Does tone come from the guitar or the amp.

[djcheesmo]

Hm I can't believe no one has said anything about the main man behind the sound..

the sound guy sitting behind a huge console adding eq rev etc etc comp all the diff toys to fix pages sound,or any of the rest,then you got the saturation from tapes and without going on a long journey here,there are always the tiny little cheap crap amps that were used not only that but the slashed speaker paper etc etc. That is if you want to sound like page??? DO YOU?? not me . however that was the tone at the time weather it is the fingers the amp or the guitar.

How did they sounded live?? and how many stacks were used??? hmmmmm I own a 1960 les paul does it sound like a half a million bucks ??? NOT is it worth the tone?? NOT A CHANCE it's all in ones mind..

There was a reason why amps got better in time just like there were a reason why seymore duncan made all the money fixing gibsons sound by making a better sounding product,or at least a less feed back squeal like you get in all them stupid Disney movies when someone steps up to speak on a mike,it's in all of them you all know what I am talking about almost an indication that no one used a sound guy ever behind all them mikes,an illusion that it is a live mike.

I agree the way YOU sound comes from you but it all depends what you want to sound like,for instance if you play metalica are you gonna use a tweed amp??? NOT unless you were in a studio and your engineer was a god.

Here is one for you strat guys I picked up a cheap profile guitar and with EMG's on it, it plays as good as my us strat

does the tone come from the wood???? think about this before you answer the plastic pick guard is as good as any other manufacturer..

I personaly love Steve Vai's sound and his playing and after buying all the toys including the eclipse am I closer to his sound???NOT

I still can't play worth of crap.

Think about this every sound is just that a sound coming from guitar or amp the point is does it work for you?? if it does you are lucky if it does not then join the team of the rest of us always looking for that sound.

[RichCI]

Hm I can't believe no one has said anything about the main man behind the sound...

 

I spent several years working as a live sound and studio engineer; we had a saying: "You can't polish a turd." I also had a personal saying: "There is no such thing as a bad tone, just finding the right place to use it."

 

I never tried to "improve" anyone's tone unless they asked for it. I always worked under the assumption that the guitar sounded the way it did because that's the way the artist wanted it; if I was producing, I'd give them my thoughts and try to persuade otherwise if I thought the sound sucked in the context of the song but that's as far as I'd go - if that's what they really want, then so be it. In the studio environment, if the guitar player asked for a different/"better" tone, I'd suggest a different amp from the house or move the mics around. I would MUCH rather get the best possible tone from the source instead of wasting time and money screwing around with devices while trying to coax something out of a track that would end up just adding more noise in the end.

[SilverLesterStd]

I believe that most anything can influence tone. It is the true artist who will use all that he (or she) is and has to produce the closest to the tone that she (or he) wants to achieve. A couple of cases to the point.

 

A friend of mine was looking for a new amp and asked me to come along. We were at a guy's house trying out his Fender Twin with my friend's Electra LP copy. The guy told us that he attended High School with Tommy Shaw (of Styx & Damn Yankees fame). He told us that Tommy won the talent contest at Lee High & that he could make an acoustic guitar sound like an electric one.

 

I highly doubt that Mr. Shaw actually achieved the electric sound with an acoustic, but I do believe it sounded more like an electric than any acoustic that guy with the amp had ever heard.

 

On the other hand, I am near the other end of the spectrum. I have a great sounding LP with a killer Marshall to play through. Much of the tone equation is covered for me, but I can't close the deal with the skill to make you want to hear me for hours.

 

My son, who is eight, has pretty much been dusting me off for the last year. This is with or without his using my rig. It's not just the notes and timing, but also the attitude that the notes are played with. He also wears out picks much faster than I. There must be something in his attack. "I don't get it Big Dan." I'm proud of him, yes. But (sheepishly) I'm a little jealous of him. His tone is improving in leaps.

 

However, my tone does improve on my nice (turd polishing) equipment. The first time I ever used a LP Studio Mahogany (in '83 I think) the guys said I sound great. I had never heard that before. The power of Budweiser and Les Paul!

[Guitar slinger]

Tone comes from my ***.

 

You've got a fine tone

[Bram]

Think about this. Every sound is just that a sound coming from guitar or amp the point is does it work for you?? if it does you are lucky if it does not then join the team of the rest of us always looking for that sound.

