Do you really use your volume and tone knobs?

[Wolf ^_^]

Hello fellow guitar aficionados,

I have practicing more constantly and realized that before I didn't use my controls much and just remembering how most people use and describe their humbucker tones and the "dreaded" mudbucker, made me realize very few people except maybe tele players, use their control knobs, guitar's are more often played flat out from what I have gathered as very low evidence experience.

And just to gauge if my thoughts and recollections from talking to the few players I know in real life are too skewed, I would like to ask you the question, do you use your controls knobs?

How much versatility and satisfaction do you get from the tones that are accessible through setting changes on your guitar's controls?

 

[sonar1]

Yes.
With modern wiring in guitars, I set my amp too bright and too loud.
Then I hold it back with hands and pots. Watch Jeff Beck.

With ‘50’s wiring, there’s a much broader sweet spot.
The controls interact a lot more. Different learning curve.

Modern …..………………………………………………….Vintage

 

[ARandall]

On the contrary, I'd say the vast majority of players use controls......volume certainly. Tones tend to get used but set to balance the various positions.

Modern amps have lessened the need to get all drive variation by rolling up and down volume, but most players here are more old school with amps anyhow.

 

[smk506]

I constantly mess with volume and tone knobs. It’s my go to for adjusting sound on the fly. Yeah, sometimes you have to mess with an amp or pedal but most of the time if you set those for a little more than you need on full blast you can dial it back and have what you want on tap.

I really find p90s especially benifir from some experimenting.

 

[68 Greenback]

I use only vintage Marshalls, usually straight in and set the amp for a reasonably loud, pretty bright crunch with the guitar(LP Specials with either P90’s/modern wiring or humbuckers/50’s wiring) controls on 10.
Admittedly the majority of my playing is done with the vol on or near full and tone rolled down some, but it’s awesome to have so many options at your fingertips.

 

[TonyTrouble]

There's a great youtube video of Bernie Marsden playing Dynaflow.
It's a cool example of Volume, tone, pickup selections for great sound.
Doesn't hurt that he's playing his '59 .
I learned a lot from working on this.

 

[searswashere]

Sometimes but not often.

 

[JohnnyN]

Yes I do.

 

[RedSkwirrell]

I would like to ask you the question, do you use your controls knobs?

Yep.
But I used to mostly set up for a particular sound using the controls on my amp and the desk during the sound check before a gig.
If I did touch the guitar controls, it'd usually be the volume or the Pup selector switch.
That was on my 1990 Std.

However, I also have a 2010 Limited ("robot guitar").
Completely different ball game.
Three Pups: Bucker; P90; and a Piezo.
I never gigged it, but it had a lot more tonal variation.
Lots of haters for 'robots', which still amuses me, and most of them seem unaware of the available tonal range (I've never heard others, so I don't know if they offer similar to my "2010 Limited Std").
Sure they can tune 'emselves but, besides that, they ain't just a pretty face.



*Now.., I wouldn't necessarily agree with Gibson's description of the tones they think they've copied with the Pups available, but certainly there are many more tones available from the instrument itself.

 

[Renegade]

Yes, and in the middle position it helps shape my tone by setting them at different levels.

 

[Johnnyslim]

Yes, to a certain extent. I run my bridge tone on 7 and neck tone on 8. Might be some adjustment to dial a tone up to 10 but then back to where it was.

 

[rjwilson37]

Yes, very much so. I am always fiddling with my Volume and Tone knobs to get the tone I am looking for. When I was a kid, sure, balls to the wall, full on Bridge Humbucker on my Hondo II Wine Red Les Paul Copy, it was Glorius! Haha

 

[Wolf ^_^]

On the contrary, I'd say the vast majority of players use controls......volume certainly. Tones tend to get used but set to balance the various positions.

Modern amps have lessened the need to get all drive variation by rolling up and down volume, but most players here are more old school with amps anyhow.

Thanks to you now I know why I am now using the controls, before I played a Valco amp and I really needed to push it to get a good sound so the volumes and tones were most of the time at 10, now with a modern amp, not using them would decapitate me with amounts of gain and high end available

 

[Pop1655]

A very definite yes, but I'm a 98% clean tone player.

 

[Steven]

Of course, I use them in accordance with dynamic changes that take place within a song, swells, and a multitude of other reasons. I can't imagine not using them when in a cover band, or playing others material.

 

[Wes T]

I think the few of us who plug straight in are more likely to rely on the knobs for their intended use. I like the tone I get out of tubes at about 6/7 on the amp. Then I use the guitar controls to get the volume I need, and back off the tone to moderate the twang. Obviously, I'm not a distortion player, and play small venues.

 

[NotScott]

I set up my amp and any pedals (if used) to provide a hard rocking, bit bright bridge lead tone. I don't touch them ever again throughout the show.
For a LP, I usually keep the bridge tone around 7-8 and vary the bridge volume to get the desired drive I want. I hate stomps! For the neck, I keep the tone at 10 but still vary the volume for drive. In the middle position, all knobs go to 10. I may vary the neck volume slightly to alter the level of honk and cut I want. It is all very easy, effective and always sounds great.

Now let's talk about Gretsch tone switches!

 

[Freddy G]

I know I'm probably going to be pilloried for this, but I rarely use either the volume or the tone. Full out all the time unless I'm doing volume swells, but even then....I'd rather use a volume pedal.

 

[RocketKing]

I've always used them, it's second nature

 

[CyFan]

I use the controls on all my guitars for every song. I also use "touch" but more for inflection than to change tone.