How to get a good tone..?

[SAN_TREMONTI]

Hey softies...I've been thinking about this question for probably months now. I'm an intermediate guitar player and i'm looking to have gigs with my band members. But i was wondering how am i ever going to get a good tone with cash of around $250 to spend on some guitar pedals. (I only have that much cos im still schooling) Good tone for playing hard rock songs by bands like Alter Bridge, Creed and ermm you get the point...haha...

Hope it helps by telling you the equipment i'm using right now...

Guitar: ESP LTD Viper 50
Amp: Kustom Dart 10FX Practice Amp
Effects: Behringer Compressor / Sustainer, Behringer Tube Overdrive, TGM Distortion (im looking to trade this with some other distortion pedal), Beta Aivin Digital Delay

So i hope you guys can give me some ideas on affordable yet reliable pedals i could spend one to get those nice cleans and heavy distortions...thx a bunch dudes...!

 

[van_halen]

line6 uber metal, very tweakable and able to get a variety of heavy distorted tones. but you don't turn to pedals for great cleans, you need an amp inherently capable of great cleans.

 

[JOSH83]

Yea, I agree with Van Halen. A good amp will give a nice tone. U may have good pedals, but with a lousy amp, u won't be able to get a good tone.

Where else if u have a good amp, even if u dun have much pedals, u can still get sweet sounding tones.

Tweaking of tones will take some time cos with enough exp, u'll get the hang on how to tweak ur pedals which will help ur tone.

Hope tat helps

Peace! Cheer

 

[JOSH83]

Oh yea, forget to add.. Picks do make a big difference too..
I've been using normal dunlop picks for a long time. But when i switch to V-Pick Original (Medium Pointed). The sound is awesome for soloing and plucking.

There's a noticiable diff in the sound too. If u have the time, do give V-Picks a try.

U can get them from Brendon BGW Guitars.

 

[SAN_TREMONTI]

What about choruses, flangers or phasers? Will that help in getting a good clean tone?

 

[van_halen]

uh, nope. chorus can only help make your cleans sound more "spacey" but flanger/phaser is just to flange/phase your sound.

seriously if you are looking for great cleans, nothing beats full tube amps. the cleans on full tube amps are warm, fat, juicy, 3 dimensional and alive with bell like chimes. absolutely heavenly compared to solid state cleans which are bland and sterile.

 

[JOSH83]

Chorus, Flanger, Delay pedals only aids in getting a good tone. It only enhances the sounds. Tat's y they are called effects.

There are of cos many factors that contribute to getting a good tone.

For me, Main Factors will be

Guitar - What material izzit made of?
Guitar Pickups - This is a crucial factor
Guitar Amplifier - Diff range of amps play a part.

Other than that, Ur guitar effects.
Like distortion, Tubescreamer, chorus, delay etc. Learning how to tweak the tone on each individual effects. Knowing ur effects well.

But rem, getting the rig right is also essential
Like which pedals comes b4 which. Of cos this will really be more technical stuff, of u can trial and error.

Lastly, a good tone is the tone that u like. So u gotta like the tone u hear.

Rem another man's tone might not sound good to u, juz like the tone u have won't be able to pleased everyone. So most impt, like the tone u set. Or alternaitvely ask ur band members what is lacking in ur tone. Izzit not thick enuff? Not enuff mids?

Peace! Cheers

 

[J.custom]

uh, nope. chorus can only help make your cleans sound more "spacey" but flanger/phaser is just to flange/phase your sound.

seriously if you are looking for great cleans, nothing beats full tube amps. the cleans on full tube amps are fat, juicy, 3 dimensional and alive with bell like chimes. absolutely heavenly compared to solid state cleans which are bland and sterile.

+1 to that. It makes a world of difference if you have the best effects but a lousy amp vice versa. If you want to build your tone based on effects now, i suggest you get a practise amp with a decent clean tone, this will enhance the tonality of your pedals and allowing them to achieve their full potential.

However to me, i find the best clean sounds come from tube amps. For now you dont have to get one that costs you thousands of dollars, under a thousand will probably get you a pretty decent tube amp. I would recommend a Epiphone Valve Jr or a Vox ACC15 or something along those lines.

