I’m going to start with one word. Simplify!

The main thing to remember in both live and recording applications is that whatever you send into the mix is what will come out on the other end – no amount of processing can fix bad tone. Take everything back to the signal source – your guitar.

Turn off your effects – the distortion, the delay, the flange, the compressor, set the EQ on your amp flat, and plug a great guitar into your amp. Yes, all by itself – then turn your amp up! Learn what each pickup selection option sounds like, mess with the tone knobs in all possible combinations. Let your guitar sound like itself – just like there’s no way to make me sound like Todd Agnew when I sing, no amount of effects will make a Les Paul sound like a Stratocaster, and vice versa. Play like this until you have the defining moment every guitar player should have: learning to play clean exposes all the nuances of your playing – and given time can sound bigger and better than you sounded with all your pedals. Don’t throw the pedals away though – just use them with discretion, LATER. I love practicing with my Strat plugged straight into a PA via a DI box – it’s so much easier to hear my playing deficiencies.

Next, get a good equalizer. My signal chain starts with a 30-band rack mount Rane EQ with a sweepable high and low cut. I know it’s overkill, but it was just sitting around after upgrading our main PA to a digital eq/crossover unit, and I’ve found it extremely useful in my guitar rig. I’ve found that basic 7-band EQ pedals don’t have enough bandwidth to really be effective – though they help! Something with 10 or more bands or even parametric capabilities will give you more options.

Here are some general EQ guidelines I’ve figured out over the years:

Roll off everything below 80hz (In live situations, the 100hz cut on most soundboards will suffice).

100Hz can bump up low end nicely if you’re palm muting, but watch out for it interfering with the bass guitar.

200 – 250Hz adds punch and fullness.

250 – 800Hz is the “mud” zone. Roll off here if your sound is muddy.

600 – 650Hz boosted can REALLY warm up a lead tone.

2.5kHz – 5kHz adds edge and bite.

5kHz – 8kHz adds clarity.

8kHz – 12kHz adds “shimmer.”

Once you have your guitar sounding the way you want it, add effects back in one at a time, dialing each until you LOVE the tone.

For “The World Will See” my signal chain typically looked like this: Guitar (Gibson Les Paul, or Fender Stratocaster) -> EQ -> Ibanez TS-808 Tube Screamer -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Peavey Classic 50/50 Tube Amp at full volume -> 1×12” Cabinet in another (padded with foam!) room -> Sennheiser e906 mic about 2 inches from the speaker -> Protools.

For most parts, this was it – if I wanted something to sound a little thicker, I just recorded the same part several times, sometimes with both guitars. For reverb I mostly just used Protools plugins after laying a part down dry. In “Almighty” and “For The Joy” I used a dot-eight delay from the digital effects section of my Digitech GSP2101. Several other songs have a quarter note delay, also from the GSP2101. Delay doesn’t really change tone – it just duplicates whatever you’re playing at a certain time interval.

Just a quick word on recording your amp with a microphone – have someone else move the mic around in the isolation room while you play and listen in the control room with headphones. An inch can make a huge difference! The center of the speaker is going to sound a little brighter, and the edge will sound much darker. People have come up with tons of rules on proper mic technique, but the only rule I really abide by is if it sounds good in your headphones in the control room, the mic placement is correct.

By the way, I highly recommend the BBE Sonic Stomp for any guitarist or bassist – it simply corrects a time-delay issue that is created in the higher frequencies of amplified sound – something called “envelope distortion.” Basically this means the lower frequencies will reach the listener’s ear before the higher ones, causing a “muddy” perception. The Sonic Stomp corrects this.

While recording our album I started using my simplified setup regularly for live performances – a little extra reverb, compression and overdrive can definitely help fill the sound out with a band, but I don’t change much for either live or recording applications. Great tone is great tone, whether live or in the studio – and it all starts in your fingers on your guitar.

-Travis

I use a Peavey Classic 50/50 amp. It’s all tube, 50 watts per channel if I’m running in stereo. I run it into two Mesa 1/12″ speaker cabinets and mic them with two Sennheiser e906 mics (the BEST guitar amp mic I’ve ever used!). I absolutely love how this amp sounds, but it’s gotta be cranked up pretty loud to take advantage of the tube sound, which creates too much sound for our stage.

I add to this volume problem by slamming the input on the amp with a huge amount of gain out of my Digitech GSP2101 preamp – this then saturates the tubes further, causing that warm even order harmonic sound that tube amp enthusiasts love.

