Introduction
Hi folks, I would personally say welcome to Boanerges Ministry Guitar Clinic.
There are many varying opinions of the best way to build guitar rig to achieve that ultimate, but sometimes elusive tone. Nowadays with so many choices and options out there it’s easier to end up with bad sound. Different playing environments can call for different setups. This time I would like to share some simple thoughts on some of the basic when it comes to picking out the gear and putting it together. please notes, they are based on me that worked for me here ( Tiberias Church of Indonesia).
The Guitar
This is a very obviously the very must important tool of which you will…ehmm express ??..your musical thoughts trough. The better a guitar sounds and feels in your hands, then the better you will play. Many people make the mistake of trying to compensate for a cheapo bad sounding axe with more effects where clearly this is not the best approach. Obviously budget will be a factor, if you are not sure, stick to some of the more common brand names ‘that have been around’ for a while. You generally won’t go wrong with them as they are not out to put products that ultimately scrub their own reputation. In
The amplifiers
Once again, budget will play a part in what you ultimately purchase. This is my thought about amps,” a bad amp can make a good guitar sound bad and good amp can make average guitar sound good”. There are several types of amplification available such Tube/valve (such Marshall JCM 900/200), solid state (Roland Jazz Chorus), digital modeling (Line 6) and hybrids. For my self, I love tube amps and I am using it!!.. for the sake of this article I will talk most about tube and solid state amps.
Tube amplifiers have been around the longest and are still the preferred choice for many guitarists. I won’t go much details, these amps have fat, warm tone that tends to reproduce the guitar signal most naturally. This category amplifiers mostly are quite pricey and we do really took attention about its maintenance such replacing tubes. For solid state, this kind of amplifiers are being made for many needs and this amplification is often used in PA’s, keyboards, bass amps, etc. They sound very clear, using low voltage.
Though these different types are now so readily available, guitarists still describe tube amps with attributes that are not yet to found in the others. Such “warmth”, ”richness”, “feel”, “organic” are the word you may often hear commonly among guitar players.
In volume level, tube amps generally louder that solid state amplifiers with similar wattage. So please be gently control your level during your play. So when buying an amp, take your time and shop around. Bring along your guitar and get familiar with how different amps will sound and respond to your playing. Try different amps in different prices ranges, and play them soft and loud….and if you are not sure just take someone with you (please, the person who experienced or play guitar as well! …Your Love ?..ehmm, that’s ok!..HAHAHAHAHA…
The effects
The first pedal I ever owned was BOSS Metal Zone. Well, it was the era “Hello American Glam Rock era” and I lost it. Hmmmmm…..
Well, there are million choices been presented to guitarist, and nowadays much of it is consistently good. Multi effects ? Pedals ? Here my thoughts….
*Drum rolling…..*
I’ve been playing for almost 9 years now and have been through most types of rigs available. Honestly, I’ve tried some of them NOT owned it!! But when it comes to using effects I’ve always found my self going back to pedals. Beside its simplicity in working naturally, I’ve often found them to least “colour” my sound than other setups. With most multi effects systems, your guitar signal goes through an analog to digital conversion, then through the effects processing, and finally converted back to analog, and in this process that your pure guitar tone is affected. Don’t get me wrong, multi effects sere their purpose in having many sounds at your disposal, not to mention the ease of transport, nowadays many have come close to not changing your tone at all. “ I am an Old School guitar player”…that shout can truly describe me but I do just love having pedals in front of me that I can easily turn on and off, and quickly fiddle with on the fly. And, with its simple parts inside and true bypass capabilities, I find my tone remains mostly unchanged.
An important thing to consider when acquiring use pedals: use to enhance your sound rather than to fix it. If your tone sucks and you’re adding various EQ pedals, chorus, reverb, overdrives etc to compensate bad sound, then you are truly going to the wrong way. Start by plugging your guitar straight to your amp, pull a good sound, THEN stars inserting effects into your signal chain. Please take notes of your guitar’s attack, volume, sparkle. When all your pedals are finally set up, turn them all of and end your end sound should be no different at all if you unplugged from your board and went to amp directly.
The Basic
If you are about starting out and want to know a few must haves, let me offer my suggestions…
1. A good tuner will never go astray. An in-tune guitar is always a good place to start.
2. A couple of good overdrives to have at least 2 stages of gain : rhythm and lead.
3. A simple delay with a tempo function will enhance the dryness of your sounds. Perhaps Boss DD-5 or DD-7 would be great!
Volume pedals, compressors, modulation effects and other bells and whistles can be added later. With every pedal added, always reference it back to your original guitar tone. If there is any loss of tone or level, simplify them!!
Peripherals
Never under estimate the importance of reliable power supply and good quality cables. These are the make or break’s in many set ups but are often so easily overlooked, and having the right gear will ensure from trouble-free operations!
