they say tone isnt in the fingers..?

[Ben Waylin]

That is not a crap tone, definitely.

But why so much hype about Larry Amps? I'm not sure, it didn't really strike me as miles ahead of most other high gain amps I've heard.

Larry was a cool dude, back 20 years ago on the old MetroAmp forum.

Helped me learn a lot back when I first got into building/modding amps.

Now Larry has gone into his "Golden Girls" phase, and is acting like a little hussy.. with sand in his pussy.

 

[CrystalSky]

I'm sure you listen to Van Halen. There's something magical about the way that guy played guitar.

I've seen tonnes of master shredders. Don't get me wrong, their technique and chops are great.

But Eddie? Jeez, that guy's fingers really made the guitar sing.

That's just one example. Yngwie is another one.

I'm not talking about the music and playing. Just listen carefully when they play. There are other guys who can copy them note for note.

But the tone remains elusive.

Kind of how they say that if you play through a great guitar player's rig, you'll sound just like yourself and definitely not like them.

I don’t listen to Ed much, like I know only couple of his songs. Don’t get crazy over his tone either, SLO gets me there easy if I ever need it.

What we are talking about is phrasing and groove/rhythm feeling of a player, not like the tone itself.

And actually I even think that personal flavor of groove and phrasing can be replicated too, it is just our psychology affected by star status of person in question sometimes making us listen with our eyes in a way “Oh this is not Ed himself, definitely can’t be as good”. I would love to see some blind tests on the subject.

To me the main thing about all the guitar heroes is their composer gift to come up with those great riffs and melodies.

Celebrity aura affects people a lot, like people be pissing their pants about some Sydney Sweeney for example “omg Sydney, she is so extra” and I on the countrary only see a butterface hooker with a nice pair of tits.

I can’t say for sure how much this translates to music world, as I don’t get bands touring here at all and I mostly base my opinion on videos and albums, not “in the room” feel.

 

[CrystalSky]

Here's my tone test of a Larry Dino 802

This does not sound like a crap tone..

Yo PLX i keep forgetting it is you lol

I mean you are playing some gibberish there, but it doesn’t sound like a bad tone, it is the playing that sounds like fooling around, but I think it actually is fooling around so all good.

 

[Panhead5]

I thought I read somewhere Nuno played Van Halen’s rig but didn’t sound like Eddie. Enough said for me!!!

 

[CrystalSky]

I thought I read somewhere Nuno played Van Halen’s rig but didn’t sound like Eddie. Enough said for me!!!

*Nuno playing his own songs through that rig*: “Shit, this doesn’t sound like Jump at all”

 

[stephen sawall]

Not hard to find someone trying to sell you tone.

Have ten people play on the same rig playing the same song / material. I guarantee there is going to be differences in the tone. Anyone can hear it.

 

[nightlight]

That is feel, not tone.

I always thought of feel as something perceived by the audience and other band members based on the music.

Tone, on the other hand, would be the sound I got out of my gear, my fingers, and my environment - and not necessarily in that order.

 

[JustinCorrigible]

I always thought of feel as something perceived by the audience and other band members based on the music.

Tone, on the other hand, would be the sound I got out of my gear, my fingers, and my environment - and not necessarily in that order.

I was being a little facetious with that. However, how do you expect to get "tone" out of your fingers if you're not feeling the music? That's why I said you gotta loosen up/relax.

 

[CrystalSky]

Not hard to find someone trying to sell you tone.

Have ten people play on the same rig playing the same song / material. I guarantee there is going to be differences in the tone. Anyone can hear it.

But if all of those 10 people are ideally pro and try to play as identical as possible?

I am not selling, only GASing to buy myself, if anything

 

[Thumbpicker]

The only players worth listening to have a swinging groove to their playing somehow. That is what everyone who is serious about guitar should be chasing.

Yes timing makes all the difference and separates the good from the excellent. It's also about consistency. It's like golf. You're not really pro unless you are consistent.

 

[Thumbpicker]

Tone filled fingertips:
View attachment 347441

Most likely liver disease there mate. Sad.

 

[Thumbpicker]

I thought I read somewhere Nuno played Van Halen’s rig but didn’t sound like Eddie. Enough said for me!!!

I'll paraphrase this because I don't have the exact quote...

Someone went up to Chet Atkins after a performance and said "wow your guitar sounds great". Chet put his guitar on a chair and said "now how does it sound". lol

 

[stephen sawall]

But if all of those 10 people are ideally pro and try to play as identical as possible?

I am not selling, only GASing to buy myself, if anything

It's like a fingerprint. No two are the same.

 

[Ben Waylin]

Yo PLX i keep forgetting it is you lol

I mean you are playing some gibberish there, but it doesn’t sound like a bad tone, it is the playing that sounds like fooling around, but I think it actually is fooling around so all good.

Yo, let's hear a clip from you.. before you start pontificating on anything up in hear.

 

[RaceU4her]

Yo, let's hear a clip from you.. before you start pontificating on anything up in hear.

is that a red flame ML in the back??

 

[ChuggNorris]

I can literally alter my pick angle and where it contacts along the length of the string, grip on the pick, picking intensity, introduce some flesh and nail impacting the string, and change where and how forcibly the meat of my palm is muting the strings. All these things drastically change the tone, to the point where I can exaggerate these techniques for illustration and normally wouldn't play that way. The tone can go from good to bad just doing these things.

You bastid, I have to say..
I'll agree with this 111%
This is what I consider "Dynamics"

And its why I "personally" don't like boosting.
For me it smears "my" picking technique.
Not alot but it's always there everytime.

So I tweak the amp to fit "my" technique to get the desired results rather than toss a boost that even set cleanly tends to add color. For "me" that actually takes away what I'm actually going after in feel and dynamic control.

All those things is why tone does reside in the fingers quite a bit. But for some players who do not play dynamically, they will say tone is the rig and the rig alone. A loose weak sounding rig can sound tighter and more chuggy in the right hands. Technique and tone are very closely related in "my" opinion.

 

[JohnnyGtar]

The only players worth listening to have a swinging groove to their playing somehow. That is what everyone who is serious about guitar should be chasing.

 

[SpiderWars]

Everytime I hear a reverse picker play I like the articulation, I've messed with it and it's definitely a different tone. Dweezil demonstrated a similar thing in the Beato interview about playing the intro to Ain't Talkin Bout Love. Hold the pick with flat of your middle finger and thumb like Ed often did and the articulation pops. I usually press the pick to the side of my finger not the flat and that sounds punchier but muddier.

@Ben Waylin that Larry tone is killer.

 

[SpiderWars]

Here's that part in the Dweezil interview, he doesn't really demonstrate the difference that great but it's there. It's more of a difference for me.

 

[CrystalSky]

It's like a fingerprint. No two are the same.

But is it tone or peronal style in the end? To me tone is about amps. Differences in playing and feel I attribute to style, phrasing, skill, groove etc.