Members Phait Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 I'm finding with cheap gear playing guitar my ideas don't really sound that interesting. I like the underlying melodies sometimes, but the tone blows and I just want to throw all my ideas away and cry in a corner. I wonder if I could achieve better tones and quality I'd think the same thing, and realise well - what I just wrote sucks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 I find the exact opposite affect. My inspiration and motivation directly impacts my tone. Probably mostly due to just playing with more intent, and physical/artistic purpose, but I also have a bizarre theory that I can't prove. I think we all have electro-magnetic fields/ signatures around us which probably vary based on our moods and energy levels. I think that messes with guitar pickups. Why Not? the local right wing AM radio station certainly messes with my guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueSteam Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 If I had cheap gear, I wouldn't want to play it, but I don't think it'd change what I write. I guess good gear and tone motiviates me to write more though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted January 31, 2012 Moderators Share Posted January 31, 2012 Yes, no and maybe. Sometimes sitting down with a great tone, be it a ass kicking drum groove, ball melting synth bass patch, or a guitar that makes you cry, that can light up your muse. It can validate ideas you've had "offline". So here's the deal for me... Personally, I tend to write in my head for the most part. The ideas aren't really particularly a part of prodding my muse into service. However, I still need a means a realizing the ideas. To show the world, "See! Wasn't that a great idea?". Cause they ain't going know otherwise. Trust me, from experience, people can't listen into your track and imagine. They can't. So yeah, you do need a means of realizing those ideas with real world solid tones. But I gotta tell ya, the best tones are still in my head. That's why I write there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted January 31, 2012 Author Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 So yeah, you do need a means of realizing those ideas with real world solid tones. But I gotta tell ya, the best tones are still in my head. That's why I write there. Totally true for me as well. And I haven't really had an idea in my head that I'm like "oooooh gotta get this out right now!" and put down everything I'm doing. I've been mucking around until I hit something mildly interesting I can build upon. Which, usually has worked. But that "ah-ha!" in my head moment, been quite awhile : Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted January 31, 2012 Moderators Share Posted January 31, 2012 Totally true for me as well. And I haven't really had an idea in my head that I'm like "oooooh gotta get this out right now!" and put down everything I'm doing. I've been mucking around until I hit something mildly interesting I can build upon. Which, usually has worked. But that "ah-ha!" in my head moment, been quite awhile : But that's the beauty of it. There is no computer to boot. No tones to finagle with. No noise restrictions. You're in line at the ATM and... plug a mental patch and BAM...at which point you pull out your handheld cheapo digi recorder back at the car and hum the idea into it. Pronto. The imagination gives but he does not store it for you. He's like, "Fine, if you don't care enough about your {censored}... it's trashed. See ya." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scarecrowbob Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Having a guitar that is tough to keep in tune or a piano that needs some work done to it really puts the damper on my motivation. So I eventually just bought some good guitars. But beyond that, IME usually if what I am digging about something is textural and not structural, then I probably should move on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members CTStump Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Finding the right tone is essential in my humble opinion, as to whether the gear has anything to do with that all I can say is that a good set of strings really make the difference to me. I have known many a great guitar player though constantly chasing their tails to try and find their ultimate instrument( Martin,Gibson,etc.) and are still trying to find it. I myself walked into the music store one day and heard the most beautiful tone of a guitar and immediately knew that was my guitar, it only cost 115.00, it's the same guitar i toured Scandinavia with and my Chief writing instrument not counting my Keyboard. So it's all in what your happy with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members timrocker Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Tone/quality is huge with me, for inspiration. I just make the best use of what's There. