Taurus (Apr 20 - May 20)

The Bottom Line

You've reached a critical point with someone you care about -- share your feelings.

In Detail

You have reached a critical point with someone you care about -- you actually know how you feel, so today is the day you need to communicate it! This isn't about having too many expectations, either. You just need to share what you are thinking and what you are feeling. How the other person reacts is not something you can control, so it's not something you need to worry about. You will still feel vulnerable, there's no getting away from it. But you need to make them aware of your feelings.

got this earlier: AKG K414P

great hi-fi sound for your mp3 player. no more muffled, unbalanced sound from your off the shelf on-ear or in-ear phones, and you hear more frequencies you were not even aware existed. you get crisp highs, warm bass that's not too boomy, and you get rich mids that balances your sound perfectly.

specs:

how does it compare to brands like sennheiser, jbl, shure, or skullcandy?

sound quality is better, and the price is cheaper. it's made by Harman anyway so expect nothing but the best. the only drawback is that it's hard to look for one here, specially that the exclusive distributor only has about 2 units in stock per branch.

well, there goes half of my budget for a new Fossil watch...

quick rant: dude, &^$#^& skullcandy. it's made of cheap plastic and your music will sound like it's coming from cans. 100-18,000hz -> are you fuckin kidding me? overpriced too. you'll look a pansy emo kid too. but i guess that's the point anyway.

Do unto others as ye wish to do unto them. For this is thy right as a being of free will. Thou may treat thy neighbor good or ill, as per thy will. But remember this: He also is free to respond according to his will; and it would do thee well to temper thine action with judgment.

Thou shalt not kill out of anger, lust or evil. Yet to protect that which is important—self, family, liberty—kill swiftly and without mercy. If thou art not willing to do this, ye shall lose all that matters to thee.

Worry not of covetousness, for thoughts are free and difficult to rein. Work, rather, on restraint in thine actions.

Worship not idols, symbols, gods nor men. Worship only knowledge, freedom and thine own self.

A man may do all that he wishes to do. Yet it may not always be wise for him to do so.

Listen to the opinions of others and weigh their merits, for others may see options ye have not. Yet follow thine own heart for the final decision. If thou art not willing to do this, then take heed: Thou hast delivered thy destiny into the hands of strangers.

Truth is beauty, yet beauty is not truth. Knowledge is power, but power is not knowledge. Keep thy logic in its proper sequence.

Faith is the greatest force within this universe. With it, ye may do all that is possible, and even that which is not. Yet ye must channel this energy within thine own soul: keep faith in thy hopes, faith in thy dreams, faith in thyself.

Within thee lies the power of the gods. To gain it, strive for understanding: of the firmament, of thine earth, of others, and most importantly, of thyself.

Seek the philosophy within thy soul, for others cannot reveal it nor dictate it to thee. Neither god nor man may lead thee to thyself, for only the individual soul knows its own path.

No one may control thee or manipulate thee unless ye allow it to be. Thee and thee alone art thy destiny’s master.

Thy path in life must be thine own, let not others choose it for thee. If ye wish a chance at greatness, follow thine own path. If it should lead to misery, so be it. At least is it a misery of thine own choosing. And remember, ye may always try again.

Curse not others if thy life is disordered, for the choice of direction rests ultimately with thee. If ye must curse, then curse thine own self for allowing it. Yet this degradation serves no purpose. If thou art wrong, state it plainly, then work toward its correction.

He who liveth without purpose liveth without life. If thou art without goals, then ye shall accomplish nothing. Know what ye would like in life, then seek it out. It is that simple.

Death comes to all, bidden or unbidden. Accept this, then live as if it were untrue.

Thou shalt always have choices in life. But this does not guarantee that they shall be favorable choices, and, at times, the best ye may do is choose the lesser evil.

Nothing is impossible. Thy limits are without limit. However, if ye do not believe this, ye shall find thou art correct.

If thou findest an inequity, ye must correct it. If thou art witnesses to injustice, ye must not stand idle. If ye come upon pain, then give relief. For if the lot of Man is to improve, the seer must be the doer.

