The guitarists thread

[Keith Richard]

I'm surprised that there isn't one of these already. I'm by no stretch of the imagination a "guitarist", but I enjoy nothing more than cranking out riffs and power chords. I don't really know the pick up system at all and how the selection of pick ups affects the sound, so anyone who can educate me on that will earn themselves a pint or two. Also, when tuning down, what's the best method? Does putting a capo on the first fret and tuning to regular tune do the job?

Any tips, recommendations, advice is always welcomed. Also, anyone wanting input from the more experienced players here should post on this thread also.[/b]

[geordierussell]

A couple o things to get you started.

1. Tuning.
There are lots of variations on tuning.
Ginger/WH generally down tune half a step (Standard tuning is E-A-D-G-B-E. When tuned down a half step, it is tuned to Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb)
The other popular re-tuning is dropped D. Drop D tuning is when you lower the Low E string (6th string) from E down a full step to D. All the rest of the notes are the same as in standard tuning.

For best results, I would recommed a good tuner. I have a Fender amp with a built in tuner. Works a treat.

2. Pickups.
Where the hell do you start? What guitar do you have and what type of pickups has it got.
Theses factors all impact on the overall tone and sound quality.
There are several tone factors for pickups: single-coil vs. double-coil, non-humbucking vs. humbucking, position between the neck and bridge, and when two pickups are used together, whether they are in series or parallel and whether they are in phase or out of phase. Sorry Keith, it's a bit of a minefield.
If you have a Strat with single coil pickup then the sound will be thicker at the neck pickups than at the bridge where you get a little more tone, but less feeling.

At the end of the day it's all about finding the sound that you like.

Personally I perfer pickup selected towards the bridge.

Gonna stop typing for now, as I am knackered.

[Ross]

Tuning down will generally give you a bassier and less "clean" sound. The drop D is used by bands from Soundgarden to Rage Against The Machine. It makes it easier to quickly play powerchords and get some badass riffing going. You could also go the way of Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age and tune right down. They tune down to C, which is two steps below standard tuning. That gives you the "farting" guitar sound so popular with stoner rock bands. You generally need a fuzz distortion and a very good amp to handle the low frequencies (I recommend an Ampeg).

Tuning down and using a capo will do nothing but make the stirings easier to bend. If you'e simply riffing, tuning down to D gives you a lower note to go and a generally "darker" sound. You can also try other different tunings.
Open G which is (low to high) D G D G B D Keith Richards uses this tuning without the low D string, and it's also perfect for slide guitar as it works well with a one finger barre. Another tasty tuning is the one D G C G C(up) D which Led Zeppelin use for The Rain Song. It's lovely and dissonant and bit ethereal. Or this, which Soundgarden use (on Pretty Noose and Burden in Your Hand C G C G G(up) E which is again good for one finger barre chords.

There's enough variation to keep you going for ages.