What does good tone mean to you?

[getuhgrip]

Ya fall off the Geritol program and you're on your own hook!

 

[8trackmind]

Screw the rock stars tone. Who's happy with their own tone.What did it take to get there? Are you happy with the tone you've got now? For me my tones the best it's ever been.maybe not fully developed yet. But it's getting there. But sometimes just out of the blue my perception of tone changes, what i thought was good aint all that great. Right now a les paul played through a Gibson GPA100 tube pa head(pretty old) is awesome for me.Maybe it's just because it's my first intro to tube amps.

 

[Henri Devill]

Screw the rock stars tone. Who's happy with their own tone.What did it take to get there? Are you happy with the tone you've got now? For me my tones the best it's ever been.maybe not fully developed yet. But it's getting there. But sometimes just out of the blue my perception of tone changes, what i thought was good aint all that great. Right now a les paul played through a Gibson GPA100 tube pa head(pretty old) is awesome for me.Maybe it's just because it's my first intro to tube amps.

My tone has changed over the years{25}.It seem to have gotten
cleaner/clearer...I've slowed down,lot less notes.And Im less scaler/modal.The one note over many approch....seems to let my playing open up ,you can acually hear the harmonics because I'm not slobbering all over the fretboard..LOL.When I used to play live
and in the studio I used to use 2 Mesa mark111 heads, 2 4/12 Marshall cabs ..what the hell was I thinking..Now I use 1 Flextone 2 with one 12 and it sounds plenty good enough.

Don

 

[tubedude]

Good tone is, well.... MY tone.

My dirty is heavy but clear, my clean sounds like you are dreaming, far away, as I want it to. Or at times its dry and in your face. Whatever I need. My tones are good.

wogjewrjgow w gfjwg

 

[pchorman]

What does good tone mean to me?

When I strike a chord, the girls instantly remove their clothing and demand to pleasure me.

 

[Scooter B]

Well I got to add my 2 cents for the basssplayers out there,

First of all good tone is as we all know highly subjective. When I hear the term "tone" I am definitalety not thinking scales or even chord voicings but the resosnance and character of an individual fretted note and or notes associated with either a specific player or instrument. For guitar examples of a developed tone I find pleasing (ie "good") Jeff Beck, B B King, Santanna, Phil Keagy, Neal Schon etc definitely top my list. This probably crosses a grey line into style but only in that tone is a major factor of a players style.

As Jaco Pastorious said "its all in the fingers" well not all of it, but it starts there. Thats why we could hypothetically at least plug into Carlos Santana's PRS and amp and sound completely diiferent. Not neccessarilly worse but definitely different. O.K. I would definitely sound worse but I'm a bass player.

For bass guitar players with good tone I like; Jaco, Marcus Miller, Abraham Labororial, Vicor Wooten, Tony Levin.

Obviously my list of good tone players doesn't include any heavy metal b/c that not one of my favorites.

Any other bass players want to jump in? This is a guitar and basss forum and "when the bass stops playin the band goes home".

 

[psmith66]

I'm not a bass player, but I enjoy Nathan East's approach.

 

[Scooter B]

Yep Nathan's got some good tone hapenning he also has a signature EQ box out by Yamaha some type of mono 3 band parametric inline EQ for around $200. The story in the advertisments say Yamaha built a custom one for him years ago and now "YOU TOO CAN SOUND JUST LIKE NATHAN". I hate hype but the box sounds like it could be interesting.

John Pattituci and Michael Manrig got left off my previous list of bass players with good tone to my ears.

Bruce, you have been quiet on this one since starting the thread let's hear you definition of good tone.

Scott

 

[steveaustin]

Really, I'm straight.

Judas Priest-- You gotta another thing Comin'. JCM 800. Not over powering distortion. Clear & harmonic.

 

[Blue Bear Sound]

Fair enough... the solos in the following 4 songs pretty much define what I consider "tone" - as far as lead playing goes, anyways...

Larry Carlton - Kid Charlemagne (Steely Dan)
Elliott Randall - Reelin' In The Years (Steely Dan)
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - Rikki Don't Lose That Number (Steely Dan)
Jay Graydon - Peg (Steely Dan)

NO ONE can listen to those solos and not understand what good "tone" means!!!

Bruce

 

[psmith66]

Larry Carlton - now you're talking. You can copy his axe, amps, etc to a tee, right down to the cables and picks, but you will not duplicate his tone. You know your shit's together when Fagen and Becker give you ANY degree of say in the studio. They may be arrogant, but they aren't stupid.

Kid Charlemagne..............wow