Where does the tone come from.... Amplifiers
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Well..... I have no talent, so I can attest that in my case.... tone, or lack thereof, starts with my fingers. Beyond that.... I only have a Fender 5W VibroChamp with an 8" speaker and a Traynor YGM3 20W that I've put a V30 12" Celestion in. The Fender sounds just fine till I take the same guitar and plug into the Traynor. Night and day difference, tone is so much better with the Traynor. Whole lot louder as well.
D
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If impedance (or for you metal guys "ohmage" ) is compatible you could also try the Vibro Champ through the V30 in the Traynor.
Not the same. Fender is 4 ohm. Traynor is 8. I’ve toyed with the idea of finding a 4 ohm 12” speaker and build a cabinet for it. I’m no carpenter so it most likely would be a really ugly cabinet. But it could be a fun exercise.
Came across this Guitar World article on where tone comes from. Twas an interesting read so thought I'd share.
Link:
Steve Lukather voices support for the ‘tone is in the hands’ camp: “There’s no magic guitar, just magic people”
Link:
Steve Lukather voices support for the ‘tone is in the hands’ camp: “There’s no magic guitar, just magic people”
Well, the guy has certainly put in a lot of time and effort into this hobby. However, I still can't fathom how he can work and put in this amount of time into these vids.
Some musicians i know are uber-wealthy and play only for enjoyment. The members of my previous band were like that.
Bottom line, none of this makes any difference in a live performance scenario at 110 to 113db. Period.
I can switch guitars, even guitars with different scale lengths, and the changes are not perceptible in a live mix.
When i switch from my 1993 Marshall Valvestate Bi-Chorus 200, down to my Marshall 50 watt Origin, there's a big change in the lack of gain, or "grit" or "chug" that you have with the Origin, because it just does not chug, but its not a "bad tone" by any means, its just not appropriate for "Halford/Fight" covers.
Now, in the studio, where you can sit and analyze every detail of a guitar or amp's tonal nuances, then yes, i think this Kat's video makes some very good points....but that's not what i do anymore and, TBTH, its nothing more than a "sonic rabbit hole" that i find hugely distracting, frustrating and its something that i intentionally avoid.
Some musicians i know are uber-wealthy and play only for enjoyment. The members of my previous band were like that.
Bottom line, none of this makes any difference in a live performance scenario at 110 to 113db. Period.
I can switch guitars, even guitars with different scale lengths, and the changes are not perceptible in a live mix.
When i switch from my 1993 Marshall Valvestate Bi-Chorus 200, down to my Marshall 50 watt Origin, there's a big change in the lack of gain, or "grit" or "chug" that you have with the Origin, because it just does not chug, but its not a "bad tone" by any means, its just not appropriate for "Halford/Fight" covers.
Now, in the studio, where you can sit and analyze every detail of a guitar or amp's tonal nuances, then yes, i think this Kat's video makes some very good points....but that's not what i do anymore and, TBTH, its nothing more than a "sonic rabbit hole" that i find hugely distracting, frustrating and its something that i intentionally avoid.
Exactly
I'll tell you this.
Everyone at our show Saturday, from cocktail waitresses, to patrons, to promoters, to media people, security staff and even other band members all told me that my guitar tone stood out from all three of the other bands.
Why???
Was it some magic in my @ChasFred - modded TS-9, or my @Don O - modded 1993 Marshall Valvestate Bi-Chorus 200???
Nope...
Everyone favors this really scooped midrange tone and i boost all my midrange frequencies to ridiculous levels, then slam the speakers with all the bass they can handle, so it sounds like two different guitars at once.
The scooped guitar tone doesn’t really "pop" in the mix, especially with a loud, aggressive bassist.
@Mitch Pearrow SJMP - was there and heard it.
The biggest difference in my tone isn't the Les Paul, its just how i EQ my setup...
My mids are around 3pm, but the 'Countour' is also adjusted to boost the mids and then i boost the mids/highs again with the GE-7.
The 'test' for a good guitar tone (in a live mix) is one that sounds almost too "chainsawy" on its own.
Everyone at our show Saturday, from cocktail waitresses, to patrons, to promoters, to media people, security staff and even other band members all told me that my guitar tone stood out from all three of the other bands.
Why???
