I need desperate help with guitar tone!💜

[DreamerDeceiver]

 

[Kendall124]

Look up Zoom Guitar Lab. That seems to be the place to upload and download patches and settings.

Guitar Lab

zoomcorp.com

 

[Matthews Guitars]

"It sounds like a plexi".....usually that phrase comes from someone who's never actually played a real plexi.

I own and play an authentic (but rebuilt) 1969 Plexi era Superlead. So, yes, it's the real deal. Allowing for the fact that it's a rebuilt amp,
but rebuilt to correct era specs as much as is humanly possible.

I would not say that the tone in question actually sounds like a "plexi", at least not much like my own example. But it's in the ballpark for a 50 watt Lead (model 1987) or possibly a model 1959 Superlead. A simple amplifier that derives most of its overdriven sound character from an overdriven output stage, rather than preamp distortion.

To get THAT sound, the amp has to be driven hard to its full output. If the amp isn't dimed and insanely loud, you aren't getting THAT sound out of it.

You don't really get this until you've got one sitting in the room with you and you have the courage it takes to crank it all the way up and find out for yourself. When you do, it's unmistakable and unforgettable. This is not the sound of preamp distortion. You'll never mistake one for the other, never again.

 

[Lo-Tek]

Heyyy!

I don’t know if I’m right here but I need help with the tone of my favourite band-

In this case all I’m looking for is to understand how they achieved it and through that to see what type of ways there are to change tones …



This video! It’s 5sos and the left guy named Michael uses an plexi- but it doesn’t at all sound vintage nor does it sound like a typical old broken sound- which are plexis known for right? It sounds pretty forward- pretty processed and polished-
He uses multi effects pedal and yeah- or some kind of overdrive and what not and that’s my question- what stuff did he prolly use to get there?
I’m not talking about the gear much but rather the ways he set it up and the ways this is mixed or like compressed and so on- to get this sound so different then a plexi +overdrive usually sounds but still - u can hear it’s a plexi

I don’t understand how they did this and I rlly wanna know more about the whole tube amp setup , tone topic!
Also hear pages or interviews don’t at all help here! So that’s why I ask here.

I also have a plexi, a sv20h and it sounds just like a plexi- also got a blues driver- sounds rlly good BUT!!! It’s still broken ish- vintage ish- and not at all this processed and polished - modern idk how to call it- ish

i don’t know what I can do or what gear or pedals and stuff I can use to change this-
I use a attenuator and interface to go into my MacBook- so maybe some mixing or what not stuff - could be that could help as well—

I don’t know at all how to explain what I mean- and what the sound sounds like-
I just know that the plexi itself sounds broken ish - vintage- just like a plexi sounds-
And I just want it more processed, polished ,
Don’t knownhow to call it hahah

There’s another video:



Pls don’t fight or attack me for any type of shitty grammar- I don’t rlly care much about grammar I just wanna live- and also if I take time fixing grammar- itl take ages and I don’t have that time right now- also I will forget what I wanted to say
And it’s driving my mind crazy to think this much - and text- I’m autistic so pls don’t fight me like redditors often do—-


Also don’t attack 5sos-

This is just about tone and music and fun!

Thank you a lot!

I hope someone can help me

thank you already a lot !!!
I also I hope your all doing well out there!
Please take care and stay safe!

According to google-
Michael Clifford KEMPER/PROTOOLS

 

[Derek S]

That's the beauty of musical instruments & living in this day & age. Everyone can find what they like & get on w/ it.

Indeed! In these times and with so many great options avail, from amps to modelers, profilers, plugs, etc...it's not the gear keeping you from reaching your musical dreams, it's you. Nobody should be saying they can't make music because they can't find killer tones with today's choices (not that many make this claim), unless mayyyybe your goal is to 100% replicate someone else's sound and vibe (for whatever reason ?) and even if you could replicate the gear and settings, it's doubtful you'd sound exactly the same newayz.

 

[Matthews Guitars]

So true. I'm not a good musician because it's not where I've focused enough effort. It's not the gear, or any lack of it. Oh no. I could rent out backlines to two bands at once! I am proof that having lots of gear is no substitute for time spent practicing the playing of music.

 

[Trelwheen]

Those guys have been taking acid and listening to Duran Duran.

Not judging. Just an observation

 

[Deftone]

the 5SoS sounded a hell of a lot more like 2 Minutes of Duran Duran

Exactly what I was thinking. Couldn't name the band or song but I knew I had heard that before. Total rip-off but then that's what damn near every new band, artist, etc... does these days.

 

[DreamerDeceiver]

 

[rmlevasseur]

Not sure if anyone has really tried to answer this guy's question. I absolutely adore tone shaping on my gear. And while I agree that for playing live a person should develop their own tone, I find it VERY enjoyable to try to replicate tones I like on my own gear. Not sure why anyone would bag on this guy for trying to do the same. Just the other day I was asking on another forum how to replicate Jackson's Brown's tone on Boulevard. It's so wonderfully nasty and the studio version doesn't sound like his live versions. (I'm thinking there is a big muff in there myself).

