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This could be interesting, I'm sure it's come up before but here goes.

What's the best 'small' purchase you've ever bought for your tone?
I'm talking specific valves (tubes to our American buddies), certain strings, cables. That sort of stuff. The things that are generally considered to be too boring to talk about.

For me it's sticking with D'Addario strings,George L cables and using RCA Long Plate 12AX7s in both my Fender Cyber Twin and my Vox Valvetronix head...I use these same tubes in my 66 Pro Reverb also..The types of picks I use make a difference..I'll use certain picks that brighten my overall attack or I'll use something like a Dunlop Tortex which lessens the attack and warms the tone up a bit...

I'll also use warmer strings at times...Like instead of using the D'Addarios,I'll switch to GHS Nickel Rockers or DR Pure Blues for a warmer tone and different feel...

Probably the smallest (yet rather influencial) change I made was from:

: thin picks (red sharkfin!) to 0.73mm dunlop up to 1mm Dunlop Nylon.

Initially i resisted the thicker pick path, but now I can't use a floppy. And the floppies make me sound dreadful now. The tone benifit was remarkable.


Originally Posted by Toenail-TommyInitially i resisted the thicker pick path, but now I can't use a floppy. And the floppies make me sound dreadful now. The tone benifit was remarkable.

1

I spent years using Fender Med-Thins, then one day I bought a couple Dunlop 1mm Tortex picks and forced myself to use them. Best thing I ever did tonewise. I'm now mostly using 1.14mm Ultex and Tortex and they sound and feel great.

I've also experimented with various string guages, right from 8s upto 13s. I've pretty much settled on using hybrid sets (skinny top/heavy bottoms) in the 11-58 range. The skinny tops are great for fast fretwork and bending, and the heavy bottoms provide a thick rhythm tone.

a cheap multimeter! sooo many things can be fixed or diagnosed when you got one of those little puppies around

other thing would be trying as many different string guages as possible - i've been through 10s, 11s, 12s, now i wanna try 8s lol - look out truss rod..

tom

Thicker, better strings. I started out stringing my electrics with 9-42 Ernie Balls. Now the smallest I'll go is 10-46 (10-52 being my fave) Everly B-52's.

Also, for you guys out there using 6L6's, do yourself a favor and try the Electro Harmonix tubes. For EL-34 junkies, their 6CA7's are great as well.

[QUOTE=Benjy_26]Thicker, better strings. I started out stringing my electrics with 9-42 Ernie Balls. Now the smallest I'll go is 10-46 (10-52 being my fave) Everly B-52's. QUOTE]

Yes, yes, yes!! I started out with super slinky's, then went to regular. Then on my LP I got some Everlys and wow I loved them, I got all the way up to 12's on that sucker. I put some everylys on my 330 too (10-52 wound 3rd). Switching from Ernie Balls to anything has helped greatly. I went from 10-52 EB to 10-52 GHS TNT and the difference was unbeleivable! I have since lost my local everly supplier so I make due with my GHS.

Luke


Originally Posted by screamingdaisy 1

I spent years using Fender Med-Thins, then one day I bought a couple Dunlop 1mm Tortex picks and forced myself to use them. Best thing I ever did tonewise. I'm now mostly using 1.14mm Ultex and Tortex and they sound and feel great.

I've also experimented with various string guages, right from 8s upto 13s. I've pretty much settled on using hybrid sets (skinny top/heavy bottoms) in the 11-58 range. The skinny tops are great for fast fretwork and bending, and the heavy bottoms provide a thick rhythm tone.

1

I'd agree completely but I'm up and down with picks all the time. I was into .88's (or something) then I switched to 2mm's then went down to 1mm's and now I'm all the way down to Dunlop Gator Grip .79mm's.

Changing to D'Addario's helped out a bit too. They're less slippery than Ernie Ball's...which I still like...

for me the most important small thing were:
-getting dunlop ultex picks in 1.00 and 1.14(sometimes 0.73 but it depends). Those picks are great and i just sound better with them
- moving to 10-52 ernie balls made my tone fatter and more powerfull

everything makes a difference...for me George L cables are a small thing that makes a big difference, I can't play with out Dunlop Tortex picks, and high quality tubes make a huge difference!

