tips on making single notes thicker

Re: tips on making single notes thicker

ehdwuld said:
umm
the signature pedal board may be the culprit

may be an ........ dang what was the name of that effect from the Amplifier room?......\

the one for long signal chains

dang it

you may need one of those

there was a video on how to make one in the thread

what was that called ?

............. dang
Click to expand...

I have two buffers in my chain though... both visual sound pedals have the pure tone Visual Sound buffer in them
 
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Re: tips on making single notes thicker

Did the guitar come from the factory like that? I mean, it might not affect the tone but if there's a grounding problem it should be pretty easy to sort out if you're handy with a soldering iron. Although, if it were a grounding problem I don't think it would just affect the tone of some strings and not others - it would be across the board.

When I asked that I was thinking more along the lines of string contact points - for example, maybe there's a burr in the string nut that's reducing the contact surface for the affected strings. Or, like someone said earlier, maybe it's low action + a slight bow in the neck that's affecting string vibration in that register.

Maybe it's the saddle material - I know I definitely prefer brass saddles for my unwound strings on both my strat and my jazzmaster, with steel saddles for the wound strings. Doesn't make a huge difference but it is noticeable. Maybe you could try replacing your top saddles with something softer, like graphite, which should absorb some of those high frequencies.

edit: Then again, I tend to approach EQ mechanically - for example I adjust where I'm plucking the strings, or the angle and velocity with which I'm plucking them, before I turn the EQ knobs on my amp. Looking now, I have treble 3/4 of the way up, mid's at half, and bass 1/4 of the way up - so I'm probably not the best guy to ask haha.
 
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Re: tips on making single notes thicker

Haha! thanks jimijames.. I'm goanna try raising the action because looking at the guitar earlier the action is super low.. no fret buzz or anything but like you said that might be causing some weird mojo with the string vibration. Not sure that is the problem though because I had this thin high note problem with a semi hollow I was using for awhile too, it was not as bad as it is with the Godin but that could just be the solid body vs semi hollow construction
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

SongsForTheDeaf said:
Haha! thanks jimijames.. I'm goanna try raising the action because looking at the guitar earlier the action is super low.. no fret buzz or anything but like you said that might be causing some weird mojo with the string vibration. Not sure that is the problem though because I had this thin high note problem with a semi hollow I was using for awhile too, it was not as bad as it is with the Godin but that could just be the solid body vs semi hollow construction
Click to expand...

Higher action might help but depends. Hit your strings as hard as you normally do and if they don't hit the frets then higher action isn't the problem. I think the EQ pedal would work for you.

Me I personally put enough bass on my amps EQ to make the cab resonate which in turn makes the high strings sound a bit more round and feel better under my fingers this sounds like what you might want as well. As for my mids I use enough mids to where they don't sound congested YES THEIR IS A SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH MIDS and it makes your clean tone suffer and can make you dirt sound muddled I like open sounding mids if that makes any sense not scooped but not too focused. For my tre I set enough that makes my tone bright enough with out going overboard but right on the edge because in a live situation It can make a great amount of difference and you can always dial some tre out by rolling down on the tone knob.

I think a small slapback Delay can help tremendously but has to be set up just right or it won't work effectively along with a hint of verb. For what you want the slap back has to be super close like another guitar player playing along with you. Using Delay properly is a art form and can make you sound great OR horrible.
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

SongsForTheDeaf said:
Haha! thanks jimijames.. I'm goanna try raising the action because looking at the guitar earlier the action is super low.. no fret buzz or anything but like you said that might be causing some weird mojo with the string vibration. Not sure that is the problem though because I had this thin high note problem with a semi hollow I was using for awhile too, it was not as bad as it is with the Godin but that could just be the solid body vs semi hollow construction
Click to expand...

