When The greats Change Their Tone

[Gutsy SG]

Clapton left his famous Les Paul and SG tones of Cream for the Strat tone.

Iommi left his early Sabbath vintage tone for his modern day over-distorted shredder tone.

Santana left his vintage SG tone for his modern tone.

There are lots of others.

I don't understand why the greats so often forsake great vintage signature tones. Not that all their more modern tones are bad but in my opinion most all the earlier tones are better and have more character. Is it just me or do some of you feel the same?

I know there must be a few that have improved their tone over the years but I can't think of any right now.

 

[texasguitarslinger]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

I hate EVH's new tone... just ain't the brown sound I grew up on. :blackeye:

 

[danglybanger]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

that's why I don't want to get old... Clapton was the coolest guy in the world before he got all middle aged and boring. Still a good guitar player though, but nothing compares to his early gibson tones... and he seemed to be more creative back then.
dan

 

[Mincer]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Steve Howe, in the 90s and early 00's had a terrible thin tone- it is getting better now, but not nearly as good as it ws in the 70s.

 

[aleclee]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

IMO, a lot of older rockers' tone goes downhill 'cause their hearing is shot.

That said, nostalgia and habituation can do strange things to our perception of older tones. Old Santana sounds more like Santana to us 'cause we associated that tone with him 30 years ago and have been listening to Europa ever since.

 

[Nate]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

I still dig Michael Romeo's tone, even after he ditched his EMG's.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Jeff Beck had, still has and by the looks of thingsa will always have a killer tone...no to mention

Billy G
Steve Stevens
Prince
David Gilmore
our very own SW Duncan
just to name a few...but I will say that alot of them loose something after a while, and some of them just never had a good tone

 

[ankalar]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Beck's tone surely hasn't decreased in quality

 

[jimmy]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

I hated Dimebag's tone on The reinventing the steel and Damnageplan albums; It was just a bunch of fuzz and nothing like that huge, thick crunch he once had. :wrf:

 

[Mike M.]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

It's called experimentation. I guess they change their tones because it's like anything else in life where to much of the same thing gets boring after a while.

 

[chcjunior]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

I hate EVH's new tone... just ain't the brown sound I grew up on. :blackeye:

No doubt. Eddie's tone sounds like A$$ these days....IMO.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

A part of me thinks producers are nothing but vibe killers. More than anything, I wish guitar players were responsible for their tone, and bands were responsible for the sound that makes it to their albums. Forget the techs, the producers, and the newfound endorsement deals of trash, let players put their soul to tape.
Most band's best work is the first three albums....after that, it's tampered with in a negative way.

 

[texasguitarslinger]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

A part of me thinks producers are nothing but vibe killers. More than anything, I wish guitar players were responsible for their tone, and bands were responsible for the sound that makes it to their albums. Forget the techs, the producers, and the newfound endorsement deals of trash, let players put their soul to tape.
Most band's best work is the first three albums....after that, it's tampered with in a negative way.

+1

 

[Guitarist]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Satch has always kept me satisfied and dying for more.

 

[fenderiarhs]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

guitarists when it comes to equipment and sound are (with some exceptions of course) pretty conservative and always think the older as the better....................i think many guitarists have improved their tone since their early days( santana is one of them)

 

[y2stevo]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

A part of me thinks producers are nothing but vibe killers. More than anything, I wish guitar players were responsible for their tone, and bands were responsible for the sound that makes it to their albums. Forget the techs, the producers, and the newfound endorsement deals of trash, let players put their soul to tape.
Most band's best work is the first three albums....after that, it's tampered with in a negative way.

Thats possibly the only explination , along with the hearing loss part.. Clapton went on to more acoustic things in the 90's mainly because of the titinitus (SP?) and im sure theres hundreads of guitar greats for the earlier days when it was cool to blast a 100watt marshall without any hearing protection in a small room have a good bit of hearing loss, mabye to them alot of their tones are the same..

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Clapton switched to a Strat because he really needed to become a better rythym player and more complete guitarist. He lost his killer lead tone but gained a much better rythym tone. And if you think about it, we spend 95% of our time in a song playing rythym...not soloing. I play Strats and Teles for the same reason. I hate the muddier tone I get playing rythym on a neck humbucker...but I love playing lead with a humbucker.

I think Clapton also felt his humbucker tone had become a cliche...everybody copied it.

To me Clapton invented modern guitar tone. He was the first guy to plug a humbucker into a Marshall, crank it up, and get the tone that inspired EVH to do exactly the same thing. Even Eddie says that's true.

Lew

 

[DanteG]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

Add to the list Mark Knofler ... I was in love with his out-of-phase/Amos Garrett strat tone. Now, he uses boutique guitars ...and his tone has lost something.

 

[ankalar]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

I hate the muddier tone I get playing rythym on a neck humbucker...but I love playing lead with a humbucker.

That's why you play rhythm with the bridge pickup

 

[ledzepp29]

Re: When The greats Change Their Tone

haha true, but I have to say I'm a sucker for that smooth neck pickup strat rhythm tone...I think when clapton switched from humbuckers he downgraded over everything, he could of at least switched frequently between the two