music is.
Hell, the reason I founded my own surf project three years ago is literally because I got all the info I needed on making surf music from reading your posts for years. I'm writing my fourth album right now, it's all thanks to you guys.
if I may share an anecdotal bit of hope for the old guard : i'm a photographer, and spent last weekend taking portraits at a modern alternative event, essentially people from goth or anime subcultures dressing up. The topic of music came on, and I made them listen to what I do, and you'd never believe how many of them absolutely loved what they heard, especially the young goths. They asked me to send them a list of stuff they could listen to, and I did my best to give them both classics and modern bands, and I haven't stopped hearing from them for the past three days. There's a new generation of very curious and tech-savvy youngsters with little regard for trends, and while they're mostly used to social media, a site like SG101 is an international treasure for them, because this is the most complete resource on surf music in the history of the genre.
You make a great point. The appeal of the music comes from a sound that a lot of people enjoy. When I was a kid, and Pipeline came on the radio, I didn’t listen to it, fascinated, because it was Surf Music, I listened, because I liked the sound. Actually, the term Surf Music was unknown to me, at the time.
The sound of Surf Music was a new development, in the early ‘60s. Duane Eddy had to use a water tank as an echo chamber, but the development of portable spring reverb brought reverb into the realm of live music. Reverb wasn’t the only thing that made Surf music what it became, but the sound of a clean electric guitar with prominent reverb was very popular in the ‘60s, and the appeal extended far beyond Surf.
My point is this; a lot of people like the sound of clean guitars with prominent reverb, and there’s no reason to expect that this sound will not appeal to younger audiences. I don’t think that it’s time to declare Surf Music dead, but its continued existence will require that we be accepting of people that show interest in this music, even if their take on the music is different than our own.
— The artist formerly known as: Synchro
When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.
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fenderfan
Joined: Jul 13, 2008
Posts: 774
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 11:40 AM
Synchro, you are right on the money regarding the importance of just the sound itself - of a clean (and loud) electric guitar, with reverb. At so many of my band's successful gigs, the people didn't turn out to specifically hear a surf band, but once they are in the bar or event, they really just like the sound itself, whether we are doing a surf classic, or an instrumental version of a more recognizable tune. When heard live, it's still a great sound.
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synchro
Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4129
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 12:38 PM
fenderfan wrote:
Synchro, you are right on the money regarding the importance of just the sound itself - of a clean (and loud) electric guitar, with reverb. At so many of my band's successful gigs, the people didn't turn out to specifically hear a surf band, but once they are in the bar or event, they really just like the sound itself, whether we are doing a surf classic, or an instrumental version of a more recognizable tune. When heard live, it's still a great sound.
In 1962, as a child in a midwestern town, we heard Surf when it was played on the local AM station, or on an AM station from Minneapolis, which we could pick up. We liked it, but our liking it had nothing to do with Surfing, we just loved the sound. That would be the sound of clean (and loud) electric guitars, with reverb. I realize that there was a different situation for people in SoCal, but for most of the US, SoCal was a place we saw on TV. The Rendevous Ballroom and the Surf scene was, literally, out of our reach.
But that sound! It was incredible. It spoke to me when I was a little kid, and it speaks to me now. I don’t care if it’s Surf, Spy, Spaghetti-Western, Duane Eddy, a guitar solo from an early ‘60s Pop tune, or the similar sound in ‘60s Country, especially the Bakersfield material. If it’s a clean guitar with prominent reverb, it will catch my ear.
And I think it will catch a lot other ears, as well. Even though Surf, itself, fell from fashion, by the ‘80s, we were hearing some clean, reverb laden, guitar again. It didn’t fell out of fashion in Country, and every so often, the clean sounds would reappear.
I don’t think that this sound will be forgotten, anytime soon. Hopefully, it will persist in an uncorrupted form. As long as I’m involved, you can expect to hear a clean guitar, good reverb, tremolo and/or delay, as called for, to support the song.
— The artist formerly known as: Synchro
When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.
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JayPoison
Joined: Oct 31, 2020
Posts: 30
Lyon, far from the beaches
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Posted on Apr 18 2023 03:44 PM
synchro wrote:
You make a great point. The appeal of the music comes from a sound that a lot of people enjoy. When I was a kid, and Pipeline came on the radio, I didn’t listen to it, fascinated, because it was Surf Music, I listened, because I liked the sound. Actually, the term Surf Music was unknown to me, at the time.
