I think petrucci and satriani are boring. my opinion. no bounce...no soul. flat sounding flash.

Effects are just that...effects. The tone and sound are in your fingers and a combination of the guitar and the amp. What most people don't understand is that an amplifier is an instrument...well, a good one is. You do NOT get the tone by twiddling knobs...you get it by working the system.

It took me a lot of years to get this, and you really have to have a good amp to feel it. That is one reason that people love old Fenders, old Marshalls, and boutique amps like Top Hat, Bogner, etc. Best amp I've ever had was my Bogner Shiva, and you had to *play it*, not just turn the knobs to get the sounds you wanted. A modeling amp will be close, but it is an impersonation, and it cannot bounce.

There is more to guitar than racks. I think the true test is to take the rack away and see what you get from a player. I've seen plenty of guys in LA that sounded HUGE...then a technical glitch and you heard what they really sounded like. And it was crap.

I think of effects like spices. If you use too much or try to make it your meal, you'll make your guests pretty sick...

ooff...that 'surfing with the alien' satriani/vai stuff is so horrific, it's fun to listen to in an ironic way.

It's all about a mix of attitude, chops, tone, and the song...with chops not being ther #1 attribute.

So Porschegirl, who are yer big guitar heros?

Mine are numerous:
Fred Sonic Smith
Izzy Stradlin (wrote all the songs, was the coolest)
Andy McCoy
Nicke Hellacopter
Chuck Berry
Mick Taylor
Mick Ronson
Mick Jones
James Williamson
Ross The Boss
Jimmy Page
Ron Asheton
Bob Stinson
Greg Sage
Greg Ginn
Euroboy
Keith Richards
Bob Mould
Lesley West
Cheetah Chrome
Richard Lloyd
Bob Quine

Interestingly, I am not a great guitarist - heck I'm not even "good" - but I will say that I can crank out some great tones. I have a handful of pedals but now find that I *never* use them.

My entire signal chain now:

Les Paul (or my trusty 25 year-old SG) -> THD Univalve -> Avatar cab with one Vintage 30 and one G12H30. That's it. Sounds incredible. I am now addicted to the harmonics that pure Class A produces...

Yeah- Class A- when the ferkers go. The articultion you can get from a small class A valve amp is amazing. Modelling great, but....Tubes put everything back in the hands. (actually people who know these things tell me that class A guiatr amps generally arent true class A even if the makers say they are....)

Ive always avoided pedals, but I have a few now. Careful attention is required with signal chain when using small valve amps, IMHO....Ive recently disciovered what Im starting to consider the best kept tone secret there is. The graphic equaliser. Are these a new thing? :rolleyes:

My 5 watt epiphone class A head screams. I have yet to mod it, however. The goal is for it to become my main recording amp, or at least something I can split the signal into to kind get some more 'color' in the rhythm tracks...

You're right, but luckily the Univalve is actually Class A. Plus, it has the ability to run at least 20 or so different tube types. Searching for neat NOS tubes is a new hobby. My favorite power tubes in the thing are a Mazda 6V6, a Visseaux 6K6, a Tung Sol 5881 and a Mullard EL34. Wonderful stuff.

Neat trick. Im happy just to get a set that runs. Mine is a little "class A" Laney VC30 (Vox AC30 type of thing) and its got a matched set of Sovteks in at present.

Do you notice much tonal difference using different tubes? Ive always gone by the "drive from the pre-amp, tone from the power amp" mantra- but both the amp techs I know just shake their heads in regard to tonal differnces- they consider longevity and relability/quality to be more important.

For sure. There are even great tonal differences between brands of the same tubes. The Univalve is voiced for more power tube than preamp distortion, so it really exposes the differences in power tubes. The same goes for preamp tubes - it has two preamp tubes and can handle all of the typical 12AX7, 12AT7, 12AU7, 12AY7 and all of the ECC83/82, etc., variations. My favorite combination seems to be a 12AX7 (usually a Tung Sol reissue) and an NOS Mullard CV4024.

THD's website has some decent sound clips:

http://www.thdelectronics.com/soundclips.htm

Thats an intersting looking gadget. Doesnt get much more basic, perfect for the tone chaser....

My guitar heroes are (in no particular order)

Robbie Krieger (The Doors--I was a huge Doors fan when I started playing, and I didn't play with a pick at first, used my fingers, like Robbie did)

Eric Clapton (especially his Cream and Layla/blues stuff)

Eric Johnson--cliffs of Dover is still my fave song of his, although Forty Mile Town is a very close second.

Tom Petty

Neil Young (especially his early days)

Keith Richards--amazing, some of his stuff seems subtle but he gets interesting tones on all those classic old Stones songs (btw, I've got the same fuzz box as used on 'Sastisfaction')

Crosby, Stills, Nash (& occasionally Young)--first ever song I learned to play was 'Teach Your Children' from some of my mom's old guitar stuff.

Let's see...I'm sure I'm forgetting a few...

Oh yes, Pete Townshend, Jimi Hendrix, et al.