If you play the electric or acoustic guitar, it helps to have a great sounding tone come out of your guitar amplifier. You can have a pretty decent sound coming out of your guitar amp, and yet, still not quite have the amplifier tone that you are trying to achieve. Below we take a look at four easy steps on how to dial in a great guitar amp tone.  

1. Check Your Volume Levels

It's important to know how-how much volume your guitar amp is capable of. For example, let's pretend that you have a guitar practice amplifier and you are playing in a rock band. Once the band begins to play, you discover that you are unable to hear yourself. In response to the loud music, you turn your guitar amplifier volume all the way up to 10. Chances are, no matter how kind of a tone you have coming out of your amplifier, the size of your practice amp just won't be able to pump out the volume of sound required for your live band practice. Every amplifier has a volume level that will produce the proper amount of volume that compliments the tone settings on your amplifier. If you need more capacity, consider miking your amplifier.  

2. Determine What Kind Of Room You Are In

The room that you are playing in will also determine what kind of tone settings will be required when setting up your guitar amplifier tone. You might have the perfect tone settings when you practice your guitar at home, however, be aware that you might go into a completely different sounding room, and find that your chosen tone settings have to go out the window. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time before you play in another room environment to allow yourself to find a good tone match for the room that you're playing in.  

3. Guitar Effects Pedals

You'll want to make sure that your guitar and all effects pedals are set up correctly. Each guitar effects pedal has their various tone controls. You are now dealing with three or more possible tone combination's that can dramatically affect the sound that comes out of your guitar amplifier. Start with the basics if you are still unsure why your guitar amp is still not sounding great. Plug into your guitar amp directly, and start re-building the tone that you want. Next, tweak your guitar tone settings. Finally, add your effects pedals to the overall mix.  

4. Read Your Instruction Manual

When all else fails, make sure that you read your instruction manual. Many times your guitar amplifier manual will come with manufactured presets that will allow you to emulate the particular type of guitar sound that you are looking for.  

Final Thoughts ...

Remember, it's always a good idea to get to know your amp and -- if possible -- the location you will be playing at. By doing so, you should be able to better control your situation. Still, the tips above will ensure that you will be heading towards the right track.    

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What are some other great universal guitar amp tips?

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