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Posted by: Kaine Apr 14 2010, 05:42 PM

Hey Guys,

I've had a question for quite a long time and I hope it is okay that I've opened a new topic. I play for like 4 years and I'm kind of unhappy with the overdriven lead-sound of my gear.
I really would like to create that overdriven "singing" sound you hear very often in distorted riffs. At the moment I'm playing a litte Satriani and I miss the high peaks of my distortion. Is there a special way to hit the string if you want to get it? I think it would be a great way to pronounce some notes better but I won't get the tone on purpose. Even when I go max-volume with my amp with an extra distortion pedal I only get bad noises at the end. I hope you know what sound I'm looking for. If not I could add some links of lessens where you hear it.

My gear:
Speaker: 4x12 Stramp Cabinet (not sure of the Watts)
Amp: Peavey Classic 30 Head
Guitar: Gibson Les Paul Standard 2008
Used Effects: Line 6 - M13

Best greetings from Germany!

Eike

Posted by: ZakkWylde Apr 14 2010, 05:54 PM

I am not sure what you mean. Are you missing something from your gears general sound or are you talking about harmonics?

*Bist du mit dem Klang deines Equipments unzufrieden oder willst du nur wissen wie man Obertöne und Pinch Harmonics spielt?*

Posted by: Fran Apr 14 2010, 08:09 PM

Are you referring to artificial harmonics maybe? A high pitch squealing sound? Chck these two lessons, let us know if that's what you mean:

http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/solo-guitar/pinch-harmonics/
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/ls/solo-from-spindles/

Posted by: Bogdan Radovic Apr 14 2010, 08:32 PM

I'm not sure what you mean. If you refer to harmonics Fran gave you nice suggestions. If you miss the top end and brightness in your riffing, try adding a little treble and experimenting with pickup selector positions on guitar.

Posted by: MickeM Apr 14 2010, 10:24 PM

Preamp on 10 for most rock distortion on that amp.
And if I get you right.
Then hit a string with your pick and right after touch it with your thumb. Pick, thump, in the pick motion. Takes some practice to master.

That Peavey only go that far into rock territory. It's a great sounding amp though, teriffic cleans imho. You could always add a distortion pedal to the cleans for more metal-sound.

Posted by: Todd Simpson Apr 14 2010, 11:00 PM

You've got some nice gear If you want to get a bit more distortion to have more cutting tone during leads and hit pinch harmonics a bit easier, you might add some gain/distortion. You can buy a distortion pedal like the ibanez Tube Screamer which is a classic. Or try active pickups, like EMG's, or use a rack mount pre-amp, or a different head. Go to your local music shop and try some pedals and heads and such to see if you can find the tone you are looking for. If you have a PC, you can try some amp modeling software like AMPLITUDE and try out emulations of various amps and fx to see what you might like.

Practice!
Todd

Posted by: Santiago Diaz Garces Apr 15 2010, 07:14 AM

If you can tell us what you mean with "singing", we'll be able to help you

Posted by: Damir Puh Apr 15 2010, 01:45 PM

I think you are referring to the lack of harmonics in your tone... If that's the case: adding more gain isn't the solution, it will just make your tone more compressed and nothing more - try to add more upper midrange frequencies (presence), back off the gain and add an overdrive pedal with the tone knob cranked. In addition, you can angle the pick a bit more, so it hits the string at an angle (almost with the edge), it should help.

I hope I helped you in some way.

Posted by: Kaine Apr 15 2010, 07:35 PM

What a feedback, thank you guys I really could get the answers I've been looking for.
Actually "Pinch Harmonics" was the exact thing I was looking for. The lessons Fran posted really should help me getting further.

Thanks also for the tips on tone ranges and setup.Due to my work I only can play my tube amp and the M13 at the weekends so I'm not that into high distortion... yet.

Thanks and "auf Wiedersehen"

What a feedback, thank you guys I really could get the answers I've been looking for.
Actually "Pinch Harmonics" was the exact thing I was looking for. The lessons Fran posted really should help me getting further.

Thanks also for the tips on tone ranges and setup.Due to my work I only can play my tube amp and the M13 at the weekends so I'm not that into high distortion... yet.

Thanks and "auf Wiedersehen"

Posted by: Ivan Milenkovic Apr 18 2010, 03:18 AM

Glad you got the problem solved and answered! In addition to that, you can get better pinched harmonics if you put more gain and use bridge pickup. Try to use some type of linear volume boost to make additional distortion on your amp, instead of using overdrive pedals. This will make the tone better.