How did Ed connect his Echoplex in front of his Marshall?

[SLP1959]

When I connect my Maxon analog delay in front of the upper left input it sounds like shit when cranking and boosting my 4-holer. So I use a trick I read on the boards here and split the signal into a normal signal that goes into the upper left and a delayed signal that goes into the upper right input. Left channel is crancked but I keep the right channel volume on 3 or so, that way it sounds oke. Works very well.

But I read Ed plugged into the upper left, so how could he still get a clear sound then?

(I never tried an EP3 though, is it that different than a regular analog delay? Or did he connect the EP3 after a loadbox? Or did he use the EP3 more for toneshaping than the actual echo effect? )

Thanx in advance!

[Ruben]

I quess he used the Ep3 as tone shaper. Most of the delays were added at the mixing desk for recording. For live situations I quess he had to turn the mix level down to the point where it didn't overwhelm his direct sound

[blfrd]

In my experience, when you have your signal path like so:

Guitar > EP-3 > upper left input of Amp

If you have the amp dimed and the Echo ON, it starts to get real noisy if the Echo volume is past 3. With the Echo OFF it's a little less noisy but not much.

I've tried this trick:

Lower left input > input of EP3 > output of EP3 > Input upper right amp

And you can essentially dime the Echo volume knob and use the amp's ch. 2 volume as a mix knob. This works very nicely, but could be debated that you lose something.

With the amp dimed and EP3 in front, the EP3 is real sensitive. If you want a subtle echo then you don't really need the Echo volume past 3.

I like it in front just fine though. I still need to do a good A/B with my EP-PRE pedal.

[908ssp]

According to a number of on line sources the Echo wasn't run into the front but in the line out from the load box into the H&H power amps.

[redozzman]

According to a number of on line sources the Echo wasn't run into the front but in the line out from the load box into the H&H power amps.

Yes thats true but I thought that Ed's use of the H&H Power amps started around 82 or 83 I was referring to the early days.

[908ssp]

Summary of Christopher's description of the classic EVH processing chain
Guitar using bridge humbucker
MXR 6-band EQ (frown curve), and MXR Phase 90
100 watt Marshall plexi with Sylvania 6CA7's; powered via Variac to lower (brown-out) the mains voltage from 120 down to 90 VAC.
The head's speaker out impedance control is set at 8 ohms.
Dummy load resistor, adjusted to about 20 ohms
The load resistor is tapped at center
Box with a potentiometer in it and output jack (the output jack is a line-level low-impedance source)
The pot. is adjusted for whatever drive level.
desktop EQ
MXR flanger
Echoplex-EP3
100-200 watt power amp
final power amp by H&H
guitar spks: paralleled 4 cabinets down to 4 ohms to connect it to the final power amp.
EQ and compression at the mixer
Clarifying further:

bridge humbucker
frown EQ
tube amp powered via variac
dummy load
time fx (phaser, flanger, echo) and EQ
final solid-state* power amp
guitar speakers
EQ and compression at the mixer


Taken from. http://www.amptone.com/eddievanhalenrig.htm

[SLP1959]

Summary of Christopher's description of the classic EVH processing chain
Guitar using bridge humbucker
MXR 6-band EQ (frown curve), and MXR Phase 90
100 watt Marshall plexi with Sylvania 6CA7's; powered via Variac to lower (brown-out) the mains voltage from 120 down to 90 VAC.
The head's speaker out impedance control is set at 8 ohms.
Dummy load resistor, adjusted to about 20 ohms
The load resistor is tapped at center
Box with a potentiometer in it and output jack (the output jack is a line-level low-impedance source)
The pot. is adjusted for whatever drive level.
desktop EQ
MXR flanger
Echoplex-EP3
100-200 watt power amp
final power amp by H&H
guitar spks: paralleled 4 cabinets down to 4 ohms to connect it to the final power amp.
EQ and compression at the mixer
Clarifying further:

bridge humbucker
frown EQ
tube amp powered via variac
dummy load
time fx (phaser, flanger, echo) and EQ
final solid-state* power amp
guitar speakers
EQ and compression at the mixer


Taken from. http://www.amptone.com/eddievanhalenrig.htm

That makes more sense!

