John Mayer’s Guitar Tone Secret …And Why It’s Not For You

[@TomButwin]

Get close to JM’s tone and sound for under $200! BLUE SKREAMER OVERDRIVE: www.sonicake.com/products/blue-skreamer-new?sca_ref=1910140.KH6CcULNjJ ECHO RAIN DELAY: www.sonicake.com/products/echo-rain-new?sca_ref=1910140.KH6CcULNjJ CRYBOT AUTO WAH: www.sonicake.com/products/cry-bot-new?sca_ref=1910140.KH6CcULNjJ CLOUD CHORUS: www.sonicake.com/products/cloud-chorus-new?sca_ref=1910140.KH6CcULNjJ

[@PedroFreire95]

As I heard someone once say while searching for the SRV tone. “It’s not that I can’t afford the amp or the pedals. I just can’t afford the house needed to play them in”

[@TomButwin]

Exactly!

[@jerryhorton5708]

Pretty accurate. Sheer volume is a major component

[@ParkerD-Music]

Great video Tom! One big thing people overlook with clean amps in the Mayer use-case actually ties into the volume point, when those amps are loud they are clean, but because they're pushed you get the tube saturation and harmonic content that you don't get when they're quiet! things like the UA OX etc help work around this. The harmonic content you get when those clean amps are run hot is nuts compared to when they're turned down, and like you said most of us can't get away with one amp like that, much less three! Awesome video as always Tom!!

[@TomButwin]

YES! Everyone read this comment. You said it better than I did. This is why the volume matters. My DRRI is clean when I have the volume at 2…but it’s missing all of that beautiful (still clean) harmonic information that comes out around 4-5. That amp starts to breakup way too early for what we’re talking about here, but that’s the charm with it. Great call on the Ox too! Attenuation/modeling gets close…but man…big room…big amps…big tone. Can’t beat it.

[@ParkerD-Music]

@@TomButwin Exactly!! Even though those Two Rock's are clean at high volumes they are still saturating, that's definitely the most common misconception with clean amps! Saturation does not equal distortion!! Like you said for a DRRI the harmonic content really starts happening around 4-5, and before that its clean but a bit sterile. Like you said, big room + big amps = big tone!! Volume is everything.

[@TomButwin]

Avoiding hearing loss is overrated anyway.

[@ParkerD-Music]

@@TomButwin what?? Sorry could you repeat that, I couldn’t hear you 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@mihailmilev9909]

@@TomButwin lol

[@noahfella9312]

I recently got a little fender and i put it on 4 and wondered where my clean tone went(i switched from a solid state) and i came to a crazy realization of the volume i should be playing at for the tone i wanted

[@TomButwin]

All part of the learning and exploration process! Which little Fender tube amp did you get?

[@noahfella9312]

@@TomButwin i actually got one of the older super champ xd’s they are small black pannel voiced amps and they have some on board effects but i have a little pedalboard so i just run the normal channel, it sounds great tho!

[@TomButwin]

Excellent! Those are great little amps.

[@mihailmilev9909]

@@noahfella9312 whenever I see xd now I just can't help see the face.....

[@noahfella9312]

@@mihailmilev9909 HAHA😂

[@TheDuke7997]

When you go back and listen to Any Given Thursday the difference in tone is extremely apparent.

[@TomButwin]

HUGE difference. That was a Super Reverb (I think) and pretty much just a Tube Screamer. Much thinner sound, especially the clean stuff.

[@michaelfolsom240]

It's true! So much of tone is in the volume! Sucks in a college dorm haha

[@TomButwin]

My 22w Fender Deluxe Reverb is almost never over 3 on the volume! It sounds so good when you can crank it though! Such is life.

[@gilguajardo7808]

Well, there are always load boxes and speaker sims to get that much closer.

[@TomButwin]

True…but it’s still only close! Not quite there.

he uses a blues breaker-klon combo , there are plenty of videos of his board

[@TomButwin]

During the Continuum-era, yes.

[@NickJardine]

A lot is in the hands, I’d say. There is a video online of him at a backyard pool party. Using a Les Paul jr and a little Peavey or Roland amp, no pedals. Sounds like him. Cool video!

[@TomButwin]

I’ve seen that!

[@everope]

He played the "I guess I just feel like" solo on a small fender combo amp... If you buy the behringer super fuzz (same circuit as the honey psychedelic machine he uses) you can get that sound with almost any guitar on any combo

[@TomButwin]

Valid point. Small amps in the studio can be really cool...but it's still different than 3 loud amps in an arena.

[@LW-zi4rp]

very interesting!

[@TomButwin]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@everope]

I thought number 3 was gonna be his big left thumb. His hands are huge and can make shapes that are impossible with smaller hands. Sure you can work around it, but it won't sound the same

[@TomButwin]

Yeah, that one is impossible to replicate. You're not wrong.

[@barryseddon7264]

No idea how he gets such great tone using a TS and Klon, especially stacked. Every time I use either of those pedals my tone sounds like Morrissey with Covid.

[@TomButwin]

What a description lol! I think it’s a combo of clean amps, the Klon is set as more of a boost, with just a little dirt, and the TS isn’t super cranked when it comes to the drive. Low output single coil pickups help too…and also being John Mayer 😂

[@S.Lang7]

Merry Christmas Tom! Have you seen this one ? At the end he pulls the guitar out, no need amps, pedals or any of that he is just awesome. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jn_Jl5dpeM59r8k

[@TomButwin]

Scott! Merry Christmas! I saw it and was pleasantly surprised by the interview. It was great. The performances were great too. It’s fun to see him in an informal setting performing!

[@briandrake5464]

Instead of trying to dupe Mayer's tone, you should be creating your own, so people make KZbin videos about your tone and how nobody else can do it.

[@TomButwin]

I doubt anyone will ever make a video about my tone! haha

[@briandrake5464]

@@TomButwin Nobody will make one about mine either but I remain optimistic LOL

[@briandrake5464]

And I should have said "we" instead of "you" as I didn't mean "you" specifically. Apologies for any confusion.

[@greatwhite3676]

dont hurt yourself with a loud amp

[@TomButwin]

Yes!! Hearing damage is a real thing.

[@nuendo2496]

John Mayer….meh….

[@TomButwin]

Or…OR…John “Meh-er.”

[@greatwhite3676]

We are so soft as a society. "hurt yourself" from loud amps? LOL come on bro. Back in the day all we had were loud tube amps in small rooms i never saw anybody get hurt. Cops and pissed neighbors was the worst case

[@TomButwin]

I can’t hear you over the ringing in my ears. 😂

[@greatwhite3676]

@@TomButwin LOL that was a good one