Pickup discussion - fresh recordings

[Tigerdaisy]

Thanks Martin, now here is another recording of Wonderful Land with all different gear, guitar, echo amp - all different .
The only thing the same as the other recording is me.
This is to demonstrate that anyone can get close.


https://soundcloud.com/dave-robinson-85 ... s-pick-ups

Great sound!

[dave robinson]

Hi Dave,

Honestly, there isn't a single tune on your posting that I didn't find almost as good as the original.
You have really done a great achievement with simple tools. Bravo!
You mentioned a new unit from Charlie, is it the Collins / Charlie or a new one?

Blessings,
Abel

Hi Abel, the new project that Charlie is working on is a pedal that gives the recorded sound of the early records we all love.
It's called the EF86 pedal and I've heard some of the stuff he's recorded and it is wonderful, I want one. It adds that tone that is so elusive, he tells me they are harmonics.

[dave robinson]

My kit on that last take on Wonderful Land is an old Squier guitar with Sliders Vintage pickups, through a Blue Nebula echo, through my Boss Katana 100 head, recorded with an SM58 Microphone from the tiny 5" speaker in the head that is there for practice and tuning.
The amp settings are Acoustic or Clean channel, with Gain, Volume, Bass, Mid all at 12 O Clock and Treble at ten to the hour. No FX or anything from any of the thre FX knobs, all OFF. I had the power mode on 50w, no presence and Master on loud enough to hear it clearly, with the microphone placed directly in front of the speaker to the left of the box.
There is no EQ on the mixing desk, it goes into the computer untouched. What you are hearing are the pickups through the echo and amp uncoloured.
OK I realise much of it is how I'm playing and my own touch, but if many of you have similar gear as I suspect you have, you should hear the same sound with those settings.
It's as simple as that.

[Uncle Fiesta]

Precisely, but it's amazing how many still haven't got the message, judging by the number of people I see who turn up with Custom Shop this, gold plated that, fancy pickups and tremelo arms with bends in funny places, all of which probably cost them thousands, whose sound is still not even in the ballpark!

I've turned up at Shadows Clubs with the usual Strats and Burns, but also Squiers, Telecasters, PRS, Gibson and Epiphone Les Pauls, 335 and even a Flying V, so I hope I've done my bit, in my small way, to demonstrate that it's not what you've got, it's how you use it.

I fear it falls on deaf ears though (possibly because those who have spent huge sums don't want to hear).

[Tab]

I agree with what has been said about inexpensive gear but sometimes it is worth spending the money. My TVS3 was worth every penny and, in my opinion, is, by far, the best of the modern echo units.

I recently had the pleasure of playing through a friend's rebuilt/refurbished Meazzi which didn't come cheap but the sound went to another level.

I've always maintained that, if you are totally satisfied that you have the best sound you are able to produce, your playing also goes up a level.

[JimN]

...it's amazing how many still haven't got the message, judging by the number of people I see who turn up with Custom Shop this, gold plated that, fancy pickups and tremelo arms with bends in funny places, all of which probably cost them thousands, whose sound is still not even in the ballpark!

I've turned up at Shadows Clubs with the usual Strats and Burns, but also Squiers, Telecasters, PRS, Gibson and Epiphone Les Pauls, 335 and even a Flying V, so I hope I've done my bit, in my small way, to demonstrate that it's not what you've got, it's how you use it.

I fear it falls on deaf ears though (possibly because those who have spent huge sums don't want to hear).

It isn't only about the sound and whether it can be reproduced with this or that piece of equipment.

Think of collectors of antique clocks. You can buy a digital unit to put on the mantlepiece which in terms of time-keeping performance, would lose any mechanical clock outright. You could even have it built into an ornate casing which was expensive in its own right. But to argue that this is best and that we might as well forget - and bin - antique, grandfather or ormolu clocks would be to miss the point slightly.

And so it is - in spades - with musical instruments. Famous jazz guitarist Jim Mullen is well-known for using cheaper Oriental archtops. At the moment, he favours the Aria brand, costing... what...? £450 new? That's in the ballpark, to quote a current phrase. And Jim makes them sound wonderful. But I still prefer to own and play a Gibson L-5. The same with Les Paul-alikes. There are dozens available from about £150 upward, but I like to have The Real Thing. And it isn't necessarily to do with tone. I am well aware that a lot of players can make a Stagg sound better than I can a Gibson. But the sound is only part of the deal.

[dave robinson]

Here's another take on the recordings using a very different instrument,

SWEET DREAMS https://soundcloud.com/dave-robinson-85 ... eet-dreams

APACHE https://soundcloud.com/dave-robinson-85 ... ternnative

[bor64]

Dave,

I think you would made Roberto proud if he was still around
I like the sound a lot!
The playing is as always high level !


Cheers Rob

[abel]

Apache is just superb and impressive.

Blessings,'Abel

[dave robinson]

Well I'm not ashamed to tell you that I used my new Gretsch 5655 on Apache with exactly the same settings on the echo & amp as the one I did miking up the Katana head, it was the treble pickup and I think it sounds eerily close. Sweet Dreams was with the Wonderful Land patch on the Blue Nebula and using the neck pickup.
The Bigsby arm is an issue for me as I use the 'Chet' arm on my White Falcon, but as most of you will know the regular Bigsby doesn't swivel over the strings and it cramps the playing style somewhat for me. I'm surprising myself and having a lot of fun with these experiments. The tone controls on the Katana are deceivingly good, you just need to move them around to appreciate what they can give you. They are even more powerful when used on the computer with Boss Tone Centre.