There are a lot of different types of musicians--far too many to make a comprehensive list-- but for my purposes here there are three. There are gear-heads. They know everything about everything from the literal nuts and bolts to cables and software. These guys may or may not be great musicians but, in the studio at least, it doesn't matter. You could give them a potato, some wire and a bass string and they could record a symphony. They are the MacGyvers of music.

Next you have the super-musician types. They are laser focused on an instrument. They often do not know who the President is. They may be unaware of what year it is. Yet they know everything about their instrument (the clinical term for this is "monomaniac").

A third group consists of folks who are more writers of music than players or gear-heads. They may be able to play like Robert Johnson after he sold his soul (or not) but they usually are less than expert on gear, even the instrument they play. These are my people. They walk into music stores and they know they want something yet they can never figure out just what. Often they sneak out in embarrassment , buying a pack of guitar strings or a pick. The problem sometimes comes down to not even knowing the questions to ask but it originates in feeling awkward about asking dumb questions.

I know this pain.

Sometimes at Gearwire, I interview people who have designed innovative gear that I barely understand. I admit not understanding, and that is the key. Never be afraid of looking or sounding stupid. Admit it up front, and ask the dumb questions. While Gearwire tries to ask the dumb (and hopefully smart) gear questions for you, we won't be there when you need quiz the salesperson.

So what's the one question that you should always ask? The one that will save you from wasting your time and money on gear you don't need?

"Why do I need this product?"

Emphasize the word, "I." Of course, you should let the sales rep know what it is you do musically before you ask. There may be tons of reasons someone making techno needs a softsynth, plugin, or a related product; those reasons will mean nothing to a Norwegian death metal band.

If your sales rep cannot give a clear, quick and concise reason why you need the gear in question, they may not know the product any better than you do, they may not believe in the product, or they may and just want to make a sale. This doesn't mean you shouldn't buy at some point. It does mean you need to know more. The more gear you own but do not use, the more cluttered your musical domain, and the emptier your bank account.

And note that I am not referring to any type of product. For me, it might be software. For you it might be acoustic guitars. For some guy out on the street it might be effects pedals. Remember that one vital question and you will not buy the musical equivalent of an electric dog polisher.