[letitflow]

Hi,

At least with my setup, if you play chords at a good volume to mix in with the rest of the song that you are playing overtop of, when it comes time to solo, the lead will sound mixed in too low.

If you increase the volume then the lead playing sounds great but the chords will be way too loud unless you play them very softly.

How is this problem usually overcome?

Do you guys somehow boost your volume when it is time to solo? Or just use a completely different effect (at a different volume) for your chord playing than the lead playing?

[Laytonco]

Buy a volume pedal. It looks like a wah pedal, but controls your volume.

[letitflow]

cool thanks I'll research this.

Buy a volume pedal. It looks like a wah pedal, but controls your volume.

[tigerstrat]

Picking dynamics is one solution ... and backing off the volume on the guitar for rhythm comping is a complimentary one.

[strumminsix]

Agree with TS.

Why playing rhythm keep the guitar volume at around 8 them when playing lead open it all up. This will drive the front of the amp a bit and give you more volume and more trebble to cut in a bit stronger.

Instead of volume pedal a better (IMO) solution would be a compressor for leads it can nicely boost your signal and help even it out so don't have to worry about volume inconsistancies with picking.

[caspersvapors]

if you can control the volume on both pickups seperately you can just set one lower for strumming then switch to the other one for lead

[eyeprod]

if you have a good amp, chances are it's probably very responsive to changes in your guitars' volume knob(s). alot of players use that knob alone, but a volume pedal is nice to have . i use one but mostly for volume swell sounds, i still use the volume on the guitar for changes in my overall tone and volume.

[letitflow]

problem with the knob is that if I'm going to switch from chords to soloing then and back then I am not sure how to switch it quickly to the right spot.

I guess the soloing can just be the knobs on max so that is easy, but still getting the chord levels right is tricky.

Also, if I'm using both pickups I would have to adjust both knobs I think.

So I guess some kind of pedal is the solution for me probably. I don't understand what picking dynamics is.

if you have a good amp, chances are it's probably very responsive to changes in your guitars' volume knob(s). alot of players use that knob alone, but a volume pedal is nice to have . i use one but mostly for volume swell sounds, i still use the volume on the guitar for changes in my overall tone and volume.

[tigerstrat]

I guess it's just me, but for some reason I have a harder time returning a Vol pedal rocker to the right "in between" spot than with a knob. And half the time, I can't remove my foot from the rocker without slightly tweaking it away from where I was trying to set it.

Picking dynamics is being able to strike the strings hard or softly or anywhere in between.

[strumminsix]

Sounds like you aren't putting the time into mastering the volume trick. Just dedicate yourself to it and be done with it. Sure, I might sound like a dick but the fact is you will have a better lead tone by maxing your volume and you need to learn how to do it to maximize your equipment.

Here are the benefits:
1. it drives the preamp for a smoother saturated slight edge to the tone when you dig in
2. maximizes your picup's tone output
3. this adds trebble
4. this also adds volume

[letitflow]

ok guys thanks, looks like I'll be working on figuring out the volume knob... I just can't see right now how I 'll be able to adjust 2 knobs properly as soon as they are needed but I guess like everything it just comes with practice.

[tigerstrat]

[quote="letitflow"]I just can't see right now how I 'll be able to adjust 2 knobs properly as soon as they are needed/quote]

yeah separate pickup volumes is more of a problem than just a master volume... a pedal seems more appealing to me in that case.