chops/technique>all the gear in the world

[TIBrent]

My favorite ax I own is a Squier, & yeah, it's been modded to hell & back, but it is a damn fine piece of wood that has mojo for days. I think the point to anything in life is, enjoy what you do, enjoy what you do it with, enjoy how you do it. If you do it on the best of the best gear...sweet, if not, all the sweeter. Tone starts in dem' hands, if ya aint got chops on a $20 rig, you ain't gunna have them on a $20,000 rig...but, if you enjoy yourself far be it from me or anyone else to beat you down, all the more power to ya for livin' the dream. & personally, I'd rather suck on the 20k rig than the $20 one
-Brent

 

[Shawn Lutz]

To me it is a combination of the two. I think most of a players tone is from the player's soul, his/her technique and the way their pick attacks the strings. Good gear isn't going to make a crappy player or sound better. A good player will sound good on $3500 tube amp head or a $50 dollar solid state practice amp but he'll probable sound better to most on the better amp :0

 

[rottingcorpse]

I'd rather suck on the 20k rig than the $20 one
-Brent

sig worthy!!

a lot of players get comfortable at the skill level they achieved. i am one of these people. i am a mediocre player, at best. but tho i sound mediocre on mediocre gear, i sound much better on good gear. hell, it almost sounds like i can play.

yup, i spent enough money on gear to buy a new fancy sports car. but i get more enjoyment from plugging an awesome guitar into an awesome amp, and bashing out thrash riffs till the cops show up. i am under no illusions of fame and glory. i just wanna release my aggressions though my rig, at the skill lever i have....no need to become a master player. and i get more enjoyment from plugging into a herbert or pittbull than i do a peavey bandit.

what else would i spend my money on? art? did that. cars? did that. bikes? did that. travel? did that. women? did that. nothing gave me the satisfaction like sounding good.

 

['63-Strat]

Honestly, it's not *that* different than lots of women spending $$$$$ on clothes/makeup to look better when really many of them would probably look hotter in less expensive clothing/makeup if they spent some more time exercising and sticking to a healthy diet. Active fit woman showing off her hard-earned legs/butt in a short skirt is going to look better than a couch-potato red wine aficionado/guzzler in $$$$$ outfit. Likewise guys that put in their time on the instrument are going to sound better on a decent setup than guys who haven't on a $$$$$ OMG setup.

In both scenarios a little of both is probably your best bet

 

[chunktone]

If it REALLY didn't matter what a great player plays, or plays through, how come all the players(except Dimebag) that have been influential in any way, use good gear?

 

['63-Strat]

If it REALLY didn't matter what a great player plays, or plays through, how come all the players(except Dimebag) that have been influential in any way, use good gear?

I don't think Dimebag used "bad" gear, I think he used exactly what he wanted for the sound he wanted, personally.

 

[Zachman]

Not true at all and I tell you where I am headed with this.

I agree that a great player can make just about anything work... as shown in this video but the gear will make a difference for sure and there will always be people who can separate tone from technique.

Technique/Playing in that video = Great. Tone......Not so much. I'm sure that it was exactly the lo fi sound he was looking for but Id be willing to bet the tune would reach more people with a better sound.

Take that same composition and playing and have someone else dial in the sounds and the Impact of that tune would be infinitely better.

all in my opinion of course

100% Agree

 

[Zachman]

Alot of collectors out there that don't even play.

See: Rig-Talk.com

(sorry, had to....)

I think you mean the Gear Page...

 

[jlbaxe]

I had a friend who played during the 90's through an 80's Dean Markley 60w tube amp maybe 120w, Les Paul Recording guitar and an old Ibanez EU400 rack effects and had an awesome tone. No boutique stuff just pure jam'n soul.

That guys tones and gear were fine. He didn't seem to struggle with his amps/effects tone.

 

[Zachman]

Honestly, it's not *that* different than lots of women spending $$$$$ on clothes/makeup to look better when really many of them would probably look hotter in less expensive clothing/makeup if they spent some more time exercising and sticking to a healthy diet. Active fit woman showing off her hard-earned legs/butt in a short skirt is going to look better than a couch-potato red wine aficionado/guzzler in $$$$$ outfit. Likewise guys that put in their time on the instrument are going to sound better on a decent setup than guys who haven't on a $$$$$ OMG setup.

In both scenarios a little of both is probably your best bet

A M E N

 

[robertkoa]

Chops are a lot more common as well today-I think maybe you should factor in creativity and communication in there also.

And this guy had very good gear to get his point across, especially if you factor in the Video Quality and recording quality, editing etc.

I agree that "better to have great chops and great musical ability than to merely have great gear "is NOT breaking news.

Of course if you're a Music Store - better to just have great gear- not breaking news either.

