Low impedance cords

[fishfryed]

I tried low capacitance cords for a while & after not being able to get a tone I like with them I came to understand after using an old high capacitance cord one day that the problem was the low capacitance cord. I realize that the low capacitance cord actually shifts the frequency of the signal to a higher frequency which actually ruins the tone for me. You have to realize that Hendrix, SRV, Clapton, Jimmy Page, & countless other great guitarest did not use these type cords. They used very high capacitance cords. A large number of the greatest guitar tones ever, were gotten with High capacitance cords. You have to also realize that all of the older amps & most of the newer modern amps were tweaked with using high capacitance cords. Now I believe a guitar that is dull sounding would beifit from a low capacitance cord, I quess. SRV & Hendrix used high capacitance cords on purpose. In fact they both would use the longest old type cords they could find. That's why Hendrix used those coiled cords because they were the highest capacitance cords made. Personally I think that low capacitance cords is just another gimick to sell something. They may work for others but not me. Ask yourself this question. Have you ever had an amp you could not get enough highs out of? And what does a low capacitance cord do?

 

[fishfryed]

Re: Low capacitance cords

Re: Low capacitance cords

sorry origianlly said impedance instead of correctly capacitance. Get the 2 mixed up sometimes.

 

[fishfryed]

Re: Low impedance cords

I do find that the low capacitance cords are good for patch cords. For the instrument cable I use some cheap $10 cables but I forget the name. I use to use the same Fender cable I believe. I remember liking the one I had. I will have to see if I can find some.

 

[fishfryed]

Re: Low impedance cords

I remebered the name of the cords I am using. Horizon - cheap! also Live Wire is good. To find the cord I like all I have to do is look for something cheap but has good plugs. I saw the fender koil cords. I am going to order one & check it out.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: Low impedance cords

I use Armored Cables or a wireless, for patch cables in my racks I buy a few feet of good cable and a couple of Neutrik plugs.

I got tired of stagedivers killing my cables a looooooooong time ago, hence the "armor or wireless" approach. Thankfully both also sound great

 

[Jackson Distortion]

Re: Low capacitance cords

Re: Low capacitance cords

Personally I think that low capacitance cords is just another gimick to sell something. They may work for others but not me. Ask yourself this question. Have you ever had an amp you could not get enough highs out of? And what does a low capacitance cord do?

"Capacitance is best thought of as an ingredient in the "voodoo" of guitar tone,...". That was from the May '08 issue of Guitar Player magazine. It was from an article entitled 'Fight Club', in their Gear section which was a roundup of 49 guitar cables (tested) at all price points. The sub-article entitled 'The Capacitance Factor', from which the previous quote was lifted, in part says, "...and the lower capacitance of the cable, the better it will be at passing the high's from you guitar." "So does this mean you should simply seek ot the lowest capacitance cable and buy it? Not necessarily. Cable capacitance is only part of the equation, and it's effect is influenced by the input impedance of the amp or effect your guitar is driving (the higher the input impedance, the more you may notice the effect), as well as the output impedance of your guitar (the lower the output impedance , the less you may notice the effect)." "...,so if you're a jazz guitarist who prefers a darker sound-or a rock player who just wants a more buttery distortion tone-then you may actually want to use cable that has a higher capacitance rating."

I know as a Metal player, whenever I go for a cable-even in my cable of choice-all things considered before purchase, the cable almost always seems to have lowered capacitance, and I always enjoy it. Tone tweaking for some people (like myself) isn't always, "Well, I need more highs-lemme just turn up the treble on my amp." If I want more highs, I look at my cable or pots first. I personally set my amplifier to the suggested settings, and then look into the guitar itself, it's accessories, and the cable.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: Low impedance cords

^^ very good point.

I start to look at the cables, effects, amp and such only when all of my guitars exhibit a common tonal character thet I dislike. If they all have the same problem, a global solution is in order. this could be a new cable, new favorite string brand or guage, new amp, whatever.

As a rule I don´t even look at my amp when switching guitars except to flip the standby switch.. each has their own vibe and perfect thing, but they´re all dialed in so as to really cash in on those qualities over my rig without any knob fiddling.

 

[fishfryed]

Re: Low impedance cords

Well most amps when the gain goes up so up the tone control become less effective & the tone controls tend to wash out & become of no consequence so this neccessarly would not be a condition to be concerend with with high gain use & I can see where this would be a advantage to a metal player, but to those who desire to be able to play with less distorton & just good old power tube overdrive & less preamp drive many things come in to play to effect the tone. A good blues, country, rock, or jazz tone needs to have just the right amount of mids, bass, treble, & presence & not just this but the particular frequency of the bass, mids, or treble can make quite a difference to those who play this way. That is why people like Hendrix, Clapton, Johnny Winter, Jimmy Page, & some othere are so identifiable by their tone. The second you here them you know who they are but not with so many others that play Metal. With cleaner slightly overdriven tones you can hear the subtle nuances of the individual & it is not just bending the string but the very subtle way a particular person bends a string or does vibro that is transposed forward. The character of the individual comes through & learning to play this way is a great talent in itself. You have to learn to talk with your guitar not just play riffs. SRV or Hendrix could sustain notes for great periods without tons of gain but only by using tones that let there individual style shine through. When you play with very little gain for a period of time you learn to control the tone & use your fingers to get sustain & great tone. When it comes to cleaner playing, very subtle tone differences make a great deal of difference to those who understand. From the tubes, speakers, cords, strings, picks, & so on contribute to the perfect tone for that individual. I learned something from what Jeff Beck said one time. He changes the frequncy of the guitars tone by simply turning down the tone control on his guitar & compensating buy ajusting the amps tone controls. If you ever watched SRV play notice he has tone controls on his guitar turned down to 7 or 8 . They get nice crisp highs without being icepicky & nice sounding bottom end.

 

[aleclee]

Re: Low impedance cords

More is not better. Neither is less. The only thing that's really better is better.

You can't measure tone with a multimeter.

 

[super rad stuff]

Re: Low impedance cords

You can't measure tone with a multimeter.

or an ear or two:wall:

 

[rashayritto]

Re: Low impedance cords

i use a 10 foot Evidence Lyric HG for my guitar. before that i was using a 20ft livewire and various cheapo cables before that.

what i notice with the evidence is that it is crazy transparent, resulting in more overall signal hitting my amp which i like. as a result my dirty tones are more muscular. the downside is i have to play twice as good since my rig is already pretty unforgiving...

also cleans sound fantastic, everything is really balanced