Tag: reverb

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!

Ways to Sweeten Your Guitar Tone

Today I’m gonna show you a few ways to make your guitar tone sound more sweet. Some days you want a dirty tone, but other days you want that perfect clean sound. However, sometimes when you want it clean, it can still be harsh and ice-picky to the ears. So if you want to sweeten up your tone, try these ways:

Reverb
When you are playing through a dry amp, it can often sound too in your face and abrupt. I say abrupt because when you stop playing, all the sound goes away abruptly, which isn’t always sweet to the ears. Adding reverb will give your tone a trail, and make it feel like you are playing in a bigger place. With the right amount of reverb, the tone can turn very very sweet and addicting. I would recommend a tank reverb in your amp, or a tube driven reverb, over a digital reverb. Digital in my opinion will sound too fake and 1-dimensional. Check out my article on the Best Reverb Pedals on the Market.

Pedals
Aside from reverb pedals, there are a few that will help sweeten your tone, specifically a clean boost or a compressor. I personally own the Xotic EP Booster, which adds a nice sparkle to the tone. There are many options on the market. I would also check out Echo pedals and if set properly, it can really create the ambience of soothing tones. If you are very serious about making your tone very sweet with pedals, I would recommend to go the boutique route. Also stick to analog circuitry over anything digital as it will sound warmer.

EQ-ing your Amp
A lot of the time, you can get a sweet tone from your amp (if its a tube amp) just by dialing it in correctly. If the tone is too harsh, turn the treble down a bit. Not warm enough? Boost the mids and bass a bit. Also pay attention to where the Presence is set and experiment with different levels. I would recommend that you set all the dials to noon, and then go from there. Just use your ears and see where the tone need more or less of something. Also if you are using a tube amp, let those tubes warm up a bit, as the tone will get sweeter the longer the amp is on. Here’s more on EQing in your Amp.

Hope this helps you on your way to sweeter tone!