 

I've always been looking for that magical tone' date=' untill I bought a good tube amp and got fully used to my LP's.

 

I bought a Strat recentely because I wanted something different for myself, but not because it had THE TONE

or MAGIC...oh boy not. It's a nice guitar that I might need for different purposes in the future or something like

that.

 

A Gibson Les Paul has everything I need in a guitar. If you feel real connected with your own 'Number One', then that's the [b']most beautiful gift [/b]you can ever get.

[Bram]

'Tone' comes from your own soul.

 

The most beautiful gift you can get as a musician is to feel real connected with a specific guitar that literally means everything to you. This depends on yourself. Think about the movie 'Christine' from Stephen King...Arnie fell in love

with a 1958 red and white Plymouth Fury.

 

My 'Number One' ('88 LP Standard) sound like magic in my hands. It can't get any better for me. Hopefully more people realize that 'the magical tone' is all about a specific guitar in combination with the right person that fits the guitar (like a man and woman that are made for each other).

 

'Dedication'.

[AXE®]

There was this one time ...

I farted in C# it was awesome tone, and sustained for days...

 

sweet...

[BIGBENDS]

You gotta watch out for those C# stains. Those and the F maj. are difficult to remove. :D

[Bram]

If there's ONE specific guitar that feels like magic to you and that shits over all the other guitars you've ever played, than I call it: 'The Cristine Factor'.

 

My '88 Les Paul Standard has that 'Christine Factor'. I feel 'obsessed' with that guitar everytime I pick it up; it does won-

ders for me and my tone. It always feels like something special to me.

 

You'll only get your own 'magic tone' if you feel real connected with your instrument. Otherwise, you'll NEVER find that magic tone.

[RichCI]

See, I don't feel that I have one 'magic tone.' The two guitars that I own that REALLY do it for me are my LP and my Strat; I own some others, but both of those two just wail. And, at the same time, they sound radically different. It's not so much their individual voices, it's the way they feel. For me, the way the guitar actually sounds takes a back seat to how it reacts in my hands.

[AXE®]

[slab man]

people, its about the meat on the ends of your fingers first. pressure and control second. breakdown the barriers between brain and hand. get a les paul prior to 1969 and a marshall and its metal up your @@.;

[ustaknow]

Both and neither.

 

And, what's a cheap guitar? What's an expensive guitar?

 

Even the "woods" used... 3 inches over in the *same tree the--grain changes, and resonates differently, flat cut, quarter round, double/single truss neck, soap bar, humbucker, combo of both with a noiseless single blade jammed in the middle of the two, big head stock, small head stock, etc.

 

What kind of sound are you going for? What YOU want to hear, or what someone TOLD you was "cool" and how it should be?

 

Like the fellow above said, Pick with a copper pick, SS pick, bone, stone, shell pick or an old quarter and scrape the stings with it's ridges to ring-out some new harmonic in your pinch technique...

 

I have a very expensive Bass Guitar, and have a Squire Afinity for $169.00... guess what, those with an American made Bassman... A-B switched it... no tone difference. And for the extra $600 I can afford to change out the Pots.... build quality, same (it's wood, God made it--they just shaped it)... and I actually like the very thin coat of paint on the Squire... as apposed to the caked on plastic coating of the Bassman or the other unit. (God Bless Gibson and their Nitro... --however more for feel than sound... another "argument" you can put an "electronic scope" on.)

 

Let's talk humbuckers... I LOVE Alnico V in my Les Paul Blackbeauty... can't stand the 490's... don't care how much coin was paid for either.... in my SG, shoved a Dirtyfingers for cheap... to me, ---screamsssss and combined with a Gibson Humbucker Sized P90 type in the neck... switch in the middle... oh Booooy... mid-range clarity like you've never heard before....

 

You want to talk tubes.... I build'em... it all depends on what your bleeding off in your Cap/Resister config and how your preamping the initial signal, if at all... and then the Power type type makes a BIG difference... hence English Marshals, and USA Marshals...

 

 

Lets talk speakers.... I have a friend who can hear the HUMIDITY change in the PAPER... I actually fees SORRY for him.... how far do you want to go.

