Category: Tone Tips

Paul McCartney’s Bass Tone

One of the greatest bass players of all time was also in one of the greatest bands of all time: The Beatles. Yes, Paul McCartney IS one of the best bass players, something we didn’t realize until playing the game Beatles RockBand. Choosing the bass option allows you to really concentrate on some of the killer bass lines McCartney came up with. He was really that backbone of the Beatles in that regards, and when you listen carefully, you can really feel the warmth and roundness of his amazing bass tone. So lets take a look at Paul’s bass tone and how he got it.

Paul’s Bass: an early 60s’ Hofner 500/1

This bass is the bass associated with Paul McCartney. In fact, when I look at it, I can’t think of anyone else. He used this bass throughout the Beatles famous years, from being on the Ed Sullivan Show, to their infamous rooftop concert on the Apple Building. The Hofner is the biggest piece of the puzzle in Paul’s tone, and really fills that low end. A cool thing about the Hofner is that it is a rather light bass, and pretty compact as well making it a dream to gig with.

Paul’s Amp: Vox Amplifiers

In the early days, he would plug into a Vox AC30, though in late 1962, he switched over to a Vox T-60. Although the T-60 was just not powerful enough to overcome the screams from the growing audiences. So at that point, Paul switched to an AC30 Head with a big bass cabinet sporting Celestion speakers. Soon Paul adopted the AC100 Head to really fill the stage with his bass tone.

So in the end, if you want his bass tone, using a Hofner 500/1, coupled with Vox amplifiers and Celestion speakers will definitely get you there. But it’s Paul McCartney’s bass playing that really attributed to a lot of the sound, so do learn some of his bass lines to get his playing style down, which ultimately leads to getting his sound as well.

Best Overdrive Pedal

With so many overdrive pedals on the market, it is difficult to pinpoint which ones are the best as it’s highly a matter of personal taste. However, there are a few overdrives out there that are loved and highly respected by many (us included) that really are set apart from the rest. So lets take a look at some of the best overdrive pedals out there.

Klon Centaur

The Klon has been around since the mid-’90s and earned its reputation by being used by many famous acts including Jeff Beck, Metallica, and Pearl Jam to name a few. Many find the Klon to be one of the most transparent overdrives out there, so it tends to stack well with other pedals. Many also describe the it to be like its own little amp in a way, so it is great when faced against any amp. With the ability to get a beautiful clean boost, to a nice beefy sweet-sounding overdrive, there are many possibilities even with only its 3 controls (output, treble, drive). Some will use it as a treble booster and others to fatten up their tone. All and all, the Klon is the overdrive people that many put on the top of their list and if could only own one pedal, that would be it.

Ibanez TS-808 Tubescreamer

Next in line for best OD pedal is the TS-808, famously used by the late master blues guitarist, Stevie Ray Vaughan. Much like the name, the TS-808 makes your amp scream so-to-speak, that is it helps a tube amp get pushed. The result is a smooth overdrive, with the perfect amount of bite. I really like that it sounds organic and keeps your guitar tone well in tact, while adding all the right colors. If you are looking for an overdrive that can deliver a sizzling blues tone, than the TS-808 is it! View it on Amazon.

Marshall Bluesbreaker 1

While being a low gain pedal, the Marshall Bluesbreaker 1 (not to be confused with the 2nd reissue) has been used extensively by John Mayer. Word on the street is that he was even snatching many of them up on Ebay. Some describe the BB-1 as a one trick pony, but it does that trick very well. It delivers the definitive vintage Marshall tone reminiscent of players like Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page. The Bluesbreaker of course really suits the blues, creating a smooth, fat, warm, on-the-edge-of-breakup tone that really has those nice subtle dynamics in the pick attack. Just a stellar pedal.

Well there you have it. These are what we feel are the best overdrive pedals out there. What do you think is the best overdrive? Feel free to post in the comments section.

What’s the Point of Point-to-Point?

