General Music Chat

Just set his tone for him, "Philiam". lol

What's the big deal?

Danny Gatton had one of the sharpest edgy tones I ever heard. I hated it. But Danny could make magic with it. He used it to get sounds from his licks that would not have come across any other way. The tone is so upper midrange that I would cringe if I were to hear it from anyone else in a band I was in. The kind of tone that actually tickles the inside of your ears.

But Danny was magic.

What Dewy said: The key is "He liked the tone" He is hearing something you aren't hearing. Isn't that obvious since he has good pitch and all the other qualities that make for a good musician? He is hearing what HE likes to hear.

Maybe all he has to do is find a band looking for his tone. Then his tone would be great. And all you need to do is find a musician who's tone your band likes. I know. .... Too simplistic.

I agree. That's the question that needs to be asked first. Does he like his sound? If HE likes it, then there's nothing anyone is going to do to change it. So if you're just trying to change his tone to suit what you like to hear, you're wasting your time.

However, if he were to say "my rig sounds like utter s**t, what can I do about it?" Well, then that means that he has an IDEA in his head of what he WANTS his tone to sound like. In that case, my approach would be to find out who his favorite guitar players are and ask what he likes most about their sound. Then at least you have an idea of where to start.

Just my two cents.

Tone is in the eye, er ear of the beholder. It also has a great deal to do with the touch somebody has on their instrument. I've hosted jam sessions and people playing through my bass guitar and amp sound TERRIBLE to the point I'm wondering if I sound that bad. Well I don't. The difference between people is night and day sometimes. This guy you're talking about might play with that tone no matter what guitar and amp he plays through. He'll adjust his settings and/or his attack on the guitar to get that same tone. It sounds good to him probably. We all hear something a little different than each other. That's what makes the world of music go round....

The only way he doesnt have an idea of what he wants to sound like is if he doesnt listen to himself

No. I'm not explaining it well enough. I could go over & randomly twist his knobs (on his AMP, PPL!) & he would go ahead & use it as it stands.

I've never met anyone like him, really. I know a lot of players that have good, mediocre, & really awful tones, but he's the only one that doesn't even bother looking at his settings before or during play.

He never actually sets it up. He walks in, plugs in & goes. It doesn't matter if it's been jostled or bumped & the settings are different. He either doesn't hear it, or he thinks his playing is so good that others won't notice it, or he's too embarrassed to try in front of ppl.

It's the damnedest thing. I've talked to him about it, actually stopped him during practice & asked him to fix it, but he always just told me to go ahead & do it the way I like it. It just bugs me when he says he doesn't know about that stuff. He's been to a good music school for pete's sake!

I could like his playing if I could stand his sound.

And the funny thing is, you wouldn't expect someone like that to be as anal as he is about tuning or perfecting his licks for one song or another.

Sounds like he might be a lost cause. Shame.

I was always told that most of the tone is in the way you play. I've heards guys make mediocre amps sound amazing. Maybe I'm wrong in this case?

Sounds like someone that I would say "Can I set your amp for you?" If he said yes I would switch it on standby! LOL

Heck Philby if he will let you set it just set it up for him to suit you.