How EVH gets his sound?

[rgalpin]

Imagine an amp with 4 transformers and a variac in it!

[VelvetGeorge]

Hey guys, I spoke to Trace. He was concerned that this thread might be missing some clarification on a few points. He asked me to pop in.

He is the only guy at his shop who installs Jose mods. And, they moved the shop, so it could take longer than usual.

Slaving has obviously been a part of EVH's rig for a long time. Nothing new there.

Trace has seen things and shares what he can. But, he is also under NDA with many artists and limited to what he can share. It's typical practice in the industry.

He didn't say what might be in the works, but if he's involved it will be totally pro.

george

[jnew]

1) Are there any clips where this exclusive "Jose Mod" can be heard?

2) It seems to me that the modifications that change the sound for early VH tone, are all things outside of the amp. Player, PU, Echo Plex stuff, EQ's, Variacs/Voltages, and so forth. IMO, all the very best examples posted are stock 12 series plexi circuits. That said, there are the varying values within, which will help with refining. Filtering, NFB, bias, etc. But still and all, stock, two stage, plexi arrangements. So this elusive and exclusive Jose Mod thing has a tough pair of shoes to fill. Ralle's stock spec's, Pete Thorn's Suhr SL 68, Strat 78, just to name a few esteemed examples.

[mightymike]

I once had a repair where the customer insisted I fix the gooped up so called "unique" $1000 mod. It took me a long time with chemicals, exacto knives, and heat to find nothing new. Just a regular Jose mod that half the people here already know. All over a nice early 70s PTP Marshall too.

Do that to a clone, not vintage gear.

[jnew]

I'll do one one better buddy. Don't do it at all.

[mightymike]

+1

[Voodoo Amps]

Who know's if Trace even said that

There are several inaccuracies in the post. The gentleman I spoke with is not an amp tech. The phone call was approximately 40 minutes or so in length & I do not believe the gentleman intended any harm, truly, I think he was genuinely excited to get some of the tones he has been looking for. On my end, it can be very challenging at times to try & explain technical things to someone who has no advanced knowledge or understanding of tube amp circuitry. Essentially it requires taking things that are very technical & trying to explain them in a way that is easier for someone to understand that does not posses technical knowledge.

neikeel, in the interests of being clear I have never suggested nor stated that everyone here is chasing their tails. Those who know me know I do not conduct myself in this manner. I was taught to treat people the way you would want to be treated, with courtesy & respect (the golden rule). I would kindly & respectfully ask that you omit me from posts implying as such as no good ever comes from this. Modifying amps is purely a labor of love for us & we are by no means getting rich doing this, truly & sincerely. I have always looked at this as a brotherhood as this is a small industry where most techs know one another & long lasting friendships are forged. IE: I know George, we hang out at trade shows when ever we can, we share stories & have a lot of respect for him.

Generally speaking; I have spent many years designing my own circuits & what we do requires that I am fluent in a great deal of different circuit designs. When someone asks us to perform a Mod that another tech designed I would respectfully refer them to that tech, IE: if someone wanted a Bray Mod we would refer them to David Bray. If someone wanted a Carol Ann circuit we refer them to Alan Phillips & so on. After several years of people asking us to perform the higher gain Jose Mod we finally agreed to do so otherwise we would have referred them to Jose however as he had passed some time ago that was not possible.

Regarding EVH; Eddie has had many different tones over the course of his career & I have never proclaimed to be the only person who can perform 'X' Mod to capture EVH's tone(s). This is one of the inaccuracies in the gentleman's post.

While I have & continue to work on amps owned by larger players as well as several amps used on well known records and / or tours I am also under NDA contracts much of the time as George has mentioned. As such I am not legally allowed to state specifics nor publicly divulge circuit knowledge, be it of specific amps, live rigs, etc. Much the same as any industry this is a business & I have to honor the agreements I have signed.


With Respect;
Trace Davis - President / Founder

[Voodoo Amps]

I once had a repair where the customer insisted I fix the gooped up so called "unique" $1000 mod. It took me a long time with chemicals, exacto knives, and heat to find nothing new. Just a regular Jose mod that half the people here already know. All over a nice early 70s PTP Marshall too.

Do that to a clone, not vintage gear.

It would seem as you have chose to post this in a thread that clearly pertains to myself & Voodoo Amps that you are also directly this recent post towards us as well. As with most forums there are always many people who are reading but are not posting. As such please allow me to factually address this;

1.) Yes, according to our records we epoxied approximately 12 amplifiers many years ago & yes I regret it (just being honest).

2.) We have rebuilt all but 2 of those amps, IE: installed a hand wired board free-of-charge & 1 of the remaining 2 amps is presently in route to our facility to be rebuilt (again, free-of-charge).

Why did we do this? I spent a great deal of time designing my own circuits & installing them into amps as Mods, though more accurately they were rebuilds. I would have preferred to offer my own amplifiers but at the time I did not have the financial means to do so (again just being honest). Several well known amp companies released models containing those circuits. As one can imagine I was frustrated by this & I was simply was trying to protect what I had designed. Customers were made aware & signed waivers before any work was performed but nonetheless I still regret it, which is why we rebuild them free-of-charge. Am I the only to do have done this? No not by any means & nor am I going to list or name the other techs who have or continue to do so as I feel it would be in poor taste.

3.) Regarding your statement; What few amps did epoxy was done circa 12 years ago or longer. We did not offer the HG-Jose Mod until several years after that therefore (factually) the amp you are referencing could not have been Modified by us.


With respect;
Trace Davis

[chrisom]

Trace, thanks for the information. Sorry if anybody here misinterpreted what was really the case. Welcome to the forum though, and since you're a registered member now, I hope you'll visit in the future and add to the knowledge base- co

[mr.twistyneck]

Well, I think that's a rather great response from Trace Davis, and I 2nd that we welcome him with open arms.