And then if you do develop the chops and musical ability-we already had Beck, Page , and Hendrix 45 years ago, great 80s Rock and Metal 25 years ago, and Fusion since the 60s- so another question is how to come up with something cool or expressive that we haven't heard a hundred times before.....

The guy in the Video did a good job of that though ,IMO.

 

[just42dave]

i'm not discounting the need for good gear or being defensive
but at the end of the day i remember the song and the artist,not what stuff he or she used and I think this is the case with most non musicians-90% of the public just wants a cool tune and could care less about a 4000 dollar boutique amp or a 4000 dollar custom shop guitar with a recognized "cool" brand name attached to it.

obviously this is a gear forum so guys will talk about gear until the cows come home-great!
but for me one step before that is composition/technique/soul ,and that can't be bought,and for me is 10 times more important.

whipity frikin doooo?
what the hell point are you trying to make to a bunch of frikin gear whores that can all probably play very well except for that cats Tal Farlo tap harmonics

 

[Shawn Lutz]

Alot of collectors out there that don't even play.

See: Rig-Talk.com

(sorry, had to....)

I think you mean the Gear Page...

that is awesome

 

[Anonymous]

I'd rather suck on the 20k rig than the $20 one
-Brent

sig worthy!!

a lot of players get comfortable at the skill level they achieved. i am one of these people. i am a mediocre player, at best. but tho i sound mediocre on mediocre gear, i sound much better on good gear. hell, it almost sounds like i can play.

yup, i spent enough money on gear to buy a new fancy sports car. but i get more enjoyment from plugging an awesome guitar into an awesome amp, and bashing out thrash riffs till the cops show up. i am under no illusions of fame and glory. i just wanna release my aggressions though my rig, at the skill lever i have....no need to become a master player. and i get more enjoyment from plugging into a herbert or pittbull than i do a peavey bandit.

what else would i spend my money on? art? did that. cars? did that. bikes? did that. travel? did that. women? did that. nothing gave me the satisfaction like sounding good.

Talk about sig worthy! i coudn't have said this better myself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[blackba]

I think this one we can all agree upon.

Having time to play/practice > Not having time to play or being injured and unable to play.

 

[verderacer]

I'd rather suck on the 20k rig than the $20 one
-Brent

sig worthy!!

a lot of players get comfortable at the skill level they achieved. i am one of these people. i am a mediocre player, at best. but tho i sound mediocre on mediocre gear, i sound much better on good gear. hell, it almost sounds like i can play.

yup, i spent enough money on gear to buy a new fancy sports car. but i get more enjoyment from plugging an awesome guitar into an awesome amp, and bashing out thrash riffs till the cops show up. i am under no illusions of fame and glory. i just wanna release my aggressions though my rig, at the skill lever i have....no need to become a master player. and i get more enjoyment from plugging into a herbert or pittbull than i do a peavey bandit.

what else would i spend my money on? art? did that. cars? did that. bikes? did that. travel? did that. women? did that. nothing gave me the satisfaction like sounding good.

Talk about sig worthy! i coudn't have said this better myself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hear hear

 

[Jerome Allen]

Owning/collecting gear vs. making music is like comparing apples to steel wool. They're 2 completely different things. Some people are great gear collectors. Some people are great players. Some people are pretty good at both (lucky bastards).

 

[dwizted]

I'd rather suck on the 20k rig than the $20 one
-Brent

sig worthy!!

a lot of players get comfortable at the skill level they achieved. i am one of these people. i am a mediocre player, at best. but tho i sound mediocre on mediocre gear, i sound much better on good gear. hell, it almost sounds like i can play.

yup, i spent enough money on gear to buy a new fancy sports car. but i get more enjoyment from plugging an awesome guitar into an awesome amp, and bashing out thrash riffs till the cops show up. i am under no illusions of fame and glory. i just wanna release my aggressions though my rig, at the skill lever i have....no need to become a master player. and i get more enjoyment from plugging into a herbert or pittbull than i do a peavey ba

what else would i spend my money on? art? did that. cars? did that. bikes? did that. travel? did that. women? did that. nothing gave me the satisfaction like sounding good.

Amen Brotha....

 

[Heritage Softail]

And this complex chops, fretboard gymnastics thing is overrated..

Being good enough to play the music in your head on a rig that captures your tone in the end game.

Best example for me is Jerry Cantrell.

Nutshell. Rooster.

Awesome tone that is a wall of guitar grind. Perfection in when to play and when to pause.

But he doesn't do all the shit the guy in the video did? So he is not a great guitarist, or a gear collector with average skills?

 

[Rogue]

If it REALLY didn't matter what a great player plays, or plays through, how come all the players(except Dimebag) that have been influential in any way, use good gear?

They didn't. They defined good gear.