Do your tastes change?

mystixboi1

mystixboi1

Kick Henry Jackassowski
So, i'm sure some of you think I'm pretty fickle with my gear. One thing that's pretty constant in my guitars usually have 2 humbuckers and I run my gain pretty hot.

Recently, however, I got my Vintage Summer of Love Strat. I can't stop playing it. I love the tone of the single coils. Sure, sometimes I miss the added beefiness and sustain of having two humbuckers, but having the single coils is so refreshing. It's causing me to slow down and work on my technique and feel more. They don't cover up the mistakes!!!

Also, I'm using less and less gain. I love hearing the character of the guitar itself more.

I still find playing with 2 humbuckers and a good amount of gain more my style, but I'm really digging single coil tones more and more.

How about you?
 
Yeah, tastes change, sure.

Also, GAS takes over every once in a while, and you have to scratch that itch.....
 
After playing and listening to a lot more 90s - 2000s rock I have found that I like a bit more grit on my drive tone that I did maybe 5 years ago. I bought a Rat clone and love it after a decade of pretty much only TS type pedals. I have toned the drive down a bit as well, but I still like to crank it up at times.
 
I'd say that my tastes have changed, but in increments, and not by a lot. I am more open to an acoustic with a pickup as pickup sound has improved. I am a bit more open to electric guitar, but not distorted guitar. So, in a word, kinda...
 
Absolutely. I go through pretty intense phases with gear. It started with Fenders, then it was Carvins, then Heritage, then boutiques, and now it's mostly PRS. My preferred neck carve has changed considerably too. I used to like skinny necks, and now I love the fatties.
 
Mine has been pretty set for a long time. I like single coils and amps on the verge of breakup. I like to hit it with some fuzz and reverb and occasionally some modulation.
 
I did a lot of exploring 10 years ago via my Rickenbacker and Telecaster. They're both great and have their place, but I'm a humbucker guy. The PRS and Ibanezes are where it's at for me.
 
Help!I'maRock! said:
I did a lot of exploring 10 years ago via my Rickenbacker and Telecaster. They're both great and have their place, but I'm a humbucker guy. The PRS and Ibanezes are where it's at for me.
Click to expand...

Is that because you like the sound of humbuckers more, or because of the shitty wiring in venues?
 
Not really. Sure, My tastes widen, but it's not like I suddenly start playing single-coiled Strats or Jazzmasters with P90s :embarrassed:
 
I would say a heavily overdrive amp and humbuckers is my staple, but I've always liked having some variety, especially when recording at home.
 
I'm not sure my tastes change, as much as it is that as I continue learning, I may become aware of something that I didn't know before. I might a piece of gear that gets me closer to what I want to here, or a recognition that the shape of a neck or specific scale makes it easier for me to learn something (Barre chords on a PRS wide thin neck with a 25" scale are effortless for me). I don't know if that's a change in taste, or a recognition that there are various tools available for the journey.
 
I own different guitars with different configurations for different applications. They all sound different and I love that. I don't have a configuration that I favor over another because the sound color dictates how I will play and approach that instrument. My pedal choices and amps are setup that way too. Give me the genre I am playing and I will bring gear appropriate for that type of gig. I have carried up three guitars to a gig along with 2-3 amps pending.
 
I'm pretty much a single coil guy. It's just the nature of the music I like to play. But that covers a pretty broad spectrum when you consider the range of sounds you can get having a Strat and a Tele at your disposal. The only HB equipped guitars I have are a Sheraton and a single humbucker SG that officially belongs to one of my daughters. But, yeah, mostly singles/Fenders. Pedals? I just plug straight in. Then again, I just play at home. I can imagine how one's preferences might go out the window if you're a gigging musician. You gotta use what covers the most ground.
 
Much of it for me has been the style of music I used to listen to vs what I listen to and play now.

I went from Hair Metal and weedly weedly rock to funk, dance, and reggae. Single coils just slice through the band mix. I'm using less gain for most of the song unless I'm playing a solo or have some delay going. I still like my humbucker guitars, but I just don't gig with them much.
 
I like to try new sounds and styles. After so many years of the signature OGG high gain, super wet chorus and delay saturation sound, it's benefitted my playing immeasurably to just turn all that shit off. I will always gravitate to that signature tone, but I get huge satisfaction from working outside that box.
 
I've gone from tech whore (Godin LGXT running into an iMac, a Roland guitar synth, and an acoustic amp) to a Telecaster into a Princeton.

Mind you, I still have both of those setups. The Swiss Army knife philosophy can be useful for certain jobs. But "less is more" is way more fun and does the most for your playing.
 
Guitars of various types (bolt on or set with HBs or singles) into amps with tube or solid state power sections...I'm generally happy. Mostly clean/cleaner tones with lower gain when desired as the general rule. When I first started playing it was hard rock and metal, so higher gain was defacto, but it's been decades since I did that.

I spend most of my time playing acoustics and I dig six & 12-strings, as well as nylon strings. Yet as I've mentioned a few times since Christmas, I'm playing uke most of time these days. I also like playing bass, but only have a Godin A5 (fretted).
 
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