Adjusting the electric guitar amp

[Soan]

Hi. I'm taking lessons (blues 1 module) and it occurred to me I don't know how to tweak an amp for the right sound.

 

Is there an approach to this. I know that depending on the settings you can sound more bluesy, heavy metal, 60's rock, and many other unique sounds.

 

To top it off, I am not even sure how the knobs and levers on the actual guitar play into this.

 

I have an inexpensive $300 Fender Squire 15G amp https://waveadvice.com/electric-guitar-amps/ and guitar from guitar center.

 

Can someone offer some tips about how to approach the seemingly infinite variables and create the sounds I want--or at least send me a link where its explained on this site.

 

I have it sounding OK right now, but sometimes I tweak the knobs, it sounds dirty, and I cant figure out how to make it sound clean except for some trial and error. I'm looking for more of a science.

 

Thank you

[ggm1960]

In the most basic sense a guitar sounds the most clean when the pre-volume is lowered and the master is up. As you turn up the preamp volume the output will begin to clip which creates distortion by adding harmonics of the fundamental frequency. The range can go from clean to fatter blues sound to full on overdrive/distortion.

[daddymack]

First: your amp has a little switch for clean and 'OD' [overdrive] right on the front panel. Figure that out and half your problem is solved.

https://reverb.com/item/17742609-squier-15g-by-fender-120v-guitar-combo-amp?gclid=CjwKCAiAsoviBRAoEiwATm8OYFUJ3bBrsTQ6oH1KlxbRf1N_Z-PCYmYD7KHms9m6PgmhNNp58tf4SRoCEtsQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&pla=1

 

There are knobs for Volume [how loud you want it] Treble [brighter/lighter sound] and Bass [lower/darker sound]. Set the Volume to 4, Treble to 6 and the Bass to 3. That is a good starting point, but you also have another volume and two tone controls and another tonal palette from the guitar itself.

 

I'm guessing you have a Squier Stratocaster that came with the amp, yes? Two single coil and one humbucker pick-up?

There are three knobs there and a pick-up selector switch.

Top knob is Volume. Set that to 8. It controls all three pickups.

The two Tone knobs control the different pickup's tone. And yeah, there are three pickups, and only two tone knobs...weird, right?

Set the upper Tone to 10, and the lower Tone to 6.

Put the switch all the way down toward the bridge [you do know what the bridge is, yes?]. That is your 'Lead guitar' position. In the middle or at the upper side are your rhythm positions for playing chords.

 

From here you can make minor adjustments on both amp and axe, but these are good general settings for beginners to work from.

Good luck.

 

Keep in mind that the odds are, if you expect to sound like Kenny Wayne or Stevie Ray with this rig, you are going to be disappointed, but you will learn, through months of endless trial and error how to get the best possible sound out of your rig...or not, if you don't put in the time. Because the 'science' will not help you with this equipment beyond what I have suggested, and those settings I suggested are based on my decades of experience combined with the inherent limitations of that gear.

 

To be frank, ignore the amp, work your lessons with the guitar UNPLUGGED until you have a command of the instrument. Your neighbors will appreciate this approach.

 

Thus endeth the lesson.

[pogo97]

daddymac has it right. The most important part of the sound is what your fingers make the strings do.And you'll hear that best unplugged.

 

When you plug in, find a fairly neutral amp setting and learn to control your sound at the guitar. Two reasons: the guitar switch and knobs are closer to your hands and the tone controls, particularly, are designed for that guitar -- to make it sound how the designer thinks it should sound. And pay special attention to what your hands can do to draw tone out of the guitar. Give yourself a few hundred hours of playing before you start judging yourself and your talent/abilities. It takes time, lots of time, to get to where what you intend is something like what comes out.