Hi Mark, as a fellow THR amp user/enthusiast, I’m curious about this. I have had fleeting thoughts in the past about an interface like the scarlet, but never investigated properly, as I was able to find work-arounds with mobile phone recordings and Trio+ looper into pc.
What is the advantage of putting your THR through your scarlet, instead of just using the (printer-like) usb cable directly into the pc?
On a side issue, were you tempted to acquire any of the fun THR accessories (transmitter, Airstep YT)?
You’re obviously a man of good taste 
Hi Brian, contrary to popular belief I think flattery does got you somewhere 
I’ll caveat my approach by saying that I use Audacity as my DAW as I find it far simpler to use than anything else at the moment (I’ve installed Ableton Lite from a download code with with the 2i2 but my brain hurts using it!!).
With that in mind there were a couple of reasons, firstly with the USB connection from the THR to the PC I’ve found the occasional loss of signal when recording, despite trying a few different USB cables and inputs on my PC which got to be very frustrating. The second reason is Audacity can only take a single input source, so if I wanted to do play and do vocals it just wasn’t possible with the THR inputting via USB. Audacity will treat both channels of the 2i2 as a single input so by running the THR through that I can take advantage of the myriad tones / effects from it along with the microphone input.
I’ve not done any accessorising of the THR…yet I actually wasn’t aware of Airstep, that actually looks very cool, might need to do some research!!
Have a good one - Mark.
Today I decided to start making some progress with the Theory Course. That’s Grade 1 complete. It took me back to the days when I was at college. I preferred the tests after each module rather than one big exam after all the modules. I think it helps absorb all the information chunk by chunk. Next step Grade 2 this week.
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Well done!! 
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Good call I think it will pay you plenty of benefits
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Tuesday 22 March 2022
Finally, I plucked up the courage to record and post two AVOYPs.
Bad Moon Rising Cover
Sweet Home Alabama Beginner Cover
It was a very eye-opening experience, being able to analyse one’s own performance. There were quite a few things that I noted down from my observations to work on further.
Both songs I played using the Cort Gold A6. I was thinking of using the Trio Plus for a backing track for Bad Moon Rising, but still to experiment with using the Trio Plus with the DAW. Right now, I have only been using OBS.
Next on my to-do list is to record an AVOYP with the Hummingbird. I did attempt to do a one take with the Hummingbird today but made a rookie error. I forgot to hit the record button, and it was the best I’d ever played that song 
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I enjoyed your AVOYPs, James. You are progressing well.
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Thanks, David. That’s me 6 months into learning journey with Justin. It’s definitely an enjoyable experience and feel that I have learned a lot during those 6 months and come along way since I started. It’s been good to share my progress with the community whilst watching and supporting others in their development.
You are doing really well, James. I think relatively speaking to be sharing what you shared after 6 months is quite some progress.
Well said … that sums up what this Community is all about.
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I’m no expert on Ableton, but I’m not sure it would be my immediate recommendation for a DAW unless you were looking to use it for live looping performances.
In my (limited) experience Ableton is quite a lot more complex than most DAWs because it’s workflow is aimed more at that live usage.
It might be worth looking at other, more traditional, DAWs like Reaper, Ardour, Bitwig, Traction, etc.
There is, of course, a learning curve when it comes to understanding how a relatively complex tool like a DAW works, but learning a full DAW will, IMO, lead to simplifying your workflow and opening up options for you (like being able to record multiple tracks at the same time, which I didn’t realize Audacity didn’t support).
Having said that, when I occasionally use Audacity for something, it makes my head hurt. I think a lot of it is about familiarity with a tool/workflow more than anything else.
Cheers,
Keith
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31 March 2022
Times flying by learning the guitar. 6 months feels like several weeks. This month has been a constructive month. I’ve made progress with the F Barre Chord, Mini F Chord, the one Finger A Chord, and the weak finger G Chord. I’ve had lots of fun playing the La Bamba Rift, which I found a good exercise for picking two notes at once. I’ve enjoyed improvising on the C Major Scale and today used the Trio Plus to practice improvisation whilst continuing to familiarise myself with the pedal. I’ve posted two AVOYPs, which was a great learning experience.
This month coming I plan on having a further week on Module 10 to solidify the weak finger G Chord and one finger A chord. I also plan on studying the recent post @Richard_close2u made on improvisation to further my knowledge. Then, I will move on to Module 11, which I’m looking forward to very much. It’s going to be interesting to see how I get on with finger style.
The songs that I am currently working on include:
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Lay Lady Lay - this was a suggestion by @sairfingers to help work on the Bm Barre Chords transitions. I decided why not learn the full song.
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Fly Me To The Moon - time to let the crooner out of me, I do enjoy listening to Frank Sinatra. Another song playing on the bass to help solidify that technique.
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Three Little Birds - after all the recent AVOYP posts of this song I decided to go back to the song and progress it having gone through Grade 1. This time I’ve decided to play it with the thumb rather than pick which feels completely alien to me.
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Why Does It Always Rain On Me - this one is almost in the campfire list now. Just polishing off the barre chord transitions.
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Sweet Home Alabama - I’ve taken on board all the feedback and now consolidating all that feedback working with a Capo.
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Trouble - I decided that I needed to get some 6:8 songs under my belt. So started learning this one today.
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Dude I Totally Miss You - just polishing this one off now. It’s been a nice little song to learn. Maybe one day I could do the solos over it.
