Actually, I think this can be a very positive exercise in developing your own tone. Chase a tone, master it and add it to your arsenal. This will provide you with a tonal palette to choose from to provide depth and dynamics to a song or solo, or eventually meld into a tone of your own. Think "Beck" on Blow By Blow for example.

Agreed, Milnar. I think sometimes some are too quick to dismiss the idea of someone trying to reproduce their favorite artist's sound. Sure you need to develop your own sound, but that will happen no matter what. We all, to some extent, when we buy a particular piece of gear are trying to sound like our guitar heroes and there's nothing wrong with that. If I like the way Hendrix sounds, I will likely buy a Strat and a Marshall. I know I won't sound just like him, but if I like his tone, why not try the same equipment? The right gear, although not the end-all or be-all of sounding good, can be as much a source of inspiration as anything else. Because a good number of my favorite blues guitarist play Strats, I bought one and I must say, it has been quite the inspiration. I have been practicing more since I got it last year than I ever have in the last 40 years, and all because it sounds so much like what my heroes play.

_________________
'08 Fender Am. Std. Jazz bass, maple fretboard, charcoal frost metallic finish
'10 Squier VM Jazz bass, maple fretboard, natural finish
Ampeg BA115
'09 MIM standard Strat, maple fretboard, sunburst finish
Fender Super Champ XD

perfect!

These are, as always, just my opinions...please take them as such.

Over-all I think the #1 thing that makes -any- guitar player sound the way they do is simply the guitar player. Put Eric Clapton on a Les Paul thru a Marshall and he sounds like Eric Clapton. Put him on a "cheap Squier" thru a small practice amp and he's -still- going to sound like Eric Clapton. Why? Because he -is- Eric Clapton. Conversely, a person can go out and blow $1500+ on a Clapton Signature Series Strat and for the matter, you could play right thru Eric's own rig and simply NOT sound like Eric Clapton.

Ok...I'm mainly a cover musician myself and as such I do have to say that it's not impossible to mimick another guitar players style and technique...at least not if you've been doing this for any period of time (assuming you have a fairly decent ear). That said, I too am from the school that says you should really develop your own sound. Yes, in some very rare cases I do in fact try to play a lead (or rhythm) "note for note"...typically if it's an integral and recognizable part of the tune. Take the first lead for Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb"...that first lead is really a very signature part of the tune. Same thing with the intro to Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here"...play that first lead any other way and you may as well not play it at all. In other words, I don't mind paying a little "tribute" on occasion.... However most of the time I really try to "put my own stink" on tunes. I've been doing the cover thing for a good many years now and while this is just my opinion, I don't like it when people say "wow...they sound just like Fleetwood Mac (or any other band)" (yawn). I'd MUCH rather have people walk away saying "Man, I love -their- version of Rhiannon..." (and we have had people come out to our shows just to hear us play that tune). I'm not Eric Clapton...or Stevie Ray Vaughn or David Gilmour...I'm Jim Walczak and I want to be remembered for -my- playing, even when I'm playing someone elses music.

With that guitars, amps and fx's are simply "tools". Obviously like any good craftsman you want to best tools and you should always try to use "the right tool for the job", I think it's been proven time and again that Strat vs. LP or Fender vs. Marshall....it's all good. Whatever allows you to get the job done. I personally prefer Strats because they are the most comfortable for me to play and for me, they are certainly the most versatile...right now I have 5 different Strats and each one has it's own sound and personality. That said, I could easily do what I do on my old Kramer (and I did for many years) and I certainly wouldn't mind something like a Schecter C-1 Classic either (...the one with the vine of life inlay on the fretboard...in blue burst...drool, drool!). Tube vs. solid state? I got both...again doesn't change anything at all for me...it's all good.

I wanted to go in to that a little because I think a lot of folks really get too hung up on "gear". Hey...I'm a gear head too. I love my guitars and my amps and I (obviously) love talking about them and certainly playing them! That said, it's a lot like photography...a -good- photographer can take great pictures with even the simplest point and shoot camera however a poor or inexperienced person will NEVER take great shots with even the most expensive top shelf gear out there..at least not consistently! The same thing applies to guitars and amps and such (and certainly to recording!!!)...the gear is -only- going to sound as good as the person who's using it. If a person is -that- hung up on hardware, they're focusing on the wrong thing.



