Aldo
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A closer look at my guitar tone
🕑 Added 2020-09-18 15:01:01 +0000 UTCWhile doing all those guitar samples for the last Sample Pack I thought it would be cool to show you guys how I process my guitar signal. I'm not a "tone expert" at all but it's something I get asked a lot on Youtube so hopefully it will be useful to some of the guitarists around here.
First of all, I don't use any amplifier. My guitar signal usually goes through some effects (ZOIA, Pralines, etc.) then into my looper (Ditto X4 or Octatrack) and finally straight into my Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. Sometimes I use a preamp rack (my super old and cheap DOD G7) to compress and thicken the signal a little bit. Then the guitar is recorded into Logic Pro X where I add some plug-ins.
My effect chain may vary from one track to another but I often end up with similar settings. Here is the typical chain my signal goes through :
- Equalizer 1 : I use a first equalizer to get rid of frequencies that I don't need in the raw signal. For this task any stock plug-in will do. I usually have a pretty steep low-cut filter around 100Hz. Depending on how busy the arrangement is I can even go higher and use a 48dB/Oct slope. This helps making room for the kick and bass. My guitar also has a pretty generous low-medium range so I remove a few dBs around 150/200Hz with a wide Q. This is probably a bit more controversial but I also use a low-pass filter to remove the super high-end frequencies. I think they don't really add a lot to a guitar sound. I usually place this filter around 12kHz. This helps making the sound round and mellow, but it can also make the guitar feel muddy so I add a tiny bump around 5kHz to compensate that. It makes the sound clearer by emphasizing the attack of the notes.
- Tape Emulation : This is kinda the secret ingredient to my tone, I use the Waves Kramer Master Tape to shape my sound. It's supposed to recreate the sound of a 1/4" tape recorder and it's mostly a combination of compression and saturation. By pushing the input signal you can get a really warm and mellow compression on the louder portions of your signal. The Flux knob lets you adjust the saturation independently and adds a lovely depth to the medium frequencies. The plug-in also has a basic tape delay and a "wow and flutter" effect which I don't use very often but can still be nice when used reasonably.
- Compressor : Another important component of my sound is compression. I compress my signal a lot, I like to tame any loud peak to keep my signal nice and tight. I use a pretty long attack to preserve transients and therefore the clarity of the guitar (around 40/50ms). The ratio can be anywhere between 4:1 and 12:1 (which is kinda extreme). For this I use the Waves Renaissance Compressor because I like the visual feedback on it but I'm pretty sure my ears couldn't make the difference between this one and any other free compressor.
- Equalizer 2 : Finally I use a second equalizer to shape the sound. Now that I have cleaned my signal and defined its overall colour, I can boost or tame some frequencies to make it fit into the mix a bit more. This is highly dependant on the context but I almost always add a few dB around 7kHz and higher. This seems (and might actually be) counter-productive since I used a low-pass filter at the beginning of my chain but somehow I always like the result better that way. Maybe because the equalizer I use (the Waves API 550B) has a better sound, or maybe because this comes after the tape emulation and reveals some new frequencies. I'm not entirely sure. For this step I like having a plug-in without the spectrum displayed because it makes my ears work harder.
And that's basically it! I also use reverb and delay on auxiliary busses but there's nothing really interesting going on there. The pictures attached show some typical settings I use and might help you visualizing some of the things I'm talking about.
As you may have noticed, I use a lot of Waves plug-ins. I'm honestly clueless when it comes to plug-ins brands and stuff. That's not something I'm super interested in so I just went with the most popular brand and stuck with it. Also they run special offers every few weeks so you can grab good quality plug-ins for a decent amount of money (all the plug-ins I mentioned here are often available for 29$ each). If you're interested in some of their products, you might wanna subscribe to their newsletter so you don't miss any cool offer. (Any alternative suggestions are also welcome in the comments!)
Keep in mind that every player and every guitar will sound different so simply applying those plug-ins and settings won't give you the exact same result. I mostly play with my fingers (where most people play with a pick) so this already makes a huge difference in the overall balance and dynamic of my sound.
Also you might wanna check these two videos from the amazing Sean Angus Watson where he explained how he processes his guitar signal. He's a great musician and has a wonderful tone which I drew a lot of inspiration from.
Anyway, I hope that was useful, have a lovely day<3