My solution is to put things backstage. I set up my gear in the hallway behind our stage, and send in my guitar signal from the stage. I then rely on the sound person to route the guitar into my monitor on stage. Lately I’ve also been running my guitar wireless using a Shure SLX wireless system. I was a little nervous to go this route because of the added compression to the initial guitar signal that wireless inevitably adds, BUT I was pleasantly surprised at the newfound smoothness of the tone. I highly recommend it.

There are so many directions to go in choosing your rig. You can reference my article on guitar amps for more detailed information. Since writing that article, I’ve landed even more solidly on the side of the tube amp because of its natural warmth and fullness of tone. I love the sound of the larger Mesa and Marshall amps cranked up, but these aren’t that useful in church situations. There’s a ton of other smaller amps that can sound really good when cranked and miked, such as the Vox AC30 or AC15, Crate Palomino V32, etc.

In the past while leading worship at the Rock, I focused more on a heavy rock/metal side of playing, but lately since becoming our church worship director (i.e. Sunday morning service!) I’ve had to dial it back a bit and have found a more blues/rock oriented tone suits this style of music better. Think U2 – lower wattage tube amp, (In the Edge’s case, a Vox AC30) some reverb, a little delay, (or a lot, depending on the song) and that’s about it. I add some compression to lead parts, but mostly leave it off my main tone. Simplicity rather than complexity is what I’m leaning toward – pull all the effects off the guitar (including distortion!) and set the main EQ at the amp to sound as good as it can possibly sound, then start adding effects one at a time.

I hope this has been helpful. Remember as you work with your pastors, congregation, sound people, band members, etc, that you are there to serve. Let every effect you choose, every amp setting you pick, every microphone you set up reflect the glory of God to those you are leading in worship. He is the only reason we buy amps, play guitars, and sing songs. It’s all for Him.

EQ – This is the foundation to your tone, and will have the most influence on your sound – I usually have this near the beginning of the effects chain. EQ “equals out” the tone of your sound – originally designed to make up for acoustic deficiencies in acoustic instruments to get a “flat” response in recording. There’s a bunch of different types, but basically an equalizer can boost or cut the “volume” of specific frequencies in your sound. I recommend cutting over boosting, as distortion, noise, and muddiness can result if you boost too much.

Some EQ tips that can really affect your tone:

- Roll everything off below 80hz
- 100hz can add low end, but can interfere with the bass guitar
- 200hz - 250hz adds punch and fullness
- 250hz - 800hz is the “mud” zone.  Roll off here if your sound is muddy.
- 2.5kHz - 5kHz adds edge and bite
- 5kHz - 8kHz adds clarity
- 8kHz - 12kHz adds "shimmer"

Noise Gate – This will cut off the signal once it reaches a certain level, so your guitar doesn’t hum when you’re not playing. You can also use it to cut off a reverb effect, or the sweep of a flange when you’re not playing. I have this one running all the time. In the recording, note the noise that occurs, and how it just “cuts off” when the noise gate kicks in. You can also reverse this effect, and set a fade-in type of effect as you hit a note.

Compressor – One of the most important effects you can use. This will basically lower the volume of your harder hits, and increase the volume of the softer notes, so your playing sounds more even. I like to use compression for added sustain when playing lead. In this recording I compressed the clean signal first, then equalized it, ran it through distortion, subtle chorus, delay, and lots of reverb. Note the single note sustain, and how if I hold it too long, it begins to amplify more noise than tone.

Delay – Creates an echo of your guitar sound. For an example of this, listen to almost anything the Edge plays in U2. I use delay in a lot of songs for a cool doubling “ghost player” effect. Delay is also useful for legato lead playing, with the “feedback” knob turned up, it really fills out the sound, as you can hear in the “Compressor” recording. In the “Delay” recording, I have a stereo delay effect running at 0.365 seconds of delay, with feedback at only 10%. It’s the last thing in the chain before it hits the amp. Note that every note I play is doubled so it sounds like I’m playing twice as much as I actually am.

Reverb – Creates space – much like singing in a bathroom.

Chorus – this essentially duplicates your guitar sound, slightly detunes it, and plays it back, creating a thicker tone. Use it subtly unless you’ve got a specific application for it. I have three levels of chorus represented in this recording.

Flange – This creates an odd swirling sound – I sometimes mix it really low into my effect chain, but rarely use it.

Phaser – In the same family as flange – a thick modulating of the tone, created by running an oscillator across the frequency range of the input signal, then mixing the signal out of phase with the original. In this recording, I’ve got the phaser after distortion in the effects chain.

