Tone is in the fingers/hands?

[stephen sawall]

I sound like me no matter what gear I use. But I definably have preferences in gear......
For me my Les Paul with JB in the bridge and THD Plexi Series One (easy my favorite JMP style amp) works best. The sound fits like a glove.

For more modern / vintage flavor sounds and a amp with a lot more versatility I like my Fryette Sig X. Most amps that do high gain do not cut in the mix all that great and/or are too compressed for a lot of things I do.

My THD Bivalve and Flexi 50 can cover the rest of my vintage flavor needs. The Bivalve is kind of like a hybrid of Hiwatt, Orange and Vox flavors. The Flexi is kind of a blend of vintage Marshall/vintage English crunch amps and Fender Tweed sounds. What tubes are used can change the sound, feel, point of break up, tonal balance, etc. These THD amps do not really sound like the other amps named .... but there are a lot of similarity's.

The other guitar I use a lot is my 1969 Stratocaster (original not reissue) with EMG David Gilmour.

Effects .... I could take or leave them, but I do like having my Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe and a Wa around. I do not use overdrives much but like stuff from the TS9 family.

I like using a full stack ..... it is a tone thing, not volume.

 

[Heritage Softail]

I sound like me no matter what gear I use. But I definably have preferences in gear......
For me my Les Paul with JB in the bridge and THD Plexi Series One (easy my favorite JMP style amp) works best. The sound fits like a glove.

For more modern / vintage flavor sounds and a amp with a lot more versatility I like my Fryette Sig X. Most amps that do high gain do not cut in the mix all that great and/or are too compressed for a lot of things I do.

My THD Bivalve and Flexi 50 can cover the rest of my vintage flavor needs. The Bivalve is kind of like a hybrid of Hiwatt, Orange and Vox flavors. The Flexi is kind of a blend of vintage Marshall/vintage English crunch amps and Fender Tweed sounds. What tubes are used can change the sound, feel, point of break up, tonal balance, etc. These THD amps do not really sound like the other amps named .... but there are a lot of similarity's.

The other guitar I use a lot is my 1969 Stratocaster (original not reissue) with EMG David Gilmour.

Effects .... I could take or leave them, but I do like having my Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe and a Wa around. I do not use overdrives much but like stuff from the TS9 family.

I like using a full stack ..... it is a tone thing, not volume.

How did you come across this 69 Strat? Something like that usually has a story.

Full stack eh. I have used a half stack. Never jammed a full stack. I like the 4x12 sound of all that air moving. Even when doing the demo time with my little Zinky before buying it I plugged it in an old Marshall 4x12 to get the best test drive.

 

[Spaceboy]

Gear sets how high the bar is, your hands and fingers determine how close you can get to that bar.

This is one of the best quotes I've seen on this board.

I've spent the past few years being a gear hog, but not top-shelf amplifiers or anything (I never used the internet for purchases until recently), more common but good gear that you typically find on Craigslist and local merchants. I've spent a good portion of this year selling everything after realizing that I'm not a good enough player to warrant owning a studio's worth of equipment. I've rebuilt what's needed for my band, but other than that, I'm spending much more time working on technique and exercises than making a bunch of racket with amps that never left the bedroom, and put the money into university. I sound better than I ever have after downsizing and putting in the hours of practice.

 

[Valtiel]

it's still in the hands, Eddie still sounds like Eddie on any rig SRV sounded like SRV on any rig,

But SRV and Eddie were not tones, they were STYLES. They sounded like them because of their styles, nothing to do with tone.

 

[stephen sawall]

it's still in the hands, Eddie still sounds like Eddie on any rig SRV sounded like SRV on any rig,

But SRV and Eddie were not tones, they were STYLES. They sounded like them because of their styles, nothing to do with tone.

I humbly disagree or at least half do.

