Can one guitar do it all?

kenneth · #1 01-10-2007, 01:15 PM

Question for all your JS, JEM and JP experts out there...

I was reading an old Guitar World magazine interview with Joe Satriani, and he said one of the reasons he endorses Ibanez is because they were able to build him a guitar that he could take on tour which could replicate the sounds of his vintage guitar collection. By "vintage" I assume he roughly means the holy trinity of Strat-Les Paul-Tele sounds, and then of course, Satch being the virtuouso that he is, his guitar would also have to be able to play modern shred as well.

So my question would be - is there really one guitar that "does it all"? The two most versatile guitars I own are probably an Ibanez S-540 and Ernie Ball Luke - but I couldn't honestly say that they can "do it all." I've never played a JS or JEM, or JP. Are any of them truly capable of nailing just about every tone that you might realistically need in a live situation? The Ernie Ball JP also has an acoustic piezo option, which would give you an even broader palette.

I've been looking around for a Les Paul/clone - but after reading the Satch interview, I thought, 'heck, if there really is one guitar that play everything...!'

Any thoughts?

timi_h · #2 01-10-2007, 01:18 PM

nope, cos even if you have coil splits its not the same as a proper single coil sounds, likewise with piezo being close but not entirely acoustic sounding.

Aftershock · #3 01-10-2007, 01:36 PM

Variax?

jm1681 · #4 01-10-2007, 01:42 PM

I think you can use one guitar to pull off typical guitar (Strat, Tele, Paul) sounds in a live situation, but I don't think it will ever sound as good as the real thing.

jb4674 · #5 01-10-2007, 02:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jm1681

I think you can use one guitar to pull off typical guitar (Strat, Tele, Paul) sounds in a live situation, but I don't think it will ever sound as good as the real thing.

I agree. However, I can attest to the fact that the JS Series is quite versatile and extremely comfortable to play.

Jimmy

ken_r152 · #6 01-10-2007, 02:47 PM

Nope, probably not possible. Different guitar woods have very different sounds. You can even hear this acoustically by playing guitars made out of different woods side-by-side without plugging them in.

Even if you split the coils on a humbucker to play it as a single-coil, you haven't changed the resistance value of the attached electrical components like the potentiometers. It'll have a single-coil sound, but won't be exactly the same as a guitar that was purpose-built as a single-coil guitar like a strat.

Generally, single-coil guitars are designed to make the most use of their brighter, nasal sound, and double-coil guitars are designed to make the best use of their warm, fat sound. Other combinations are possible, of course, but these are the "classic" sounds. Incidentally, I'd add in the Rickenbacker and any of several soapbar pickup guitars as two other classic types.

So it's certainly possible to have a very versatile guitar (I'm going to design one of my guitars exactly this way) but it won't sound *exactly* the same as the classic examples that we're used to.

-- Ken

jemplayer55 · #7 01-10-2007, 04:34 PM

Seems like everyone is missing the point of the question. Anybody who's ever bought a guitar pick realizes a Strat won't sound exactly like a Les Paul or a 335 or a Rickenbacker. Not to mention pickup selection type and output, wood selection, semi hollow body vs hollow-body or solid body etc. and so on.

But to answer your question yes..... one guitar can "do it all" depending on what compromises you're willing to make. Drop in a piezo and you'll get a pretty good acoustic sound..... will it sound like a Fleta or Ramírez classical or a 1931 Martin D-18? Only a fool would expect it to! Or how about a Strat to sound like a Les Paul...... with today's pickup selections available you can get pretty close. Vis-a-versa on splitting coils..... you'll get pretty close.
Play slide too???? If you're willing to compromise on action it's more than possible to just use one guitar.

Unfortunatelly we've been flooded with hype and brainwashed into believing we "must" have specialized guitars and equipment to get that elusive "perfect tone"!

Now what guitar makes the all around workhorse? That's where it gets personal and subjective with everyone trying to be the leader but still conforming like a good little sheep too.

You'd have to evaluate just what your needs are and base your decision on meeting that criteria. A good example is the JEM it was designed to meet several of Steve's requirements in both tone and playability. Obviously it fits the bill of "one guitar does it all" in Steve's eyes or he'd be toting aroung Les Pauls and Strats and playing 5 different guitars on stage.

So I say yes, pick that one guitar you feel comfortable with..... make some simple modifications to achieve your goals and play away while the others reel in frustration and "must have" attitude. Only to end up buying and changing guitars like underwear. (but they end up with big collections)

damo7v · #8 01-10-2007, 05:14 PM

i sincerely hope the answer is no because if my wife finds out i could've made do with one guitar i am a dead man!

jemplayer55 · #9 01-10-2007, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by damo7v

i sincerely hope the answer is no because if my wife finds out i could've made do with one guitar i am a dead man!

Beautiful...... just beautiful! That's priceless.......

**jim777** · #10 01-10-2007, 05:23 PM

I think it's a lot more difficult to find a guitarist that can 'do it all' than a guitar.

**elcid** · #11 01-10-2007, 05:25 PM

Tell 'em jp55

jemplayer55 · #12 01-10-2007, 05:30 PM

I'd say Jim hit the proverbial "nail on the head"!

andy7jem · #13 01-10-2007, 05:34 PM

Damn....reading the title i thought some-one had finally invented a guitar that could wash, cook and clean for me too

SonataGuitarist · #14 01-10-2007, 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jemplayer55

Unfortunatelly we've been flooded with hype and brainwashed into believing we "must" have specialized guitars and equipment to get that elusive "perfect tone"!

Very true statement!

Quote:

Originally Posted by jim777

I think it's a lot more difficult to find a guitarist that can 'do it all' than a guitar.

Also very true, well said guys. Btw, my vote for lots of versatility is a strat w/ HSS configuration, or really any guitar with a versatile tone wood and pickup combination. Oh yeah a great neck helps too. (Fender ftw!

)

chris101 · #15 01-10-2007, 07:42 PM

[quote=jemplayer55;590777] A good example is the JEM it was designed to meet several of Steve's requirements in both tone and playability. [quote]

Yes, Steve's requirements, but its not that versatile in my opinion. I was hoping that my new Jem 7V might be able to replicate the tone of my PRS custom 24 (so I could sell it!), unfortunatly not though, although amazingly the PRS can do a damn good Jem impersonation, in almost every aspect other than trem flutters. I'd say that 'some' PRS guitars can emulate a huge range of other brands/guitar types, more so than any Ibanez I've played. No emulation is perfect though.