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A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomness)
http://forum.theobelisk.net/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=3782
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Author:  JemDooM [ Sun Nov 20, 2011 11:18 am ]
Post subject:  A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomness)

hey guys hows it going?

I have a couple of questions.....

is it normal that the unused strings feedback when soloing? it doesnt bother me apart from when its really bad because I love the sound of feedback, I think that it enhances my music, but what about when you dont want it? i dampen the whailing strings with the palm of my hand scuffing them at the same time as soloing but shouldnt I just be able to concentrate on the solo and have some other way of quieting the strings? is there something im not doing?

when you solo do you change anything? pick ups? pedal?

do you have any tips for solo tone/volume?

bearing in mind this is for sludgey, doomy, tuned down loud stuff....

Im still trying to get the hang of tone and everything, I hope to be a good tone-witch one day, I'd love to hear your words of wisdom.....

Author:  SunnO))) [ Sun Nov 20, 2011 9:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

There's a lot of ways to approach proper ~soloing technique~

If you're having issues with (for the sake of clarity) your E, A and D strings feeding back whilst soloing, palm mute them, leaving the other three untouched. I find it keeps my right hand in check, too, no wild swings or any of that. Keeps my playing even, and tight.

you can USE those strings, open, too. Just solo in the key of the open note. In E, ring E, play in E... Jump to it and play a double stop, some octaves. It's old school country playing.

I usually kick on a boost for leads, and occasionally a boost and a Qtron for dynamic auto wah sounds...

Author:  toketillbroke [ Sun Nov 20, 2011 9:32 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

I'm not sure how big your hands are but if they're big enough and you're playing far enough up on the neck you can try using the thumb on your left hand to mute the E and A strings. When you're soloing on the E and A strings you can just use the fingers on your left hand to mute whatever strings you aren't using as they're already hovering over those strings. Also (I know this is like a cardinal sin for doom) try lowering the gain a little. The longer I've played the more I lowered the gain until now I eventually went from always having my gain at ten to preferring it around 3 or 4. I've just found that you get a juicier crunch that has much more life and warmth with slightly lowered gain. Play around with it you might not have to even lower your gain very much as a slight change can reduce feedback pretty well. Another thing that causes harsh feedback for me is if I accidentally have the presence or treble set too high. You could also try rolling off your tone knob slightly.

Author:  cat sheperd [ Mon Nov 21, 2011 1:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

If you can't conrol it. Use it or lose it, the feedback that is. If it's that big of a problem somethings probably wrong, because you just have to melt inside the moment and ooze into the sound allowing the cable to transport your thoughts from the guitar mind into the amp and out. Alot of your own tricks will come to you if you just keep at it.

Author:  JemDooM [ Mon Nov 21, 2011 4:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

thanks guys thats seriously helpful! I'll definetly have a look at my gain, presence and treble, I like the idea of actually using those strings aswell! i'll have a play around, i definetly just have to keep at it!

Author:  peyotepeddler [ Wed Nov 23, 2011 1:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

couple of things(some echoed)

1. how close are you standing to your amp? you know the answer as to why

2. try to lower your gain, less is more, it will have more grind and balls

3. don't have a icepick tone aka "matt pike" syndrome ha ha

4. get better at muting unused strings, this can take years to really get it down, have patience

5. maybe roll back the tone knob if you have a bright amp

6. some people dig a simple clean boost for solos to make them stand out a little more



cheers
mike

Author:  toketillbroke [ Tue Nov 29, 2011 1:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

A couple more things to consider.

Are you facing your amp when your playing? I've found if my pickups are facing my speakers my amp goes wild which I use during the end of songs.

You might already do this but try using your neck pickup. It will REALLY fatten up your tone and could help alleviate feedback as the treble won't be so pronounced.

Author:  JemDooM [ Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:06 am ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

I need to remember to try different pick ups for soloing to see if it helps, I forget about my pick ups because one gives vastly the best tone so I forget about doing anything with that, definetly guilty of standing close to and facing my amp because im always picking on my tone, haha im a liability in so many ways ;)

Author:  Ryan Electrocution [ Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

I've never really had that problem; even when I wasn't very good. The unused strings shouldn't be feeding back that much, unless you're facing the amp or are near it. The top strings (if you're soloing on the G or D string) should naturally be muted while you play. I actually--for the first time in 17 years of playing-- had to physically analyze how I played for a few seconds just right now, and noticed that the bulk of my fingers mutes the upper strings while I play leads. You'd have to work pretty hard to not naturally mute the upper strings, but if you have your wrist or hand at a weird extended angle to the fretboard, maybe that sort of thing could happen. I don't have very big hands, and my fingers naturally mute the upper strings when I play, but then again, you may have to adjust finger technique, as perhaps thinner fingers may not do this automatically....I don't know.

Sometimes there are adjustments needed on the fly for certain lead phrases; on a somewhat similar note, when I play chords, i'll hold the pick with three fingers, and then for solos, I just use the thumb and index finger to hold the pick.

Author:  JemDooM [ Thu Feb 09, 2012 6:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: A question about solos, tone and volume (sludgey doomnes

I think its just that my hands are very small and actually i do play at a weird extended angle because iv been trying to avoid dampening the strings at the wrong moment, but seriously though thanks for the advice Iv got some stuff to think about...

p.s Ryan I was checking out your PreSonus Firestudio Project, its amazing, slighly out of my price range so I went for the one with 2 preamps, if I like it then I'll get the Firestudio Project in a couple of months, I like that its metal and not plastic! and im looking forward to playing with Studio One, thanks for the recommendation!

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