Judge and let thyself be judged. For it is thy right as a being of free will. Yet live a goodly life so that ye may judge fairly. And, should ye be falsely judged by others, it shall matter not.

Hear the instruction of thy mother and father, for experience was their teacher. Start with these teachings, then add thine own learning, and change that which must be changed.

If thou followest the philosophy of others and add nothing of thine own, then thou art no more than a beast of the field and have wasted thy soul.

Carry not the sins of thy father with thee, for thou art thine own person and accountable only for thine own actions—not the actions of thy father, thy brother, thy tribe or thy race.

Allow thy children to live, think and feel freely, for the mother and father know not all things.

Believe in thine own self, and serve no other, for others know nothing of what is best for thee. Yet do not shut out opposing philosophies, for at times their teachings may be clearer than thine own.

There is no sin. Do that which is right for thee, for only in this shall ye find happiness. Yet remember always: thine earth is a shared space.

Let morality guide thee, but not out of fear. Rather, follow it for thine own sake.

Trust thy judgment with all thy heart. If ye can do this thing, then, truly, ye shall not be forsaken.

Believe in thine own free will. Listen to its dictates and not to the dictates of others. In this and this alone shall true happiness be found.

Blessed is he who findeth wisdom and seeketh knowledge, for these are more precious than gold; and the gain thereof shall be the immortal universe itself.

Friends are precious; keep them near. But thy family is sacred. One may treat them ill, slander them and do them evil. Yet when thy need is greatest, they shall always be with thee.

History is not a fixed thing. Although the event may remain constant, the interpretation is ever fluid. And the interpretation is all: for a grown man will look back upon a childhood act and see his guilt, where earlier he saw only vindication. Change the mind and change the past—and with it, the present and future.

Be not the hedonist, seize not the day without an eye to the morrow. Yet enjoy the flesh, for it is thy legacy.

Thou hast within thee gifts without measure and powers beyond comprehension. Ye need but use them. Take pride in thy gifts, pride in thy power, and pride in thy accomplishments.

Seek not the praise of others and heed not their condemnation—for within thee and thee alone lies the power of self-fulfillment.

Thou art neither better nor worse than thy neighbor, no matter how much more righteous or evil he may be.

Hope maketh the heart stronger, where desire unfulfilled maketh the heart ill. Hope for fulfillment and work toward its achievement. And if thy goals go unmet, ye shall still find peace, for within the journey does the true goal lie.

Error and forgiveness are the traits of humanity, fear and condemnation the traits of gods. Strive to be human; strive not to be gods.

Subjugate thyself not to God nor man, for subjugation knows no honor. Why should the Father wish His children to kneel in fear before him? Better to die free than to live as sheep.

There are those who understand reason and those who understand violence. Reason is wasted on the violent man and violence is wasted on the reasonable man. If thou wishest one to hear thee, speak in his language or speak not at all.

Ye may speak truth or deception, according to thine own free will. But to thine own self, know the difference.

If a man wrongs thee, look to thyself to see why thou hast allowed the transgression. Learn from it, then seek vindication or reconciliation, as ye see fit.

Others may lead thee to temptation, but only by thine own hand can ye partake of it. If thou later seekest to lay blame, seek thyself.

In life, some have more and some have less. Yet what matter? Peace and happiness stem from within, not without.

Do what ye will with thy life. Give freely, love freely and expect nothing. In this shall ye find true happiness, and there will be no reason for disappointment.

If thou desires an action to come about then bring it about. Ye may fail, but, then, ye may not.

There is knowledge in all things, in all actions, in all places. Learn from all things. It may come from the mouth of a child as easily as from the wisest of men. Always listen, always learn: Knowledge is all around thee.

Knowledge is a painful thing, for it always bears a price. Accept the risk and pain, for life without risk or pain is not life.

Look not to the Lord God for direction; look not to Satan. Look, instead, to thine own self.

Live each day as if it were thy last day. Yet live it also as if it were not.

