Having a great sound is just as important as your performance so you need to know how to set up your amp right
The good news is you don’t need to spend a fortune on equipment to get a good sound. I’ll give you a few simple tips to help you get great results!
In this video you’ll discover:
So dive in and start getting the sound you want straight away…
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Guitar Amp Settings for an Awesome Rock sound.
Start setting up your guitar amp for a great rock sound and start getting the tone you hear in your head!
This short video lesson shows you step-by-step tips for setting eq, gain and distortion levels and more so you can get started crafting great rock and metal tones. And you don’t need a $5,000 guitar amp to do it!
0:10 In this lesson I’ll show you tips for getting a great rock guitar sound. I’m not a guitar amp ‘guru’ and I’m not playing through high end gear that most guitarists can’t afford! But the good news is that with these easy to use tips you can start getting closer to the rock sound you want.
0:45 Amp Settings for Rock ‘Crunch’ Rhythm Sound
To get a rock rhythm guitar sound similar to bands like AC/DC or Guns’n’Roses set your amp on the distortion or overdrive channel. If you have a ‘crunch’ channel like I do then use this.
I normally set my eq up like this:
Bass: 2-3 o’clock
Treble: 2-3 o’clock
Notice how these are in a similar sort of area – I find this a good starting point before adjusting the mid control. The Mid control has a big influence on the sound so ‘sweep’ the Mid control round till you find the ‘sweet spot’ where it sounds good to you.
I normally set mine to about 10-11 o’clock.
Too much distortion (normally controlled by the ‘Gain’ knob) can make chords and riffs unclear and muddy so don’t use too much!
Start by setting it to about 12-1 o’clock and adjust from there.
1:53 Hear me demo the settings on a ‘classic rock’ style chord riff. Notice how the sound is powerful with a good amount of punch – but you can still make the sound of the chords clearly.
2:08 Amp Settings for Rock Lead/Solo Sound
To get a bit more punch for a good lead guitar sound then you can try just increasing the distortion/gain on your rhythm sound. Some players use a pedal to do this so they don’t need to mess around with the amp. If your amp has a designated lead channel then you might prefer to use this.
I normally use the same eq settings as on the crunch sound – I find they cut through but still sounds nice and fat. As with the rhythm guitar sound be aware of using too much distortion/gain!
On my lead channel I set the gain to about 1-2 o’clock but this will vary depending on your amp.
3:43 Obviously these are just guidelines to get you started! They won’t necessarily be perfect for your taste or music. Alter them to get the sound you want. They’re a great starting point though and should take the guesswork out of getting a good sound.
Good luck!
Check out these essential guitar power chord shapes and techniques for killer riffs and chord progressions!.
And discover how this one power chord shape can be used to play any power chord you might need…simply by moving around the guitar neck (don’t worry, I’ll show you how to do it!)
Watch to learn:
So dive in and start getting killer power chord sounds right away…
Learn the Essential Rock and Metal Guitar Power Chords used by bands like Metallica, ACDC, Black Sabbath, Guns’n’Roses and more!
Get my awesome free POWER CHORD GUIDE With TAB and chord boxes for this and other lessons showing you all the essential guitar power chords!
Power chords are essential knowledge if you want to play rock and metal rhythm guitar, songs and riffs. In this guitar lesson I’ll show you more ‘must know’ guitar power chords used by all rock and metal guitarists and classic bands such as AC/DC, Guns’n’ Roses, Metallica and more. Plus you’ll learn how you can use this single chord shape to play ANY power chord!
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:42 In the previous power chord lessons we looked at the open string guitar power chords and the chord shapes with an E string root. Now it’s time for the shape with the root on the A string.
Let’s learn the basic power chord shape. We’ll start by learning how to play a B5 power chord at the 2nd fret. Then in a minute we’ll start moving it around the neck to get other power chords. Notice the two different options for fingering this chord shape. This is one of the most often used guitar power chords!
I’m mainly playing this shape on the A,D and G strings but as with the E root shapes you can leave off the little finger note if you want (the G string in this chord shape).
