Cover band users: how do you proceed to get your tones ?

I’ve been in a covers band for 20 years and I have never tried to get the exact same tone as I’m a record. My view on this is if people wanna hear it like that then they can just go put the CD on. I just find a profile I like the sound of and use that. I’ve been using TAF’s JCM800 profile for about 7 years now and to me this sounds great for most songs distortion wise and TAF’s two rock for clean. IMO just pick a sound that you like and go with that

I only use 2-3 profiles and just change the tone/effect settings slightly for certain songs

Quote from brunoo

It's basicaly a question about the way you work with your kemper to get the guitar tones heared on the tunes you are supposed to play.
Do you select the profile first, or do you begin with main effects locked ?
Any other tips to share ?
Thanks !

I work a little bit different than Raoul.
(although my prefered profiles are the TAF JCM800, too !!!)

When we (the cover band I‘m in) want to do a song, I listen to the song and try to find out the used amp.
And I try to find out via Internet, f.e. in live videos.
Most of the times I don‘t hear it because my ears are to bad.
But sometimes it works.
Then I play the profile of the used amp and try to bring the sound close to the original (without effects).
If this fits (gain, EQ) I think about possible effects.
Hope this can help.

I start with the profile first and tweak from there. I wouldn't use an Engl Savage 120 profile for a Willie Nelson tune, then again I've never tried LOL

Quote from music

I work a little bit different than Raoul.(although my prefered profiles are the TAF JCM800, too !!!)

When we (the cover band I‘m in) want to do a song, I listen to the song and try to find out the used amp.
And I try to find out via Internet, f.e. in live videos.
Most of the times I don‘t hear it because my ears are to bad.
But sometimes it works.
Then I play the profile of the used amp and try to bring the sound close to the original (without effects).
If this fits (gain, EQ) I think about possible effects.
Hope this can help.

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Same here.

Listen to the recording, look up guitar used, look up amp used, look up efx used. Start with same base sound from an amp profile, tweak gain, then eq, then add efx.

Take a moment to consider what the rest of your band are doing- do they emulate "those tracks" with sounds reminiscent to the original artist/song. Unlikely the drummer changes his/her sound per-track to replicate the original track (logistically a challenge in itself) so, It makes more "audio" sense to be employing sounds that compliment the instruments around you, akin to what @Raoul23 said about having 2/3 presets. Further to that, listen how the original artists sound when they play "live" compared to their recorded versions.
If your sound sounds "good" (subjective in itself), you will enjoy the gig far more than if you are striving to reproduce the sound of the original artist at expense of your own personal satisfaction of the performance, especially if the rest of your band are thinking the same way.
Theres certainly a few songs where id hope i didnt sound like the recorded guitar (see Great songs, great solos, awful sound)
Imagine cooking a meal to satisfy the tastes of your guests- You can seek to please them, or yourself, or find that happy crossover in the middle that brings a smile to everyone.

If it sounds good it probably is good.

I just use 4 basic flavor tones : Heavy for metal songs , crunch for lower gain rock , classic for classic stuff :p and a clean tone

All of the are within one performance , use wah and morphing for blending in leads for each rig , on one of them I got a detune button assigned on the remote

That's all I need , the crowd doesn't care about more nuances !

Raf

I use one performance with 5 rigs from clean with increasing gain. The two cleanish rigs are D/13 and the three crunchy to overdrive are Marshalls, I guess both from M.Britt free pack. They all have the bread and butter effects.These are the sounds for 80% of the songs, I play with two different guitars (my beloved 91 Blade RH4 and a Diamond Imperial). If I need something special, I simply search Rig Exchange for close Rigs and tweak it to my needs. I never spend much time searching and tweaking for the right tone from a rig, I´m still a strong believer that fingers - and - in particular for covers - the audience's expectations make the tone experience. In general, after two iterations on rehearsal or gig, I´m done with tweaking.

I have a few standard performance banks with various rigs, but I also dedicate a whole performance bank for some bands that we cover quite a bit. I've got a Police bank, a Pink Floyd bank and a Bob Marley bank as examples.

When I'm creating the rigs I just listen to the original and dial it in.

For our rock cover band we do not think that the exact tone is so important.
It is important to get the atmosphere and/or you let your own interpretation be recognized.
Mostly there are tracks that could only be mixed in as backing - we don't want that at all.

We try to find a similar tone, but accuracy is not in demand for us. (Caused to much technical effort)

It's just a question of ambition. A tribute band would probably need the original sound and all that investigations.

You will never catch the 100% because of so many different things ( guitar, player, equipment, soundengineer and and), but the chance to come into the ballpark is very high with the kemper ( and other units like the helix or axe too).

For me the right amp and the right cab is first. You didn't get a cool mesa boogie sound like petrucci with greenbacks. Same for Vai sounds.

