When & Why Did We Become So Anal?

GM Arts

GM Arts

Fractal Fanatic
Just curious for people’s thoughts. I believe in continuous improvement, but it seems to me that the quest for better tone is rather trivial compared to the quest for better musicianship.

There are ample examples, both old and new, of incredible musicianship with minimal and barely adequate musical equipment. Also, many examples of clever production demonstrating that the blend is more important than any particular individual tone.

So when & why did we become so anal about guitar tone?
Is it in the hope that better tone will instantly improve our playing skills?
Are we trying to justify an expensive purchase?
Do we need to believe we own the most powerful processor on the planet?

One pertinent example is the quest for identical tone matching of various tube amps. It's based on a few crazy beliefs IMHO:

  • The false belief that certain tube amps are the best that guitar tone can be.
  • That a copy can be perfect. Regardless of whether it’s a physical copy of an amp or a software model, an exact copy is nearly impossible. So by that definition, no copy can ever be "as good as the real thing". Probably the best copiers in the world are counterfeiters, and even they know their copies can be detected. ;)
  • That a particular amp should sound the same to everyone, when in fact people hear differently and play differently. It’s obvious that different amps suit different people, otherwise there’d only be one “ultimate” amp.

Enough rambling thoughts for now. All IMHO of course.
 
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I actually agree with both sides of this discussion.

On one hand, I think tone is irrational and not needed. Take any great guitarist, and hand him an el-cheapo Kay guitar with a Peavey 8" mini practice amp, and he'll still blow you away. I remember being in a Guitar Center once, trying out a guitar (which I bought) and this young bum-looking kid walked in, picked up a $100 guitar and proceeded to humble me to death - he was *that* good. Then he just walked out, without buying anything. Perhaps he couldn't even afford a guitar, and just routinely came to GC to put get his hands on one, I simply don't know.

On the other hand, I am extremely inspired by good tones. When I look for inspiration, I first look for a sound, and then magic happens and the notes pour out. It's almost magic. If the sound is crappy, I tend to play crap.

So even though some of us (myself included) need the tone quest to reach our musical goals, some of the greats have no such needs (they may still spoil themselves with whatever tone they dream of, but it's not a prerequisite).
 
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Me three... Tone (in reference to guitar players) is something that reaches in and grabs the OCD side that every player and is affected with it at on time or another. I think for some it's an obsession and others it's a passion or just a hobby, a fine line for sure but there is a noticeable difference between all three.

I would compare it to alcoholism or whatever type of bondage you would use for comparison. The other side of the coin is the inspiration that comes along with your favorite tone that lets you soar and makes your sole happy. I guess the real trick is being able to recognizing when your out of balance with the rest of your life's priorities.
 
I'm sure things are bound to get much more anal. The AxeII has put guitar tones that used to be prohibitively expensive into the hands of anyone that can plunk down $2,500. When someone has the same gear as a Guthrie Govan or a Dweezil Zappa but they still don't sound the same they get anal about tone. It's gotta be the tone! Could you please share your patches? If I had his patch I'd sound just like him!

It's a much more bitter pill to swallow the truth. If you want to sound like guys at that level you are going to have to practice for 10 or 20 years with no assurance that you'll ever succeed.

Just chill out and enjoy, I mean really love playing your guitar. That's all you need to do. If someone listens, all the better. If you can make an emotional connection through music, you have arrived! Not everyone needs to be the best player in the world. I'm sure BB King enjoys reaching his audience with one soulful note as much as as Steve Vai does playing stuff that would make Paganini's jaw drop.

Anyway, I'm just saying it's a choice we all make. Being anal and stressful about playing only takes you further from being able to share the gift of music.
 
I think the tone anallity (yes, I did just type that) comes into play more when people start trying to nail the sounds of their favorite artists. This gets reinforced when they see some guy/gal on youtube who really nails it. What they fail to realize is how much the mechanics and technique count in capturing a particular sound. Having the prerequisite equipment isn't enough. Heck, I've seen roadies doing soundcheck for a band with the exact same gear and settings the artist is going to be using in a few minutes, and sound nothing like that artist's tone at all. So much of it is and will always be in the hands. And really, what would the point be if it wasn't?

If someone focuses more on creating their own sound, I think the anal tendencies tend to drop away. Sure, you want to sound your best and have the best tone for the vibe of a song, but you end up focusing more on your own playing and technique.

Since the Ultra and now the II, I don't have to try very hard to get the correct tone for the correct vibe. I've become a lot LESS anal because I can spend much less time fecking around with knobs and more time playing and loving the sounds I'm making. The box sounds so good that I only feel like putting the guitar down when my ears need a quick rest to come back fresh. The best of both worlds.
 
