No, I'll freely admit I'm a bastard...oops I see what you did there...
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Some People (Guitarists) Never Learn
- Thread starter RustyNails
- Start date
No, I'll freely admit I'm a bastard...oops I see what you did there...
Im a Basstard to because I've dealt with many of Guitards.....I love being stupid
Sorry if this has already been said, but I read 2 pages and then skipped to the end.
Record the band and then listen to the recordings together, as a group. I think the guitar player is not visualizing his tone in the context of the group, and as has already been said, doesn't understand that he has to integrate his tone with yours.
Also, he sounds like a pain in the ass to work with.
Also said before; O.P., you're constantly trying to work with somebody who is being stubborn, repeating the same tactics. Why not tell him to get with the program or get lost?
Tom
Record the band and then listen to the recordings together, as a group. I think the guitar player is not visualizing his tone in the context of the group, and as has already been said, doesn't understand that he has to integrate his tone with yours.
Also, he sounds like a pain in the ass to work with.
Also said before; O.P., you're constantly trying to work with somebody who is being stubborn, repeating the same tactics. Why not tell him to get with the program or get lost?
Tom
The Tolkieniac in me always reads that as Uruk-hai of little minds.
Hey, we've covered this already, I know.
Against stupidity, the Gods fights in vain. Funny you should mention IKEA furniture.IKEA effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dunning–Kruger effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I agree with you. However it borders on OCD I think, borderline Autism or Aspberger light. Anorak. Cognitive Bias. You know, people like Eric Johnson trying to make the most muddiest and dark sound out of their single coiled Stratocaster. Totally the opposite. And go to extreme lengths to get that. While there are guitars sounding like that already anyway. Beats me. Your guess is as good as mine.
But I do find EXACTLY the same kind of people within the bass community from time to time, although they are in minority. They who are adamant and stubborn about playing acoustic basses live plugged in, and wonders about the feedback and goes to lengths to buck that. With additional equipment they think. When there's already basses that takes care of feedback (solid body ones). Or people that are stubborn and adamant about just having to tune their basses down to low F sharp (23,4 Hz) and think that is going to be heard and is way cool. "Bara du trivs" is an expression in Swedish which I have not found any equivalent in english as of yet. Litterarely translated it translates poorly to "Only you thrive..."
TIP: Leave the band. I can't think that he's that good in playing. If he had any common sense he would also know a few things about tone. It comes from the hands, not gear. Or if you're the BL, sack him. It's not his band is it? You can't do anything with these people. I'll bet he is sort of around 30 year old minus...
It's the same it used to be, when I was working in a music shop repairing basses, guitars. They came in and ASKED FOR ADVICE if it was appropriate to tune down their basses to F# and install a nut that could accomodate for such thick strings. When I advised them against it (on a Squire MIM 4 string), they STILL wanted it, in spite of me giving polite and thorough explanations of why such things don't really work out that great. It seems that to some, the quest for tone this and that, is their MAIN mission in life, and actual music less so. The tampering and tinkering with gear all of the time is what they're obessesed about. The think they can come up with some unique patented recipe.
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This, or equally STUDIO tone. What sounds great at low domestic level should just sound just as great when turning up whenever in a band. NOT!
Kinda like the saying "Whatever floats your boat..." ie I don't understand why you want it this way, but whatever...
No SG's for f*x sake!!!! They go out of tune barely by looking at them! That guitarist already sounds like he wouldn't be able to handle that. Instead, having earvana nuts installed or buzz feiten. He sure wouldn't know an out of tune guitar from a in tuned one, otherwise he sure would be able to hear and nail in his tone too. I agree though, that distortion pedals sounds thin. I don't know why, but dynamics are gone and pick nuances. If you have a great dial in tone on the tube amp, a good one, you might have a dirt pedal to throw something in now and then only, for good riffing or some sorts. But generally speaking amp distortion beats any pedal, in the long run.
Here's some suggestions for the guitarist, even though he probably won't listen to them:
1) Turn down the GAIN/DRIVE/DISTORTION on his fuzz or overdrive pedal. Sure it's fun to play solo with the gain/drive/distortion cranked up, but it usually doesn't work in a band situation, especially for rhythm playing. Dialing back the distortion will make the sound tighter and cut through better.
2) Turn down the bass on the guitar amp. Less muddiness and flubbiness. Again, a 'tighter' sound that will cut through better in a band context.
3) Up the MIDS to cut through. Let the bass handle the bass frequencies. The "modern metal" sound is very mid-scooped, that's probably what he's trying to emulate with his settings.
