Cheap/free things that make a big difference to tone

[MDV]

Well, GAS whores (yes, we all are)

I thought a cheap and free tone improvment thread would be interesting. Seems our first recourse round here is "new amp/guitar/pickups/speakers/cab/big stuff that costs a lot"

What about little stuff that make as much difference as big stuff?

I'll start. Throw in what you got too!

The thread rule: Nothing more than 50 quid.

- Pickup height. Say no more, I know where I'm posting

- Setup 'sweet spot': seems to me that every guitar has a few sweet spots; combinations of action, string guage, tuning and neck relief that really bring out the best of the guitars acoustic resonance, and can make a huge difference to the guitars sound.

- Strings; tension, tension balance between them, brand, etc etc etc.

- Nut. Nuts are cheap as chips, take some skill to get in right but are the other point of interface of the string with the body, and therefore vibration transfer. I figure the nut material and how well its installed is about/at least as important as your body wood (but I dont think as important as the neck).

- Cables. Cables take away tone. They pretty much cant not. They certainly cant add anything to the sound. Find one that takes away the least, or takes away bits that you want rid of and your tone improves.

- For home practice, where you put your amp/cab. Room acoustics are a big deal. Dont assume that anything that puts sound in the air just has its sound and thats it; it has its-sound-in-that-place-in-that-room, which is very different. Move it round to find the best place

- Live, on stage, same thing as above. Changes with each stage and venue. Experiment as best you can.

More! Go!

[WezV]

+ 1 on the nut thing

also add new pots and orange drop or better caps to the mix - assuming you dont have to pay someone to do the re-wire its a cheap upgrade

[gwEm]

saddles
trem block
stop bar

:)

[AndyR]

AGGH! I'm meant to be working :lol:

I'll keep it short and sweet:

- For me, a big +1 on pickup heights. Makes a lot of difference with BKPs but, funnily enough, since I've learnt that, it turns out it does with all pickups :lol:

- Practice (1) Get to know your kit - don't expect it to make the sound you want straight off. You gotta listen, you gotta figure out what you're trying to achieve, and you gotta put some work in (for me, this includes stuff like MDV's room placing). Don't be afraid to twiddle with the knobs on your amp or modellor - there are good sounds hiding in there, no matter how much you think that you might be the proud owner of a "piece of sh1t" but that one day you'll be afford a decent rig... :lol:

- Practice (2) Get to know what you can do with your fingers, picks, slides, or whatever you use to bash away with. BKPs helped me enormously to put more effort into examining what I'm putting into the equation myself. BKPs have improved my tone, but probably I've improved my tone the most.

[gwEm]

but probably I've improved my tone the most.

i must admit when i saw phil play for the first time i secretly copied his vibrato, i sound alot better now

[Philly Q]

but probably I've improved my tone the most.

i must admit when i saw phil play for the first time i secretly copied his vibrato, i sound alot better now

Obviously not me you're talking about!  :lol: :lol:

[gwEm]

but probably I've improved my tone the most.

i must admit when i saw phil play for the first time i secretly copied his vibrato, i sound alot better now

Obviously not me you're talking about!  :lol: :lol:

the other famous BKP phil - philking :)

[Philly Q]

Oh, and to say something useful - aluminium tailpiece.  Doesn't always improve the tone, but it's worth experimenting and you can always use it on another guitar.

[hunter]

Mic distance and position (on recordings or live) make maybe the biggest difference to tone when you play through a PA or into a recording device.

For me it's usually an SM57 straight and pretty close to the baffle, somewhere like 2" off the middle/treble cap.

[tomjackson]

Big chunky plectrums.....

3mm stubby ones to be exact :D

Good speakers, my Eminence Crex was £50 and way way better than the cr@ppy Celestion Seventy 80

[Will]

+1 on the speakers. Although more than 1 of them will blow the £50 rule.

My Sidewinders at £35 made a helluva difference. The two 10 inch ones cost £16 each!

[JDC]

picks!!! all slightly different with different amounts of pick hitting the string noise

picking technique, having the right amount of angle and using just enough force to get the sweet spot where the string vibrates properly if your trying to play fast, else be a heavy picker ;)

playing with other guys it probably helps to be in tune and don't dial yourself out the mix like generic metal player kid with his super mid scoop

good choice of pick tom, I used to use them, guitar plays itself with those, only reason I changed was for something that lasted longer

[gingataff]

Maybe not so cheap, but a good tuner.
No matter how good your gear is, an out of tune guitar will always sound like shite.

[tomjackson]

picks!!! all slightly different with different amounts of pick hitting the string noise

picking technique, having the right amount of angle and using just enough force to get the sweet spot where the string vibrates properly if your trying to play fast, else be a heavy picker ;)

playing with other guys it probably helps to be in tune and don't dial yourself out the mix like generic metal player kid with his super mid scoop

good choice of pick tom, I used to use them, guitar plays itself with those, only reason I changed was for something that lasted longer

You wear 3mm picks out, that's what shredding does for you!  Be a slowhand like myseld JDC and you'll still be fishing the same stubby out of the tumble dryer years later

[Twinfan]

Under £50 you say?  Hmmm.

* Strings.  I'm currently loving D'Addarrio 9.5s on my PRSs.
* A good strap and straplocks.  Having the guitar in the right place for you, safely, helps you play better.
* Along with pickup heights, a slightly more subtle change can be had changing pole piece heights for individual strings
* New valves, if your old ones are shot.  May cost more than £50, so make sure you have a good one in the first position (V1)