Help: Angus IF YOU WANT BLOOD (album) tone

[marshallman116]

During my research the general concensus was to run the PPIMV to the back because when mounting it in the presence slot you need a shielded run.

Like I said before, just in the low sensitivity cause I never use it.

 

[sidvicious]

Ive never had trouble with acdc tone on a marshall, orange, or even vox. Any humbucker guitar with "not to rad" pickups will do it. Like the guys say, it the style.

One thing that helps is avoid bar chords when you can and have the root and 5th together on the smaller strings when possible. Itll sharpen up a G nicely, for example.

"When you can" means some experimenting.

You must be in tune!!!!!

I use heavy strings and they favor the acdc tone for me. Angus, being a smaller fellow may use 10s or such, I dont know.

Guys like young are very efficient and make the most of a few strings. In highway to hell the bass note on the heavy E string, where the f# moves to G above the D chord is about the trickiest thing he does. And, its a neat one at that. If you can nail that one, you've nailed the best one in my book

 

[marshallman116]

I know Angus's technique and I always play it that way. I still don't have the tone.

 

[sidvicious]

I know Angus's technique and I always play it that way. I still don't have the tone.

Most young men I hear use way too much preamp gain. You mentioned your age and this may not be the case.

Personally, on amps with presence I jack it up to 12:00 or so and roll the treble way back.

I assume youre looking for a live setting? Theres gotta be power amp bite in it for best results.

 

[marshallman116]

Most young men I hear use way too much preamp gain. You mentioned your age and this may not be the case.

Personally, on amps with presence I jack it up to 12:00 or so and roll the treble way back.

I assume youre looking for a live setting? Theres gotta be power amp bite in it for best results.

The problem for me is I live in a neighborhood that doesn't mind lous but it's my mom who cares. To even get reletivly close I HAVE to jack the pre-amp and thats my main problem. Anotherthing is that mt Explorer had a shot pick up which made my amp rrally bright so I had the bright cap taken out and I was thinking of putting it back in but my dad says no. I am at a bug dilemma right now.

 

[Ken]

Thanks for all the replys guys, I'm only 14 and have no money so I'll get an attenuator as soon as I can offord one. There is a 1968 SG on Craigslist and the only things not original are the tuners and its missinf the lyre cover. Its $2500...... D:

I'll say you have a great advantage to where i was at 14! Don't sweat your equipment too much please. Most people here (including me) are picking nits since being older we can really afford anything we want, and we don't address often enough that to sound good we need to learn how to play well!

The gear helps make good better, but it won't turn bad into good. Even though I know I'm surrounded by great players in the forum, we talk about gear 99% of the time as if it's really important because that's kind of the focus here being a Marshall group. In the big picture the reality is the best players have thousands of hours honing their craft and they could be playing with any gear and still be great.

Focus on the music first. Your fave player would still be great through a crap amp, while a bad player won't sound professional no matter what gear he has.

Ken

 

[Ken]

Personally, on amps with presence I jack it up to 12:00 or so and roll the treble way back.
.

Wise advice. Newbies do the opposite far too often; I did too to be honest. Presence is NOT an 'ultra teble' and if your tone is too bright it's better to compensate with the treble and mids. Crank the presence!

Ken

 

[marshallman116]

Thanks Ken, I practice as much as I can. I have a lot of UFO stuff Strangers In The Night down and that stuff is HARD. AC/DC, the tone is in your fingers. As with all good guitar tone.

 

[bulldozer1984]

A PPIMV should not go in the Low Input slot. Bad idea.

 

[marshallman116]

A PPIMV should not go in the Low Input slot. Bad idea.

Why is that?

 

[bulldozer1984]

i already explained that.. read up there ^^^

If your doing it yourself then id say give it a go and see. But i wouldnt pay a tech to do it to possibly have to take it back to him and pay him more money down the track.

 

[LAARS]

The key for me is LESS gain then you think...... I use 2 Voodoo V-plex 50 watt amps for my AC/DC tone. The Master is on 7 , pre amp on 5. I have the channels jumped. My tone is clean until you hit it real hard.


If I strum a chord, you'd think I was playing clean. Its only when I hit the shit out of it, does any gain happen. As others have said, Solo Dallas is the king when it comes to getting AC/DC tone.

 

[sidvicious]

another key thing. you're listening to a recording. production matters.

also, most of us old enough to know will advise against modding quality amps to chase a tone.

if you can't get the volume you need you won't get the growl and lower end without more headroom for that amp. most if not all higher wattage amps sound thin early in the master stage.

 

[marshallman116]

Thanks everyone. LAARS, I've figured out that all the distortion is actually Angus and Malcolm's tone together. I would get an attenuator but money is an issue with a 14 year old. I can come back to this thread and figure out what I need to do. I will defenently be getting a either the Shaver Vega pedal or the Wireless System when I come across the cash.

 

[marshall1967]

wow, so much effort. I always felt anyone could grab a guitar, plug it into any marshall and AC/DC's tone was right there. just dont use too much gain.

 

[marshallman116]

It should be that simple and it is, just. It's the gear that plays a big part too.

 

[abandonreligion]

I think the guys here are spot on, don't concentrate to much on the gear, I used to get amazing Angus tone when I was 15 from a Westbury standard and a 15 watt valve amp my dad made me from an old record player that only had volume bass and treble, keeping in mind it wasn't designed to overdrive as it was an audio amp, it still sounded great.

 

[kamran]

AC/DC is all about the "feel" of the guitar, and not so much the tone. They go hand in hand and the feeling of that loud, responsive, soaring crunch is never gonna happen at whisper volume, even if you get the tone down it won't have the same vibe. You can't replicate the feeling of pushing some air without actually, well...pushing some air. Know what's cheaper than buying an attenuator? Buy your parents some movie tickets or concert tickets and while they're out crank out til our ears bleed. Eventually it will become a hopeless addiction and then you'll really be one of us. Or join a band where you get to crank it. that's where the real fun in music is.

 

[marshallman116]

AC/DC is all about the "feel" of the guitar, and not so much the tone. They go hand in hand and the feeling of that loud, responsive, soaring crunch is never gonna happen at whisper volume, even if you get the tone down it won't have the same vibe. You can't replicate the feeling of pushing some air without actually, well...pushing some air. Know what's cheaper than buying an attenuator? Buy your parents some movie tickets or concert tickets and while they're out crank out til our ears bleed. Eventually it will become a hopeless addiction and then you'll really be one of us. Or join a band where you get to crank it. that's where the real fun in music is.

My grandparents live in the woods and soon I will take my amps out there to really crank them!!!! \m/^_^\m/

 

[Ken]

AC/DC is all about the "feel" of the guitar, and not so much the tone. .

Exactly. On rhythm you play a micro millisecond ahead of the beat.

Ken