So us old-timers remember a legend from this forum, that is now only whispered in the dark corners of the interweb . It is rumored he left on a sacred quest for the legendary gold singlecut Carvin . Others claim he drank of the cool-aid that is EVH . This much is certain his name is invoked only at the risk of random mayhem and mischief, yes I speak of the X-MANN!!!!

Well dear reader, I am hear to inform you that the lone axeman rides again!!! I had the honor and privilege of getting to listen to the evolution of the new alchemy that he has been stroking the fires of in the mystical X-cave and I can say your ears are in for a treat boys and girls!!

Mark your calendars, start saving your pennies and go buy this when it hits the Inter-webs at iTunes stores everywhere!!

wooohoooo!

Breaking news!! This captured by our intrepid paparazzi !!

X-Mann's secret is revealed!! he has started cloning himself to create those huge guitar sounds.

Here he (they?) is with his lab assistant Igorina, our listening equipment heard him saying something about showing her how to adjust a G-string!

I just got an e-mail from Hari (aka Rushian) to check out the 11R forum & I find THIS!!!!!!!

I need a minute to process this one & you're killing me smalls, killing me!

You could cut the tension here with a rusty bladed chainsaw on a stick.

Hey all you Eleven Rackers.........Whatzzzzz up?

So I've been working really hard on my 1st iTunes release & it's now completed.

The song is called "Turning Point" & it's the best thing I've ever done. I hired a Pro Drummer, Bass player & producer/mixing engineer to help me get it to the next level.

It's mixed & mastered & ALL Eleven Rack tones through & through!

It goes live on iTunes on May 1st & I'm very happy about all of this so far.

I'm working on a Pro Level video & much more.......Hari & a friend named Vaughn have been helping me, advising me & I really appreciate his enthusiasm here.

I used my Flamed Teal Carvin CT624 guitar w/ covered pickups for ALL the rythems & my Carvin Gold Top CS424 w/ a Floyd for all the melodies, leads & solos too.

The Eleven Rack still works like a champ for me & I'll share more as soon as it's ready.

I hope that all is well w/ everyone here.

Peace! X-Mann

PS - I've had some great advice & tips from my mentor & friend as well too!

Cool, I got a 25.00 I tunes gift card for easter from my lovely wife, count me in.... I retired the rack, but still like to see what's going on from time to time .... Zac

Thx Z!

Oh & you'll still have $24 bucks left to buy something else too!

I actually recorded ALL of the lead inputs to re-amp w/ the Axe Fx or a tube amp, but by the time we got to that I had already tweaked the 11R Rigs to perfection.

We did add some post EQ though.

Thanks again! X

Now that you hit the "BIG TIME" It's nice to see you can still hang here with the little people and now we know about your "Secret X Twinn" that eXplains allot of things!!!

May the Lord Bless your work my friend!!!

I'm actually here at least once or twice a week, but I don't have much to add that I haven't already said in my 3000+ posts here.

Ok.....My Evil Twin is here at least once a week that is!

X

WOW...that is SOOOOOOO cool X. I didnt know that you where doing this!?!?

Major congrates to ya bro.....cant wait to download it & check it out!

.

Thx Mikey!

Yea, I have a friend that just released his 1st CD (Fools Errand - "Beyond The Pale") & it was the "Turning Point" for me as far as inspiration goes. This push has really helped me finally do something that I've talked about doing for years now. Buying the Eleven Rack sparked a fire in me that created 28 X-Mann tunes & 10 different forum jam tunes. I narrowed that down to 3-tunes that I felt were worth totally re-doing. I re-arranged & re-wrote a new section, had live drums cut & then live bass as well. I used professional musicians that I paid for their services & brought in a producer to mix & tell me if I was off anywhere. Then I re-tracked each guitar to as close to perfection as I could. Then I wrote a new bridge section & all new solos as well. I kept telling myself that this 1st Pro Level release needs to be good & it needs to be loads of fun & capture my high energy spirit & love for guitar.

The results will go live very soon (aka May 1st) & I'm just finishing-up the itunes artwork along w/ waiting on a company to send me the final mastered track back. My producer Jim did master the track & it sounds great, but I want a seperate 2nd master track to a/b & pick from.

