When do you realize it's not the gear that's sh!t

[slash-ed]

... but it's you?

This is taking it to the extreme, but it seems a common thread among "internet guitarists" (people who read a lot, frequent forums etc) that everyone is constantly chasing tone... but very few are ever chasing chops or playing ability.

For instance... generally, although I'm frustrated with my lack of motivation to learn new things, I'm quite happy with the way I play - the subtleties of bending, vibrato, attack etc which I think are quite important, I have a good handle on.

However, recently I got a Bareknuckle VHII put into the bridge of my LP. I'm not used to having such a low output pickup in the bridge - I've always had at least something like JB or above in output, and let the output do a lot of the work for me.

Plugging in with the VHII, I suddenly felt like the bridge pickup wasn't sounding that good. Things didn't sound as chunky or fat as they usually did.

After a little while of mucking around with different amp models and settings, I had a revelation (thank you Jeebus) - it was me. I had failed to adapt to the different style of pickup, which requires you to just. pick. harder. to get the good tone. Surprising, considering I'm a heavy handed riffer as it is.

Now, it sounds awesome.

This is my mini rant for the morning. If you're not happy with the way your gear sounds, perhaps look at your playing and see if you can achieve the subtleties of tone through your fingers first before ditching yet another rig.

Cue the "I don't care" posts...

[Polar Bear]

More gain?

I am never happy with the way I play, but nor do I think it's my gear.

[jeremyb]

Tis a very good point Ed, quite often buying new gear is a great distraction from doing what is actually required to improve your tone, and thats practicing hard! Nowhere near as fun, and I should do it more often, way easier to procrastinate and buy / sell gear instead tho'

[slash-ed]

More gain?

I am never happy with the way I play, but nor do I think it's my gear.

Man, the VHII is an interesting pickup in this respect. Even at low gain, with heavy attack it just has this huge sounding bark, it's pretty cool.

[Kiwiaxe]

Some of the best things I ever did for my playing was to buy my mesa boogie mark iv (an incredibly unforgiving amp) and have BKP rebel yells in my Les Paul (surprisingly low output, and high clarity).

It made me tidy up my playing no end. So now when I play my Jem (very compressed signal out of the pickups) through my Bogner (very forgiving) I sound like a rock god well, to myself anyway.

[The Scarecrow]

I've totally felt this way. I have gear which is good, and often envied by mates and bands I've played with. I've heard people I know play my setup and then make it sound amazing, and I sit there at times wondering why I can't always replicate that sound I just heard.

Mostly I think it comes down to my playing style and skill level; being self taught, I wager I have some sloppy habbits. Being a vocalist these days too has meant I've effectively shelved learning much 'new' on guitar and tried to concentrate on getting my singing down.

[calling card]

I was sitting there last night eyeing up my Walden acoustic and thinking such things.

[rickenbackerkid]

Well done. I have long since come the conclusion that it really matters not if you use a Timmy or a Blues Driver. They are 90% the same thing, and the great players will sound much better through a Blues Driver than a crappy player will sound through a Timmy.

This realization is largely responsible for my lack of GAS in the past year or so. I figure I now have a good guitar, good amp, good boost pedal, good delay and a good pedal tuner, if I fail to get the job done, it’s nothing to do with the gear, it’s my shitty playing.

[Cdog]

Great thread title. Probably anything said here will be of enduring value

[druz15]

Yeah it's funny I don't find myself GASing for things now because there's anything "missing" tonewise. I got the marshall cab because when I used one the difference in sound between that and my Orange was night and day, and it eliminated the need for endless tweaking, because the sound was RIGHT THERE, with all the knobs at noon. I don't GAS for any pedals, or amps.
I'm keen to build more amps cause it's fun and I like to have some variations on hand with recording and stuff, but it's not like I NEED a new amp to sound better.

The exception to this rule of course is in complete contrast, the Rory Gallagher Strat I wanted. I wanted it because it played and sounded amazeballs, and it made me play and sound better too. Did I need it? No, not at all, which is why I didn't cry when someone bought it.

[Scooter13]

Nah. It's probably the gear. Get some better stuff. I hear those 65 amps make you sound better.

[slash-ed]

Hahaha, oh yes they do.

Nothing wrong with buying gear still - I will continue to do it, and it'll continue to be fun.

I'm really more trying to get a point across to the serial rig swappers, who spend time chasing some mythical tone, when you can really make a large difference with your own hands and playing.

[Slowy]

I'm not a musician. (defined by me as someone who uses tools to manifest the music welling up inside them).
I'm a mediocre guitar player. I love the instrument more than I love music. I choose stuffthat makes it easy for me to copy tones I've heard others produce, so gear is important to me.

When you hear someone pick up a cheap ukulele with 3 steel strings, a pencil for a bridge, strum it with a dish brush and bring an audience to their feet, it's impossible to maintain the illusion that gear really matters in the face of raw talent.

[The Scarecrow]

I'm really more trying to get a point across to the serial rig swappers, stop making new threads that rehash the same ol'; same ol' and spent more time playing.

*fixed

[jimi]

I've always known my playing is on the shit side of mediocre, and its taken a lot of effort and practice to get it that good (or that bad if that's more appropriate).

The hunt for new gear is more because its fun to try out new stuff, new gear makes me more enthusiastic about playing, and reading about gear and planning the next purchase helps me not /wrist over the BS I get to deal with at work.