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I had one of those good moments yesterday

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(@rparker)
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Joined: 20 years ago
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I have to share. It was a cloudy and rainy day, the type that makes even normal people have headaches. Guitar playing was rather soothing and was drowning out some of the headache noises that I get. I switched over from my digital world to the analog world by plugging in my Squire Tele into my Jet City single channel 20W tube amp.

It was bliss.

I played everything and nothing all at once for an hour or so. I attacked each chord or single note of my noodling session like it was written and well rehearsed. Up and down the neck, jumping from genre to genre, style to style and technique to technique. It all sounded so perfect.

Later on I went back to the digital world and it was just fine as it was before, but this amp and guitar combination really hit a home run for me. Great fun. 8) 8)

Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin


   
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(@s1120)
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Joined: 16 years ago
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Thats awesome!!!! Makes up for all those times where you sit there, and cant get the fingers to do ANYTHING!!!

Paul B


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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So was it your playing that you were happy with or the sound of the amp?

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@rparker)
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Joined: 20 years ago
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Thats awesome!!!! Makes up for all those times where you sit there, and cant get the fingers to do ANYTHING!!!
....and that happens very often. :oops: :lol:
So was it your playing that you were happy with or the sound of the amp?
The combination. I couldn't do no wrong and the amp & guitar were sounding perfect.

Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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A double good day then. I have to admit I don't have alot of clunker days playing (yes some days are better than others) but rarely any are train wrecks but man I don't think I've really ever liked my tone.

As we get closer hopefully to getting out there with this new band I worry that my guitar is not going to sound nice with the other guitar.

I never get that nice warm overdriven sound I am looking for all I can get is either scratchy, tinny distortion or some clean sounds and I don't play alot of stuff clean.

I'm just suprised I haven't been able to dial in a tone I like even just by mistake you'd think the law of averages would let me randomly find at least one good tone.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@rparker)
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Joined: 20 years ago
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You've put a lot of effort into the tone issue. You've got some serious hardware and software to boot, falling just short of being way too high priced for mere mortals. We're opposites. I like many tones. I get easily satisfied sometimes. It might stem from getting too frustrated when I have to chase something down, like a tone, and would much rather play than worry about it. I'm on just enough meds to allow me to do just that. :roll:

My brother in law has the amp you have and likes it well enough, but really likes it when he gets to do outdoor gigs where he can open up the volume to about 7 or so.

Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin


   
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(@trguitar)
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Joined: 17 years ago
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Thats cool Roy! I'm almost ashamed to say it but I just plug in, I start playing and I sound like me. That simple? Doesn't matter what rig I am using. I used to get frustrated cause things didn't sound right but for the past several years I don't worry about stuff and just play. It's that simple. I don't stress about it.

"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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Defintely need to crank it to get any good sounds and its loud so I really get it past 2 or 3. But I know a big part is my laziness. I know exactly the sounds I want be haven't had the patience sit and try the endless possibilities to shape my tone and it's compounded by the fact that if we are playing all these diverse covers I want to sound close to the guitar part I'm supposed to be playing.

Terry I know what you are saying I guess I am that way to but with me it's I sound the same just with suckier tone using my own gear. :shock:

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@rparker)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5480
Topic starter  

I've always thought it difficult to imagine having your own tone while covering songs using specific to the song gear such as types of pedals, gain, etc, etc. I've seen people like you doing gigs TR. Maybe 3-4 pedals max including a tuner and they're covering 3 dozen songs from a big variety of sounds and doing it really well. I was quite tempted after yesterday to ditch the digital stuff and just play out of my little amp.

The temptation didn't last, though. I was playing some wildly overblown spacey patch this afternoon into a backing track of "Knocking on Heaven's Door" and actually liked it. I'm thinking of mic'ing up the Jet City or the Fender BDRI for some straight on tube tone for the lead and fills. I guess it's all good fun.

Cnev, I always consider myself quite lazy with this stuff. If I'm looking for a particular tone, I use the 80/20 mindset. 20% effort will get me 80% there. I've found out that I just can't get much closer than that with a few hours of fiddling. Sometimes it's even worse than the tone that it took the first 15 minutes to come up with. I should keep on trying, though. It's the only way I'm going to learn all these different effects, settings, frequencies and so on.

Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin


   
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(@trguitar)
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I've always thought it difficult to imagine having your own tone while covering songs using specific to the song gear such as types of pedals, gain, etc, etc. I've seen people like you doing gigs TR. Maybe 3-4 pedals max including a tuner and they're covering 3 dozen songs from a big variety of sounds and doing it really well. I was quite tempted after yesterday to ditch the digital stuff and just play out of my little amp.

I run into my Boss Tuner - Cry Baby - Bad Monkey Overdrive - Digital Delay - Amp. I do have a digital processor in the effects loop of my Peavey Windsor as it lacks reverb. I use it for reverb. :lol: I do have a pedal to kick in the boost chanel on the Windsor for solos if I wish.

Settings? Use the Cry Baby once in a great while, I use the Bad Monkey for a very slight gain boost and a little extra brightness. Minimal effect from it at best. It adds sustain. I set my delay for just a little echo and that is about it. Obvously I need to clean things up for some parts but otherwise just use that tone for almost everything. :?

"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --


   
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(@neztok)
Estimable Member
Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 152
 

I'm a one pedal at a time person. Somedays I use my Rat, others I use a Big Muff, or a FuzzFace. The past week I've been plugging into my TubeScreamer TS808. I got effects other than Distortion/Overdrive, I just can't find no use for them.

When I had no idea how to play guitar at all I worried about my tone because that's the only thing I could possible focus on. Now that I can crank out any rhythm I want, I probably could make music with the guts of a squealing pig. You know, if I could figure out a way to strum it.


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Well I've been searching since day one. Actually I didn't pay much attention to it when I started that was least of my problems. I probably should have started back then.

Anyway the learning how to play part is behind me and now I'd like to concentrate on my sound.

With the diverse song mix we play if just had one nice tone (which I'd love to have) it might sound good in some songs but at the end of the day all the songs would end up with basically the same guitar tone.

I still struggle to do that at times but my goal os to go beyond that and dial in a tone/song.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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