paypal.me/JimLill Thanks, and see you again soon. -Jim

@kazzxtrismus

Жыл бұрын

1.someone please make a product/software so that my tone outta my amp will sound like the recording 2. so youre telling me its impossible for me... to sound like the album... but its me , in my living room..... but thats all i wanted!! 😭😭😭😭😭

@ectoplasma5

Жыл бұрын

But how does it sound in your room ?

@DustinHaggerty-lj1ix

Жыл бұрын

What's your website again, bro? You should put it in this comment. Cause I was to dumb to look at the video description 😅

@Sokko13

Жыл бұрын

done. thanks again for your work and insights!

@darkcranny3851

Жыл бұрын

How do you feel about HAVING gear you like, even though you know it's far from necessary to sound good? It seems like you've got a good deal of it still. I do too, but it's because it's fun for me and I enjoy it. But I admit it's not necessary.

I love how you have created a goldmine of fantastic guitar youtube content by doing 1 simple thing no one has ever thought to do in the history of guitar youtube: Apply critical thinking skills.

@j_c_93

Жыл бұрын

The average guitar KZreadr basically just makes infomercials, so they can't make videos like this, because they wouldn't be able to make bold claims about the new overdrive of the week or whatever.

@CobyBassett

Жыл бұрын

Very well stated, thanks!

@lucasgoncalvesdefaria7121

Жыл бұрын

There's also the humongous fuckton of work that may put of some ppl

@neilmacmusic

Жыл бұрын

and humour too

@idiotburns

Жыл бұрын

except with a massive amount of oversight, but that said I did all that A B testing in the early 2000s and the youtube videos just confirm what people knew for decades

The real journey is the tones we made along the way.

@user-ri3gh6yb5k

Ай бұрын

Style dictates sound and there are dozens of valid guitar tones

@henryjoseph3584

Ай бұрын

You and I watch a lot of similar things

@InvestmentJoy

Ай бұрын

@@henryjoseph3584 engineering, physics and guitar videos?

As both a musician and a practicing audiologist of 13 years, I can confirm that your interpretation of auditory physiology is tight. And this series is amazing.

Great video. Live sound engineer here. I would argue that during a live performance the volume of the amp DOES matter. And this is especially true of small room. The reason is, if an amp is too loud on stage, the mix engineer will turn the volume DOWN in the PA. This will then make your guitar sound SMALLER in the mix. It's counter-intuitive. But sometimes you gotta turn your amp down if you want to sound bigger and with better tone!

@GlennJimenez

7 ай бұрын

So how loud should it be really??? Do we usually set them too loud?

@benreavesmusic

7 ай бұрын

@@GlennJimenez In my experience, I could say yes, but it's really a much more complex subject. What Jake is talking about is stage volume vs. PA balance, in which case the level of the amp and proximity to the audience can significantly impact how much level in the PA it takes to balance, which then affects **where** and what **tone** people will hear from you. This tends to be much less a problem on big stages, or where the amps can be separated from the stage (and then the musicians rely on monitoring solutions to hear the tone the amp and mics create), BUT on small stages and indeed in smaller rooms, if the amp is loud enough to compete with wedges or front fills, it will significantly impact the engineer's decisions regarding balance, and leave the things the audiences hears to chance (where the amp is, where it faces, its direct tonal characteristics, **how many people are in front of a particular listener,** etc.), rather than a well-tuned and neutral PA delivering a consistent tone. The other side of this, and what makes it complex, is that a lot of amps, particularly ones guitarists Really Into Amp Tone really like to use, get the **tone** the performer wants at a level that inherently is too loud to balance in smaller rooms. For that very reason I tend to advocate for guitarists in smaller circuits or even on intermediate stages to use smaller amps, combos, power soaks, or--heaven forbid!--*modelers* in order to sound their best and be happy with stage level, and also maintain their hearing a bit longer. Most people just don't seem to want to do that, but every time I mix someone that brings modelers or small combos seems to be blown away by how clear the stage is to hear, and how many compliments they get for their sound that night. Generally the opposite is true for people that run the amps too loud, but at the same time I can usually easily hear that the amps are set up to get a specific tone that way, and turning them down will just ruin the tone, while the tone itself is too loud before hitting a mic, and I will not be able to deliver anything consistent to the audience at that level. So yes, I would say a ton of people set their amps too loud on stage, and I would advocate people not do that, but the moment it starts to affect the intended result from the amp/tone, there's not a lot you can do besides re-evaluate what equipment you're using and whether it's actually suitable for the venues you're playing in.

@MartinMCade

14 күн бұрын

@@benreavesmusic I downsized my bass rig years ago to just a pedalboard with a tuner, a compressor, and a Tech 21 modeler. If I trusted the PA and the sound engineer, that was all it took. Sometimes I had to bring a power amp and speakers for larger outdoor gigs. I love the sound of a good guitar amp, and I probably always will, but once it gets mixed with a band, a lot of the nuance is going to be lost anyway. I'd rather have enough stage volume to hear myself, and let other band members hear what they need - through monitors or my amp - and let the engineer make it sound good for the audience. (I suspect that a lot of classic guitar tones sound good because they are equalized to not conflict with other sounds, so the recording as a whole sounds good, not just the guitar.)