This is a Guest Post by Bruce Clement of BC Audio

I am often asked why I use what I refer to as true point-to-point wiring in my amps. Why go through the extra work? Does it really make a difference in the sound? While point-to-point wiring is certainly not the only path to great tone, I’d like to address some of the questions surrounding the topic and explain why point-to-point wiring is important to me.

Q: What do you mean “true point-to-point” wiring? Aren’t most vintage and boutique amps point-to-point?

A: Long before the invention of the printed circuit board (PCB), when eyelet boards and turret boards were new advances, the term point-to-point referred to the then common method of soldering small electronic parts (such as resistors and capacitors) directly to chassis-mounted parts (tube sockets, jacks, pots). “Point-to-point” meant the resistors, capacitors and wires in the amp connected one point to another, without a board of any kind.

With the resurgence in popularity of vintage amps – most of which were built using turret or eyelet boards – many people began to refer to those amps as “point-to-point.” I believe this error occurred because people were trying to make a distinction between what you see in vintage amps – and the boutique amps that copy them – and the PCBs found in modern mass-produced amps. Thus, “point-to-point” came to mean “anything other than PCB.”

There certainly is a distinction to be made between eyelet or turret boards and PCBs. But, the misapplication of the term point-to-point to these board-based construction methods has resulted in a loss of its correct meaning. That’s why I have taken to saying “true point-to-point.” It’s not that other methods are less “true” to some ideal, but that the original meaning of point-to-point has been lost. To their credit, many manufacturers today are using terms like “hand wired” to describe their turret board or eyelet board amps.

Q: What does this mean in practical terms? What’s the difference?

A: Let me point out the primary difference between board-based and point-to-point construction: wires.

Marshall JTM50 (Flag Logo), circa 1967, turret board construction

In a board-based tube amp, such as a vintage Fender or Marshall, many wires connect the parts on the board to the chassis-mounted tube sockets, jacks, pots and other parts. Any signal-carrying wires running from one place to another have the potential for the introduction of a myriad of problems: noise, interference, crosstalk, coupling, parasitic oscillation, unwanted capacitance and instability. That’s why lead dress – the way wires are arranged and managed throughout an amp – has always been such a huge factor in tube amplifier design.

With point-to-point wiring, many of these wires simply don’t exist.

For example, let’s take a look at the most sensitive, vulnerable part of any amp – the place where the problems mentioned above can have the most detrimental effect: the input to the first gain stage, where the guitar signal first reaches a tube. Whatever problems get introduced here are amplified and re-amplified throughout the rest of the amp.

In a board-based amp, a wire runs from the input jack to the board, where it connects to a turret or eyelet. A resistor is mounted between that turret/eyelet and another one. From there, a second wire runs to the tube socket. Each of these two wires is likely to be several inches long, and located physically close to other wires that carry amplified signals, B+ power, heater power or other currents. This type of arrangement is repeated again and again – at each gain stage, each front panel control, each part of the signal path.

Now, consider the input to the first gain stage in BC Audio’s high-gain 25w Amplifier No. 8. The input jack is connected to the tube socket by a resistor alone (arrow in photo). There is no wire between the jack and the resistor, nor is there a wire between the resistor and the tube socket.

BC Audio Amplifier No. 8, arrow points to grid resistor of first gain stage

This technique is carried on throughout the circuit. There are only a few very short signal-carrying wires in the entire signal path. Other wires safely carry B+, heater and other currents some distance away from the sensitive areas of the amp.

Q: Isn’t point-to-point wiring messy?

A: This particular criticism is one that I happen to agree with. Traditionally, point-to-point wiring is messy! There’s an old yarn, “If you can see the tube sockets, it’s not point-to-point.” I’ve seen many circuits like that, with parts overlapping other parts at every angle, several layers deep, a veritable mish-mash of electronics so haphazard-looking that it’s a wonder the thing even works!

