So here's the issue: the guitarist in my band is stubborn as a mule when it comes to tone. He makes pretty bad choices when it comes to guitar choice, pedal choice, amp choice, tuning choice, etc. then wonders why his guitar sounds muddy.
He plays a semi-hollow body guitar from some unknown company that he bought for like $200 that already sounds really muddy and bassy with very hot pickups, then he runs whichever fuzz pedal he bought that week because he wasn't happy with the previous one (he thinks tone comes from pedals) then he runs that into a bunch of other pedals he barely uses into a cheap amp half stack that even the clean tone sounds muddy on.
Then he starts every practice by spending about an hour trying to reduce the feedback and make his guitar sound less muddy.
When I tell him it sounds muddy and feeds back because it's a semihollow guitar with too hot pickups and way too high gain fuzz into a crap amp at a drop C tuning and that doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results is the definition of insanity he takes it personally and argues with me by saying he likes his tone deep and fuzzy.
I try to tell him he doesn't need that much low end because, hello, I'm over here playing bass. I've got the low end covered, he should focus on the mids and highs if he wants to be heard in the mix.
Then when I bring over my strat and plug it straight into my 5w all tube Blackheart Little Giant amp he says wow that sounds great, why can't I get my guitar to sound that good? I just roll my eyes. Then later I suggest trying a guitar with single coil pickups or at least something less hot, he says he doesn't like single coils.
I don't know what to do with this guy. It's like somebody struggling to build IKEA furniture without the instructions and I'm over here waving the instructions like, it would be much more efficient if you just follow these. I'm trying to help!
Assuming that you've posted this thread to seek solutions, as opposed to merely venting, you are asking for a musical solution to what is essentially a non-musical question. The basic question here is one of judgement - not musicianship. And it pertains to you - not to the guitarist.
Based on all the hassles you've just shared with us, if accurate, it's very clear that this guy is simply not a very good guitarist. He's not a very good
musician. By now I think you can safely conclude that what you see is what you get.
So then the only remaining question is, are you prepared to settle for what you've got? Or will you take the initiative to find a new, and better guitarist?
In my experience, bands are a bit like marriages: To really work, there must be a very good fit of temperaments as well as values, because the work that goes on between and among the partners tends to be so personal, even intimate in nature. That puts a premium on
really getting the people issues right...
then focusing on implementing one's agenda (personal or musical). Until you've laid a firm foundation on the first issue, anything you try to build on the second issue will remain inherently unstable.
Based on the things you've just shared, I'm not persuaded that you've done your homework on the people issues. Get yourself a guitarist who can really play, with his gear issues already sorted out. Or continue to spin your wheels with the guy you've got now.
MM
