Observation on Live Tone:

I know I posted the Alexi Balalaika video links above, but after watching one nearly 3/4 the way through, I can only think of those "add your caption here" deals.

Mine would be to quote FZ... " Shut up and play your Balalaika!!!"
 
Robert Herndon said:
Yes....you got it!!!!

Vai/Satch/EVH/Malmsteen are monsters. But Albert King had more emotion in his playing than all 4 of them combined.
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I dunno.

I like some of Malmsteen’s neo-classical stuff quite a bit. I was raised listening to classical music and I never rejected it. It’s part of my musical construct. My earliest musical recollections are of records my mother played of Brahms, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Handel... As a young boy, I remember wanting to play the violin. To this day, I can think of no more exquisite musical form than classical music. I can’t say I could recognize individual works, but the the interplay between strings, woodwinds, timpani, etc, are mesmerizing.

Sometimes, I do think Malmsteen is a little too busy. But, when he plays things that are classically-derived, I really like it. I get a similar (though not identical) sense of calm, yet anticipation I got when my mother would put on a record and I’d hear the scratch of the stylus on the record...then that rush of the string section!

I enjoy rock and metal as much as the next guy, but at times the boredom sets in with it. For me, nothing scratches the itch like classical music, or something inspired by it.

So, when it comes to “emotion” I think that discussion is moot. How can any one of us know what another performer is feeling? Beyond that, something that may not mean anything to one person may lift another person’s spirits. All any of us can say is that a particular performer may not have moved ~our~ emotions; but we cannot say he/she didn’t move someone else’s emotions.
 
smitty_p said:
I dunno.

I like some of Malmsteen’s neo-classical stuff quite a bit. I was raised listening to classical music and I never rejected it. It’s part of my musical construct. My earliest musical recollections are of records my mother played of Brahms, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Handel... As a young boy, I remember wanting to play the violin. To this day, I can think of no more exquisite musical form than classical music. I can’t say I could recognize individual works, but the the interplay between strings, woodwinds, timpani, etc, are mesmerizing.

Sometimes, I do think Malmsteen is a little too busy. But, when he plays things that are classically-derived, I really like it. I get a similar (though not identical) sense of calm, yet anticipation I got when my mother would put on a record and I’d hear the scratch of the stylus on the record...then that rush of the string section!

I enjoy rock and metal as much as the next guy, but at times the boredom sets in with it. For me, nothing scratches the itch like classical music, or something inspired by it.

So, when it comes to “emotion” I think that discussion is moot. How can any one of us know what another performer is feeling? Beyond that, something that may not mean anything to one person may lift another person’s spirits. All any of us can say is that a particular performer may not have moved ~our~ emotions; but we cannot say he/she didn’t move someone else’s emotions.
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True, True...

For me, I find emotion in the playing of Gary Moore, as in Parisienne Walkways or Still Got The Blues, and I do enjoy listening to these tunes from time to time, as I do certain older country songs. But I find, here of late, that I am even more captivated by raw energy. I never tire of it. I have started listening to Motorhead again almost exclusively. Other music I am finding incredibly boring. I simply do not tire of things that I like.

I have recently found that I have allowed others to largely shape my tastes in music. Some of this comes from playing for others, but largely from the negative opinions of many, especially those who do not enjoy my genre of choice. I have returned to my metal roots and suddenly, everything is better than ever. My rig sounds great. I don't need any pedals, no new guitars, even my un-shielded Gibson Les Paul functions perfectly. The tone I am getting on recordings, from my solid state 100 watt Blackstar, is better than I was getting with my 40 watt Tube Marshall, although I would still use the 40 watt Marshall for louder, outdoor venues.

The switch back to heavy metal was immensely gratifying, required no new gear and has brought me more satisfaction that the past 10 years of musical projects. From a simple cover song, I have people wanting to book a band that doesn't even exist. I remember making $450.00/week in a blues band (+ 15% of the gigs) as a bassist and being absolutely miserable, aside from the money that is.

