open tunings

Spider Capo

April 29th, 2010

The Spider Capo

Say goodbye to the same old capo that your Grandfather used and say hello to the future. Some accessories provide a creative spark to the songwriter; this one serves up a jolt of electricity that will be remembered for years. At some point in the future, someone will create a list of the greatest inventions for guitar players and the will be on that list. I fully expect to hear some amazing guitar pieces in the near future as guitarists take this to places their ears have only dreamed of. I play guitar and within 5 minutes of attaching this to my guitar, I was making sounds I never thought I could create. I can only imagine what someone with real talent can do!

Appearance
The Spider Capo looks more like a torture device than anything you would attach to your guitar but it’s simplicity makes it very intriguing. Two plastic clamps on both ends tightened with a knurled screw makes it easy to use and six individual fingers on a central shaft rotate down onto the strings to capo the strings.

Construction
The Spider Capo only has a couple of parts, the end pieces, the center shaft, the finger handles and the tightening knob. The plastic end pieces have leather pads to protect your guitar neck’s finish. One end piece is fixed and the other slides on the shaft to tighten on the neck. The center shaft is metal and is flat on one side to aid in locking down the plastic finger handles. The flat side on the shaft keeps the end pieces properly aligned. The finger handles can slide freely on the shaft to align with any string spacing. Finally, the metal knurled knob tightens the end pieces to hold the Spider Capo in place.

Operation
The Spider Capo works differently than a regular capo but after a minute or two of experimentation, operation becomes a snap. Unscrew the knob and slide the end pieces apart until it fits over the neck where you want to attach it. Rotate the finger handles so they are parallel to the neck and tighten the knob. Slide the finger handles over the strings and its ready to go. Simply rotate the finger handles to capo the string and you can fine tune them by the amount that you rotate the handles around.

The package comes with some sample tunings to get you started and there are also some videos on the manufacturers website to show you a few more tricks. The great thing about this capo is that you can play both above and below the capo so you can do things with this that were not possible before. The possibilities are unlimited!

It comes out of the package set up for a right handed guitar but if you are left handed all you have to do is unscrew the knob, remove the sliding end piece, remove the finger handles and turn them around.

Blurp
The Spider Capo is a 10 out of 10 in every category. Period. If you are a guitar player, you need this. At a list price of 39.99 and a street price of around 30.00 there is no reason not to have one. It’s like discovering a new instrument inside of your favorite guitar.

For more information check them out at their website SpiderCapo or you can purchase them at BoutiqueMusic.com.