Question for all you Lonester classic users

[agefender]

The Lonestar is the most guitar sensitive amp I've owned. I have only two electric guitars at the moment (long story).One is a Japanese fender with 57's The other is an OBG solid QM top Les Paul with 57 classic and Tom Holmes PAF style pups.I usually use the fender with the classic as the gibo sounds a bit lifeless. Last night I used the Gibson all night in a rockier band than my main one which is mainly funk and blues and realised just how little gain the strat has. I have had a little trouble dialing in enough gain without getting grainy Im thinking maybe the its because the pickups are vintage style.The guy who fixed my amp played his strat through it and I got to tell you sounded killer in comparison to mine. SO I'm asking lonestar lovers what's your favourite guitar with this amp and for what style....cheers..

 

[Barry]

I prefer single coils with my LSC . Thats not to say my Les pauls doesnt sound good with it it as well . Have you tried Petrucci's setting with your LSC ? I think they are on his site . You need very little bass dialed up on this amp , especially on channel two .

 

[agefender]

No I haven't Barry but I'm straight there...Thanks..Here it is BTW I usually have my bass around 9.00 sometimes more with the strat John looks like he's got it all the way down on the second channel. Sometimes i think it is hard too dial in enough tight Bottom end without getting muddy http://www.johnpetrucci.com/images/gear/LonestarSettings.jpg

 

[Artmusic]

I have both a strat and a few Pauls here, for me, the Paul sounds best with the Lonestar. I like the sustain and ballsy tone I get from a Paul. The strat sounds beautiful through it as well but doesn't have the sustain and just doesn't hit you in the gut like a Paul can. Just my opinion, I play blues, classic rock, blusey jazz, some rock N' roll. Thing is, I grew up on Gibsons and I think I am more in tune with that type of guitar. Both sound really nice through the LS, it all comes down to your taste.

Art

 

[madryan]

The lonestar is a weird beast when it comes to settings. I run mine with the bass all the way down on channel 2 and usually with a bit of it cut out in my G-Major in the loop just to keep things nice and tight. I also run the mids fairly low but with the switch set to "thicker" and I get a really fat warm sound with my Les Paul. If you have a strat I'd throw a really nice fat chunky humbucker in the bridge. I have a Dimarzio Super 3 in my Jackson and it's great. Really punchy and hot but not at all muddy.

I've actually been thinking of a strat with a custom pickguard because all I ever run is a Humbucker in the bridge, and I prefer a single coil in the neck but no center pup and no tone controls. I could just get a custom pickguard and run whatever I want... Hmmmm...

 

[agefender]

I might just try that Madryan I Hardly ever use the single coil bridge pickup in the strat...It makes sense to me.I was reading about that pickup this morning.My strat seems to be a little topy .I read a few people play the avn blues pups and love them through the Lonestar. Iam after a new guitar(or two) and am interested on what others are liking as im 300 miles away from guitar shops with decent variety. The lonestar definitely sorts out the quality in my opinion.

 

[Barry]

Curious, do you have your tone knob wired into your bridge pickup ? If not , have your tech/repair guy do it . Its very useful IMHO .

 

[madryan]

Curious, do you have your tone knob wired into your bridge pickup ? If not , have your tech/repair guy do it . Its very useful IMHO .

I never use it. Never have...

 

[djw]

Until very recently my main guitar was my Gold Top, and I bought my LSC with this guitar -- they were an amazing combination. A spanking, popping, really badassed pairing.

I just bought a new Deluxe Strat, with the Samarium Noiseless pups, which I know Strat purists think are crap. However, it's making my LP jealous at the moment. To me it sounds beautiful, balanced, and sweet. Clear as a bell, and rich as honey. A nice compliment to the LP.

Strats have never classically been high-output guitars. Their character is more in their clarity and single-coil twangy edge; if they were high-gain, I don't think they'd be Strats. Not really.

The beauty of the LSC is that it allows the natural character of pretty much any real guitar to shine, especially if the player has some nuance and touch behind their attack. The combination of this amp with either of these guitars has really changed my playing a lot, in that I feel like I can really hear what's going on now. Each of them is really expressive and translates every pick and scrape and bend into something usable (or tells me I need to get my act together).

I digress a little, but I realize that it sounds like you might need better pups in your Gibson. It's not surprising that it sounds "dull" compared to the Fender, but it should sound beefy and toothy by comparison, where the Strat sounds clear and chimey. It should NOT sound lifeless.

 

[agefender]

Barry- The tone Knob is not wired to the bridge(strat)- Hasn't been since my guy put 57's in it.Djw-I might try putting more agressive pickups in the Gibson. The gibson eats the fender in my marshall 57 clasic is in the bridge and thanks all for imput

 

[Barry]

I had the tone knob wired to my bridge pickup in all my strats . I find it extremely useful . Its the hardest pickup to tame in the treble sense . You may want to try it . Its still wired to the other pups as well .

