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Vintage threads from the first ten years

Re: Guytron GT-100 (Radical new design for tube amps?)

12/28/1997 10:08 PM
Krusher	Re: Guytron GT-100 (Radical new design for tube amps?) Interesting discourse, guys. Quite informative, actually. BUUUT, has everyone forgotten about the Zappa/Boogie connection? Not to take away from Santana's innovations...but I think Zappa also had a LITTLE to do with the "SG/Mark-1/notes that sustain until the sun burns out" sound. He always gets forgotten about. K

12/31/1997 12:30 AM
Steve A.	K: I've been knocked out with FZ's guitar playing ever since "Hot Rats" came out- he played circles around practically every rock guitar player on the scene back then, both in terms of tone and technique. Back then he had that sound of a wah-wah pedal kicked back maybe 75%- was that how he got that sound or did he use special filter circuits in his guitar and/or amp? Would appreciate anything you know about his equipment setup... Steve Ahola

12/31/1997 12:30 AM

Steve A.

K:

I've been knocked out with FZ's guitar playing ever since "Hot Rats" came out- he played circles around practically every rock guitar player on the scene back then, both in terms of tone and technique. Back then he had that sound of a wah-wah pedal kicked back maybe 75%- was that how he got that sound or did he use special filter circuits in his guitar and/or amp? Would appreciate anything you know about his equipment setup...

Steve Ahola

1/2/1998 12:48 AM
krusher	Hi Steve: Well, I'm no Zappa historian, but I am certainly a fan. One thing is for sure, and that is that Frank Zappa has always been the subject of much mythological misinformation! I can at least provide a very vague account of the major eras of the evolution of the Zappa guitar solo... (Also...See Evil Bob's Music Planet, he has MUCH Zappa information...) I don't know much about the 1960's, as far as Zappa's gear goes..this includes the Hot Rats, Ruben and the Jets, Run Home Slow, and related albums. The 70's would often find Frank performing live with a Cherry red Gibson SG with humbuckers. At different concerts and albums it was fitted with a Bigsby tremolo or with a trapeze tailpiece. Albums recorded with this guitar and various amps include "Roxy and Elsewhere" and the rare live album "Bongo Fury" recorded in Austin with Captain Beefheart at the famous Armadillo World Headquarters. Zappa has been quoted as saying that 90% of his studio solos in this era were recorded using the Pignose battery-powered practice amp and an old-fashioned "echo chamber"--some will recall this technique; it involved using a speaker and a microphone placed at opposite ends of a long, resonant room to provide a reverb or delay effect. Live albums were often recorded with Boogie Mark-something-or-other amps, or with various solid state contraptions. Most folk are familiar with "Roxy and Elsewhere" and the controversial versions of "Zappa Live in New York." The 1980's era saw FZ switch to the Fender Stratocaster/ Floyd Rose Tremolo setup. This includes such albums as "TinselTown Rebellion" and "The Best Band You've Never Heard In Your Life." I feel it was this era when Zappa truly came into his own as a composer and soloist of major 20th century impact. He played a LOT of his most inspired solos using one of the famous Strats that Jimi Hendrix torched. He took the charred remains of the guitar, fitted it with a custom neck and a Floyd trem, replaced the electronics; and the rest is history....Dweezil now owns/plays it, I hear.... In the 80's he used a particular type of flanger (the name I can't recall right now) which gave him a signature "frozen" note tone, reminiscent of a synth. (Pink Napkins, Watermellon in Easter Hay, etc.) I wish I knew more about his gear, but the fact remains that probably 80% of his tone was in his fingertips--like most great guitarists. He was one of the greats, and I sure miss him. K

1/2/1998 12:48 AM

krusher

Hi Steve:

Well, I'm no Zappa historian, but I am certainly a fan. One thing is for sure, and that is that Frank Zappa has always been the subject of much mythological misinformation! I can at least provide a very vague account of the major eras of the evolution of the Zappa guitar solo...

(Also...See Evil Bob's Music Planet, he has MUCH Zappa information...)

I don't know much about the 1960's, as far as Zappa's gear goes..this includes the Hot Rats, Ruben and the Jets, Run Home Slow, and related albums.

The 70's would often find Frank performing live with a Cherry red Gibson SG with humbuckers. At different concerts and albums it was fitted with a Bigsby tremolo or with a trapeze tailpiece. Albums recorded with this guitar and various amps include "Roxy and Elsewhere" and the rare live album "Bongo Fury" recorded in Austin with Captain Beefheart at the famous Armadillo World Headquarters.

Zappa has been quoted as saying that 90% of his studio solos in this era were recorded using the Pignose battery-powered practice amp and an old-fashioned "echo chamber"--some will recall this technique; it involved using a speaker and a microphone placed at opposite ends of a long, resonant room to provide a reverb or delay effect. Live albums were often recorded with Boogie Mark-something-or-other amps, or with various solid state contraptions. Most folk are familiar with "Roxy and Elsewhere" and the controversial versions of "Zappa Live in New York."

The 1980's era saw FZ switch to the Fender Stratocaster/ Floyd Rose Tremolo setup. This includes such albums as "TinselTown Rebellion" and "The Best Band You've Never Heard In Your Life." I feel it was this era when Zappa truly came into his own as a composer and soloist of major 20th century impact.

He played a LOT of his most inspired solos using one of the famous Strats that Jimi Hendrix torched. He took the charred remains of the guitar, fitted it with a custom neck and a Floyd trem, replaced the electronics; and the rest is history....Dweezil now owns/plays it, I hear....