If thou wishest to die, then thou art dead already.

Thou art stronger than ye can ever know, search for the strength that wells within. It is there. It is waiting. And somewhere out there, someone needs you more than you can ever imagine.

Life and hope are one. Seek thy gifts and share them. It is for this reason that thou art truly here.

If thou wishest life in death, then ye must live in life.

That which ye can touch and hold and lose is of little importance. The greatest thing in life cannot be taken.

It comes to this: by design, the Race of Man is half man and half beast. Thou art not beings of reason, but, rather, beings capable of reason. There is much difference between the two. Exercise thy capabilities.

Thou art a being of free will. Ye may follow the instincts of the beast or the reason of the man. The choice has been forever yours. Yet know this: a life ruled by the beast shall lead thee to subjugation and destruction, for it is the beast that is in thrall to the Lord God.

For everything there is a time: a time to live, a time to die; a time for peace, a time for war; a time to create and a time to destroy. Learn to tell time.

The flesh is a vessel, a conduit to the immortal. If thou learnest from thy travels, the destination is assured.

It is in thy nature to take the familiar for granted. Strive against this. Question always, question often, in this shall ye keep what is most important. The price for thine immortal soul is constant vigilance.

Seek to understand the unknown. Expand thy thoughts and seek out knowledge, for in this shall ye become as One in death.

The answers to all things are always within thy grasp. Ye carry within thee all that is needed to comprehend the infinite. And it is waiting for thee to find it.

He who knows himself knows others, for a piece of ourselves dwells within every other.

If ye have not known hate, pain, greed and cowardice then thou hast not known love, pleasure, generosity and courage—for they are all degrees of the same ideal. Accept both the good and the bad within thee, for there is no separating the two. Without one, the other has no meaning.

Until life has given thee its worst, thou hast not been at thy best.

All has been brought to bear against thee. Thine instincts were bred into thee; thy laws created for they could not be kept. Question all, for this is the path to Oneness. Heed not the beliefs, laws and actions of others unless they suit thee. And be prepared to die for this.

Fear of the Lord is the end of Knowledge and of Reason, and these two pursuits are the keys that shall free thy soul. If ye sacrifice these philosophies, then ye shall cease to grow in spirit. And there shall be no life in death.

taken from here

Auf der Maur: Followed the Waves

sweeney todd rocks!

yes, it's a tube amp. great clean channel, very pedal-friendly. the lead channel is so-so, but i can get a good sound if i put my MXR ZW-44 OD to add more tonal character to it. too bad my Boss OD-3 doesn't do much help in the lead channel, which means i have to get another Zakk Wylde OD to replace it..

anyhoo, why two amps?

i use the ValveKing as my heavy rhythm / lead channel, and i use my Studio Pro 112 as my clean / acoustic or crunch channel. this means i'll have to update my board soon..

family pic:

new stuff: VOX 847 Wah

the verdict? this baby is shiny!!! compared with my Dunlap GCB-95, the Vox 847 has more tonal sweep. it's a bit straining to my heel though. it has a grittier 'wah' sound than the GCB-95, which, is nice when i'm using my dirt channel, but sucks big time when i'm using my clean channel or my 'acoustic' channel.

the only thing i don't like about the Vox 847 is that it does not have a DC jack, meaning i can only use batteries on it. i guess this wah goes to my pedal board number 2...

enjoy.

new look.

cuz i'm bored.

one of the latest videos of one of my guitar heroes:

nice little devil i have here. gives me a marshall tone whatever amp i use. it's a bit dirtier than my Boss OD-3, but i don't have any qualms about it.

so, what's the difference between the OD3 and the ZW-44?

the OD3 is a very transparent OD that kicks my clean channel dirty without messing with my amp's/distortion pedal's sound. it's great for blues and jazz, but it kinda lacks a bit of teeth for heavier songs (e.i. SPF, Song4, Hemlock..).