It's amazing to me what the re-recorded tracks & new melodies & solos sound like as well. I found a new level in my playing while trying to get near perfect itunes/pro quality. Please note that I'm not saying that this is a perfect track at all, I'm just saying that I've never focused on every single note, line, vibrato, tap, bend, double stop or slide this much in my life!!!!! What made it even harder was the fact that I played each verse, chorus or bridge solo section in 1-full pass. I wanted the flow of a complete thought w/ NO punch-ins. While this made for an easier task for the mixing team, it was a total P.I.T.A. For me, but the song is 1000x's better for it.

I'm ashamed to say that I finally mastered the re-amping technique & had never used that in the past at all. I captured the dry input of ALL the leads & it was just perfect for tweaking the leads Rigs in real time over the backing song. This helped me get much better tones that feel very tube ampish to me.

I'm only going to release the few tracks that really moved me 1st & then start on brand new ones. All money (if any) from sales on this single will fund the Pro Drummer & Bass player for the next single as well.

I just received a HD Go-Pro & am also working on a killer video for this as well as others.

A HUGE "Turning Point" Eleven Rack Thread is right around the corner & much, much more!!!!

Peace! X-Mann (aka Tim)

PS - My new 24-fret Carvin Greg Howe bolt guitar is in transit & being shipped to me as we speak. I need this guitar ASAP because I want it in the promotional material & videos for this Epic moment.

PSS - Rushian (aka Hari) is actually a 2nd producer on this as well! While Jim did all the mixing in his Studio, I hired Hari to be a 2nd set of ears. He pointed all kinds of little things that make this song so much better now too. Thx H!

PMS - While I currently estimate my iTunes sales to be in the neighborhood of around $53, I don't even care! This is all about the eXperience & the journey for me & it always will be!

PBS - If you want to follow the release of this ALL Eleven Rack & ALL Carvin guitars song or just like ALL things FUN/GUITARS/BEER & Music related talk & videos. Then check out XMANNROCKS on "The Instagram" or XMann.Music on "The FaceBook" too! \m/

Insanely jealous over the new axe. Just viewed it on facebook. With maybe a color change, that would be my next guitar if I had the funds.
Good luck on the release. Can't wait to pick it up.

Congrats and well done!

Thanks again guys!

I'm working on more itunes Art right now too!

"Turning Point" Update: I sent the final mix in to a Professional Mastering Studio today & will have the final product back in 3 to 4 days. I'm beyond excited & can't wait to release it. If all goes well, I'll continue on & keep doing more until I complete a full album/CD.

I've also been making great progress w/ the itunes Art work & the different software that I've been testing out & learning. Here's a few more trial runs.





I'll receive my new Greg Howe Carvin 24-Fret Bolt this Friday & I'll create a few more shots w/ that guitar too.

Again, I want to say "Thanks" to all the guys here for the kind words as well.

Peace! Tim

i like the last one best

Very cool & inspirational X!
I look forward to it

Hey, hey, Ray, Ray! What's up w/ you?

I hope all is going well & here's a link to a thread on all of this & MUCH MORE over at the Carvin Guitars forum too.

It's got a lot more details on this song, relase & the way it was recorded too.

http://carvinbbs.com/viewtopic.php?t=45051

Thanks for checking in!

X

Keeping on grinding bro!

Look what showed-up today at Studio-X!

At under 7-lbs this chambered Greg Howe Guitar w/ a 20" Fret Board radius is a total monster!

The New Kiesel GH24 bridge pickup sounds amazing & a new demo video will be completed very soon.

I'm going to try to do another itunes Art work piece w/ this new guitar as well.

Stay tuned, it's all about to happen in an Uber zzz BIG way boys!

& remember Orange is the new black!

X

WOW Bro THAT IS A SWEET AXE!!!! I Love that color.... how much did that bad boy set you back?

I got a killer deal on this one from Jeff!

The standard Greg Howe model goes for $1,599.99

X

Hi X-Mann!

Very nice gear, and congrats for your achievement!

a++
Bzerk.

Thx Bzerk!!! I'm almost done now & good things are right around the corner!

X

On a scale of 1-10, 6 being the highest - how do the new pickups compare to the standard Carvin pickups?
I called friday to try and get one of these pickups, and they said; No. But to call back in two or three months.
Nice Axe!!

The new GH bridge pickup is just stellar & a total 6 out of 6!

I live the C22's that Carvin makes, but this pickup is much more "Alive" & just has a very nice vibe to it!

I'm getting another one to try in my Gold Top CS too!