The sound of Surf Music was a new development, in the early ‘60s. Duane Eddy had to use a water tank as an echo chamber, but the development of portable spring reverb brought reverb into the realm of live music. Reverb wasn’t the only thing that made Surf music what it became, but the sound of a clean electric guitar with prominent reverb was very popular in the ‘60s, and the appeal extended far beyond Surf.
My point is this; a lot of people like the sound of clean guitars with prominent reverb, and there’s no reason to expect that this sound will not appeal to younger audiences. I don’t think that it’s time to declare Surf Music dead, but its continued existence will require that we be accepting of people that show interest in this music, even if their take on the music is different than our own.
You are absolutely right about people liking the sound of a reverbed guitar. When the young goths I mentioned heard my stuff, they told me it reminded them of The Cure and Bauhaus, the kind of stuff they listen to, and goth rock relies A LOT of clean guitars with reverb, and they more than often play jaguars and jazzmasters. I told them they weren't too far off and that surf music was essentially where their favorite bands got the idea. There's a definite appeal to surf that you don't find in other rock subgenres.
Gothic rock has made a surprising comeback in the last couple years mostly thanks to Gen Z, and this is an angle I'll try to work with when talking surf music (as I'm a HUGE fan of gothic rock as well haha). I don't see any reason surf couldn't make it, especially since it's a huge part of the common popular culture from being used in movies, series, video games, etc. It's all about making it available.
My point is that if SG101 closes and stays up only as an archive, it's time to think of other ways to bring out the history and roots of surf to people. I'm actually considering doing a video series about this right now, since the newer generations tend to respond better to videos than anything else, after doing some research (and I have the gear and knowledge for this).
In any case if I do this I'll rely on you guys for the deeper facts haha
— Fear The Bat People !
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ElectricLimnology
Joined: Nov 20, 2017
Posts: 104
Southeast MIchigan
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Posted on Apr 19 2023 08:46 AM
If I knew how to quote all four of the previous four comments JayPoison, Synchro and fenderfan, I would. I strongly agree with the notion that the the sound of clean-ish reverby guitar has a wide, nearly universal appeal.
— The Vicissitones
Diesel Marine
The Rasputones
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rekkids
Joined: Nov 07, 2019
Posts: 12
Northeast
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Posted on Apr 19 2023 01:23 PM
I have been a member of Surf Guitar 101 for several years. I don't post, I read! I have never played a guitar and haven't
sat behind a drum set in over fifty years. Having said that, we probably don't have much in common , except a love of the music. I find the banter very interesting. Mostly, it's not something I have been exposed to before and if not for SG 101 I would never be exposed to it. I read many things about new and established bands.I even buy their cd's and records when I can find them.
Don't change anything ! I have no use for social media so there will not be any gleaming of any surf music info from Facebook or the like.
Things are not broke, please don't fix them.
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Joelman
Joined: Sep 07, 2006
Posts: 1472
Redlands, CA
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Posted on Apr 23 2023 03:29 PM
rekkids wrote:
I have been a member of Surf Guitar 101 for several years. I don't post, I read! I have never played a guitar and haven't
sat behind a drum set in over fifty years. Having said that, we probably don't have much in common , except a love of the music. I find the banter very interesting. Mostly, it's not something I have been exposed to before and if not for SG 101 I would never be exposed to it. I read many things about new and established bands.I even buy their cd's and records when I can find them.
Don't change anything ! I have no use for social media so there will not be any gleaming of any surf music info from Facebook or the like.
Things are not broke, please don't fix them.
well it looks like my ‘Archive’ comment has brought some out of the wash.
I mean no offense. But what keeps this forum going ( like any other forum) is people posting.
Just reading won’t keep it going.
There are over 12000 inactive members of SG101. That’s a lot of folks, folks.
If every member posted only one post a month . This forum would be popping with so many posts, that it would be hard to keep up.
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synchro
Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4129
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
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Posted on Apr 23 2023 05:16 PM
Joelman wrote:
rekkids wrote:
I have been a member of Surf Guitar 101 for several years. I don't post, I read! I have never played a guitar and haven't
sat behind a drum set in over fifty years. Having said that, we probably don't have much in common , except a love of the music. I find the banter very interesting. Mostly, it's not something I have been exposed to before and if not for SG 101 I would never be exposed to it. I read many things about new and established bands.I even buy their cd's and records when I can find them.