Normally i have a look into google to find out wath equipment the player uses ( mostly quick to find).

A good knowledge about fx is very helpful. There are many cool hints on youtube ( there are also some vids like... how to sound like xy).

Finally you can have a look on rig exchange with rm, guys like maurizio and others have placed some nice rigs with tweaked fx for cover songs. If you don't like the amp that they have choosen it's easy to change the stack with the kpa and the locking function.

Big journey

It's also a solution to ask here in the formuns if you have no idea.........
Normally he smart guys will help

Edit: Yea, the XXX JCM 800 from XXX is great but not the only solution. I cant write the clear name because I have got a warning for a thing like that from a very kind mod who dont understand to deal with good customers.......

This advices have to stay in third party discussions........ Crazy but true......Lol

Cheers
Frank

I use around 45 performances during one show and I go to details.Why not use everything that the Kemper offers.For example when i play U2's beautiful day i use 4 presets, different delays, pitch shifters, tremolos with Britt vox profiles.:)

I do some research on the song and try and fine what gear was used to get you roughly in the ball park of the original if possible,
although the type of guitar you are using also affects the tone and i dont have every type of guitar

I then pick an amp that sounds real close and then tweak the eq and cabinet if needed.

then would apply effects to the tone, eg delay /reverb/ chorus etc if needed

I generally use performance mode and then would have up to five patches per song, eg, intro, verse, chorus, solo, etc

i then might use morph to change a setting for spot effects

i find this works really well and you can get close most of the times

thanks

Daryl

I take a more generalized approach. I use an appropriate amount of gain for songs and styles, along with effects. Since my guitar choices can vary from night to night, some of the Rig selections can vary, too.

I regularly use Rigs in seven Performance banks.

Hi @brunoo,
I listen carefully to the part in the version of the song which is the start point of our cover version. I then research gear used by the artist including guitar. I do surprise myself how often I am right about both, just by listening!
As I use a JTV Variax or a Strat, I aim to get as close as I can to the sound used in the song by matching the guitar model/pick up to the most suitable profile of the amp used by the artist for that song. I tend to go for profiles with the right amount of gain so I don't have to change it. Keeps profiles sounding clear and avoids fizzy, thin, gainy mush!
I do have a good listen and tweak using definition, clarity and eq where required though. I tweak pick attack for U2 songs, to give a little more Edge!
I then consider the use of effects and add/adjust to develop the sound further.
This can be a bit of trial and error but again I reference the original for clues.
In the end, I take the rig to a rehearsal and see how it fits into the mix. We always record so I get a very quick idea about how useful it's going to be.
Usually, I'll need to do a few minor adjustments to eq to make it fit.
That rig sometimes becomes the basis for all songs by that artist. This does save time for future songs but is not a hard and fast rule. My main aim is to get as close as possible while fitting with the big picture of our band sound.
We are blessed with quality gear and crucially, the drums are electric (purists forgive me) and so it is easier to sonically match a number of styles and musical periods.
As everything is plugged directly into the desk and mix scenes saved, it is relatively simple to achieve consistency.
All in all, each song sounds close enough to be instantly recognisable and authentic without being the same as sticking the CD on!
Some sounds take more work than others and sometimes I will reassess and start again if I feel it's not working.
That's my take on that!
Cheers
Pre-Amp

Seeing The Doobie Brothers live a few times has changed my philosophy a bit. I've covered China Grove and Long Train Runnin' for years and always tried to get the sound exactly right. (old Fender, Marshall, etc.) But now, Tom Johnston plays PRS guitars and amps. The Archon isn't even in the same ballpark as an old Bassman but it sounds awesome and the audience loves it.

There are probably 100 other similar examples out there and even more where a guitarist's live rig is completely different from what they used in the studio. So now, unless I'm covering Van Halen, Boston, etc., I just pick something that sounds good to me. As far as I know, The Gin Blossoms never used a Dumble but now I know it would have sounded great if they did.

Quote from anatoli

I use around 45 performances during one show and I go to details.Why not use everything that the Kemper offers.For example when i play U2's beautiful day i use 4 presets, different delays, pitch shifters, tremolos with Britt vox profiles.:)

Same. 1 to 4 rigs per song in mini sets of 3 to 5 songs for some flexibility and great transitions. So 1 or 2 Performances per mini set. Morph is a big help to reduce the number of rigs per song. Start with a rig with similar tone traits and amount of gain. Add effects. tweak, tweak, tweak. Then sometimes end up swapping out the whole amp section after the effects take their toll or maybe just the amp or cabinet fix it. As mentioned above, take it to practice and make sure you have that space in the song with the band. If not, usually an amp change can fix it.

I should mention, many of the amps I use have a bunch of rigs profiled at different gain levels and different tone settings. I don't usually change the gain much from the profiled level of gain. Occasionally you just have to effect a sweep of gain (morph.)