I think the tone anallity (yes, I did just type that) comes into play more when people start trying to nail the sounds of their favorite artists. This gets reinforced when they see some guy/gal on youtube who really nails it. What they fail to realize is how much the mechanics and technique count in capturing a particular sound. Having the prerequisite equipment isn't enough. Heck, I've seen roadies doing soundcheck for a band with the exact same gear and settings the artist is going to be using in a few minutes, and sound nothing like that artist's tone at all. So much of it is and will always be in the hands. And really, what would the point be if it wasn't?

If someone focuses more on creating their own sound, I think the anal tendencies tend to drop away. Sure, you want to sound your best and have the best tone for the vibe of a song, but you end up focusing more on your own playing and technique.

Since the Ultra and now the II, I don't have to try very hard to get the correct tone for the correct vibe. I've become a lot LESS anal because I can spend much less time fecking around with knobs and more time playing and loving the sounds I'm making. The box sounds so good that I only feel like putting the guitar down when my ears need a quick rest to come back fresh. The best of both worlds.
 
I think we get focused on tone to distract from our shitty playing!!! LOL Well really I think everyone wants to have the perfect tone for that perfect perfomance that we all know is inside us, but the problem is we get so caught up in chasing perfect tone we forget to perfect our playing. At least I know that I spend as much (or more) time reading and experimenting with equipment as I do playing, I hope to turn that around soon.
 
For me it's about the feel and response. If that isn't there I don't care what it sounds like. My 'artist' patches tend to sound only slightly similar to the original recordings and I like it that way. As a matter of fact I usually use the same 10 presets for everything I play (once I get them created).

I'll reserve my personal opinions about nailing someone else's recorded tone exactly. I don't hate when someone else does it and I generally get a huge kick out of listening to it if they can pull it off and do it well, but typically I lose interest and end up with something that I like more.

With that said there are a few tones that I would really like to get closer because it's almost as important to the song as the playing, i.e., Tom Scholtz's lead tone. I can't imagine shoehorning one of my presets to play those songs.

You've got over 70 amps, over 50 cabs, tons of effects all in a quality unit. The ability to create a great tone or many great tones is there. If that's not enough for you or if it's lacking in some way then try something else. Just don't let that tone chasing get in the way of playing.
 
The music business is very competitive, and from what I've seen, just about everyone who is mega famous is VERY anal about everything. Most laid back types can't compete with those who are detailed. That laid back person will lose 9 times out of 10 in this business.
 
I have to remind myself why I got this stuff to begin with - so I don't have to move a ton of shit around. And I can get TONS of cool sounds easily. I have to remind myself that in a live situation, most of the audience simply does not distinguish nuances of tone. If it sounds good (and you have to WORK to get the Axe to sound bad) everybody is happy. Saturday I am playing in a horrible echo chamber of a room for a bunch of drunken Knights of Columbus party animals - any tonal concerns are simply wasted in a venue like that. Wasted. I'll be lucky if I can hear myself.
 
favance said:
Guitar tone is very inspirational for me. I found I play differently, depending on the tone/vibe....so, I would say absolutely, the tone makes me play better (Also, each guitar tone has a different vibe)!
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Interesting because my definition of good tone has a lot to do with how well I can hear the chaarcter of the guitar I'm using.

Although I'm happy to play with tone that's in the good to awesome range, I must concede that I'm severely distracted by bad tone to the point of losing fluidity.
 
I"ve just been searching for my own tone ,granted its a combo of my favorite guitarist. Almost like a curse ,if my tones not right, thats all I think about until I get it right.The ultra definitely gets me the closest to my tone, Funny thing is when I got the ulta I played with parameters a lot ,but now I'll maybe charge speaker ,but I basically have my tone( now if I can stop trying to make my guitars play with the lowest action.got the stu mac 18"leveler and radius block.very Anal about how guitars play, About the ultra I have a few presets,not a ton,have 1 preset I use all the time.I found as I get older , I realize it doesn't matter what I play though,I still sounds like me .Warm and fuzzy sound distortion(BROWN?) and able to clean up with the volume rolled dow been checking out a lead 2 with vintage tone stack Speakers make a big difference We guitarist are all Anal about our tone . better tone does inspire .I feel if you can get your tone to close what you trying to match ,iIt helps to learn the song your playing .Guitar is a curse,I can't stop. Love ,hate relation
 
I also think great tone makes you play so much better. Some are more sensitive to it than others, I guess.
I had sensations with fw4 where it seemed the music came form a CD (is that me??) and I could not produce an unmusical note with it.

It also took me long to realize how a cranked amp feels to all the stars we're trying to sound like, and how us trying to play their stuff through Pods is often much more difficult and worse sounding (good training maybe). On something like the Axe you realize (if you are a tube amp noob somewhat) how light to the touch it can be and how cranked amps bring out all these subtle sounds to your every touch you never knew where they came from. That makes it very inspiring and makes you play better for sure. You can now much better make music by staying on one note and vary your touch and picking only. That alone is great and relieves you of wanting to play more & more notes.
 