Dude...absolutely +1... +10 in fact! A person could use the exact same gear that a person such as SRV, Clapton or Gilmour used in the studio on any given album but this doesn't take in to account everything else that went in to the recording. Did the studio engineer use any extra hardware such as compressors to thicken up the sound? EQ work? Were mics used to record the amp...if so what kind and what about placement? There are a ton of different things that can go in to the "sound" of a given guitar player beyond the gear he used during the session. Obviously the same is true of live gigs as well...every "house" is different...has different acoustics and may even have a different crowd from night to night...all of these things influence how the band or the individual musician sounds. Ever play inside of a cinder block barn where the sound guy basically had to cut all the highs just to keep the PA system from howling? LOL!!! Definitely -NOT- the same sound you're going to get at the Copacabana Room at the local Holiday Inn! LOL!!!

That said, I have certainly seen some guys do tribute work that's impressive which brings up back to one thing...technique. If a person wants to "sound like so and so" then they need to learn how to play like so and so...worry about the gear later.

Good stuff there Nick...very good points indeed!

Alrighty,
Just my $.02 worth as usual,
Jim

good stuff jim.

what i see, and this is just me here,
it seemes everytime somebody asks a question about
how to get soNso's tone, the first thing is
"oh your never gonna get his tone".
kick to the nutz first thing lol.
i dont agree with it though.
if i were to set my rig up and have 12 different people come up and
hit the very same chord progression i do, the tone WILL be the same.
why? because my selection of gear will not change.
my selection of gear is where my "tone" comes from.
now, in those same 12 people the technique's will be different,
but the tone will be the same.
i dont get where folks think tone comes from your hands.
take vai for example. let him play a progression on his rig.
it will sound like vai all day long.
now, bring vai over and plug him up to my rig.
hes still gonna sound like vai all day long souly because of his technique,
but, his tone will have changed greatly becasue hes on my rig now.

You would be surprised how much tone would change on your rig if Clapton walked up and just turned a knob or two a little bit.
I read one time where a guy who worked for the band,Little Feat,I think it was,said Clapton was there and the guy was worried to death that he was going to sit in with the band and the only spare amp they had was a POS,he was told that Clapton wasn't going to play and was relieved...then that changed,Clapton WAS going to sit in.
He said Eric took a guitar off the rack,walked over,plugged in to the crappy amp,went plunk,plunk a couple of times...turned a knob,then walked up to the front of the stage and ripped!...sounded great,no mistaking the TONE.
So I believe if Eric picked up my guitar,played through my amp...he would get his tone,not mine.
I think people greatly underestimate the talent some people have to pull something tonally magical out of an ordinary rig.

I could almost see this argument except for one very important issue. -If- your guitar and amp were in fact the -only- thing that affected this thing we call "tone", then yes...certainly any guitar player who played the rig would have the same tone because they are using the same equipment. I think the truth of the matter...and the point that some of us have is that just as much of a given person's tone does in fact come from their fingers as well...technique -does- affect "tone".

Even without making those minor knob tweaks as rebelsoul suggested (and he's absolutely right), each and every one of us have very subtle differences in our playing that does in fact affect our tone...most of us don't use the exact same pressure on a given note or string as the next person, we have subtle differences in the way we attack those notes...hell...even the picks we use can have a slight affect on tone. Any -one- of these little things wouldn't be all that significant but together? Yes, absolutely you're going to hear that in your tone.