Thnx everybody!

[blfrd]

Summary of Christopher's description of the classic EVH processing chain
Guitar using bridge humbucker
MXR 6-band EQ (frown curve), and MXR Phase 90
100 watt Marshall plexi with Sylvania 6CA7's; powered via Variac to lower (brown-out) the mains voltage from 120 down to 90 VAC.
The head's speaker out impedance control is set at 8 ohms.
Dummy load resistor, adjusted to about 20 ohms
The load resistor is tapped at center
Box with a potentiometer in it and output jack (the output jack is a line-level low-impedance source)
The pot. is adjusted for whatever drive level.
desktop EQ
MXR flanger
Echoplex-EP3
100-200 watt power amp
final power amp by H&H
guitar spks: paralleled 4 cabinets down to 4 ohms to connect it to the final power amp.
EQ and compression at the mixer
Clarifying further:

bridge humbucker
frown EQ
tube amp powered via variac
dummy load
time fx (phaser, flanger, echo) and EQ
final solid-state* power amp
guitar speakers
EQ and compression at the mixer


Taken from. http://www.amptone.com/eddievanhalenrig.htm

That makes more sense!

Thnx everybody!

Did they even make H&H amps in the mid 70's?

IMHO...
This setup doesn't make sense to me for EVH tone from '76 - '82. I've tried an orginal MXR Flanger and an orginal EP3 in front of a dimed Variplex and it sounds fantastic.

The only reason for him to put a power amp in the picture, would be to drive additonal speaker cabs. At least, that's the reason that most use them. Which makes sense, if you're playing arenas.

Where it doesn't make sense, is playing in small clubs. The dimed Marshall by itself should be plenty. Unless you're going to say he used it for tone shaping, which is a long way to go for tone shaping.....

Also disagree with the Flanger after the dummy load. I've tried this and it's a little bit too overpowering....

[Seabean]

By putting the effects after the soak, and then re-amping, he's essentially using the plexi head as an expensive OD box

One wonders what he might have done had the Hughes & Kettner Red Box or Radial JDX been available then (they plug between the head and cab, creating a secondary line-level signal using the speakers for loading)

[IloveMyMarshall]

By putting the effects after the soak, and then re-amping, he's essentially using the plexi head as an expensive OD box

One wonders what he might have done had the Hughes & Kettner Red Box or Radial JDX been available then (they plug between the head and cab, creating a secondary line-level signal using the speakers for loading)

Or how about the palmer what year did this actually hit the markets???? Or maybe and Im going to try this for the kick ass palmer filters the pdi-09 read this.

As we previously stated, the PDI-09 is more than just an alternative to a microphone. Suggestions such as
hooking up your distortion pedal or pedal board direct using the PDI-09 can lead to exciting new directions.
1978Additional new possibilities present themselves in using a lower wattage amplifier cranked to the max for
distortion and then plugging it in to a larger amplifier using the PDI-09. You have just turned tonally cool,
smaller amplifier in to a larger stage compatible amplifier. To accomplish this setup you must have a specially
wired cable and connect your amplifier as follows. First connect the smaller amplifiers speaker output to the

[ROCK€]

Guitar Player, March 1995:

Dweezil Zappa: "I've tried stepping on flangers to recreate the sound of "Unchained" and it never has the right vibe. It always clicks on in the middle of the sweep. That never happens to you."

Ed: "Yeah, I always luck out with that shit. Believe it or not, I always had it on one setting--my Echoplex too. Everything was just set the same all the time no matter what beat I was playing. But it seemed to work."

Dweezil Zappa: "I have bootlegs where you have the sounds that you have on the first record and it cuts through even on somebody's tape machine hidden in their coat. Most people do not have a sound that would do that."

