Mountainview Publishing, LLC INSIDE the Mambo Sons Tom Guera…

20 Years of Rockin’Tone on stage The Player’s Guide to Ultimate Tone & TM studio $10.00 US, April 2007/VOL.8 NO.6 Report Reviews –

9 The rare Digging for Tones Bassman you really want… the blonde Fender ‘61 6G6 “There’s a basic rule which runs through all kinds of music – kind of an unwritten rule. I don’t know what it is, but I’ve got it.” - Ron Wood The ‘64 AA864 blackface Bassman… affordable, portable, and It is fundamental to the human condition that we constantly strive to improve our lot in life, and still plentiful guitar players are not immune to such urges when it comes to choosing what we play. But how many players possess the confident independence and vision to clear their own path in the quest 11 for tone? It certainly is easier following a clearly marked trail left by others, but the old trails The $400 hybrid blazed by the true pioneers in musical instrument manufacturing have swelled to super highways Marshall 3203 30W… clogged by timid tonefreaks clinging to the middle of the road. And while the aptly named “infor- mation highway” has vividly enhanced our fantasies of perfect tone, it has also fostered a “me 12 too” culture in which individuals seek security and validation in numbers. New from Lindy Fralin, RS Guitarworks & Greg Martin… “Psychebilly” humbuckers & wiring kit inspired by Greg’s ‘58 Les Paul!

15 The Stellartone Tonestyler… 16 tones from a single tone pot!

16 New from Fender… the American & vintage Hot Rod Stratocasters Like the old Tower of Power song, “What Is Hip?” our perceptions of what may indeed be hip 18 are constantly assaulted by stale myths, giddy sycophants drunk on the kool-aid flavor of the Step on this… month, and well-greased marketing campaigns that promote exclusionary images of what is Voodoo Lab essential, cool and bleeding edge. It is definitely tougher to be uniquely different today… to Micro Vibe stand out from the crowd in a good way and create your own voice… but this has always been our wish for each of you. Never shall you speak with a mumblin’ word. The Quest for Tone is T Rex all about unearthing sources of inspiration that will ultimately encourage the discovery of your Room-Mate Reverb voice – not someone else’s. www.tonequest.com cover story

To quote the title of a long forgotten song by one of the most electric guitar in the popular power trios to have ever plummeted into complete first place, even oblivion… “Are you ready?” Ready to open your mind to before I played, was possibilities that may have escaped your attention? Are you the sound. As a kid, I willing to revisit places perhaps briefly skirted in a different remember hearing time, and in a different frame of mind ( ). Well, of Led Zeppelin I and II course you are… it’s why you’re here in the first place and and just falling in love others aren’t (except perhaps the cheap bastards that read with the tones, think- your copy of the TQ every month). ing that if I could even come close to My, my, heh, heh – how we are beset with curious choices the sounds that Jimmy today… The stuff people used to put out with the trash or sell Page was capturing, for $10 at a yard sale is hundreds now and climbing. The I’d be happy. By the stuff that used to be a few hundred is now a few thousand, time I turned 14, I’d and the really fine, high dollar stuff of yesterday is untouch- built my own guitar, a able. Then there’s new stuff… some of it truly outstanding Flying V copy with Gibson mini-humbuckers which I played and priced accordingly, other stuff less expensive and pretty through an old stereo. One day, a friend of mine was at my solid, if less than spectacular. But most of the gear made house, and he seemed impressed that I had built the guitar, today is simply something made to be sold, and people buy it and generously offered to give me his 1967 Gibson SG because it’s cheap enough not to matter. Special. Not having a dime in those days, I was ecstatic. A life changing event indeed, as having such a nice guitar made Still, there are me want to learn as much as I could. Within a year or so, I plenty of worthy was gigging in bars using the SG through a used Ampeg VT- tools that deserve 40, and it sounded great, just like the Rolling Stones’ “Love your attention, You Live,” which had just been released. I really didn’t use and not a week any pedals back then other than my Thomas Cry-Baby, and to goes by when we this day, nothing sounds better to me than a good guitar don’t get a call straight into a good amp. Soon after, I added a matching asking if we have Ampeg V-4 to my setup which made things sound even big- ever reviewed ger. One day after school, I dragged the stack out into the another new front yard and actually played “Name That Tune” with a gizmo that is get- schoolmate who lived across town! Keep in mind, this was ting heavily the late 1970s, and everyone played at stadium volume. greased on the Gear Page. How to sort through this mess? Consulting an experienced, hands-on guitar player with taste, My goal from the ears and a track record decades long works – super star sta- beginning was to tus not required. We began this edition of the Quest getting to play a good sounding know a guitarist that may be unfamiliar to most of you living guitar within the con- west of New York – Tom Guera, founder of the Mambo Sons. text of a good tune, Tom is here because he is one of us… a lifelong musician and I initially with influences we can call our own, and a reverent apprecia- admired people like tion for guitars and amps that create and inspire memorable George Harrison, tones. He is also remarkably articulate – a wonderful attrib- who seemed to play ute when you are dealing with the written word. Enjoy… exactly what fit the song. At the time, TQR: Tom, you are the first player we have interviewed Ampeg VT40 Eddie Van Halen was whose press kit includes a summary of the gear you huge, and while most every other guitar player wanted to have used on recent recordings, track by track. Can play that stuff, for some reason I didn’t, although he’s cer- you describe the evolution of your choice of gui- tainly a giant. tars, amps and effects, starting at the beginning of your professional career? A few years later, the SG finally gave up the ghost, having developed the ubiquitous headstock and neck joint cracks. Designed for guitar players by guitar players! (laughing) Right after this, in around 1981, I found an old beat Les Paul Going way back to the beginning, what attracted to me to the Junior for $125 with a single P-90 and started a band with -continued- 2 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 cover story

(future Mambo Sons singer) Scott Lawson called Black Cat Bones. I kept the Junior for a year or so, and then traded that plus $250 for a beautiful 1976 Les Paul goldtop with stock P-90s on it that was marked “2” for factory second. To this day, I cannot figure out why it’s a second – perhaps because it was so unlike the garbage that Gibson was churn- ing out at the time.

After Black Cat Bones split, I played the Paul with The Dirty Reverb II, a Paul Rivera design. This was a great little Bones Band, a amp that sure made my bandmates happy. I installed a 5-piece group Celestion 12 which improved the low end, and it made which soon quite a difference. The year was 1984, the height of the became known MTV craze, and The Bones were really going against the for our raucous grain as we were playing “grime and gristle” blues and live shows. It rock and roll, as one reporter said. Because we were such was not uncommon to have gigs turn into drunken brawls, outsiders, we did everything ourselves – the booking, pro- and one night in I almost got killed trying to save the goldtop motion, even buying the booze at times… We’d blow into from flying tables, chairs and bottles that were being thrown town, do the show at a VFW hall, party a bit with our new around. How that guitar survived those crazy days I don’t friends and then leave. It was hard work, but it paid off, know, but I still own it and it’s in remarkably good shape for as we developed quite a big following, and I learned a lot all it’s been through. about the business end of things.

Another life changing moment In the mid ‘80s, I started occurred in 1983, while I was playing Stratocasters exclu- rummaging around the basement sively, and I soon started to of Caruso Music in New buy and sell guitars, keeping London, CT. In between a stack those that felt good to me. of cases, I found a beat up, Around this time, I began stripped, maple capped Fender using twin halfstacks, an Telecaster for $275 and I had to amp that is a sort of sleeper have it. I was working in a gas among vintage tone enthusi- station up the street at the time, asts. Although I liked the and would go down after work Princeton Reverb, on stage I and make payments on it. It had wanted a little more oomph. a naked lady decal and the name The 3203 Marshalls are 30 “José” on the body, and someone had stuck an early Gibson watt hybrids with two humbucker in the neck position. It just sounded amazing – a EL34’s and master volumes, which I normally don’t care for, perfect combination of twang and chunk in that middle posi- but the distorted tone was great. With these amps, I used a tion. Now that was a funky, magical guitar! I played it so Boss Graphic EQ to slam the front end for solos. For a while, much that the frets just wore out, so I traded a local guitar the band lived together in a funky old apartment, and it was repairman for his 1979 Stratocaster. Although I liked this all very much a communal thing – us against the world. We Strat, to this day I miss that particular Tele. did a lot of college gigs, and some people got it, but it left others bewildered. This was during the heyday of groups like Making the transition to the Strat took time, as you really Flock of Seagulls and people generally thought we were have to make every note count, but once I figured it out, I insane. Right before we broke up in 1990, Dirty Bones never looked back. To me, it’s simply the perfect electric gui- recorded the “New World Disorder” CD where I used the tar. From the start, I’d block off the trem by wedging a piece Artist and the Princeton Reverb II. Looking back, we could of hard wood or a stack of pennies against the bridge block, have taken that band further, but everything was so volatile… although I have a few set up with the bar these days. It ended up with all the drama of one of those VH-1 Behind Around this time everyone was starting to mic amps, so I got the Music stories. We then did a live CD called Stronger rid of the Ampegs and downsized to a Fender Princeton -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 3 cover story