Well, I don’t like that kind of mess any more than anyone else. That’s why I’ve developed a different approach to point-to- point wiring. I have laid out parts along clean, parallel and perpendicular lines wherever possible. Wires are neatly bundled together – but never are sensitive signal wires bundled with power wires. The entire layout is designed to provide a very compact and direct signal path.

Q: Is there a difference where it really counts – in the sound?

A: I’ll leave it up to you and your ears to decide if the guitar tone itself is better or not. But consider the result of nearly eliminating the source of the problems I outlined above – noise, interference, crosstalk, coupling, parasitic oscillation, unwanted capacitance and instability. Without all that junk, you can hear and feel every nuance of your playing – and so can your audience.

I am convinced that a compact and direct signal path translates into greater clarity, more lively dynamics and a more organic feel, where the touch of your fingers on the strings feels more connected to the sound coming out of the speakers. Like I said earlier, point-to-point wiring is not the only way to make a great sounding amp. But I do believe that true point-to-point wiring, done right, makes a difference.

Best Fuzz Pedals

Of course the topic of the best fuzz pedal is one that is highly subjective. Everyone has their own taste. So we’re going to list for you some fuzz pedals that we think are some of the top ones. This list will not include vintage pedals that aren’t made anymore, because of course a real ’60s Dallas Arbiter Fuzz would would beat anything! Of course, our opinion. So check out this list of some of the top fuzz pedals that are made today.

Roger Mayer Axis Fuzz

One of our personal favorites, the Roger Mayer Axis Fuzz can get some of the best fuzz tones, if done right. I say this because it won’t work great through any amp configuration. Rather, it was designed for Marshall Plexi stacks that already have a good amount of natural tube overdrive without any pedal. Kick on the Axis fuzz and you are taken through different dimensions with unlimited amounts of fuzz and sustain, running through a field of screaming feedback. An absolute world of expression is possible with the Axis Fuzz through the right rig.

KR Gypsy Fuzz

KR Musical, a company that often disappears is still known for making some of the best sounding pedals out there, particularly in the Hendrix category. Their Gypsy Fuzz is no different, offering an aggressive silicon fuzz tone that has a growl to it. It is reminiscent of the Axis Fuzz, though it is a little smoother in tone. Also KR’s The Fuzz is amazing as well.

Analog Man Sun Face Fuzz

Analog Man has long been known on the boutique-market as a maker of great vintage sounding all-analog effects. The  Sun Face is no different, and offers that vintage sound based on their choice of transistors. Actually these pedals are made to order, so you can choose which silicon or germanium transistors you want for your Sun Face. It gets pretty specific as you can get transistors that are actually from the ’60s. Also with the option of a sundial, this allows you to control the internal bias without opening up the pedal, essentially allowing you to tweak the fuzz to your amp and room temperature on the fly.

MJM London Fuzz 1

With matched vintage germanium transistors, the London Fuzz will give you some of the sweetest sounding clean tones when you roll your guitar’s volume back. Not fully clean but can be depending on your pick attack. It really brings out a colourful chime in that area. When cranked, a fat warm fuzz tone really makes your single notes seem like they weigh a ton. MJM’s silicon version of the London Fuzz is great also.

These are the best fuzz pedals on the market in our opinion. What do you think is the best fuzz out there? Feel free to post your answer in the comments sections.

Make your Guitar Sound Like an Organ

The sounds of an organ are amazing, but if you’re a guitarist who doesn’t have time to learn how to play the keys, then why not make your guitar sound like an organ? Imagine getting sounds of a combo organ like The Doors and Pink Floyd with your favorite axe, or the famous rotating tones of a Hammond B-3, or perhaps you want those long choir sounds of a church organ. This article will show you various ways to achieve an organ sound with your guitar.