-mr.twistyneck
(who has done more horrible shit to Marshalls over the years than I'd like to admit)

[jape88]

Welcome to the forum though, and since you're a registered member now, I hope you'll visit in the future and add to the knowledge base- co

I think he's been since 2007

There's so much info posted on forums by people that post there interpretation of what they think they've heard or read, pretty much what's happened here... the perils of the interenet. Nice to read the real story.

[Voodoo Amps]

Trace, thanks for the information. Sorry if anybody here misinterpreted what was really the case.

No need to apologize chrisom, it was not your fault but I appreciate you trying to do the right thing, it speaks volumes (truly).

Welcome to the forum though, and since you're a registered member now, I hope you'll visit in the future and add to the knowledge base- co

Many thanks chrisom. I used to post a lot in technical based forums but these days all forums have several techs who are more than qualified to answer any technical based question that may arise. Once you get beyond the math & science of things it then comes down to one's opinion on a given topic. This is where most threads can get rather passionate or heated. Tone is a matter of taste and as with all matters of taste there can be no right or wrong. In the end it all comes down to what works best for you & how you arrived there matters not so long as you are happy with your tone.

Strictly from my own personal point of view; The more one works on amps (trying to find what works for them) the more experience one acquires. Certain things may work better for you than others but the more you get into design the more you find that everything has its place. It just comes down to how you juggle all the parts & components. Some times you hit on some thing magical & some times maybe not so much (lol) we've all been down that road & in my humble opinion that's the fun of it. The beauty of this is much the same as cooking. IE: If you give 10 chefs the same ingredients & ask them to make a red sauce you tend to have 10 very different variations on the theme.

As with most I spent years acquiring the necessary math & science that one needs to be a design tech but these days I am more into the art form, which for me is taking a verbal description of what one wants & converting that into circuitry. I always strive to make an amp sound as well as feel inspiring to play on & I am constantly looking for new ways to improve my craft. I love experimenting with tone, trying new parts, different components, wire, materials & over all just trying to find cool new things to expand the knowledge pool.

There is more than enough room in this world for all kinds of tones & for those who tweak on or build their own amps I would encourage you to continuously explore as many possibilities as you can no matter how small or minor they appear to be. In my very humble opinion being a tube amp tech has no final destination. I've grew up around this & have been doing this for most of my life & I can honestly say it's a never ending journey & that's what drives me as well as what feeds my passion for this. Much like music there are so many variables to tone that is truly is limitless.

My apologies for taking up so much time. My minds works much faster than my fingers can type so I hope some of this makes sense. My lunch is over & I have to get back to putting the new shop together. Have a great Wednesday.

Respectfully;
Trace Davis

[jnew]

Hello and welcome Trace. I respect that you came aboard with your own words, to dilute any misreprentations.
It is an art that is ultimately purely subjective. My best amp might be the cheapest mess you could build/find. But it's my inspiration to stay in the game.

[mightymike]

I once had a repair where the customer insisted I fix the gooped up so called "unique" $1000 mod. It took me a long time with chemicals, exacto knives, and heat to find nothing new. Just a regular Jose mod that half the people here already know. All over a nice early 70s PTP Marshall too.

Do that to a clone, not vintage gear.

It would seem as you have chose to post this in a thread that clearly pertains to myself & Voodoo Amps that you are also directly this recent post towards us as well. As with most forums there are always many people who are reading but are not posting. As such please allow me to factually address this;

1.) Yes, according to our records we epoxied approximately 12 amplifiers many years ago & yes I regret it (just being honest).

2.) We have rebuilt all but 2 of those amps, IE: installed a hand wired board free-of-charge & 1 of the remaining 2 amps is presently in route to our facility to be rebuilt (again, free-of-charge).

Why did we do this? I spent a great deal of time designing my own circuits & installing them into amps as Mods, though more accurately they were rebuilds. I would have preferred to offer my own amplifiers but at the time I did not have the financial means to do so (again just being honest). Several well known amp companies released models containing those circuits. As one can imagine I was frustrated by this & I was simply was trying to protect what I had designed. Customers were made aware & signed waivers before any work was performed but nonetheless I still regret it, which is why we rebuild them free-of-charge. Am I the only to do have done this? No not by any means & nor am I going to list or name the other techs who have or continue to do so as I feel it would be in poor taste.

3.) Regarding your statement; What few amps did epoxy was done circa 12 years ago or longer. We did not offer the HG-Jose Mod until several years after that therefore (factually) the amp you are referencing could not have been Modified by us.


With respect;
Trace Davis

No worries. Welcome bacl. Didn't mean to imply who gooped the 70s PTP, or make you feel accused. We've all done stuff years ago we regret with amps. I couldn't remember if it was a Vodoo, Cameron, or other on that 70s PTP so I didn't say who exactly gooped this one, but I have seen other Vintage gear with your sticker on the back and gooped up board.
Glad you stopped that practice.

Like I said, I wasn't convinced you would say you're the only one who did Jose HG. That mod is very public. Has been for years.

You're right about others gooping. And some of them ( who I won't name) make the BS "only I know how" claim attributed to you..

I will never degoop again. What a PITA.

[Voodoo Amps]

Well, I think that's a rather great response from Trace Davis, and I 2nd that we welcome him with open arms.

-mr.twistyneck
(who has done more horrible shit to Marshalls over the years than I'd like to admit)

Thank you for that, I needed a good laugh (lol) Our main system had a corrput file & an IT-Tech just it all worked out yesterday, thank goodness.

I do want to thank you for sentiments, it was very kind of you. I'm sure you can make a Marshall sound just fine mr.twistyneck


All the very best to you;
Trace Davis