In the 80's he used a particular type of flanger (the name I can't recall right now) which gave him a signature "frozen" note tone, reminiscent of a synth. (Pink Napkins, Watermellon in Easter Hay, etc.)

I wish I knew more about his gear, but the fact remains that probably 80% of his tone was in his fingertips--like most great guitarists. He was one of the greats, and I sure miss him.

K

1/7/1998 12:00 PM
Paul H.	Someone who knows who Terry Haggerty is!!! He's a great player and with awesome tone. He along with Jerry Miller (who used a Tweed Bassman and still does) made some wonderful sounds with cranked "jazz boxes". Ever hear "The Rhythm Dukes" with Bill Champlin and Jerry Miller? Most of the SF guys were into a "Hi Fi" kind of tone. That explains the Twins and Showmans with JBL's. You could always add distortion. Last time I saw Hag he was playing a twin sitting on it's side with a Boogie sitting on top. Don't know if he ran them together or was A/Bing them. That was in the '70's.

1/7/1998 12:00 PM

Paul H.

Someone who knows who Terry Haggerty is!!! He's a great player and with awesome tone. He along with Jerry Miller (who used a Tweed Bassman and still does) made some wonderful sounds with cranked "jazz boxes". Ever hear "The Rhythm Dukes" with Bill Champlin and Jerry Miller? Most of the SF guys were into a "Hi Fi" kind of tone. That explains the Twins and Showmans with JBL's. You could always add distortion. Last time I saw Hag he was playing a twin sitting on it's side with a Boogie sitting on top. Don't know if he ran them together or was A/Bing them. That was in the '70's.

12/30/1997 8:50 AM
Guy	Actually... I talked to Jay Graydon via EMAIL about his sound. Some amps just distort easier. On the Steely Dan hit 'Peg' his solo was recorded with this exact rig: A 63 block ES-335 stuffed with dacron (feedback eliminator) plugged into an orange squeezer compressor into a 50 foot chord (this was so jay could sit in the controll room) into a Early Silverface Fender Deluxe with a stock Eminence speaker. The amp had no gain tweaking, but Paul Rivera had installed a 6 position mid switch. The mid switch gave the LA sound, because the E string was not buzzy and too bright but very mellow sounding. A Sure SM-57 was placed 1 inch off the grill, and 1 inch to the left of the center, with the mike angled at 22 degrees to the cone. Jay had three of these amps, and each sounded different. Like the tweed Deluxe that Larry Carlton used for all his Steely Dan solo's, ( Don't take Me Alive), some old Fenders distort and some don't. I checked out a Tweed Deluxe that was selling for 2K. It did not distort on a volume setting of three like Lary Carlton's amp. His amp was just amazing sounding, and just listen to any of his solo's on Steely Dan songs and you will agree. Lets face it...If you can afford it, you can pick through many amps to find the right one. Steve Morse told me he went through 8, 50 watt Silver Jubilee Marshall heads, and they all sounded different. He uses the best sounding one he could find. The same is true of Plexi Marshalls. I was at a guitar show and there were several Plexi Marshalls for sale. One that Tony Bruno ( Bruno amps) was selling just sounded incredible. It distorted at low volumes and had an amazing sound (nothing like the reissue). It was sold within 5 minutes, and the other Plexi's didn't move. By the way, Tony is a really nice guy, and he puts allot of hard work into his amps. He even told me the type of wood he uses for his amp cabinets affects the sound.

12/30/1997 8:50 AM

Guy

Actually...

I talked to Jay Graydon via EMAIL about his sound.
Some amps just distort easier.

On the Steely Dan hit 'Peg' his solo was recorded
with this exact rig:

A 63 block ES-335 stuffed with dacron (feedback
eliminator) plugged into an orange squeezer compressor into a 50 foot chord (this was so jay
could sit in the controll room) into a Early
Silverface Fender Deluxe with a stock Eminence
speaker. The amp had no gain tweaking, but Paul
Rivera had installed a 6 position mid switch.

The mid switch gave the LA sound, because the
E string was not buzzy and too bright but very
mellow sounding. A Sure SM-57 was placed 1 inch
off the grill, and 1 inch to the left of the center, with the mike angled at 22 degrees to the
cone.

Jay had three of these amps, and each sounded different. Like the tweed Deluxe that Larry Carlton used for all his Steely Dan solo's,
( Don't take Me Alive), some old Fenders distort
and some don't.

I checked out a Tweed Deluxe that was selling for 2K. It did not distort on a volume setting of three like Lary Carlton's amp.

His amp was just amazing sounding, and just listen
to any of his solo's on Steely Dan songs and you
will agree.

Lets face it...If you can afford it, you can pick through many amps to find the right one.

Steve Morse told me he went through 8, 50 watt
Silver Jubilee Marshall heads, and they all sounded different. He uses the best sounding one he could find.

The same is true of Plexi Marshalls. I was at a guitar show and there were several Plexi Marshalls for sale. One that Tony Bruno ( Bruno amps) was selling just sounded incredible. It distorted at low volumes and had an amazing sound (nothing like the reissue). It was sold within 5 minutes, and the other Plexi's didn't move. By the way, Tony is a really nice guy, and he puts allot of hard work into his amps. He even told me the type of wood he uses for his amp cabinets affects the sound.

12/31/1997 2:44 PM
Tony Taliaferro	What type of wood did Tony say sounds best for his cabs?

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