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 I'm finding with cheap gear playing guitar my ideas don't really sound that interesting. I like the underlying melodies sometimes, but the tone blows and I just want to throw all my ideas away and cry in a corner. I wonder if I could achieve better tones and quality I'd think the same thing, and realise well - what I just wrote sucks? Nah, as long as the instrument is in tune I can get something out of it. I guess this comes from starting out on gear that was barely useable... almost worthy of the trash. After playing on a keyboard with busted keys as I started out, and a piano that was begging to be left alone, it was more the attitude I brought to the instrument that made the sound happen. Of course these days, things have improved tone/sound wise but it still comes down to my attitude. Feeling inspired to write something was and is never about the instrument but the creative juices flowing within. Sometimes the juices are running low and I just let them build and then they need to be released so I press record and go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RockViolin Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Psssst. EB....something has happened to you. You look different. Maybe it's time to give teh heinous pron a rest, man. Unless, the devolution has... well, are you still a man? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Psssst. EB....something has happened to you. You look different. Maybe it's time to give teh heinous pron a rest, man. Unless, the devolution has... well, are you still a man? I`ve been lazy, haven`t shaved in two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nat whilk II Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Sometimes a great tone is inspiring...but it also can be distracting. My personal take is that the right tone is somewhat analogous to the right clothes - they can either dress up and enhance a great body (this is good) or disguise and distract from the flaws in a crappy body (this is not good.) Just putting a good suit on it doesn't make it a good body, in other words. nat whilk ii Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted January 31, 2012 Author Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 ^ True. My first guitar was a shoebox with rubber bands. Then, a little acoustic missing the high E string. Then a '97 Strat, which is what I use to this day. Running through a Digitech RP-155 FX pedal, not always liking the harsh tones, hearing my head "this riff would work so much better if it sounded better". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members blue2blue Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Instrument quality or tone quality is not generally a factor when I write songs. I've written some of my best songs on crap guitars, since those are the ones I tend to take to the beach or to Mexico (back when I used to go to Mexico) or the mountains, etc. Of course, it's nice to play a nice guitar and working out parts and such tends to put more weight on the choice of guitar, but, for me, it doesn't usually affect the songwriting itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 Finding the right tone is essential in my humble opinion, as to whether the gear has anything to do with that all I can say is that a good set of strings really make the difference to me. I have known many a great guitar player though constantly chasing their tails to try and find their ultimate instrument( Martin,Gibson,etc.) and are still trying to find it. I myself walked into the music store one day and heard the most beautiful tone of a guitar and immediately knew that was my guitar, it only cost 115.00, it's the same guitar i toured Scandinavia with and my Chief writing instrument not counting my Keyboard. So it's all in what your happy with. I'm in agreement with this. Also, as Tim Rocker pointed out, tone is inspiring. If you're not happy with your musical instrument, that detracts from the experience. Sure, you can write a song on a cruddy hard-to-play guitar, but having an instrument that's inspiring to play makes it easier to write, in my opinion. Now, like all of you, I've written all sorts of songs on cruddy instruments, but for me, getting something playable with good tone has really helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RockViolin Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 I'm finding with cheap gear playing guitar my ideas don't really sound that interesting. I like the underlying melodies sometimes, but the tone blows and I just want to throw all my ideas away and cry in a corner. I wonder if I could achieve better tones and quality I'd think the same thing, and realise well - what I just wrote sucks? Expensive gear plays the guitar better than cheap gear. Without a doubt.:poke: There's no downside to improving your setup. Except for your wallet of course. And if you've got tones that your happy with, and your ideas still don't make it, then you know. All the same, I think a great idea and the desire to give it life can overcome almost all shortcomings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WRGKMC Posted January 31, 2012 Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 If you're lacking inspiration its likely a sign you're slacking with the old rule of 1% inspiration, 99% pirspiration.You need to get your work and healing cycle in sync by giving it a kick start. I may sit down and work on basic rythum tracks and do 10 at a pop. Some may be built from fragmented ideas, some rewrites and some written on the spot.I'll likely go back and add bass before deciding if they're worth taking to the next level. Main thing is you plow through them with some major effort. I may get two or three from a session worth keeping. The others may just wind up being warm up practice sessions for