Well…

The signal that “travels” through your amplifier normally takes the following route: Input – Preamp with EQ section (generally responsible for sound and – if you want – overdrive) – Power amp (generally responsible for volume, although with tube power amps the sound is also shaped).

All well and good, the problem is that some effects (modulating effects like chorus or delay effects like delay and reverb) work and sound better if they come after any distortion or gain that is applied to your guitar signal. For example, it would not sound too good if you put the reverb before the overdrive. Why is that so? In short, you want a reverb on your overdriven signal, not an overdriven reverb.

There are some basic rules that “govern” where to put effects in the signal chain (I’ll add more specific information in later articles when talking about the specific effects):

1. If the effect modulates the signal, put it after any preamps or overdrive/distortion boxes.
2. If the effect boosts the signal, put it before overdrive (a compressor for example).
3. There are no rules! Break them, experiment!

Now without the effect loop, all you can do is put your effect boxes between your guitar and the input of the amp. If you use an overdrive/distortion box for your sound and not the amp’s “hot” channel, all is well as long as you remember to have the overdrive/distortion among the first effects your signal travels through, in most cases before effects like chorus, delay, reverb, flanger etc (see text above).

But if you use your amp’s overdrive channel, you get the problems described above (the effect box with the delay now comes before the overdrive). This is where the effect loop comes in. The guitar signal comes from your amp’s preamp and through “send” goes into those effects that should be put behind any overdrive. The signal comes back into your amp through the “return” socket. There are little switches inside these sockets that make sure the signal goes to the right place, depending on whether a cable is plugged in or not. Therefore, you should have all the stomp boxes that should come before overdrive between your guitar and the amp’s input and all the boxes that should come after overdrive after your amp’s preamp in the effect loop.

“Ok, but I’ve got a multi-efx unit – what can I do now?” (Please note that in my eyes, something like a POD is just a sort of multi-efx: different effects – overdrive being an effect – and a way to save the parameters and sounds)?

If you want to use your amp only to amplify the great sounds you’ve programmed into your multi, you don’t want the signal to pass the amp’s preamp because the preamp EQ section will color that sound. You want the signal to go straight to the power amp. So the signal path is: guitar – multi efx input – multi efx output – amp “return”. Remember to switch off the multi-efx’s “speaker simulation” – you don’t need it, your amp has a guitar speaker, so why emulate one in addition?

If you want to use your amp’s sound, things get more complicated.

• a) easy way of doing it: Use your amp’s clean and overdrive sounds and the multi-efx only to provide the effects that should come after overdrive/distortion. Put the multi into the effect loop.
• b) But I want the full monty: I want to use the overdrive sounds of my amp and my multi and the effects of my multi-efx that usually come before overdrive (compressor for example)! Gulp … just hope your multi-efx has an effect loop, too. The signal path then is: guitar – multi – efx input – multi efx “send” (the signal has now passed the effects that should come before gain and the multi’s overdrive section) – amp input – amp “send” (the signal has now passed the gain section of the amp) – multi-efx “return” – multi-efx output (the signal has now passed the effects that belong after the gain stage) – amp’s “return” – the signal now “reaches” the power amp.

Try it, but remember to turn the volume down before you switch everything on – you might have to adjust quite a bit of controls to make it work (the volume and gain controls of your multi’s effects, the input sensitivity of the multi …)

Some amps have a series others a parallel effect loop. With a series effect loop, the guitar signal (=your sound) comes from the preamp of your amp, “leaves” your amp through the send jack, runs through the inserted effect and comes back through the return jack. 100% of your signal goes through the effect. Many people have found that their sound suffers (great tube amps and – perhaps cheaper – digital effects => maybe loss of sound).

The solution was the parallel loop: with the control, you control how much of your original signal leaves the amp and passes through the effect. The “remaining” signal stays in your amp, preserving much of your sound, and is “joined” again by the signal coming back from the effect, now with effects on it. So you can mix the dry (without effect) and the wet (with effects) signals, but keep in mind that you won’t hear much of the effects if you only put a tiny part of your signal through the effect box. The effects in the loop should be set so that they let out no original signal but 100% effect signal. You decide with the parallel effect knob how much effect you want.

Hope you’re still with me next time when we start talking about the individual effects.

Loup Garou was written by Stefan Leonhardt for Guitar Noise. A good guitar player you will be if you visit the above site. © 2012 Guitar Noise

In case you don’t know your law: Murphy’s Law says that if something can go wrong, it will go wrong and it will go wrong in a way that it has the worst possible effects. The more electronics and gear are involved, the greater the chance of something not functioning. Granted, this is quite pessimistic, but nonetheless, chances are that at any gig some minor things can and will go wrong: A string can break (nice when it happens on a Floyd Rose equipped guitar in mid-solo), a cable might stop working or a battery is flat. The possibilities are endless. The audience won’t mind as long as the show can go on and it is entertained. And fortunately, there’s a lot you can do to prepare for Murphy’s law to make sure that you can keep going. Some preparation also can reduce the stress potential of a gig tremendously and help you concentrate on your music.

