A vs B ... Two Guitars, one passage. Preference?

[Jim Soloway]

I'm trying to A/B two guitars to decide which record with. Both are very nice instruments but very different. All the settings on the amp and in the DAW are identical. The only change is the guitar. Anyone have a preference?

[ARGewirtz]

I prefer the second take

[burchyk]

Both sound good.

First guitar works a bit better for me.

In contrast, second feels like there are some mids missing and also having a bit of a honk to it at the same time, with the treble not being as well supported by the high mids. Not as well balanced would be a way to compare it to #1.

[0zoro]

I agree, both sound good. Very difficult choice but my vote goes to the first recording as it feels a fuller audio range.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

second feels like there are some mids missing and also having a bit of a honk to it at the same time, with the treble not being as well supported by the high mids. Not as well balanced would be a way to compare it to #1.

I agree with your impression, burchyk, except that I didn't think the midrange was deficient.

Interesting, Jim! My first response was that the second one sounds more "electric". It has a bit less in the highs and more of a midrange focus. There's a bit less shimmer, and it's a bit closer to what I consider a classic tone for jazz than the first. But the first seems to sound a bit more lush and organic, with great sustain.

The title of the Soundcloud file seems to give away the names of the instruments. Is the second instrument a Neville from the Michigan shop?

[mad dog]

They both sound good. The first, to me, better. A more solid bass sound. In this context - solo guitar - that works better. Were this a group setting, my preference might be different.

[StefanoGhirardo]

Very difficult choice but my vote goes to the first recording as it feels a fuller audio range.

+1

[Jim Soloway]

I agree with your impression, burchyk, except that I didn't think the midrange was deficient.

Interesting, Jim! My first response was that the second one sounds more "electric". It has a bit less in the highs and more of a midrange focus. There's a bit less shimmer, and it's a bit closer to what I consider a classic tone for jazz than the first. But the first seems to sound a bit more lush and organic, with great sustain.

The title of the Soundcloud file seems to give away the names of the instruments. Is the second instrument a Neville from the Michigan shop?

It's a Neville Telecaster with a Wilde L280TN hum canceling pickup but that's the first version and my Gosling with the 36th Anniversary PAF is the second.

Thanks to all for the interest and input. It's very helpful to me.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

It's a Neville Telecaster with a Wilde L280TN hum canceling pickup but that's the first version and my Gosling with the 36th Anniversary PAF is the second.

Fascinating! So the order in the sound file is the reverse of the order in its title? If so, the PAF explains the more traditional electric jazz tone. The Neville almost sounds acoustic.

[Jim Soloway]

Fascinating! So the order in the sound file is the reverse of the order in its title? If so, the PAF explains the more traditional electric jazz tone. The Neville almost sounds acoustic.

It gotten even more interesting this morning ... This is my first experience in blending the line out from my Quilter Superblock with a mic on the cab. I had thought of it as using the mic on the speaker to supplement the direct signal. This morning, working with the Neville only, I tried reversing the two with the mic as the dominant signal and the direct out from the amp as the augmentation. The sound suddenly became much warmer, darker and fuller. That may be because of the cab I'm using which has a 12" Greenback, a fairly dark sounding speaker. I can blend the two at various levels and get a very different result. I also tried rolling off a bit of volume on the guitar and things warmed up a lot.

Here's the Neville only with the volume rolled off a bit (which is more like the way I typically play it) and mixed with more mic and less cab. I have no EQ on this and it's probably a bit bass heavy but my first impression of this is pretty positive.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

Here's the Neville only with the volume rolled off a bit (which is more like the way I typically play it) and mixed with more mic and less cab. I have no EQ on this and it's probably a bit bass heavy but my first impression of this is pretty positive.

...as is mine! That's a beautiful, big sound reminiscent of early Martin Taylor and his stereo Yamaha.

[Jim Soloway]

...as is mine! That's a beautiful, big sound reminiscent of early Martin Taylor and his stereo Yamaha.

This is turning out to be a very deep (and rewarding) rabbit hole. With the new interface I'm not fighting with noise nearly as much and it makes recording much more inspiring. The result is that I'm exploring all sorts of options that I've never gotten into before. instead of just struggling to make the recording viable, I can actually try to find the setups that make it sound like what I get when I'm playing through the amp in the room when it all feels like it's just right. It feels like a whole new adventure with a lot less pain.

[Jonathan0996]

Very nice playing.

Both guitars sound beautiful, but I'll throw in with those who preferred the first cut. Does that guitar have a longer scale?

[Jim Soloway]

Very nice playing.

Both guitars sound beautiful, but I'll throw in with those who preferred the first cut. Does that guitar have a longer scale?

Same scale length but it's single coil vs humbucker. (And frankly some unimaginative engineering. I'm experimenting with a very new recording setup and finding out just how much I've increased my options).

[mr. beaumont]

I'm going to be difficult...I like the bass on the first, but the trebles on the second.

[wzpgsr]

First guitar sounds more open. Second guitar sounds a bit congested. I prefer the first, but didn't dislike the second.