 

[reez_rock]

Somehow with the budget, I feel like suggesting to consider multi effects. With proper tweaking, mfx can sounds good also(at least on my ears)

I've survived years of gigging with mfx

although so far the best sound IMO is plug the guitar direct to an amp(a good one of course) but I think mfx saves a lot of hassle.

 

[fretless6]

The most important component of your sound comes from your technique. Having the best gear is pointless unless you know how to milk the notes outta your instrument. Listen carefully to your CDs/MP3s, a lot of heavy sounding bands don't actually use tons of distortion.

 

[J.custom]

Somehow with the budget, I feel like suggesting to consider multi effects. With proper tweaking, mfx can sounds good also(at least on my ears)

I've survived years of gigging with mfx

although so far the best sound IMO is plug the guitar direct to an amp(a good one of course) but I think mfx saves a lot of hassle.

I think a small multi effects unit just for modulation and time-based effects would be appropriate, but i wouldn't rely on it on getting my drive tone though.

 

[keithC]

you gotta understand the gear you're using first of all. an LTD viper equipped with stock pups may not sound full and fat on cleans, despite it being humbucker equipped. the practice amp wouldnt be able to get you anywhere far either..

in a gig situation though, when you have nice huge amps (be it tube or solidstate), a little tweaking can make all the difference in the world. you dont have to rely on effects for a good tone at all, effects only help you get what you want, when you want it. but if you just want a nice clean tone and a nice dist. tone, guitar>amp is good enough.

your fingers, pick attack, pickups response, amp EQ, and ears will determine your good tone

 

[geoff1121]

a good tone is relative. everyone has their own ideal tone and the only way to find out what suits you is by experimenting. Borrow pedals from other ppl, listen to demos on youtube etc. one thing i found useful when i just started is to buy an inexpensive multi effect. the sound quality is obviously worse than individual pedals but it gives u a good idea of what are the different sounds u can obtain from combining different effects and such. if you want to jump straight into individual pedals, you can always start off with a distortion pedal, boss pedals are popular for their price and simplicity. tube amps are nicer than solid state but mite be out of your budget if your just starting off. Iv never owned a roland cube amp but it has a top notch reputation for being affordable and yet has decent sound quality.

Other things like string gauge, tremolo springs and action are also significant to achieve a good tone. play around with things and sooner or later you will find ur own tone. it takes time and money, patience and income is key.

 

[loldude333]

I'd suggest investing the money in an instructor. As mentioned by people previously, when you're gigging you'd probably have good amps at your disposal. Thus, it makes much more sense to learn how to tweak them and also how to 'milk the tones' from your existing equipment. I've compared the tone of a $200 Timbre thru a Marshall JVM410H versus a Fender 60th Anniv American Strat thru a Marshall MG100DFX. The first setup won hands down.

My point is, the effects will only get you so far. Good tone is firstly, subjective and secondly, comes from the fingers. If you can fulfil the fingers one, the gear you use is definitely will not affect your ability to get good tone. For another example, i once watched Paul Danial live. He was using some Ibanez GIO model but his tone was absolutely amazing. I don't know what effects he was using but i don't think they were that high-end/boutique either.

 

[justheretolook]

like someone said, tone is relative. practice different settings, go to gigs, listen to your idols/friends see what they lack, buy equipment, and repeat the whole thing. It's a great adventure in finding great tone that pleases everyone, but it's also a tough one so get ready for some mis-haps because it's going to be plenty. unless you don't mind spending the extra moolah.

as for effects wise, the very first thing you should buy is a tuner, a good overdrive and another dirt pedal maybe for your leads. and it's always good to buy noiseless patch-cables.

 

[van_halen]

some people like to scoop their mids by turning it off completely, and/or turn the gain up all the way. to each his own but i find that this kind of settings kills definition and clarity.

contrary to popular belief, you do not need to turn the gain knob all the way up to sound heavy. in fact i'm enjoying my gain knob at between 12 o'clock to 1 o'clock now, it's heavy and clear. i scoop my mids abit cos i do not like nasal midrange, but just a little below the mid point. scooping it away totally just sucks away your tone.

 

[Gravity.]

GOOD AMP + GOOD AMP EQ.
provided you alr have the dist/od of your liking.