Soldano takes a trip inside EVH's marshall

[bog70]

Using an MXR Distortion+ like EVERYBODY else did back then is EVH's big secret

 

[CP5150]

Using an MXR Distortion+ like EVERYBODY else did back then is EVH's big secret

Actually the MXR Micro Amp. But yes. Ed used it. Was on his board for years. I say this all the time. 1984 tour he's clearly stepping on something to boost himself for solos. Micro Amp.

And he used the Marshall on Balance. Not sure which songs. Maybe Aftershock? He used it for Pleasure Dome on Carnal Knowledge with the Steinberger. So there's a couple modern ish examples for ya.

 

[smdb]

I heard that Jose beat Ed in a game of horse shoes and Ed never talked to him again.

 

[Rick Lee]

I really don't care anymore, since I wouldn't want to hack up a real '68 12000 series Plexi. They probably grew on trees back when Ed bought his, but they're kinda special now, even more so if it's a "Rosemary." There are so many other options now for getting that Brown Sound than there were back then, and they're even pretty affordable. I want to do a Metro clone build of a '68 12000 series eventually, but only when I stumble upon dirt cheap parts and have nothing better to do. I had a pristine Bray-modded 1987x that cost $1600 and totally nailed it. But then my 1959SLP nails it too and is already a little beat up. So I don't mind hauling it around to gigs and putting a few more dings in the tolex.

 

[Rocksoff]

Using an MXR Distortion+ like EVERYBODY else did back then is EVH's big secret

Actually the MXR Micro Amp. But yes. Ed used it. Was on his board for years. I say this all the time. 1984 tour he's clearly stepping on something to boost himself for solos. Micro Amp.

And he used the Marshall on Balance. Not sure which songs. Maybe Aftershock? He used it for Pleasure Dome on Carnal Knowledge with the Steinberger. So there's a couple modern ish examples for ya.

In the early days ie 1978, he had a Phase and a EQ on his pedal board with a couple of switch boxes made out of old pedal casings that were for a Univox footswitch and possible amp switching and his Flanger was put near the pedalboard.

It was Flanger->Phase->Echoplex->Amps.

He had EQ's all over the place to deal with the cable loss caused by running long leads to the Echoplexes and Univox delay, and the EQ on his pedalboard was for cable loss/buffer purposes when the Univox got plugged into the chain for Eruption and he sometimes had EQ's in front of the Echoplexes and even in front of some amps for cable loss/EQing reasons.

The pedalboard EQ and switch boxes got ditched when EVH stopped using the Univox delay and all of the other EQ's got ditched when he went wireless because of obvious less cable loss reasons.

Later on he used various other things like a Harmonizer etc and he ditched the Echoplexes at some point.

 

[Rocksoff]

EVH's main amp was the only amp (out of about 10 or more amps he used) that had a Jose sticker and it had a knob at the back, so maybe it was a Jose Zener mod who knows, but he was also turning all the knobs to 10 and using the Variac with it, so a master volume would have been useless to him anyway and the Zeners can compress the sound and reduce volume if they are lower voltage, so a 20v or 24v Zener is not too bad as compared to stock but go lower than that and it starts sounding very different and not very early EVH at all.

 

[Rocksoff]

A 8.5k Alnico 3 PAF (or something like that, it's a Gibson stock R9 pickup) into a 1967 Plexi Super Lead with a circuit similar to EVH's main amp (0.68 caps, split cathode).

Put a Duncan Custom into it (Seymour's EVH pickup) and Voila EVH early gain levels would appear and drop it's wattage down to 40 watts or so by using the Variac and lowering the supply voltage and no need for mods or any weirdo crap at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8jHuBuawQU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B1o3PQs3nw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xB2Oh1_wb0Y

 

[Rocksoff]

Effects of different Marshall circuit component values.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M88O2WdAGaQ

 

[Chester Nimitz]

Ed's pup in the first white & black Frankenstrat was an old Gibson PAF out of a 335 hand wound by Seymour Duncan himself.

 

[f550maranello2]

Effects of different Marshall circuit component values.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M88O2WdAGaQ

Best sounding to me was stock, then the bass tone stack.. I see your point though, one has to remember that a lot of these changes a subtle.

 

[Rocksoff]

Effects of different Marshall circuit component values.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M88O2WdAGaQ

Best sounding to me was stock, then the bass tone stack.. I see your point though, one has to remember that a lot of these changes a subtle.

I thought the bright cap was really bright.

The 0.68 preamp cap made a difference and so did the shared vs split cathode.

 

[Rocksoff]

Ed's pup in the first white & black Frankenstrat was an old Gibson PAF out of a 335 hand wound by Seymour Duncan himself.

EVH had access to Seymour probably starting in 1976, and Wayne Charvel knew Seymour and EVH used to hang around Wayne's shop.

EVH was probably using Seymour rewinds as far back as 1976, so stock PAF's whatever.

I know Seymour opened up his shop in 1976 but Seymour was around before that and doing stuff for Mighty Mite and EVH also used Mighty Mite pickups sometimes.