Ed: "It was that first homemade guitar with a cable going through an MXR flanger, then a Phase 90, and then an Echoplex, and straight into the Marshall head. I mounted the Phase 90 and the flanger on a piece of plywood. I used that sucker for the first four world tours--the same piece of wood. It worked."

[leadguy]

http://www.suhrguitars.com/video.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://forum.metroamp.com/viewtopic.php?p=195959" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

These clips are of Al Estrada performing with the Van Halen tribute band, Eruption. Al is playing his Suhr Custom Classic with the old EVH paint job. The guitar is made of heavyweight Ash (his preference) and one-piece Maple neck. It is outfitted with the Floyd Rose Original locking trem system with the D-Tuna and the Suhr SSV pickup in the bridge position.

The amp is the OD-100 Classic on CH2 with the gain set on 8, treble on 8, mids on 6, the bass set on 2, and the level a little over 3. The effects were all in front of the amp and consisted of the MXR Micro Amp, MXR Phase 90, MXR Flanger and the Fulltone Tube Tape Echo. The Micro Amp is set all the way down and is used more as a buffer to prevent signal loss through the signal chain going to the amp.

[rgorke]

I am convinced the he ran his Echoplex in front of his Marshall early on NOT after a load going to a slave amp.

1) Based on this picture and the settings of the echo volume, the volume is only on 2, 3 at the most. This is where I have mine set and there is not much noise at all at that level, even at a fully cranked level.

http://epi3.hp.infoseek.co.jp/EP3withAmp.JPG" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

2) I believe that he used the Echoplex first as a tone shaper and secondly as a delay. Seeing his pedal board, he did have the echo switcher so he could keep the signal running through the Echoplex but not have an echo.

and, 3) if you believe number 2, does putting a 'tone shaper' in a slaved situation, does that makes sense? Would you not want all your tone shaping done prior to your load and with your first amp?

So, my direct answer to the question is, Ed connected his Echoplex to the front of his Marshall, probably the last effect before the amp. What came before or after, Phase 90, Flanger, MXR EQ, etc, is still up for debate.

[leadguy]

The Echoplex preamp is a tone enhancer that seems to result in a more 3Dish sort of tone even though it's only a jfet preamp

http://www.clinchfx.com/sound-clips" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Ed used the Echoplex(s) in front of the amp IMO.

btw the Baby Animals were/are a hard rocking band from Oz with a very good female singer.

http://epi3.hp.infoseek.co.jp/EP3withAmp.JPG" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

From Guitar World 2007

"The Echoplex in his rig was set with the delay slider positioned around 10, the echo sustain control turned all the way down, for a single repeat, the echo volume control only slightly up and the effect switch set to Echo position (rather than to Sound on Sound). This generated a long delay (longer than a slapback, between 100ms to 150ms) that basically thickened up his guitar tone."

[908ssp]

I am convinced the he ran his Echoplex in front of his Marshall early on NOT after a load going to a slave amp.

1) Based on this picture and the settings of the echo volume, the volume is only on 2, 3 at the most. This is where I have mine set and there is not much noise at all at that level, even at a fully cranked level.

http://epi3.hp.infoseek.co.jp/EP3withAmp.JPG" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

2) I believe that he used the Echoplex first as a tone shaper and secondly as a delay. Seeing his pedal board, he did have the echo switcher so he could keep the signal running through the Echoplex but not have an echo.

and, 3) if you believe number 2, does putting a 'tone shaper' in a slaved situation, does that makes sense? Would you not want all your tone shaping done prior to your load and with your first amp?

So, my direct answer to the question is, Ed connected his Echoplex to the front of his Marshall, probably the last effect before the amp. What came before or after, Phase 90, Flanger, MXR EQ, etc, is still up for debate.

I think that picture most likely indicates he used one echo and one GE-10 before the the first amp and one echo and GE-10 after the first amp into a slave amp. Probably no echo applied to the first one only the second one.