2:02 Playing Any Power Chord With This Shape
By moving the power chord shape up the neck it can be used to play any power chord you might need. This is all to do with the root note, which is the note you play with your 1st finger on the A string. Whatever this note becomes as you move the chord shape around determines which power chord you are playing. The chords you get are: 2nd fret-B5, 3rd fret-C5, 5th fret – D5, 7th fret – E5, 8th fret – F5, 10th fret – G5, 12th fret – A5. Make sure you learn this – very important!
1:52 The Moveable Power Chord Shape
By moving the power chord shape up the neck it can be used to play any power chord you might need. This is all to do with the root note, which is the note you play with your 1st finger on the low E string. Whatever this note becomes as you move the chord shape around determines which power chord you are playing. The chords you get are: 1st fret-F5, 3rd fret-G5, 5th fret – A5, 7th fret – B5, 8th fret – C5, 10th fret – D5, 12th fret – E5. Make sure you learn this – very important!
3:42 Sharps and Flats for Power Chords
Make sure you can also play power chords with a sharp(#) or flat (b) root note. These are all played at the frets in between the ones we played the shape at earlier. See the lesson for details and demonstration.
4:57 Power Chord Playing Tips
Remember you only want to play the strings in the chord shape -try to deaden off all other strings by lying your left hand fingers slightly flat across the neck. I mainly do this with my 1st finger. Also experiment with using ‘palm muting’ to give the chords a more chunky, tighter sound. Lightly rest the flesh of your picking hand on the strings to ‘palm mute’.When you want to, release the palm muting slightly to let the power chord ring out a little more.
5:24 How To Use These Power Chord Shapes
It is essential that we practice USING new material in our playing – otherwise we just forget it! Try taking the 3 sets of power chord shapes we’ve covered in these lessons and experimenting with combining them. See if you can make up some killer power chord riffs and chord sequences of your own.
If you want to play rock and metal rhythm guitar, then you must know Power Chord shapes. These are chord shapes used by all rock and metal guitarists and classic bands such as Metallica, Guns n’ Roses, AC/DC and much more. Here I’ll show you these chords and how to use them
In this lesson we are going to see:
With these chords, you can play almost any metal and rock song. Don’t forget to download my awesome free POWER CHORDS GUIDE With TAB and chord boxes for this and the other Power Chord Lessons!
Power Chord Shapes – Learn the Essential Rock and Metal Power Chords used by bands like Metallica, ACDC, Black Sabbath, Guns’n’Roses and more!
Get my awesome free POWER CHORD GUIDE With TAB and chord boxes for this and the other Power Chord Lessons!
More Essential Guitar Power Chord Shapes
Power chords are essential knowledge if you want to play rock and metal rhythm guitar, songs and riffs. In this guitar lesson I’ll show you ‘must know’ chord shapes used by all rock and metal guitarists and classic bands such as AC/DC, Guns’n’ Roses, Metallica and more. Plus you’ll learn how you can use these to play ANY power chord!
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:38 Basic Power Chords Shape
We’ll start by learning how to play an F5 power chord at the 1st fret. Then in a minute we’ll start moving it around the neck to get other chords using the same shape. Notice the two different options for fingering this chord shape.
1:28 Controlling String Noise
Watch your 1st finger position when you play this shape – it should be slightly flat so it mutes off any unwanted strings. This little tip is essential for getting clear and punchy power chords without unwanted string noise!
1:52 The Moveable Power Chord Shape
By moving the shape up the neck it can be used to play any chord you might need. This is all to do with the root note, which is the note you play with your 1st finger on the low E string. Whatever this note becomes as you move the chord shape around determines which chord you are playing. The chords you get are: 1st fret-F5, 3rd fret-G5, 5th fret – A5, 7th fret – B5, 8th fret – C5, 10th fret – D5, 12th fret – E5. Make sure you learn this – very important!