I was thinking of posting a progress video on learning log as I develop the songs but @DavidP will just move them to the AVOYP section so might just wait until they are fully baked and ready to serve 
As for GAS, I was in need of a new watch and I do love a metronome so got myself a soundbrenner Core. So far I’ve found it useful if I want to use a metronome but not have the noise audible when recording and not wanting to wear headphones when I’m playing.
Looking forward to a productive and musical April and maybe some more AVOYPs. I’ve got my birthday in just over a week so might start dropping some hints. Maybe Justin’s blues course or rhythm book.
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You are making good progress and look forward to more songs, James.
but seriously, I think there is a place for work-in-progress videos in Learning Logs, that would not be moved to AVOYP 
So don’t let me be the reason for not posting a progress update.
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Cool collection of songs you’re working on. Those soundbrenner metronomes looks awesome.
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Thanks Verity (@vg79), it’s an ever evolving list. Hopefully, when I get round to doing an AVOYP of them I make them sound cool.
Yes, the soundbrenner is quite a cool watch and a lot cheaper than an apple watch. I’ll give a proper review on my learning log of how good it is as a metronome once I’ve put it to a thorough test.
Hope all is going well with your learning. I’m looking forward to hearing some of the songs you’ve learned.
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Third AVOYP done (Three Little Birds Cover). I’m starting to feel more at ease with the red light. I think I played the guitar better in bad moon rising but felt my singing was better in three little birds.
I read a few posts where folk were saying that they preferred to play without a pick. I felt the complete opposite, my hand was missing the pick. Something to work on as I explore playing in different ways.
Today I watched the first couple of lessons of Module 11. I decided to split the module in two and add the sus chords to Module 10 practice as I continue to work on the one Finger A Chord and weak finger G Chord.
As for the fingerstyle section I’ve decided to work on those lessons in conjunction with Tommy Emmanuel’s free beginner lessons. Whether it pays off or not I will let you all be the judge when it comes to posting a fingerstyle AVOYP but I’m a long way from that.
This month is looking like a big month for development.
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As I find myself at the halfway point of Grade 2 I have had a sneak peak at the Grade 2 consolidation to start thinking about how I want to approach my consolidation and to set myself some goals for the four elements recommended by Justin that I need to explore before moving onto Grade 3.
Chords
For consolidation it will be a case of learning and recording songs that use those chord grips. Then analyzing the recordings to ensure that I have applied the chords correctly and that the notes are ringing out true and clear, and chord changes are smooth and on time. This is something that I believe that I have already started doing as I progress through Grade 2.
Scales
For consolidation of the 3 scales to explore I am thinking of using the looper on the Trio Plus to generate some backing tracks to spend time improvising scales. I feel this will benefit me with exploring the chord progressions and gaining experience in creating my own riffs. I may also purchase one of Justin’s Backing Track to improvise scales and work on reactive listening.
Strumming
I’m at the very end of Part 1 of the RUST Course and feel that have made some good progress on rhythm and strumming. For the Grade 2 consolidation period I plan on completing Part 2 of the course and practice applying the strumming techniques to songs.
Techniques
I know Justin says “don’t waste time on techniques you’ll never use!”. Thinking about what type of guitar player I want to become I feel its worthwhile consolidating all of the techniques covered in Grade 2. To consolidate the techniques I will apply them to songs, riffs and scale improvisation. I will record the performances to ensure that I am applying the techniques correctly.
During the consolidation period I am also going to start slowly working through Tommy Emmanuel’s Fingerstyle Milestones Course. Right now he has me working on palm muting to get that boom chick boom chick sound which I like and developing independence between the thumb and the fingers. I’ve incorporated the first of his exercises into my current practice session which ties in quite nicely with Justin’s finger picking exercise in Module 11.
I’m looking forward to learning the rock power chords in Module 12 and the blues material in Module 13. I’m open to some suggestions of taking these aspects to another level during my consolidation period for Grade 2.
Progress
I started Module 11 this week and so far it is going well.
I don’t think that I am going to have any issues with the sus chords as I have been learning a couple of songs prior to this module which use them.
My first steps in fingerstyle have been good, I have been learning one of my favorite songs Hallelujah. Surprisingly, I have been doing reasonably well with getting the F Chord to ring out but it’s going to take practice to get consistency. I need to keep working on F Chord Changes.
For the Happy Birthday Finger Style lesson I’ve been taking this slowly, breaking it down to learning two bars at a time. So far still working on memorizing the first two bars.
As for the dice song writing. I actually found some lyrics in an old notebook that I had written down decades ago. Back then when words/ideas came to me I’d write them down. I might just role a dice and see what comes out of it for a laugh.
Once you get to module 13 then I’d suggest recording the simple blues lead study, over a backing laid down in the Trio would be a great project to undertake as part of Grade 2.
Other than that you are organised, methodical, and disciplined hence making the great progress we have seen in AVOYP 
Great plans James!!! Interessting read.
Keep at it!! Well done nailing Halleluja. Its not easy to play F fingerstyled.
Please do throw the dice 
would love to hear the result further down the road.
Thanks, David 
That’s an excellent suggestion and a project that I will definitely undertake.
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Thanks Trond I thought it would be a good idea to work on a song with an F Chord when practicing fingerstyle to show and work on my weaknesses. I had a look at the various words/ideas that I had written down. Its interesting to see the different musical inspirations coming through. I’ll certainly throw the dice and see what I come up with. It ain’t going to be good but its all part of the development process.
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