Bright unplugged tone

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Not sure if this is the right area for this, but .....

I’ve noticed that when I strum different guitars open and unplugged, the tone is relatively close on all except my LPJ home build which is noticeably brighter. 

I don’t know how to quantify it, but would liken it to playing a guitar open and then the same chord at the 12th fret? That order of brighter (octave?) although perhaps not quite that extreme.

The guitar is chambered mahogany with a single Mojo Alnico 5 P90. It has a Gotoh 510 wrap around bridge in chrome finish. Currently even with the tone dialled right out it is very bright.

i would like to take out just some of the brightness if possible. Any suggestions please?
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Comments

  • WhistlerWhistler Frets: 322
    Having then tone dialled right out will make no difference when playing a guitar unplugged.

    Thicker plectrums will give you a fuller sound. Might I suggest you try one of the thicker Dunlop Nylon Standard Guitar Plectrums
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  • TADodgerTADodger Frets: 211
    Yes, sorry, I probably should have been clear that I meant the tone dialled out has little effect When Plugged In, thanks for pointing that out.

    will try a thicker pick, but was hoping for some more base solutions. 

    For example, post spacing allowing, what are thoughts on whether a light alloy wrap around bridge would help, or, hinder?
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  • earwighoneyearwighoney Frets: 3489
    TADodger said:
    Not sure if this is the right area for this, but .....

    I’ve noticed that when I strum different guitars open and unplugged, the tone is relatively close on all except my LPJ home build which is noticeably brighter. 

    I don’t know how to quantify it, but would liken it to playing a guitar open and then the same chord at the 12th fret? That order of brighter (octave?) although perhaps not quite that extreme.

    The guitar is chambered mahogany with a single Mojo Alnico 5 P90. It has a Gotoh 510 wrap around bridge in chrome finish. Currently even with the tone dialled right out it is very bright.

    i would like to take out just some of the brightness if possible. Any suggestions please?
    Maybe try a different pickup? Maybe something with alnico 2 or 4 magnets? 

    Maybe change the pots to 250k if it's 500K? 
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  • steamabacussteamabacus Frets: 1258
    edited April 2019
    As stated above, lower value pots (both volume and tone) will take off some high end. This is a good video explaining what you would expect from putting in new pots ...



    HOWEVER ...

    You state

    "Currently even with the tone dialled right out it is very bright."

    Assuming the tone control is working, there is no way it should be "very bright" when totally rolled off. It should be very muffled. Which leads me to wonder whether you are actually talking about an excess of top end? - or whether you really mean that there is a lack of low end frequencies?

    If the problem is a lack of low end frequencies, try raising the action a little, heavier strings or, ultimately a different pickup or change of hardware. There is a limit to how much can be achieved with a particular guitar though. Changing pickups gives the greatest potential for tonal change but it's not always easy to predict exactly what that change will be.





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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71951
    TADodger said:

    i would like to take out just some of the brightness if possible. Any suggestions please?
    Some guitars are just naturally bright - it's in the wood usually. There's almost certainly nothing you can do about it other than try a different bridge.

    Or use rolled-wound or flatwound strings.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • TADodgerTADodger Frets: 211
    Thanks for all the tips. I was thinking of swapping the bridge for a Gotoh aluminium wraparound as it has the same post spacing as the current CP one.
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  • crunchmancrunchman Frets: 11411
    What frets have you got.  Stainless Steel can be very bright - some would say harsh.  There is a school of thought that says very large jumbo frets sound brighter as well.
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  • DanielsguitarsDanielsguitars Frets: 3260
    tFB Trader
    i made a dc junior that is really noticeably brighter sounding unplugged than anything else, it's a great tone plugged in and using both vol and tone controls has worked great through my 18watt lite
    www.danielsguitars.co.uk
    (formerly customkits)
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  • TADodgerTADodger Frets: 211
    Thanks, frets are jumbo-ish stainless steel. 

    I think that that it must be a combination of things. I will try a lightweight wraparound and other suggestions. 

    I play it through one of Rift Amps Brownie 5’s and have found that by adding my Peacekeeper in front I can dial in a good articulate tone. 

    FWIW - The same amp and pedal with a Strat is really lovely.
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  • crunchmancrunchman Frets: 11411
    TADodger said:
    Thanks, frets are jumbo-ish stainless steel. 


    This is probably a lot of your problem.
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  • FreebirdFreebird Frets: 5821
    edited April 2019
    As stated above, lower value pots (both volume and tone) will take off some high end. This is a good video explaining what you would expect from putting in new pots ...

    It looks more like a photo to me 
    If we are not ashamed to think it, we should not be ashamed to say it.
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  • steamabacussteamabacus Frets: 1258
    Freebird said:
    As stated above, lower value pots (both volume and tone) will take off some high end. This is a good video explaining what you would expect from putting in new pots ...

    It looks more like a photo to me 
    Sorry, the link broke when I edited the post.

    Fixed now. :)
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  • FreebirdFreebird Frets: 5821
    Freebird said:
    It looks more like a photo to me 
    Sorry, the link broke when I edited the post.

    Fixed now. :)
    Thanks  :)
    If we are not ashamed to think it, we should not be ashamed to say it.
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