For a start, make sure all your equipment is in good working condition. That means that you check the batteries in the tuner and in the stomp boxes you use and in doubt replace them before the gig. If necessary, put on new strings – on all the guitars you’re going to use. Don’t just replace one or two strings, put on a complete new set. This will give a more balanced sound than four old and two new strings.

It is a matter of taste when to change strings. It depends how long and often you play, how much you sweat and how clean your hands are before you pick up the instrument. There are other factors, too. For example, I don’t like the feeling of completely new strings so I put them on before the last rehearsal to “break them in”. Stretch new strings to make sure they stay in tune and check the intonation. Don’t forget to take a look at your chords and amp, too.

Your band should agree on a set list before the gig and stick to it – no discussions on stage about which song to play now. Also choose a couple of encore songs. If you’re using a lot of different sounds and effects (a programmable multi-effect unit for example), take a long look at that list and program your sounds so that you have only a minimal amount of switching to do on stage and there is no unnecessary delay between songs. Furthermore, write the program number(s) you use next to the song on the set list – stage fright can make you even forget the name of your mother-in-law. Searching for the right program number and sound on stage will not amuse the audience.

I hope your guitar case or gig bag has plenty of room for those things that might save you when Murphy’s Law puts its head through the door at your gig.

Here’s my list:

• spare strings, preferably two complete sets and maybe one or two extra high e-strings
• all the tools you need to change strings and set up your guitar (adjust intonation):
• screwdrivers, allen wrenches, a string winder, a string cutter …
• a good tuner, preferably one with a needle and lighted display
• spare batteries: at least one for the tuner, if you use stomp box effects with batteries a couple more – oh, and make sure before the gig that the spare batteries still have power left (Jeff Beck used nearly empty batteries in his distortion boxes to get a certain sound, but I doubt that the majority of your audience would like it today)
• spare cables: if you plug straight into the amp, one is enough, if you have more cables in your setup (for example because you use the effect loop of your amp), two or three
• if you have a tube amp, some replacement tubes
• some extra fuses for your amp
• a torchlight – ever tried to replace an amp fuse on a dark stage?
• duct tape: if you use a lot of effects or have a lot of cables lying around the stage, tape them down so nobody trips over them and pulls them out by accident
• a knife: cutting duct tape without one is difficult at best
• pen and paper: there’s always something to write down, maybe even your phone number for the record company exec who saw your gig
• a multiple adaptor

Do I take all those things with me? To be honest, no I don’t and here’s why: When I play a gig, I take at least two guitars with me for sound variations. That means, I probably can get by with less spare strings – changing guitars in mid-set is also faster than replacing a string. Ever since the day my tube amp stopped working in mid-gig, I’ve brought a solid state replacement amp to every gig. Yes, it’s more to carry, but it also saves time (no need to replace tubes or a fuse in the middle of your gig). Thus, I get by without replacement tubes or extra fuses.

Remember: Even if you are fine and have no problems, your second guitar player or the bassist might be less well-prepared and then one of your extra instrument cords might come in handy.

Preparing for a gig does not start or end with the gear, nor with rehearsing your set list until you can play it in your sleep. If you’re interested, there’s a very interesting article on www.activebass.com (under articles) called “Preparing for the gig” that deals a bit with time-management before the gig. And there’s also the field of getting ready for the gig mentally, but that’s for maybe another time.

Breaking The Law was written by Stefan Leonhardt for Guitar Noise. A good guitar player you will be if you visit the above site. © 2012 Guitar Noise

What do we basically need to play guitar? One guitar, one amp, a guitar cord, and a pick.

Now when I look around my house – and I’m pretty sure I’m not the exception – I see a lot more than that. Do I really need all the gear I have? How do I justify buying even more?

I can think of a number of reasons for this behavior.

1. I sound bad, I suck! Remedy? A new amp/guitar/effect will help me get the sound I’m hearing in my head!
2. I want to sound like Santana, so I’ll buy a PRS Santana, a Mesa Boogie amp, a Fender amp and a couple of effects. One year later, my Santana days are over and now Steve Vai is my hero. That means, I’ll get an Ibanez Universe guitar, the Carvin Steve Vai amp and an Eventine harmonizer.
3. I want to be as versatile and flexible as I can, I want a huge variety of different sounds because I play/enjoy a lot of different styles, play in a Top 40 band, or I’m a studio musician. Thus, I need a Telecaster and a Fender Twin for playing country, a Les Paul and a Marshall for rock and a Gibson ES335 and a Roland Jazz chorus for jazz.
4. I just like guitars and gear – I collect them.

I don’t know about you, but #s 3 and 4 definitely apply to me and I had a time when # 1 was also an important reason. Maybe there are some points above where you nodded your head and said “Yes, I can relate to that, I had the same experience” and maybe you shook your head after some points and thought “This is stupid.”