Than Dirt as a sort of thank you to our supporters. interesting. If I find myself not using something, I sell it, In the early ‘90s I became bandleader for an on-air blues although it gets hard to part with some of the old instruments. band called Tommy G. and the Real Gone Cats, which would For the most part, all of my instruments are stock. As far as play live on radio station WHUS backing different artists guitars, I do prefer vintage and I have a bunch of pre-CBS each week. That was fun! Throughout the 1990s, I also did a Strats, including a white ’63 that was owned by ‘Lil Bill ton of shows with a blues band called The Delrays, using Wallace and Howlin’ Wolf. I also have some nice ‘70s Strats Gibson Firebirds a lot along with my Strats through both a and ‘70s Teles, a few real old Gibson solidbodies, a super mid ‘60s Ampeg Reverborocket and a ’66 blackface Fender clean ES-330 from 1963 with factory Bigsby, and a bunch of Vibrolux Reverb. For the first time, I started using a distor- oddball stuff like a Bond Electraglide, which gives a wicked tion box – an original Ibanez TS-9, for certain things and was out of phase sound. For Fender amps, I have a nice tweed happy with the various tones I got from this simple setup. I Champ, an original ’61 white Bassman, and a ’66 Vibrolux also learned how to use the amp’s tremolo circuit too to add Reverb, all stock. I have several Marshall 50s with EL34s, another dimension to my tone. plus the 1969 PA20. For Ampegs, I have an original Reverborocket and a great B-12 fliptop, which I use for gui- Toward the end of the tar. I also have a 1965 AC30 top boost, and some DST equip- decade, with the ment, plus a clean, brown 1962 Gibson Discoverer amp – encouragement of Rick another great sounding 18 watter. Derringer and a few others, I was given the On Racket of Three, our latest CD, many of the songs actual- opportunity to focus on ly came from recordings of riffs, melodies and chordal pat- recording some of my terns that I made while experimenting with different guitars original material, and I and amp sounds in my home studio. The way Scott and I jumped at the chance. write is that I’ll send him 20-25 musical ideas at a clip, and My goal was to take he’ll select some that move him and together we sort of bash Tom and Rick Derringer my time, write some them into shape. For “Racket,” these musical ideas included good songs and experiment with the best guitar and amp riffs on a Jerry Jones baritone guitar, my Bigsby equipped ’63 combination for each song, using my favorite musicians I had Gibson ES-330, some acoustic tracks, my old Dobro 90, encountered along the way. What started out as a solo project some melodies played through a Leslie, and some power became Mambo Sons first disc, and a renewed partnership chords that were a result of testing out some DST amps with with my old friend, singer Scott Lawson, who also ended up a variety of guitars. co-writing the tunes. For these recordings, which also fea- tured Rick, Kenny Aaronson, and Collin Tilton (from Van A major fac- Morrison’s Moondance band), I was given free reign over the tor in getting studio, and used Gibson and Fender guitars, and Ampeg, good guitar Marshall, Vox and Fender amps. For all three Mambo Sons tone is using CDs I’ve kept this approach and it seems to be working pretty heavier well for us. Live, we play as a trio, with Scott Lawson on strings and a lead vocals and bass, and Joe “the Cat” Lemieux on drums. high action. Because I play a lot of slide and I’m not really a speedster, this works well for me. Although I’ve tried many different strings, I like Ernie Ball 10’s or 11’s the best. What inspires me most is the sound of a great guitar, and it can be anything from the pure acoustic tone of someone like Snuffy Walden, to the compressed sound of Roger McGuinn’s 12 string. My favorite guitarists include the guitar-hero guys like Rory Gallagher, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Buddy Guy, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Roy Buchanan, Johnny Winter, as well as the more group-oriented guitarists like George Harrison, Howlin’ Wolf’s Strat Mike Campbell of Tom Petty’s band, Robbie Robertson and As far as what I have today for guitars and amps, it’s pretty the four guitarists who have been part of the Rolling Stones much the result of a constant search for tones that I find musical legacy: Brian, Keith, Mick and Ronnie. -continued- 4 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 cover story

TQR: Most players don’t delve quite as deeply as you As far as have into such a wide variety of tools and tones on guitar/amp com- one recording, but it would appear that you are a binations, I big fan of the vintage Marshall PA20 and smallbox would have to 50W head. We’ve covered both, but is anyone say that any P90 building new amps that can compare to them? guitar through the PA20 and Maybe it’s because I have AC30 just a short attention span, but sounds absolute- to me, different guitar ly great, and I sounds make an album like the sound of interesting. Regarding the a stock vintage PA20 and smallbox 50 Strat through the 50 watt Marshall smallbox. I also love the Marshalls, there’s some- Strat/ AC30 tone – it gives a clarity but a nice sustain that thing about the simplicity is gorgeous. Rory Gallagher was the king of this particular of these two amps that sound. With the Ampeg V-4, you set the sensitivity switch cannot be beat. I pretty in the middle, and you can get any guitar to sound exactly much run the guitar like a Les Paul Junior – that huge honkin’ midrange. Of straight in, bridge the course, as John Hiatt says, “a Telecaster through a Vibrolux channels on both and turned up to ten” can’t be beat, although I don’t turn mine mess with the volume and up that high. A Les Paul Special through the rough white tone controls until they sound right. With both these designs, tolex/oxblood 6G6 Bassman is another favorite…gives a there is something presence-wise that almost leads you to the nice plexi-like tone. Speaking of plexis… like everyone, I next note, if that makes any sense. For my live setup, I use a like the sound of a humbucker hitting that amp. Although 1970 50 watt white smallbox Marshall bass model (#1986) I’m not a big humbucker guy, I play them a lot in the stu- that I know like the back of my hand. I used the Marshall dio if the song calls for it. PA20 almost exclusively on our second CD Play Some Rock & Roll! and got a nice note from Mitch Colby at Marshall TQR: It’s one thing to bring out a wall of sounds in the saying he liked the sounds on it, which was a big compliment. studio, but playing live in different environments As far as new gear, I think there are several companies that can challenge your ability to match your gear to are building great sounding amps today. Regarding EL-84 different rooms and consistently nail your sound… designs, my favorites out there right now are DST How do you handle that specifically and what have Engineering’s U84, Blockhead’s FirstBorn and the Gabriel you learned? Voxer 18. As far as the 50 watters, I really like the DST U34CL, the Mojave Scorpion and the Blockhead BLK 45. Well, its apples and TQR: And among vintage amps, what are some of your oranges really. other favorites and why? Are there any specific In the studio, combinations of amps and guitars that you like to you’re trying use together? to combine all different I would definitely say that my all time favorites are: sounds to build the per- · Marshall PA20 fect three · Marshall 50 watt smallbox 1986 (bass model) minute song. I mean, on our last record, I even played glock- · Vox AC30 TB enspiel on one track! And solos should be thought of like a · Ampeg V-4 song within a song. When we’re constructing songs in the · Fender Vibrolux Reverb studio, I try to come up with different parts to give the songs · Fender Bassman 6G6 model some dimension, and envision how those will sound with var- ious guitar and amp combinations. Keep in mind that I’m not Although I’ve been lucky enough to have owned an original talking about multiple overdubs of the same part, as that tweed Bassman and a tweed Bandmaster, I do prefer the often makes your recording sound smaller. But playing live, sound of a closed back cabinet on a higher output amp. It just especially with the trio, it’s totally different, with a harder makes things a little more directional versus omnipresent. edge and more emphasis on the guitar, which I like because I -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 5 cover story

