Quite often you will see a conversation on the internet – usually started by a meme – that ends up with a few people arguing that playing isn’t all about the gear, it’s about the player. But what happens when the gear transforms the player? Here is a short piece sent to us regarding this by a moderator of our tone group on Facebook, Andrew Gordon. 

“Can a new guitar pedal really make you a better player?
If you had asked me this question two months ago I would have “No! Don’t be ridiculous!” But since finding a couple of key pedals that really work for me I appear to have levelled up in my playing. Now, is it the pedal that is making me play better or is it that I am playing more and understanding more and really starting to find myself as a player?

I think the answer is, in fact, both, but it may not have happened without that pedal.

Let me put some context to this, I play the guitar as a hobby and buying and selling gear has also been my hobby for several years. Of late I’ve finally got an interest in theory and becoming a better player than I currently am. I’ve been watching more theory videos on youtube than gear videos and really trying to implement what I am learning. I have hit a point where I feel I have a much better understanding of some of the theory and where and how I can actually use it. It appears that you really do get out what you put in and you would think at my age that this would be a no-brainer, but if I am being honest I let the gear chase get in the way of actually playing and getting better. I’ve not only seen this in myself but I have seen it some of my other “tone chaser” friends and even some in real life too! It’s easy to lose sight of what’s really important, playing. 

It’s been quite a few years since I have been in a band and I am starting to feel now that it is really time to get something together not only to have fun and jam, but to keep getting better as a player and to also make my gear relevant apart from my love of it.

But how did a pedal bring on this realistic revelation?

It started with one video on youtube about one pedal and I watched it over and over and over again to point where I pinpointed the exact sound that I had been hearing in my head for the last five years or so, but I had finally heard it in gear. I have chased many different tones over the years but this one had always been what I thought was my “core” tone. A while back I found out that I am a better player on Telecaster, I don’t know exactly why or how this happened as I always thought I was a strat player and that was it. But again I was wrong. For some reason, I am more melodic, more honest and expressive player with better tone on a Tele. I ordered the pedal at my local store and waited for its release. Once I got it and plugged it in and dialled it in over a couple of days something had changed. I was playing better! I was sounding better too!

Now we all love chasing tone, I know I do but sometimes the chase is not as good as the results you can achieve. The truth is you need to chase gear to find out what makes you, you, and how you can get to the point where you are sounding and feeling your best. It can take some time to find the right gear, but you also need to put the time in getting to know how the gear works for you properly rather than just playing it for a weekend and then flipping it straight away. It’s kind of like finding your life partner, it takes time and effort and you do get what you put in. Happy chasing and finding the tone zone.”

I’ve read this a few times and finding myself agreeing with it more the more I re-read it. The reason I relate to it personally so much is because the latest interpretation of my tone, from my gig board, has complete revitalised my playing. I use three gain stages on my board, the Tumnus and the Paisley Deluxe. I was previously using the Dual Fusion instead of the PaisleyDog, but needed some more ‘grunt’ so swapped it out when the PaisleyDog was released. What I found is that because the UnderDog side is more gainy, more aggressive, I was starting to dig into my guitar more and finding more inspiration when improvising with the band. Not only did this make me sound more convincing in being me, I was also setting up my rig at home to just play it more. When I do this, I found that because I relating to my tone that much more I was wanting to learn more about what I was playing… Now, I’m no slouch when it comes to music theory, but then again, Tom Quayle is one of my favourite friends so I am painfully aware that I actually know very little. The more I played, the more I was analyzing what I was playing and then looking up teaching sites to work out what I was doing… this then pushed me into new areas which pushed me into more and the cycle of learning is now at it’s most prominent it’s ever been. The more I enjoy my tone, the more I play. The more I play, the more I wonder how I can make myself sound more interesting. The more I make myself sound more interesting, the more I want to make myself sound even more interesting. So, as far as Andrew and I are concerned, that by way of inspiration to play, gear can and does make you a better player.