GM Arts said:
Although I'm happy to play with tone that's in the good to awesome range, I must concede that I'm severely distracted by bad tone to the point of losing fluidity.
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+1 on that.i find if my tone isn't happening,i'll start over compensating on fretting and picking,without realizing it.then the tone will get worse,and more over compensation ensues.until you get the "what the hell?" moment.
 
shasha said:
For me it's about the feel and response. If that isn't there I don't care what it sounds like. My 'artist' patches tend to sound only slightly similar to the original recordings and I like it that way. As a matter of fact I usually use the same 10 presets for everything I play (once I get them created).

I'll reserve my personal opinions about nailing someone else's recorded tone exactly. I don't hate when someone else does it and I generally get a huge kick out of listening to it if they can pull it off and do it well, but typically I lose interest and end up with something that I like more.

With that said there are a few tones that I would really like to get closer because it's almost as important to the song as the playing, i.e., Tom Scholtz's lead tone. I can't imagine shoehorning one of my presets to play those songs.

You've got over 70 amps, over 50 cabs, tons of effects all in a quality unit. The ability to create a great tone or many great tones is there. If that's not enough for you or if it's lacking in some way then try something else. Just don't let that tone chasing get in the way of playing.
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I'm a bit this way inclined. I'm very much an amp as tool type. I actually don't care if a product is an exact replication of such and such an amp or player, so long as it is a useful sound. In purchasing an Ultra I was looking to update from my highly useful Korg A2/A3 Mesa rigs to something that was more modern and configurable.

I have been using either a:

Mesa MKIII amp + Axess channel switcher+ A3+ midi controller + tuner + volume and wha pedals + pedals and case + power supplies + 6 cable snake + rack for A3 and Axess unit.

85w, Very versatile, great sound when cranked, but not enough clean headroom for Fusion style stuff: AND A TOTAL PITA TO SETUP AND BREAKDOWN.

OR......................................


Mesa Quad Preamp + Korg A2 + Midi Octopus + 4 channel Mackie mixer + midi controller + tuner + volume and wha pedals + power supplies, pedals and case + 6 cable snake + Rack Case for A2 and Mackie and Octopus unit. Add a separate Rack case with a 700w Crown XLS 602 power amp and 2x EV 12L boxes.

700w, Great clean headroom, the Korg A2 and Quad preamp produced a wide variety or great distortions and some beautiful stereo chorus, reverb, and delay sounds. The A2 has some great wha, phaser, auto wha, X delay and Holdsworth pads if you program it right.

TOO HEAVY, TOO MANY BITS, PLUGGING FROM ONE RACK TO ANOTHER, AND EVEN DRUMMERS ARE PACKED UP AND GONE WHILE I'M STILL WINDING UP CABLES!!!!!

MY POINT: Who cares about “the perfect tone” Just save my back and get me to the bar before the venue closes.:mrgreen

My new rig: Ultra, Matrix, and Korg A2 (as backup) in a four unit Rack case + Mission volume and wha pedals + ADA midi controller, 3 cables + 2 EV12L boxes.

Light, quick setup, clean headroom to spare, less cables and bits to go wrong. Plus option to go direct into FOH.

Plus I've now got a low to medium volume Bass rig if I just add my 1 or 2 EV15 bins. Whilst I haven't spent very much time tweaking bass patches it looks really promising. It sure beats lugging the Crown and separate preamp around, especially to rehearsals.

500w stereo chorus, reverb, delay etc equal too, and in a lot of cases better than my old A2.

I’m really hoping that the Fractal distortions meet expectations on the gig and give me enough of the response enjoyed by a good pedal (Timmy, Zen, Keeley TS) or my valve amps.

This rig doesn’t have to be better in an A/B comparison with the tube amps it emulates
Just convincing enough for me, other players, and the punters on the dance floor. I can live without a perfectly emulated Dumble, Vintage Tweed, MkIIC+ sounds just so long as the tones sing, and suit the song.

For touring, studio, and freelance work the rig promises to be a real back and time saver.

I guess I sit between the two camps, I appreciate a wide variety of useful Distortions, FX, and utilities, but I’m not on a hunt for tone perfection. I’ve just about got all of my banks programmed with gig worthy useful patches, and after I’ve tweaked them at jams and gigs I can quite happily leave my rig packed up in the garage until the next jam or gig. I love the technology and the wide Palette it offers but I find I can reach a near enough is good enough point with sound and generally leave it to get back the the musical side of playing and composing; without too many withdrawl symptoms.
 
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It's addictive, fun & at times frustrating to be on the quest for tones. But I feel I must practice my playing a lot more... a whole lot more.
 
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