What do you feel defines your sound?

[Vim Fuego]

There are no right or wrong answers here!
What do you think defines your sound?
Given that maybe most professional guitarists are heard through their recorded output, is your recorded sound your real sound and your live sound just an approximation, or the other way round?
In my case, anything I record is just a poor version of my live sound (or at least my recollection of it!) I'll use my FX unit or the built in one in the recorder and get a sound I'm reasonably happy with. Live I'd hate to be without all my various bits & bobs!
Given your guitar, what other gear do you feel you couldn't do without?
Of course I like my Laney amp, but, reallistically lots of others would probably sound as good!
Just interested in your views...
Jim

[CosmicDebris]

I like to play out of tune and key so folks really take notice.

[ScottB]

My combination of great tone / sucky licks defines my playing very well.

[bammbamm]

Vibrato and phrasing...

[finstah]

My tone/playability comes from my fingers. Without them I could only play power chords in drop D or slide guitar.

The one piece of gear I couldn't live without?

My Axe FX Ultra

[jaxadam]

Heavy technical with not very good phrasing and too many annoying sweeps.

[Jaden]

my crappy tone and sucky licks... im not kidding either !

[SeanB]

The 3 licks I know in the minor pentatonic scale and my not so awsome tone.

Yup

I suck

-Sean

[drizzt75]

new strings and my fingers + the guitar i use i spose my fender is more pleasing to play than my jem and it shows in my playing if im comfatable with the feel of the strings and the guitar it makes my playing better ergo sound better cus im enjoying myself if im using crappy guitars or cheap fx or old battered strings it makes me play crap cus i dont feel im enjoying myself

[yoyo1299]

define? Smooth at lead, buttery and nice. rhythm? nice and chukny, lots of low end, like a freight train.

[Smitty]

My tone is always the same...it definitely comes from my fingers, and more specifically, my vibrato. My vibrato is like, "my" vibrato. I'm not saying it's good, bad, etc...I'm saying that it's unique and I haven't heard anyone with anything close to it. I suppose John Petrucci's is slightly similar, but he's the closest. I can play through a squire with EMG knockoffs through a 15W Crate practice amp, and I'll still sound like me.
smitty

[michblanch]

I am not a technical player. All I have ever wanted is to be a solid rythym player.

The one thing that sounds so good and James Hetfield is the master of, is when I play chords I will grip the pick very low and follow the pick with my thumb and it just adds that little bit of extra growl. I guess it's like a chorded pinched harmonic.

The other great tool I use is the BOSS GT3. It's great when developing tones and saving them to the GT.

I have worked on several other peoples tones using their GT's, because there are so many variables you can manipulate to get the perfect tone.

[studentofshred]

Its hard to say. I've experianced rigs so bad that I wasn't even able to hear the subtleties of my style. My recorded tone sometimes sounds pleasing, but sterile. My live tone sounds so much warmer and organic but can be unruly.
I agree with the consensus. Your tone comes from your fingers first, but ****ty gear doesn't inspire you to play as much as a decent setup. That being said, I've seen Paul Gilbert make the cheapest guitars on earth sound great.

[David McCarroll]

Generally sloppy, out of time playing and poor to appalling melodic choice covered up with ridiculous amounts of distortion played at ear bleeding volume ...... yeah, that's about right .........

[ColinMmmmm]

^ very nice. Me - mostly a lot of simple bluesy type stuff. And then some nice bends with a ton of distortion. And me smiling the whole time.