 

[Valtiel]

it's still in the hands, Eddie still sounds like Eddie on any rig SRV sounded like SRV on any rig,

But SRV and Eddie were not tones, they were STYLES. They sounded like them because of their styles, nothing to do with tone.

I humbly disagree or at least half do.

They definitely definitely have their own defining tones, but SRV is not going to have his Fender tone playing through a Peavey 5150. Same vice versa for Eddie.

 

[rsm]

great info here IMO. I find it interesting to hear what your core sounds are and how you get them, and the gear that inspires or gets you there ("the tone zone" - yah, cheezy but it works to label it).

For me, when the Rick and the Vox are dialed in, and I have a good practice session it doesn't get any better for me. If I like what I hear it makes me try harder which translates into another level or zone for me (this is hit or miss, hot or cold). I guess I'm saying, the sound I get from my gear inspires me, which in turn pushes me, and I get even more from the gear. Repeat. It is also nice when I have the house to myself and can get my AC30 really cooking with the volume past 1 o'clock or 3 o'clock. Like I did earlier today. My ears are ringing a bit.

If you say you sound like you regardless of what gear you are using...do you dial in the different gear to get a sound you like (your sound / i.e., dial the gear in to get your sound or close to it) or do you try to get the core sounds from the gear itself (e.g., Vox, Fender, Mesa, etc. have different sounds...do you get a good Fender amp sound or your sound?), and it is your playing style and technique that makes it sound like you (not how you set the gear?), or ????

I've read where people sit in, don't even touch the amp controls and think/feel they sound like themselves, and others who dial in their sound / sound they like in what ever gear they have...

Keep 'em coming.

 

[stephen sawall]

I sound like me no matter what gear I use. But I definably have preferences in gear......
For me my Les Paul with JB in the bridge and THD Plexi Series One (easy my favorite JMP style amp) works best. The sound fits like a glove.

For more modern / vintage flavor sounds and a amp with a lot more versatility I like my Fryette Sig X. Most amps that do high gain do not cut in the mix all that great and/or are too compressed for a lot of things I do.

My THD Bivalve and Flexi 50 can cover the rest of my vintage flavor needs. The Bivalve is kind of like a hybrid of Hiwatt, Orange and Vox flavors. The Flexi is kind of a blend of vintage Marshall/vintage English crunch amps and Fender Tweed sounds. What tubes are used can change the sound, feel, point of break up, tonal balance, etc. These THD amps do not really sound like the other amps named .... but there are a lot of similarity's.

The other guitar I use a lot is my 1969 Stratocaster (original not reissue) with EMG David Gilmour.

Effects .... I could take or leave them, but I do like having my Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe and a Wa around. I do not use overdrives much but like stuff from the TS9 family.

I like using a full stack ..... it is a tone thing, not volume.

How did you come across this 69 Strat? Something like that usually has a story.

Full stack eh. I have used a half stack. Never jammed a full stack. I like the 4x12 sound of all that air moving. Even when doing the demo time with my little Zinky before buying it I plugged it in an old Marshall 4x12 to get the best test drive.

I was doing a lot of larger shows at one time and had seven (4x12). I went down to one decided it was not big enough sounding and picked up a other and a 2x12. Nothing like a wall of sound.

When I was 14 my father bought me the Strat, a older friend recommended it. My Les Paul was stolen at a gig. I started playing in bars when I was 13. The Les Paul showed up 6 months later and the neck was warped beyond repair.

 

[stephen sawall]

it's still in the hands, Eddie still sounds like Eddie on any rig SRV sounded like SRV on any rig,

But SRV and Eddie were not tones, they were STYLES. They sounded like them because of their styles, nothing to do with tone.

I humbly disagree or at least half do.

They definitely definitely have their own defining tones, but SRV is not going to have his Fender tone playing through a Peavey 5150. Same vice versa for Eddie.

I bet they would ..... maybe not the same, but I know I sound like me no matter what I play on. ..... and I have never seen anything different with any other player. In other words I do not think SRV is going to sound like EVH when plugged into a 5150.