can playing a gig on another guitarist’s gear, and he remarked stretch how my tone was so similar to my recordings, despite the out a bit fact that I was using his setup. I usually bring out 2-3 guitars and feed for each gig, and my main, live amp is the white 50 watt off the smallbox head and matching 2x12 Swanson cabinet, which energy. sounds big, bold, and tight. It contains two Celestions, one I’m sure original Greenback and one newer G12H30. For the majority that when of the tunes, I typically play my black ‘50s reissue Strat with playing a 5-way switch, which has a great variety of tones. I’ll also live I rely less on subtlety and more on ‘brute force and igno- bring out an open G tuned Telecaster, or a P90 guitar like the rance,’ to quote Rory Gallagher. A few years back, the gui- Brian Moore, depending on the set list. In addition, for the tarist from the Little River Band, Stephen Houseden, saw us open E songs, I bring a Danelectro U2 which is a great slide live and said he liked the aggressiveness of my playing, and guitar. For slides, I use glass for electric and metal for many times I get people coming up to me saying, “I didn’t acoustic. Our second record had a lot of 12 string stuff on it, know you could play like that” because the recordings tend to so when we were promoting it, I brought out my white be more refined. Improvising and playing live is the real deal Gibson EDS-1275 which weighed a ton, and it became a – sometimes it works, other times not, but the chance for pain. Now I just play those 12 string parts on a clean Strat. magic is certainly there. The big challenge for me is what I That’s pretty much it… call the “Jimmy Page syndrome” – trying to pull off a song live when the studio version has multiple electric and TQR: Have you experimented much with custom pickups acoustic guitar parts. My philosophy is, live, you play the or wiring schemes? song in the minute, but when you’re in the studio, make the recording as good as possible, and use different sounds. Not intentionally (laughing), with the An example of this is exception of only a “Be On Time” off our few instruments, like latest CD Racket of my ’72 Tele which has Three. This track has a Gibson humbucker in a Beatle-y vibe to it, the neck position, a which I felt required ’62 Strat reissue which five distinct guitar has some nice sound- parts for it – three ing Lindy Fralins in it, electric and two and another reissue acoustic. It starts with Strat which has Fender noiseless pickups. My ’59 reissue Les a couple of Gibson Paul has some Peter Florance Voodoo pickups in it, which J45 acoustics, then sound beautiful. For the most part though, I am a stock vin- it’s got my ‘56 TV Special through an MXR Phase 90 into tage guy, and typically know within five minutes of first play- the smallbox for the main rhythm, then the melody guitar ing a guitar both acoustically and electrically if I’m going to comes in, which is my ’59 reissue Paul through a DST bond with the instrument. UV6 powered Vibratone, followed by a thick, distorted Les Paul through an Echoplex for just the slide solo. For this TQR: What has your experience solo, I tried to cop the slide sound Joe Walsh got in “The been with acoustic pickups, Bomber,” which I think he copped from “Beck’s Bolero.” preamps and acoustic amplifi- So as you’d imagine, it is not an easy song to pull off live. cation? After some practice though, I’ve adapted it to one guitar, one amp, my pedal board and slide. Playing this track I always mic acoustics in the keeps you on your toes, as I literally have to stand in one studio by pointing an AKG place to keep the pedals and slide within reach. But these C1000 condenser toward the are the things I find interesting, and I don’t think anyone bridge, about 8 inches away. I expects us to sound exactly like the record. typically don’t play acoustics live, but I do have a Fishman As far as live gear, I do like to keep things as simple as possi- installed on my J-45. One thing ble, as I believe most tone comes from your fingers. I think I forgot to mention about the this is the case with most guitarists. I was in London last year Brian Moore is that I had them -continued- 6 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 cover story

put a piezo in, which I haven’t really put to use yet. extremely hot, which has a negative impact on TQR: What’s in your pedal board any why? the internal components. Bob Dettore of DST From recently serviced mine left to and he replaced several right, caps as well as a few my resistors which were pedal- ready to fail, and board changed the load line of the output tubes slightly to run cool- con- er. This seemed to tighten up the low end too, which would tains a Boss DM-2 analog delay that my parents bought me in sometimes mush out. DST has recently introduced their own ’82, followed by a mid ‘80s Ibanez TS-9 Tubescreamer with tribute to the AC30 called the DST-30, which I haven’t Analogman Mike Piera’s classic TS-808 brown mod, which played yet, but imagine it’s gonna be another winner. incorporates some chip and resistor changes. Next up, I have a DST Fat Acid fuzz tone, which is a prototype of a pedal going TQR: You have an endorsement deal with DST amps, to market later this year. DST builds pedals like they build ToneDoctor and Brian Moore guitars. Being as amps – they break the gain stages objective as you can, what is it specifically about down into more pieces. Instead of them that won you over? one block with a ton of gain, they incorporate several stages where I can be the gain progressively builds, and very objec- the result is awesome! Following tive… I the Fat Acid is a Voodoo Labs mean, just Micro Vibe used on the Leslie because tunes. I was using a Korg G-4 but somebody it was too noisy at high volumes. Finally, I plug my guitar into gives you an ancient Thomas Organ Cry-Baby wah, which still sounds something, great. For the majority of the night, it’s just the guitar through if it sounds the amp, but I switch on the pedals for different parts, and use Bob Detorre and Jeff Swanson, DST like bat the Cry-Baby for tonal variation as well as the wah wah guano, I’m not going to tell anyone else about it, let alone use effect. In the studio, I also use my old Colorsound fuzz, a Dan it. A few years ago, I found out about DST through Jeff Armstrong Orange Squeezer, an MXR Phase 90 and Flanger, Swanson, who had built a couple of custom cabs for me. Jeff and a couple other things. told me about his partnership in DST with Bob Dettore, who I had heard about on one of the amp websites. As I was getting ready to record Racket of Three, I invited Jeff and Bob down to TQR: We just covered a laundry list of maintenance the studio and we talked about the qualities of great amps. issues to be dealt with to make vintage AC30’s reli- They brought several prototypes for me to check out and give able. What has your experience been with vintage feedback on, pardon the pun. We chatted for a long time and I AC30’s? The perception is, they’re trouble… really enjoyed both their knowledge and the spirit that went into their amps. They left me with a few to record with, and I I got my ’65 grey panel AC30 around 1990 from Roy Goode fell in love with the UV6, which is a dual 6V6 model. Quite in Boston, who at the time was considered the guy for honestly, this has to be one of the best sounding small amps I rebuilding old amps, specializing in top boosting AC30s. Roy have ever heard. I ended up doing some sound clips for their had put Vintage 30s in the amp as part of his rebuild, and website, and went up to their headquarters in Salem, they are great. I find the AC30 Top Boost to be one of the Massachusetts to test some more models that they were in the toney-est amps ever built. Nothing beats a Strat into the top process of rolling out. Besides being musicians themselves, boost channel, which gets a great tone that is both clean and they are good guys who put together solid, extremely well built creamy at the same time. They are very flexible too, pulling gear that simply sounds great. For the past few years, Bob has off classic British tones, great blues and country sounds, and also done my amp work, which is neat, quick and most impor- some of the raunchiest distortion you’ve ever heard. They are tantly, great sounding. After years of dealing with amp techs very input sensitive beasts and will only make a good guitar that would take months to turn over stuff, I now send my amp sound better. Slam the top boost with a humbucker or a P90 to Bob for repair, and have it back by the end of the next week, and the chords just bloom. On the down side, they tend to run sounding infinitely better than before. -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 7 cover story

When Brian Moore Custom Guitars As far as recording techniques, approached me about making an one that I’ve found to work well instrument for their endorsement for me is to place a Shure SM- artist program, I thought about the 57 mic off axis against the side best qualities of my favorite guitars. of the best sounding speaker in I asked them to make a Strat style an amp, with the mic stand on a guitar (their MC/1) with 3 P90’s, piece of glass. Another is to turn wired like a modern Strat with a 5 up the amp so there is some way switch, and hum cancelling in background noise and then place the mic in the path where it the second and fourth position. They picks up the most noise. I have used room mics for ambience as also duplicated the flame on my Les well, and while they work in certain situations, they tend to Paul, which is nice. This ended up mud up a recording in a hurry if you’re not careful. Also, I’ve being a very versatile guitar that I been extremely fortunate to speak with great musicians such as play at almost every show. I really Johnny Winter and Rick Derringer, Big Al Anderson, John am grateful to them, and am very Hiatt, Bob Margolin, happy for their recent success with Ronnie Earl, and a whole the Iguitar. bunch more, regarding what works well for them I also was recently asked by a new company called as players. Oh, by the way, ToneDoctor LLC to prototype some of their products, and I I still enjoy using reverb ended up recording a bunch of clips for their website as well. on certain things too, ToneDoctor is the brainchild of Dr. Carl Nett, former head of which is sort of taboo United Technologies Research Center, avid guitarist and fel- John Hiatt these days… low tone freak. Carl is a really smart guy who has invented a bunch of cool new products for speaker cabs and combo TQR: Who among current players today interest you the amps, including a built-in attenuator that uses a new principle most and why? to achieve what has got to be the most transparent attenuation I’ve ever heard. Really cool stuff and I’m looking forward to I can appreciate just about everyone I see and hear on some level. working with him more in the future. Mostly, I enjoy someone who is contributing to the overall song and to me, Mike Campbell has got to be one of the most underrat- TQR: Can you summarize any unique recording tech- ed players in modern music. I saw him last summer, and he was niques you have developed over the years? totally playing to the song, using different guitars and amps, and Mike Campbell they all sounded great, and they First off, preparation is all sounded interesting. When he key. Before you go into the wanted to rip it up, he sure did, studio, get your amps and all within the vibe of the tune. I guitars working as well as saw Jack White’s new band the possible. That way, you’ll other day, The Raconteurs, and I have no issues with hum, really enjoyed what they were pops or what have you. Do doing. Of course, Big Al not change the strings on Anderson is a perennial favorite your guitars the night and he’s just released a new before a session. Also be aware that just because an amp album called Pawn Shop Guitars that has some great playing and sounds good on its own, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s songs on it. going to hang together in the track. Another thing to consid- There are a few guys who’ve been on the Northeast scene for er is volume… the loudest amps don’t always sound the awhile that I really enjoy… Mark Nomad from Northampton, biggest, in fact, my experience has shown just the opposite. Massachusetts and Mark Easton from Eastern Connecticut. For our second CD, I recorded a song called “Little Live Both of these cats are great blues and rock players that Thing” with just a Les Paul plucked in open G tuning should be checked out. through a cranked tweed Champ and a ’62 EL-84 Gibson Discoverer amp, and the resulting guitar sound is absolutely TQR: What’s ahead? What would you like to accomplish huge – one of my favorite tracks. Neither of those amps in the future? could even keep up with a drummer live, but in the context of the studio they sounded like Marshalls. We just released a free download single called “So -continued- 8 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 amps

