How To Get PERFECT Metal Guitar Tone EVERY TIME

This is the longest video I have made so far, and for good reason. These are all the tips are tricks I have learnt over years of dialing in various tones for various projects. The steps I take In this video are the steps I always to take ensuring that I, in my opinon,. have the perfect guitar tone, every single time. Bands like Periphery, Monuments, Thornill and Northlane have all inspred me to up my tone game over the years, and this extremely in depth tutorial is the end product.
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[@TechnoticTV]

maybe the real perfect metal guitar tone was the friends we made along the way

[@mikelaurrekoetxeapenades6656]

Dude 200%

[@Skizane]

Awww *puts hand over heart* *single tear runs down cheek*

[@chrisbollyn4724]

@thors blot I damn near spat out my coffee reading that...

[@GuitarAndWhatevs]

This is my favorite Music quote from now on

[@andersonlane54321]

I’ve met a lot of cool people while in search of better guitar tone

[@stroel9861]

I know I’m late, but guys, he isn’t saying that THAT is the perfect modern metal tone. He’s not telling you to copy his. He’s just teaching you how get YOUR favorite. Do what he says, but pause his video on each step and figure out what sounds best for you, and then move on to the next. It’ll sound different, but that’s the point. THATS the perfect guitar tone. The one that YOU create

[@palealexformula6883]

Well said man!

[@kurtsherer8211]

Very true!

[@jonnymahoney8556]

Just tried dialling a tone in roughly following this video and oh my god. Rarely been this inspired to play. Unbelievable advice.

[@samsancheziii]

But how do we dial in the oven for perfectly baked scones?

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Follow your Recipe

[@xNerdRage17]

425°F

[@eddiewixson9680]

Or perfectly baked scrotes? Wait.. I got Dahmer’s recipe book woohoo! 🤘

[@guitarsimon1]

Do you mean scones or scones?

[@joshforeman1648]

Simon Singh I think he meant *scones*

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

This video is extremely long and in depth so there is bound to be an editing mistake in there, despite me re-exporting 3 times. This is for anyone that has ever asked me how I make my tones, regardless of the gear I'm using.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

It’s probably also worth mentioning that the beginning song was using the tone that was made during the video.

[@motoxjosh29]

what string gauge are you using lol

[@Drpepperkiller10]

Hey! can you post your plini presets on Neural forum or a link?

[@XChristianNoirX]

Holy moo moo. I just got an Ht6 in laguna blue. 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱 I got a decent deal on a used one with very minor imperfections I can probay fix... But still.. Now I have to sell a bunch of stuff.. I was going to by the jugg pickups, but considering their price and another guitar I was going to buy (Solar), I just got the whole package.🤔 This is one of those purchase I'm gonna have to hide from the fam! 😱😱😱😱😱 I'm not digging the roared maple stuff... Maybe it feels great... But I can't get over the look!

[@iangarza990]

hey, what actual gear do you use?

[@claytoncurry8655]

Used this approach to do a before and after of my Fortin Nameless and it was worlds apart. Couldn't believe I thought my before tone sounded good after hearing it. Big thanks to this and all your videos.

[@blairthomastoews]

This is the best walkthrough on dialing in amp sim tones that I’ve found. Really well done. I appreciate how I’m depth you took this tutorial. Gives me a lot to try because I’ve been struggling with how to get a great sound from my amp sims. Well done! Thank you sir!

[@jacquesokes]

Dude, can I just say you saved me big time....I have been searching for over a year for an answer...Battling with guitar tone and the signal seemed dull and didn't have life. Everyone I have asked gave the same advice its my pickups....So ultimately bought an Ibanez Premium 2020 7 string thinking that would solve my problems...which it didnt....Last night watching your video you mentioned the input to the interface must have a high z input. First person I have ever heard talk about that after hundreds of videos I have watched...THANK YOU!!! Went back to my interface (Focusrite Scarlet 8i6) and found how to set that in my mix control and immediately it fixed my problem!!!!! I can finally record decent guitars at last!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! Have posted your vids to a few friends, hope you get more subs man, well deserved!