Well, try looking at the points where the string contacts the guitar - the nut, the bridge, tuners, etc. If you've noticed it on more than one guitar I don't know what to say - while it is unusual that two guitars have a similar hardware issue it isn't impossible. If you aren't buzzing then the 'weird mojo' wouldn't be with the action I don't think. I bend a lot so my action isn't super low, but I wouldn't say it's very high either.

My sound doesn't have a lot of treble even though I play with the treble knob turned up (and two pedals with buffers that actually brighten the sound to my ears) so maybe if I played with a pick my sound would be super bright? I'm not sure - I've played with coins with good success. IME you can have a lot of treble without sounding 'bright' - as long as you attack the string right. Left hand technique is important too - you'll get a different sound if you hold the string in the middle vs. near the leading fret. Maybe you play 'bright' and that makes the wound strings sound awesome, at the detriment of the plain strings. I'm not saying it's the case but it is possible.

Most people don't like moving away from the pick but you don't really lose any speed - I mean, just look at Derek Trucks. He plays with his fingers and can tremolo pick with the best of them. I'm just saying it may be worth a try. But, do your thing man. I'm just here to offer suggestions.
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

Thanks I actually used to play with my fingers and converted to pick when I got into heavier music.. I would agree Derek Trucks is a fine example of a good finger player

to Rockstar216... I think an EQ might be worthwhile aswell... I just can't figure out why my signal is like this though... I think I might try the digital delay set to very short slapback tomorrow to see if that helps if that fails I will trade my Hardwire SC-2 on craigslist for an EQ so i'm not wasting money and getting rid of a pedal I don't use anymore...
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

zenmindbeginner said:
Are you coming on to me? Or is this some more of that golden Aussie humor of yours? Really brilliant... I'm touched.
Click to expand...
Maybe a little bit from column A, bit from column B ;)

OP, I thought of another tip that may help you. Try localizing the notes to a minimal fret number, so the string is longer. To clarify, instead of reaching all the way to the 20th fret for a note, substitute it for the same note that occurs much earlier up the neck on a higher string.

When they get high enough it's not like "thickness" is what you'd be after anyway because it'd be wailing like a banshee!
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

I don't think I could ever play 8's. I might use them for a fishing leader but outside of that I have no use for them. My guitars are all strung with D'Adarrios. I use 11's on electric and 13's on acoustics
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

thanks Beer$ I will try that !

And yeah I think .8s are loose but that does not mean you can't get a huge tone out of them look at Billy Gibbons and Queens Of the Stone Age.. I use .10s just because it feels sturdy enough but still has some flexibility
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

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Re: tips on making single notes thicker

ok so don't hate but I bought a Behringer 7 band EQ700 pedal ( a Boss GE-7 clone) for 45 bucks shipped on ebay. Now we play the waiting game..
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

I'm not reading all this but those citing BG and others as examples of how light strings can sound thick need to remember those guys are playing through huge racks of processors and PA equipment. You will NOT get the same results through a Marshall in the garage.

There's a bunch of variables here, action, vibrato/technique, picking technique, pole piece/height adjustment of the pickups, pickup selection, EQ, and yeah, string gauge.
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

King IzzO))) said:
I'm not reading all this but those citing BG and others as examples of how light strings can sound thick need to remember those guys are playing through huge racks of processors and PA equipment. You will NOT get the same results through a Marshall in the garage.

There's a bunch of variables here, action, vibrato/technique, picking technique, pole piece/height adjustment of the pickups, pickup selection, EQ, and yeah, string gauge.
Click to expand...

Yeah good point.... I don't think .8s would sound very thick in most scenarios to be honest... I have thought about going up to .11s or even .12s but I really like the feel of .10s at the moment but its for sure worth looking into
 
Re: tips on making single notes thicker

That sounds awesome with the .8 strings !! I actually got my Herco pick when I got my RAH pedal that has since been sold and I have used it since ... I don't understand why some users think it is a thin pick its quite thick IMO also that Naga Viper video is rockin!
 
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