If you can control your technical ability then it certainly counts.

The epic faces that you make can also be interpreted as skill.

https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/im...BffUFCJn7YkAgd

versus

https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/im...m6rn1IJ0l4_v6B

Angus Young would be a leading contender for that^ particular category. :)

How can you measure a guitarists technical ability, if not by speed? Chord types? Scale types?

That's a good question. I would think of it more like in terms of the complexity of the music, and if they can play it at a faster speed, that's great. But there is also skill in toning it down and holding back. Overall, I would say that range is essential to a guitarist's technical ability, because if you hone down one thing to a stump, you are left to dry in other areas of musicality, not really developing as a musician.

I agree with RezZ, especially when speed at lead guitar is concerned. Ive seen a lot of "wankers" that try to make it look impressive while not always playing full fretted notes.

Shaun Morgan for the band Seether has a unique style and approach on guitar that is percussion orientated. He just graduated from using 14 gauge strings to 15s. Far from being labeled as a technical approach to electric guitar, but a unique and popular style since the 90s with impressive (lower tuning) dynamics.

Playing faster isn't always harder, and I've heard people say the opposite. I play some fingerstyle stuff that is much harder than shredding through a simple pentatonic scale, for example.

Can Jimmy page play faster than Duane allman? Maybe, Duane could play pretty fast when he wanted to Page is more of a wanker. But even if page can play faster than Duane, does that make him more technical? I don't think so. Duane had a more technical approach to playing guitar, with his use of modal jazz.

In the same sense that Stevie Ray Vaughan's style and approach could be considered as being more technical than Jimi Hendrix was. Its quite obvious to the listener when hearing both versions (Hendrix & Vaughan) of Little Wing.

That doesn't mean that Vaughan was more talented than Hendrix. Technicality can be adapted and achieved by talent alone.

Hendrix has different versions of Little Wing, though. He does a little more soloing in some live versions. Hendrix was starting to get interested in Jazz towards the end of his career. This is a different subject, but I think Hendrix is better than SRV. Certainly a better songwriter, and more creative. Maybe SRV was more technical, but I'm not so sure. If Hendrix had intended for Little Wing to be a "balls to the wall" instrumental, he would have made it that way. But the poetry is a big part of the song, and Hendrix loved making slow songs.

Sorry but the winner is clear to me. Robin Trower.

http://cdn2.maxim.com/maxim/files/20...nTrower_l1.jpg
http://listeningroom.lohudblogs.com/...010/03/RT1.jpg
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y21...obinTrower.jpg
http://cdn2.wn.com/pd/4f/02/4494db39...720_grande.jpg