[@maynardburger]

I agree with you on the gain stuff when it comes to recording. Anytime you're double tracking guitars, you're going to achieve a lot more fullness and saturation than single tracked, so you dont need as much gain. That said, if you're playing solo, just practicing or playing along with stuff for fun or whatever, turning up the gain is often necessary or else your tone is gonna be way too weak. Also depends a whole lot on the type of metal you're playing. If you're playing a lot of sort of melodic hardcore type stuff, then yea, keep the gain down in order to make your chord shapes ring clearer, but if you're playing stuff with a lot of palm muted power chord breakdowns and shit, crank up the gain a bit. A lot of preference is at play here, too. Just saying - more gain can be better at times. Though there is a limit, of course.

[@Ignore14]

seems like the tone always gets slightly darker when double tracked so it's usually good to go for a brighter tone for recording as well

[@kiillabytez]

Depends on what type of OD you're using. Some are flabby while others are dynamic. Even changing the amp or speakers/IR will drastically change the tone and therefore change the way you play.

[@DerCooleB0B]

Tbh I just started watching your stuff a few weeks ago because I’m trying to get back into playing more guitar more seriously and your content is just really informative and inspiring man! For real dude you rock, definitely keep up the good work man!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Thanks dude, lots more coming!

[@lilclustuz72]

Perfect timing! Ive been struggling to tame archetype nolly for clear modern rhythm tones and this video definitely helps.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

The nolly needs the master knob turned down for sure

[@Yuretz84]

Great job! Thank you for a very precise and detailed description of the way you are dialing your awesome modern metal/djent tones!

[@DaniTheDawg]

Ok, subscribed and like. This is THE most detailing and properly guiding how-to-dial-your-tone video I've seen in YT. 1000 thanks mate. It doesn't matter if I don't use the same plugins as you. I got the general idea around what to consider first and what next.

[@ainomednaP]

I've played guitar for years and have been recording etc but never quite 100% understood some of the fundamentals of crafting a tone, nor wtf things such as "presence" or "tone" did but your clear explanations with good examples really made it click for me so thank you! My HX Stomp should be arriving tomorrow and I can't wait to put all this new knowledge to test by crafting some recording and live tones! Thank you my dude!

[@Gosling_dkc]

Wow brother AWESOME job explaining this. I actually think that you have explained it better than most. I have been playing for a little over 20 years. And have not been able to explain it to new players near as well as you have. Thanks mate.

[@07dhiraj]

summary - just enough gain, high treble , just enough bass, mids, presence and then play with master kNob ... thx ... cheers !!👍👍💐

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Yep!

[@blacksaona]

Its a little more complicated than that. It depends on the guitar and he's explainin why he choose those parameters. Also most ppl don't know how to setup the correct levels in the interface.

[@ordinarypablo]

The mic set up I think was the most important

[@tbnbfm8089]

@@blacksaona exactly for example if you use a super low volume on the interface (like I do with my behringer to reach -18 db on the di tracks) you also want to increase the volume of the input of the amplifier

[@Ignore14]

Pretty much every little thing adds up in the end, from your strings, pickups, cab, mic placement etc.

[@Hiyori___]

You're the kind of person I would totally trust on giving me opinions cause you sound like you know everything not just at a reasonably good level, but at "in-depth" level. You studied, man. Super useful video and great to remind that much depends on the instrument itself, to begin with.

[@SidFi20]

One of the most helpful videos I've seen. Thank you!

[@letter2steve]

This is awesome. Thanks so much. I usually get lost in chasing the tones I like to hear. You've outlined a really helpful path towards killer tone. Keep up the great videos :-)

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

So happy you enjoyed it man, thanks!