Think of it this way... Let's think about a note from something like a "tone generator"...to make things easy, let's say a 440 A. From a simple tone generator, that note is going to sound very flat and lifeless and very "unmusical". You could run that note thru the finest example of a vintage tube amp that you can find and it's -still- going to sound like a note from a tone generator. Now let's say you hook that tone in to a basic midi keyboard. If the keyboard doesn't have anything like "pressure sensativity" or "after touch" controls, then very literally any of 12 people can press that note and create the -exact- same sound. Use a pressure sensative keyboard and while you could get some variations from one person to the next in "volume" that tone is going to sound exactly the same. To me at least, that's kind of what your analogy explains. The problem is that an instrument such as a guitar (and many others) simply don't work that same way. The sound that is made when you press a note down to the fretboard of a guitar is made by -4- things: the fret (or fretboard in the case of fretless), the string, the finger holding that string down to the fret (or fretboard) and the finger or pick that "plucks" the string.

Now let's say an open A on a guitar...there are several other tones that come from the harmonics and such that you're also hearing. Obviously the note you hear on the guitar...even though it's still an A 440, sounds -very- different from the A 440 on the tone generator. Now play a fretted A on the low E string at the 5th fret and while technically it's the same "pitch" and again it's an A 440 (more or less) the note does in fact sound a little different because of the thickness of the string. Now consider this...that fretted A note is going to sound very different depending on how you play it...you can play it softly and gently with your finger, you can play harder with a pick or you can really dig in and make it "squawk"...and an infinate number of variations in between. Try using a slide on that same note...use a metal slide versus a glass slide and again you're going to hear 2 very different "tones" than you do with a "finger". While the string size difference along with the slide material is certainly a "gear thing" the way you (or anyone else) plays that note with your fingers is not...it's your fingers and the way you play.

What's more is that it's the playing itself that get's identified...or at least should be identified with any guitarist or musician in general. Yea, sure, we do certainly identify guys like Clapton and Hendrix and Gilmour and many others with a "Strat" but I think it's been proven over and over again that guys like this could have used any other guitar and basically still sounded like themselves. To prove my point, here's a most excellent link to a YT vid that someone shared here a bit back...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_L03agGyjBw

Gilmour...on a Gretch. Listen to those leads...he -still- sounds like Gilmour. There is simply no mistaking that "style" of his. So in the case of your analogy, if he played along with those 12 other people on your gear, even with the exact same settings, there -would- be a difference in "tone". Come on...think of it like a police "line up"...12 guitar players in the same room with the same equipment as David Gilmour...tell me you couldn't pick out Gilmour just by listening.... His playing and his technique -are- part of his "tone".

Ok...this is just my opinion and I really don't have any evidence or statistics to back it up right now but the way I see it is that this thing we call tone is really a combination of -all- the elements that go in to creating a sound...the guitar, the amp, any effects pedals and for that matter even the electricity coming off the wall (perhaps from an unfiltered power supply). Some folks like Eddie Van Halen claim they can even hear the difference between different length cables. Ultimately though, it still comes down to the player...his/her style, technique, etc.. While some folks may be identified with a certain piece of equipment and while that person may even feel that piece of equipment in an integral part of their sound, it's still the music...the playing that people are going to identify with and are going to recognise.

Now I will say that I do agree with you that it's certainly possible to mimick a given musicians style of playing...but again I dont' think this is really dependant on "equipment" as much as know a given person's style. A few months back I was at a local jam night with a keyboard player buddy of mine and we were going to do (interestingly enough), "Comfortably Numb". Now I had been told that they'd have not only an amp but an effects board there as well for me to plug in to...-all- I needed to bring was my guitar (and a tuner) so I left all my pedals at home. Well when I got there, they had this ratty, beat up little Fender Blues Jr and of course, no effects. Now I have in fact spent quite some time studying David Gilmour...I am after all, I HUGE Pink Floyd fan and Gilmour has certainly been a huge influence on my own personal sound and style. With the right effects, I do feel I can pull off a passible version of some Floyd tunes (LOL!). So what was I to do without a delay pedal at least? Well ya know...sometimes ya just work with what ya got, so I plugged in, cranked up the gain and the reverb and just let it rip...and it worked fine. All of these folks (granted drunk or stoned folks) walking up to me when I got off stage going "Dude, that was like the best Gilmour I've ever heard...you just nailed it!", LOL!!! No delay...no flange...just good Strat (my '96 MIM) a beat up old tube amp and reverb.

