blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
You kind of have a point there.
You kind of have a point there.
Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
- Thread starter Lewguitar
- Start date
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
I kinda knew that,but threw it out there..I know alot! :laugh2:
I kinda knew that,but threw it out there..I know alot! :laugh2:
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
Good point...Valid.
Good point...Valid.
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
What, you mean with wax build up, or all the hair that old men get in their ears?
What, you mean with wax build up, or all the hair that old men get in their ears?
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
:laugh2:
:laugh2:
uOpt
Something Cool
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
I had several cases where guitars (used ones) needed to settle in my house. They sounded very stuff and boxy right from the driveway and were better a couple weeks later. That was with recording, so not my ears.
I had several cases where guitars (used ones) needed to settle in my house. They sounded very stuff and boxy right from the driveway and were better a couple weeks later. That was with recording, so not my ears.
Ayrton
New member
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
This has always worked me (or what I look to hear). Sometimes you can take a guitar that may not have "it" unplugged, and put in a hotter pickup to get a satisfactory sound. I have sold guitars that I loved how they played or looked because I just could not get the sound I wanted out of them.
This has always worked me (or what I look to hear). Sometimes you can take a guitar that may not have "it" unplugged, and put in a hotter pickup to get a satisfactory sound. I have sold guitars that I loved how they played or looked because I just could not get the sound I wanted out of them.
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
My lil opinion.. Ive had a few electrics that sounded pretty dead accoustically and they werent much better plugged in. Most of my favorite guitars feel alive to me. They ring out strong accoustically and I can feel the bodies vibrate. My Burny LP is real heavy and so it doesnt have the alive feeling body, but it sure puts out the tone. And I had one electric that didnt sound like much unpluggged, sounded kinda plinky and fake, but it also sounded good plugged up, so go figure.. But most of my faves feel alive in the hands and ring loud and proud unplugged and even better plugged up. So, I have to lean towards that manor of thinking, but there are some exceptions.
My lil opinion.. Ive had a few electrics that sounded pretty dead accoustically and they werent much better plugged in. Most of my favorite guitars feel alive to me. They ring out strong accoustically and I can feel the bodies vibrate. My Burny LP is real heavy and so it doesnt have the alive feeling body, but it sure puts out the tone. And I had one electric that didnt sound like much unpluggged, sounded kinda plinky and fake, but it also sounded good plugged up, so go figure.. But most of my faves feel alive in the hands and ring loud and proud unplugged and even better plugged up. So, I have to lean towards that manor of thinking, but there are some exceptions.
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
I have graphite/ carbon fiber guitars that have little acoustic sound but are monsters plugged in. I am only going to ever perform or record with them plugged in, so that is the tone that interests me. Even acoustic guitars that I perform with are plugged in, so for those guitars, the plugged in sound is more important to me.
I have graphite/ carbon fiber guitars that have little acoustic sound but are monsters plugged in. I am only going to ever perform or record with them plugged in, so that is the tone that interests me. Even acoustic guitars that I perform with are plugged in, so for those guitars, the plugged in sound is more important to me.
crusty philtrum
Vintageologist
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
I care very much about how it resonates acoustically. I have always played electric guitar maybe 75-80% of the time without using any form of amplification, for the last forty years. (who needs to hear someone practicing scales and riffs for hours through an amplifier, not to mention practicing at 3 a.m. in proximity to other people?) Playing an electric acoustically has allowed me to become intimately familiar with every aspect of how the instrument responds in my hands before it reaches an amp, so that i know exactly what i'm sending down the cable to the electronics. That knowledge allows me to tailor the electronics to bring out the qualities of the instrument a lot better and a lot faster.
It also allows me to separate the functions and responses of the amp, the guitar and any effects, and my thoughts are that that allows me to get more, in total, from the gear. I can get more in depth with a lot less effort because i have a more detailed understanding of each part of the chain as individual units. Having the intimate knowledge of the guitar's response also can be very useful when using (for example) a borrowed amp, or a provided amp at a jam session, i.e. an unfamiliar amp.
Viewing the guitar/ pedals/ amp/ speakers as one sound-generating unit also works, and no doubt that's how may people play electric guitar all the time, maybe even 100% of their playing is done with the complete rig switched on. I'm sure that works quite well, but there would be limitations. For example, the rig sounds boomy or too toppy ... there could be several areas in the rig where that could stem from ... is it the guitar ? the amp ? some pedal setting ?
I'm sure many people use each method for many reasons, or simply because that's what they've always done and never given much thought to alternatives. But from my own journey, I can certainly say that I have never been 'goofing around' when playing unplugged ... in fact i'd say the opposite .... all my major advances in playing have come from working at stuff with the guitar unplugged. The better i can handle a guitar unplugged, the more in control i am when plugged in, and i sound better for it.
These are just my worthless opinions. The only thing i will say in my defense is that i can play my guitars into just about anything and always get good sounds because i know my instruments intimately, and a huge amount of that has come from playing them unplugged.
I care very much about how it resonates acoustically. I have always played electric guitar maybe 75-80% of the time without using any form of amplification, for the last forty years. (who needs to hear someone practicing scales and riffs for hours through an amplifier, not to mention practicing at 3 a.m. in proximity to other people?) Playing an electric acoustically has allowed me to become intimately familiar with every aspect of how the instrument responds in my hands before it reaches an amp, so that i know exactly what i'm sending down the cable to the electronics. That knowledge allows me to tailor the electronics to bring out the qualities of the instrument a lot better and a lot faster.
It also allows me to separate the functions and responses of the amp, the guitar and any effects, and my thoughts are that that allows me to get more, in total, from the gear. I can get more in depth with a lot less effort because i have a more detailed understanding of each part of the chain as individual units. Having the intimate knowledge of the guitar's response also can be very useful when using (for example) a borrowed amp, or a provided amp at a jam session, i.e. an unfamiliar amp.
Viewing the guitar/ pedals/ amp/ speakers as one sound-generating unit also works, and no doubt that's how may people play electric guitar all the time, maybe even 100% of their playing is done with the complete rig switched on. I'm sure that works quite well, but there would be limitations. For example, the rig sounds boomy or too toppy ... there could be several areas in the rig where that could stem from ... is it the guitar ? the amp ? some pedal setting ?
I'm sure many people use each method for many reasons, or simply because that's what they've always done and never given much thought to alternatives. But from my own journey, I can certainly say that I have never been 'goofing around' when playing unplugged ... in fact i'd say the opposite .... all my major advances in playing have come from working at stuff with the guitar unplugged. The better i can handle a guitar unplugged, the more in control i am when plugged in, and i sound better for it.
These are just my worthless opinions. The only thing i will say in my defense is that i can play my guitars into just about anything and always get good sounds because i know my instruments intimately, and a huge amount of that has come from playing them unplugged.
Re: Electric guitars need to sound good acoustically to sound good plugged in...
Well said Crusty! I really agree.. After years of being a gear slut, I see how important it is to have 1 or 2 guitars and fully learn the nuances of those axes, that way Im ready for anything. Plus, I see how many historical players had just a couple of axes and they could say anything thru them. im focusing on a couple of my faves, but have a hard time letting go of the others..
Well said Crusty! I really agree.. After years of being a gear slut, I see how important it is to have 1 or 2 guitars and fully learn the nuances of those axes, that way Im ready for anything. Plus, I see how many historical players had just a couple of axes and they could say anything thru them. im focusing on a couple of my faves, but have a hard time letting go of the others..
