How to Play the Electric Guitar
Controlling the sound

Playing rock music? You need distortion!

When playing rock music on an electric guitar it is normal to introduce distortion.There are two ways to bring distortion into your playing.

Use a guitar amplifier to distort the sound

Many guitar amplifiers have two knobs labeled "volume gain" and "master." Turning the gain knob up will distort the sound even if the master volume is not raised much at all.

Use an effector to distort the sound

Connecting an overdrive or distortion effector in between the guitar and amplifier will introduce distortion.Generally,distortion effectors produce more distortion than overdrive effectors.

Use a volume pedal for a crescendo effect

The volume of an electric guitar naturally varies with how hard it is played. However,when playing rock music the sound is often distorted, so the volume tends to stay the same regardless of how hard the instrument is played. There are also times where a guitarist wants to continue to increase the volume on a note he or she is holding. In these cases, a volume pedal can be used to control the volume.
A volume pedal is connected between the guitar and amplifier. When an amplifier is being used to distort the sound,the quality of the sound changes according to the volume.When the volume is low there is little distortion. Pressing the pedal down gradually increases the volume-and the distortion.
To avoid this, use a distortion, overdrive, or other effector to distort the sound, and connect a volume pedal after the effector.If the timbre of the amplifier is adjusted so that there is very little distortion even at maximum volume, the timbre will alter very little when the volume is changed.
Many products called multi-effectors come with pedals attached, and can be used as volume pedals.