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→Battling Harshness or Thin-ness
Finally, reverb is not your enemy. It doesn't matter if you are the most metal guitarist on the planet; reverb is necessary to make any tone sound more natural and pleasing. That doesn't mean you need some cave-like ambiance on a djenty rhythm tone. Normally you are playing in a room, which will have natural ambiance, no matter how much dampening material it has. But if you are using headphones or right in front your cabinet, things tend to sound more harsh. A reverb effect at around 8-12% mix can make a huge difference. A very mild pre-delay (5-20 ms) opens it up a little more. And if your reverb has a dampening control (or is designed to dampen (dull) the reverb as it persists), you can get away with larger mix and decay time parameters without making the reverb take over the tone. Lead tones can always sound nasal or harsh without any reverb or delay - I consider one or both absolutely essential for a great lead tone.
One final thought: a single guitar tone isn't going to sound like a double or quad-tracked stereo guitar tone in a mix. Layering guitars and adding space between them really helps to thicken up the tone. They each fill the gaps between any crackles or buzziness any one track has, as well as getting a 3-D effect from the stereo space that makes them sound fuller and richer. Similarly, bass guitar can make up for low-end (particularly the very low end), cymbals typically cover up guitar high-end, and bass drums add attack that guitars lack. Distorted guitar is primarily a midrange-oriented and low-dynamic-range instrument. Now, that doesn't mean you should settle for a crappy tone just because a lot of it will be covered up or enhanced by other players or studio wizards - just don't build yourself up for expectations that are impossible to meet.