@toddetter2207

11 күн бұрын

Fellow soundman here. Trying to turn down a guitarist in the mix when his stage volume is already swamping the mix is a soundman's worst nightmare. It's the primary cause of "I can't hear the vocals" complaint although most guitarists prefer to blame the drummer. Plus as you know, guitar amps are highly directional. For this reason, I always use headphones, never trust just the room unless I can move around to check center and sides, and I always tell the guitarist if he doesn't want to be cheated in the mix, never aim his cab at his soundman. Aim it at his bandmates not the audience. But that assumes he'll trust his soundman which he never does.

I love how you politely, methodically, scientifically and patiently bust guitar-related myths in such a thorough manner. Excellent work, many thanks!

@knoopx

Жыл бұрын

there's so much bullshit and brainwashed people in every indrustry... i just don't trust anything anymore and go straight into the rabbit hole everytime i'm dissatisfied with something... xD

@RickMcCargar

Ай бұрын

Ever hear SRV live in a club? Not monitors..his amps...pumping...live..pointed at the crowd.

@Marta1Buck

24 күн бұрын

Most people don't, does that make you feel better? ​@@RickMcCargar

Jim, I have been an Electrical Engineer for 40+ years and a guitar player for 50 years. All I can tell you is that you are asking all the right questions which makes you one smart person. Thank you for putting in all this hard work in your pursuit of answers. It is paying off... 👍👍

@leathernluv

Жыл бұрын

I have long believed that if you ask a better question, you get a better answer.

@ryanh7167

Жыл бұрын

I've always wondered why people who obsess over guitar tone don't just take their samples and make a magnitude response graph with different variables. That'd clear it up nice and quickly whether or not that recording had any meaningful difference and actually would place it in a specific band too (subject to quantization effects and filtering to keep Nyquist's ghost happy and potentially compression and all the DSP qualifiers to keep the other engineers happy).

@ryanh7167

Жыл бұрын

@Guitarzen this is a bit of an odd thing to object to because I'm sure you know that those line outs are using cab simulation via impulse responses. Those impulse responses are created via mic'ing the cabinet through a wide frequency response sweep.

@bobbrossify

Жыл бұрын

What does you being an electrical engineer have anything to do with it? I’m a software engineer, I’ve been an electrical engineer in my life, I have degrees in physics and electrical engineering with minors in computer science and mathematics if we’re just here to brag about ourselves.

@ryanh7167

Жыл бұрын

@@bobbrossify you understand that frequency domain analysis tools like impulse responses came from electrical engineering and electrical communication systems/control systems right? It's not just bragging about a random degree, electrical engineering in the world of signal processing is directly *the* engineering field that is the most relevant to the concept of acoustic/electric frequency responses and the processing of those signals.

Funnily enough, one of my favorite guitar tones came from a local band at a small venue where the amps weren’t mic’ed. Shoegaze goodness through a Fender Jaguar and two stereo Princetons. That tone still haunts me.

@rickbiessman6084

10 ай бұрын

Dude, even though I wasn’t there I can 100% relate. Hearing something in person is just a totally different experience than hearing something on a stereo system.

@padywac1970

9 ай бұрын

You were standing in a sweet spot.

@haydenquakenbush8626

7 ай бұрын

@@robwhitesays only if you want %20 of the crowd (if you're lucky) to hear everyone in the band in the mix as desired.

@noszfeuhlwurdin7715

3 ай бұрын

Yes, the recorded tone might be the only thing that matters in recordings, but not all music is recorded or played in venues where the amps are mic'ed. I've seen a doom metal band with 6 blazing 70s half stacks without microphones. I understand that that in-the-room sound can't be recorded to sound exactly like I heard it, but it was awesome to behold. Also, our rehearsals and most shows we play (blues/pub rock) are without mic'ed amps. I wish I could get a better approximation of that sound at home with amps sims and headphones.

@josuastangl7140

7 күн бұрын

@@noszfeuhlwurdin7715 Unfortunately, amp sims can, like any recording, only be modelled through microphones and preamps. Therefore it is impossible to closely replicate an "amp in the room" sound digitally. Another factor is also simply the volume that makes you feel the lower frequencies in your stomach, which you can't replicate with headphones.

That fact based ear science master stroke of a mic drop on your "KZread compression" friend at 7:18 - 8:50 👌👨‍🍳...chef's kiss...RIP your friend

Dude that Binary Sunset / Force Theme rendition is absolutely killer. I was already enjoying the video to that point but that earned the sub right there. Awesome job.

@aliensporebomb

Жыл бұрын

I was going to say - if someone said that the individual elements for that would produce an eloquent beautiful rendition of a classic theme I'd say it might be crazy but it really works!

@MrKhen77

Жыл бұрын

Well I'm glad i read the comments, i just found out i was not yet subscribed.. thanks!

@drownthepoor

Жыл бұрын

As a video editor the most striking thing about that rendition to me was the color grading work. Absolutely striking colors, and I assume they were processed to look that way. But the reality is that sometimes the light/camera in that specific place/time can just be captured by that photon sensor & converted into billions of 1's & 0's perfectly. Sometimes it didn't even look that good in real life, but the camera saw it in a more beautiful way. But often it's done later with hours of work sitting in front of a screen.