 

[ja22y]

Barry- The tone Knob is not wired to the bridge(strat)- Hasn't been since my guy put 57's in it.Djw-I might try putting more agressive pickups in the Gibson. The gibson eats the fender in my marshall 57 clasic is in the bridge and thanks all for imput

Not sure what tone you're after but both strat or LP should sound great, each with different setting of course. IMHO if your LP sounds 'lifeless' putting in a higher gain (agressive) will no doubt muddy it up some more. I typically like the normal gain like a Duncan 59 antiquity or the BB1 and use the amp to get the gain. If the LSC doesn't have enough gain for you then perhaps you may want to look at the high gain amp like the rectifier series.

 

[djw]

The guy who fixed my amp played his strat through it and I got to tell you sounded killer in comparison to mine.

Not sure what tone you're after but both strat or LP should sound great, each with different setting of course. IMHO if your LP sounds 'lifeless' putting in a higher gain (agressive) will no doubt muddy it up some more. I typically like the normal gain like a Duncan 59 antiquity or the BB1 and use the amp to get the gain. If the LSC doesn't have enough gain for you then perhaps you may want to look at the high gain amp like the rectifier series.

I agree with ja22y wholeheartedly. Seems the crux of this discussion rests on whatever a "killer" tone means to you. To me, a killer tone is one that punches through with a lot of character, complexity and texture (which the LS amps do beautifully). A high-gain setup does not necessarily equate to this at all. Most of the really "great guitar tones" are actually cleaner than you'd expect.

I suggested a pup swap in the Les Paul, but I definitely wouldn't suggest more aggressive for precisely the reasons above. What you want is... well, whatever you want. But a good LP tone comes partly from nice, balanced humbuckers and all that dense wood in the construction. Same story with the Strat, only with the obvious differences as the starting point. "High gain" guitar setups often sacrifice inherent tone for more output, and played cleanly (i.e., without OD/fuzz/etc) usually sound a bit one-dimensional by comparison.

Could be that a higher-gain amp is what you're really after. That way you'd also maintain the integrity of your guitars, if that's important to you.

 

[agefender]

You guys may be right I dont realy know what i want.- an amp with great cleans and good driven or great gain and good cleans. I come from a Hevy metal Background I only ever I had jackson, Ibanez and BC rich Guitars Played through Marshalls I dont thing i thought about tone much Just scooped the mids played it fn loud and let it hit you in the chest.I would love a high gain amp like the rectifier However my tastes Have changed a litle- moreover the gigs have changed.

I love the john mayer tone. I love the sound of a vintage fender amp played to the brink of breakup. The best I heard the lonestar sound was when I played my techs guitar through a few times it has sounded great with my strat, other times i feel the sound is just not quite there -not so alive and 3 dimensional.The Les paul sounded great through an orange(different beast again) I almost pulled the trigger on before the mesa but the orange hid the character a bit. The paul has a very woody quality to it i was wondering if That was because of the carved maple top not being a veneer.

Anyway i think a trip down to Sydney with my mesa cant be avoided To just try different combinations.I just think some guitars would excell more with the Lonestar than others as it brings out their character with clarity?Yes I'm still searching for "MY" tone. Thanks guys for your imput much appreciated sorry for my ramblings

 

[djw]

Hmmm, yeah, it looks like some soul-searching is in order.

Keep a couple of things in mind:

80-95% of your tone comes from your hands. You can spend all the money you want on getting the same gear as so-and-so, and never sound like them. It's really about how you play.

However, that's a good thing! You ultimately are going to want to sound like yourself more than a cheap imitation of someone else anyway, aren't you?

Also, more good news is you already have probably the best-sounding production amp out there, seriously. This will only help.

 

[wilerty]

Also, more good news is you already have probably the best-sounding production amp out there, seriously.

They don't come much better than an LSC. As you can see from my stuff listed below, I cover both singlecoils and humbuckers, and love the LSC for both. However, I come from a more clean blackface background and the 6L6s work well for my sound. If I came from a Marshall high gain backgound, I might have been better off with an LSS that uses EL84s.

It definately takes a while to dial in your sound with the LSC ... that is the blessing and curse of the amp ... it is so flexable.

You should consider other amps, but be very careful before you jump ship ... the LSC is VERY tough to beat ...

 

[agefender]

Just a little update I set my amp to the petrucci settings..Thanks Barry, and tweaked it a bit. It was the best sound i have had :lol: It was inspiring I found i only really used one pedal The Ac booster - my favourite.I have a winging neighbour I will blame her for not letting me play at home(at a decent level). The other guitarist was playing a fender vintage vibrolux .... the lone star was awesome I may have some egg on my face here BTW the Gibson sounded good through the drive channel - seems i had to have the bass turned right down and the treble up - Go figure

 

[Barry]

Just a little update I set my amp to the petrucci settings..Thanks Barry, and tweaked it a bit. It was the best sound i have had :lol: It was inspiring I found i only really used one pedal The Ac booster - my favourite.I have a winging neighbour I will blame her for not letting me play at home. The other guitarist was playing a fender vintage vibrolux .... the lone star was awesome I may have some egg on my face here BTW the Gibson sounded good through the drive channel - seems i had to have the bass turned right down and the treble up - Go figure

Dont ever pay attention to how the controls look even if they are drastic as the way the lone star is . Always trust your ears ! I use the Petrucci settings as well . Glad i could help .