When your fingers are in contact with the strings, there's no way they can NOT affect your tone. So again, I really have to stick with my guns. I've said it many times before and I'll say it again...it's not the gear, it the person using it. Simple as that.

Peace,
Jim

[quote="lomitus"]

I could almost see this argument except for one very important issue. -If- your guitar and amp were in fact the -only- thing that affected this thing we call "tone", then yes...certainly any guitar player who played the rig would have the same tone because they are using the same equipment. I think the truth of the matter...and the point that some of us have is that just as much of a given person's tone does in fact come from their fingers as well...technique -does- affect "tone".

Even without making those minor knob tweaks as rebelsoul suggested (and he's absolutely right), each and every one of us have very subtle differences in our playing that does in fact affect our tone...most of us don't use the exact same pressure on a given note or string as the next person, we have subtle differences in the way we attack those notes...hell...even the picks we use can have a slight affect on tone. Any -one- of these little things wouldn't be all that significant but together? Yes, absolutely you're going to hear that in your tone.

here again in the above we are talking about technique.
string pressure is technique.





Think of it this way... Let's think about a note from something like a "tone generator"...to make things easy, let's say a 440 A. From a simple tone generator, that note is going to sound very flat and lifeless and very "unmusical". You could run that note thru the finest example of a vintage tube amp that you can find and it's -still- going to sound like a note from a tone generator. Now let's say you hook that tone in to a basic midi keyboard. If the keyboard doesn't have anything like "pressure sensativity" or "after touch" controls, then very literally any of 12 people can press that note and create the -exact- same sound. Use a pressure sensative keyboard and while you could get some variations from one person to the next in "volume" that tone is going to sound exactly the same. To me at least, that's kind of what your analogy explains. The problem is that an instrument such as a guitar (and many others) simply don't work that same way. The sound that is made when you press a note down to the fretboard of a guitar is made by -4- things: the fret (or fretboard in the case of fretless), the string, the finger holding that string down to the fret (or fretboard) and the finger or pick that "plucks" the string.

Now let's say an open A on a guitar...there are several other tones that come from the harmonics and such that you're also hearing. Obviously the note you hear on the guitar...even though it's still an A 440, sounds -very- different from the A 440 on the tone generator. Now play a fretted A on the low E string at the 5th fret and while technically it's the same "pitch" and again it's an A 440 (more or less) the note does in fact sound a little different because of the thickness of the string. Now consider this...that fretted A note is going to sound very different depending on how you play it...you can play it softly and gently with your finger, you can play harder with a pick or you can really dig in and make it "squawk"...and an infinate number of variations in between. Try using a slide on that same note...use a metal slide versus a glass slide and again you're going to hear 2 very different "tones" than you do with a "finger". While the string size difference along with the slide material is certainly a "gear thing" the way you (or anyone else) plays that note with your fingers is not...it's your fingers and the way you play.

jim. here again its the same. the way you do something is technique
not tone.






What's more is that it's the playing itself that get's identified...or at least should be identified with any guitarist or musician in general. Yea, sure, we do certainly identify guys like Clapton and Hendrix and Gilmour and many others with a "Strat" but I think it's been proven over and over again that guys like this could have used any other guitar and basically still sounded like themselves. To prove my point, here's a most excellent link to a YT vid that someone shared here a bit back...

Gilmour...on a Gretch. Listen to those leads...he -still- sounds like Gilmour. There is simply no mistaking that "style" of his. So in the case of your analogy, if he played along with those 12 other people on your gear, even with the exact same settings, there -would- be a difference in "tone". Come on...think of it like a police "line up"...12 guitar players in the same room with the same equipment as David Gilmour...tell me you couldn't pick out Gilmour just by listening.... His playing and his technique -are- part of his "tone".


ok you take 12 guys. all take turns using the same exact same gear.
you would be able to point out gilmour because of his technique, not by tone, because the tone hasnt changed from player to player, they have all used the exact same gear. you notice gilmour by his STYLE and TECHNIQUE.