X

Awesome, not long ago I was playing your Youtube videos for the whole family and talking to my son about the Carvins. Love that Gold top a lot. He's working on an EP for his band with all Eleven Rack tones right now. Can't wait to hear your stuff, it's always been right up my alley & you got tone for miles & personality always a plus & comes through your playing too might I say. I've been going back and forth on straight Eleven Rack tones and the Ownhammer ones and the 11R is still pretty solid and you can definitely do what you need to do with it!

Thanks a lot Greg, it's always nice to hear these kinds of things, but when they come from a great player they mean even more.

I'll share a link to a Carvin thread that has A LOT more detail to the process on this song.

http://carvinbbs.com/viewtopic.php?t=45051

But......I'll tell you my goal & thought pattern here. While I know just enough to get good sounding demos & write lots of songs, licks & jams. I really wanted to understand the process for getting as PRO LEVEL a recording as I could. I selected one of my tracks that I felt was special. They're all good in some ways, but not all are special & have that something extra. I re-arranged the track & added a killer chord break down that goes into a new bridge section that I do an actual high energy solo of Epic Awesomeness over.

I then sent the song out with a click track to a Pro Level (Paid) drummer. We went through 2-revisions & it was good to go & this alone made my track 10x better if not more. Then it went with the new live drums to a local session Pro named Takashi iio who's played with everyone & been on the Ellen show. I asked him to do a bass solo over the walk out music that was to be fadded out in my original plan. His solo was SO good that I re-wrote the guitar parts at the end to do a solid ending.

Here's where I made some MAJOR progress!!!!!! While I'm a pretty clean player in the studio......I....um.....went crazy & only accepted perfection on my end of things. I re-recorded EVERY single backing guitar part & every single lead. I made sure that every verse melody & chorus shred section was one long take, even if that meant going 32-bars straight. This took me hours to do since the littlest slide, ping or bend could wreck a normally great take. This again makes this new track 10x better then anything I've EVER done to date.

I paid a friend named Jim Rawlings who owns his own studio to mix, master & produce this track too. The only thing he asked me to change playing wise was the 1st verse. He said that it didn't have the same vibe & feel as the rest of the song. I was kind of married to it, but trusted his ear & wrote a new one that I ended up liking even better. I raised my game playing wise & all this effort has really paid off.

Jim mixed all of this & spent a lot of time working with the drum & guitar parts & where they sit in the mix.

I also decided to have a seperate company (Disk Masters) do a Master as well. Their's is the one I chose & it just came back yesterday.

I've been creating itunes art work & shooting a HD video as well.

This is NOT about making money to me at all. I will NEVER get back the money that I've put into "Turning Point", but I will make enough to pay for the bass & drums on the next one!

This is a total "Bucket List" item for me & what I've learned on this is just PRICELESS to me. I did it, I created a high energy instrumental guitar song that is Pro Level iTunes quality. Having said all of this, I am going to do EVERYTHING in my power to market it & promote it. I have several cool things coming uo like a "Turning Point" give away & forum jam too!

The song was loaded to CD Baby last night and should be ready very soon.......So I'm ahead of schedule I think!

Stay tuned people.......X-Mann is coming back with a whole lot more Orange content.

Peace! X-Mann

PS - I also tracked the input signal on ALL of my lead work & re-amped over & over & over to get the tones right for me.

PSS - This is a MUCH improved version of what I've been trying to do for years now. My boys are very proud of me & that's all I really care about in the end. lol

PMS - I really think that the 11-Rack shines here in a very big way, but I've always been a huge fan of it! I've always been more about the composition, song & vibe........& the playing in the end too!

While the "Official" release of "Turning Point" is still a few days away, you can find it now on CD Baby for digital download.

ALL the guitar tones are from the Eleven Rack......& I think that it shows just how powerful this little Orange box of magic be.

"Turning point" is about that moment where YOU decide to make a change for the better.

It could be about your health & fitness, a relationship or about taking your passion to the next level.

I'd love to hear if any of you have had a "Turning Point" moment as well.

While I've had several in my life.....This one for me is ALL about the music & taking things to the next (or last) level.

I'm VERY PROUD of this & the response has been fantastic so far too!

Thanks fo the time & Peace! X-Mann

MAN(N)!!! I just paid my hard earned .99 and downloaded it (sorry, but I just couldn't wait until May 1...)

This is so beautiful and brilliant brother; I like this better than ANYTHING I have heard you play (and that's sayin' a lot man).