EarthQuaker Devices Organizer
The EQD Organizer is a pedal that is specifically designed to make your guitar sound like an organ. You can get sounds of a Hammond B3, church organs, and also some really experimental stuff. There are blend controls that allow you to specify the amount of your original guitar tone coming through the pedal. I personally own this one and its the only digital pedal on my board. Read the full review (with sound clips) of the EarthQuaker Organizer here or view the Organizer on Amazon.

Vox V251 Guitar Organ
In the ’60s, Vox made a guitar specifically to cop organ tones. It can be used as a regular electric guitar as well. The circuitry was built similarly to their popular Vox Continental combo organ (used by Ray Manzerak of the Doors) which was the organ sound of ’60s psychedelic music. The touch sensitivity of the V251 is done in a way to emulate what its like when you press a key on an organ. So it was easier to make it sound like an organ, rather than a guitar trying to emulate one. Included is a remote power supply to provide the necessary voltages for the Vox Guitar Organ.

Pedal Combinations
Another popular method is stacking an Electro-Harmonix POG2 with some other pedals, such as reverbs, delays, and compressors. Of course some experimentation is needed. Go a step further and add a Leslie Rotating Speaker to the mix to get the warbly tones. One of the closest simulations I’ve heard with using a pedal is actually the Electro-Harmonix HOG, which is a harmonic octave generator. With various settings, I’ve heard this pedal get the closest to the B3 sound.

Any of these ways will get that great organ sound on your guitar. Though if you are looking for a pure authenticity of both sound and the way an organ is played, then only the real thing will suffice. If you just want to cop some organ tones, then these methods are sure to please.

Guitar Hummer Review

About a month ago, we got our hands on a new product called the Guitar Hummer. In the form of a guitar stand, its purpose it to ‘play in’ your
acoustic guitar by the means of motorized vibrations. Its goal is to simulate the guitar being played, in order to produce a better sounding instrument in a shorter amount of time.

This may sound confusing. To simplify, playing your guitar vibrates the entire instrument. These vibrations condition the guitar to sound better. So essentially, the more you play it, the better the instrument will sound.
The Guitar Hummer works in a way to speed up this process, as it does take years of playing to really notice a difference in tone. Their ideas is to keep the guitar on their stand 24/7 when not playing and have it vibrate constantly. We decided to take the challenge of using the Guitar Hummer for one month to see if we could notice any difference in tone.

The test subject, my 40 year old classical guitar. I bought it used about a year ago, and it was virtually unplayed. Whenever I wasn’t playing it, it was left on the Guitar Hummer.

One thing I noticed right away was that when it was on the stand, you could hear a bit of a hum, hence the name of the company. Since I leave the stand out in the living room, this wasn’t an issue. The Guitar Hummer does have an intensity control to adjust the vibrations. So if it is too loud, you can dim it down and still get it vibrating.

The Result: After a month, we did notice a change in tone, although it was small. Still, it was impressive that in a months time that we could notice a change. What we noticed exactly was that the sustain improved a bit and the overall sound of the instrument was more musical.

While the result wasn’t much, this was only from a one month test. Since there was a difference, I’m very curious to see what a year with the Guitar Hummer would yield.

The Guitar Hummer is not cheap, retailing at $150 US. But its designed for high-end acoustic guitars that want to have the luxury of being a played-in instrument in a much quicker timeframe. So if you want your acoustic guitar to sound its best, and you don’t want to wait many years, then the Guitar Hummer is for you. In the end, it really is a truly innovative product in the acoustic guitar world. Would be very interesting if they expanded to other acoustic instruments such as violins. Until then, good vibrations.

How to Get Great Guitar Tone

The recipe for getting great guitar tone involves a few different factors which we’ll outline in this article. We feel that when you have amazing tone, it can be all the inspiration you need to create great music. So lets take a look at the five areas to help better your tone:

The Guitar
Often times, I find the guitar itself to be a small part of the equation. However if you have a really terrible guitar that has questionable electronics, then I can see this being a bigger issue. If you have a pretty decent electric, then that should be enough. Of course the more expensive the guitar, generally the better it will probably sound (though not always the case). Also you can upgrade the pickups on your guitar, which will have a big effect on tone. I’ve heard crappy guitars with amazing pickups sound great!