3:05 Alternative Fingering
You can also play the power chord shape without the D string note to get a 2 string power chord shape. These can be used interchangeably with the 3 string version and are basically the same thing. They can also be moved around the neck to get different power chords.
4:20 Sharps and Flats
Make sure you can also play power chords with a sharp(#) or flat (b) root note. These are all played at the frets in between the ones we played the shape at earlier. See the lesson for details and demonstration.
5:15 Chord Connecting Exercise
This simple exercise uses the shape played as A5, C5, F5 and G5.
I’m using the 3 string shape here although you could use the 2 string form if you prefered. Notice how I’m using ‘palm muting’ to gives the chords a more chunky, tighter sound. Lightly rest the flesh of your picking hand on the strings to ‘palm mute’. On the final A5 chord I release the palm muting slightly to let the chord ring out a little more.
Power chords are essential knowledge for any aspiring rock or metal guitarist wanting to play killer rock songs and riffs.
In this guitar lesson you’ll learn’must know’ open string power chords used by the legends of rock and metal music: bands like AC/DC, Guns’n’Roses, Ozzy Osborne, Black Sabbath and others.
Discover:
So grab your guitar,dive in to this power chord lesson and soon you’ll be cranking out massive sounding riffs like the legends…
Power Chords – Learn the Essential Rock and Metal Guitar Power Chord Shapes used by bands like Metallica, ACDC, Black Sabbath, Guns’n’Roses and more!
Get my awesome free POWER CHORD GUIDE With TAB and chord boxes for this and the other Power Chord Lessons
Power Chords – Essential Guitar Power Chords
Power chords are essential knowledge if you want to play rock and metal rhythm guitar, songs and riffs. In this guitar lesson I’ll show you 4 must know power chord shapes used by all rock and metal guitarists and classic bands such as AC/DC, Guns’n’ Roses, Metallica and more. You’ll also learn HOW TO SET YOUR AMP and guitar to get that classic rock sound power chord sound!
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:12 Hear a basic demo of the power chord shapes this video teaches you and what they sound like.
0:48 What is a power chord? Normally when guitarists talk about power chords they mean ‘5’ chords, for example E5, G5, C5 etc. Where they are different from most other chords is that they only contain 2 notes whereas most other chords are made up of 3 or more notes. Strangely by taking a note out we get a bigger, more powerful sound. Even though some of these shapes use 3 or more strings on the guitar they are still constructed of just 2 notes.
1:14 E5 Power Chord Shape. Play the open E string and the A and D strings at the 2nd fret to play this chord. Either use your 1st finger to barre both strings or use your 1st and 2nd fingers to play it. Either way let your fingers lie slightly ‘flat’ to mute other strings we don’t want to hear.
2:15 A5 Power Chord Shape. If you move the E5 power chord shape across onto the next 3 strings it become an A5 chord. Use the same fingering options we had for the E5 shape. Watch that muting like before!
2:49 D5 Power Chord Shape. For this power chord play the open D string, the G string ate the 2nd fret and the B string at the 3rd fret. Use the various fingering options in the video depending on what works best for you.
4:10 G5 Power Chord Shape. This G5 chord is a favourite of all the classic rock bands – it sounds huge! Play the E string at the 3rd fret, the open D and open G strings, and the B and top E strings at the 3rd fret. Mute the A string with the flat of your 2nd finger (which is playing the low E string note).
5:16 Setting Up Your Amp for a Great Power Chord Sound. These are just some guidelines for amp settings – feel free to experiment to get your own sounds. Don’t over-do the distortion – use as much as you need but not too much! The reason is that the chords will start to sound mushy and unclear with too much distortion. I set my bass and treble controls to about 2 o’clock and mid to about 9 o’clock and usually use the bridge pickup on my guitar.
6:39 Power Chord Connecting Exercise. Here’s a simple chord sequence you can use to practice these power chord shapes. Also use songs by your favourite rock and metal bands. The exercise here goes from E5 to D5, then from G5 to A5. See the TAB in my FREE POWER CHORD GUIDE!