thebetter songs. I may do another session or two the same way before taking it to the next level. By then it may be a week or two and the first session sound fresh and new and I'mreally inspired to write additional parts for them. I do notice the following day after a long session I may have one of those tunes I worked on going through my head like a broken record. I suppose my subconcious is still working on the thing because by the time I come back to the song, the parts write themselves like theresno other way the parts could fit. Dont rule out the impact the subconcious has on music especially when you are in a rut. After a few hard sessions I may get all kinds of ideas for new songs just by strumming a chord or two. So my point about putting in the 99% hard work first brings you the 1% inspiration, not the other way around. A mind in motion is much more likely to catch hold of a fleeting idea than a mind at rest. I do work it in cycles though. After finishing a CD's worth of material my creativity is pretty burnt to a crisp. I may not do anything for a week while I focus on wipeing my mind clean and heal my stiff joints in my fingers fromworking them to the bone. Keeping the mind and bodys work and healing cycle in sync takes dicipline. If your hands are fatigued and need healing, an active mindcant drive those hands to play what your mind wants them to. The opposite also occurs. If your hands are in decent shape and your mindsrun down and needs healing it will lack a passion for creativity. As you notice I never mentioned deriving any inspiration from the instrument.A guitar is an inatimate object. If you think its the source of inspiration you really need torefocus on the instrument being a tool. Just like a carpenter who focuses on the hammer instead of the nail, he's bound to drive that nail crooked.The hammer must be a part of the hand that feels the nail go in straight. Same goes for an instrument projecting the music you create to your audiance. Think of your recording gear as being connected live on the radio being heard by millions of hot babes when you play. (or guys if thats your thing) If that doesnt help lift your manhood up out of the dirt and play better see a doctor and tell him you have Low "T". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted January 31, 2012 Author Members Share Posted January 31, 2012 That last bit made me smile, but some great advice there WRGKMC. Thanks! I've been working on something today that's about 80% done, and I'm liking the direction. Just one of them days, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted February 1, 2012 Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 One thing that really changed my inspiration factor, and I wasn't even expecting it, was when I got a Gibson with Robot Tuning. I do most of my writing on guitar, and am a stickler for tuning. I didn't realize how much stopping, tuning, and re-starting was dragging me down until it was just pull up on knob, strum, done. It's an expensive solution...but it looks like the Peavey AT-200 will provide a similar advantage, at a lower cost. Because like others here I do a lot of writing in my head, the biggest factor in keeping me motivated is having everything set up and ready to go so I can translate the ideas from head to hard drive with maximum efficiency. If a keyboard is already plugged in and set up, I'm much better off than if I have to go find a MIDI cable and plug it in. That's why I'm a big fan of templates - being able to call up, say, a bass instantly is more important to me than how the bass sounds. I can always change it later if it's MIDI, or record the part with a real bass when appropriate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ggm1960 Posted February 1, 2012 Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 I often get annoyed by how anal guitar players get about tone, shut up and play! My guitar based songs almost always start with me kicked back in the family room plucking on my Rickenbacker 620 unplugged. Thing is though, I don't have any cheap guitars (except for a $350 Ibanez RGxxxxx) and I have them all setup, tweaked and adjusted to where I often show up to a gig and they don't even need to be tuned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nice keetee Posted February 1, 2012 Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 Sometimes I'm inspired to write by a pleasing sound from an instrument, sometimes I'll have an idea before I pick up an instrument. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nice keetee Posted February 1, 2012 Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 I often show up to a gig and they don't even need to be tuned. you still check though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sventvkg Posted February 1, 2012 Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 Pick up an acoustic. I rarely if ever write any anything else Different tunings inspire tunes though so try that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted February 1, 2012 Author Members Share Posted February 1, 2012 I had an acoustic but gave it to my little bro -- which, I had to restring it for a righty. Sooo... that begs the question, have I ever come up with usable stuff on a backwards guitar? Yes. But I won't be keeping a righty around forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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