Do you use volume and tone knobs?

I used to leave both wide open about 40 years ago.

Over the years I learned that I was missing out on a lot of options by doing that.

 

I used to dime volume and tone and adjust at the amp.
For 20 years I did that.
A year and a half ago I bought a Les Paul Junior and finally learned what the knobs can do in shaping my tone.
Now I see my Tele in a whole new way.
Wish I’d experimented sooner.

 

On Gibson four knob guitars I usually start the bridge pickup tone knob at about six and the neck pickup tone knob full open to get them in the same harmonic ballpark. From there, the tone is so affected by little tweaks on both volume and tone that I move them around depending upon what I am doing.

The Tele is an instrument of moderation. I'm from the heart of country music and I don't like to sound country. The tele on 10 is instant country, so... I tend to roll of the tone control and often pull back on the gas as well to get a darker tone.

Bob

 

Yes. Basically with a twist of my wrist. Because it changes the sound and performance of my guitar in a manner which I likened and can use

 

I'm super embarrassed to admit that I played my '88 Am Std Tele for thirty years with the tone at ten or maybe nine before I realized 1) it has a TBX control, and 2) what that even is!

In my defense, the detent is barely perceptible, and maybe out of four or five twirls of the knob it's noticeable once.

A couple years back I discovered it and it turned my favorite guitar into MY FAVORITE GUITAR. I keep the knob around 4 now, and it's the sweetest sound you ever heard. I played tons of shows, toured a bunch of times, recorded a ton of albums with it and never knew.

 

YES.

Ever since I discovered how to properly use the tone knob the Tele bridge pickup has become where I play 95% of the time - lead or rhythm.

I use the volume knob quite a bit. Back when I was a beginner, I would have it wide open all the time. Now I've learned to use it for tonal variations where desired. If I want to back off the overdrive gain just a bit, I'll turn the guitar volume down until I've got the tone I want. It's also useful as a tone adjustment too. I find if you just go a little bit - from 10 to 9 it rounds off the treble just a hair. Works well if you've got too much bite on your sound. Even when I want to play clean but I still want that little bit of hair on the fringe, I'll leave my OD pedal on but back down the volume knob on the guitar to where it only dirties up when I dig in on my pick attack.

People who don't use the tone knobs are also the people who think a Strat bridge pickup is useless. Wiring the bridge pickup on a Strat to share the middle tone control is basically a necessity.

 

I use the volume more than the tone. I think the tone control does not do very much. Volume is useful for swells. Other than that ive got em dimed the rest of the time.

 

I used to run them wide open , I play one of my Esquires more lately and I adjust my tone more than ever , also back off the volume when playing in a group as I have a pretty heavy attack . The last Stratocaster I built I wired the one tone control to my bridge pup , really like the variety that gives me .

 

I use both

 

Yeah, I can't imagine how it's possible not to. (If you play in front of people)

 

Constantly. Fortunately, there are only two to keep track of.

 

Volume, rarely.
Tone, not at all.
I use the pickup selector and right (picking) hand placement to vary my tone.

 

Yes, both, specially the volume knob to clean the tone up when needed

 

My only amp is a 5E3 for the last 12 years. The volume controls have a very abrupt response curve, whisper quiet to full volume from 3 to 4. I generally set volume at 7 or 8 and use the guitar volume to get the appropriate loudness. The amp's tone control has a rolloff curve just like my Tele with an 047 tone cap. I leave the amp tone on 12 (Yes! ) and just control that from the guitar as well.

 

I use both quite a bit.

 

Always been a volume knob rider, and I use tone knobs too though I don't tend to tweak them from moment to moment like the volume knob.

The habit dates back to the early 70s; I spent years playing cover tunes and having to match many different kinds of tones, without modern conveniences like pedals or amps with channel switching.

 

I often use the volume knob. I play mostly rhythm and fills, so it lets me adjust where I sit in the mix to suit the song. I haven’t figured out why I need the tone control. It’s either all the way up, or everything sounds choked. I’d be happy just to take it out of the circuit completely

 

Yes.

 

For the most part I agree. Though once in a blue moon (rarely) I will use the tone control for a sort of wah effect.