@rwenoch

Жыл бұрын

Then later in the video, he's discussing the post-production/editing of Star Wars with Kori before she stops writing back 😢

@artemisdarkslayer

Жыл бұрын

Gave me chills when I realized what I was hearing.

You can take things one further, all of your favorite tones came from great musicians. Awesome video man!

@Spuzzmacher

Жыл бұрын

Yeah one thing I always hear from musicians who’ve played with the legends, is how much of their sound is in their fingers & is transposable. If I swap a strat for a Les Paul, my tone goes from sounding like a strat to a tele, but Gilmour does it on the Another Brick solo and he still just sounds like himself, bc what we associate with his “sound” is all the nuance he piles on every note that give them a shared character. I’m too clumsy yet to have a coherent character, so the only thing my notes have in common are the sound of the equipment, which becomes their defining “sound”. I think.

@veganjoy

Жыл бұрын

It’s great to see these videos getting more mainstream attention, would love to see what other big KZreadrs think of the findings!

@hellcat5music

Жыл бұрын

And then AI comes in making beautiful tones for our ears based on biological ear research, and all human created music falls to the wayside. It could go that way. We could create a thing that creates better music than we could. Does that mean the music is less human if we create the creator?

@kristopherk5454

Жыл бұрын

And the context of the mix!

@teleplus97

Жыл бұрын

@@michiellombaers3198 "pretty good", that was a good one!

I did a big research topic for uni last year on 60s recording and production techniques. It completely changed the way I judged guitar tone. There are so many variables that it’s practically impossible to recreate the sound you hear in a recording. But so much of what we do when chasing tone ignores the fact that once a signal has been captured, it can be completely transformed. I think a large majority of the sounds we hear come from what happens in production, from the outboard processors the signal goes through, to the desk used. There is so much there that I never used to experiment with when chasing that perfect tone.

@scottashe984

5 сағат бұрын

It's not impossible. It's easy if you use what's been available in the last 10 years.

Jim has done more for the understanding of guitar tone than anyone else ever as far as I’m concerned. I was recording a guitar part the other day and the in the room sound had to be terrible so it sounded good on the recording, the mic was boosting the bass and cutting the treble quite a lot and so I had to compensate by changing the amp settings dramatically.

@MovieMomentsReviewFilm

8 ай бұрын

i have the same experience bro, my amp setup for recording is really ridiculous for example i have to set the middle at 2, and treble 3, bass 8 .. it sound terrible when i heard it in front of the amp, but sounds good after mic capture it . maybe it's my bad micing technique or my crappy mic preamp 🙁

@dutchdykefinger

7 ай бұрын

@@MovieMomentsReviewFilm are you micing the center of the speaker? generally the more you move to the outside of the woofer ring, it gets bassier, for highs you want them dead center very minute adjustments in height can make a world of difference if you're close micing too of course gain matters too, giving it less gain will make it more tinny. when you have your amp on the floor you miss out on a lot of the highs of the room sound when compared to when you have it a bit up higher, so that can change perception between room and miced a a lot too

@hedekbass

7 ай бұрын

Exactly. And then add to the equation how your instrument "sits in the mix." Once you add drums, bass or whatever, the best tone/setting for your guitar may be yet another one entirely than the recorded one you thought sounded best. Listening to isolated tracks from my favorite recordings is always such an eye... or ear opener how underwhelming the bass or guitar sound on their own.

This topic is the manifestations of "I don't need sleep, I need answers" and I love every second of it. I admire the amount of work you put into this.

You're the hero the guitar community didn't want, but the hero we so desperately need.

@ichbrauchmehrkaffee5785

Жыл бұрын

You mean "He's not the hero we deserve, but the one we need" ? XD

@ToneDeth.

Жыл бұрын

@@ichbrauchmehrkaffee5785 yes thank you. You know the one with the thing!! The thing! That one!

Thank you for this series, Jim!

You're doing something right. I like your approach to these things. Logical and BS free

As an audio engineer I've been trying to explain this to guitarists for years. Some, are really hesitant to listen. (Hmmm... there may be a pattern here.) If you aren't touring with your own stage, mics, engineers, or if you're playing in different sized venues - then your tone is most likely different to most of the audience every night. Decades ago I was advocating for doghouses to go to mix. Some of the guitarists I worked with chose to unplug their cabinets and use the doghouse sound to their wedges so they could play into the tone. Nowadays so many modelers are so good and modern P.A.s can achieved outstanding fidelity in a variety of rooms that one can almost guarantee the same tone every night for the performer, the band mates, the monitor engineer, and the audience. You are going to different towns for the sole purpose of letting people judge for themselves if they like your style. Why take a chance in misrepresenting your art form?

@mcpribs

Жыл бұрын

This is why I switched to the stomp a few years ago, and haven’t looked back. My vintage amps sit in the basement. Largely unplayed.