Wonderful” that was originally intended for “Racket of confirmed its Three,” but was kept off because it wasn’t in the same vein as rare status… the rest of the songs. It’s a simple, raw, bluesy shuffle and on We found a it I play my ES-335 dot neck through the DST UV6. At the few blonde end of the tune, we do a fake ending and then it just sort of 6G6A heads explodes into a little reprise in half time. For that part, I use with silicon my ’72 Strat through the Colorsound fuzz and CryBaby, diode recti- through the DST, and it sounds really nice. The reviews and fiers, and far more black and silverface Bassmans, but only download figures have been very positive, which may lead us one 6G6. Fortunately, it was located at Atlanta Vintage to record a bluesier disc for our next effort. One thing I don’t Guitars. We contacted the owner, Frankie Moates, and he want to do is traditional blues, though. This is probably my graciously agreed to make it available for review. all-time favorite type of music, but to me, you can’t beat the originals like Muddy, Wolf, B.B. and the rest of those guys. I As soon as we had picked up the Bassman, we made a bee- know how much the blues rock movement of the late ‘60s line straight down I75 to Ponce de Leon Avenue and Bakos early ‘70s has been much maligned by the “blues purists,” but Ampworks. The joy and anticipation of pulling still another to me, a lot of the blues rockers took it in new, fresh direc- strange, unknown chassis from its cabinet never wanes for us, tions. Even Muddy said “The blues had a baby, and they and the Bassman chassis ultimately presented a riddle that named it rock and roll!” Plus, we shouldn’t forget that it was will never be fully answered. The existing tubes were a com- those blues rockers that turned us onto blues to begin with. mon assortment dating to the ‘90s – a Chinese Ruby 5AR4, a But I like what they did, taking various influences and mak- duet of Sovtek 5881’s, Chinese-made 12AX7’s and a 12AT7 ing something of your own. in the phase inverter socket. One pot had been replaced, and while the output transformer was the correct Fender type for As far as what I’d this amp, it dated to 1972. All the other components appeared like to accomplish to be original, so we wrote down the transformer EIA and in the future, I’d Fender parts codes for reference, shot pictures and screwed like to keep learn- the chassis back into the cabinet. ing and growing as a musician and pro- Back at the TQ gear ducer, and to con- room, we connected Tom and Scott tinue making new the Bassman to a music. I’ve been extremely fortunate to be able to do this for blonde Fender 4 ohm so long, and quite simply, I’d like to keep working with 2x12 cabinet Frankie Mambo Sons and others to get honest, guitar-based rock and had also loaned us and roll out there. Did I mention that I still enjoy reverb?TQ fired them up. Five minutes later we were www.mambosons.com left wondering what Tom Guera found so stunning about this amp… The ‘61 sounded awful – raspy-clean, clangy, loud and obnoxiously bright, it seemed to suck the tone out of our favorite guitars leaving them sterile and flat. Was this it? We recalled Tom having said in an e-mail “… even with a Strat the Bassman is ripping, straight into the original 4 ohm cab… Wicked!”

Listening to Tom Guera affectionately describe his favorite Hmmm… We yanked the guitars, amps and effects left us with plenty of solid clues for speaker cable out of the reviews, beginning with a rare blonde… The ‘61 6G6 old Fender 2x12 and Bassman may not seem so obscure until you consider that plugged into our trusty 4 unlike all the Bassman heads that followed, the 6G6 is tube ohm Balls 2x12 loaded rectified with a GZ34. And in many other important aspects with British-made G12H (phase inverter, bias and power sections) the 6G6 and diode- speakers, hit a chord with rectified 6G6A circuit remained closely related to the vaunted the volume on the 5F6A ‘59 tweed Bassman – right up until early 1964. Bassman set on ‘5’ and immediately shut it down. Now, there is good “wicked,” and bad “wicked…” This Bassman was all Searching for a 6G6 Bassman on GBase and eBay further bad wicked, and we began to think our review wasn’t meant -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 9 amps

to be. Well, maybe… We pulled the chassis out on the bench The actual Bass and perused the labyrinth of twisted wires and fat Astron Channel on the caps. Clearly, the output transformer had been replaced after Bassman is an acquired the original had blown, and a repair sticker had been left taste – very middy and inside the chassis from Time Electronics dated 7/18/75 with a peculiar – and the 201 New Jersey area code. But, the OT was the correct Normal channel is any- Fender replacement… Looking at the power transformer, we thing but “normal.” checked the Fender ‘6516’ code stamped on the top and refer- Fender constantly enced the reliable Fender transformer charts at tweaked the Bassman design throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s, www.unclespot.com. The correct code for a 6G6 Bassman and there are fans of nearly every version – the 6G6, 6G6A, power transformer is 125P5A, and the transformer code 6G6B, AA864 (cleaner), AA165, and the AA568 (introduced ‘6516’ was, according to the chart, used in tweed Pros up in 1969 and a hot mess). until the brown ‘Professional Series’ in 1960. Yet the solder joints for the ‘6516’ Bassman power transformer were clearly Not content with original and untouched… One of two things seem to have merely speculating on happened here – either the wrong (and obsolete) transformer the 24K tone of the had accidentally been pulled and installed in Fullerton in ‘61, we snatched a 1961, or the surplus tweed Pro transformer was installed as a 1965 blackface deliberate substitute when the amp was built… Bassman AA864 from Jeff’s amp stash in the studio on Ponce for comparison. Well, this was an inter- The AA864 design was the first departure from the original esting insight into the blonde circuit, with the old Presence control dropped for the vagaries of classic typical blackface Bright switch. The ‘65 Bassman proved to Fender amps, but it did- be a completely worthy amp – slightly cleaner cranked than n’t explain the totally the ‘61, but still incredibly toneful and the perfect pedal amp. toneless vibe of the Whatever the ‘65 may lack in overdriven jizzum, it sacrifices Bassman – the cause of none of the gorgeous bloom we found in the voice of the ‘61, that wouldn’t become clear until we turned our attention to and we didn’t find the harder pick attack of the diode the faded tube chart, which clearly specified four 7025 pre- rectifiers particularly objectionable. Jeff observed that the amp tubes, and not the 12AT7 that some joker (a bass play- AA165 design that followed is slightly hotter, with faster dis- er?) had shoved in the phase inverter socket. We grabbed a tortion than the ‘65 – curious for a “bass” amp. Possible non- new Tung-Sol 12AX7, replaced the 12AT7, invasive modifications for the blackface Bassmans include and let the amp warm up on standby as we the addition of a midrange pot (usually installed in place of pulled the Junior off the wall. Hooked up, the extension speaker jack), converting the phase inverter we reached behind the blonde head, flicked from a 12AT7 to 12AX7 for more gain, and adding switch- the standby switch up, stepped back as we able cathode bias. The less costly silverface AA568 opened up the Junior’s volume control and Bassmans can also be converted to blackface specs. let fly with a barrage of big-ass chords. A posse ad esse! A full hour passed in com- Blackface plete oblivion as we explored the stunning Bassman heads depth of the Bassman, now riding high on (they made the righteous path. We became completely thousands upon lost in its sound – the perfect blend of colossal clean tones thousands of wrapped in thick, uncompressed sustain and gorgeous pres- them) often sell ence, all the while thinking how no one builds an amp quite for $400-$600, like this today. Along the way, we patched in our ‘64 black- although we face, white knob Fender reverb, and the heavens opened even have seen minty examples go for as much as $900. Prices for wider – 12 miles wide, deep and high. There is tone… and earlier blonde Bassman 6G6 and 6G6A amps seem to be all there is this tone, people. Imagine a 50W dual 6L6 Twin, per- over the map… $1400 took a clean 6G6A head and 2x12 haps… huge, gloriously rich and completely opened up with cabinet recently on eBay, while 20 people bid a lone 6G6A thundering bass response, surprising midrange presence and blonde up to $1,500. Silverface models remain cheap and the classic 3-D highs of a big Fender. Yes, it’s fifty watts of plentiful. Given a choice, we would angle for a 6G6, fol- the good thang, and no, we don’t believe you can get this lowed by a silicon diode rectified 6G6A or 6G6B. Most sound from less. Big iron does indeed = big tone. 6G6A and 6G6B chassis will be drilled for a rectifier tube -continued- 10 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 amps