Guy's, I'm serious when I say this is a STEALLLLLLLL at .99, get it, listen to it, love it, and, if you're like me, feel free to hate our "X worthy" friend because he is just so doggone far above the mortal plain of guitarist I listen to or can ever hope to be......

Nothin' but respect brother!

Wow......Um......Wow.......I really love hearing this SO MUCH Str@man & THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!!!!!!

I've always dreamt of having a Pro level song that's professionally mixed, mastered & has Pro Players backing me.........& now I have that!

I'm SO glad that "Turning Point" is out in the World now! My sons just Love it & are SO proud of their dad.

The Carvin guys are really digging it & Jeff Kiesel even messaged me about it.

I put a lot of time, effort (& money) into creating this & now I'm working on a full album as well. The emotional payoff has really been fulfilling for me & I'm very thankful for the people who helped me, worked with me & advised me. It really did take a village on this one. Hari was a very powerful force here with his advice, thoughts & encouragement too. Thank you H, you SO Rock in my book!

This really is a a bucket list item that I'm very lucky to cross off now.

Your support means everything to me & oh yea....How good does the Eleven Rack sound? I'm using the standard cabs too!

X

This was a cool moment for me this morning too!

I think I bought the 1st digital download this morning!

I was told to verify that everything was correct & worked. When I loaded into my phone through iTunes & hit play, my art work showed up.

Way cool!

X

Hi X-Mann! Congrats for your single!

Just created a CD Baby account and bought your song. Couldn't download and listen to it yet since I am on my phone, but as soon as I can I'll take a listen!!

Cheers!!

How cool that it'll be played in Brazil Ping!!!! YOU ROCK MAN!!!! \m/

Please let me know what you think & thanks for checking it out!

I'll never make the money back that I put into this & only hope to make enough to pay the bass player & drummer for the next one.

I'm actually very proud of the 11R right now too! Way to go my Orange little buddy!

Here's a taste of my "Turning Point" release & the High Energy Solo from the bridge section. Check it out & if you like it, break into your piggy bank, take some pop cans back or dig into those couch cushions for 0.99 cents. I appreciate it & will use any profits to fund the next release.



Thank you & Peace! X-Mann \m/

PS - It's up on CD Baby right now & iTunes & Amazon are right around the corner too!

http://www.cdbaby.com/m/cd/xmann1

i just started the download and haven't heard a lick yet, but i know it will be awesome!

dang X! this is some of your best playing to date. so many influences mixed in there, it's a who's who of licks in that song. very smooth and melodic. overall awesome job!

Thanks a lot Ross!

I finally got one right & feel just great about what I created here. It taught me so much too.

Every section is a complete full take with no punch ins & sometimes that's 32-Bars at a time. I was very picky with ever single note, part, slide & neuance!

I know what it takes to create at this level & have my "X-Men" in place now! This team, order & over-all process is now established. I may even be able to do a songs a little cheaper (I hope) money wise too on the next one(s).

Thank you for buying "Turning Point" & taking the time to comment my friend!

Peace! Tim

X-Mann, just listened to "Turning Point" and really enjoyed the song, tone and, of course, your playing! It's indeed a pro recording and production!

Very dynamic song. That break at 3:00, and the solo, are awesome!!

You just proved that the Eleven Rack can be used to produce professional recordings!

Cheers!!

The Eleven Rack is SO WINNING people!

How cool is this?

"Turning Point" is the #1 song on CD Baby's instrumental Rock song chart right now!!!!!



I know that this means absolutley nothing at all, but it's just a cool/fun moment of playing pretend for me!

I also found out that this track will be released on iTunes by this Friday as well!

I appreciate all the kind words & any help keeping this track going/selling a little while longer too!

Thanks & Peace! Tim

PS - Andy Timmons is in the #6 & #7 spot too!

PSS - ALL the guitar tones on "Turning Point" are from the Eleven Rack!!!!! I've had a few people comment about the tone & they were shocked to find out what it was too!

Thank you for the positive review Ping, YOU ROCK SON!!!!!!

I just LOVE that the Eleven Rack was part of all of this too!

Peace! X

PS - There's a BIG "Turning Point" prize give away that starts this Friday over on my XMann.Music Facebook page too.

I will post more here & on my XMANNROCKS Instagram page as well as the Carvin Forum & Gear page.

X-Mann, Turning Point & the Eleven Rack are all in iTunes now people!!!!

Turning Point - Single by X-Mann
https://itun.es/us/UcSb7

What a cool moment & something I've dreamed of for years!