@Eric-dd8bk

10 ай бұрын

Thank you. Amp snobs are just brain dead and ignorant They think their 2 thousand dollar amp is so good and that's what they audiences hear but it's almost never the case. Their tone that their audiences hear is ganna be different from place to another, from a sound guy to another, from a microphone to another, and so on. That's why I love modelers, Helix for me, because I have all the control over what my audience hears as long as I go direct into the FHO and tell the sound guy to not tweak my signal unless it's too harsh or too doll. \

@Twongo

10 ай бұрын

@@Eric-dd8bk "Amp snobs are just brain dead and ignorant" I couldn't disagree more. Many amp snobs can hear things in instrument tones that the rest of us might never learn to hear. Not only that, but those same people know exactly how to get what's good and remove the bad from those instruments and amps. If you think about it, darn near all of the modelling industry is focused around recreating those same tones. The question is pick off points, and what goes to whom. "Helix for me, because I have all the control over what my audience hears" - What are ya! An amp snob? (Just hacking on ya! ;p )

@Eric-dd8bk

10 ай бұрын

@@Twongo I don't think you know what I mean by amp snobs. I don't mean anyone and everyone who uses real tube amps. I mean the guys that think digital modlers suck because they don't sound anything like the real amp alone in a room and they insult modeler users. Plus, modelers aren't mimicing tube amp alone in a room tone. They are modeling miked up amp tone, which do not sound anything like an amp alone in a room in the first place, so yes it's safe to say that they are ignorant of this basic fact thus brain dead.

@sword-and-shield

9 ай бұрын

Why? well one may choose to change it across different shows purposely, because one may have many "tones" they like. Leaving the crowd knowing the next show, or the one they didn't see might have been a different "art form" just maybe part of the artist's game plan.

The amount of work that must go into making these videos from idea stage to upload stage is astounding to think about. This is like a mini documentary. So entertaining. Well done and thanks to you Jim!

@Petrvsco

Жыл бұрын

The amount of work Jim put in making and DOCUMENTING his work so carefully is worth a graduate degree in music. The editing of the videos and the straightforward way of delivering his ideas (without hesitation or fillers) is a masterclass of communication. These videos are top quality from any angle. Pure genius.

I'm still amazed by the sheer dedication. Please never stop making videos like this.

I love this so much. Thank you, Jim!

you are to music what Moneyball was to Baseball

@TheMorningDew367

Жыл бұрын

This is so spot on

@limpneckmike

Жыл бұрын

You could not have phrased this better

@NiallEveritt

Жыл бұрын

This comment wins 🥇

@Tony-Jabroni

Жыл бұрын

Moneyball ruined baseball

@NiallEveritt

Жыл бұрын

@@Tony-Jabroni 😂

I think one of the biggest influences on how I hear guitar tone is my mood. When I feel good inside, what I hear from my guitar sounds good. When I'm stressed out or unhappy, things sound different to me...not always bad, but different. As always, brilliant, thought provoking stuff from Jim.

@MidlifeRenaissanceMan

Жыл бұрын

It’s funny what you said about mood I have a bunch of mates I get together with in an outfit I have dubbed _The 5 Man Drinking Band_ While It’s a casual hobby thing for them, they write some great tunes….that will never go anywhere…but it’s fun The other guitarist will screw around trying to get his sound from his Les Paul, Marshall amp and a selection of pedals. Never happy. I’ll let him go for a bit, then I say, hang on a minute. Let me try something. He hands me his guitar, I’ll turn off all the pedals, dime the guitar pots, go to the amp and get the breakup happening at an appropriate volume. Balance the tone controls on the amp to tame the Marshall nasty edge from the GT12/75s, then go and balance the overdrives on the board for single note work. Add a little bit of amp spring for the sparkle, then I let rip and play some chunky chords, clean it up and let it jangle, pull some thick neck pickup lead, flick it over to the bridge, hit the wah, and milk it for all the “tone” I can. Then hand the guitar back to him. He always thanks me, and points out the two obvious things…He says _“It’s all in the hands. You seem to have the knack of getting good tone out of anything, and yeah, my amp sounds better because you played through it”_ I’m not anything special on guitar, I just play each note with commitment….and I have 50 years of fiddling with electronics, since I was a kid, so I understand what’s going on between the strings and the speaker cones.

@metriffs

Жыл бұрын

Totally agreed. So much psychology behind it.

@BigDaddyWes

Жыл бұрын

It's almost like art is subjective or something. Crazy.

Very informative. Thank U!

7:45 to 8:25 was gold man. I loved the way the guitar in the background accented the frenzy of the nomenclature, getting wonky as it went along. Also the video editing was superb.

Few minutes into this and I'm fully convinced that Jim is well on his way from graduated from a guitar player to an audio engineer.

@BigDaddyWes

Жыл бұрын

Can confirm. He's an audio engineer with a guitar in his hands, not a guitar player.

@oooomz7578

Жыл бұрын

That's why his videos are so refreshing! If all tone chasing guitarists thought more like audio engineers, most of the tone pseudoscience and baseless claims all over KZread and the forums would disappear instantly and that side of guitar discussion would sound a lot less mystical and crazy

@jamesedwards4590

Жыл бұрын

@@oooomz7578as evidenced by comments on videos like these, and all around social media, you have to remember that most audio engineers don’t know much more than you or I regarding what sounds subjectively good to different people in different places and at different times. While they probably know quite a bit more about how to replicate that sound consistently, and how to get it to translate ontorecorded media, actually achieving “tone”, literally anyone can do it. This video and many others he’s done prove it over and over. I’ve seen guys with degrees from full sail and years in the industry playing live, when you hear their signal isolated, it sounds like crap. And conversely, I’ve run across people who never really played in a full band, setting, or never did so professionally, and they have beautiful tone.

