Turn It Up: Plugging Into The Perfect Guitar And Amp Settings

Yowza! Did you hear that hideous noise? It sounded like a combination of nails on a chalkboard, a cat in a dryer, and a baby wailing at the top of his lungs. Do you have any idea of what made that awful sound? As a long-time musician, I think I may have the answer for you. It's a guitarist fiddling for the first time with his new amp.

Before I bought my first amp, I wouldn't have thought that a human could produce such a horribly wretched sound. But, now I know better. In the process of finding the perfect settings for your guitar and amp, you are sure to discover all kinds of disagreeable screeches and squeals, shrieks and screams. And, believe it or not, these unpleasant and often other-worldly sounds are all part of the learning experience.

I've often been asked to give beginners online advice on how to dial in their amps and guitar settings. For a number of reasons, this is no easy task. As you know, the experience of sound is totally subjective. What I may like, you may not. This said, it's hard to give definitive advice about guitar and amp settings.

So much is involved in getting the sound just right for your tastes-including the room you're playing in, the gauge of your strings, the guitar you're jamming on, and the type of amp itself. All of these come together to create a playground for experimentation: a place where you can twist this knob here and turn that knob there and, before you know it, you're a musical stylist, an expert in designing the perfect sound.

I can, however, offer a few general tips that might help out as you begin playing with your amp.

  • Always start with your dials pointing to 12 o'clock and twist and turn from there. 12 o'clock will give you the baseline to work from and you can let your ears tell you what does and doesn't work from there.

  • No matter how many other bells and whistles your amp has, you're almost always looking at a four basic areas you'll be most interested in learning how to manipulate:

    • Treble Adjusting this setting will affect the amount of high end in your sound. If you go big with treble, you'll end up with a very sharp and crisp sound. However, if you go too big, you'll likely end up with a harsh sound.

    • Middle The mids can be the most important setting to your overall sound. Adjusting these settings can really impact the overall character of your sound. Low settings can give you the classic rock-n-roll sound, while higher mids will take you down the honky-tonk, bluesy path. Play around with the mids to really see how much change you can create in your sound with the simple twist of a knob!

    • Bass If you like that deep, booming sound, you'll definitely want to go fat on your bass. On smaller amps, however, you might not be able to get the full effect of the bass simply because of their size. But, no matter how you like it, be sure to see how the bass and treble can work with one another to create your ideal sound.

    • EQ / Filter / Tone/ Contour They're called by different names on various amps, but they all do the basically the same thing: adjust all of your basic settings (e.g., treble, mids, and bass) with one knob. If you want to find out what the maker of your amp considers "correct" settings, play with these knobs to hear how your treble, mids, and bass all can work together for radically differing results.

  • If you've got a valve (tube) amp, be sure to:

    • always replace the whole set when even just one tube blows

    • never move your amp while it's still hot

    • be extra careful that you line up he pins in each tube perfectly with their corresponding holes on the amp

  • To make sure you keep your amp in top condition, be sure to:

    • keep your amp in a dry location

    • always use the best quality leads (guitar, speaker, microphone, and effects)

    • always have your amp serviced by a capable technician

    In the end, you have to know this one rule of amps: there is no right or wrong way to set it up. If you like what you hear, you've done a great job. If you don't like what you hear, remember the settings and the sound and don't dial those in again. Experiment, experiment, experiment and have fun!

    Jon Butt is the publisher of Musical Instruments Guide , a free resource dedicated to all things musical. From electric guitars to drum sets, tubas to bagpipes, and every musical accessory in-between, the Musical Instruments Guide is packed full of informative articles, find top-rated musical instruments and online merchants

    In The News:

    pen paper and inkwell


    cat break through


    History of the Clarinet From the 19th Century

    While composers had already begun to write music for the... Read More

    Acoustic Or Electronic Drums - What Is Your Choice?

    A debate rages on in the drumming world! You might... Read More

    Buying a Violin

    "How do I buy a violin, (or fiddle)?"That question has... Read More

    CD Mastering using Har-Bal

    Feel free to download the entire manual detailing the mastering... Read More

    Play Piano As Fast As Possible!

    One of the rules of practicing we all hear over... Read More

    Musicians: What Chords Do You Absolutely, Positively Have To Know?

    As you probably know, there are thousands and thousands of... Read More

    The Various Countries - A Rant About Country Music

    It is no secret that over the past couple decades... Read More

    3 Quick & Easy Steps To Playing Music by Ear

    Playing by ear is the ability to play a piece... Read More

    Creating Stark Atmospheres

    One of the things New Age pianist George Winston is... Read More

    How to Create a Multi-artistic Piece - Part II

    In the last article, the creation of a theme, its... Read More

    ?Who Else Wants to Get Screwed When Signing a Recording or Songwriting Deal?!?!?

    You've got your recording (or songwriting) contract in hand and... Read More

    Ibanez SR400 Bass Guitar

    The Ibanez SR400 bass guitar is very comfortable to play.... Read More

    How to Create Hip, Mature, and Lush Harmonies [correction]

    Rarely is a chord played with its tones contained in... Read More

    Flaming Guitars! Minarik Fuels The Excitement of a New Generation of Musicians

    From the Telecaster to the Flying V to the Iceman... Read More

    Music For Self Improvement

    Would you like to pop in a CD and have... Read More

    Jazzing Up Your Leadership Style

    I met New York jazzman Tim Armacost in college almost... Read More

    Learning How To Improvise

    Those of you who have been reading my articles for... Read More

    If Seals Can Sing, Why Cant You?

    It sounds like a side show, doesn't it? It does... Read More

    Just 3 Chords? No Way!

    A student wrote me an email about the lesson "Ocean... Read More

    Memorizing Music - How Is It Best Achieved?

    When memorizing music there are several things you can do... Read More

    How To Make a Fortune Teaching Piano (or Guitar, or Drums, or Singing, or?) To Beginners

    "But I'm not in it for the money" you say.Me... Read More

    Where To Download Music On The Internet

    Virtually all of you have probably heard of the RIAA's... Read More

    Guitar Practice (Part 2) - Does Practice Make Perfect?

    You've probably heard the saying "practice makes perfect" and it... Read More

    Micheal Jackson

    I bet your wondering all about the Micheal Jackson Trail.... Read More

    Make Money with Your Music ? the Top 5 Ways

    Songwriters dream of making their living by writing, and sometimes... Read More

    How to Improvise Using a Few Chords

    When a painter is getting ready to paint, a color... Read More

    Name That Tune - Tips For When You Can?t Remember The Song Title Or Artist

    For years, you have been searching for a song lodged... Read More

    Why Play Guitar?

    As a full-time guitar instructor, I am constantly faced with... Read More

    How to Be in the Moment when Playing Piano

    Your best music will always come when you are in... Read More

    The Dos and Donts of Getting Your Child to Love Learning an Instrument

    We all know that music can be inspiring, entertaining, and... Read More

    How to Stop Thinking and Start Playing

    Learning how to improvise is confusing for most. The sheer... Read More

    How To Play The Violin

    This article gives the essential basics for how to play... Read More

    Creating Your Own Compositions

    The idea of actually creating a complete piece of music... Read More