socket with a cap in the unused degrees depending hole, and some of the original on the guitar you’re Fender power transformers may using, but once we also be tapped for the missing had determined the GZ34. Otherwise, should you wish sweet spots for EQ, to add a tube rectifier, a new, Volume versus tapped power transformer will be Master Volume, and the Tone, Volume and Gain settings in the required. The entire line of Boost channel, thick and raunchy quintessential Marshall tones Bassman heads represents one of poured forth from the 3203 at tolerable decibel levels that our the best remaining bargains in vintage Fender tone. They are old 50W could never match without using a boost pedal at supremely portable, rock solid, and capable of stunning per- modest volumes. Surprising? Yes and no. Guitar and pickup formance for a variety of musical styles. Get yours now. T Q decisions are critical with the 3203. We preferred humbuckers and warmer pickups over those that are naturally bright, since extreme set- tings in the bass and midrange EQ sec- tion quickly mud- Marshall introduced the 3203 Artist in 1986 – a hybrid 30W died the tone above head that features a solid state EQ section, 12AX7 phase invert- 6-7 on the dials, and the treble control is extremely touchy. Our er, dual EL34’s and reverb. Yes, solid state with the pots mount- favorite rig was our Nash Telecaster loaded with Lollar ed directly to the printed circuit board… Now, before any of Specials. The Gibson P90 in the Junior was too bright and you vintage hound dogs even think of running us to ground and grainy, while the Lollar P90 smoothed out the rough edges con- howling “foul,” behold a shot from our 2002 visitation with the siderably. We never really warmed to the sound of our TQ hard- right reverend Billy F Gibbons… We found a Valvestate 2000 tail Strat through the Marshall, and we were reminded of Tom’s combo lurking in a cor- comment that he used a Boss Graphic EQ with the Marshall ner of ZZ’s Houston and a Strat. This makes perfect sense, as our Stratocaster studio that had obvi- seemed to need some help… As is, the tone was too scooped in ously been pulled into the mids, harsh, trebly and metallic. However, with the Tele, we service often, and we easily produced some stellar grease and grind fully worthy of also shot Billy’s actual that little ol’ band from Texas – fat, wooly and burnin’ hot with rack mount stage rig, great sustain, depth and harmonic crunch. Reverb? Like all consisting of dual short spring reverb pans, it’s limited, but sounds OK up to ‘6,’ JMP-1 preamps and and the Marshall reverb wasn’t nearly as touchy as a typical four 8008 Valvestate Fender. We do question how important reverb is to the style of amps. Uh, huh… music the 3203 encourages, however. We should also mention that we pulled the stock ‘80s era Sovtek tubes and replaced Tom Guera’s mention of the 3203 was enough to pique our them with a pair of original ‘winged C’ Svetlana EL34’s and an interest, so we scored a clean 1989 head on eBay for four bills old RCA 12AX7, significantly improving the sound of the amp. and change. The idea behind the 3203 (and 4203 Artist 1x12 combo) was to provide guitarists with an affordable, portable, Well, gang, a small moment of truth has arrived… You can crunchy 30 watter with the trademark vibe of a Marshall valve dial up some very tasty, hard rockin’ tones from a hybrid amp. Even Michael Doyle, author of The History of Marshall solid state tube amp, and at 30 watts, no less. It occurred to book acknowledged that the 3203 immediately garnered a solid us that if a hardboiled vin- rep for “some particularly impressive distortion sounds.” tage amp freak happened to find an obscure, late Features on the 3203 Artist are spartan and straight up… ‘50s thirty watt two In the Normal Channel: Reverb volume, Master Volume, Bass, banger that sounded like Middle, Treble and Volume, and in the Boost Channel: Tone, the 3203 and they scored Volume and Gain. The 3203 back panel sports an Effects it for under $500, said In/Out, Line Out, and dual speaker inputs at 4 and 8 ohms. freak would be giddy with There are no true “clean” tones to be found in this amp, and pride and joy. Yessir. It’s all about perception coloring reality EQ settings must be carefully managed by the slightest isn’t it? Falling victim to the biases that subtlely steer us one -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 11 pickups

way or the other… Just remember this – if you need to throw somewhere of a guitar where someone had taken the covers off, down some hot and heavy distortion for light money… If a so I did that like everyone else, and then I saw a little ad in the sanely powered blow torch could light up your life and slow back of Guitar Player from Dimarzio. I ordered some, and they the march of time… If you have been placed on probation for were Super Distortion pickups, which I thought were pretty double-dipping to feed your nasty habit and your wife is now cool at the time. I was always lookin’ for something new, but actually keeping track of the number of amps you own… you when finally I got the ‘58, everything just came together. might could do a whole lot worse than the Marshall Artist 3203. Burn forth, mate…T Q Roy at RS Guitarworks con- tacted me some- time last year about what I thought was special about my ‘58, and I had talked to several Greg Martin is a found- pickup winders about it before… As you know, none of the ing member of The old PAF’s were potted. I can pick my ‘58 up and sing into it Kentucky Headhunters, a and hear my voice, and when I’m in the studio, I think it long-standing member of actually picks up a little bit of the ambient sound of the room. our advisory board, and one of the most hopeless- TQR: Because it’s microphonic… ly afflicted tonefreaks we know. In addition to pro- Yes. And the sweet spot on the guitar volume is around ‘7’ ducing a new recording for me. On the Rufus Huff stuff I’m playing through a ‘69 just about every year, Marshall 100W head with a 4x12 and a Marshall 50W. I find The Headhunters contin- if I go above ‘7’ on the guitar or play it wide open, it’s too ue to hit the road hard in much. The ‘58 pickups aren’t super hot – more or less in the the summer, and in his middle, around 7.7K. spare time Greg has been working with a new band – Rufus Huff. Greg owns a ton of old guitars, but his wheel house is So, I drove up to RS with my ‘58 and we checked it all out, and firmly rooted in Les Pauls, vintage Marhsalls and slithering Roy got with Lindy Fralin to produce the first prototype, which southern rock… Last year Greg hooked up with RS nailed the neck pickup. We made a second prototype set that was Guitarworks and Lindy Fralin to produce a set of humbuckers too dark, and the third bridge pickup became the standard, com- that captured the voice of his cherished vintage ‘58 Les Paul. bined with the first neck pickup. Do they sound exactly like the Here’s the story as told by Greg and RS Guitarworks’ Roy ‘58? No, and I Bowen, followed by our review. don’t think that’s possible, again, TQR: How did this project begin, Greg? because of the way the wood and Well, as you know, the pickups have I’ve been through a aged. How can lot of guitars. I you reproduce have five Historics that? Also, at one now and they are time I had taken all great – each one the pickups out to is a different animal try them in another guitar, and when I put them back in I had and I can pick each apparently wired them in differently. I have these pickups in two one of them up and of my Historic Les Pauls. now, and they sound really good. We know what it’s call them Psyche-billys, because at one time a writer had going to do, but my old ‘58 is just really special. It has this little referred to the Headhunters as playing “psyche-billy rock.” I also compression… this extra brown sound… but it is also very have WCR “Goodwood” pickups in a Historic Les Paul, and ‘57 clean – it’s got headroom that none of my other guitars do. I Classics in another, and they are all good in their own way. This don’t know… I’m sure some of it is the wood. In the ‘70s I whole pickup thing can be mind-boggling, but I’m really happy started messing with pickups, and I remember seeing a picture with the sound of the pickups Roy and Lindy developed.

12 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 pickups

sion was too dark and thick for Greg, so Lindy made the third version and really got close to how the real PAFs react with the amp and Greg’s playing style.

TQR: Roy, describe the process that was involved in eval- After Lindy came up with uating Greg’s ‘58 LP – what was measured, and the correct wiring to match how you digested the tone of Greg’s guitar. all the specs on Greg’s pick- up, I went into our magnet We initially spent a lot of stash to find rough cast time talking and working Alnico II magnets that car- with Greg to get his Gibson ried a charge in the same Historics road ready using range as the real pickup. our normal wiring, This meant finding a very RS/Hovland GuitarCaps and weak magnet for the neck, CTS Super-Pots, along with but a much stronger Alnico II for the bridge pickup. That said, a combination of Holmes, every set of Psychebilly Blues pickups get the exact same spec Fralins and WCR pickups, magnets found in Greg’s guitar and used in the pickups in two and we eventually asked of his main R9s. They are only available with double black Greg to bring in his ‘58 Les bobbins with aged solid nickel covers and the poles are set up Paul guitar to see what made it tick. The pots all tested fairly just like the real set – very true to the original. low, in the 450k-490k range, one pot (the bridge volume) had been changed at some point, and the caps were connected to the TQR: How did Greg’s guitar sound different from others volume input instead of the wiper, but they were still connected you may have heard? to the tone controls via the standard ‘50s wiring. The mellow tone produced by rolling off the volume and how the volume One thing for sure is Greg’s ‘58 is an amazing guitar that pots work is a big part of why Greg’s burst worked for him, and honestly makes most of the other real bursts I have played in the Historics, not as well. We wired our Super-Pots and sound dead. His guitar is very mellow, but it resonates better GuitarCaps just like his than many old Martin acoustics I’ve played. It is nothing burst and got closer, but short of alive. For this reason, the first thing we had to deal still no cigar, so I mapped with is that none of Greg’s Historics were really even close to the taper on one of Greg’s his ‘58 (even though they are all very good guitars in there pots and sent it to CTS. The own right), so no matter how good the pickups and parts pot had a curve that their work, they will never have the soul of his ‘58.What we were designer called a “tweaked able to do was make the guitar react to Greg’s playing style A curve,” so we gave that a and his cranked amp tone in a very similar way, and I think try. We also discovered that we achieved that very well. the Hovland caps were too clear for Greg’s taste, so we tried our newest GuitarCap made by Jensen that is paper and oil, TQR: Describe the details of the pots and caps in the kit very much like the original Bumble Bees used in Greg’s burst. and how they are similar to what you found in Finally, we found ourselves in the ball park with controls that Greg’s guitar… worked very much like the real ‘58. We decided to go with When we started looking at pickups, Greg felt that our origi- pots being made today that nal RS/Fralin wind sounded to “new” and our RS True ‘60s are closest to how the vin- were too hot for his needs, as were the Holmes. The WCR tage Centralab (and one Goodwood/Darkburst set was very close in Greg’s 2003 R9, CTS audio) 500k pots but they were a bit dark in his other two Historics, so back in work in Greg’s guitar, with the shop came the burst and we began measuring again, this the best sounding paper time finding out what each coil on his PAFs read, their capac- and oil cap we could find itance, and the magnetic gauss. Then I called Lindy Fralin to take the place of the Bumble Bees (since all the Bee copies are with the details of our measurements and he started work on either bad copies or too expensive). We even include a schematic the first set of copies. When we put this set in the neck, it was that describes how Greg’s guitar is wired and a letter from Greg good to go right off the bat, but the bridge was too bright, so explaining “Hillbilly Channel Switchin” in a way that only he can Lindy did some tweaking and sent us version two. This ver- explain. This all produces a great, vintage, old-school tone.

TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 13 pickups

particularly “hot,” and the Psychebilly set we received for review measured 7.57K/neck and 7.96K bridge. The neck pickup possesses a remarkable “old” tone – wooly and thick with a pleasing dollop of snap on the B and E strings. It also After countless pickup swaps in our nearly-famous 2000 blends beautifully with the bridge pickup, creating a heavy Historic Blacktop Les Paul, we were more than ready to gut foundation for the rich brightness in the bridge. Played the control cavity and replace our older pots and caps with through our ‘62 brown Vibrolux currently loaded with an the new kit from RS. The original Gibson volume pot for the aged Avatar “Hellatone” G12H 30 70th Anniversary bridge pickup had died long ago, and the entire rig was Celestion, the Psychebilly bridge pickup is sweet, smooth and beginning to look a little ragged. We had the new CTS pots extraordi- and Jensen caps installed in about an hour, wired up with the narily aged Fralin Psychebillies. clear with If you have experiment- enough ed with various hum- output to bucking pickups produce inspired by the original the type of “clean” distortion that so many players crave. You “patent applied for” know it when you hear it… Peter Green tone. Cloaked within design, perhaps you too the predominant upper midrange and treble tones is also a have noticed that “PAF” subtle compression that never overwhelms clarity. Played tone is subject to broad through our Blacktop, you might think you were hearing a (loose) interpretation. 335. There is a woody airiness in the bridge pickup, and the You probably also know that actual Gibson PAFs were some- clarity of a fat single coil – what Greg referred to as “head- what inconsistent, and like old amplifiers, they seem to age room.” The Psychebilly pickups are completely unique, and with varying sonic results. When recreating vintage pickups, in some ways they embody the characteristics of an “anti- most builders choose a benchmark that falls within the range humbucker” when compared to the dark, honking, over-com- of actual vintage examples. The concept of precisely measur- pressed and strangled tone that has afflicted so many hum- ing and copying a specific set seems to be picking up steam bucking pickups in the past. In fact, this set could launch a among manufacturers, similar to the way in which Dan fresh, new love affair with your humbucking guitars. Butler, builder of Chicago Bluesbox amps blueprinted Buddy Guy’s ancient Bassman, or Celestion is producing the Having also replaced Heritage Series of vintage the pots and caps in our speakers in England. Of guitar when the pickups course, Fender has been were installed, we doing this with pickups for noticed that the Jensen years, and Gibson’s ‘57 caps seem to be less hi- Classic humbuckers were the fi sounding than the result of painstaking R&D Hovland Musicaps we involving actual examples of have installed from RS real PAFs. The wild card in in the past. You may recall that we previously acquired the same making pickups that are Jensen .022 uf caps from Angela Instruments and used them to intended to capture “vintage tone” is in the consistency of the upgrade a Gibson ES 333 with excellent results. There are peo- materials used and attention paid to quality control. A vari- ple that will tell you that capacitors that dump high frequencies ance of plus or minus 20% in pickups is significant. in a guitar circuit don’t actually have a “tone…” Sorry, they do. The calibrated RS CTS pots measured just over 500K/Volume Can the team of RS Guitarworks and Lindy Fralin consistent- and slightly under 500K/Tone with an exceptionally smooth and ly reproduce the tone and feel of the set of Psychebillies we even taper that is uncommon in production pots. Overall, we installed in our Les Paul? We suspect they can. Both compa- were absolutely thrilled with the entire kit – pots, caps and the nies are small enough to keep their eye on the ball when it Psychebillies. Quest forth, ya’ll…T Q comes to selecting and screening materials, while closely monitoring how these pickups are wound and ultimately www.rsguitarworks.net, 859-737-5300 sound. And how do they sound? Different, and damn good. www.fralinpickups.com, 804-358-2699 www.kentuckyheadhunters.com As Greg Martin said, the pickups in his ‘58 Les Paul are not www.gregmartin.com

14 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 guitar tone

14 1/3 octave 27.5 kHz 13 1/3 octave 21.8 kHz 12 1/3 octave 17.3 kHz 11 1/3 octave 13.7 kHz There is a bit of irony attached to vintage gear that encourages 10 1/3 octave 10.9 kHz us to reach back in time to move forward. A palpable romance 9 1/4 octave 8.87 kHz develops between connoisseurs of vintage pieces and the 8 1/4 octave 7.71 kHz objects they covet, and the thrill of the chase cannot be under- 7 1/4 octave 6.48 kHz estimated. But for those of us seeking new sounds, fresh tech- 6 1/3 octave 5.61 kHz nology can often be merged with old designs to produce a 5 1/4 octave 4.46 kHz broader, more vivid palette from which to work. The Stellartone 4 2/3 octave 3.75 kHz Tonestyler succeeds in offering guitarists the opportunity to 3 5/6 octave 2.50 kHz significantly expand the range of tones available from an elec- 2 1 octave 1.44 kHz tric guitar without resorting to complicated and time-consum- 1 818 Hz ing modifications. In fact, it can be installed (or uninstalled) in mere minutes. What’s not to like about that? The beauty of the Tonestyler circuit is that instead of rolling off highs and mids like a typical tone capacitor, midrange What It Is… frequencies are preserved, and the miniature, small-value The ToneStyler and the Bari-ToneStyler capacitors also reduce pickup loading. We detected a signif- are essentially sixteen-position rotary icant increase in clarity with the Tonestyler, and compared switches with gold-plated terminals and to a typical tone cap, a perceived midrange boost – which shorting contacts made exclusively for should please all but the most hardened fans of old school, Stellartone by Grayhill USA. According vintage tone caps that steadily knock down treble, mids, to Stellartone, the average life expectan- presence and attack. In fact, the change in overall sound cy of the switch exceeds 100,000 opera- was not unlike what we heard when we completely tion cycles. Mounted on the attached bypassed the volume and tone pots in our blacktop Les board are 14 miniature ceramic tone Paul, as Larry Craigg has done on Neil Young’s “Old capacitors. In addition to the 14 differ- Black” Of course, one theoretical drawback to using the ent roll-off points determined by each Tonestyler live, on the fly, is the challenge of rotating the capacitor on the switch, position #15 pot through multiple positions to get from one sound to completely bypasses the tone circuit, another quickly and accurately, counting the ‘clicks” as and #16 is set to function as a typical tone cap on ‘10.’ each position on the switch is reached. We seemed to find

We mounted a single Tonestyler in place of the bridge tone pot and capacitor in our 2002 Gibson SG – a formidable featherweight currently loaded with Gibson ‘57 Classics and a complete TonePros rig. The original, factory stock 500K tone pot was connected to an old .022mf Cornell- Dublier cap, and installing specific settings that would be suitable for an entire song in the Tonestyler was a cinch: most situations. Having access to fourteen distinctly differ- remove the knob and ent voices without sacrificing the natural sound of your gui- retaining nut on the tone tar (or even re-acquiring it) is definitely an eye-opener, and pot, unsolder the existing a no-risk venture… Stellartone offers a 30-day no risk trial tone capacitor and remove period for the Tonestyler, which sells for $119.00. See their the pot, mount the web site for details. The Tonestyler is undoubtedly one of Tonestyler, solder the green wire on the Tonestyler to the vol- the most cleverly designed and easiest to install electronic ume pot lug and the red wire to ground. We also had to crimp guitar gadgets we have seen. It produces a level of clarity the end of the shaft on the Tonestyler to fit the Gibson knob. and a distinctly varied range of voices that may not appeal Tonestyler Specifications to all diehard purists, but we thoroughly enjoyed the way in which the Tonestyler transformed our SG into a remarkably Position # Step Roll-off point ±10% versatile chameleon. Style forth… 16 n/a Std tone pot on 10 TQ 15 n/a True Bypass www.stellartone.com, 541-779-8663

TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 15 guitars

The “all new” American Stratocaster sells for $945, and the peel-off pickguard sticker shouts “New! A better sounding, better playing guitar.” We agree, but in actual fact, the American Stratocaster first appeared in 2000 according to the We confess to har- specs on the Fender web site, and the DeltaTone pickup sys- boring a hot/cold tem debuted in 1997. No matter… it was all new to us. relationship with Here’s the bottom line: the American Series Stratocaster is Stratocasters – built with an alder body (our Shoreline gold review guitar the guitar Tom weighed 7.75 lbs.) and includes medium jumbo frets on a Guera described maple or rosewood fingerboard with hand-rolled edges. as “the perfect Hardware consists of a electric guitar…” modern two-point When we find one tremolo, stainless steel The Subdudes Tommy Malone that speaks to us, saddles, Schaller stag- it’s all good, but too often we’re left with a bland impression gered, cast/sealed of what a friend refers to as the “$5 bill” of guitars. Too tuners that are often we play Stratocasters in which the tone of the neck extremely responsive pickup is nailed, but the middle is too dull and the bridge too and smooth, and a Fender DeltaTone pickup system with high bright. Sometimes the neck shape leaves us wishing for more output bridge pickup (7.11K) and no-load tone control for the girth, and we absolutely can’t abide tiny “vintage” frets. middle and neck pickups (measuring 5.74K and 5.82K Stratocasters can also be inexplicably quirky – some feel stiff respectively). and tight, while others play soft and easy. And playing the “weight game” needlessly complicates an already complicat- Visually, the American ed decision-making process. One of the all-time best sound- Stratocaster isn’t intend- ing Strats we have ever owned was a chunky, Custom Shop ed to make big style +8 pounder, and we own a 6.5 .lb alder Stratocaster that points with players cov- seems to transform every set of pickups we try into thin, list- eting the authentic look less things with no soul. We finally realized that it’s the fun- of a vintage Strat. The damental resonant frequencies that inherently dominate the polyurethane finish tone of this guitar that make all of our pickups flatline. lacks the more refined Oooh… this is a light one! Yeah, and it’s a dog. Still, the day clarity of nitrocellulose lacquer, the functional, modern hard- we decide to unload it, someone will pay a premium because ware is a complete departure from the original Fullerton steel, its’ so light. Doncha be no fool… and the slim neck profile is slightly shallower than the typical ‘C’ neck shape of the ‘62 vintage reissues. Nevertheless, we There are currently 53 variations on found the satin poly finish on the maple neck to be extremely the Stratocaster in the Fender Winter slick, comfortable and unobtrusive, the medium jumbo frets 2007 catalog, and 15 more in the and flatter 9.5" radius fingerboard offered exceptional playa- budget Squier line. Unless you know bility, and the DeltaTone pickups produce classic Stratocaster exactly what you’re looking for, you’d tone with audibly enhanced clarity and responsiveness to pick need a catalog in hand and a full attack compared to a typical ‘57-’62 Fender set. The neck afternoon to thoroughly navigate a pickup possesses well-stocked showroom. But as so all the solid bass often happens, merely loitering in a pop essential to the music store can pay dividends. Stratocaster, the Midtown’s Dave Tiller casually men- out-of-phase posi- tioned that he had received a new tions are endowed shipment of lower priced, “new and with plenty of improved” American Stratocasters, chirpy quack, the and as these new guitars were being middle is middy unpacked and inspected, someone and bright, and the bridge is properly trebly while stopping observed, “If you can’t cut it with one short of being irritatingly sharp. As a point of reference, we of these, it’s time to quit…” And with could also coax pinch harmonics out of all but the neck pick- that thought in mind, we got busy on up playing through a clean amp at moderate volume. These your behalf. pickups “feel” pick attack in an extraordinary way. And as -continued- 16 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 guitars

often as we buy new guitars only to gut them with custom the American Stratocaster parts and pickups for our reviews, we wouldn’t be inclined to and the Hot Rod back to the “makeover” the American Stratocaster. For $945 with a hard- office and music room for shell molded case, it is a solid choice in a true “player’s” further evaluation, where we instrument that represents Fender’s best effort in combining measured the pickups, value and innovation in an excellent utility instrument. checked the relief in the necks and played each guitar through a variety of amps. Vintage Hot Rod Series ‘62 Strat The truss rod in the Hot Rod We also appreciate the allure and sex appeal of more tradi- neck needed adjusting (they tional, vintage designs, and to be honest, we usually prefer are shipped loose), and the them. Perhaps you recall our past reviews of the Robert Cray neck responded perfectly. As we read over the detailed Hot Rod specifications at Fender.com, we noted that Fender specifically mentioned that the bridge pickup was wired to the #2 tone pot – an essential move in our opinion, and a departure from typical vintage Strat wiring in which the bridge pickup is left without a tone control. Someone had really thought through the concept of the Hot Rod, adding Signature hardtail Stratocaster (Mexico). In the process of every feature we would have chosen ourselves… except that circling the rows of Stratocasters sitting in stands at Midtown the tone pot on this particular Hot Rod didn’t work as adver- Music, we picked up a familiar American Vintage Reissue tised with the bridge pickup. Tone #1 controlled the neck and ‘62 3-tone burst – a striking finish that has always resonated combined neck/middle pickups, while Tone #2 controlled the with us as a perennial classic… the kind of no frills guitar middle and middle/bridge, but there was no tone control on that fits in anywhere and gets noticed for what it isn’t – the bridge alone. What’s up with that? gaudy, quirky, or appearing to possess way too much muzzle velocity for the job. The new ‘62 was a typical reissue from Corona, badly in need of a truss rod adjustment. After play- Down to the Wire ing a few passages, we carefully set it back down in its stand Decision time… We don’t own this guitar (yet) – do we sneak just as the next guitar in line caught our eye – at first glance, a peek under the hood? Hell, yes. Might as well throw a set of an identical ‘62 3-tone – but we detected something different Pyramid .010s on it as well. We cut off the Fender ‘Bullets,’ about this one… You could almost smell it. removed the pickguard screws and flipped the pickguard around to have a look at the wiring. Now, there are about as Rare charms were revealed the second we lifted the ‘62 from many ways to wire a Strat as there are ways to make barbecue the stand. The ‘C’ neck was noticeably thicker and fatter than sauce and beer, so we took a break and repaired to the office the neck on ‘62 reissue we had just set down, and the streaky, PC to access www.mrgearhead.com – the technical site for all dark, thick rosewood slab board gleamed with medium things Fender (maintained by Fender). In a minute we had jumbo, nickel silver pulled up the official wiring frets. And unlike the diagram for the ‘62 Hot Rod ‘62 reissue, the nitro Strat and printed it out for finish on the neck was reference. Back at the satin. Flipping through bench, we began comparing the jumble of hangtags the connections in the Hot wrapped around the Rod’s actual wiring harness high E tuner, we against the diagram. They searched for the barcoded price tag that would reveal the matched perfectly, but the model name… Vintage ‘62 Hot Rod Never heard of it, but short jumper wire connecting two adjacent lugs on the 5-way what could indeed be better than a hot… rod? switch that enables the #2 tone pot to function on the bridge pickup was missing. We cut a short length of white cloth Perusing the Fender 2007 Winter catalog, we discovered that push-back wire from our spare stash, soldered it in place and the ‘62 Hot Rod was a new model launched in January 2007, all was right with the world. and in addition to the features just mentioned, it is also fin- ished in “thin skin” nitro. Dave Tiller allowed us to take both We’re not gonna bang the drum about the wiring glitch, but -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 17 effects

we do wonder if perhaps the wrong loaded pickguard might have been installed in this guitar by mistake, rather than the hookup for the bridge tone pot simply being overlooked. This is no complaint – the Hot Rod sounds fantastic – but our research on the Fender web site indicated that the Vintage We acquired a Voodoo Lab Hot Rod Series features “American Vintage” Strat pickups, Micro Vibe, having previ- and the specs for the familiar “Original ‘57-62” Strat pickups ously reviewed both the state that these pickups are OEM on “American Vintage $299 RotoSim pedal by Stratocasters.” However, the specs for the Original ‘57-62 DLS, and the ubiquitous Strat pickups are 5.6K Ohms DC resistance for all three pick- $399 Hughes & Kettner ups, and the actual, staggered DC resistance of the pickups in Rotosphere in past issues. the Hot Rod measured 5.99K/Neck, 6.21K/Middle and The compact Micro Vibe 6.57K/Bridge – more in the general neighborhood of Custom requires minimal space on Shop ‘54s, for example. Are we having fun yet? Whatever the your pedalboard and sells hell they are, we love these pickups. They are less brittle and for $149. That’s the good thin sounding than the Fender Custom Shop ‘69s, with a full, news… rich and spanky neck coil, the best sounding Strat middle pickup we have ever heard – clear, middy and confident – Our new unit was hesitant and quirky right out of the box, and the bridge is a fat siren with soul. The typical downfall of and when we first plugged in, the speed control did noth- slightly overwound and less trebly Strat pickups is found in ing. Turning the control fully clockwise to the fastest set- the out-of-phase #2 and #4 positions, which can loose defini- ting would cause it to kick in for a second, then any hint tion and clarity – but not in this case. of the swirling, vibey thing would quickly disappear. We changed the supplied battery, and eventually the pedal Zooming in on the finer details, began to work as designed (we think), but we were unim- we can confirm that the finish on pressed with the range of swirl we could coax from the the top of the Hot Rod is indeed Micro Vibe, which seemed too subtle, restrained and lack- thinner – you can see the subtle ing realistic sounding, 3D intensity. We also noticed that Alder grain barely peeking low frequencies jumped through the finish, although not up (more closely mir- so much on the back of the body. roring the true tone of Regardless, this is an exceptional- our guitar and amp) ly resonate and vibey Stratocaster whenever we touched that rings strong. We also noticed the outside of the case. that the rosewood slab finger- There is a tiny trim board is ever-so-slightly thicker control on the circuit from the 5th fret to the nut. board inside the Micro Vibe that changes the We couldn’t be more pleased that an experienced hand at operating parameters Fender dreamed up the $1599.99 Vintage Hot Rod Stratocaster for the intensity of the – so pleased, in fact, that we ultimately bought our review gui- effect. Our attempts to tar. Best of all, the Hot Rod met the Ronnie Earl tone test – the bring more life and best reason in the world to ever play a Strat – and we’ve been movement into the mix by changing the factory setting on looking for an affordable Stratocaster that could tote that note this control produced more intensity, but also a muddier, for years. Be sure to check out the Vintage Hot Rod Series less defined overall sound. Voodoo Lab has earned a fine Stratocasters… ours honestly compared very favorably to a reputation for their products – particularly the Pedal $6,000 Masterbuilt Chris Fleming Stratocaster we have been Power power supply – but our experience with the Micro ogling for months at Midtown. If you don’t have ready access Vibe was surprisingly disappointing. TQ to a store that carries a large Fender inventory, try Willcutt, Dave’s Guitar Shop or Midtown.TQ www.voodoolab.com

