The perfect tone starts with your instrument but goes way further. Learn all the secrets here!

Often, someone will comment in my song tutorials: Hey, Justin, how do you get this perfect guitar tone? Well, my friend - that's not an easy answer. There's a lot of tone in your guitar… it all starts there! And then - so many possibilities and stuff to explore.

🎸 Guitar Tone is a big topic - and we want to get that very right! So, we'll need more than just one lesson to get a good answer to that big question. For today, we'll focus on the tones in your instrument! Follow this Beginner Guitar Course to continue this series. We've got loads to discover. :)

The tone really is a big deal. The amps and effects play a big role in your guitar sound too. In fact, a cheaper guitar plugged into an awesome amp is likely to sound good - but the opposite is not true! If you have a great guitar, but your amp isn't good, you probably won't get an incredible sound.

So, what's the best guitar for you? 🤔

The one that feels good to you. When I'm shopping for a new guitar, its feeling is the main feature. You have to enjoy the way your guitar looks, and it feels against your body. Trust me - that all makes a difference. Learn more about how to shop for your perfect guitar!

Ok - you've got your instrument. What next? How to get a great guitar tone? That passes through a series of things - and we'll explore each one next. Let's go!

Guitar Tone: Your Strings Matter!

The truth is that the perfect guitar tone starts with your strings! Yes, that's right - the strings you choose will modify the tone you get. I always thought that fat, thicker strings would mean a big tone - but that doesn't seem to be true! I've lately been playing an SG guitar, and that made me realize the science of thicker strings = fatter sound was wrong.

💭 My SG has 8-gauge strings - and that's crazily thin. Still, it sounds massive. :) Apparently, Angus Young uses ultralight strings - the same for Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top) and many other great guitar players.

So, don't assume that thicker strings will sound more massive than thinner strings. They might in some circumstances... but not in my real-world experience... try it and see for yourself. Always trust your own ears over other people's words!

The Best String Gauge for You

10-gauge strings are usually my go-to, but you should experiment and see what works best for you. When I get a new guitar, I have to work out and experiment with different stuff before deciding. And that's part of the process of getting the perfect guitar tone!

The string's brand probably makes some difference in your tone, but experiment and try different ones too. D'Addario is my go-to, but different strings will work differently in different guitars. Try and see it yourself. :)

🎸Playing an acoustic guitar? That's not the focus of this lesson, but I should mention that each of my acoustic guitars has a different string type on it! Whether it's a phosphor, bronze, or 80/20 string, you'll have to experiment and see what's going to work best with that particular guitar.

Sometimes, using an 8-gauge string or a 9-gauge string is too easy, and I won't be able to play vibratos or specific techniques the way I'd like to. So, also keep in mind what you'll be playing and which strings will help you get the sound you're searching for. So - try and listen. Luckily, you already know how to restring your guitar!

The Best Guitar Pickups

A pickup is this little thing on your guitar that picks up the sound from the strings' vibration. There are different pickups, and they'll sound different on each instrument. So, for this lesson, we'll take my main electric guitar, a customized Gray Guitar, and we'll explore its pickups - but consider this information relating it to your instrument!

This guitar has a Humbucker - a splittable humbucker that sounds like a single-coil pickup. It also has a classic pickup, very common in strat guitars. So, the humbucker is essentially two single coils stuck together. You can get pretty noisy when you have that, especially with an amp - I'm using a Kemper Profile today!

💡In a nutshell, you'll find that a single coil has a lot of noise attached to it, and a humbucker doesn't! They sound very different too, and having a guitar with both is quite common now, particularly more contemporary guitars.

This setup ends up very versatile, but your goal is to understand the pickups and doing. That's how you'll be able to get the perfect guitar tone!

🎸 Radio Shop is a great company from Wales with awesome pickups. They're not a budget pickup, but it's one of those upgrades that can be game-changing. ;)

So, it might be worth doing some research on that, but that's the different types of pickups generally. Also, be aware that the pickup position changes the final tone - check out the video tutorial to listen to it and understand pickup positions!

What About That Volume Knob?

The volume button in your guitar will also change the tone you're getting. You should tweak it until you find the perfect spot: it's the one that clears your sound (or that gives you all the distortion if you really want that!)

The amount of volume you send to the amplifier affects everything, so explore that little button to see what will work best in a specific situation. Be aware that the sound you send to the amplifier has a big impact on the final result of your tone - so get things right with your instrument first!

And The Tone Knob?

The tone knob on your guitar will define how much treble you get. That will make you sound fat or scratchy. The default here is to have it all up, but experiment with dropping back and boosting tops on your guitar amp!

💡One of the tricks with tone control is to back the tone off to 6 or 7. Then, you'll turn the treble up on the amp. You'll end up with the same sound, but then you can boost your treble by turning the tone up.

Check out the video lesson to learn more tricks - we'll also get a good look at my Gibson SG. That's a lot to consider, eh? :) But again - the word here is experiments.

It's a good idea to go to your local music store to try out a bunch of different guitars, especially if you're in the market for buying a new one. Let's face it - aren't we all, all the time?

Ready for more? Let's transcribe your first song!