About guitar tone.

Players with very recognisable tone, like Gilmour, Knopfler, Rothery, Santana, will always sound like themselves, no matter what gear they're playing through. It's all in the fingers and the phrasing. No 'better' in any case, just different.
 
There was a guy posted here a few years back that said he'd spent 40 years trying to emulate Carlos Santana's tone. I could think of better ways to spend that time.

bapu
Would Joe Pass have wanted Joe Satriani's tone?
 

 
Prolly not.
 

If he had used it would it have made Mr. Pass "better"?
 

 
He wouldn't have used it.
 

And for that matter, wouldn't player A always sound different than player B even if player A could achieve player B's tone?

Yes.
 
But how does any of dis conversation let peoples justify buying expensive boutique magic guitar doohickeys?

i'm really only worried about my own tone.
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Brian May also had many, many tones......