Don't change anything ! I have no use for social media so there will not be any gleaming of any surf music info from Facebook or the like.
Things are not broke, please don't fix them.
well it looks like my ‘Archive’ comment has brought some out of the wash.
I mean no offense. But what keeps this forum going ( like any other forum) is people posting.
Just reading won’t keep it going.
There are over 12000 inactive members of SG101. That’s a lot of folks, folks.
If every member posted only one post a month . This forum would be popping with so many posts, that it would be hard to keep up.
I certainly would like to see SG 101 be as active as possible. For years now, I’ve moderated a Gretsch forum, Gretsch-Talk. While I am tough on some things, such as politics, religion and profanity, I encourage people to talk, to post their questions and interest, even if the subjects are old business to the long-time members. Forums need two things in order to survive: posts, and new members. Without that, the forum will wither and die, or even worse, will become an inbred closed society where an inner circle excludes anyone outside of their immediate group of cronies, and stifles any newfound interest.
Over the years, I’ve participated in many forums, but in most cases, I left after one or two posts. I joined one fairly specialized guitar forum and within two posts I was being gaslighted by an insider. This was an area of interest in which I had a lot of experience, but I could see that this would be a not worth visiting.
Most of the folks here are friendly, and welcoming to new members. IMHO, being welcoming, friendly and supportive to new members is the best way to do this. Sometimes we have to answer some shopworn questions, as part of welcoming new members.
I’ve been here for 15 years, and I’ve learned a lot over that span of time. When I first got here, I didn’t appreciate the difference between a Blackface and a Brownface amp. Actually, that very misapprehension on my part was a crucial step in my learning about how the sound of Surf guitar works. Fortunately, the person that answered my post did so patiently, and that made it a lot easier for me to learn. I really believe that the best things any of us can do for the forum is to post frequently and help new members to feel welcome and respected.
— The artist formerly known as: Synchro
When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.
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congernet
Joined: May 27, 2017
Posts: 16
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Posted on Apr 25 2023 07:23 PM
Forgive my stream of consciousness. I’m just going to brain dump
I’ve been visiting the site since before 2010 (I can’t remember) but just became a member in 2017. I have gone years without visiting but when I come I read a lot. It is a great site and I would be sorry to see it ever go but have I done anything to prevent that. No. It never occurred to me that it might be in jeopardy. Reading this conversation about the future of SG101 is reminded me that so much in the digital age is less permanent than it seems. I recently gave my first donation and plan to do it in the future.
It also sounds like more content would be good. I don’t represent the young crowd, I’m 52, but I could probably post some things. I admit I have been intimidated before about posting something that I either thought might not be received as pure enough for a surf music site or because I had not done a comprehensive search of the site to see if the topic had been addressed to death. Somebody made a comment that folks should just pass over posts that don’t interest them instead of chastising the poster. I think that is a good policy and very necessary to not chase away casual guests.
This site has introduced me to a lot of great music and gear. If it wasn’t for this site I would have never heard of the Surfybear reverb and tremelo kits. I bought them years ago and read 100s of the posts by other builders before finally tackling it (images of the final below)
In the name of adding content to the site here is some uninteresting.
I was born in 1970. I was exposed to “oldies” and the first generation surf and instrumental hits because my dad always played the radio stations which carried 50s and 60s music. The one surf song you couldn’t get away from was Wipeout. In fact that song was played at my high school dances by the DJ well into the 80s.
Where I grew up (rural western Pennsylvania, USA) I only ever knew of one person who played guitar! It never occurred to me that it was something a regular person could do. When I went to college my sister was dating a guy who played guitar in a band and hanging around their practices made it a real possibility. I bought a Charvel w/ Floyd rose in 1988 and have played guitar ever since. My musical journey timeline has been Van Halen->SRV->original blues guys->surf/garage/rockabilly*->jazz->space age lounge pop->gypsy jazz
*the watershed moment was when I discovered the radio show Whole Lotta Shakin on the Rochester Institute of Technology’s radio station in 1991 (It is now on WRUR Saturdays at 4pm EST). Those guys played sets of surf, 60s beat, garage and rockabilly both original and revival. That was an education. I discovered so much music.
