I Felt REALLY Stupid For Using THIS Much Gain Until I Heard THIS from MISHA MANSOOR

I think with gain it's all about EQ, as usual. "Too much gain" often just means that certain frequencies get amplified too much. When it sounds too harsh and sharp you just roll of some high end. If it's too Muddy and dark with lots of gain you take out low-mid/bass. But other than that it's just a form of style. There are certain genres that might require lots of gain and for me lead tones are the best when the amp is edge of break up and then you stack one or two distortion pedals on top so you get to overtone heaven :D
One place where I hear people use too much gain is classic rock like AC/DC or Led Zep. They have a heavy tone, but it's not too much gain. Sounds more like mixing a really dirty and almost clean channel together (Angus and Malcom).

Why isn't anyone charged with Contempt for the Abrego Garcia case?

The slight breakup when you dig in is priceless. I’ve set this up similarly on my Nobels ODR-Mini and my Wampler Tumnus. I switch between them for different flavors. I got this tone from your playing. Cheers!

10?
11 is one better!!

Real answer is: all the gain.

I'm a guy that say it depends lol. When I'm playing with digital amps and stuff I use clean amps for cleans, but when I'm using a real amp I always go to the crunch channel and get the gain down until it's clean with a tiny bit of hair there. I can't remember where I got that tip, but it worked fantasticly for me, specially with orange amps.

Gain doesn't not equal good necessarily. Believe it or not the volume and gain knobs are usually separate for a reason.

Also what are you using the pedal for matters. Are you boosting the amp to get amp distortion or are you using a pedal to create distortion?

That’s some tasty phrasing

I don't like too much gain because it can really mess with dynamics. Depends on what one is trying to achieve.

Dude, if you want to use more gain then use more gain. You shouldn’t have any weird feelings about that. Maybe that’s a Brit thing. Here in the US nobody gives a flying rats ass what your pedals/amps are set at.

Right man! Clean is clean. The typical phrase " this is my clean sound" is usually a joke!

"Use less gain" mostly stems from metal guitarists trying to sound like the records they listen to, which is impossible because those are double/quad tracked with a bass guitar on top.
Not sure how the advice made its way into fusion jazz circles, or whatever sphere you're in. If anything, not using enough gain is a problem more often if you're not playing metal - clean electric guitar is about as exciting of an instrument as dry toast bread is an exciting food.

Out of all the videos I've seen of yours, I've never once thought too much gain was being used. Granted, I am a hard rock/metal player primarily, but I have seen countless situations where most definitely too much gain was used.

I also don't typically see you play much rhythm stuff, and I think that is where the issue of gain is more critical. You're only using too much gain when the precision of what you're doing is getting lost, the attack is messy, the transients are buried, etc. IMO anyway.

The suggestion of using as little gain as possible also seems to apply more to tracking than anything else. For hard stuff, less gain on individual tracks can sound more powerful when layering guitars.

all the Nashville people use edge of breakup set amps 🤷

Love some sag. Excellent comparison w/ the Gibson & dirty blonde super strat, lol. Aye Bo you nearsided, farsided, er them bi-focals? And what’s the portrait next to the unknown candle?

There is no such thing as too much gain...lol😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

I bet you could make a metal zone sound like you. Mad respect to you!

What is that Nux pedal with the meter? Struggling to find it.

2 very important things to consider........EVERYTHING in the chain makes a difference, and its totally up to you how it is set up for the way you want it.

The advice for less gain is about rock and metal rhythm guitar. Because in reality, less compression makes more aggression

Did John coin a phrase here today with the phrase "Studio rats"? Haha I know he doesn't mean in an offensive way, but it is pretty accurate

It's all about touch if you like a lot of gain❤

I've noticed there's often less gain for recording purposes and more for playing live. I feel like use whatever you like to use. EVH dimed Marshalls with a Boss 10 band cranked up into the front as well as the Echoplex which added some boosting too, and on his own line of amps, he cranked the gain up pretty good for something that has tons of gain already. I don't recall anyone telling him he was doing it wrong.

It's better to use your ears than your eyes when dialing in tones. Modelers should have a easy built-in way to "audition" and dial in tones without having to divide one's attention between playing and listening. I just had an interesting Chat with Gemini AI about how to do that using the HX Stomp "Returns as Input," and an external Looper or sound source. This avoids having to add any Blocks to the existing Preset.

Very good basic message. When it comes to tone - don't be so effin' anxious about what others do or say. Find your own tone. You and your starting point is unique. Max out a Klon if you like it. I'd like to see someone scientific inclined person dispel the Internet myth of stacking overdrives.. Tell people to be themselves. Don't waste your life trying to impersonate somebody else who probably have a totally different vantage point. Find your own way.

