sustain and set up question

lle7 · #1 February 2nd, 2008

i have a gibson les paul mahagony vintage guitar. i never set any guitars up or know what it feels like when it set up right. recently i notice my guitar's sustain is shorter than a guy i saw on youtube having the same guitar. his sustain was way longer than mine.

How do you improve your sustain? is it part of getting your guitar set up right?

How do you set up your guitar correctly? is it better to let professional do it and just pay to getting it set up? i hate to play guitars but dont know nothing about caring for one

I need help bad
Thanks

eXperiment63 · #2 February 2nd, 2008

It's partly your setup, but that part is very tiny. The biggest things about having good sustain are good technique, and your amp being very loud. The higher the volume and gain, the longer the notes will ring. And a note swells a little bit on a good tube amp, so the sustain is longer. While on a solid state amp, they tend to get softer faster.

79Lespaul · #3 February 2nd, 2008

Get someone who knows to show you a propper vibrato technique!! I've got a Les Paul too(1979 Deluxe) and I can say that regaurdless of the instrument, a fundamental thing is finger vibrato!!! Its not just shaking the finger, you gotta lever your hand on the neck, fulcrum on the thumb, and syncronize up and down push/pull.
You learn this the right way and your sustain will go on forever!
This is a fundamental thing you've gotta get , so , go out of your way to find someone to show you that knows how! Trust me, you will use it every time you touch a guitar!

allthumbs · #4 February 2nd, 2008

Also check to make sure the pups are the right height. To close to the strings and they tend to damp the strings sustain.

eXperiment63 · #5 February 2nd, 2008

D'oh! I forgot about the pickup height, lmao. That can def do all kinds of things to your sound. Too close and you get too much bite without enough sustain. Too far you get a weak sound.

P-90 · #6 February 2nd, 2008

The guy on youtube was probably using a different amp than you, too... and maybe a compression pedal. It isn't necessarily your guitar.

lle7 · #7 February 3rd, 2008

thanks guys for so much helpful info. im illiterate when it comes to knowing guitars. i dont know if my pickups are too low or too high.

Do you think i should to get my guitar looked at and get it set up right at a shop? this is probably a last resort because i dont like somebody else touch my guitar. my les paul is really a personal thing to me.

P-90 · #8 February 3rd, 2008

If the idea of someone else handling your guitar bothers you, find a tech that you like. A good guitar deserves some expert TLC from time to time.

Learning to do your own is fine, too, but if you were going to do that you should probably get some $39 expendable guitar from a pawn shop to practice on for a while. I wouldn't encourage a Gibson as a first project.

lle7 · #9 February 3rd, 2008

you right p-90 . i have a old yamaha i used to practice with. it looks like a strat. it been put away but i'll put it to good use and practice tuning. good idea p-90 thanks. i also know a shop i like and trust. i probably going to take my gibson there.

i think it my cheap 15watts marshal amp that's degrade my gibson's tone and that's why the sustain is so short. i sound a lot sweeter when i just use my old cheap headphones. i think my marshal is crap but hate to get a new amp when i have one that still works. i kind of hope for my amp to die so i can throw it out but it won't die. hehe