Hey all,

I'm looking for advice from anyone good at constructing tone for lead. I'm putting a cd together at the moment and have to re-record all of my demos along with a few new tracks, get them mastered and then send them off to a few labels.
Here's what I got:

Guitar: Ibanez Jem "Bad Horsie" (just got it - best guitar I've ever played)
Pickups: Dimarzzio Breeds
Amp: Marshall 100DFX
Hardware: PODxt
Hardware: Digitech GNX1
Software Environment: Cubase SX with Tascam US428 controller interface

All the above plus a kick-ass PC with a bunch of plug-ins.

The sound I'm looking for is closest to:
Marty Friedman's lead on "Rust In Peace"
and/or
Theodore Ziras www.theodoreziras.com "Virtual Virtuosity" cd (apparantly he got his sound on the POD xt)

Basically I need a very thick, warm sound that accentuates swept arpeggios by allowing the different tonalities of each string to shine through. Also for fast legato work I need a sound that helps to reinforce the clarity of individually picked notes - I usually achieve this with a light noise gate to reduce subtle background noises such as a palm moving across muted strings etc. I don't mind playing bridge or neck pick-ups, the ones on my new axe are amazing at any setting so input on pickup settings is also cool.

I know a lot has to do with your style of playing etc, I've been playing guitar for a long time and do have a style that I can call my own. All I need now is a good sound!!!!!

Any help is much appreciated