Other people play on my rig .... they do not sound like me when playing the same riffs. Tone ....as in high, midrange, lows balance is very much in the fingers.

 

[JakeAC5253]

Other people play on my rig .... they do not sound like me when playing the same riffs. Tone ....as in high, midrange, lows balance is very much in the fingers.

Very much agree.

The only 'keys' to my tone besides my hands are a Maxon OD808 and my Recto cab which really compliment my playing to say the least. All the rest I attribute to under-practiced technique and choppy lazy playing. Or worn down picks, that's a good one.

 

[ttosh]

I definitely sound like me no matter what amp or guitar I am using. However the amp and or guitar can have a feel to it that inspires and gives one those moments of inspiration or extra level of fun and inner feeling. I think ones fingers/hands say a lot about the overall tone based on ones approach and style. But is this really tone or is this style? I sound like me on a first act amp from Target as I do on a Wizard Modern Classic, but I promise you the tone is different. My playing style is the same, but do not be mistaken the tone is damn well different!

 

[stephen sawall]

If you say you sound like you regardless of what gear you are using...do you dial in the different gear to get a sound you like (your sound / i.e., dial the gear in to get your sound or close to it) or do you try to get the core sounds from the gear itself (e.g., Vox, Fender, Mesa, etc. have different sounds...do you get a good Fender amp sound or your sound?), and it is your playing style and technique that makes it sound like you (not how you set the gear?), or ????

I've read where people sit in, don't even touch the amp controls and think/feel they sound like themselves, and others who dial in their sound / sound they like in what ever gear they have...

First off I love Rick and Vox .... great sound.

As for the question a little of both .... In general I want about as much gain or a little more than Malcolm Young uses. Just enough for some crunch. This is the sound I use 90 % of the time. I just set up the amp for what it does in that range. Sure it sounds like that amp .... but even more it sounds like me. Other people playing the same rig and settings, same riffs just well not in a lot of ways. I really learned this from teaching and auditioning guitar players for bands over the years. It becomes very apparent.

 

[Heritage Softail]

If you say you sound like you regardless of what gear you are using...do you dial in the different gear to get a sound you like (your sound / i.e., dial the gear in to get your sound or close to it) or do you try to get the core sounds from the gear itself (e.g., Vox, Fender, Mesa, etc. have different sounds...do you get a good Fender amp sound or your sound?), and it is your playing style and technique that makes it sound like you (not how you set the gear?), or ????

I've read where people sit in, don't even touch the amp controls and think/feel they sound like themselves, and others who dial in their sound / sound they like in what ever gear they have...

First off I love Rick and Vox .... great sound.

As for the question a little of both .... In general I want about as much gain or a little more than Malcolm Young uses. Just enough for some crunch. This is the sound I use 90 % of the time. I just set up the amp for what it does in that range. Sure it sounds like that amp .... but even more it sounds like me. Other people playing the same rig and settings, same riffs just well not in a lot of ways. I really learned this from teaching and auditioning guitar players for bands over the years. It becomes very apparent.

^^^ This is what my teacher is beating in my head. He is telling me, and by listening to a few hours of my practicing and jam track practicing on cassette, I can hear what he is talking about. People have styles of vibrato, favorite pull off and hammer on styles, sliding in to notes, pauses in phrases, pick attack variations, pinch harmonic styles, even ways they mute or semi mute sweeps or rakes.... He keeps saying to learn landing points in popular leads but to play the rest in a way that it is yours but still sounds enough like the song to recognize it. Nobody plays a lead like on the record when you see them live anyway.

This became crystal clear one day when I brought my old boom box to the lesson and recorded it. On his amp, a little old Crate banger with built in effects, it sounded like me still. The tone of the amp was different but the sound I associate with my playing was there.

This was not something I understood until I knew enough to understand it.