I'm suprized how quickly most on this thread have dismissed the importance of gear. While I agree that a player's sound starts with the fingers and strings, the back-bone of great tone comes from taking what your rig gives you, and dialing it in to get what you want.
Before you spend your kid's college fund on a petal board and a custom sig model, sit down with your guitar, a good cable, and your amp, and spend a couple of hours digging out those sweet spots. When your wife is out, turn it up to 11 and let the tubes crunch.
If you have a R9 with pearly gates, a stack, and Gibbon's pedal board, than yes, you are going to get close to that ZZ top crunch, but if you dont learn to work with your gear to find the good tones, you will never be able to dial in your guitar hero's vintage vibe. The irony is, once you learn to get the most out of your gear, you wont want Jimmy Page's tone any more.
I dont agree that Clapton can just magically sound like himself on a Gretch. A great player can pick up an unfamilliar instrument and adapt to the strengths and unique specs of that guitar. He/she will adjust their style to get the most out of the instrument. That's what great players do. You can make it your own with your style, but first you have to take what the guitar gives you.

Wow! I'm amazed and thrilled that this post has brought so much discussion about sound.

Everyone of you has made good points about playing. There is one thing that we have all over looked.

The listener. This may seem very funny to say, but the people listening hear what they think they hear. For instance if you are playing SRV, with SRV type of gear and in his style, you will sound pretty close to SRV and the crowd will love it. There are a lot of Stevie and Hendrix clones out there.

To hear you and (SRV) back to back you will see differences. The average person is going to go, "You sound just like ____!"

We as musicians are always hardest on ourselves. Heck even the artists themselves are trying to find their sound. How many times would Stevie stand in front of his huge rig of amps and start tinkering?

We're all trying to find, "THE SOUND."

The average person is not going to really notice the difference if you’re off or not.

As for copying other people's sound. I spent so much time trying to play just like Albert King. Bending and phrasing the way he does. I can come close, but no one's perfect.

By the way my heroes are as follow in order:

Eric Clapton (I own a Clapton Strat. This is bar none the most versatile guitar I own).
Albert King
Freddy King
Buddy Guy
Andy Summers
Stacy Mitchheart (Local Nashville Artist).
Robert Cray (He signed one of my Strats. I tried to get Buddy Guy to sign it too, but his manager pulled him away before I got the chance to get him to sign it).
Hubert Sumlin
SRV
The Edge
Alvin Lee
George Harrison

I have to disagree that tone has nothing to do with technique....technique =touch=different tones.....Lomitus makes very good points.
Clapton,Gilmore,Hendrix etc. could play one note with just touch and get different tones....you can't tell me that technique doesn't have lots to do with tone....I've seen it way too many times in 40 years.

simply put, if tone was in our hands, we wouldnt get out and spend the
thousands of dollars we do on gear,
we would get a walmart guitar and amp and save serious coin.
i mean accents, phrasing, dynamics, "technique", can be done on any gear setup right?
so why spend all the cash on gear?

+1.

hum..... hey if somebody is tonedeaf, does that mean they cant write?
im mean afterall, tone is in our hands right?

Because people are believing that thousands of dollars will make you sound better....big business,lots of money to be made from Junior's parents and so on...yep even people like me who have money to spend...but let me tell you one thing,I was getting serious tone way back when you could only get the cheap stuff...aka "gear"....stuff like Silvertone guitars,but it wasn't only me,how many delta blues guys made legendary recordings on cheap guitars,plugged into cheap amps...or even cigar box guitars.
Do you think Jimi Hendrix sounded like crap on Danelectro or Supro guitars? Evidently not,because he sure got a lot of attention.
If memory serves me right,Jimmy Page got some serious tone on a cheap amp on some of Led Zeps early records.Layla was recorded with Champ amps that were not worth a fortune because they weren't "vintage" then.
Just because you can spend $$$$$ on gear doesn't mean you can get great tone....go into Guitar Center on a Sat night and listen to all the wankers plugging into amps they can't afford with guitars they can't afford and tell me they sound like a super star.