What is tone?

IsambardKentucky · April 27

After reading a guitar advert claiming that the instrument 'captured all the tone you ever imagined', I wondered: what exactly is 'tone'?

If understood as the quality or character of a sound produced by an instrument, it refers to the specific sonic traits that differentiate one instrument from another or give it a distinctive sound. However, can guitars have more 'tone' than others? And can this elusive quality even be quantified?

OilCityPickups · April 27

This can of worms has been opened so many times the worms are getting photophobic ...

elstoof · April 27

It’s the knob next to the volume, usually

daisie_guitar · April 27

Comes from the tonewoods and mojo...

Lewy · April 27

…baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, no more

guitargeek62 · April 27

It’s a social construct.

guitars4you · April 27

It certainly can't be quantified by any acceptable measurable factor - But that doesn't mean it doesn't exist - We probably all have different expectations of what we are expecting and/or looking for when we try and guitar - Add to that different styles of play and genres of music we like to explore

Some instruments are more of a one trick pony than others - But that isn't bad news either as that one killer tone in a specific guitar maybe its forte - Ricky 12 string for instance

Take an acoustic guitar - So no amp, pedals, pick-ups and maybe in an easy way we can say it has one 'potential' voice in it - Yet with a good acoustic guitar you can change that inherent tone, by how you play it, pick/strum it near the neck or bridge and indeed who is playing it - A good acoustic is loaded with emotion, soul and expression - Often its limits is us

Play 2 good CS Strats with the same spec - Yet both can have a different inherent voice, either plugged in or acoustic - one brighter one more mellow - Neither better and different players and their ears will prefer one over an other

Of course our touch comes into play as well - But using a host of adjectives from any dictionary doesn't help us describe what our ears like/accept/require - Wordsworth or Shelly can describe tone any better than me or you - And no scientific report can do like wise

Tone does exist in many ways -But better or worse is harder to define than different - Who has the better tone in their voice, Ella Fitzgerald, Karen Carpenter or Billie Holiday or Aretha Franklin

I sometimes find the odd guitar that is a great one trick pony - But as an overview if I'm playing a PRS, Strat, LP or Tele I want that guitar to have soul/emotion so that it responds to me when I play it - Be it soft and gentle or picked hard - Will it purr or kick back and bite - ie I want it to support and deliver the emotion I'm trying to portray

But it can't be quantified

theatreanchor · April 27

Short for Tony.

Danny1969 · April 27

When I say good tone it means the instrument is making a pleasant sound to my ears. But it's generally because the instrument is being correctly intonated and volume balanced by the person playing it. Some people can get a nice tone out of anything, no matter how cheap.

So for a nice tone practice ... practice a lot !

ICBM · April 27

If you ask a classical musician, it’s note spelt wrong.

OilCityPickups · April 27

Referring ... I actually prefer to call the character of an instruments sound its 'timbre' - and timbre is a mix of the frequencies the instrument puts out (and just as importantly doesn't). Timbre is in at least my own mind separate from 'envelope' which is attack sustain and decay.

I think where we all come unglued a combination of timbre and envelope that is pleasing to an individual - and we refer to it as its 'tone' may well sound unpleasant to another.

Tone is entirely subjective ... as is beauty ... which is better a sunrise or a sunset, a bowl of flowers or a kitten ...

thermionic · April 27

It's a type of wood.

Nerine · April 27

It’s basically a drivel term that’s used as a catch all when referring to the sound a guitar makes. I don’t like using the word, to be fair. I think it’s trite.

I’ll usually say “that’s a great guitar sound” rather than use the word “tone”.

It’s also sadly linked to pretentious welly boots that like to debate ad nauseam the 1% minutiae that make 0% difference to the sound of anything and that makes me dislike it even more.

Also.

“Because Tone” **shudders**

Wazmeister · April 27

IsambardKentucky said:

After reading a guitar advert claiming that the instrument 'captured all the tone you ever imagined', I wondered: what exactly is 'tone'?

If understood as the quality or character of a sound produced by an instrument, it refers to the specific sonic traits that differentiate one instrument from another or give it a distinctive sound. However, can guitars have more 'tone' than others? And can this elusive quality even be quantified?

No, is the simply answer.

Although 'science' is the god of our age, somethings simply cannot be measured and quantified.

There are too many variables that add up to 'feel'.

Alex2678 · April 27

I don’t think it can be usefully quantified, but I suppose an instrument can have more of an interesting or colourful tone than another. A stylophone type sound with just the flat, fundamental note could probably be said to sound less interesting or complex than an instrument that adds and omits harmonics of the note. A sunset is always just the sun going down but some are more colourful than others. But you can’t say one is 12 degrees more colourful than the other.

Saying that maybe someone could