20 Problems Only Guitarists Will Understand

3. Famous Posers

Being a guitarist comes in and out of being fashionable and famous people will hop on any fashion quicker than you can throw a Chanel handbag at a crowd of women in a shopping centre. One of the current trends is for famous people to pose for pictures with guitars draped around their necks (often incorrectly) and pretend like they know how to hold it. That in itself isn't so bad, but the big one is when you have people held on a pedestal because they've appeared on stage with a guitar AND IT'S NOT EVEN PLUGGED IN! It's enough to make the blood boil and bile rise, which leads us on to the next entry.

2. That Annoying Hum

There are few things more annoying to a guitarist than an unexplained source of interference causing hum through an amp. Guitarists can spend a fortune on noiseless pickups, shielded cabling, noise gates and all manner of other gizmos and doodads to try and keep their sound free of hum and noise. It's an endless war against electrical and magnetic interference and players always seem to be on the loosing end of it. Having the perfect, noise-free set up at home is bliss, but rage soon sets in when you're in the practice room or soundcheck and that familiar buzzing noise comes from your amp, signalling the start of half an hour's worth of troubleshooting and the eventual realisation that there's nothing you can do about it.

1. Hovering Guitar Store Staff

The absolute one thing that is guaranteed to drive any guitarist to their absolute wit's end, is testing a new guitar in a shop. Not only are you using a guitar that hasn't been set up, through an amp that you're not likely to be familiar with - and there's usually while some kid is bashing out three chords on a cheap knock off at full volume - but the staff of the store will hover around you like a demented fly, keeping an eye to make sure that you don't damage their precious stock. Worse though, some stores will demand you take off ANYTHING that could have the even slightest potential of scratching an instrument, all rings must come off, that unzipped hoodie must go, take off any necklaces or pendants, just in case and the absolute worst, make sure that your belt is either off or covered up. No one wants to take their belt off to try a £300 Ibanez in a shop, it's just insanity. It's fair enough for them to hover if you're trying some £3000 one-off custom model but a mass produced model that everyone and their dog has? Madness, utter madness. Which problems have you fellow six-stringers come across over the years? Let us know in the comments!