Tremolo – varies the depth and volume of the guitar signal. The speed can be adjusted to the rhythm of the song you’re playing – so if you use this, make sure to give your drummer a hint of the rhythm before he clicks off the song!

Wah – This adjusts the tone of your signal – the foot pedal can be moved up and down between bright and dark tone. It’s usually used by moving the pedal in time with the music. Auto-Wah does the same thing, but is preset with a specific time period, rather than using the foot to create the effect. This recorded example is auto-wah.

I also want to mention guitar pickup selection – most guitars are set with two pickups, one close to the neck and one close to the bridge. Controls for these typically have three positions. The neck pickup is going to give you a thicker sound, and the bridge pickup will give you a more treble sound. The third position is a blend of the two. I use the bridge pickup for distorted rhythm applications, the neck pickup or a combination of both for clean rhythm. I also use the bridge pickup for fast, crisp lead, and the neck for a really warm sustained lead sound.

With amplifiers, the first decision you must make is tube vs. solid-state. Solid-states amplify current, whereas tube amps amplify volts, and have lower input capacitance. In other words, tube amps create a sound that I’d describe as fuller sounding – warm, with a sense of space. Tubes modify and color the sound being input. Solid-state amps are much cleaner, and will reproduce the input sound as identically as possible, but don’t have the “warm” coloring that is typical of tube amps. Most “serious” players lean towards a tube amp. Hybrids have come out, combining tube preamps with solid-state amplifiers – but I haven’t really messed with these too much. Consider buying a two-channel amp – stereo effects might be something you want to mess with down the road.

In building your rig, you need to have a clear understanding of where you are going to use it. I play regularly in a room that seats 1300 and is built for an acoustic choir, so stage noise can be a big problem. As a result, I’ve chosen a smaller tube amplifier as my main amp. Tube amps sound better when cranked. You don’t need a 350 watt Marshall stack or a full head – if you use it in a small venue or low volume situation, it won’t sound that great. Less wattage will sound much better at the lower volumes, because the tubes will be more saturated.

Smaller guitar speakers produce higher frequencies than larger speakers, so in general, a 10″ speaker is going to have more clarity, or “top end” than a 15″ speaker. A 12” speaker is pretty standard. Personal preference will dictate here, just remember that your 4×12 cabinet might frustrate your sound guy when he finds out your stage volume is louder than what’s coming out of the P.A! Your fellow band members might also complain that they can’t hear anything but you. Not to mention it’ll be hard to lug up and down those stairs and out to the car every week! Power is actually more of a concern than size when considering speakers – lower wattage speakers will break up nicely – meaning distorting a little easier at lower volumes, which sounds sort of cool, but won’t be as smooth as higher wattage speakers. Again, personal preference. Try before you buy.

Electric guitars obviously need to end up being put through a P.A. at some point – you can do this by micing cabinets, or you can forget all this amp stuff and utilize the amp modeling technology that’s been coming out lately. I’ve played with a Line 6 POD XT Live – and it actually sounds pretty good – thin, but fine if you’re not a purist. Modeling is a good option if stage volume is a huge problem. If stage volume isn’t a problem, or isn’t MUCH of a problem, I’d always choose to mic an amp. You’ll have a warmer, fuller sound, more punch, and more control of your tone. Also, use an amp stand, lean the amp back and point the cone right at your face. You’ll have much more control this way.

Micing an amp can really affect the sound that comes out of the P.A. I recommend first of all getting great tone out of your amp before even touching a microphone. If you send a muddy signal to the soundboard, it’ll sound muddy in the P.A. No amount of EQ from the soundboard can fix bad tone. Also, don’t overwhelm your sound by sending too much bass tone through your guitar cabinet – it’ll just make things muddy. Run your EQ pretty flat, and maybe even take some of the lows out for more clarity. Your sound person can add some lows if they need to, and it’ll sound much smoother done from the board. Take into account that the bass guitar in the band really should provide the lows you’re looking for. Think of the overall band “sound.” Since you’re playing live when you lead worship, direct micing with a Sure Beta 57 mic in front of the speaker, pointed right at the center will provide your best sound. Pointing straight at the speaker will give your mic better isolation, there won’t be as much stage bleed – if you point the mic off axis, you can round off some of the highs and add some lows, but you should just do this from your master EQ before micing, as getting it right each week can be problematic.

