Perhaps it’s time once again to share a bit of what I have found from years of “tinkering” with these things. There are so many new members; perhaps this will help many when making choices to do so with a tad more information.
I would say the things that effect tone the most are, in order of importance, the talent of the guitarist, the amp, peripheral electronics, the room’s acoustic properties where the complete setup is played, the ancillary audio equipment such as the vocalist’s mike, etc., and other “open” mikes in relativity close proximity to the guitarist’s amp.
Notice something? I haven’t even gotten to the guitar yet. There’s a reason. It’s a minor part of the equation. Contained under the word “guitar” are the strings, frets, pickups, caps, paint, wood, nut, keys, bridge/tremolo, saddles, and on and on.
Here’s an experiment most can try that will illustrate how the room and the placement of the amp (speaker) in that room can affect the sound. This will help you to experience how seemingly insignificant variables can alter the “tone: quiet dramatically.
Sit in front of a reasonably good stereo system, and have two friends move the speakers around as you are listening. You will immediately notice a change in the tonal characteristics of the sound.
Now… wait a few moments, and listen to music again, this time with the speakers in the normal position. Then turn off the music, reposition the speakers, and resume listening. The sound will appear unchanged.
This is because of the ability of the brain, your brain, if you didn’t burn it out in the 60’s and 70’s like most of us did, to recall the program material, and if the sound is slightly different, to fill in the “errors” so you perceive the sound as you think you remember it.
Also, if you hear a specific sound, such as auditioning guitar cords as an example, shut everything down, then try a second cord; you cannot remember the sound the first produced. If you do, it’s more a product of your mind and not reality.
In this thread we’re discussing gauge of strings. There are a multitude of variables that have not been discussed. For instance, you have 10’s on your guitar, you replace them with 9’s and think… darn, these baby’s sound great…. Well duh. . . If you replaced the 10’s you had. They too would sound great. Strings ability to reproduce the harmonic structure degrades after a few days. BUT!!! how old were the strings you replaced? Old strings always sound more dull than a new set.
Further the psychosomatic effect comes into play. You THINK or have been convinced that Super Skinny Bammer Bashers are the string to have, you yank your D’Addario’s off and replace them with the Bashers, and you are going to hear an improvement because your grey matter is convinced of that fact. The only exception is if there was some gross change. But in the realm of subtleties, it’s more times than not in the head, than based in reality.
This it true of the whole gamut of “mods” we do to our guitars. You hear an improvement because you want to.
I have participated in many a “blind” test over the years. That’s a real fast way to get humbled. When you don’t know what your listening to, you have very little real chance of picking consistently what you think sounds best. And if you have been touting he superiority of something related to sound, you better be able to tell it, when you hear it, but really, there are a very, very few that have such hearing.
So, those that are getting ready to head out tomorrow and drop a couple a hundred on new pups, or strip the “tone choking” poly off your body, or whatever else. Read the above again.
Notice the first thing I listed as affecting your tone…. That can be had for ZERO…. It comes with practice.
If the finest guitarists were to spend as much time chatting about their technique for developing their talent, as they do barking about tone . . . well.. Ohh the possibilities…
Remember. . You can hand the most superbly made mother of all guitars to an amateur, and the sound will still suck, but hand a 69.99 Wal-Mart special to a talented guitarist and you will be amazed. It is not the gear; it will never be the gear. It is the 6 inches of grey matter between your ears.
Ron Kirn
;D
