GAS - feeling bloated.

GAS, as any musician knows, stands for Gear Acquisition Syndrome.

Back in the summer I bought my first* 'new' guitar in 3 years - a 30+ year old hand made Washburn Hawk that had been stripped of hardware. Thanks to my family I had all the necessary hardware given as a birthday present, and now it's up and running, playing great and sounding fabulous.

But.

GAS is back.

After almost 4 years of effectively having no spare cash the business has had enough income to enable me a small wage (less than minimum wage, but hey ho) and suddenly, despite all the stuff I already have, I find that I want more and more. What is it about acquiring things that make you want to acquire more things? I have more guitars than I can play** (and I'd happily let some go) effects pedals, processors, modellers, amps, all kinds of stuff. Yet here I am, unsatisfied and wanting more.

It says something about where satisfaction comes from, but it also says something about influences and what we take on board.

Sunday afternoon I came across a comment about discounted pedals on Harmony central while researching a particular effect. A guitarist usually likes to have a tonal palette to work from, and I'm no exception. For size reasons the board/case all my effects pedals travel in can only fit a limited number of them, and recently I moved things around to make space for a fuzz in order to create a particular set of tones (look up Golden Cello on youtube to see what I mean). So out went the Chorus pedal, which sounds beautiful (really) but is huge and also requires a funny size power adapter to make way for a fuzz pedal, but now my board can't provide that chorus tone. If the chorus pedal were smaller then it would fit, but I can't re-house it because the circuit board inside fills the case, and I don't want to move any other effects off the board either.

Cut a long story short, I'd been thinking about a cheap chorus pedal in a small form-factor when I came across the thread about Mooer pedals - suddenly much wants mooer.

Now these things are tiny, sound REALLY good (at least, the modulations do - not so keen on the drive/distortions because I already have the best I've found) and are less than £26 each, shipped direct from China. So now I find I'm breaking another of my un-written rules, and wanting to buy cheap stuff from China instead of expensive stuff made in the west. And yes, I've ordered a couple - will be flogging the stuff they displace.

But it bothers me that I'm gassing - and have already become bloated with property - as a grown man with more toys than I know what to do with. It's like I've not really learned anything over the last 30 years in this area. Yes, some of it is the voices I have allowed to speak to me, but inside it's like there is still that greedy child who knows no restraint. Just because I can afford it, does not mean it is either right or reasonable to just acquire stuff - is it really 'my' money?

I dunno where this goes, except that it's another unredeemed area. Is poverty a gift? It's not one I want, but I am asking where my treasure really is.


*Basses don't count, since they are just a tool!

** A friend posted yesterday on Harmony Central about needing to shift some guitars. Not because he needs the money, but because he lives in a normal size house and has, literally, no room any more. He wanted advice about how to choose 20 guitars out of the 60 odd he has - to get rid of. At least Marc is an amazing guitar player.