@RelicOnMaui

8 ай бұрын

@@BigDaddyWes Those, I stay way from, unless they only capture what I'm putting out, instead of the other way around. Who's recording WHAT? I'm not there so an engineer can record HIS art, unless... we are at least on the same page - age old conflict, artist vs producer? BUT, in any field there are those with more experience at what you're attempting to do, important to listen to

It's amazing. I have spent 30 years and untold dollars chasing tone IN THE ROOM. It goes to show how vital it is to work with a great engineer and producer who can hear what the artist is "going for" and get that into an audience's ears. And the diff between recorded and live? It's like a whole different language. Please keep making these videos. They are, as Uncle Larry would say, "nutritious."

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

You comment reminds me of Keith Richards and Chuck Berry getting into a heated argument, when Keith changed Chuck's amp settings. Chuck wouldn't listen to the recording engineer, that the sound he was getting (on the recording) was not the best. Keith tried to tell Chuck that this was being recorded, so listen to the engineer, but as far as Chuck was concerned, the sound he was hearing (in the room) was great and "don't touch my fn amp without my permission" (rightly so too). I think Chuck smacked Keith in the mouth over this too.

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

You comment reminds me of Keith Richards and Chuck Berry getting into a heated argument, when Keith changed Chuck's amp settings. Chuck wouldn't listen to the recording engineer, that the sound he was getting (on the recording) was not the best. Keith tried to tell Chuck that this was being recorded, so listen to the engineer, but as far as Chuck was concerned, the sound he was hearing (in the room) was great and "don't touch my fn amp without my permission" (rightly so too). I think Chuck smacked Keith in the mouth over this too.

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

You comment reminds me of Keith Richards and Chuck Berry getting into a heated argument, when Keith changed Chuck's amp settings. Chuck wouldn't listen to the recording engineer, that the sound he was getting (on the recording) was not the best. Keith tried to tell Chuck that this was being recorded, so listen to the engineer, but as far as Chuck was concerned, the sound he was hearing (in the room) was great and "don't touch my fn amp without my permission" (rightly so too). I think Chuck smacked Keith in the mouth over this too.

@kungstu22

Жыл бұрын

@@castleanthrax1833 Was that in Hail Hail Rock n Roll? I kinda remember that, or something like that.

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

@@kungstu22 Yes it was. I couldn't remember the name of it, but you are absolutely correct.

Brilliantly put together and incredibly insightful, thank you.

Great as always. Loved the SW ending.

imma need a full version of that binary sunset cover that happened in the beginning. That shit was beautiful.

@Grunttamer

Жыл бұрын

I kept thinking "man this country bit sounds a lot like star wars" lol. I feel so vindicated.

This video is amazing. It’s like hearing someone else tell you the thing that you already know in a way that you finally listen. Less down chasing, more practicing.

This is one of the most impressive videos I’ve seen on KZread. Keep it up man!

This is in part why I switched to modeling amps. I practice with headphones in order to hear what tone gets sent to the board via direct out. When live I basically think of the amp speaker as a monitor. This cuts out so many variables. Modeling amps have made such strides recently too. I have a Fender GTX100 and love it. My old tube amps sit at home gathering dust. Oh, the other reasons are that they are light and super simple to set up. I can easily carry all my gear with one trip.

I don't know if you realize this but you are becoming THE prominent voice on guitar tone. Like, THE guy. And it is totally deserved. You do the work to figure it out from the ground up and I appreciate it. Thank you for the work you've done into this subject. Guitar tone has been a mystical art for a long time. But we live in an age where it can be algorithmically modeled and reproduced and understanding why we want what we want and what we really want are questions other people aren't asking let alone answering. You help each of us ask these questions and find and answer for ourselves and how yo get there.

@ramiolsen

Жыл бұрын

Couldn't agree more, this guy's a living legend!

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I kind of agree with you, but at the end of the day this "tone quest" is ultimately a search for something that only exists in our heads. Since we all like different things, and all hear different things (even if listening to the same thing) I can't help but think "this all makes for great KZread videos, but doesn't actually accomplish anything". ✌️

@paulw.3967

Жыл бұрын

@@castleanthrax1833 It accomplishes a lot, debunking specific myths that a lot of guitarists actually believe, which cost them thousands of dollars chasing tone in utterly ineffective ways.

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

@@paulw.3967 Maybe yes, maybe no. His results are certainly valid, but most are inconclusive. All they prove, is that in the circumstances he used, and using the parameters in the video, he achieved "x" results. I wouldn't say he actually debunks anything. Because there are so many variables involved, all he can actually say is "this is what I achieved, using the equipment I have".

@Old-Skull.

Жыл бұрын

Mystical art ?

Even after the sound is recorded there are still many things that "influence" the sound including, the equipment being used to play the recording back, the room you are listening in, your hearing quality and of course your appraisal of the given tone. One tone can only be "better" than another when in direct comparison. Like you said Jim, your memory for tone is a very unreliable source. I am enjoying your journey to discover what a "good" tone is. Thank you Jim.

@thecrazything95

Жыл бұрын

Not to mention every other instrument affects how the guitar sounds in relation to them.

