I Dig.

Word!!

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Of course much of what we seek out in "tone" can be eliminated or compromised or gained through the use of "effects".

Clean amplification would be requisite for comparison.

I very much believe woods and components do effect "tone", (physics) but there is also a lot of psychology in play also.

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I remember when we were free!

I always checked new guitars by playing them unplugged. Then I go for the ones that have the most treble, every new guitar will have more bottom end when played in, never adds treble later.
Pickups can be changed to change the sound you want later.
That´s the sound thing.

The more important part is what makes a guitar really good. A really good guitar is always the guitar that has the most dynamic when played. From very light picking the strings to really dig in, it gets louder and louder (unplugged).

Picking up ten Stratocasters, some sounding dead (no dynamics), some muddy, some midrangy. The best ones have good sound and response to every change you make in picking the strings and are highly dynamic. These are the magic guitars that stand out.

Robin

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http://www.youtube.com/robinstrower
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Robin,

Very well said.

OL

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I remember when we were free!

oh boy, another tone thread....again! Where is Niki? he has talked very scientific about these things. One time I was going to start a thread like this and I was told by a well know Forum user that they end up in endless arguments and eventually get shut down by Brad. I am happy to see the good spirit here and comments. I have said this before, but when it comes to guitars and tone there is a just a lot of mysticism.

I will say that pickups do make the guitar sound different. (See: http://xhefriguitars.com/page5.html for some examples.) I do a lot of custom wiring and often, as in the case of my player guitar, swap out loaded pickguards on a weekly bases, just for fun. Everything from Humbuckers to various Lace Sensors, to Seymour Duncans and DiMarzios. Some pickups will be bright, some super hot, others fat. Of course you can always tweak the amp and change the tone and can even get one setup to sound a lot like the other setup. But sometimes there is a special magic one can not explain. I will build a guitar and it, right from the get-go, will have a super sweet sustain and tone and most of all FEEL. And I think the last has a lot to do with it!

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Xhefri's Guitars
www.xhefriguitars.com

Yes, I think there are things at work. When thevarious components and materials match up in a perfect sort of way there is a "sympathetic symphony of resonance" that makes a superior guitar.

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I remember when we were free!