[@IKilledTheDodo]

Thanks for this, it was really helpful! I've been going at it more or less in the opposite direction you have, but your way of "starting from the bottom" is obviously much better.

[@jayneral1155]

Thank you so much for that ! I started recording 2 months ago and i didn t have any idea how to dial tone like that. Since i started i just made mistakes and mistakes trying to figured out where does come from the problem, blaming always plugins and stuffs! but after doing your technic for dial tone, i have (for sure not the best one) a great tone that is good for doing demos! Thank you again

[@hglenn2k]

You’re a really good teacher, thank you for this

[@raulands]

Hi, thanks for doing this video, found it very helpful. It helped a lot to see your whole thought process. With other videos, I try to copy the settings and see if I get the same sound, but it’s so much more helpful to see how you reason the whole thing and how you get to the final result.

[@AssetsStevenLesko]

A great guideline to follow man! Overall everyone has their preferences and the only real way to get good at dialing in tones is just going to be the amount of experience with mix testing. Dialing in a tone is something you need to practice

[@mrbak]

Hey This is amazing ! I've played for years however, I just randomly move knobs until I feel I get something I like but without any criteria whatsoever, I'm glad you went through explaining your own logic and the actual expected results from going to max or min. This' been really helpful ! Thanks!

[@kiillabytez]

It's important to take the acoustics of the room into account too. Sometimes, not finding the right tone could simply mean there are too many things screwing with the acoustics in the room you're in. In the case of headphones, maybe they just suck for this task.

[@gafuraskarov2814]

I bought Archetype Plini and still had a lot of struggles finding a good time. Your video made it so much clearer, and it helped to create myself a good approach to creating tones. Thanks man!

[@kiillabytez]

You struggled having a good time? Maybe you should get out more?

[@user-le5jm5zb5z]

Really helpfull. As usually. Thanks again!

[@hados1853]

I have been using the Plini plugin pretty much as long as it’s been out and I usually do the same thing minus the cab and the master volume knob (due to lack of knowledge). Thanks for giving me a better understanding of those areas of the plugin

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

No worries dude glad you liked it

[@haz9472]

the part about gain where u said the palm mutes being "boomy" really helped me dial in the tone with my amp, thanks bro

[@kiillabytez]

Could also be caused by the speaker. Celestions, while versatile, really have a boomy quality, while Eminence speakers have a thinner top end.

[@xTrxTREE]

Hey man! Great video....I am just getting into all this "interface" stuff (I'm old) and found this SUPER informative. I've browsed some other videos, but havent found anything as helpful as this one! A clean settings guide would dope. Thanks!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Thanks dude, will think about it!

[@NeoGeoEch13]

Thanks for sharing your process, good vid!

[@myauramusic]

Great vid again, lots of quality tips and tricks. A Neural DSP amp sim shoot out would make for some insightful viewing. I was shopping around for info a few months ago on which package to go with.. I ended up going with Abasi, loving the presets an all the user presets that i can dial in an tweak. I had issues originally with lots of background hiss noise when recording, but have found gain staging within my DAW to between -20dB to -30dB helped incredibly. Even though i was watching the input and clipping from my Audio Interface, and using a DI, it was the gain staging in my DAW that made the difference

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Glad you found something that works for you dude, the neural stuff is amazing

[@Tabaluka777]

Thank you Keyan! I learned so much.

[@KingRoChi]

Awesome video. Helped me a ton on getting the tone I wanted with my gear.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

I’m glad to hear it Rohan

[@RIdeWerksInc]

You had a like from me with just the intro guitar tone and chords.. Keep it coming

[@user-zb3pm4gq9b]

thanks for the tip about the master knob my guy. helped really clean up my tone 😊

[@andyvalentine9791]

The video itself is super helpful, but to watch you play is just super inspiring. Take my sub!

[@ThatsMrCollazo]

Excellent! Thanks for the advice!