The Amp
If you want great tone, then I would highly recommend a good tube amplifier. As the tubes in the amp warm up, so will your tone. With a tube amp, you need to drive it a bit with the volume. If there is no master volume, then I would suggest a low wattage amp for home use. That way you can crank it (which is where great tone really comes from) without bothering the neighbours. Check out my article on amp settings for making the most of your amp.

Cables
It’s a good idea to invest in higher quality cables to connect your guitar to the amp. When I a/b’d my cheap $10 cables that I got from my local music store with my boutique Sweet-Tone cables, I was very pleasantly surprised to see the difference it made to the overall guitar tone.

Sweetening the Signal
Try using different pedals to sweeten the signal a bit. A few I would recommend for this purpose are Reverbs, Compressors, and Overdrives. If the tone in your head entails solos that scream, then you’ll definitely need those dirt pedals to push the signal.

Its in your Hands
Remember, once you have all the technical elements to give you great tone, it doesn’t mean everything will be pleasing to the ear. A lot of the tone is in your hands. The way you strum, and pick notes has an effect. And of course the better you play, the better the tone will sound.

Hope these tips help, and get you closer to great guitar tone!

’60s Guitar Tone

Today’s article will teach you how to achieve vintage guitar tone of the 1960s. In this era, some of the best guitar players ever came into the spotlight such as Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Jimmy Page, and many more. Not only are they incredibly talented players, they also had guitar tone that many today still desire. So lets look at elements of why their tone is the way it is, so you will know how you can get closer to that ’60s style tone yourself.

Guitars
If you are using Schecters or Ibanez guitars (with the exception of copies), most likely you won’t get that vintage tone. The guitars used in the ’60s include Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, and Gretsch. Of course there are many others, but these were very notable at the time, especially the Stratocaster and Les Paul. Also in this era, the electronics were different then they are today. So if you want to make your modern day guitar more vintage-sounding, try installing low-output pickups.

Amps
During the ’60s, digital didn’t exist. The amps used during this period were tube amps. In Britain, Marshall and Vox amps were very popular, specifically the Marshall Bluesbreaker and Plexi amps, and the Vox AC amps. You can find Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton using the Marshall Plexi amplifiers, while the Beatles were partial to the Vox amp (in the early ’60s). In the west, Fender Amps definitely were the most popular. These days, vintage amps can run you thousands of dollars. Check out old Traynor amps which replicated sounds of both Fender and Marshall at the time, but at a fraction of the cost. If you have a newer amp, you can change out the stock tubes with NOS tubes (new old stock) to get that vintage tone. While NOS tubes are expensive, you can with one pre-amp tube in V1 of your amp will have the most dramatic effect on tone. Mullard and RCA are among the best in the NOS tube world.

Pedals
Again, no digital pedals in this era. You want to look for analog pedals. Around the late ’60s, Fuzz pedals made their way onto the scene. If you want a 1967 style fuzz, which can be defined as warm, fat and creamy, look for a fuzz with Germanium transistors. If you want that more aggressive, in-your-face fuzz tone, go with the silicon transistors. Other pedals that became popular in the ’60s are Wahs, Octave, and of course the legendary Univibe.

So there you have it. Mix tube amps, with legendary guitars (with low output pickups), and pedals from this era, and you’ll get much closer to that ’60s guitar tone.

The Best Reverb Pedals on the Market

Today’s article is to help you find the best reverb pedal available today. People are always looking for that lush, vibrant, full-of-depth reverb that sounds very organic. Here at Guitar Tone Talk, we’ve tried a ton of reverb pedals and have narrowed it down to these top 5. Here is our choices… Continue reading The Best Reverb Pedals on the Market