Summer NAMM '99 in Review: Guitar Accessories

By Brett Ratner
ratocaster@harmony-central.com

August 9, 1999

On day three of NAMM, it started to get difficult to find new and interesting products. Fortunately, I came across some interesting effects and accessories well worth mentioning.

First off, it's fitting to find a revolutionary capo design in Nashville. Songwriters live and die by the "Farmer's Guide" as the old timers call them. The "Glider" is one of the coolest capo designs ever.

The Glider capo

The Glider encompasses two axles supporting a narrow rubber cylinder (fret side) and an hourglass-shaped rubber cylinder (for the back of the neck). The axles are connected by two springs, thus there is separate tension on the high strings and the low strings. Though the tension is not adjustable, Glider inventor Greg Bennett says many different strengths of springs were tested until the optimal one was found.

The springs apply a very light pressure to the strings - Bennett says slightly more than a human hand would. This is good for guitars since it doesn't pull the strings sharp like most capos do. The drawback is the Glider probably lacks the juice for 12-string use... unless the strings are really light and/or if the action is pretty low.

What makes the Glider a cool design is it rolls from fret to fret. As Bennett demonstrated on his acoustic guitar, you can easily change capo positions mid song. When you don't need a capo, you simply roll it over the nut. This would be excellent for someone that loses capos. With the Glider, you never have to take the capo off.

List price is $29.95. Call the Greg Bennett Co. at 888-222-9830 for more info.

A guitar with the TransPerformance installed.
(Click for a close-up)

At $2599 installed, one might consider the TransPerformance automatic tuning system a bit pricey. But to perform even a fraction of the mid-set tuning changes this thing can do in seconds, you'd need a roadie and a cartage company. In that sense, TransPerformance is a bargain.

Essentially, the unit consists of a series of electronic devices controlling a motorized bridge. The motors can change the pitch of a string at the rate of 1 step per second with a range of 9 half steps per string. There's 144 pre set tunings and 240 custom tunings... in other words, way more than any sane human would use. The patches can be controlled via the onboard keypad or with a footswitch.

The system is also smart in that it can compensate for capos or neck warpage and other nasties caused by heat and/or humidity. You can match the tuning to jam with that notoriously slow cassette player of yours. You can also adjust the rate of change to complement the tempo of a song... for mid-tune tuning changes.

A really cool feature is the "Touch-up" function. In between songs, turn the guitar's volume down, press the TCH button, strum all the strings and voila! You're in tune.

"The main advantage of the system is that you can utilize open tunings freely on stage," said product rep. David Beegle. "You can use multiple tunings per song, or utilize tuning changes as part of a composition."

The rear of a guitar with the TransPerformance system showing the electronics
(Click for a close-up)

While a Strat version is on its way, the system can currently be retrofitted in any Les Paul or Telecaster. Other guitars may be retrofitted as well, depending on their construction. Aside from the tuning advantages, the manufacturer claims the hardware adds sustain. I watched the product demonstrated, but did not play the instrument. Therefore, I cannot affirm or refute this claim of added sustain.

My main gripe about the thing is its appearance. While I can justify the big blocky bridge and locking nut, I wish the keypad was moved off the top of the guitar and placed by the readout screen (located on the side viewed by the player).

In either case, I'd probably not want TransPerformance hacking up my beloved Gold Top. I'd absolutely love to own a retrofitted Tele, though.

You can learn more about the TransPerformance system on their web site at www.selftuning.com.