This kinda implies that you can get the same high gain sounds from pretty much any guitar and pickup combo if you set your amp right, and honestly that's not the case. Some little differences disappear with a lot of distortion in a band mix; other little differences matter even more that they would otherwise because of all the compression and masking going on. I am all for "shutting up and playing the dang thing" as you put it recently, but it's easier to shut up and play when you're not fighting your instrument. I guess the important thing is to recognize when you've got it right and stop tweaking.
Pickup - wood combinations. Do they matter?
- Thread starter Rex_Rocker
- Start date
This kinda implies that you can get the same high gain sounds from pretty much any guitar and pickup combo if you set your amp right, and honestly that's not the case. Some little differences disappear with a lot of distortion in a band mix; other little differences matter even more that they would otherwise because of all the compression and masking going on. I am all for "shutting up and playing the dang thing" as you put it recently, but it's easier to shut up and play when you're not fighting your instrument. I guess the important thing is to recognize when you've got it right and stop tweaking.
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
I mean, you could play heavy metal on a vintage Strat and most of the audience wouldn't be bothered, but on the other hand I know for a fact it would drive me and the rest of my band up the wall. And if I'm playing an entire set, as you put it, fighting my instrument, the final product will be much less than what it could have been. This of course is an exaggerated case, but the idea stands.
beaubrummels
Well-known member
I think part of the problem there is the microphone and recording chain is masking out some of the details that you would have heard if you were in the room with it. Even moreso if you had the guitar in hand and were playing it. Some of the differences are the dynamics and feel, e.g. how hard or light you can strike the strings to get a particular level of clean, grit, or gain out of it, more than just the EQ of the sound.
ehdwuld
A Ficus
But doesnt that go back to the way it feels in your hands?
how it sits on the strap?
I understand what you're saying
But if its all
"Feel"
Then wouldn't what I posted be correct as well?
Symantecs i know
beaubrummels
Well-known member
I'm not saying anything you posted isn't correct. I'm just saying that with all that gain making the pickups sound alike in clips, there are still some other aspects that make the pickups different that just doesn't come through in clips.
RanchManSandy
New member
If the sound of these moderate output pickups is so overwhelming to the wood sound..... that just kinda proves how insignificant the wood is, right? I compared a DI recording of the guitar with the new neck directly to the DI recording with the old one of the same part of a song, for what it's worth. It was pretty definitive.
By "definitive" I presume (since you didn't actually say so) you mean they sounded the same?
Yes, I totally agree. The wood in a guitar really has very little effect on the tone of a guitar COMPARED to the effect that the pup has. Did I say anything other than this, any time, any where?
I'm NOT saying, (nor ever have said), that the type of wood has NO affect on the tone, it's just small compared to pups and amp and speakers.
In your case, the change of the woods in the neck had very little influence over the tone created by your pup, amp, and speakers.
That's pretty much right on. Keep in mind that those are not necessarily evenly spaced. Some of those are very close to each other as far as their impact is concerned. But, yes, that's about how I see it too.
ehdwuld
A Ficus
the strings being old or new has an effect on the sound as well
unless you use Elixar coated strings those are dead out of the package
comparisons in general are difficult to quantify
if you are comparing a necks today
the same guitar
same pickups
same strings
same time of day
same performance
same body position
there is so much that can vary and all of it must be taken into account
but if you changed from maple to wenge then I could see a difference, no doubt
ok seriously
I just wanted to make a dig at Elixar strings
I hate them
That's the experience I've had with them too. Actually, there is NOTHING that I even liked a little bit about them!
I don't mind giving them a dig also.
marcello252
Well-known member
take a fresh set of strings, rinse your hands in butter and oil, rub them extensively to the strings, wait, next time you'll pick the guitar that's the elixir sound
RanchManSandy
New member
I mean... that's exactly what I said in my original post, so congrats on following along.
RanchManSandy
New member
yeah I used the same set of strings, which had been changed a day before I changed the necks. I did a few takes of a riff with the old one and a couple with the new neck. New York XLs, if you must know. A day and less than a couple hours of play time isn't going to make enough of a difference in this situation, so please turn down the pendant-o-meter lmao. would a spectrum analyzer show some extremely minute differences in the EQ? sure, probably, but nothing significant enough for human ears
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
Guitar hardware is greatly over emphasized in it's ability to affect an audiences enjoyment of a show or recording.
Driver Blues
New member
I feel America especially, but a lot of the rest world too, has an increase in emphasis on ownership. One of those things is we allow ourselves to be convinced that we NEED the highest quality equipment available to a good job. With music the professionals use only the best and greatest equipment, so if you want a shot to be great you need to use it too.
In reality no, you don't need a rare wood that grows only in the north of Brazil to get a good sound. The cheap wood works just as good.
In the end which guitar will sound better? The 1 of 1 PRS made of African Blackwood in the hands of someone who spends their days arguing tone wood on the internet, or the 1 of 10000 POS made of sawdust in the hands of the kid that plays for hours a day for no reason other than love of the sport?
You guys best get yourself in line and don't make me come down here and talk to you again
In reality no, you don't need a rare wood that grows only in the north of Brazil to get a good sound. The cheap wood works just as good.
In the end which guitar will sound better? The 1 of 1 PRS made of African Blackwood in the hands of someone who spends their days arguing tone wood on the internet, or the 1 of 10000 POS made of sawdust in the hands of the kid that plays for hours a day for no reason other than love of the sport?
You guys best get yourself in line and don't make me come down here and talk to you again
There are differences apparent in the room as Beau says, but even more so in the full band mix in the room or on a loud stage. Distortion does cover up a lot, and that's why some of those tiny cork sniffing details matter so much. Little differences in pick attack will make the difference in being able to hear the front of your notes clearly or not. The way a pickup handles the high and low end might translate into mud or harshness that you can't dial out without losing something essential. All in the context of the other instruments. Can you get by, well, usually, but if you're trying to play metal or hardcore or something with a lot of distortion and you want it to sound as good as possible, especially in crappy rehearsal rooms and small venues, it matters. The differences in isolation are small and kind of academic, and you can nudge stuff however you need to in a recording, but I've had guitar/pickup combos that basically disappeared in a live setting until all of a sudden they were too loud, and others that just sounded "right" in a range of settings without much fuss. It's worth chasing the right sound if you have an idea of what the right sound is and what you're gonna do with it.
Where I agree with you and Chistopher is that it's really easy to just nitpick details in isolation and get hooked on exploring constant change. Which is a fun hobby if you have the money for it, I guess.
I think everything matters to an extent, but I prefer to focus on the parts that I can change. If the sound is too far in one direction than I would like, all that concerns me is the things I can easily do to change it. Most of that time it's either my playing, the amp settings, or my pickups that change first.
Clint 55
OH THE DOUBLE THICK GLAZE!
For me, people yelling straw men at me that I don't need top end wood from the amazon, or the audience can't hear it, or tone is in the fingers, or to just play and adjust what you have - doesn't do it for me. I want to get my instrument as nice as I can within my budget and means. Because the quality sound and feeling of a nice instrument translates into the enjoyment I get when I play. That is one of the reasons I play. I don't play to play a pos and have it be legitimate because I play it hard. So stfu. I can spec out my instrument and have it nice if I fucking feel like it.
