Tone Improvement 101

[gregory49]

Okay i need help getting a better sound on my set up... the best example i can give is the clip on my space of Robben Fords Life Song (one for annie). I find the tone is a little thin and the EQ is just crazy i have the bass up to around 7 in all honesty i think its just the pickups its not even a sharp trebly sound its just i find the tone is a little thin! Its quite hard to explain.. Any one have opinions?? electronics upgrade? new pots? new pickups?

Have a listen and tell me what you think!?

[JimH]

To be honest man it's really difficult to say. What guitar are you using with what pups? recording techniques dramatically effect things. What amp with what speaker? What size strings? I find lowering the pups a bit and upping a string guage fattens the tone in a way that's very friendly to the pocket.

[gregory49]

its a 60's MIM strat with stock pus and uhhh medium strings i guess i think they may be 48-11s... through an ibanez de7 for a little slap .. then a '70 silver face super reverb. settings were treble 5 mid 4 bass 7 volume was on 2>2.5 ... im thinking a pickup change is in order.. anyone else have any ideas???!?!

[rmconner80]

Strats are bright and thin by nature.

Also, try running your mid control around 8 or 9. I had a Super Reverb and that's where my mid control stayed pretty much all the time.

[smallbutmighty]

Ya...you may have the wrong tool for the job w/ the strat.

Not to be trite...but despite all the hand-wringing over pickups, amps, tubes, pedals, etc, etc, etc, that goes on here, usually the best thing you can do to improve your tone is practice.

A

[Luke]

tone = the end result of many variables

There are many ways to get to a destination.

In the end, the tone you hear is a sum total of parts as the signal passes through your chain.

You can reduce treble by using your guitar's tone knob, the knob on the amp, tuning down a 1/2 step to release string tension, go to a different more mellow string, etc...

[opus]

All good answers..., though FWIW I replaced the stock pickups in my MIM strat with the Fender Custom Shop '54s and new electronics..., NIGHT AND DAY difference in tone! The stock pickups suck IMO.

oh, and practicing helps too :)

[djem]

Experiment with strings as well.

[gregory49]

Ya...you may have the wrong tool for the job w/ the strat.

Not to be trite...but despite all the hand-wringing over pickups, amps, tubes, pedals, etc, etc, etc, that goes on here, usually the best thing you can do to improve your tone is practice.

A

appreciate the answer, but wrong wrong wrong... Practice cannot add thickness to my sound... if it can I've yet to discover how :Spank

Its just silly that technique can actually eq your sound.. i mean can palm muting add thickness or bass to a sound without muffeling the *^%* out of it??! I think not... Im an agressive player when it comes to playing rock and blues .. or emotional phrasing when it comes to more techy robben ford stuff i and be more precise with pick attack. I've tried using the EQ but it never gets a sound that i want.. it sounds great just a touch to thin.

I want to use the strat so it is the sound im going after.. I've heard tons of great strat tones but atleast they all sound full .. like John Mayer , SRV, Andy Aledort or even Philip Sayce whom uses a lot of treble as well.

I dont know what i can do here..

[Hipster Dofus]

You prolly have the wrong strat for you......


BTW, You will find many players here that believe the way you pick, type of pick, fingers, how you fret, bends, vibrato and so on, ARE more important in how you sound than the gear you use. These are thinks you can develop in practice.

Try drastic eq settings when you practice, and use picking to find ways to bring out what is missing.

YMMV

[justMe]

Seconds on the practicing bit. Technique makes a huge difference. All the way from how you pick or strum to how you place your fingers on and take them off the frets (can affect intonation, buzzing, sustain, etc.). There's a lot to be said for how much practice can do for your tone.

[bluesdoc]

Also just try one of those V-picks. It might not be the ticket, but it's a variable and has a remarkable effect. http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=231263

I've used mine now for ?? 6-8 months and could never go back to regular picks. But that's just me......

jon

[GAT]

I think it sounded fine. You were going for a cleaner tone. If you want the Sayce tone you'll need to crank the amp or get a more Marshall based amp and crank it.

[gregory49]

I think it sounded fine. You were going for a cleaner tone. If you want the Sayce tone you'll need to crank the amp or get a more Marshall based amp and crank it.


thanks much

ahhh besides that i don't know how to solve the fact regarding the thickness...

I plan on upgrading the strat simple as that... i understand sounding "fine" through any guitar but its doesn't sound great... I would love for someone(possibly one of you who thinks the way i pick or fret the note can add thickness to my sound) to explain how the way i play will actually make my sound more thick.... I use my fingers a lot as well...

[ryhlick]

Put a set of Suhr V60lp in your current rig and get a Tara Lab Spectrum cable from Lava man and that will fatten up any strat tone. I put a set in my 96 deluxe strat that I did not care for, and it transformed it into a great guitar. A worth while investment for any strat you are thinking you do not like.

[Austintone]

Nice playing on that clip. I don't think your technique is off. It's an interesting clip because there is a dramtic difference in the tone and thickness of your lower register compared with the upper register.

My suggestion would be this:

Find a good analog delay pedal -makes a big difference IMO
Throw a boost (like a tube screamer) with tone around 10AM, Drive (9AM) and level (12PM) in the mix
Record it with the mic very close, a little off center from the center of the cone and crank the amp

If this does not work, check out some different Strat's, they are all different. Is yours an Ash body? These tend to be very bright. Alder has always been my preference, JMO.

[guitarist58]

I wouldn't overlook speakers... I know it's not a real inexpensive upgrade, but maybe try Eminence Red White & Blues? or Cannabis Rex's? (with time for break-in, of course).
I think speakers, strat body wood--as already mentioned (even the fretboard), and pickups seem to make notable (no pun intended:rolleyes:) differences, of course at some expen$e, as usual... :)

[Jarrett]

In addition to all the other good ideas, I had one more to submit. I haven't listened to the clip, but just hearing the words "thin" and "Super Reverb" makes me ask the question:

Are you sure your speakers are in phase?

Some people will wire their speakers out of phase on SRs to get a better tone for funk playing. Might be worth a check. If I remember right, you can do it with a 9volt battery. You touch the speaker wire to the ends of the battery to check it. I just forget which way they are supposed to move. Someone will have more info no this forum about that I'm sure.

[guitarist58]

:jo Didn't realize you're using a Super Reverb... I've heard Ragin' Cajuns are a nice match...

[Austinrocks]

Austintone beat me to it, get a delay pedal and set it for very short period, 30 millisec or so, and no feedback, your using the delay to thicken your tone, really works great on a strat.

I also find that GeorgeL cables really helped my tone, check them out if you get a chance.