Varitone
A rotary switch fitted to some guitars that selects between several different capacitors, giving a set of preset filtered tones instead of a continuous tone control.
Where an ordinary tone knob rolls the top end off gradually, a varitone offers discrete positions, each with its own capacitor value and therefore its own fixed voicing, ranging from nearly bypassed to heavily filtered and hollow. Because the components form an inductor-and-capacitor network in some designs, the effect is a set of distinct notches rather than simple treble cuts. Players either love the range or leave the switch in one position forever.
Example: a varitone's middle positions can produce a hollow, nasal rhythm sound that no amount of tone knob turning will match.
See also
Related
- PageTone control
- PageActive pickup
- PageAlnico
- PageBlade pickup
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley
- PageAd-Rock
- ReferenceCircle of fifths