General Tone Tips

[Redmist]

Friends don't let band members date crab infested groupies
(for the sake of good tone).

[Beer$]

+1 Took me ages to work this one out by myself back in the day.
Even better is to have a ^ eq curve before pre-amp, then bring back the v curve, post- pre.

That works pretty well. That's how Dime still got a cutting heavy tone with pretty much no mids on the amp. Can't say I am a fan of his tone though.

[xxxplorer]

Stop Going to forums and play your guitar! Lol...

[Frantic_Rock]

If you have noise problems with your pedal chain, or are encountering maintenance issues all the time - just go for a all-in-one multifx pedal such as the boss GT-8. A lot less hassle, than carrying pedals, cables and power supplies, and no noise. That is ofcourse if you like all the sounds it offers you. It has hundreds of programmable patches though. Something your pedals won't.

[theboatcandream]

If you have noise problems with your pedal chain, or are encountering maintenance issues all the time - just go for a all-in-one multifx pedal such as the boss GT-8. A lot less hassle, than carrying pedals, cables and power supplies, and no noise. That is ofcourse if you like all the sounds it offers you. It has hundreds of programmable patches though. Something your pedals won't.

But can it do an mxr. :P

[Frantic_Rock]

Probably not I also use a Keeley Ultra DS-1 instead of it's native distortion, and a Crybaby 535Q instead of the wah. But what are u gonna do... The delay, chorus, compression and other settings can come from the multifx though.

[grumptruck]

Got a strat?

In a tonal rut?

Install a blender pot

http://www.fralinpickups.com/images/blendschem2.jpg

This diagram is correct.
10= is bypass
0 = is full volume of whatever pickup you have selected according to your switch selection

Just add the pot to your the switch like the diagram.

I highly recommend it.

Warning don't just pop it in there without rewiring your guitar to reflect: 1 volume pot and 1 tone pot wiring. And you must use a Blender pot or a type of No-load pot.

You do not have to ground the Blender pot. (not sure the theory on that... I am not getting a bunch of noise so I guess I am good)

Fender no load pots are like normal pots but on 10 they have a click.

Fralin Pots are smooth like a normal pot... Just has a bypass at 10 with no click... They are nothing special but a normal CTS pot with finger nail polish on the inside around the area where 10 would normally be.

The next time I am in my guitar... I will put No-load in because I like the Click.

[richard parker]

If there's a sound guy/girl at your gig - talk to them, be friendly, tell them how you want to sound but don't be arrogant. Offer to buy them a beer - nobody buys the sound person a drink. If you're rude to them they're not going to care too much about your requirements so be nice. Remember - it's their rig and they want it to sound good, they want another gig too so work with them, it's in everyone's interest.

[Brett Valentine]

If you find you can't get a good tone or sustain without your compressor being constantly on, TURN IT OFF and turn up your amp's volume. You'll get the thicker tone, more sustain, and lot's of dynamics. Then you can use the compressor for that infinite sustain or chickin' pickin' or funk rhythm.

If you run a clean amp with pedals, you can turn down the gain because much of the thickness and the sustain will already be there clean.

[ES350]

"The left hand makes the virtuoso, but the right hand makes the artist"---Paganini.

[Vetteboy]

Back off that gain - you surely don't need it on 10 - and rejoice on how sloppy you actually play!

Time to practice a bit more on the clean channel!

It took me YEARS to realize this. So true! Even on the heaviest stuff I play the gain rarely goes above 6-7 these days, and it's still more than adequate.

The biggest thing I've been doing in the last year or two is minimizing equipment. I used to have a whole ton of pedals, stereo chorus/delay, all kinds of fancy crap. It was fun, complicated, flashy, and I thought it sounded 'huge'. But if you really just open the amp up and let it do its thing, you don't need a ton of effects to get a big sound - it's really just the opposite.

That's the biggest reason why I was so impressed with the Valve Junior...I spied it after lamenting over the lack of simple amps at a local store, without all the effects and stuff built-in. Being able to have such organic control over the sound really makes a difference instead of squashing it with stereo chorus on your 2x12 combo.

edit: same goes for recording. Almost everything I record is totally dry coming out of the amp, with the occasional exception for a classic tremolo/spring reverb. Add your delay and reverb later in the mix to really allow the guitar to stand out.

I also noticed a difference in clarity by simply changing picks. Going from a full-size normal pick to one of the little jazz picks really got rid of a lot of extraneous noise that I didn't even notice, but I can still dig in and get great attack when I want it.

[Brett Valentine]

If you use any pick in the standard "Fender" shape, learn to play the rounded corners as well as the pointy one. The rounded corners give you a smoother attack and a fuller, warmer tone.

[sonnyblu]

Don't forget to pee before you start the next set...

[Brett Valentine]

don't forget to pee before you start the next set...

++1!!

[caucajun]

if you like the sound you get from a cheap guitar, amp or pedal......it's ok to use them....however....the more of them you stack up......the more OOGE is going to end up in your sound.

whatever you DO skimp on........don't skimp on the cord.....spend the money.

[super rad stuff]

Throw your Metalzone in the trash

Throw your metalzone in the trash.

but i just got my metalzone!!!!

play with your tone and volume knobs as much as possible, your gear is alot more versatile than you might think if you don't.

also, try varying your pick attack and where you strum/pick to try and get different tones. that's helped out my playing more than anything else.

[KingMixer]

2. If you want to play "Blues" like Clapton, then you have to use a Strat with single coil pickups loaded flipped around like "Blacky". This is why Hendrix got his blues sound. He played left handed with a Strat strung upside down. They didn't make left handed Stats back then. Hendrix used alot of different Strats and they all basically sounded the same when he played them. Hendrix could have played a $50 guitar and made it sound good.

You could play some blues like clapton with a strat, but you definately don't need it. His best work was in his years using His SG, 335, and even and occasional Les Paul.

[Frantic_Rock]

Try tuning the low E quite a bit flat . This is because when you pick it hard - it will go sharper. (experiment. depends how hard u play)
Tune the A a little bit less flat, but still flat.
Tune the D EVER SO SLIGHTLY flat.

Tune the G - right on the money.
Tune the B - EVER SO SLIGHTLY sharp.
Tune the high E - a bit more sharp than the B

This is similar to the concept of "temperment" and will help your guitar stay in tune better with other instruments. Got this concept from EJ video. It works good. I always tune like this now. Never right on the money for all strings.

Its a pain to explain it to other guitar players you play with, who have no idea what you are talking about.

[nuntius]

"The left hand makes the virtuoso, but the right hand makes the artist"---Paganini.

That's a brilliant quote.

I'd argue that experimenting with picking dynamics and plectrums etc on a clean channel or, even better, an acoustic guitar will help you appreciate tone a lot. Tone is so affected by the attack of a player, hit your strings hard, then hit them soft - the tone changes quite a bit, and you don't even have to fiddle with your controls.

[StrangeSound]

That's a brilliant quote.

I'd argue that experimenting with picking dynamics and plectrums etc on a clean channel or, even better, an acoustic guitar will help you appreciate tone a lot. Tone is so affected by the attack of a player, hit your strings hard, then hit them soft - the tone changes quite a bit, and you don't even have to fiddle with your controls.

Hey Nun, great to see ya!

I agree with the quote, I'm very busy nowadays to get more control over the right hand and the coordination aswell, that's one long road for me.