Things couldn't be better, or more enjoyable....
 
Sitting here listening to playbacks and it came to me that all those crazy subtleties, that used to drive me crazy, are totally absent in this genre. As a result, I am so much more pleased and relaxed than ever before with any musical project.

I'm using a solid state amp (Blackstar ID-Core 100 and NO Effects) and getting the best recorded tone I think I have ever obtained from all my tube amps, tube swaps, custom speakers and specially moddded Boss pedals put together. A volume pedal and a Korg Pitchblack Tuner are the only things in my signal chain.

My 2016 Gibson Les Paul, which still remains totally stock - including being unshielded - is the main guitar on this effort and it is absolutely perfect in every respect. I'm still playing it with the original D'addarios that came on it when I bought it. It's NOT as quiet as my fully custom shielded Gibson SG, but once the track starts rolling, everything gets hammered in the mix.

So years and years of agonizing over the smallest thing...checking bends with a tuner to be sure they were perfect, looking for the perfect guitar, amplifier, or pedal, was simply the result of not playing the right style of music.

Once you get out there and really start playing, the subtleties just don't make a difference anymore. I still run a separate amp for the 12 string side of my VH Double Neck, but only because it requires a really drastically different EQ than the six string side.

I know, that in certain styles of music, especially acoustic music, the subtle things can be heard in a studio setting, but live??? i don't think it really matters. Sometimes I wonder if all this maniacal pursuit of these subtle things is just a mechanism to induce guitar acquisition frenzy??? I am shocked at how much I spent since coming here to TTR. I even started my own guitar line for heaven's sake...not that I would trade the TTR experience for anything, just making an observation.

All these different guitars. Here's what i found out the hard way. Guitars having the same scale length and pickup configuration sound largely the same once your rig is dialed in.

How ironic that I can plug in the six string side of my Von Herndon Double Neck (Thro-Bak SLE-101 Alnico II) my Gibson SG (Gibson Burstbucker Pro Alnico V) or my Gibson Les Paul (Gibson 498T Alnico V) and plug into my Blackstar and damned if you can hear much - if any - real difference between them, despite having a mix of Alnico II and V magnets. Every one of them sounds spectacular and all have the same scale length and neck profile, but all three have different fretboard woods - Ebony, Granadillo and Rosewood. And, while ebony feels (and looks) the best, I am not convinced there is a better tone from it!!!

I haven't switched on my modded Marshall DSL40C or my Weber Attenuator since buying this Blackstar and I have already sold my stock, back-up DSL40C. Imagine that!!! I haven't plugged in a single pedal since the Blackstar arrived either.

At this point, I feel like the better amp for me would probably be a Blackstar HT Stage 60 Mark II - 60-watt 2x12" Combo Amp - as a main live venue amp - with the Blackstar ID-Core 100 Watt Solid State as a practice amp/studio amp and as the 12 string's amplifier for certain songs.

Maybe it's yard sale time.....
 
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In total agreement in all points but one: I always end up turning the bass way down, often all the way, when playing with a full band.
No need to compete for sonic space with the bass player, and lowering the bass on my amp gives me miles more headroom.
 
gball said:
In total agreement in all points but one: I always end up turning the bass way down, often all the way, when playing with a full band.
No need to compete for sonic space with the bass player, and lowering the bass on my amp gives me miles more headroom.
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Very good point. Doing Motorhead covers, in Lemmy's bass style, the bass is in a higher register, and in that situation, and often functioning as only one guitarist, I boost the bass and mid just to sound bigger.....now when recording, I often play both a low and higher register guitar track.
 
gball said:
In total agreement in all points but one: I always end up turning the bass way down, often all the way, when playing with a full band.
No need to compete for sonic space with the bass player, and lowering the bass on my amp gives me miles more headroom.
Click to expand...
My amp is old and very “old school.” It only has volume, bass. Treble. But I can trick it into jacking the mids by dialing back both the bass and treble.
 
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