[@herbst1398]

Thank you verr very much. Without big "effekts" or "Screens" this gentleman calmly explain - perfectly - what it needs to record really nice tone! Thak you man. Happy Eastern

[@chromebuoy]

Really good advice my man, only watched 1 of your videos but I'm subscribing as it looks like you got tons of useful videos up. ✌️

[@kid_ryu]

As I remember for myself, never tried to work on cab and mics before working on the amp. Trying it out. Thanks

[@eldyko]

I concur, it’s sounds pretty, pretty good!

[@Saaket]

This guy is going to make it big on youtube.. and i am gonna witness all of it Love from India! KEEP GOINNN'

[@PaulKingMetal]

Great informative video man, well done. 😉👍 Stay safe!

[@tymetalheadjohnson2667]

Love your videos man! You’ve helped me so much with the guitar!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Glad you find them informative dude!

[@caiobortoletto4363]

Your channel is pretty under rated. Keep up the good work

[@versusspectre1346]

Ive played guitar for many many years but ive never been very good at dialing in tone on sims. This absolutely turned my trash tones into something usable on archetype plini. Thank you so much

[@Maxischupp93]

Thank you for your service with this video!

[@who_we_are______5926]

Thanks for this video. I've been struggling with a disgusting muddy ass tone and I can see now it's because I made many mistakes which you helped clarify. Thanks!

[@MarkToast99]

That presence knob is really just an "are you jamming or are you recording" switch. I like it!

[@Jake-Thornton]

Such a creative approach to it. The idea of dialling off master on the amp and drive on the pedal are insane to me but that outcome is incredible. Exactly what I’m looking for at the minute too so this came at a great time for me. Thanks for sharing this!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

No worries dude, glad you took it and used it!

[@Ignore14]

Yeah he also had the idea of cranking the volume on the precision drive to improve the palm mutes which I never knew about and I've had the pedal for like 4 years

[@navid8276]

Just came across your channel the other day and love your content man. Subbed for sure 🤘🏼

[@sinnoccence]

P.S. great vid. I’ve been playing for some time and while I’m an above average guitar player, I never got around to learning how to create great tones on purpose. Sometimes I’d get lucky (and when I still played shows, believe it or not, my drummer set my tone hahaha) but I learned a lot from this.

[@slates1969]

This is a great video and really helped me to get a better modern metal tone from my plugins 👏👏👏

[@gideonthelastsonofkrypton4423]

I might watch this again just to watch you play those riffs. It's so good!

[@theexisting1514]

the way of dialing the cab is really helpful! i always hate that part on NDSP but ima give that a whirl

[@martinmies80]

Thanks for the video. Enjoyed every minute. Great tone, great playin'! Keep it on. Greetz

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Thanks dude! Glad you enjoyed it

[@martinmies80]

Have you tried the Archetype Nolly? What do you think is better Plini or Nolly for Prog Rock/Prog Metal like Dream Theater, Haken, Caligulas Horse etc. Tried both but it's hard to choose. Thanks for an answer.

[@berketufan2793]

Wholesome content man. Thank you.

[@josuastangl7140]

I enjoy your content, your tone and playing are great!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Thanks Josua! Glad you find it useful

[@littlemoex0001]

Such a great video. Thanks dude

[@bassinbob1965]

My gosh....what a beautiful instrument. And what killer tone it has.

[@thomasbyrne7372]

I have the Plini and because I'm only playing a little while I was mostly using the presets so I could focus on playing rather than messing about with settings. This video was quite informative for dialing in myself. Currently testing the new Neural DSP Omega Ampworks Granophyre and it looks like I'm about to crack open my wallet again. It's simply amazing.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

All the neural stuff is really, really good

[@zynosgd9982]

Amazing shots and editing skills.

[@russtic6447]

your guitar playing is insane. i love it

[@felixvalentin00]

man your riffs are on fire

[@kilianruvalcaba6904]

amazing tone man, thanks for sharing, greetings from mexico lml

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

No worries dude!