FWIW, EVH said in early interviews that the pickup in his B&W Franky was a Seymour rewind and the pickup in his Ibanez Destroyer was a Seymour rewind and the pickup in his Les Paul was a Seymour rewind (he used the Les Paul live sometimes).

He had multiple Seymour rewound pickups.

He also tried a Mighty Mite Super Distortion clone in his Ibanez Destroyer in 1978 for a while.

---

Wayne Charvel

"Randy Zacuto (Mighty Mite), from JB Player also purchased parts from me. He hired a friend of mine named Seymour Duncan, who had been making tele three piece bridge saddles and rewinding pickups to make Mighty Mite pickups for him. A short time later, Seymour came out with his own line of pickups. We also sold those."

 

[stephen sawall]

I heard that Jose beat Ed in a game of horse shoes and Ed never talked to him again.

Yes

 

[scriptphase]

He also tried a Mighty Mite Super Distortion clone in his Ibanez Destroyer in 1978 for a while.

Still in it as of early 2015:

 

[Stradazone]

He also tried a Mighty Mite Super Distortion clone in his Ibanez Destroyer in 1978 for a while.

Still in it as of early 2015:

So how do you know it's not the Mighty Mite PAF lower ouptut model instead of the 'distortion' model?
They both look exactly the same..I personally prefer the PAF lower outuput model for VH tones, I've tried both

 

[Chester Nimitz]

70's Kluson Harmonica bridge on the Shark.

I just bought a new one for my SG.

 

[Rocksoff]

He also tried a Mighty Mite Super Distortion clone in his Ibanez Destroyer in 1978 for a while.

Still in it as of early 2015:

So how do you know it's not the Mighty Mite PAF lower ouptut model instead of the 'distortion' model?
They both look exactly the same..I personally prefer the PAF lower outuput model for VH tones, I've tried both

Could be.

Even the lower wind Mighty Mites put out a fair signal strength.

How does anyone know that EVH's Seymour rewinds were not JB winds or something similar.

The Seymour 1979 "EVH Custom" was a Duncan Custom.

The guitars used by EVH that have actually had the pickup ID'd are the Franky and the 14k A2 pickup that it had and I think some Kramers that had JB's and there are also the Wolfgang pickups and the Ernie Ball pickups.

16K JB in EVH's backup Kramer http://www.vhlinks.com/vbforums/threads ... ckup/page2

Not exactly stock PAF's.

 

[paulyc]

The photos of the shark above point out another of Ed's lies...that he cut the body with a chainsaw...that's why it looks like it has teeth, BULLSHIT. He drilled a series of holes in the body and connected the holes with a saw. Chainsaw sounds so much more rock and roll though.

Remember when he said he couldn't buy gear to give him the tone he wanted, and he'd get pissed when people "did his trip" etc... ? Now he only sells gear, even an OD pedal which he said he hated the sound of back in the day. Guitars, amps, pedals, strings, picks...anything I'm leaving out ? Fucking shill...

 

[CP5150]

He also tried a Mighty Mite Super Distortion clone in his Ibanez Destroyer in 1978 for a while.

Still in it as of early 2015:

So how do you know it's not the Mighty Mite PAF lower ouptut model instead of the 'distortion' model?
They both look exactly the same..I personally prefer the PAF lower outuput model for VH tones, I've tried both

Could be.

Even the lower wind Mighty Mites put out a fair signal strength.

How does anyone know that EVH's Seymour rewinds were not JB winds or something similar.

The Seymour 1979 "EVH Custom" was a Duncan Custom.

The guitars used by EVH that have actually had the pickup ID'd are the Franky and the 14k A2 pickup that it had and I think some Kramers that had JB's and there are also the Wolfgang pickups.

16K JB in EVH's backup Kramer http://www.vhlinks.com/vbforums/threads ... ckup/page2

Not exactly stock PAF's.

Seymour has said a few times Ed used or prefered the JB wind. Not the pickup. The wind. So it can be inferred some of these rewound pickups Ed used had whatever stock magnet was there and they were rewound to JB spec. The '59 is one example. Ed said he was using a '59 in his Kramer. Yeah, a rewound to JB spec '59. Maybe renamed the Custom Custom? Maybe.

One thing is for sure. He doesn't use low output pickups. Never did. He says he did. But every pickup he's associated with is high output. EBMM(Tone Zone), Peavey Wolf, Frankenstein, and new Fender EVH Wolfgang. All high output.

 

[Rocksoff]

More Hot Custom Wound Pickups http://www.rockstarsguitars.com/van-hal ... ours-3276/

You’re looking at Eddie Van Halen’s #3 Kramer that was used on all tours and studio sessions during the 5150 and OU812 tours.

The pickups were hand wound and were all done by Larry DiMarzio. 5 of these “hot” pickups were only used in all of the original 5 strypers including the prototype. The pickup was slanted on the #3 to give more bottom attack. When the original “prototype” was made Zeke got the green light to make the #1 5150, #2 1984, and the #3 serial number F1021 which is this guitar.