 

[King Crimson]

If so, mine sounds more like it comes from my arse.

If you are playing electric guitar, then the tone is in your speakers.

 

[Badronald]

I was talking to a custom guitar maker recently and he went off on a five minute rant about how guitar players are idiot snobs who think wood types make any difference in an electric guitar and that it couldn't be further from the truth.........

 

[Valtiel]

it's still in the hands, Eddie still sounds like Eddie on any rig SRV sounded like SRV on any rig,

But SRV and Eddie were not tones, they were STYLES. They sounded like them because of their styles, nothing to do with tone.

I humbly disagree or at least half do.

They definitely definitely have their own defining tones, but SRV is not going to have his Fender tone playing through a Peavey 5150. Same vice versa for Eddie.

I bet they would ..... maybe not the same, but I know I sound like me no matter what I play on. ..... and I have never seen anything different with any other player. In other words I do not think SRV is going to sound like EVH when plugged into a 5150.

Other people play on my rig .... they do not sound like me when playing the same riffs. Tone ....as in high, midrange, lows balance is very much in the fingers.

Aboslutely, SRV is definitely not going to sound like Eddie playing through a 5150, I didn't say he would. What I said was his tone is not going to sound like him playing through his Fenders. The fact that he would sound like SRV regardless of what he was playing through has nothing to do with the tones of the amps he is using and everything to do with how and what he plays. There are definitely variations in tonal character that can be achieved through things like picking styles and positions as well as right and left hand technique, but that is never going to change the fundamental sound of the amp/amps you are playing through. If this were the case then there would not be an amp business because I could get Marshall crunch, Vox Jangle, and Recto chunk just from changing my technique.

Again, everyone usually sounds like them when playing through just about anything and I maintain that that has NOTHING to do with tone and everything to do with your style.

 

[ke2]

Seems like many define "tone" as the sound of a guitar player playing alone.
SRV with a 5150, the volume down a little on his Strat on the clean channel and with an open back 2x12 cab would fool a lot of people

A friend of mine long time ago used an Orange quarter stack with a Pod in front, because he needed a little more variety than the single channel Orange (AD 30??) could give him. Many people told him they`d never heard an Orange sound that good

 

[nighttrain69]

to me it doesnt matter what you play or what you play thru,if you play it with heart and conviction its gonna sound good

 

[Ventura]

I was talking to a custom guitar maker recently and he went off on a five minute rant about how guitar players are idiot snobs who think wood types make any difference in an electric guitar and that it couldn't be further from the truth.........

WTF....??? Does he build miniature model custom guitars for dashboards or the real deal? How the hell can anyone concur with this when the simplest of simple comparos (that being maple versus rosewood versus ebony fingerboards) shows differences that are so obvious? Soooooooooooooo, this custom guitar maker thinks plywood or pine would sound just as good as mahogany?

Clueless. But what gets me is he MAKES guitars?!?!?!??!?!
V.

 

[War Admiral]

I was talking to a custom guitar maker recently and he went off on a five minute rant about how guitar players are idiot snobs who think wood types make any difference in an electric guitar and that it couldn't be further from the truth.........

WTF....??? Does he build miniature model custom guitars for dashboards or the real deal? How the hell can anyone concur with this when the simplest of simple comparos (that being maple versus rosewood versus ebony fingerboards) shows differences that are so obvious? Soooooooooooooo, this custom guitar maker thinks plywood or pine would sound just as good as mahogany?

Clueless. But what gets me is he MAKES guitars?!?!?!??!?!
V.

Yeah I had an old guy that works with wood (woodworking teacher) and repaired guitars a little on the side tell me that it didn't matter what the wood was and it was the pickup/electronics that gave the default sound. I then reminded him that pickups were actually microphones and conveyed the sound that they hear adding their own inherent quality on how they are wound..so how can the wood not have an effect on the sound? He then kind of looked confused but still stuck to his guns. Dumbass