Lose the pedals....crank up the amp.....discover tone.

I played a gig last night where for the first time I was playing exclusively with tube overdrive. The amp was my modified Blues Junior with my 73' Strat and Greco Les Paul Custom.

The soundguy came up to me and said quot;Jesus....that sounds great!quot; I was kind of in awe; it was the least hassle I've had setting up gear and the most fun I've had playing in a long time.

Alot of pedals try to recreate the sound of an overdriven amplifier. Why go with a second-rate when you can have the real deal?

GeorgeL's cables on the pedalboard, DR Pure Blues or D'Addario strings, and a GT Mullard Reissue in the V1 preamp socket .

Snakeoil's strings...monster cable. Great tubes, whether NOS or new production. Bone nuts or graptec nuts...anything but plastic. Tone pro's locking bridge. Aluminum Tailpieces, upgraded electronics (CTS pots, mallory or orange drop or bumble bee caps).

Sometimes it's the small things that make a difference.


Originally Posted by Jeff_Hupgraded electronics (CTS pots, mallory or orange drop or bumble bee caps).

1


Originally Posted by Jeff_HSnakeoil's strings...monster cable. Great tubes, whether NOS or new production. Bone nuts or graptec nuts...anything but plastic. Tone pro's locking bridge. Aluminum Tailpieces, upgraded electronics (CTS pots, mallory or orange drop or bumble bee caps).

Sometimes it's the small things that make a difference.

Hey Jeff, how are those snakeoils man? You never got back to me on that


Originally Posted by ArmotronHey Jeff, how are those snakeoils man? You never got back to me on that

Yikes....I forgot, sorry bro.

I've only put them on my Dean Hardtail so far, becaue I'm not done swapping pups on my LP's....don't want to waste the $9 strings. I really, really like the feel of them. They are smooth and slinky. They are so smooth and slinky in fact that I may go back to 10's in them on all of my 24 3/4 scale guitars. Bending is so much easier and smoother. I bought the vintage, which are pure nickel, and they may even be a tad too smooth. Next time around I'll buy some of the rock strings, which are supposed to be a tad brighter.

If they last half as long as I expect them to, they'll be worth every penny. I can get many months out of a set of EB Hybrid slinkies. As a comparison, I've had my Goldtop a little over 2 weeks now. I put the set of Dean Markly strings they sent me with the guitar on when it arrived. They are already oxidized and turning that blackish grey in spots....and I only have about 3 hours of total play time of them....yuck. They also feel rough and sticky.

I highly recommend trying a set of the Snake Oils. Start with the Rock set if you like a brighter sound.....the vintage is smooth, smooth, smooth. Might be just right on a strat though.

Hmmm, there are a few here:

1) bone nut. The stock one was messed up so getting a new one transformed my historic Gibby all the more. I'll take this guitar over anything now

2) strings. I love Snake Oil Strings. They just never sound dull, even over prolonged lengths of time and they seem to last more than the average set of strings.

3) picks. Picks are very personal and 1.14mm Dunlop Ultex are IT for me. They feel right, last long and are the most articulate picks I've used so far.

4) cables. My long cables are Bayou and the short ones are Bill Lawrence (aka George Ls). Better clarity and less noise are two big advantages. I like knowing that my tone will get from one end to the other with minimal signal loss. This is the most expensive of the 4, so that's why it was put last.


Originally Posted by the_Chris4) cables. My long cables are Bayou and the short ones are Bill Lawrence (aka George Ls).

They're the same thing?

Adding a 1000pf capacitor on the volume pot of most guitars makes a huge difference for me. George L cables also work well with my hands. They get rid of some of the shrillness that my pick attack gives off.

Somewhere along the line...I still just sound like I always has done.
Regardless of what I play through.