I have a strange musical habit of listening to styles seasonally. Jazz in the winter, surf in spring/summer, garage in the fall. It doesn’t make a lot of sense but I immerse myself in one style of music at a time but I always go through the same styles throughout the year.
My guitars:
Strat 50’s road worn sunburst
Gretsch 5420T
Squire Classic Vibe 50s
Epiphone Biscuit resonator
Misc acoustics
Last edited: Apr 25, 2023 19:24:53
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Padraig
Joined: Feb 26, 2022
Posts: 326
Dollars, Taxes
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Posted on Apr 25 2023 09:32 PM
Congernet, thanks for your personal details and continued support of SG101. All of us need to keep contributing both in content and monetarily.
I'm originally from the urban side of Western Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh), but now call Texas home.
— Patrick
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Joelman
Joined: Sep 07, 2006
Posts: 1472
Redlands, CA
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Posted on Apr 25 2023 10:02 PM
congernet wrote:
Forgive my stream of consciousness. I’m just going to brain dump
I’ve been visiting the site since before 2010 (I can’t remember) but just became a member in 2017. I have gone years without visiting but when I come I read a lot. It is a great site and I would be sorry to see it ever go but have I done anything to prevent that. No. It never occurred to me that it might be in jeopardy. Reading this conversation about the future of SG101 is reminded me that so much in the digital age is less permanent than it seems. I recently gave my first donation and plan to do it in the future.
It also sounds like more content would be good. I don’t represent the young crowd, I’m 52, but I could probably post some things. I admit I have been intimidated before about posting something that I either thought might not be received as pure enough for a surf music site or because I had not done a comprehensive search of the site to see if the topic had been addressed to death. Somebody made a comment that folks should just pass over posts that don’t interest them instead of chastising the poster. I think that is a good policy and very necessary to not chase away casual guests.
This site has introduced me to a lot of great music and gear. If it wasn’t for this site I would have never heard of the Surfybear reverb and tremelo kits. I bought them years ago and read 100s of the posts by other builders before finally tackling it (images of the final below)
In the name of adding content to the site here is some uninteresting.
I was born in 1970. I was exposed to “oldies” and the first generation surf and instrumental hits because my dad always played the radio stations which carried 50s and 60s music. The one surf song you couldn’t get away from was Wipeout. In fact that song was played at my high school dances by the DJ well into the 80s.
Where I grew up (rural western Pennsylvania, USA) I only ever knew of one person who played guitar! It never occurred to me that it was something a regular person could do. When I went to college my sister was dating a guy who played guitar in a band and hanging around their practices made it a real possibility. I bought a Charvel w/ Floyd rose in 1988 and have played guitar ever since. My musical journey timeline has been Van Halen->SRV->original blues guys->surf/garage/rockabilly*->jazz->space age lounge pop->gypsy jazz
*the watershed moment was when I discovered the radio show Whole Lotta Shakin on the Rochester Institute of Technology’s radio station in 1991 (It is now on WRUR Saturdays at 4pm EST). Those guys played sets of surf, 60s beat, garage and rockabilly both original and revival. That was an education. I discovered so much music.
I have a strange musical habit of listening to styles seasonally. Jazz in the winter, surf in spring/summer, garage in the fall. It doesn’t make a lot of sense but I immerse myself in one style of music at a time but I always go through the same styles throughout the year.
My guitars:
Strat 50’s road worn sunburst
Gretsch 5420T
Squire Classic Vibe 50s
Epiphone Biscuit resonator
Misc acoustics
Welcome here to SG101.
lots of info there.
You probably would get a great welcome from many here if you posted your info in ‘The shallow End’ forum room below. Thread for introductions.
Joel
Last edited: Apr 25, 2023 22:05:21
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congernet
Joined: May 27, 2017
Posts: 16
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Posted on Apr 26 2023 07:05 AM
Joelman wrote:
Welcome here to SG101.
lots of info there.
You probably would get a great welcome from many here if you posted your info in ‘The shallow End’ forum room below. Thread for introductions.
Joel
Thanks Joel. I will.
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abdul_tom
Joined: Dec 04, 2006
Posts: 251
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Posted on Apr 29 2023 04:33 PM
This is a great forum, my favourite. Please don't complain about the young or "the decline". The earth keeps rotating, nothing you can do about that. Let the children boogie. History is always there to sample and abuse for those who want it and let me echo what a wonderful resource this place is.
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