Too indecisive to ever have a "signature tone"...

[rjay777]

Great topic!!

 

I guess I gave up searching for the holy grail of tone years ago. It's just not gonna happen. But like Matthew said, whatever tone you're getting out

of your guitar and amp is basically YOUR sound. It's already there.

If we're constantly striving for that "be all end all" sound, then that means it's basically non existant.

I think Eric Johnson has possibly the most identifiable sound out there, but he's never really satisfied

with it. He's like a mad scientist....maybe a bit mad. lol

I love variety. I'll get hooked on some SRV vibe one day, and then I might go full on crank the gain Randy Rhoads style the next.

That's the beauty of guitar.

[milod]

Just a couple thoughts, not "conclusions."

 

1. Even the "big names" functionally are cover bands because in a sense they're covering their own recording when they play their "big hit number 3." That really hit me the year the Rolling Stones did "I can't get no satisfaction" at the Superbowl.

 

2. Your equipment to listen to a recording plays a bigger role in what a famous player's "tone" or "sound" might be, even if you have a super-expensive playback rig. And where you sat in a concert audience also makes a huge diff in perceived "tone."

 

3. Unless you're a BB King or Joe Pass or Doc Watson type who plays with pretty much the same kind of music, I think you want more than one tone setting. A year or so ago some of the guys here talked me into playing with youtube, and I put up 3 things with the same guitar but... to me I still sound like me, but the tone settings on each were way, way different.

 

4. Yeah, I think having fun playing is the criterion. You can't have fun unless you relax and play what you can, how you can. That may involve some rather different styles of playing. That's not at all bad, IMHO. Hey, you can fingerpick an arrangement of Scott Joplin, then switch to a flatpick to do something a little bluegrassy or rocky? Why not... And then regardless of the "styles" you're switching to or from, you'll still be you having fun - and you'll sound like it.

 

5. I've always thought that although some "cover bands" will stick to one kinda style if they're a "Band A" clone, "we" are better off with our own version of a song we like rather than attempt to copy it note for note. With some pieces that's difficult, such as the before-mentioned "I can't get no satisfaction" with it's signature fuzzy guitar intro. With other pieces sometimes your own "thing" just happens and it ain't bad at all.

 

m

[NeoConMan]

If I had to choose a "signature tone" it would involve a Gibson 335 (or similar semi-hollow) and a Fender tube amp.

 

Of course, I'm a HUGE P-90 guy - still into a Fender tube amp.

 

Now I've discovered the beauty of the Fulltone OCD for a slight boost into a clean Fender tube amp...

 

Hell, I dunno.

 

[Notes_Norton]

I neither have nor want a "signature tone", for me that's too limiting.

 

I have three magnetic pickups, one is coil tapping, and one piezo pickup on my gigging guitar plus a volume control, a tone control, and a mix control to mix the piezo with the mag of my choice when I'm in that mode.

 

I have a multi FX pedal with 127 presets and 127 user presets (of which I use about 10).

 

Why should I settle for one tone?

 

I want the tone to fit the particular song I'm playing and the particular mood I happen to be in.

 

I'm not nearly done exploring the sonic possibilities of my new guitar with my multiFX pedal, and I like that. I don't even have much new guitar GAS right now, because I'm still having a "honeymoon" with my almost new Parker DragonFly. I flick the switch, twiddle the knobs and discover new sounds (or variations) every gig and every practice session.

 

I also play sax, and the tone of my sax is not as flexible without changing mouthpieces, something that is impractical during a live performance because that would require re-wetting a new reed and re-tuning up. But I can and do change the tone with the internal shape of my mouth, the amount of breath support I'm using, the amount of reed in my mouth, and whether or not I'm using my vocal chords for distortion or flutter tonguing for max distortion. The mouthpiece/reed combination I use is best suited for a "Texas Tenor" ( R&B ) sound, so if I want to get mellow or have a different sound, I use the wind synthesizer.

 

Again, I want the tone to fit the song and my mood.

 

For me, it would be boring to play with one signature tone. Of course, others have done it with great success, but I guess I'm just not that kind of player.

 

Plus, I've always thought the finer points of tone are over-rated. Once the tone is in the ball-park for the kind of music I'm playing, the technique and artistic expression become far more important than the tone. If Hendrix had a Santana-ish tone, he would still have been a great guitarist and loved just as much.

 

Of course, this is all my personal opinion. There is definitely more than one way to make good music.

 

Notes

[Riffster]

In my case I just wanted a good sound, regardless of whatever equipment I play I am still me but there is a huge difference between my previous crappy amps and my Mesa 5:25. I am still me, and I still need to practice a hell of a lot more but having equipment that inspires you rather than fighting you back helps a lot.

 

I do not have a tone but I do gravitate towards a certain tonal range when clean, overdriven, distorted or acoustic.

 

Not sure how to take the comments on Clapton being Clapton or other guitarrists regardless of the equipment. I mean you know is Clapton when you see the album cover. I wonder how this would stand on a blind test with unknown material.

[Silenced Fred]

I love a nice fat Fender clean sound. Very rich and complex while remaining simple. Almost on the brink of getting distortion, but its not. Just indescribable.

 

I agree with Neo, something like a 335 or P90s (or Filtertrons hopefully soon)

[Andy R]

Damian an Matt I totally or is that tonally agree.

 

Signature tone is for the famous few - My search for tone is to get a solid guitar sound that I always like and appreciate and that is consistent enough to play in a group and not struggle to sound good. I never wanted to sound like Slash or Clapton or anyone else I want to sound like me but the good me without struggling and twisting knobs for an hour, and not the sucky me that escapes if I get to fancy. Thats why I use very few pedals when I'm playing in public or with others.

 

For my acoustic rig or resonator I use a Fender Volume/Tone pedal and a Boss Loop station into a acoustic amp when needed.

 

When playing my electrics (any of them) I use a Tuner usually Peterson strobe - Fulltone OCD - ZVEX Box of Rock - ZVEX Fuzz Factory and a volume pedal with one of my tube amps usually the Mesa or Fender (57) unless it's a large area than I go to my Soldano (Slo100) into a Marshall cab and that's pretty much it.

 

For voice I use one of the early Blue microphones - Baby Bottle which is allot more microphone than my voice needs.

 

The only other thing I regularly mic is my harmonica but I use a Madcat Shaker handheld microphone or a old bullet mic from the early 40's

 

Now when I'm just screwing around at home or practicing then almost anything goes I'll hook up all kinds of pedals or even my synth but not in public, there I go for a proven mix that I know works.

 

I third this and will add that I think a lot of people get confused by signature tone, signature playing style, and signature song writing style.

 

There are some bands/guitarist that have maintained all three For example AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Malmsteen to name a few... Their overall signature song writing style has remained consistent through the years, thus their signature playing style and signature tone has remained relatively the same.

 

Bands/Guitarst Like Page, Clapton, Stones, etc... Who are constantly changing song writing styles will change their tone for what works best with the style of the song they have written. Page's tone on Whole Lotta Love sounds nothing like his tone on Hot Dog or between any 2 songs really.... Some of his signature style shines through and this where I think people get the "Tone is in the Fingers" idea...

 

My 1.5 C's

 

 

Andy