@kane6529

Жыл бұрын

@@thecrazything95 yep sometimes isolated guitar or bass sounds like booty cheeks on it’s own but great in a mix

@TakeHit0

Жыл бұрын

I always thought the room sound comes from the cabinet

@stutty1400

Жыл бұрын

@@TakeHit0 more from the reflections of the structure, the furniture etc. within the room and of course the people in the room. The reverb of a room will differ hugely with the amount of people in it.

@castleanthrax1833

Жыл бұрын

​@@TakeHit0 I don't think there is any literal "sound in the room", because it will change depending upon where your ears are "in the room". It also changes if you move something (or someone) in the room.

True about using microphones on guitar speakers and in live situations. The more important function however is that all the famous guitar tones you hear were not only microphoned and preamped, but tweaked, mixed, and mastered. Then it has to be played back to your ears in the analog world. There are changes at every point and since we all have different ears, physically and mentally, technically no two people will ear the exact same thing anyway!

I love watching Jim’s videos. They’re real! Thx Jim.

This man is one of the greatest gifs to guitar-based music ever. Dude is just making tons of much needed paradigm shifts

I'm an audio engineer and while i agree with most of what you said, i do believe the "in the room" sound matters, because it is the first building block of the eventual sound if you do decide to record it. It is the sketch before the paint. Further i dont think ive ever had more of an impactful experience with music than playing by myself or with a band, and feeling the sound in that room. But yes half the magic you hear in music is in the production.

@paulw.3967

Жыл бұрын

One of the things that's interesting about the sound "in the room" is that a lot of amp cabs have "terrible" comb fltering in the high frequencies, due to multiple identical drivers horizontally arrayed, and floor bounce due to the cab sitting on the floor, with the reflected souind off the floor in front of the cabinet interfering with the direct sound from the driver(s). By hi-fi speaker standards those things are pretty terrible (they're the reasons most hi fi speakers have only one driver for each frequency band, and only the woofer or subwoofer is near the floor). This makes me wonder if guitarists actually LIKE "terrible" speaker design, where comb filtering adds desirable spatial "complexity" to the high frequencies of the sound "in the room," etc. As far as what goes on recordings, though, close miking of one driver usually minimizes these effects; the mic being close to one driver reduces interference effects from other drivers at the higher frequencies where the comb filtering matters most. (At low frequencies, with wavelengths longer than the spacing between speakers, multiple drivers and their reflections off the floor presumably behave more like one big driver.)

@jimhoman4415

Жыл бұрын

@@paulw.3967 So you can ONLY get "good" sounds from a guitar with one speaker? You're being too black and white about it. SRV used multiple amps with multiple numbers of speakers, He seemed to do OK. No one is playing in an anechoic chamber. Have you ever played guitar or any instrument in a completely dead room? IT sounds terrible and is not rewarding to play in. Is a 4x12 cabinet ideal for a hifi listening experience, no but it's not meant to be. People who like 4x12 cabinets like them because they like the results of the "flaws".

@user-fb2jb3gz1d

Жыл бұрын

People confuse "in the room sound" with "your setup". Everyone has a sound, and that's the sound "in the room". You take the time to get a sound you like and once you are ok with it........that's the sound you take to practice, to the gig, to the studio and in your bedroom

@user-fb2jb3gz1d

Жыл бұрын

People confuse "in the room sound" with "your setup". Everyone has a sound, and that's the sound "in the room". You take the time to get a sound you like and once you are ok with it........that's the sound you take to practice, to the gig, to the studio and in your bedroom

@ntm112294

11 ай бұрын

Record the same chain in different rooms and see if you can tell the difference

Fantastic! Thank you.

Jim! Amazing video. Thank you for your hard work.

Love your homage to the Luke Skywalker binary sunset scene. Gets me right here ❤ but also kinda funny because of the context 😅

@billymurphy3

Жыл бұрын

Jim Twangwalker

@rockumk

Жыл бұрын

I had to go back and hear it again to make sure it wasn't my imagination. 😆

@mattnieri1202

Жыл бұрын

​@@rockumk me too 😆

I am in awe of how this kind of combines all of your previous "did the work" videos and really gets to the holistic nature of how our experience of the music we hear actually comes about. Absolutely wonderful stuff, and I'm sure I'll be coming back to this one again and again. Keep doing the work, we're all the better for it.

@216trixie

Жыл бұрын

Except this was not done in a room. There were no walls floor or ceiling to reflect the sound.

Exactly what I needed to hear, thank you

Fantastic video and great work with the actual science of sound!

Finally. The secret has been let out. We go direct. All instruments including digital drums. In ear monitors. This is what we call live music! I've been running sound this way for 10 years.

@teddy3k3

Жыл бұрын

​@@6079smithw-ce1xdI think OP was joking. Also, with no PA, how do you hear the singer? Lol

@neilpatrickhairless

Ай бұрын

Who needs to hear the singer?

Jim, dude, you're unbelievable. I'm just a dude in a middle of Russia, and every video you do is a meticulous research on a very specific topic that builds up to a puzzle of my job as a guitar technician. Thanks for all the work, and all the vibes. Much respect, Nikita

@user-rv5di3gt2x

Жыл бұрын

Какой город?