[@AntoineRoszak]

I love your playing man !

[@steveo041]

This video helped me so much. Thanks!

[@apanapandottir205]

I have that same interface and it's a mess to get a good signal. This confirms to me that I need to get a DI box. Thanks dude!

[@mattwildchild]

really like everything that you are playing!

[@eddiewixson9680]

Very helpful as I just started using plugins. NTS. Thanks! 🤘

[@johnsguitarmusicanddemos]

Excellent demonstration for how to really do it properly.

[@briandress2448]

Yesssss!! Bro I fucing needed this

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Glad you used it!

[@s4nti113]

Thanks!!! That really helped me!

[@cody181818]

I have that same guitar but the dark blue/black. I love it as well i have the Single Cut to. They play wonderful.

[@pauloilustre6491]

I learned a lot from this video thanks! I didn't know that was what the master knob does lol

[@vilgaxrecords]

Thankyou so much for sharing 😊❤️🤘

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

No worries dude

[@Guitar19774]

Great video & tone!!!

[@acrowsnestview6621]

I regret buying this before trying it haha. It’s crazy hard for me to dial in as opposed to their other plugins so thank you for this video

[@tarasolegov356]

thanx, really useful!

[@ordinarypablo]

Thanks man! It helped a lot

[@infelicitas]

That is a absolutely Beautiful guitar man, I've been a fan of jackson since.. I got my first one at christmas xD even the stock jackson pickups aren't so bad.. Still plan to put duncans in her though haha

[@lowelo7610]

Thanks this really helped a lot

[@malavparmar7694]

I'm going to use this on Bias amp 2! Thanks I've subbed you! Looking forward for more content

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

No worries dude! Glad you’re using it with your own gear

[@EugeneGain]

respect, dude! thank you very ,uch!

[@sirduckoufthenorth]

Beautiful finish

[@pimsmise]

The Neural comparison is a great idea for a video, and that might get a lot of attention as well

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Might need to do it!

[@mattlombardi54]

This video is gold

[@mikelaurrekoetxeapenades6656]

I love your content, kee it up please!

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Will do!

[@ashrayhebbar5885]

Really helpful mate.

[@308media74]

Thank you Keyan 🤘👍👍

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

You’re welcome

[@EduardoRodrigues88PT]

Good video mate. Liked and subscribed.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Cheers mate

[@chaggasfernandes]

Nice video. Thanks

[@kemalardaayar]

Great tutorial bruh thank you.

[@poulwinther]

Great stuff there, Count Bushman! Not just fresh strings: Fresh NYXL strings! It makes a massive difference, nothing like them for cutting metal tone.

[@Badstyles]

Shit man this was exactly what I needed. I JUST sort hella days trying to get the “right” tone. And now watching this I can see my flaws.

[@Brbbio]

i just love the riffs.. :O like a lot.

[@mathieuremillard5029]

Amazing video thanks a lot !! I'm really curious about how to play with the master knob. It seems like people tend to raise it much more than lower it and it sounded really good like you did.

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

I just don’t like over saturated tones, thanks!

[@Kyle-hm7ee]

Amazing video so far, bout 20 minutes in right now and it's been insanely insightful and honestly I just love the content on this channel overall. I can hear all the inspirations in your playing and it's just the sickets stuff ever even tho you're just dialing some tones in. Keep doing you man, you're killing it right now

[@KeyanHoushmandLive]

Thanks so much dude, I always play the same riffs when I’m noodling hahahaha

[@Kyle-hm7ee]

@@KeyanHoushmandLive regardless, they are pretty damn fire in my humble opinion lol, cheers man

[@xBergade]

Your sequence of settings has been very helpful. Could you explain when you tweak the depth control when the amp has one, e.g., would you adjust it after presence or before it? Also, do you use a different approach for you Ab tuned guitar, or do you use pretty much the same presets and make slight adjustments when swapping the C for the Ab?