Tone - where, why, how, what, who?

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

Yes, it's on Amazon.

Watched it this evening. I quite enjoyed it.

"Tone is a sound that pleases me... Don't ask me what it is."

- B.B. King -

[BluesKing777]

Some great points brought up, thanks!

Now on a slightly different tack, I have a custom made acoustic while not solely designed for me by a luthier I have known about 20 years, at least the neck size/space etc and other parts are my measurements and his suggestions. So while waiting for it to me completed, I had the thought the finished guitar would be the 'ultimate all I ever need'. Except the bubble was pricked when I picked it up and was stunned how 'perfect' I thought it was for my fingerpicking but the luthier commented that he 'gave me a good price thinking I would order another'
But why would I need another if this is perfect? A year later, I see that we could have at least 21 guitars custom made for us - a different one for each morning, lunch time and evening...mood.....

And still we would be happy as to play a generic Gibson/ Martin/Lowden/Taylor/fill in your guitar of choice. Humans are weird units!


BluesKing777.

[ghostnote]

There's nothing simple about tone. Just think of how many ways you can play the same song on the same guitar, and you can make that guitar sound different on all of them. And that's just an acoustic! When you start pushing electrons through various circuits and devices and out of a speaker, it opens up an entire Pandora's box of tonal differences. It's like driving sports car: two drivers with different driving styles and skill levels will make the same car drive differently; and nothing about the car itself has changed.

[Truckjohn]

To me - the #1 is player...

So I have watched a bunch of the old Lomax movies of various famous old blues men and women...

Often as not - they play the same old Gibson acoustic on the movie while they sing their songs...

And yet every one of them sounds completely different.. And the guitar sounds different in their hands. Not just a little different - completely different guitar different..

And I have seen similar in the music stores... One fellow plays and the guitar sounds irish... The next fellow plays and it's jazz... And so it goes....

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by sdelsolray

Two thoughts:



2) Certainly, the player has much influence on the tone produced, as does the instrument being played. I suspect not much is discussed about the player's influence on tone in gear-oriented subforums, such as those here on AGF, because it is very difficult to write about a player's tone production and the reference point for such discussion must necessarily focus on a performance and not an instrument.

Yep, the player is the intangible part of the equation which makes it hard to discuss.
Yet contrary to some of the comments, the influence of the player on "the sound" should not be casually dismissed . The point is not that player can make a tele sound like a strat sound like a gretsch etc. The point is that some player's sound, can be recognised virtually regardless of the guitar being played.
One need only watch the YouTube video " Mark Knopfler Guitar Stories " to get a sense of this . He used different guitars on different albums, yet that it is him, is very identifiable.

[roylor4]

It is probably because most of my adult life was steeped in electric Blues. I can easily differentiate playing styles from electric Blues players. I'm not talking wildly disparate styles either. Anyone can tell T-Bone Walker from BB King or Albert Collins. I hear very subtle differences in players with similar styles that tell me who they are, Old school players, not the younger ones. Same with Blues Harp.

I DO NOT have the same ability with acoustic players of any style.

For me, anyways, the ability to hear the difference is in direct correlation to the time I have spent listening to them. I suspect it is the same for every instrument and style.