www.fender.com www.midtownmusic.com www.davesguitar.com www.willcuttguitars.com

18 TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 effects

sound. Between the Mix, Level and High Cut controls, the Room-Mate pro- As our “keeper” amps have continued to evolve, we now find vides outstanding ourselves completely void of any amplifiers with onboard flexibility in dialing reverb, but of course, we do have reverb… in precise levels of intensity, decay and It’s been several years since the mix of wet and we first reviewed the $99 dry signals. Electro-Harmonix Holy Acoustic players Grail reverb pedal, and we will also find the still use it. EH followed up Room-Mate particularly useful for adding subtle levels of with a Holier Grail version rich, ambient space to the sound of an acoustic guitar on that added a Gate feature stage. In our opinion, Plate reverb is an acquired taste for and lots of gonzo sonic pos- electric guitar compared to the softer attack of “Hall” or sibilities beyond the original “Spring” ‘verb – we always think of the Eurythmics when “Flerb” feature found in the we hear it. You know … that Euro guitar sound… The Hoy Grail, but most players Bright Hall mode is just that – brighter, and the Chorus buy the Grail because of its with Warm Reverb was OK, but not a sound we would use righteous “hall” and that often. T Rex suggests that it is particularly useful for “spring” reverb sounds. Yeah, this box is a little hissy, and acoustic guitar, and we’ll give it that, with a few quali- it isn’t built to withstand heavy abuse – the aluminum fiers… Bluegrass – not! Monty Montgomery – yes. And box, jacks and switch aren’t military grade – but it does how does the single tube reverb circuit of the Room-Mate produce a fine, fine reverb effect for mighty low dough. stack up against our cheap Holy Grail and collectible ‘64 Fender tank? We also own a ‘64 blackface-white knob Fender reverb unit – the gold standard among outboard tube reverb Well, if all you need are moderate (well short of surf- boxes, and it is what it is… lusciously wet and splashy in tone) levels of reverb for a relatively tame electric guitar the classic Fender fashion. We paid $550.00 for our ‘64, tone con reverberato, the Room-Mate might be total and it overkill. For modest and subtle applications, we didn’t arrived with hear a quantum leap forward in sound quality, although the original the T Rex is definitely built to a higher standard of brick tubes (still house durability. Let’s put it this way… If you want every working). possible deviation in the sound of reverb for eclectic gui- The down- tar at your well-trimmed fingertips… and if you sweat side to the gravy over potential durability issues that a 30-city van Fender tank tour might impose… buy the Room-Mate (or take out a is its touch- loan and call Pete Cornish). If you would like to add iness… the slightest vibrations will send lightning cracks reverb to your acoustic rig – in stereo even – the Room- through your rig, and if your vintage reverb box isn’t Mate is your pedal-verb. If you are a bit of a curmudgeon- functioning to spec, it can alter the volume and “feel” of ly, old-school player that values authenticity over modern your amp to varying degrees. We keep ours on the floor, circuit board chicanery, throw down for a vintage (or reis- and it works as well today as the day it was made. sue) Fender reverb unit (they hold their value extremely well) and nail it to the floor. And if you crave reverb but A more recent entry into the portable, outboard reverb don’t want to spring for a penny more than necessary, buy sweepstakes is the feature-laden, $369.00 T Rex Room- the Grail. You don’t hear the hiss when you’re playing, Mate. Like all T Rex effects, the Room-Mate is sturdily and as long as you don’t use it as a hammer, you’ll be built and designed to deliver maximum flexibility, with fine. See how this can work? Everybody wins.T Q four Modes (Classic Plate, Warm Hall, Bright Hall and Chorus with Warm Reverb), Mix, Level and High Cut www.t-rex-engineering.com controls, Stereo Out and a 100-240 Volt wall wart. www.ehx.com www.fender.com Our favorite mode for electric guitar was the Warm Hall

TONEQUEST REPORT V8. N6. April 2007 19 www.tonequest.com

coming in Future Issues TotheneQuest Report TM Editor/Publisher David Wilson Associate Publisher Liz Medley Graphic Design Rick Johnson INTERVIEWS: Robben Ford EDITORIAL BOARD Lindy Fralin Analogman Lindy Fralin Jimbo Mathus Tom Anderson Peter Frampton René Martinez Tom Anderson GuitarWorks The Guitar Whiz Coco Montoya Billy F. Gibbons Mark Baier ZZ Top Greg Martin Victoria Amplifiers The Kentucky Headhunters Webb Wilder Joe Glaser Jeff Bakos Glaser Instruments Richard McDonald Bakos AmpWorks VP Mktg, Fender Musical Instruments George Goumas Dick Boak The Fret Shop Custom Guitar Works Dave Noss CF Martin & Co. Avatar Speakers John Harrison Joe Bonamassa A Brown Soun Terry McInturff FEATURES: Finding, Acquiring & Restoring Terry McInturff Guitars Phil Brown Johnny Hiland James Pennebaker Vintage Amps Dan Butler Gregg Hopkins Butler Custom Sound Vintage Amp Restoration Scott Petersen Harmonic Design Pickups Don Butler Phil Jones The Toneman Gruhn Guitars Paul Rivera Rivera Amplifiers Steve Carr K&M Analog Designs Carr Amplifiers Tommy Shannon Mark Karan Double Trouble REVIEWS: Fralin Pickups Mitch Colby Bob Weir & Ratdog KORG/Marshall/VOX USA Todd Sharp “Kimock”Two Rock Custom Review Robert Keeley Nashville Amp Service Ben Cole Robert Keeley Electronics GHS Strings Tim Shaw Gibson BFG Les Paul Ernest King Fender Musical Instruments Corp. Larry Cragg Gibson Custom Shop Neil Young Chris Siegmund DST Chris Kinman Siegmund Guitars and Amplifiers Jol Dantzig Kinman AVn Pickups Hamer Guitars John Sprung Collings Mike Kropotkin American Guitar Center Dan Erlewine KCA NOS Tubes Stewart-MacDonald Peter Stroud Winn Krozak The Sheryl Crow Band Larry Fishman Paul Reed Smith Guitars Fishman Transducers Laurence Wexer Sonny Landreth Laurence Wexer Limited Buzz Feiten Fine Fretted Instruments Albert Lee Bill Finnegan Buddy Whittington Klon Centaur Adrian Legg John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers Ritchie Fliegler Dave Malone Zachary Vex Fender Musical Instruments Corp. The Radiators Z Vex Effects

The ToneQuest Report TM (ISSN 1525-3392) is published monthly by Mountainview Publishing LLC, 235 Mountainview Street, Suite 23, Decatur, GA. 30030- 2027, 1-877-MAX-TONE, email: [email protected]. Periodicals Postage Paid at Decatur, GA and At Additional Mailing Offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to:The ToneQuest Report, PO Box 717, Decatur, GA. 30031-0717.The annual subscription fee for The ToneQuest ReportTM is $79 per year for 12 monthly issues. International subscribers please add US $40. Please remit payment in U.S. funds only. VISA, MasterCard and American Express accepted. The ToneQuest ReportTM is published solely for the benefit of its subscribers. Copyright© 2007 by Mountainview Publishing LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in any form or incorporated into any information retrieval system without the written permission of the copyright holder. Please forward all subscription requests, comments, questions and other inquiries to the above address or contact the publisher at [email protected]. Opinions expressed in The ToneQuest Report are not necessarily those of this publication. Mention of specific products, services or technical advice does not constitute an endorsement. Readers are advised to exercise extreme caution in handling electronic devices and musical instruments.

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