4) Consider another guitar. High-output pickups really aren't a good match with hollowbody guitars. A solidbody guitar is bound to sound better (and not feedback) especially when downtuned. There are probably dozens of used Ibanez' and Jacksons available used at your local GC store.
1) Turn down the GAIN/DRIVE/DISTORTION on his fuzz or overdrive pedal. Sure it's fun to play solo with the gain/drive/distortion cranked up, but it usually doesn't work in a band situation, especially for rhythm playing. Dialing back the distortion will make the sound tighter and cut through better.
2) Turn down the bass on the guitar amp. Less muddiness and flubbiness. Again, a 'tighter' sound that will cut through better in a band context.
3) Up the MIDS to cut through. Let the bass handle the bass frequencies. The "modern metal" sound is very mid-scooped, that's probably what he's trying to emulate with his settings.
4) Consider another guitar. High-output pickups really aren't a good match with hollowbody guitars. A solidbody guitar is bound to sound better (and not feedback) especially when downtuned. There are probably dozens of used Ibanez' and Jacksons available used at your local GC store.
quite true, I never cared for distortion pedals when you can just turn up the gain and highs.
The tuners work fine on a Gibson SG.
No reason to give tips here, he wont give up. Sack him if you can. If it's his band, leave. He doesn't read talkbass. He just wants is his way and his way only. My way or the highway kind of type. Those can't play with other musicians at all period.
Remember being staff at a club where japanese space rock band Acid Mothers Temple, played in a tiny club in Sweden (DeBaser). I wasn't running the sound, but sort of, roadie, on stage hand for that gig only. Their guitar player kept on insisting to crank his double stacked (4 x 4x12 with 2 hundred watt modded Marshalls on top) amps and drowning out everyone else. No matter what the FOH sound guy told him to turn down, it was HIS sound. We ended up miking him but not turning up on PA at all. During the show, which was poorly attended, it was a loud guitar solo throughout the concert, with all the rest instruments heard as some sort of elevator, restaurant music in the background. Like "what's that background noise !?!?... uh huh, the other instruments". People actually left after a couple of tunes. Listening to a few YT live videos of them today reveals that he hasn't learned a zot. It was "HIS SOUND" and it was not going to change. BTW here's the guy:
Kawabata Makoto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Middle name: P.I.A. And his tone sucked IN SPITE of it was too damm loud.
Remember being staff at a club where japanese space rock band Acid Mothers Temple, played in a tiny club in Sweden (DeBaser). I wasn't running the sound, but sort of, roadie, on stage hand for that gig only. Their guitar player kept on insisting to crank his double stacked (4 x 4x12 with 2 hundred watt modded Marshalls on top) amps and drowning out everyone else. No matter what the FOH sound guy told him to turn down, it was HIS sound. We ended up miking him but not turning up on PA at all. During the show, which was poorly attended, it was a loud guitar solo throughout the concert, with all the rest instruments heard as some sort of elevator, restaurant music in the background. Like "what's that background noise !?!?... uh huh, the other instruments". People actually left after a couple of tunes. Listening to a few YT live videos of them today reveals that he hasn't learned a zot. It was "HIS SOUND" and it was not going to change. BTW here's the guy:
Kawabata Makoto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Middle name: P.I.A. And his tone sucked IN SPITE of it was too damm loud.
Ok, well now I get where the hollowbody comes to play. But those guys are playing some pretty high end guitars. That can make all dif when doing drop tuning stuff. Tell him to sell the pedals and invest in a nice ES335 or Gretch.
Nope it's not about them. It's the thin and too shoddy design of the neck, if you flex it the strings will get stuck in the nut. Just by bending the notes It's the only guitar with a hardtail bridge that acts like a poorly set up floating tremolo bridge that goes out of tune regularly by whamming it. Except that on a SG, you don't whammy anything, it goes south just by playing cause the wood and dimensions of it all are poorly carried out. If the just made it a tad thicker all around and went for different wood with more density it would stay in tune, as some other copy manufacturers have succeded in doing (LTD, ESP etc).
You can hear it by bending the high e-string. Just bend it. Don't play it. Play the low e-string instead WHILE bending the high e-string. You'll hear the low e go up and down in pitch. All of the wood flexes. NOW BACK OT, since this SG thing won't ever never help him either. Period.
Tell him Tony Iommi turned down the bass completely, used a treble booster, and Sabbath played in C#. (Your choice of highlighting the use of SG's ...)
My 1971 SG Special is my favourite out of all the guitars I have owned and played. I am not particularly gentle with bends and vibrato and have never heard the floating bridge effect you speak of. (I am very familiar with it because I own an early 60s guitar with one that is dreadful, I have to string it up so the trem is inoperable to be able to play it.)