now, the ZW-44 is a monster on its own. it sounds very similar to a marshall shredmaster distortion pedal with a low gain setting or with your guitar's volume knob rollede down (but your shredmaster's gain setting up full). you can barely hear the difference between the two. in fact, in the last MaHaSa band practice, i kept on using the ZW-44 as my main dirt pedal and just used the shredmaster for boosts - and the boys didn't even notice. oh yeah, did i already say that it makes you sound like you're using a cranked-up marshall plexi? combined with the Marshall Shredmaster, this set-up makes you sound like you're using a cranked-up marshall JCM.

i don't play metal, but the ZW-44 makes a good boost and od pedal for our songs - which mostly boarders on classic rock - blues - prog.

pics:

 

new stuff:

Ibanez RG-370DX

just bought a new guitar, the Ibanez RG-370DX. it has these cool specs:

neck type            3pc Wizard II neck
body                   Basswood body
fret                      Jumbo frets
bridge                 Edge III bridge
neck pu               INF3 (H) neck pu
middle pu            INFS3 (S) mid pu
bridge pu            INF4 (H) bridge pu

well, the Edge III bridge gives me a bit of a headache.. i'm really not fond of floating bridges that much, but hey, why should i buy another fixed bridge guitar? might as well buy something different this time.

as expected from Ibanez guitars, the RG-370DX plays like butter - even if i still have to have it properly set-up! found some use for it for MaHaSa, so i guess i might retire my Ibanez ARC-300DVS soon. now, what's a good name for this guitar...

oh yeah, did i mention it was black?

MXR Phase 90

cool pedal. my current favorite. can do a lot of cool phasing sounds, and it only has one knob - my simplest pedal yet. i prefer this phaser than the boss models. it's more clear, has a lushier sound, and it has a hint of volume/gain boost when you turn it on. and it's orange!!!

will prolly be put in my back-up board, as i have no more space on my main board.

next up: a new wah pedal, prolly another Dunlop GCB-95, and a channel selector for my pedal board.

just changed the stock bridge pickup of my Ibanez ARC-300DVS to the Dimarzio FRED pickup.

the sound is just right for my music - tame, classic, very responsive, and it has a lot if mids. my effects respond very well to it, specially my wah pedal. in contrast to the stock Ibanez ACH pickups that has a sort of compression on it everytime you pick, the Dimarzio FRED only does it when you want it to, allowing me to produce the sound that i always want only when i want. when doing solos, the notes are more whole, and FRED's got longer sustain. oh yeah, my violin bow sounds great on it too!

here's the tech talk straight from the Dimarzio website:

Wiring: 4 conductor

Magnet: Alnico 5

Output: 305

DC Resistance: 10.07

Sound (volume/output):

   Treble: 5.5 out of 10

   Mid: 6 out of 10

   Bass: 5 out of 10

We designed FRED® to bump the mid-range of the PAF Pro® EQ up a notch, but in the process, something unusual happened. Harmonics that humbuckers usually don't reproduce started popping out, particularly with overdriven amps and distortion units. FRED® has about the same power as the PAF Pro®, but the unusual overtones create a sound with more crank and growl. Joe Satriani was the first player to discover and exploit these qualities, and it's been his main bridge pickup ever since. FRED® is really sensitive to changes in pick attack and control settings, and its distinctive tone makes a great recorded sound for both penetrating solos and tight rhythm tracks.

Tech Talk: The Fred® started out as a prototype designed to add a little midrange to the PAF Pro®. When we sent one of the first ones to Joe Satriani, he discovered and exploited a unique tonal characteristic - the Fred®'s ability to emphasize upper midrange and treble harmonics through an overdriven and distorted amp. Many standard humbuckers have a tendency to fatten up with distortion. The Fred® does the opposite; it gets tighter and brighter, much like a single-coil. Joe uses the Fred® strictly as a bridge pickup, but it's also a distinctive neck pickup - works really well with a Norton®, Tone Zone® or Evolution® bridge model.

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next upgrade: planning on buying a new power supply, a boss ac-2 or ac-3, a boss tr-2, and maybe a new wah pedal. or maybe a new guitar.