NEW RIG DAY: Nuno NBKING100 and Washburn N4

[nevusofota]

Awesome rig. The N4 is one of my favorites and one of the most underrated guitars, especially the early '91 era Davies models. Is that a Davies 2.0?

 

[lettmusic]

I played this amp 3 years ago at NAMM, when it was debut. It was super noisy but the amp cuts through even at low volume. Congrats on the new rig.

 

[Enjolras56]

Heck yes, dude! Congrats on the new cab!

I had this ongoing sense of emptiness until I got my matching cab. . I got a steal on mine.

Question: how are playing with your master at 2:00 with 2 kids at home?

 

[jcj]

Clips!!!!

C'mon, man

 

[Anonymous]

whereas the NBKING is uniquely voiced for the N4 so I'm not sure it's for everyone.

I'd love to know how you uniquely voice an amp for a particular super strat...

Steve

 

[Schaf]

whereas the NBKING is uniquely voiced for the N4 so I'm not sure it's for everyone.

I'd love to know how you uniquely voice an amp for a particular super strat...

Steve

I'm assuming when they were designing this amp Nuno was using his N4 and therefore it was tweaked around that guitar's characteristics....I'm not saying it's officially voiced for it but if you try a Les Paul on the NBKING its going to sound way different. If you want the Saudades de Rock tone the N4 sure won't hurt.

That's going to be true of any amp though.

 

[shane159]

I know allot of people seem to bash the look of those amps, but I like that retro look. Soundwise, what does it compare to??

 

[midnightlaundry]

Break it open. Lets see some gut shots! C'mon, don't be a puss.

 

[reverymike]

I know allot of people seem to bash the look of those amps, but I like that retro look. Soundwise, what does it compare to??

These are supposedly based on a JMP with a Rat boosting it.

 

[midnightlaundry]

I used to work at the powder coat factory that did the Proco Rat cases. The 80's...

 

[nevusofota]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

 

[dav2321]

Too funny, I think your the same guy I sold my N4 to or traded for a Cornford Harlequin a few years ago? Anyway the N4 is indeed a easy guitar to play, kinda miss mine now.
What goes around......

 

[Anonymous]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

 

[nevusofota]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

What do you think of this:

Let's add another variable then, a=Nuno's fingers

So, a+x+y=z
if x changes to a Les Paul than you will no longer get z, UNLESS you change y.

 

[Anonymous]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

What do you think of this:

Let's add another variable then, a=Nuno's fingers

So, a+x+y=z
if x changes to a Les Paul than you will no longer get z, UNLESS you change y.

I already added Nuno's playing, but I still don't agree. There are knobs on the amp. Fiddle with them and the fact that it's an LP won't matter if Nuno can play it. Also, I was really saying that there are a ton of super strats so similar to the N4 as to be veritably indestinguishable through any particular amp... You can't design an amp that only works with the N4 and not all those other incredibly similar super strats... To think otherwise is ridiculous...

Steve

 

[nevusofota]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

What do you think of this:

Let's add another variable then, a=Nuno's fingers

So, a+x+y=z
if x changes to a Les Paul than you will no longer get z, UNLESS you change y.

I already added Nuno's playing, but I still don't agree. There are knobs on the amp. Fiddle with them and the fact that it's an LP won't matter if Nuno can play it. Also, I was really saying that there are a ton of super strats so similar to the N4 as to be veritably indestinguishable through any particular amp... You can't design an amp that only works with the N4 and not all those other incredibly similar super strats... To think otherwise is ridiculous...

Steve

I would have to go back and re-read the thread but I don't think the OP ever mentioned that the amp was made ONLY for the N4 in order to get his tone. I would have to agree that Nuno, playing SOME OTHER super strats, keeping all other variables the same, will have virtually the same end result on tone as the N4 would have.........but I would have to disagree when it comes to Nuno playing a LP. I don't think I have a discriminant sense of tone compared to many here on RT and I'm pretty sure I could still pick out Nuno playing a LP instead of his N4, even after hours of amp knob tweaking. I also think most would pick up on the difference in his tone if he played his N4 through a modern voiced amp (i.e. Rectifier).