👏👏👏 Thank for your hard work on making this awesome video🎸🎸

Great video and loved the subtle Star Wars in the background you put in :)

"My favorite guitar tones aren't objects I've read about, they're sounds I've heard." Jim, man, this might be my favorite video you've done yet. 1) I wanna show appreciation for your different perspective as a country musician, because most guitar tone and gear people on KZread are metal and rock-oriented. 2) You're saying what I've been thinking for a while: there's so much that goes into a guitar tone chain that even with all the right equipment, you still might not get to where you want to be. But there's no magic to it: recorded sounds are tangible, real-world things and can be re-created. "Feel" is irrelevant because it's either placebo or not felt by the listener because they're not the one playing. You just gotta know what matters. When I record my own stuff, I hear a sound in the room and I try to match what I hear coming out of the recording with what I heard in the room. But, like you said, our memory can be unreliable, and by the time we've made adjustments to our setup, we've lost our mental frame of reference. So if it sounds good on the recording, that's what matters because that's what everyone else will hear. Thanks so much for making these videos and putting all this research and knowledge out there as a public service. Also, good job with the country Star Wars music in the background.

The first tone that blew me away was Peter Frampton using the voice box on his live album. The second was the lead guitar on the Boston album.

@ivorytower5847

Жыл бұрын

Tom Scholz's Rockman amp sounds pretty damn close to the album.

@herecomesaregular8418

Жыл бұрын

@@ivorytower5847 Maybe with a little less beef, but yeah he more or less managed get that absolutely cranked Plexi sound into a little box. But I also think Tom Sholz is the perfect example of what this dude's video is about, because if there was anyone who knew studio magic it was Tom. I was actually thinking specifically about that Boston self-titled debut while watching this, because that tone was also the moment "kid me" fell in love with the guitar...cue years of fruitlessly searching for it until I learned the dual lesson of "it's the player themselves" plus "it ain't just his gear, it's everything else going on in that studio, starting with the mics and mic placement".

@TheWayneReport

Жыл бұрын

Nailed it Jim! Great video….as always

@jamesgardner2101

2 ай бұрын

Frank Zappa - Sexual Harassment in the Workplace. When I was 9 or 10, I read an interview in a guitar magazine about Jeff Beck, and how you could tell it was him from hearing one note. I got an idea what Beck should sound like (I was actually listening to a lot of Yardbirds at the time, LOL). Years later I heard what I had imagined what Jeff Beck should sound like, and it was Frank.

Uncommonly well done video, young man. Brilliant.

This video is amazing, man. Really eye openning!

Most modern guitar tones were also EQ'd and compressed by a skilled engineer with good ears, also the pre-amp and board you're mixing through make a huge difference. Also, the track was then mastered by a skilled mastering engineer (so more EQ and compression). Mic choice also makes a massive difference and although most people just use a 57, a lot of skilled engineers will blend together multiple mics. So if you want to get good at guitar tone you have to train your ears and get good at engineering.

@tpete096

Жыл бұрын

Also... mic placement

@molochsorcery4357

Жыл бұрын

@@tpete096 And I think guitarists often forget their sound comes out of their cabinet speakers which really affects the overall end result of tone. My Monoprice 15 watt amp sounds killer with the new Celestion I installed VS the factory speaker.

@philfrank5601

Жыл бұрын

This is why guitarists, unless they were EVH (and they weren't), had zero clue and zero interest in the recording process and what it meant for their recorded sound. Or, they had amazing engineers who took care of that aspect, leaving them to play and live the rock star life. Either way, the first thing is to get the tone first, in the real world.

@RossTheSoundGuy

Жыл бұрын

When Jim gets around to pre amps we’ll see unless your saturating them their influence on the sound is a very small percentage.

@paulmdevenney

Жыл бұрын

many "great guitar tones" also sound pretty terrible isolated (part of that same EQing process). Its how they sound in the mix/ensemble that is important

“It ain’t rocket science” man he nailed it. Sometimes we over think it. Very thorough and informative video Thanks!

This video was absolutly amazing. Thanks for this!!!!!!!!!

Excellent work, thank you!

I thought I was a gear head, but after 7:45, it’s like that scene from the Matrix where Neo is talking to the Architect.

The on point explanations and subtle humor in these videos are phenomenal, thank you for focusing on the truth and what matters rather than beating around the bush with tone woods and such

Hell of a video! Well done 👏

This was great! I really enjoyed it!

Wow, just WOW. Literally been chasing that tone for 35 years and never once did I ever think about any of this. Playing live, I always thought my tone came from my amp, the louder the better. Have always hesitated to mic cuz I never thought I could feel it that way. What a whole new thought pattern. Much appreciated 🤘🤘

I worked in studios where we would close mic and then put a room mic about 8’ away and blend them. The distance can be mathematically placed to change the tone with the phase cancellation for the frequency relative to that distance. SRV used an awesome set up with a mic picking up the gtr reflection off a sheet of glass tilted at an angle out in front of the gtr. I love what you do here.

Awesome video! Love it‼️

This video is epic man! Great way of addressing the issue.

This video completely changed my whole perspective of my skill level, I did the same as you, spent years almost decades, buying gear chasing the tone I wanted but never getting it and eventually becoming discouraged, giving up, and selling all but 2 guitars and one Marshall tube amp. You've inspired me to pick up playing again and to look into getting some recording equipment to see what I've been missing all these years. A true heartfelt thank you for making this video!

This guy doesn't release videos all the time, but when he does, it is top tier content.

