Lunch Report: 12/13/2012 (Blast from the Past 2011 LR)

Ok, first day. Despite the new snow on the ground and what has yet to fall, I'm Summer lunch-ing it: sliced turkey, tomato, lettuce, onions and a pesto-like spread on Texas toast. Then a few glasses of sun tea. Yeah, me and that sun tea. I make it all year round...

Now, onto sound and how to find it. Despite my age...uh experience, I'm still hunting for tones. I've already gone the whole "stripped-down to the basics" approach and this forum got me going again. King Of Tone!!!!! So I'm back to finding out what people use to get what they get.

Today, I'd like to start with Alex Lifeson's guitar sounds. "Middletown Dreams" and the reverb guitar make me want more. I know he was using Dean Markley amps and some type of delay at the time(MicMix, ADA, Lexicon Prime Time?). Also, he was using Charvel Strats with Bill Lawrence humbuckers http://www.billlawrenceonlinestore.com/ in the bridge. Can you believe that they recorded "Power Windows" in a stone room??? He used a 100 watt Galien Kruger combo w/ built-in reverb on that album too. Love that mid... I listened to "Something the Boy Said", by Sting and it has a similar guitar sound. Great stuff!

In the early 1970's, his main squeeze was a cream-colored Gibson ES-355 with various phaser and flanger pedals, a Cry Baby Wah Wah, along with Marshall 100 watt Super Lead amplifiers and 4x12 cabinets. For acoustic work, he used twelve-string guitars (acoustic and electric) and used a Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble then the Boss Dimension C. Then he went from passive to active pickups & solid-state amps. You know, the whole eighties arena rock route. This is where I depart. Although I like PRS, Les Pauls, etc., the TC Electronics G-Force rack multi-FX, TC Electronics 1210 spatial expander and a Loft 440 Delay Line/Flanger and what ever he had built into his Switchblade heads are not where I'm headed. Hey, I saw the Snakes & Arrows Tour in 2007. I'm just trying to get away from digital...at the moment.

So, what do you think? I have been going thru the various products from BBE, but need a lesson. Can these sounds be replicated with G&L/BBE products?

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It's time for: hideous pictures from the past! Past! Past! Here's one of mine (it's not the one with the iguana on my head).



Not exactly "Vintage", but as close as I could get. This was from my days with Levi John, my second teacher and band leader. good times and $$$. Look at that shirt! Wool & silk. I still have it and the Ovation. Tomorrow, I will dive a bit into my past as well as another artist I'm trying to steal some mojo from...


Cheers,

Will

* This is a Blast from the Past, LR from 2011 due to no report today...

Will:
When I first got started, I was all about getting the tones on 'Farewell to Kings' and 'Hemispheres.' And armed with a Epiphone Casino, Roland JC-60 amp, Morley Power Wah Fuzz, and Ibanez AD-80 Analog Delay, that set-up really nailed it. I recall Lifeson was using a Roland Space Echo at the time, and the AD-80 does the trick for his delay sound. In fact, I set the pedal to mock
'Anthem' on Fly By Night, and have used that setting as my default delay sound to this day...

BW

"...And armed with a Epiphone Casino, Roland JC-60 amp, Morley Power Wah Fuzz, and Ibanez AD-80 Analog Delay, that set-up really nailed it. "
BW

I can hear The Snow Dog now !

...not much else nails that Morley PWF sound .

Elwood

sorry I haven't posted in a long time, but still reading every day. This working for a living again is tough, pay check is nice though, lol.

As far as the Alex L tone goes, I can tell you that the luthier I use is Alex's luthier. Its supposed to be confidential but whenever I'm there (which is not that often), there is an Alex L guitar there begin worked on.

2 things, first there was an Alex L signature series white 335. Not sure but they were $3-$4,000 new. My luthier has had over a dozen in to be rebuilt, they were crap coming out of the factory and had issues that he's had to resolve. He wouldn't elaborate on what the issues were.

Secondly, from the 70's, Alex used a Hentor Sportscaster,

http://rush.wikia.com/wiki/Hentor_Sport ... ratocaster),_White

Last time I was there, this EXACT Hentor Sportscaster was there with the luthier. I got to see if and hold it, wow a piece of Rush history.

I was told that its a famous guitar and people tried to figure out what it is.

I can tell you, its a parts caster, very thick body (like a les paul thickness) and has a maple quarter sawn baseball bat neck that was made for Alex from a company in Ottawa in the early 70s. They are out of business now. The pups are Bill Lawrence l500 humbucker and fender single coils.

for a 40 year old guitar that has been played and played, its in amazing shape, the neck perfect, the body nicely yellowed.

The tone comes from the thick body and the monster neck.

My luthier has it because he has received permission from Alex to blueprint it and to make a few custom shop clones of it. Also, he has made a few suggestions to Alex to improve it even more and Alex has agreed since he likes change and better is good for him.

He advertised quietly on some rush forums and has received a bunch of orders for the guitars he's building.

Amazing story,way cool

Here's the info as its now public, I just checked.

http://home.cogeco.ca/~freddygabrsek/hentor.htm

What he does to the tone after with amps and pedals I don't know, but tone begins with the guitar and this is it!

Alf

also of note on the Hentor, the neck has an ebony board and the neck is UNFINISHED.

Bright to say the least!

Ledergeist: Thanks for the info on the Roland Space Echo and AD-80. Just need a Casino now...

astutzmann: Thanks for the Hentor info! I'll check into the Freddy Gabrsek site too...

Have a great weekend!


Cheers,

Will

Will, interesting stuff as I know nothing of Lifeson. Alfs information is especially interesting about the guitar. Being primarily a Bass player, I don't use pedals and can generally shape the tone at the amp and change from the guitar as needed.

Cool picture from the past and is that the same Ovation that you replaced the top on? -- Darwin

darwinohm: Yep, that's the same Ovation. The top split on both sides of the bridge about 2 years after that picture. That won't happen again...


Cheers,

Will