Remember that everyone has different tastes, and be willing to work with your sound personnel, your worship leader, and the rest of the band. If they say your amp is too loud, it probably is. Be humble and learn to play at a lower volume. As we dive into the extremely subjective topic of effects in the next article, I’d like to caution you – don’t have an over-reliance on your amp or your effects. Remember that the ultimate sound of your guitar is in your fingers, not in your equipment.

Next article: Effects!

I’ve never really considered myself a guitar tech guy. I have definite standards for sound though. I started off with an acoustic guitar about 13 years ago. I used to plug it into a karaoke machine in my room in junior high, turn it up all the way for “distortion,” and play. A few years later I got a cheap electric guitar and invested in a solid state Fender 12″ amp. I couldn’t ever figure out how to make it sound right, so I didn’t play it too much. It had two channels, clean, and distorted – I wanted to use the distortion, of course, but it made a lot of noise between notes and didn’t respond the way I heard electric guitars sound on recordings I liked.

In the meantime I began leading worship in junior high for a Young Life group – I was just planning on singing, since that’s what I was into, but the leader practically forced me to bring my acoustic guitar as well and taught me the basic open chords. I would sit and wait for a chord I knew to come along in the song, strum for a bit, then stop and wait for another chord I knew. The next few years were spent playing and singing every week, eventually I was put in charge of the entire thing, and eventually formed a whole band that played each week.

I had an old Gallien-Krueger bass amp that I’d plug my acoustic guitar into – and noticed for some reason it sounded better with the “compressor” button pressed, and something called “chorus” added. But if I added too much chorus, it sounded out of tune. At this point I hadn’t really heard of compression, preamps, noise gates, delays, or reverb. I only knew the sound I liked, and I couldn’t figure out how to create it. The bass amp came as close as I’d ever heard, so I stuck with it for awhile. Later, I met some really good guitarists that introduced me to effects. I also was involved in recording a bunch of albums, and closely followed the engineers around as they set things up and mixed. I took a break from guitar when we started the Rock in Fort Collins, and played bass guitar for three years – then we sent a church plant to Amsterdam, and I ended up back on guitar, leading the band. At this point I bought a whole bunch of guitar gear, and with other guitarist friends (one of which is now a professional sound engineer), I experimented and finally got the sound I’d been hearing for so many years.

So down to the nitty gritty. Leading worship with guitar. I’m going to primarily focus on electric guitar, since that’s the majority of what I play.

The first thing of importance when leading worship with guitar is PRACTICE. Practice a lot. Buy a metronome and set the correct tempo for the song you are rehearsing, and play with the metronome. You won’t believe the difference this will make in your playing! The more you practice, the less you are distracted by the mechanics of what you’re doing. Your band practice time can literally be cut in half if you practice beforehand. You will be much more effective at worshipping while you play because you won’t have to worry about your technique.

Here are things you need when playing electric guitar, which I will dive into with depth in a couple of future articles:

1. A good electric guitar. Don’t skimp in this area – play before you buy, plug it in, see how it feels. Listen for bad intonation, electronics, etc. Plan on spending money here.

2. Good strings. I replace mine every two or three weeks. Some guys I know replace them before every gig they play.

3. A good amp. More on this later.

4. Effects. More on this later as well.

5. A tuner. Preferably a stomp box such as Boss’s TU-2.

Check back again soon for the next article: Leading with guitar – Guitar Amplifiers!

Guitars:

acoustics: Taylor 310CE (2004), Fender DG20CE (2000), Custom Made Yamaha D series (my dad made it himself in the late 70’s)

electrics: Gibson Blueshawk (1997), Fender tex-mex Telecaster (1999), Fender Strat (1991)

Amps:

Fender HotRod DeVille Fender Deluxe 112

Pedals

Ibanez TS9 Boss Digital Delay Dunlop Cry Baby MXR Phase 90 Marshall Gov’Nor

I also have a slew of recording equipment (mics, rack effects, etc…)

I record on my Powerbook G4 15″ 1.67GHz

Over the years I’ve played both electric and acoustic, but ever since I got my Taylor I find mysel playing acoustic a lot more frequently )

• Taylor 414ce
• Rickenbacker 330 jetglow
• Danelectro Pro 56 (for slide guitar)

My Amp:

• Fender Blues Jr. –this is a wonderful little amp for the price.

My Effects:

• Boss Tu Tuner
• Vox Wah
• Digitech Hot Rod Distortion
• Boss D6 Delay

Other stuff:

• Roland Keyboad (I have no idea what model)
• Korg Kaoss Pad (this is so fun)