Beginner Electric Guitar Lesson - 6 Steps to Get the Perfect Tone on Your Amplifier
With this beginner electric guitar lesson, we're going to talk about finding that perfect tone on your amplifier that will match your instrument and your sound.
Apart from buying a guitar and choosing the amplifier, the tone that you create with those elements can make or break your sound.
Too often you hear guitarists that either lose all the definition in their lead riffs from heavy-intensive sounds or guys that bust open your ears from piercing highs.
We can try to avoid damaging your listeners by using these 6 simple steps to find that tone "sweet spot" on your guitar's amplifier.
1.
Think about the genres you want to play.
The first filter you need to run your tone concepts through is the genre that you'll choose to play.
For example, country-style guitars use more high and low tones while less mid range for more twang in the sound.
Pop rock guitars like an even balance between the frequencies and maybe a tiny boost to the mid-range.
2.
Turn your Low, Mid, and High tone knobs to zero.
When you're determining just about anything with music, the first thing you should do is start with a clean slate.
An important part of this beginner electric guitar lesson is not being afraid to start over with your sound because it's not all that complicated to get it back or make it even better.
3.
Strum a chord.
Let that tone ring true so you can really understand what it means to have a blank tone.
After you hear what a dead tone sounds like, you're more likely to appreciate the tone that you create in comparison.
4.
While striking single notes and chords, slowly raise and lower the Low tone knob.
This is where you attempt to find your first sweet spot on the amplifier.
If you continue to strike your lowest string while increasing the low tone, you'll hear the bass of the sound gradually swell.
When you feel that you've hit the perfect amount, just stop.
5.
Repeat step four, but with the Mid and High tone knobs.
Do the same thing as the previous step in this beginner electric guitar lesson and you'll notice things starting to really come together.
Make sure to continuously listen to the tone of different strings.
Try to achieve a very round and balanced tone that represents all frequencies.
6.
Do some final tweaking.
If you need to, turn a couple of the knobs just a bit more to see what you can accomplish.
At this point, you probably have a pretty good tone that might only need minor adjustments.
Let's talk about guitar distortion before we wrap things up.
Deciding on the perfect guitar distortion is whole other can of worms that should really be approached with some thought.
It's a very integral part of your overall tone and can be saved for another discussion.
At this point, work diligently on finding the best distortion and tone with the steps in this beginner electric guitar lesson, and if you've exhausted all combinations, then it may be time to acquire other methods to change your tone with pedals or rack items.
Apart from buying a guitar and choosing the amplifier, the tone that you create with those elements can make or break your sound.
Too often you hear guitarists that either lose all the definition in their lead riffs from heavy-intensive sounds or guys that bust open your ears from piercing highs.
We can try to avoid damaging your listeners by using these 6 simple steps to find that tone "sweet spot" on your guitar's amplifier.
1.
Think about the genres you want to play.
The first filter you need to run your tone concepts through is the genre that you'll choose to play.
For example, country-style guitars use more high and low tones while less mid range for more twang in the sound.
Pop rock guitars like an even balance between the frequencies and maybe a tiny boost to the mid-range.
2.
Turn your Low, Mid, and High tone knobs to zero.
When you're determining just about anything with music, the first thing you should do is start with a clean slate.
An important part of this beginner electric guitar lesson is not being afraid to start over with your sound because it's not all that complicated to get it back or make it even better.
3.
Strum a chord.
Let that tone ring true so you can really understand what it means to have a blank tone.
After you hear what a dead tone sounds like, you're more likely to appreciate the tone that you create in comparison.
4.
While striking single notes and chords, slowly raise and lower the Low tone knob.
This is where you attempt to find your first sweet spot on the amplifier.
If you continue to strike your lowest string while increasing the low tone, you'll hear the bass of the sound gradually swell.
When you feel that you've hit the perfect amount, just stop.
5.
Repeat step four, but with the Mid and High tone knobs.
Do the same thing as the previous step in this beginner electric guitar lesson and you'll notice things starting to really come together.
Make sure to continuously listen to the tone of different strings.
Try to achieve a very round and balanced tone that represents all frequencies.
6.
Do some final tweaking.
If you need to, turn a couple of the knobs just a bit more to see what you can accomplish.
At this point, you probably have a pretty good tone that might only need minor adjustments.
Let's talk about guitar distortion before we wrap things up.
Deciding on the perfect guitar distortion is whole other can of worms that should really be approached with some thought.
It's a very integral part of your overall tone and can be saved for another discussion.
At this point, work diligently on finding the best distortion and tone with the steps in this beginner electric guitar lesson, and if you've exhausted all combinations, then it may be time to acquire other methods to change your tone with pedals or rack items.
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