Was it some magic in my @ChasFred - modded TS-9, or my @Don O - modded 1993 Marshall Valvestate Bi-Chorus 200???
Nope...
Everyone favors this really scooped midrange tone and i boost all my midrange frequencies to ridiculous levels, then slam the speakers with all the bass they can handle, so it sounds like two different guitars at once.
The scooped guitar tone doesn’t really "pop" in the mix, especially with a loud, aggressive bassist.
@Mitch Pearrow SJMP - was there and heard it.
The biggest difference in my tone isn't the Les Paul, its just how i EQ my setup...
My mids are around 3pm, but the 'Countour' is also adjusted to boost the mids and then i boost the mids/highs again with the GE-7.
The 'test' for a good guitar tone (in a live mix) is one that sounds almost too "chainsawy" on its own.
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Yes! Better to put a frown on the eg than a smile!
Jethro Rocker
Ambassador of Live & Loud Action
Style is in the hands. For sure.
What we perceive as tone is in amps and speakers.
Would EVH who has a very definitive style still sound like himself clean?
Sure he does.
Does he sound tonally the same?
Of course not.
That's called style.
I see you used the stand, looks like it worked well!
What we perceive as tone is in amps and speakers.
Would EVH who has a very definitive style still sound like himself clean?
Sure he does.
Does he sound tonally the same?
Of course not.
Exactly. How one sets up their amp. Not the hands.
That's called style.
Right on. Some mids makes it stand out and in your case, stand out among the other guitars.
I see you used the stand, looks like it worked well!
The stand is the best think ive purchased in a long time!!! Really helps me to use it as a monitor, which kept me alive when my stage monitor feed went dead!!!
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^^^^THIS!!!!
People continuously want to equate technique and tone. I think it's well-intentioned. The idea is that the endless accumulation of ever more gear is not going to make a person a better guitar player. So, the "tone is in the hands" quip is beneficial in that it attempts to focus a guitar player back onto those elements that actually make you better - practicing and playing.
But, fundamentally it is still an incorrect statement and a false equivalency.
That is why my signature block says, "Tone is in the gear. MUSIC is in the fingers!"
But, many guitar players are too focused on tone, and not on actually making music.
That is a great example of what I'm saying. For you, the "tone" ended up being a function of your EQ settings. This makes great sense.
Right, and changing guitars doesn't make any sonic difference
Jethro Rocker
Ambassador of Live & Loud Action
Depending, of course, on the guitars and pickups.
A Seymour Duncan Invader loaded HB guitar vs a Strat with anemic PUps? Absolutely it does.
Jethro Rocker
Ambassador of Live & Loud Action
Yep agreed.
There is a quote people like to, well, quote, about Ted Nugent playing EVHs rig and realizing he sounded not like EVH, like crap instead.
Yes but tonally, hit an A chord and it should sound same as Eddie doing it.
Stylistically if Ted played a Strat through a 5 watt Fender it would sound like him but can you interchange that with Stranglehold recording and no one will know???
That's just preposterous thinking.
Between my personal guitars, all loaded with humbuckers, no change.
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Speaking of tone, I had a friend who went to a vocal coach to improve her singing. Apparently,this depraved older guy kept wanting her to "sing from her diaphragm" needless to say she was outta there pronto!
67plexi
Ambassador of Amps
I think guitar amps sound different I built a tweed deluxe with the Dumble mods 4 hour build time
scored a NOS 1959 output transformer my friend Robert Mark worked on KWS tweed deluxe amp that Dumble built
so I had the values and voltages I liked the amp so much I built a second one tried five other transformer sets 400 hours later
I called up my friend Robert he scored me a other 1959 output transformer they sound exact now
I sound like me whatever I play that's a good thing don't care to sound like others when were playing cover tunes want to sound
better than the original recording it takes skill and good equipment and practice.
scored a NOS 1959 output transformer my friend Robert Mark worked on KWS tweed deluxe amp that Dumble built
so I had the values and voltages I liked the amp so much I built a second one tried five other transformer sets 400 hours later
I called up my friend Robert he scored me a other 1959 output transformer they sound exact now
I sound like me whatever I play that's a good thing don't care to sound like others when were playing cover tunes want to sound
better than the original recording it takes skill and good equipment and practice.