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So last night we played a rather large outdoor gig on a big stage... and my sound was not okay. so i twisted and turned the EQ on the amp and then i tried to engage the Bright switch - which i never do, because it¨s unbearable

guess what - everything came alive

and yeah, it was last minute, so i didn't have much time to readjust my pedals, so i guess i killed a few people with all the square wave sharpness from my Fingerprint... but today i tried it in my room on low volume - and usually this is where the bright got unbearable... but it's actually quite wonderful. So i tweaked the pedals a bit and resolved the Fingerprint issue by - wait for it - putting it BEFORE my Fuck OD - I NEVER PUT OVERDRIVE AFTER FUZZEs, bucause it used to sound like an ass, now with the different EQ it sounds amazing

is it possible i've been playing muffled the whole time? Am i retarded? Is that why people were sometimes bitching about the sound not having balls? Would a soundguy tell me if there was too much treble?

I have no straight answer to your questions man but the only thing I do know is that when playing live, especially concerning drive sounds and all that, the way the room / stage reflects sound makes a huge difference.
Some amps seem to have less problems with this though, I don't really know why but it seems that way to me, I usually don't have many problems with my Marshall 2061X for instance, it's quite consistent.

yeah, that's for sure, biggest difference has always been indoor/outdoor stages... but i've never experienced anything like this

might be that i changed a brand of power tubes as well... maybe these work better with chimier, treblier sounds

i'll test the sound further in rehearsal in a week and we'll see what happens... but so far i'm liking this unexpectable timbre change

DarkAxel wrote:is it possible i've been playing muffled the whole time? Am i retarded? Is that why people were sometimes bitching about the sound not having balls? Would a soundguy tell me if there was too much treble?

1. Yes
2, Possibly
3- Maybe
4' Not really...

Well, in any case it's cool you found some new joy with your current gear.
I'm curious about your findings when you start playing around with your new settings more.

Yeah, but i think our rehearsal space is acoustically very weird

ok, Sonny, the soundguy might not tell me... but he'd cut the treble when micing, right?

If it's a good soundguy with ears that function I guess yes, in other cases the answer might be no (maybe he'll drop the volume or turn off the mic completely).

I'm a very firm believer in bright guitar sounds, especially live. It differentiates it more from the bass and allows both instruments more room sonically. Or something, whatever bullshit buzzwords I use, I think treblier guitar tones than sound good when you're playing alone are good live because they sit better in a band mix.

And as for the soundperson thing, nah, I've never played with any who cared about the tone of the guitar that much.

that's a good attitude my main concern is that i don't want it to be unpleasant for the audience, you dig?

it's a lost fight anyway though if you don't have your own soundguy with you without that there's so much that can go wrong with the sound...

DarkAxel wrote:my main concern is that i don't want it to be unpleasant for the audience, you dig?

Absolutely! I always try to get out and check that my guitar isn't TOO bright, because I hate icepick tone when you see a band as much as anyone. It depends so much on the room and the band and the music you're playing, it's definitely important to have a soundguy who gives a shit!

I wish sound guys would tell people when that harsh treble is going on. Probably too many egotistic guitarists bitching back at them. But yeah, I've plugged into my amps bright channel for kicks and it'll sound more focused. I tend to try and keep myself plugged into the normal channel though and adjust from there.... just in case.

yeah, i don't know what it is about the bright switch but it seems it does something different than just turning the treble up

i mean... if a soundguy can bully you because you're too loud, they should give a fuck about other stuff as well

I think bright guitars risk getting list in the mix with the cymbals. I think mids define your guitar sound then you add highs for attack until they impede upon the cymbals.

Problem is most sound guys suck, as do many venues (soundwise). Live mixing is super difficult though, to give credit where credit is due.

Yeah, mids are also very important, I didn't mean an all treble no mids/bass sound, just that turning up the treble a bit from what sounds good alone is generally a good idea live.