@swingAE86

Жыл бұрын

Stay curious my friends

Fantastic video! I learned SO MUCH 😄

That IR pack plug was f***ing brilliant 😂

I wanted to take a moment to express my sincere gratitude for your informative videos, Jim. Your ability to clarify complex topics and present them in a clear, concise manner is truly remarkable. I have learned so much from watching your videos, and I feel more confident in my understanding of these subjects as a result.

THIS!!! This is why when I hear someone say "what was it like in the room" I pretty much ignore them. The sound in the room is what can get you inspired and can get you into the right mood/vibe/etc, but every sound you hear in a song has been put through who knows what outboard gear and then mixed, EQ'd, compressed, etc, until they finally hit the sound that you've listened to.

Love the outro Jim

Absolutely Gold video! Thank you Jim for ur Amazing work!!!

Great video Jim! I am an emo/math rock guitar player in a band and do pedal demos online. Even though we are so far apart in genre I found this topic to be insanely interesting and you did such an amazing job making your case. I have always wondered about the so-called "synergy" with your amp and guitar. I like how you labelled it "psychological" because it is true, if my guitar sounds a certain way it will affect my playing. Anyways, thanks for the content!

WOW! As a fellow KZreadr I know what a TON of work looks like and you definitely put the work into this video. Don't get comfy at 127k subs....you wont be very long enough to say so. Subbed

Keepin' it real. Nice one Jim.

thanks for the valuable information

Doing the lords work. Thank you, man!

It took me years to realize I was looking for a tone to come from an amp to fill my desire for a recorded and engineered sound and nobody really ever stopped me to say anything mostly because I think a lot of us didn’t know either at one point or another. Also one of the most important things I’ve learned after playing for 35 years and chasing tone for most of it, is that I’m most of the reason I sometimes hate my sound and also sometimes love it. Our ears change day to day, our mental state changes day to day, and with that, our perception of sound changes also!

Fantastic video!

Very logical approach, much appreciated.

This was as much about guitar tone as the philosophy of music itself. Thank you for bringing us on the journey!!

Jim, this series is astounding. I've been in the music business since 1980 as a 13 year old kid. I've worked with small regional bands to world renowned artists, mainly in live music. At 55 years of age, I'm happy to say your showing and teaching me new things. I've also thought about many of the guitar based questions you have, I learned my major chords at the age of 10, and started mixing monitors and F.O.H. in my late teens. Thank you for this, especially your ability to make me laugh.

This video is one of the best man! I have thought along these lines for years but kept getting all of those people and friends that would say the same things that you pointed out. What you did here is exactly what I have been trying to say but never knew how. Great job on this!

It's about time somebody finally made this video.Thank you so much

You Sir, are a genius. Your entire series is fantastic. Your sight gags and references and memes are spot on. Your production and editing are killing it. Your grasp of reality, and your place in that reality, well founded logically. It is a genuine pleasure to see a new video from you pop up in the feed. Thank You very much for all the work that has gone into producing this series. You have done ALL of us a great service we can't repay, other than with gratitude. Highest Regards for you and Best Wishes for your future!

@Bushprowler

Жыл бұрын

Get a room.

@nathankettle357

Жыл бұрын

Ukraine is going to lose 😢

@hanovergreen4091

Жыл бұрын

@@nathankettle357 You are Russian FSB/GRU Disinformation. Disregard this troll.

Amazing how your videos help busting myths! Psychoacoustics (study of sound perception and audiology) is nothing new. I hope this wonderful work of yours help us guitarists find more joy in what we do through playing, rather than GAS-ing or trying to rely on the equipment too much. Keep on, Jim! ❤

@MadScientistGuitarLab

Жыл бұрын

I recall reading about how loud music causes the brain to misfire in a way that some recreational drugs can do. Chasing that sound in the room could be addictive, so to speak.

a great video and super excellent writing, production and editing

Discovering how you actually sound when properly mic'd is kind of a benchmark experience as a guitarist. Jim you're 100% right, if you don't know how you sound when mic'd and mixed, you don't know how you sound.

FINALLY, someone with influence is saying what I've told other guitarist for many years. Thank you.

Jim, you are becoming the Socrates of the guitar world. I love the logic you apply to "the tone debate." Well done again, sir.

Brilliant work. Subbed!

This is an outstanding video.

The binary sunset callback was amazing! 😂

I cannot thank you enough for these videos. I've been playing guitar since my early teens and I have been recording myself and others over 20 years... I am glad that someone confirms with actual experiments what I have been suspecting since I started in the audio engineering world. People would be impressed about how much psychology involves this field... It's so crazy that you can even "hear" how a compressor/EQ/verb/whatever affects an audio track even if you are moving the knobs of another track by mistake... Thanks for these videos and keep up the great work!

Hendrix, Clapton, Page, all used Germanium in their signal chains... it was a common thread that created an epic sound that people have been trying to recreate for decades ever since... No matter what anybody says, their guitars and amps were heavily modified... Not one of them played through a stock setup...

Great stuff Jim!

What Jim is doing is incredibly important for us, casual guitarists. Thank you very much: I'm visiting your PayPal of course

Coincidentally, the writing and editing "tone" of your videos makes them all the more enjoyable. Another masterpiece! 👍

great work Jim 👏