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Does your rig affect your ability to play?

#22
Yes it can. I don't own a usable amp but the ones I use vary in quality and when I get to play on a nice amp it really makes a difference because I can usually hear myself better and play more confidently!
 
#24
Hearing myself, and being satisfied with my tone, are important. With that said, I've played through some pretty crappy amps, and have at least been able to get an acceptable generic tone quality out of pretty much any amp.
 
#25
It's got to work. I loved my Mesa M9, but I had 2 of these and had 3 major malfunctions. One of the best sounding amps ever.... But it affected my playing as I was waiting for it to die again!

Now I m using a power amp and a boutique preamp.... It affects my playing as it is so articulate that I need to play well as my mistakes are now quiet obvious.
 
#26
Jimmy's right, you have to handle all situations as they come, but I think I do play better when I can hear myself well without having to play too hard. I don't want my rig to be a crutch though, and have persevered with less than stellar monitoring. And truth be told, stunk up the joint on occasion even when I could hear myself just fine.
 
#27
HolmeBass said:
And truth be told, stunk up the joint on occasion even when I could hear myself just fine.
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Been there, done that. :hiding:

My rig has a significant but not overwhelming effect on how I play. I can get by with most anything but I feel most at home playing finger style when using a little bit of output tube overdrive so it fattens up when I dig in. With a pick I like to have enough preamp overdrive for it to be present in the mix. If I'm playing upright, I want to feel the attack at the beginning of each note. Just sayin'... :)
 
#29
JimmyM said:
Going to give some of you some advice that you may not like but you'll thank me for it...

If the amp affects how you play and you expect to get anywhere playing music, get over it. Soon. Nobody blames the amp if you aren't making it sound good.
Click to expand...

Certainly, you use what you've got and make it work. But an amp that responds in a particular way will force you to somewhat adjust your technique to get the sounds you like.

So yes, it affects playing, if it didn't we wouldn't be able to get similar tones through different rigs.

Martin
 
#30
Faderoktopus said:
Certainly, you use what you've got and make it work. But an amp that responds in a particular way will force you to somewhat adjust your technique to get the sounds you like.

So yes, it affects playing, if it didn't we wouldn't be able to get similar tones through different rigs.

Martin
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If I understand Jimmy's point, it's that a pro can make it work, no matter what. We do fly in gigs to some festivals in the middle of nowhere and you just have to deal with what you get and make the ticket buyers happy, because you can't send someone out to find you a better rig in Tromso, Norway...there isn't one :)

I think your preferred rig can make you 'feel' better about your playing and you should own the very best rig you can afford. You should also be able to make anything work to make the audience happy...they don't really care about your 'tone goals' :)
 
#31
I used to be a photographer. One of the things I hated the most about it was when people would look at my work and say "wow, your camera takes awesome pictures!" Seriously, people would say this. It made me want to punch throats. You think the camera takes pictures by itself? Here, give it a try, Mr. Amateur. Thus the photographer's mantra: "It's the photographer, not the camera."

And this is true.

On the other hand, it has to be said that we all still showed up at our gigs with five or ten grand worth of kit in our bags. Why'd we do that? Because it absolutely did make a difference.

This is also true.

Sure, Jaco Pastorius would still be a talented dude even if you made him play a kazoo or a broken speak-n-spell. But we must also realize that talented dudes show up to gigs with professional gear for a reason.
 
#32
Faderoktopus said:
Certainly, you use what you've got and make it work. But an amp that responds in a particular way will force you to somewhat adjust your technique to get the sounds you like.

So yes, it affects playing, if it didn't we wouldn't be able to get similar tones through different rigs.

Martin
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Actually, I think my playing consistency is exactly the reason I can get similar tones in different rigs ;) The rest is just knob-twisting.

Now having a rig I like does get the adrenaline up and takes my mind off of my gear, for sure, but Mark is 100% right that what I meant was that sooner or later you're going to get a rig that you hate unless you're in the enviable and costly position to bring your own personal rig everywhere you go and turn down any gigs that make you use house gear. And you don't even have to go to Tromso, Norway!
 
#33
Yes it does. Last night I went to an open mic and played into a two channel Mackie mixer, IPR1600, random DI box with like one knob on it into two Peavey BA115 speakers.

It didnt sound great but the feeling was changed drastically, I didnt get the response Im used to. Which throws me out of my comfort zone.

Im not a super bass player I have to nurture myself in ways in order to get what I want.
 
#36
I remember an interview with Geddy Lee in which he said that in the old days he often had to have his amps up so loud( I'm assuming for his overdriven tone) he felt disconnected from his bass. It wasn't until the use of his in ear monitors that he felt he was getting his feel and tone back.
Brent
 
#39
JimmyM said:
Well all I can tell you guys is let it interfere with putting on a good show and it's going to turn audiences off as well as members of your band.
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While I like the best tone I can possibly have not only to be inspiring to myself but to my bandmates as well, I agree with JimmyM 1000%.

If you can't find the perfect tone, then be inspired by a multitude of others things with the music that will.
 
#40
I think it has more to do with being able to hear WHATEVER you are coming out of be it amp or monitor. As long as I can hear pitch I'm fine. If it isn't "my sound" coming at me I'm fine.
 

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