Here are some of my thoughts concerning these points:

A good guitar player still sounds good even with a crappy guitar and a cheap amp. A number of years ago, I went to a guitar workshop and as I had to go by train, I took a cheap Squier Strat with me. All the people at the workshop plugged their guitars into Marshall combos. The guy in charge of the workshop was a Canadian studio musician – sorry I forgot his name.

To make the story short: he made a point of playing every guitar that people brought to the workshop and he sounded great with each one, even playing my cheap Squier I always had thought unable to produce a great sound (this was the last in a row of experiences that cured me from thinking along the lines of #1). He did this to show exactly that: the sound is first and foremost in your hands, not in the gear.

So … if you think you sound bad, do some self-evaluation before you run out and buy new gear. Get the opinion of other people, have a friend play through your gear. Is it really a new amp you need or more practice (no doubt, new gear can motivate one to practice more …)?

Of course, a good amp and guitar supports the player, but the basics are in one’s hands.

I’d go as far and say that 80 to 90 % of a player’s sound comes basically from his hands and not the gear he’s using. Case in point, a couple of years ago, Eddie Van Halen and Ted Nugent met backstage. Both were interested in the other’s gear and so they switched guitars and amps. Eddie took Ted’s Gibson semi-acoustic and Ted plugged Eddie’s Kramer Strat into Eddie’s Marshall. Both were surprised that Eddie still sounded like Eddie and Ted still like Ted – of course there was a small difference to their usual sound but everybody could tell who was who.

It boils down to the fact that you can buy the same gear your hero uses and still not sound like him or her. If you don’t play similar licks and phrases, the same gear won’t help you. Furthermore, you might copy the sound, but you can’t copy tone. Tone is the sum of the equipment, the licks and phrases and the playing technique of the player (his vibrato, the way he bends, slides, picks, where he picks, with how much strength and so on).

Another thought is – do you really want to copy somebody else? Sound like somebody else? Or would you rather be you?

So when somebody asks me, how he can sound like Nirvana, I of course can ramble on about the equipment Cobain used, but would it help? Could you afford all the stuff Kurt had (or Steve Vai has)? Is your technique the same as Kurt’s? Chances are, you won’t sound like him.

I can give you some advice on what to buy to sound close to a famous guitarist, maybe even without spending thousands, but keep the above in mind.

Ok, if the gear is only a small part of the sound, why then do some players change guitars so often? Why do studio musicians come to some jobs with a whole van filled with gear?

Their basic tone is the same, no matter the gear. But of course, different gear provides some variations in the sound of an artist (the 10 to 20% missing from above) – for obvious and not so obvious reasons.

Listen to Cream and Eric Clapton. He plays Gibson guitars (sometimes an SG, sometimes an ES335). Then listen to a 70s recording of Clapton or Derek and the Dominos, a Fender Stratocaster is used here. You can still tell it’s Clapton, but the sound is (slightly) different.

The blues can be played with a Stratocaster (SRV), a Telecaster (Albert Collins), a Gibson Les Paul (Gary Moore), a Gibson semi-acoustic (BB King) or any other guitar, but the sound will be different.

On the other hand, there is certain gear that lends itself better to certain styles – a Marshall amp has a lot of “bite” and is ideal for rock, but because of this “bite”, it’s not very suitable for jazz.

But don’t forget to experiment. The most unlikely combination of gear (people tell you “You can’t play country on a Les Paul, you won’t sound country”) might be exactly YOUR sound, a sound that distinguishes you from the masses.

Players also experiment and find that they are more comfortable with a certain guitar when playing a certain style. This brings us to another point.

Different gear might make you feel different. You might feel more comfortable with a certain amp/guitar, you might feel more “country” and unconsciously use more typical country phrases when playing a Telecaster as your subconscious associates this instrument with country. It affects your playing and the way you sound.

Another aspect is the discussion solid state amps vs tube amps. Solid state amps have come a long way and there are some good enough that the listener would be hard pressed to notice the difference to a tube amp. But those amps feel different for the player, they don’t respond as well as tube amps (more on this in a later column).

So, different guitars and amps might mean more difference to the player in a certain situation (“Guitar XY feels better when I play the blues, but guitar Z feels better for rock” – or as Laura and Lee would say: “The Blue guitar sounds better for Blues, and the Red guitar is better for Rock’) than to the listener, who might not even perceive a big change in your sound/playing.

Therefore, #3 might be a valid point. Just ask yourself if you really need all the stuff you have or plan to buy in order to get all the variety you need.

What can I say concerning #4 – there’s no hope for a cure. If one likes collecting gear, how can you argue against that? He even admits that he doesn’t need it all.

Ok, that’s it for this time – I guess next time I’ll ramble a bit about effects generally before starting to write about the different effects and what they do. And I plan to write about how to choose the right amp for you … hmm, don’t know yet, maybe you will tell me. I hope you give me some feedback, and if you want to comment on what I wrote or argue some points, please feel free to do so.

GAS Powered was written by Stefan Leonhardt for Guitar Noise. A good guitar player you will be if you visit the above site. © 2012 Guitar Noise