Almost everyone uses way too much gain. I like to be able to tell what guitar I'm playing or listening to. Obviously, single note lines push the amp less so a little more gain on leads might make sense.

Its to do with recording studio, too much gain turns everything to mush in the mix. Especially when you ste layering multiple guitars

I like your playing best when I hear more of you and the guitar. More tone, dynamics and articulation. Many people players (not all) hide behind high gain, delay and reverb because they’re not nearly as good as they’d like to be and that setup flatters them, even to themselves. You don’t need to. Yes, choose the sound that inspires you for the piece or the piece inspired by the sound, but your very best playing and creativity come from restraint in the gain/fx dept. It’s very much less is more with you

I use waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more gain than you John. Don’t sweat it.

The "don't max out your gain" advice is meant for little kids who are running a Boss Metal Zone into a Line6 Spider on the "insane" setting, not for serious players

Holdsworth used massive amounts of gain!

Low vol u may need more gain for sustain needed but at loud vols you get sustain from the level so not as much gain needed

Why don’t you just put a top hat on and get a bottle of Jack Daniels why don’t you using that much gain. That’s it I’m call the FBGG federal burro of guitar gain. 🫵🏼😎🎸👮🏻👮‍♀️👮🏻‍♂️🚓

You’re a great player regardless of how much gain you use. I have watched all your stuff and can’t recall ever thinking, “He’s using too much or too little gain.” You have built your own style and it works well.
Have you ever tried playing with a brighter tone than your usual? It may add another dimension when needed.

Depends on type of tune. I think the OD farts out pushing a TS. If I have to use a TS, liked paring it. If one does Stevie Ray… it’s TS into a clean Fender. Although, I use way more overdrive with a Klon especially with a humbucking

Gain at 8. Control the sound with the knobs on the guitar.

I’m stuck in a terrible in between. I need enough gain so my palm mutes don’t sound like wet cardboard but then my gain is too much for the rest of the song. I don’t like deriving my gain sounds from a pedal. I own 30-40 drive/gain pedals and have yet to find one that will meet my admittedly picky needs. I’ve been searching for an acceptable compromise for years and the never ending search for tone continues.

putting a few guitar vids on you tube/facebook myself,most of the feedback is positive,but you get the odd detractor,a guy commented,ok,but a bit difficult to hear the tone with all those fx,that old chesnut,the mark knopler guys.didnt take the bait,though i do play clean as well,acoustic and spanish.but if i had bothered to reply,i would have said er tony iommi has allways used lots of gain,distortion,that is his tone,and when he plays clean bits,he still has a bit of chorus on it as well,er jimi hendrix,lots of fx,again ,part of his sound and tone.if you want to hear guitar straight into amp,then you have to listen to early electric blues recordings,in the 60s everyone adopted effects,as the guitar became more upfront,not to kill the tone,but to enhance it,and explore new sounds.even knoplers early clean tone,probably had some kind of fx on it,dave gilmour,also quoted as a tone master,plays through a massive.expensive rack,and a bank of pedals to get his tone,where clean or dirty,if you want to hear gilmors amp to guitar tone,then you have to listen to early floyd,and even then he was using a couple of pedals,all these clean country guys have tons of compression on their tone,but i reckoned i couldnt be bothered arguing

The more sustain you want? The more compression or gain you need. The more dynamic range or articulation you want? The less.

Like EJ, i LOVE MO than enuff, n i do NOT care what ANYONE else thinks, my chops are OB not legendary, but ive had a few golden moments like everyone, and for the LOVE of GOD just have FUN, cuz, it gets us ...............................ALL in the end......................

I've also recently introduced more gain into my rhythm tones and they now just sit considerably better in the mix, especially for more single note stuff.

The humbuckers from 9 min on sound glorious.. full thick..

Nice playing, John!

Your lead tones tend to have the highs rolled off, so you can afford more gain, because there isn't as much of the high frequency hash you end up with with lots of drive. Hell, Gilmour uses a load of bricks amount of gain with the muff style fuzz pedals he uses, and he has the highs dialed in just right there to have the sustain he needs for his fewer but longer note phrases.
When you play rhythm parts in your backing tracks, I have heard you use lower gain stuff like a blues breaker or blues driver, with more bite. I think you have your gain right where it feels right to you and sounds right to me for whatever my opinion is worth lol.

I prefer setting the gain with the guitar’s volume slightly rolled off (using a treble bleed circuit) and then dynamically adjusting the volume based on the part I’m playing..

Nice Krantz inspired licks

I think this really demonstrates major differences in the approach to the instrument. It adds to the individuality of how guitarists sound.

You are right. I don't think its right or wrong, but its whatever works for your playing style and what you like. Our individuality comes through in many ways.