 

Bottom line, you like what you hear, play it. Look at the pressboard Kay guitars sold for $20/circa 1960... not going for $1200... jeeze :/

 

That's what tone IS.... :-)

 

All the best this Christmas day 12-25-2008 and in 2009.

 

-Craig from New Jersey.

[RichCI]

[AXE®]

 

[djroge1]

 

 

Thanks for reminding me that I have to find a tone control that goes to 11. That way I know I'll have the best tone because every one elses only goes to 10.

[Bram]

I don't think most of us dig deep enough about 'tone'.

 

Of course, pedals, amp, pickups/electronics, cables, pick, fingers and so on...they have a great influence on your tone (everyone knows).

 

That's why I like my own Les Pauls through my personal set-up.

 

I've played and owned MANY guitars (including different Les Pauls), but in the end it comes down to simplicity in your set-up and selling the guitars/pedals and all sort of gear that you simply don't use (regardless of the quality/price). Too many people DON'T have a 'Number One'. Why is that? I sold most of my guitars, cause I kept going back to my '88 LP Standard.

 

Maybe most of us haven't felt any special or magical feelings with a specific Les Paul before...that's possible. It could be that most of us like their guitars very much at home, but not the way they perform/feel on stage...that's where most magic ends.

 

You have to judge/play/hear it yourself.

 

It's in your own mind to judge whether the guitar has magic or not, no matter what other people can think about that same guitar. I can say I have found my magical guitar and of course its matching tone. All the other guitars (Les Pauls)

I've ever played/tried and owned don't even come close to my 'Number One' in terms of feeling (the way it feels/plays), vibe and its unique tone. Maybe it sounds a bit egomania, but it's MY feeling. Maybe a different guitarist that plays the same guitar, would think different about it.

 

Where is all that real passion and dedication for ONE, SPECIFIC GUITAR instead of only searching for the magical pedals, amps or other gear?

[Bram]

'Tone' has everything to do with your own personal feelings (soul) and playing the right guitar in the right way. Amps, pedals, cables and all the other gear come second.

 

It just starts with the right guitar. Every Les Paul is completely different (in tone and feeling) so it might be VERY hard to find that 'Number One' for yourself. Once you do, you'll be much more happier than owning 20 guitars that all don't have that special magic.

 

I can't ever feel comfortable with boutique, expensive gear if the specific guitar doesn't give me a special feeling by its own. So, first the guitar, then the other stuff. Wood is never the same and that's why it's so much more mystic and unique in its own tone, combined with your own fingers. Amps/pedals and other gear are just not comparable with an individual piece of wood.

[Brown Rug]

besides the cheesy 'tone comes from your hands, your feelings, etc' responses in this thread, it's a combination of both your guitar/pickups/amp but your tone drastically chances depending on the amp you have. that's why when i decided to splurge on high end guitar gear i went for an amp first then upgraded my guitar.

[ninety1vee]

 

ROFLMFAO!

[Bram]

that's why when i decided to splurge on high end guitar gear i went for an amp first then upgraded my guitar.

 

To my opinion you can't buy an amp or other gear if you don't know what your guitar sounds like at first (with all

the electronics etc).

 

I always test the guitars first (through different amps) and then I buy the guitar if it sounds great everytime. A good, amazing guitar sounds great through ANY amp, but I agree that there's always room for the 'better'.

 

Once you have chosen the right guitar (that sounds great through all kind of amps at first), then it's time to find the real partner (amp) that suits the guitar in every aspect.

 

You can play three Les Paul Standards side by side to one Bogner amp, but the tone will always be different in the end...because the guitars are different.

[stymye]

so the" tone comes from your soul" comment you just posted earlier changed in two posts

 

 

tone comes from the combination of........... Player - Guitar - amp

[RichCI]

Make it stop!!! Make it stooooooooop!!!!

[ChanMan]

 

The player sets the knobs on the amp.

The player adjusts the guitar.

The player plays the guitar, and uses whatever technique gets the tone they are looking for.

 

 

 

 

But it's the amp/guitar that controls the range of tones that can be covered.

 

 

Right.

 

 

[LM-LP]

The tone comes from both, because if you have a good guitar and sucky amp it'll sound like crap and vise versa