So, I agree that this tone the OP wants is very likely coming from a modeler. I am hearing some "ooomph" there so if a real amp made it, my guess it was attenuated. It also very squashed, so if trying to replicate on your own amp, I think a compressor is very necessary. If you have a tube amp that you can really open up, tubes compress naturally. It sounds very Marshall to me, not sure about plexi. In order to get this type of compression from a Marshall head, my guess is that a 50 watt would have to be used. A 100 watt plexi would probably overpower this band setting at high compression volume. The rest is pretty much just tone shaping with an EQ. This type of tone reminds me of the "dookie" mod people made to their marshalls. I am not really hearing any other effects.

I don't know how this was recorded, but it sounds like the guitar tracks were doubled. There is also a stereo spread here that is undoubtedly adding to what you are hearing. Coming out of your stereo or headphones you hear it well, but alone in your room not so much.

Based on how close these fellas are to their amps, I am not hearing any real squealing, feedback or hiss, which makes me tend to believe this is in fact modelling with perhaps speaker emulation to the board. Vintage 30s or similar. Humbuckers.

That's my 2 cents anyway. Good luck.

 

[Antti Heikkinen]

Yeah those sounds are modelers for sure. I would venture even that at least one of them is a Mesa type model. You wouldn't get anything that thick and saturated out of even a model of a plexi. Great sounds for the music, if a bit 'generic' for my tastes, still just about perfect for the song. And they sing really well!

 

[Minegoto11]

Heyyy!

I don’t know if I’m right here but I need help with the tone of my favourite band-

In this case all I’m looking for is to understand how they achieved it and through that to see what type of ways there are to change tones …



This video! It’s 5sos and the left guy named Michael uses an plexi- but it doesn’t at all sound vintage nor does it sound like a typical old broken sound- which are plexis known for right? It sounds pretty forward- pretty processed and polished-
He uses multi effects pedal and yeah- or some kind of overdrive and what not and that’s my question- what stuff did he prolly use to get there?
I’m not talking about the gear much but rather the ways he set it up and the ways this is mixed or like compressed and so on- to get this sound so different then a plexi +overdrive usually sounds but still - u can hear it’s a plexi

I don’t understand how they did this and I rlly wanna know more about the whole tube amp setup , tone topic!
Also hear pages or interviews don’t at all help here! So that’s why I ask here.

I also have a plexi, a sv20h and it sounds just like a plexi- also got a blues driver- sounds rlly good BUT!!! It’s still broken ish- vintage ish- and not at all this processed and polished - modern idk how to call it- ish

i don’t know what I can do or what gear or pedals and stuff I can use to change this-
I use a attenuator and interface to go into my MacBook- so maybe some mixing or what not stuff - could be that could help as well—

I don’t know at all how to explain what I mean- and what the sound sounds like-
I just know that the plexi itself sounds broken ish - vintage- just like a plexi sounds-
And I just want it more processed, polished ,
Don’t knownhow to call it hahah

There’s another video:



Pls don’t fight or attack me for any type of shitty grammar- I don’t rlly care much about grammar I just wanna live- and also if I take time fixing grammar- itl take ages and I don’t have that time right now- also I will forget what I wanted to say
And it’s driving my mind crazy to think this much - and text- I’m autistic so pls don’t fight me like redditors often do—-


Also don’t attack 5sos-

This is just about tone and music and fun!

Thank you a lot!

I hope someone can help me

thank you already a lot !!!
I also I hope your all doing well out there!
Please take care and stay safe!

The first video sounds more produced than live, it definitely sounds like a modeler... I'll bet my gx-100 its not a Plexi, even if it's a recorded back track and not live. He's not plugged into the amp, the power switch is on but the light is off... none of which matters because the standby switch is off, the Marshall is a just a prop. Regardless, that's the tone you want..
The best advice I can offer is don't become obsessed with chasing someone else's tone, it can be fun to try at times but can send you down a deep rabbit hole and can be more like an addiction and become more important to you than practicing. The player is the biggest part of tone, it all starts with you.

As far as his sound, you should be able to get close enough with your amp and minimal effects, a little compression and something as a boost, like a RAT(minimal gain) in front of the amp and maybe a smidge of delay and reverb in the loop. Start with the amp dials at noon and the fx off, dial the amp by itself until your happy, then add the effects 1 at a time. Start with the compressor... and so on. Use the effects to enhance your tone, not create it... If you're using a multifx unit I recommend the four cable method and leaving all the modeler/speaker sim stuff off.

Your amp is designed to sound like a Super Lead Plexi, burying it in effects to make it sound "processed" is a waste of an amp.

This forum is full of good people willing to share their knowledge, always willing to help and point you in the right direction. You won't be attacked for things like grammar, your taste in music or your level of knowledge as long as you're respectful, well...... from anyone worth taking seriously anyway. ( maybe a jab or 2 here and there, but nothing vicious).

However... (IMO) You might want to avoid things like: "Plexi's sound broken ish"..

Get yourself a book about tube amp circuits, I recommend the Gerald Weber books.. Tube amps are like hot rods, you need to know what's "under the hood".