Peace! X

X-Mann's "Turning Point" Prize Giveaway starts today & ends on May 31st.

There will be 10-Winners & this is open to everyone! My Instagram & XMann.Music page, FaceBook friends & other forums as well.

The Prizes:
1) X's BIG Mystery Guitar Prize (w/ clues to follow) & you're going to want this one too!
2) A set of Carvin C22 pickups - Used, but just like new!
3) A Snark Guitar Tuner (I'm addicted to these things)
4) An iTunes Gift Card
5) X-Mann SWAG!!! A "Turning Point" t-shirt & more!
Winners 6 through 10 will get an 8 1/2 x 11 signed X-Mann "Turning Point" iTunes graphic poster & a special guitar pick

The Rules:
You have 3-ways to get entered into this drawing.
1) Buy "Turning Point" on Digital Download".
2) Share a link (iTunes, CD Baby, Google Play, etc) to this song on any social media page or Guitar forum
3) Post a "Turning Point" review on CD Baby, iTunes, Google Play or Amazon music

Please e-mail me AFTER at XMANNROCKS@outlook.com & tell me where you bought, shared & or posted a review about X-Mann's "Turning Point" single. Please be specific & detailed here so I know if your names only going in once or all 3-times.

Note: I do get notified of e-mail addresses when digital downloads are made, but I have no way of knowing who's who for the most part. Some e-mail addresses are actual names, but most are not. FYI

Each person can have their name entered up to 3-times if you complete each task.

On May 31st I will put all of the entries into a hat (or Guitar case) & record & post the winning names on my XMann.Music page. You will also be notified through e-mail as well.

This is a fun way to get my music heard & out into the world. I really appreciate your kind words, help & support here too.

Let the 2015 Summer "X" Games begin & may the odds be forever in your favor! 8)

Peace! X-Mann

***Prizes may change or be substituted, shipping can't cost me more than $5 per item & when contacted later, I will need your shipping address within 48-hours or your prize goes to someone else.
:mrgreen:

Wow. You should feel special. This is my first download of music ever. I had to download it twice to get it to save in a manner that I could open it, but I have successfully downloaded a tune. Yee-haw!!
And when I win the sweepstakes, I would be honored to have the pickups that created something like this. Rock on!!!

Congrats & "Thanks" for the download Wannabe!

I hope that you win something in my giveaway too!

Thanks again & make sure you e-mail me to get your name added to the drawing.

Peace! X

OK broseph, I just downloaded your tune....and I recognize some of that ooeeyyy gooeeyyy audio goodness!!!
I am glad to see that you worked this up and went "all in" with this killer straight flush tune!!!!

And what a killer transition at the 3:00 mark! EPIC bro, just EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm proud of ya bro!



.

R
Hey Mike,

I took my favorite 4 or 5 tunes out of the 30 I've written & my producer selected this tune. I added a new bride, cut out the Outro section & had it end where it all started.

I brought in a live drummer, then a pro level bass player & then re-recorded ALL the guitars! Every single track is brand new & I also re-wrote a 1st verse solo & the Epic bridge solo too.

I'm very proud of this & I'm working on an entire CD now due to how rewarding this all was.

I'll finish off at least 3-older tunes & I'm writing new ones & a keyboard track too.

Thanks for the kind words my friend! X

PS - I was going to re-do the song I wrote for you called "Gone" & it's the next tune that I'll record too! I just wanted my 1st single to be an upbeat tune w/ lots of twists & turns!

Sounds like you have a solid gameplan bro!
So lemme guess what's next for the recording of the cd....Ted Templeman coming in to produce with Billy Sheehan on bass & Mike Portnoy on drums.
Then I guess we'll see you on "That Metal Show" announcing your world tour, opening up for Neil Zaza!

It can happen bro! So dont forget us little peeps here. Keep it real and remember your roots!


.

Lol.......Um......Yea........That's not gonna happen my friend, but a boy can dream!

Nothings changed & I'm gonna just keep on Doin what I do......& just hope that people like it!

Thx Mike! X

Mike..This I could not Resist!!!! !!

LMFAO!!!!!!!

Thx Hari!

X

Here are the Prize WINNER results from my "Turning Point" iTunes giveaway!

Several Eleven Rack members here did win something & I'm very happy about that.

Please PM me your shipping address as soon as you can too!



Thank each & every one of you guys for the support & friendship! Tim (aka X)