Obviously this guy doesn't hang out on gear forums.

[tim]

“The right tool, learned deeply, used when ap­pro­pri­ate, no mat­ter how ba­sic, can beat the pants off of “fea­tures” any day. Be­cause it isn’t about the tool, or the fea­ture, it is about your abil­ity to use it to achieve the goal at hand. The bet­ter you know the tools you have, the less like­ly you are to seek out re­place­ments for them.”

— Patrick Rhone. Keeping it Straight, Know Your Tools.

Copied from http://mnmal.org/

[MEC]

I think he makes pretty good sense provide the original basic "tool" is of good quality, but then again I'm kind of a minimalist.

[Gearmond]

you could argue that he doesn't mean pedals n stuff for "features" as much as say the dials on said pedals. i don't care how you dialed in your way huge's frequency thingy, J Mascis still sounds better with some old-ass muffs.

[Achtane]

More like "buy a cool-looking tool once you get bored with your other tools."

[one bad monkey]

I think he makes pretty good sense provide the original basic "tool" is of good quality, but then again I'm kind of a minimalist.

I agree. There are plenty of exceptions to the rule here, but as a general comment, he's spot on.

[futuresailors]

I've got a tool for yer mother knows how to use.

[theavondon]

I've got a tool for yer mother knows how to use.

SUCK IT, TREBEK

[Dandolin]

Enigmatic title for a provocative post. for provoking thought. the responses showing thought provoked and insight.

(And for Connery. )

The messy trollfest that might have ensued on some other boards would have been, well...messy.

I think a big part of the reason these boards are so populous is that they tend to provide support and validation for people seeking instant gratification. I know I struggle with it--wanting gratification, wanting validation, wanting, and ultimately realizing that the whole process is a path to dissatisfaction. At best. Personally, I've noted time and again that I can be fine with what I have and then a trip online brings on the GAS. Or, I can identify a real need, come online for advice on how to fill it, and end up back in the GAS room. No novel or deep insight on my part, for sure. It's good to come out and recognize it, though. And, its nice to know others want a cure. Not looking for a 12-step. Best cure I know for it is doing. With what I have. (Second best cure is DIYing. )

Makes me think: just as there is a DIY sub-forum, I think it might be cool to have a sub-forum or running thread where people come specifically to talk about how to better use the tools they have with an over-riding philosophy of making do without resorting to another new tool. I mean, these things do get discussed in the general Gear forum. Just might be nice to have a place to go specifically for that.

or ?

[MEC]

Makes me think: just as there is a DIY sub-forum, I think it might be cool to have a sub-forum or running thread where people come specifically to talk about how to better use the tools they have with an over-riding philosophy of making do without resorting to another new tool. I mean, these things do get discussed in the general Gear forum. Just might be nice to have a place to go specifically for that.

or ?

There is only one way to find out.
START TEH TREAD!

[Dandolin]

Fair enough. And away we go...viewtopic.php?f=149&t=17187

[Dr. Sherman Sticks M.D.]

sometimes gettin a new tool helps u think in ways that u hadn't thought of before, which in turn helps u use your old tool in a way u never thought of before.

keyword: sometimes

[tim]

I was half expecting this to turn into a flame thread. Sometimes there are sounds you just can't get from anywhere else (POG2 for example), but most of the time even the worst tools are better than none.

Besides, no one in the audience (and I'd be willing to bet that very few of us) can tell the difference between pedal manufacturers by sound alone.

[snipelfritz]

Generalities are general.

"Tool" could be anything, it could be the instrument, the amp, or the pedals themselves. Personally, I like pedals that do as little as possible, that is I like them to do one thing well rather than have 100+ effects when I know I'll only ever use a handful of them.

I think the difference between "functions" and "features" is what's important here. Functions are basic uses of a "tool"(once again, this is all nonsensically general) while "features" are additional uses added to the basic functions, but where do you draw the line between them?

If you take a fuzz pedal, it's basic function is to add fuzz to the sound. If you add an oscillator switch, is that a feature because it has been modified over the initial functions? What if you design a new pedal based on that original fuzz, but with an oscillator as a part of the initial design? It's the same result as the first example, but since the oscillator was an intended result from the initial design does it then become a function?

All in all, I say, most respectfully, that Mr. Rhone, and a minimalist philosophy in general, is full of shit. Restraint for the sake of restraint will only stunt creativity.

[eatyourguitar]

I almost flamed you cause you just copy pasted someones opinion on a highly subjective subject. it wasn't even posted as a question. but its a valid opinion so it still stands.

reminds me of how very early music software I used was extremely limited but also very powerful once the user found lots of little tricks to push it to extremes. also, when I was a DJ watching scratch/battle competition it was all about talent not so much gear. like a guy with a record that goes around the world and some kid is playing with the same record but not getting anything remotely close. it taught me a lot about life and about making music. you have to be involved and do work. one of my students for beat making and software refuses to learn basic concepts of synthesis because he is a good keys player. I dropped him. not wanting to do the hard work means he is destined for failure IMO.