Electric guitars and sustain

[BoneDigger]

Is the general consensus that more resonance/sustain in an electric guitar is good and is it something that you consider when buying one? Are there instances where you would specifically search for an electric with less resonance/sustain? Aside from my hollow body guitars, I tend to lean more towards long sustaining guitars. Is this the general consensus?

[robj144]

You can always mute the strings if you don't want sustain. It's harder to increase sustain if it's not there.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

...Are there instances where you would specifically search for an electric with less sustain?

If you're going to be playing straight-ahead jazz you might prefer less sustain, as well as stronger initial attack and fewer overtones, for the sake of single-note articulation on fast runs and voice definition in complex chords - one reason many jazzers gravitate to heavy laminated hollowbodies in the ES-175 mold...

[David Eastwood]

Put enough gain between the pickup and the speaker, and you can make just about anything sustain for as long as you want.

Steve Howe's ES-175 in early Yes days is a great example, as are Nels Cline's Jazzmasters with Wilco and beyond.

Whether you'll like the sound or not is entirely another matter

[Dru Edwards]

Sustain is good. Tremolos can steal sustain, as can a poorly installed bolt on neck or bridge.

[Bob Womack]

Resonance and sustain are two different characteristics. The guitars that are the absolute kings of sustain often aren't very resonant. Resonance is the characteristic of a guitar that makes a guitar system vibrate with the vibrations of the strings. But doing so absorbs string energy. A more rigid platform simply reflects the energy back into the strings rather than flexing with their energy. A good example of a low resonance, high sustain guitar is a 1970s Gibson Les Paul with the cross-banded sandwich body." On the opposite end of that scale with less sustain are the fully hollow ES-330 and ES-175.

I like sustain a lot when I am playing lead. I learned that I liked it from driving 50 watt medium gain amps right to the top of their power band and feeling the pillowy sustain from the power section back in the '70s when we didn't have powerful P.A.s that could reinforce the amps.

Bob

[Steel and wood]

Not for me.

Sustain (whether it's generated from a guitar, amp or pedals) is not something I've ever considered nor chased. (I'm a bit the opposite because I prefer my notes to sound staccato for a lot of my playing).

A little bit of "crunch" from time to time perhaps also!

[FrankHudson]

Inherent sustain is something some electric guitars have more of that others, yes--but for me (and I think for a substantial group of others) no, it's not the be all and end all of guitar qualities.

I enjoy the differences between electric guitar models. It's fun, even though in the grand scheme of things (what with effects, amplifiers, playing techniques...) they're smaller than one might think, even if we remain focused on sonics, and forget that the actual music being played is of overwhelming importance. Besides sustain there are different native tonal colors, attack profiles, resonance dips and peaks reactions to strumming variations, different control setups, variations in vibrato mechanisms. These all effect sound, and can be used musically.

OK, those other things might be nice too, but more sustain is always better, right? Not for all players, all the time. As has already been mentioned a number of guitar models are not known for great inherent sustain: many archtops, the Jazzmaster, but also the Jaguar and Danelectros. I'll add one more: the oft counted as the most popular guitar design ever: the Stratocaster.

Now I like to use sustain sometimes. Not just regular old electric guitar sustain, but more than that. Fuzzboxes and compressors? Sure! I use Ebows, Fernandez sustainers, amp feedback, even rubbing the strings with objects to excite them like a bow. You can get different qualities of sustain with such things, interesting ones too. I don't tend to use my Les Paul (a design known to have potential for inherent sustain) when I use those things. For example, I just got done doing a piece where the top line voices are a viola and an electric guitar that play off each other. For the guitar I used a Jazzmaster because it sounded good with a Triangle Big Muff with some compression to boot, and I could use the Jazzmaster's and its vibrato system to closely match the timbre and the feel of the expression on the viola part. The "plinky" Jazzmaster was going toe to toe with a bowed string instrument in terms of sustain with that signal chain.

[YamahaGuy]

With the MXR Dyna Comp, my electric guitars can sustain for just about forever. Schecter Synyster Gates Custom S has Sustainiac, which does sustain for forever. Just like projection or particular tone, sustain has its place. I happen to like it. A lot of it on my electric guitars, but less so on my acoustics.

[BoneDigger]

I guess, to be clear, I am talking about built in sustain or resonance (not sure I really understand the difference?). Something where if you plug the guitar directly into an amp, you either have it or not.

[Steel and wood]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

I guess, to be clear, I am talking about built in sustain or resonance (not sure I really understand the difference?). Something where if you plug the guitar directly into an amp, you either have it or not.

A heavy chunk of mahogany Les Paul will generally sustain more than a thinner slice of alder/ash Fender off the bat. (However ability to generate sustain using the amp and/or pedals for any guitar makes it a mute point in my opinion).

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

I guess, to be clear, I am talking about built in sustain or resonance (not sure I really understand the difference?). Something where if you plug the guitar directly into an amp, you either have it or not.

Yes, I think that's what you meant. Some of the replies, including mine, understood that, and wanted to point out that the are a lot interesting sustain capabilities in electric guitars that don't rely on the old take it off the peg in the store, strum it, and say "Listen to that sustain! Ring me up. I'll take it."

Your question also seemed to be asking if this sustain was generally considered to a good thing. Not having any definitive survey material or the like myself, I'd suggest that the Stratocaster's* design eventual success (It's often claimed to be the most popular design of all time, and nothing in my informal observation has me doubting that) indicates that this kind of sustain is not universally or even predominantly valued at the cash register.

Now if you like the sound of sustain at lower volumes with cleaner, lower gain amps, or feel that the sustain you get in higher gain or other assisted situation is better with something like a Les Paul's unplugged sustain envelope (I'll use Les Paul as a shorthand for electric guitars known for "unplugged sustain") you're a happy player and yes, some others seek the same thing for their happiness. I own two guitars that are strictly speaking the Les Paul design. It's a great flavor.


*Yes, you can have a Strat that sustains acoustically. Block the trem or buy a hardtail (two things that are uncommon as Strats sit in stores over the years, Clapton and Cray models aside) and put on some thicker strings. Some particular Strat body/neck combinations along with bridge hardware magic seem to have that acoustic sustain thing more than others. And I've played some Telecasters that sustain like a Les Paul. I'm not knocking the Strat here, just using it and the Les Paul as shorthand examples.

[redir]

Stick a compressor in your sig chain and you can get any guitar to sustain like mad. If you are playing music like Pink Floyd or U2 then you need sustain, metal shredders and jazz cats not so much. So like anything, to each their own.

[rockabilly69]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

I guess, to be clear, I am talking about built in sustain or resonance (not sure I really understand the difference?). Something where if you plug the guitar directly into an amp, you either have it or not.

Sustain is how long the notes last that are played. Resonance is the body vibrating along with the note(s), with the guitar feeling more alive with vibration.

[BoneDigger]

Originally Posted by rockabilly69

Sustain is how long the notes last that are played. Resonance is the body vibrating along with the note(s), with the guitar feeling more alive with vibration.

Would that not be basically the same thing? I'm asking honestly. It seems like the vibration within the guitar is closely related to how long the notes sound?