How do you get a long sustain in the drive block

N

Nagi Mysore

Inspired
I am trying to get a real long sustain from drive block like the Gary Moore stuff. ( in the song Parisienne for e.g...though I would want it that long). I am using the standard Junior Blues preset. The note doesnt sustain beyond say 3-4 secs. I am using a TS 808

I am trying to find out what setting makes the notes sustain.

Appreciate any help and ideas

Thanks

NM
 
Nagi Mysore said:
I am trying to get a real long sustain from drive block like the Gary Moore stuff. ( in the song Parisienne for e.g...though I would want it that long). I am using the standard Junior Blues preset. The note doesnt sustain beyond say 3-4 secs. I am using a TS 808

I am trying to find out what setting makes the notes sustain.

Appreciate any help and ideas

Thanks

NM
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Just my opinion, but if I were going for those type of sustains I would probably use an amp that offers more gain and/or a drive that does.

Some of it is about the pickups, the guitar, the volume, your technique (vibrato, finger pressure) and also interaction between the amp (speaker, really) and the guitar (feedback).

I think the last is the most important for "natural" sustain... Try playing at a decent volume while standing with the guitar facing the speaker from a couple feet away and then move further away or face away from the speaker. You should notice a change in the sustain.

I think Gary was probably playing thru a cranked Marshall with his trusty Les Paul for that tune, and probably in the room near the cab.

You can also add a compressor in to the front of your chain to boost sustain - really helpful for getting cleans to sustain.

Also, make sure you don't have the noise gate settings too high - that will kill it off quicker.
 
Sort of like unix-guy said, amp gain. Tubes pump, and that's where the true sustain comes from - or just an assload of gain, but you don't want that compressed a tone. While volume will do it, the right amount of amp gain will not require volume.
 
Watch any of his videos on U-Tube and you can almost feel the dimed Marshall. He also would approach his speaker cab when he wanted additional sustain via feedback. Try one of the Marshall sims, start with the JCM!
 
As the other Fractilians have mentioned, "volume" + pickup interaction with the speaker.
 
I would try emulating what Pete Thorn showed in one of his Compressor Pedal demos.
Origin Cali 76 and SlideRig compressors, demo by Pete Thorn - YouTube

Then review Axe Ultra Form...
http://forum.fractalaudio.com/axe-fx-ii-preset-exchange/70714-request-sliderig-1176-compressor-type-preset.html

Follow one of the article links to..
http://forum.fractalaudio.com/ultra-std-discussion/25398-afx-compression-tips-including-new-9-02-features.html

Good info at the older wiki..
Tutorials and How-Tos - Fractal Audio Systems Wiki

This is probably the route I would look at if I wanted long sustain.
It would be interesting to hear if other people have doubled up the Comp Blocks to extend sustain and how it worked out for them.

Then when I get totally burned out I pose the question to Yek. He usually responds quickly with an article that I should have read and was easy to find. He makes it look so easy..
 
Phostenix said:
Volume.
Click to expand...
This. ^^^^

The true path to long sustain is acoustic feedback from the speaker to the guitar. The sound has to be loud enough to vibrate the strings.

If you throw away volume, and try to duplicate that with gain and compression, you will be disappointed. Always.

With enough volume, even a clean note will sustain for hours. Without volume, even the gainiest tone will decay noticeably after a few seconds.
 
Thanks for the replies... Appreciate it. Basement player so I can't crank up beyond 85db... Using a Marshall and experimenting with different drive models helped... Thanks again
 
lil' tip..

if playing and sustaining a specific note is important to a moment in a song
it's not only volume and the note you play, but also your distance from the cab and the way you are facing that helps the feedback to settle on the note you require rather than any other..

so it's worth [during the sound check] to have a little experiment to find the place on the stage and direction you face that makes hitting this feedback note with greater reliablity..
either make a mental note..
or better, mark the floor with a small arrow with gaffer tape so you know where to stand and what direction the guitar body should face..
 
Make sure to check your gate settings too. On my lead patches I keep it completely off or set at a bare minimum level. Major sustain killer.
 
clarky said:
lil' tip..

if playing and sustaining a specific note is important to a moment in a song
it's not only volume and the note you play, but also your distance from the cab and the way you are facing that helps the feedback to settle on the note you require rather than any other..

so it's worth [during the sound check] to have a little experiment to find the place on the stage and direction you face that makes hitting this feedback note with greater reliablity..
either make a mental note..
or better, mark the floor with a small arrow with gaffer tape so you know where to stand and what direction the guitar body should face..
Click to expand...

^This

Find the sweet spot for feedback during soundcheck.
 
Nagi Mysore said:
Thanks for the replies... Appreciate it. Basement player so I can't crank up beyond 85db... Using a Marshall and experimenting with different drive models helped... Thanks again
Click to expand...

In a pinch, try touching the headstock of the guitar to the cabinet--the guitar will start resonating immediately. Obviously, you can't do that all the time, but it might be handy for certain notes. It also has a tendency to resonate the string an octave higher than the note played, which might be a problem.
 
Im thinking its also a combination of guitar, fingers and amps. I can jam out on a 59 bass man in the FX II with lots of sustaining howl if the whole chain is set right using a Y2D MM. This may not be aimed in the direction you were looking, but its worth a thought or two... :)
 
Loquenau said:
This was with headphones. I was using more gain than Moore, but not necessarily that much...more....
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Not bad. No significant tone change until five seconds in, no level loss until ten seconds in.

Now try it with your speaker(s) cranked, and watch that envelope go from a cone to a cylinder. :)
 
Rex said:
Not bad. No significant tone change until five seconds in, no level loss until ten seconds in.

Now try it with your speaker(s) cranked, and watch that envelope go from a cone to a cylinder. :)
Click to expand...

Dude, I can do that a bit at a little louder than conversation volume, sitting in front of my studio monitors. But I tend to get all spaced out.....it's a good thing.
 
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