My Axe(that means guitar, posers)

[OMGWTF420]

currently im rocking an LTD viper 100fm, stock ESP pick-ups, bottom heavy Ernie Ball strings...

im thinking about upgrading, the guitar sounds superb especially distorted, the cleans could be better but its definitely manageable. my only complaints are the action isnt that great and i get alot of fret buzz(not sure if this is the guitar, my strings or both, dude at the shop said it was just the guitar and there was nothing i could do about it) any ideas? suggestions? what are you playing?

also i need a new amp. should i go marshall or fender? or what about line 6? i hear those are good for solid state amps. on that note should i go tube or solid state? i play mainly rock/metal fwiw

lets talk about guitars

[gcobb]

I guess it just depends on what sort of tone you're craziest about within 'rock and metal.' For instance, both Dimebag Darrell and Derek Trucks could, at times, be classified as rock guitarists. In my own experience/opinion, nothing out there beats a straight-up pedal-free unmediated instrument-to-amp combination of Gibson's 57 humbuckers and a quality Fender tube amp (be it Blues Junior, Blues Deluxe, Deluxe/Super Reverb) when it comes to clean tone.

That said, my own taste and style and ambitions tend to be way on out to the Derek Trucks end of the tonal spectrum. I'd like to be able to characterize my tone as warm and obese, hence my near-fanatical love for the Gibson guitar/Fender amp combo and comparative loathing for the pseudo-soulful thinness of your average Strat player's sound (Stevie Ray being a crucial exception, but only b/c he played with such monstrously thick strings that he ended up with a Gibsonian tone).

I know next to nothing about what sort of hardware would be good for a metal player (and your options would probably depend a lot on how much you play rhythm v. lead (if you're in a band or something)), but my gut tells me one would always be better off going with quality over gimmicky hardware (i.e. get the best tone possible first, then figure out how/whether to add certain effects). Though, as always, the one absolutely most inflexible and foolproof way to improve your sound is to improve your fingers. To practice.

[gcobb]

I play a Gibson SG standard, BTW, which I understand to have certain at least aesthetic things in common w/ the Viper. If you like the light weight, one-piece-of-woodedness-that's-perfect-for-playing-slide, and unparalleled high-fret access of the Viper, the SG might suit you.

[OMGWTF420]

Originally Posted by gcobb [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I play a Gibson SG standard, BTW, which I understand to have certain at least aesthetic things in common w/ the Viper. If you like the light weight, one-piece-of-woodedness-that's-perfect-for-playing-slide, and unparalleled high-fret access of the Viper, the SG might suit you.

ya gibson SG's have always caught my eye, they are just a very aesthetically pleasing guitar. thats what turned me on to the viper was that it had that sg look. however ive also been looking at alot of jackson's, i played some jackson flying v(cant remember the exact model) in a pawn shop a few months ago and i fell in love, the action was sooooo smooth, the main problem i seem to be having is the guitars that sound good distorted and down-tuned often sound like shit when you try to play the cleaner sounds. i play everything from lamb of god to pearl jam so i need something that can hang with both, i may be asking for too much lol

[Lune]

Picked this thing up in Mistmoore, but I'm thinking I might just sell it to a vendor. Been carrying it around for about a week now and still haven't played it

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[OforOppression]

Solid states are really good if you don't have many pedals. Pedals are better, obviously, but my Line 6 Spider III has a good range of effects and I only really use my wah and flanger.

If you're a pedal nut I would recommend a Marshall.

I use my Telecaster mostly for normal fiddling but I also have a Dean VMNT Mustaine signature that gets really buttery clean sound and just nasty distortion.

[OMGWTF420]

Originally Posted by OforOppression [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Solid states are really good if you don't have many pedals. Pedals are better, obviously, but my Line 6 Spider III has a good range of effects and I only really use my wah and flanger.

If you're a pedal nut I would recommend a Marshall.

I use my Telecaster mostly for normal fiddling but I also have a Dean VMNT Mustaine signature that gets really buttery clean sound and just nasty distortion.

i have a few pedals, the main ones i use are my distortion and delay tho. i prefer using pedals for effects rather than using built in ones on the amps personally

[OforOppression]

Originally Posted by Hasbinlulz [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

You are dead to me. Nothing you ever say in the future will hold any value for me at all.

they are kill yourself

tubes are great and all but solids are so much more convenient.

[Brysenjg]

If you're going to be playing metal..or anything with a heavy use distortion I would recommend a solid state amp.

If you were to use a tube amp for metal, you would absolutely need a distortion pedal. They aren't known for the use of heavy distortion. They are known for their warm, full bodied clean sound and natural break up as you turn it up. (I'm not suggesting you can't use a tube amp for metal, but I wouldn't recommend it.)

As far as brand of amp, I would recommend Marshall or Fender. There is the Marshall Class 5..nice little practice amp. They do make hybrids mix of tube/solid state as well (tube circuitry complemented with digital modeling and effects), check out the Super Champ XD by Fender. Extremely popular, versatile and affordable.

With regards to your guitar it sounds like it should be professionally set up. What gauge strings do you use? What frets are the strings buzzing on? How worn down are the frets? There could be a number of factors contributing to buzzing. Of all things it sounds like it may need a truss rod adjustment. But without actually seeing it, I couldn't say for sure. I'm building my guitar at the moment. I had a Gibson ES 335 for a while, and a Les Paul w/p90s..I always find myself going back to my MIA Fender Strat though. Something about single coil pickups just sounds right to me vs humbuckers.

[nichomachean]

Originally Posted by Brysenjg [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

If you're going to be playing metal..or anything with a heavy use distortion I would recommend a solid state amp.

If you were to use a tube amp for metal, you would absolutely need a distortion pedal. They aren't known for the use of heavy distortion. They are known for their warm, full bodied clean sound and natural break up as you turn it up. (I'm not suggesting you can't use a tube amp for metal, but I wouldn't recommend it.)

There are plenty of modern tube amps with high-gain stages, running everything from EL34s to 6L6/6G6s with plenty of gain. Check out ENGL, Diamond, Diezel, Bogner, Krank, Mesa...the list goes on.

Granted, they're pricy (I think Kranks are the cheapest, and still run around 1200). Furthermore, there then comes the argument of voicing (British versus modern, etc. etc.), as well as pairings with speakers (Celestions still seem to be some of the most popular).

Bang for buck you can't beat solid state, but I don't think you'll ever get the same distortion out of the MOSFET circuits as you would from pushing valves.

Just my opinion. [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]