Nivel elemental calentar — ciclo PWM calentar (min)

Although not always the case, the most desirable and collectible gear does seem to have a way of sounding the best on a recording. That being said, even if the guitar player owns a ‘57 Les Paul or the bass player has a ’62 P Bass or the drummer has a ‘72 Black Beauty snare or the keyboard player an original Minimoog, if it doesn’t sound good or it has an operating problem, you’re much better off using something newer that works well. Just because an instrument is worth a lot of money doesn’t mean that it sounds good or is going to work on a session.

But the fact of the matter is that a lot of the revered vintage instruments do sound great for recording, providing they’re in top working order. Ever wonder why a vintage Les Paul or a Strat or a P Bass or a Plexi Marshall or a ‘59 Fender Bassman (see Fig. 9.2) or a ’60s Ludwig drum kit or a Hammond B-3 or a Mellotron (see Fig. 9.3) are so coveted that they’ve all been reissued to sound as much like the original as possible? It’s the sound, of course, and using one of these items can instantly get the sound that everyone might be looking for, and therefore help the part fit better in the track. That’s why you always see or read about what seems to be some of the same gear from session to session, concert to concert, video to video, and in article to article. With some experience, players eventually learn what makes them sound their best, and certain instruments, amplifiers, effects, and accessory brands and models are just tried and true (when properly maintained, of course).

Fig. 9.2: A 1959 Fender Bassman Amplifier

Fig. 9.3: A Mellotron—A big factor in the sound of the Moody Blues

That’s not to say that inexpensive gear isn’t worth having, too. If it has a unique sound, inexpensive equipment can have a place in a session. In reality, musical gear in any price range is far better today than it’s ever been. In fact, ever since about 1985 or so it’s become difficult to buy something that doesn’t perform at a reasonably high level of quality. Automated manufacturing has driven the price down and raised the quality up in a way we never could have imagined in the ‘50s, ’60s, and ‘70s. That being said, the homogenization of manufacturing has taken the character out of most of today’s low-cost instruments, and they all sound pretty much the same.

One of the reasons that vintage gear has such a draw is that there’s a difference from instrument to instrument because much of it was handmade and the tolerances were much broader then than they are now. As a result, sometimes a drift in tolerance because of human error (for example, an instrument constructed on a Monday morning or on a Friday afternoon before quitting time) resulted in magic that’s still difficult to duplicate. And the fact that the wood and metal are aged can’t help but give an instrument a sound that’s different than something new off the shelf.

Okay, so what’s tried and true that usually works? Here’s a quick and very incomplete list of instruments, amps, and accessories that are prized for their sound (and for their collectibility the older they get). I’m not recommending that you run out and buy or rent any of these, but if you get a chance to listen to any of the instruments mentioned below for just a couple of minutes, that will give you a good reference point as to why they’re so sought after.

Guitars

▶ Epiphone Casino (as used by John Lennon)

▶ Fender Stratocaster (the most widely played guitar in the world, with the models from 1957, 1963, and 1967 being the most desirable from a collector’s standpoint)

▶ Fender Telecaster (the ‘52 Reissue is a good example of the best model released over the many years)

▶ Fender Telecaster Deluxe or Custom (with humbucking pickups)

▶ Gibson ES-335 (the “dot neck” versions that use simple dots for position markers are the most desirable to collectors)

▶ Gibson Firebird (as used by Johnny Winter). See Fig. 9.4. ▶ Gibson J-45 (also an acoustic standard)

▶ Gibson Les Paul Deluxe (with smaller humbuckers), used extensively by Pete Townsend during the ’70s

▶ Gibson Les Paul Goldtop (the original Les Paul with two single-coil P-90 pickups instead of the standard humbuckers)

▶ Gibson Les Paul Junior (an entry-level Les Paul favored by Billy Joe Armstrong and Leslie West)

▶ Gibson Les Paul Standard (the most expensive vintage instrument on the market today, and some say the best guitar ever made—especially between 1957 and 1960)

▶ Gretsch 6120 (this hollowbody Chet Atkins-style guitar was used on a variety of huge hits, including The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again”)

▶ Gretsch Silver Jet

▶ Guild F-412 (the only acoustic built from the ground up as a 12-string) ▶ Martin D-28 (an acoustic standard)