 

[sgill72]

There's no question the amp was tested with one guitar, the N4. I was there. In order to get what Nuno was looking for in his signature amp, the N4 is the guitar to play. Obviously, other guitars can sound similar...especially if you have the old Bill Lawrence pickup.

 

[rupe]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

What do you think of this:

Let's add another variable then, a=Nuno's fingers

So, a+x+y=z
if x changes to a Les Paul than you will no longer get z, UNLESS you change y.

I already added Nuno's playing, but I still don't agree. There are knobs on the amp. Fiddle with them and the fact that it's an LP won't matter if Nuno can play it. Also, I was really saying that there are a ton of super strats so similar to the N4 as to be veritably indestinguishable through any particular amp... You can't design an amp that only works with the N4 and not all those other incredibly similar super strats... To think otherwise is ridiculous...

Steve

I would have to go back and re-read the thread but I don't think the OP ever mentioned that the amp was made ONLY for the N4 in order to get his tone. I would have to agree that Nuno, playing SOME OTHER super strats, keeping all other variables the same, will have virtually the same end result on tone as the N4 would have.........but I would have to disagree when it comes to Nuno playing a LP. I don't think I have a discriminant sense of tone compared to many here on RT and I'm pretty sure I could still pick out Nuno playing a LP instead of his N4, even after hours of amp knob tweaking. I also think most would pick up on the difference in his tone if he played his N4 through a modern voiced amp (i.e. Rectifier).

You make the assumption that Les Pauls all sound alike, and that an N4 could not be made to sound like a Les Paul...there's probably no bigger fallacy in the guitar world than "Les Paul tone"...it simply doesn't exist in any meaningful form.

 

[reverymike]

I think the original poster was simply saying that the amp was tweaked in the design phase with an N4 as the test guitar (since that's what Nuno plays). It only makes sense that they use the N4. Why would they use something else?. . .they aren't going to bring Nuno in and say, 'okay Nuno, today we're showing you where we're at with your signature amp, which will produce your signature sound. . .let us know how it sound to you -- now go pick up that Danlectro and plug in."

Sure there are lots of guitars similar to the N4 that would yield similar (if not identical tones). But they didn't use them when they were tweaking the amp.

 

[Anonymous]

X=guitar
Y=amp
Z=Nuno's tone

X+Y=Z

Nuno has a set guitar and tone, the amp was voiced to recreate his tone. Almost like reverse engineering.

OK, let's use your variables. I argue that you could take a variety of Xs and Ys and get Z... Getting real specific, take this particular amp, add a variety of similar super strats (there are dozens), add Nuno playing and you get Nuno's tone. No amp can be voiced around one specific guitar because there are tons of them that have very similar characteristics...

Steve

What do you think of this:

Let's add another variable then, a=Nuno's fingers

So, a+x+y=z
if x changes to a Les Paul than you will no longer get z, UNLESS you change y.

I already added Nuno's playing, but I still don't agree. There are knobs on the amp. Fiddle with them and the fact that it's an LP won't matter if Nuno can play it. Also, I was really saying that there are a ton of super strats so similar to the N4 as to be veritably indestinguishable through any particular amp... You can't design an amp that only works with the N4 and not all those other incredibly similar super strats... To think otherwise is ridiculous...

Steve

I would have to go back and re-read the thread but I don't think the OP ever mentioned that the amp was made ONLY for the N4 in order to get his tone. I would have to agree that Nuno, playing SOME OTHER super strats, keeping all other variables the same, will have virtually the same end result on tone as the N4 would have.........but I would have to disagree when it comes to Nuno playing a LP. I don't think I have a discriminant sense of tone compared to many here on RT and I'm pretty sure I could still pick out Nuno playing a LP instead of his N4, even after hours of amp knob tweaking. I also think most would pick up on the difference in his tone if he played his N4 through a modern voiced amp (i.e. Rectifier).

Here is what was say:

"the NBKING is uniquely voiced for the N4 so I'm not sure it's for everyone."

I don't see how an amp can be "uniquely voiced" for the N4 when there are dozens of other super strats that are incredibly similar. That is all I was really saying...

Steve