CHAPTER 3
Distortion and Sustain
Guitarists have been jealous of the supe•
rior volume and sustain available to other
instrumentalists ever since the guitar was
invented. Horns were louder and could hold
a note until the player's breath ran out (or
indefinitely with circular breathing). The
church organ sustained as long as the key
was pressed and was capable of cathedral
filling volume. Even the less powerful violins
and other strings could hold a note until the
player's bowing arm got tired. The invention
of electric guitars and their amplifiers
instantly solved the volume problem, but gui•
tarists remained envious of Other instru•
ment's sustain capabilities.
There are two different apocryphal
stories about the invention of distortion. One
has it that a tube came loose in an amplifier,
creating a distorted sound. The other is that
a speaker was torn. It is unlikely that either
would create a sound that a guitarist would
covet. It is far more likely that guitarists
merely started driving some of those early
fifteen watt amps until they began to over•
load the tubes. This caused the tubes to
distort and create a warm singing tone some·
what akin to that of a saxophone. Eurekattt
In addition to the resemblance in tone,
the lucky guitarists found that their notes sus•
tained longer - not· as long as a horn, but long
enough to change the way guitarists would
phrase their lines from that day forward
(check out some Charlie Christian records).
This sustain was caused by the "compres•
sion" effect of tubes distorting, which brings
us neatly to the first of the "effects!"
COMPRESSION
To understand the use of compression
and compressors, we must first understand
the difference between tustortton and
sustain. Distortion is a description of a type
of sound. The ear hears certain overtones
around the note that it discerns as distortion
(more on this in the next section). Sustain
refers to how long the note remains audible.
Distortion can sometimes increase sustain,
but sustain can also be increased without any
distortion.
We have discussed how to maximize the
acoustic sustain of your guitar in the first
section. TI1is is very important because no
electric device will make up for choking
strings or a poorly cut nut. However, once
your guitar is sustaining well acoustically, a
compressor can increase the "apparent"
sustain of your instrument. As you read on,
you will understand why l say "apparent" and
why the natural sustain of the instrument is
so important.
How compression works
It is easiest to understand compressors if
you think of them as automatic volume
pedals: No matter how hard or how son you
strike the strings, the compressor reduces the
volume sent to the amplifier to a pre-set
level. Then, as the string slows its vibrations
and the volume sent to the amp by the
pickup(s) drops, a little amplifier in the com·
pressor gradually mises the volume to keep it
at the same level as the initial attack.
37
 38 • GETIING. GREAT GUITAR SOUNDS

You can see for yourself how this works.
Plug in your guitar and stand next to your
amplifier. Set it for a clean sound. Now strike
a note - and as the volume drops, keep
turning up your amplifier volume. You will
hear that the note appears to be sustaining
longer. You will understand why I say
"appears" if you try it again without turning
up the volume. Listen closely. Now try it the
first way again. You will hear that the actual
note does not last any longer when you turn
up the volume, it just remains louder longer.
If this is still unclear, see Figure 3.
Figure 3
A Uncompressed
v that sound louder than others. A compressor
0
L will lower the sound of the loud notes and
uME
Apparent or not, this extra sustain can come
in handy. Compressors have many applications
in getting great sounds. Adrian Belew has one
on at all times with the sustain at maximum.
When he plays hls clean rhythms, you can hear
the squeezing effect of the dampened attack. At
the same time, the sustain makes his chorusing
and flanging effects that much more dramatic.
The incredible, highly controlled feedback that
he gets is a combination of compression and
distortion, but you will find that if you play
around with a compressor, you can often get
controlled feedback with virtually no distor•
tion.
Andy Summers of the Police also used
compression combined with mild flanging to
achieve the distinctive chiming sound on
their records.
Another use for compressors is to even
out the sound produced by the guitar. Even
the best-made guitars will have some notes

0 1 2
Time ISecondsl power the treble ones.
Compression is often used in the studio
to keep from overloading the tape and to
B Compressed help certain instruments stand out in the
mix. Other effects, such as octave rs, function
better when receiving the consistent signal
provided by a compressor.
Of course, there is a down side. As l men•
v tioned when discussing active pickups, com•
0 pression limits your dynamics and attack
L
u (some types of compressors arc actually called
M
E "limiters"). Since much of the distinctiveness
of your playing style is conratned in the way
you attack the strings and the dynamics of
your playing, compression tends to homoge•
nize your sound. Adrian Belew and Andy
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Summers arc identifiable more tor their
Time !Seconds! concept and use of effects than their touch,
but players like Robben Ferd, Jeff Deck, and
1Votu tbat use sound doesn't last anJ• longer - It Just Mark Knopfler would be ill-served by exces•
SlflJ'S totuter lon.�cn: sive compression.