▶ Rickenbacker 360 (the guitar responsible for the British Sound) ▶ Rickenbacker 360-12 (a 12-string version of the 360)

Fig. 9.4: Johnny Winter and his Gibson Firebird

Guitar Amplifiers

▶ 1959 Fender Bassman (some think this is the best guitar amp ever made)

▶ Any blackface Fender (has a black control panel with white nomenclature, hence the name) ▶ Any brown-covered Fender

▶ Any tweed-covered Fender

▶ Fender Deluxe Reverb (has a different circuit design than most Fender amps that makes it sound different when overdriven)

▶ Hiwatt Custom 100

▶ Marshall 1968 Super Lead head

▶ Marshall JMP head with model 1960 cabinet (the sound of British hard rock) ▶ Marshall JTM-45 combo (the sound of Eric Clapton with the Bluesbreakers) ▶ Marshall Plexi (has a control panel made out of plexiglass, hence the name) ▶ Mesa/Boogie Mark I (as preferred by Carlos Santana)

▶ Roland Jazz Chorus 120

▶ Vox AC30 Top Boost (has extra factory-installed circuitry that gives it more overdrive than a standard AC30; the sound of Brian May of Queen)

Fig. 9.5: Fender Deluxe Reverb

Basses

▶ Danelectro Longhorn (see Fig. 9.6)

▶ Fender Jazz basses (‘60s, ’70s, and even ‘80s) ▶ Fender Precision basses (’60s,‘70s, ’80s) ▶ Gibson EB-2 or -3

▶ Hofner Beatle bass ▶ Kaye Jimmy Reed bass ▶ Music Man StingRay ▶ Rickenbacker 4001

Fig. 9.6: Danelectro Longhorn Bass

Bass Amplifiers

▶ Acoustic 360 (the bass sound of the ‘70s)

▶ Ampeg B-15A (the standard for the studio; see Fig. 9.7)

▶ Ampeg SVT (the standard for touring that is occasionally used in the studio; Elliot Randall played the lead on Steely Dan’s famous “Reelin’ In the Years” through one)

Fig. 9.7: Ampeg B-15A—the studio standard

Pedals

▶ Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble ▶ Cry Baby Wah (Vox-Dunlop) ▶ DigiTech Whammy Pitch Effect ▶ Dynacomp (MXR-Dunlop) ▶ Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi

▶ Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man ▶ Fuzz Face

▶ Ibanez Tube Screamer (the older TS-808 and TS-9’s are the most desirable for their sound; see Fig. 9.8)

▶ Maestro Tube Echoplex ▶ Musitronics Mutron III ▶ MXR Phase 90

▶ Octavia (Tycobrahe-Roger Mayer) ▶ ProCo Rat

▶ Roland RE-101 Space Echo ▶ Uni-Vibe (Shin-Ei-Univox)

▶ Vox V847 Wah (the original, and some say still the best)

Fig. 9.8: Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer

Keyboards

▶ Hammond B-3 (or A-3 or C-3, which have the same electronics in a different cabinet) with a Leslie 122, a 145, or a 147 (which are all basically the same, except for the cabinet size or the type of connecting cable)

▶ Hohner D6 Clavinet ▶ Mellotron M400 ▶ Minimoog

▶ Wurlitzer Model 120 or 200 electric piano (see Fig. 9.9) ▶ Yamaha C7 grand piano (a studio standard)

Fig. 9.9: Wurlitzer Model 200A electric piano

Drums

▶ Gretsch Round Badge kit (‘50s and ’60s; the logo is a round badge) ▶ Gretsch Stop Sign Badge kit (‘70s)

▶ Ludwig Aerolite snare drum

▶ Ludwig Black Beauty snare drum (’70s)

▶ Ludwig Keystone Badge kit, ‘60s (see Fig. 9.10) ▶ Ludwig Supraphonic 6½“ snare drum

Fig. 9.10: The keystone logo on a ’60s Ludwig kit

The broad reach of contemporary, vintage, and boutique gear appropriate to use on recording sessions runs the gamut from affordable entry-level instruments and pedals to the most expensive musical equipment on the planet. Most often, you get what you pay for, and the pricier pieces sound best. There are exceptions though, like that time when the cheap no-name snare a drummer bought at a yard sale for 20 bucks really made a track come alive. Whatever works is always the best choice.

Getting Sounds