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Looper's Delight
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Jim,
In a message dated 5/24/04 3:10:28 PM, zebu@cox.net writes:
>Would you mind describing, say, your signal chain used on your
>last gig in gruesome detail? (brand name of distortion, amp,
>yadda yadda.
Ehhh? Do you know wat yer askin? Well, this is gonna be the
exact opposite of a "cool" gear list. It's very pedestrian, dull,
even embarrassing stuff.
Lets start with the embarrassing: A Behringer "Blue Devil" amp that I
feel weird just owning because it's so cheesy. But, I picked it up for a
price I couldn't refuse and it works. Basically it's a 2-channel 65 watt
closed-back 1x12 solid-state combo with about the equivalent of
a Zoom 909 (yuck) built into it for onboard FX (of which I only use
the reverb). It does have a real nice squeaky-clean sound (great for
acoustic guitar) on channel one -- dubbed "Heaven" on the left side
of the faceplate. Then it has an ALMOST useless overdrive channel --
dubbed the "Hell" channel on the right side of the faceplate. Get the
idea? It's no swanky "tonemeister" amp at all. It has a remote pedal
for switching channels and turning the FX (reverb) on and off.
It was cheap and semi-functional for a home practice amp for me
and my kids. That was basically why I got it originally. I have usually
just played through rack-mounted Marshall or Seymour Duncan
poweramps (part of the "big rig" mentality) and four 1x12 Duncan
cabs for the previous several years. It's a big change for me . . .
or should I say small change.
On the guitar side is the same old blonde '77 Gibson RD Artist I've
been playing since I got it new, way back when -- well it does have
Duncans on it now and a Kahler trem and a Roland GK-2 hex pickup
that it has accumulated over the years -- it's become a bit of a
"Borg" guitar actually. It's also got a built-in combination preamp and
compressor circuit (not the one it came with but a different one).
Between the two of these points are just a very few things:
1. A Boss WP-20G "Wave Processor" for the hex pickup --
used almost exclusively for polyphonic "slow gear" type
effects. It's other options are silly and pretty useless.
2. A standard run-of-the-mill Ernie Ball volume pedal.
3. A new Model "C" Sustainiac. I don't leave home without it.
4. 10 feet of good cable to the amp input.
5. 2 Boss DD-20s in the FX loop of the amp. If you'll remember,
I took back the RC-20 after one day of fiddling with it and
got the second DD-20 and $47 in change. 2 loopers -- both
capable of multiple synchronous or asynchronous delays are
much better than one.
I don't use a distortion pedal . . . the amp essentially has one
in it when I use the "Hell" channel. I adjust this so that it is as
"clean" as I can get it (and it's still quite distorted, heheheh) and
that's the distortion that I use. For both channels I boost the
low and hi frequencies significantly and "scoop" the mids just
a little bit.
That's really all there is to tell. If you wanna get real anal,
I use GHS strings and a combination of Dunlop and Ernie Ball
metal banjo picks on my thumb and first 3 fingers. I used to
be very partial to Energizer batteries but I have become more
budget-conscious over the years and will now use any alkaline
that's discount-priced or my wife has a coupon for. Heheheh.
I use a heavy, concave-profile brass slide (when I use a slide)
and I've been a avid user of Ebows since 1980.
Aren't you sorry you asked? Well, it does go to show that it
ain't the price or "coolness" of the gear that makes things
work. About the only thing in this setup I'd be devastated
to lose is the guitar itself. Everything else is more-or-less
still readily available. I'd hate to have to spend the money
mind you . . . but it could be done . . . and I wouldn't feel like
I'd had my aorta cut out or anything.
Best regards,
tEd ® kiLLiAn
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