Slaving a Plexi Project

[redozzman]

I read all this talk about echoplexes boosting the signal, I have 2 and have owned a third, and I have run them with loopers and they dont boost the signal if anything they roll off some high end which sweetens the tone a bit. I dont think they boost the signal, they color the tone coming in for sure! but I have never noticed a boost.

Try running an ep3 through a fender amp they sound like crap, for some reason marshall's and ep3's were made for each other.

[pfrischmann]

Echoplexes do add a very slight boost but I don't think that's why they are important to this sound. They really fatten up the tone, especially a thin PAF.
They round things out very nicely and add some hair to the tone.

A buddy of mine and I started playing around with the different VH components to see which one's added the most magic. To us, the whole was greater than the sum of it's parts.

The PAF is important because of the attack it has. Heavier pickups don't have that metallic clang or immediate attack.
The Echoplex just adds a certain warmth and lofi charm. It also fattens up the tone.
The EQ or volume booster tends to push the amp of the VH-1 sound.

YMMV and probably will...

[Good Guest]

The FET inside the echoplex's can vary greatly in gain ...some will have more gain and boost than others ...some may even lessen the gain.

It's probably just bad luck that a guitarist would have 3 and not one would have any usable gain to chuck yer front end into vh territory. I would guess and say probably ebay beauties..where do you chuck yer low gain ones ? Ebay of course. After decades and decades the only good ones left would be in the hands of the lucky and even then the shelf life will be wearing on the parts....that's why everyone is scooping up ep3 pre's. The tone..the boost..the color... and the elusive phase shift qualities... Muhawwwwh

[5150loveeddie]

Ah ok so I was not so much wrong on saying it could add up some type of gain in the chain , because on the VH1 and a stock plexi even with Jose MV but with the amp on 10 and so it is kinda out the circuit I don't think a stock plexi will do it without a little more help, that extra gain that maybe Ed had in his Echoplexes did made it sound like it does, with all the rest of course, tinny bits and peaces here and there...

I was almost certain EP3's had a tube in them!!!?

[bmf5150]

I read all this talk about echoplexes boosting the signal, I have 2 and have owned a third, and I have run them with loopers and they dont boost the signal if anything they roll off some high end which sweetens the tone a bit. I dont think they boost the signal, they color the tone coming in for sure! but I have never noticed a boost.

Try running an ep3 through a fender amp they sound like crap, for some reason marshall's and ep3's were made for each other.

mine did the same thing but i did get a slight gain boost with it,and i do me slight.lol.

[Good Guest]

Ah ok so I was not so much wrong on saying it could add up some type of gain in the chain , because on the VH1 and a stock plexi even with Jose MV but with the amp on 10 and so it is kinda out the circuit I don't think a stock plexi will do it without a little more help, that extra gain that maybe Ed had in his Echoplexes did made it sound like it does, with all the rest of course, tinny bits and peaces here and there...

I was almost certain EP3's had a tube in them!!!?

There are some echoplexi that are all tube...but the one Eddie used isn't ...and your not off the mark by any means. The FET in the echoplex can provide gain sure...but the other effects can really provide gain where it counts. Notably the phase 90 which can provide unity or above but surely adds in the high frequencies no matter how you set it. Then there is the mxr 6 band...which by itself can produce tons of gain...much less with 2-ep3's and a phase 90. You are 100% right ..a stock plexi with all the extra effects is enough.

You can cheat and use no effects and add another gain stage like a 2203 or a randy rhoads cascade , one wire mod or whatever. However when you start adding the effects Eddie used to those high gain setups you get noise..you get a washed out distant tone..you lose the magic, the note separation . All you get is the gain all those effects provided and that's all. Which isn't really all that bad. Just don't add an effect.

[redozzman]

The FET inside the echoplex's can vary greatly in gain ...some will have more gain and boost than others ...some may even lessen the gain.

It's probably just bad luck that a guitarist would have 3 and not one would have any usable gain to chuck yer front end into vh territory. I would guess and say probably ebay beauties..where do you chuck yer low gain ones ? Ebay of course. After decades and decades the only good ones left would be in the hands of the lucky and even then the shelf life will be wearing on the parts....that's why everyone is scooping up ep3 pre's. The tone..the boost..the color... and the elusive phase shift qualities... Muhawwwwh

Well call me sleprock I have never had one that could drive the front end of my amp into VH territory maybe thats why ed had 2 in series. becuase one was not enough. For the record the two that I have sound fine and ad some warmth to the sound. I doubt that ep3 pre is boosting your amp into EVH territory either! but hey I would not mind having one. but with my luck the fets in the ep3 pre would be lemons as well

[Good Guest]

There is an ep3 type out there..serial # 9068-9450 that does have more gain than the others...it has a bypass cap on the drain and that can dramatically increase the gain compared to the two other versions.

The experts claim Eddie doesn't use that one.... But what about the other one? So there are 382 echoplexs out there that do have higher gain than the others right out of the box.

[vkaxeman]

I don't usually post my Marshall 1959HW amp mp3's in the Eddie Van Halen section but I did make me one of those Rockstah Line Out Boxes per Mark's diagram/spec and slaved my Marshall 1959HW that Rockstah helped me tweak to be dutch with a Marshall SLP Reissue. Sounds pretty FN good slaved and definetly leans toward the early EVH sound. At least to me anyway. So I thought I would share them.

MP3's of my 1959HW Slaved via Line Out Box (Rockstah Spec) to SLP Reissue:

With GE10EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463221" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463226" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463233" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With MXR 6 Band Blue EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463236" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With GE10EQ again - changed settings:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463242" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Same as GE10 with changed settings and cranked the line out up some:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463248" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[spaceace76]

I don't usually post my Marshall 1959HW amp mp3's in the Eddie Van Halen section but I did make me one of those Rockstah Line Out Boxes per Mark's diagram/spec and slaved my Marshall 1959HW that Rockstah helped me tweak to be dutch with a Marshall SLP Reissue. Sounds pretty FN good slaved and definetly leans toward the early EVH sound. At least to me anyway. So I thought I would share them.

MP3's of my 1959HW Slaved via Line Out Box (Rockstah Spec) to SLP Reissue:

With GE10EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463221" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463226" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463233" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With MXR 6 Band Blue EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463236" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With GE10EQ again - changed settings:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463242" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Same as GE10 with changed settings and cranked the line out up some:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463248" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

WOW!!! awesome clips man!!! what are the guitar specs? with some reverb and JBL's you'd be spot on for the studio tone

[gluke]

[rgalpin]

I don't usually post my Marshall 1959HW amp mp3's in the Eddie Van Halen section but I did make me one of those Rockstah Line Out Boxes per Mark's diagram/spec and slaved my Marshall 1959HW that Rockstah helped me tweak to be dutch with a Marshall SLP Reissue. Sounds pretty FN good slaved and definetly leans toward the early EVH sound. At least to me anyway. So I thought I would share them.

wow! those sound so solid man - with that blooming spank. awesome.

can you please share some of the details of the spec on the amps?

...my Marshall 1959HW that Rockstah helped me tweak to be dutch ...

can you give the run down on this?
v1b cathode?
v1b coupler?
mixer?
v2a cathode?
tone stack?
fizz cap?
output couplers?

thanks man! more questions to come... but this would be a great starting point. much appreciated.

[raunch]

can you please share some of the details of the spec on the amps?

can you give the run down on this?
v1b cathode?
v1b coupler?
mixer?
v2a cathode?
tone stack?
fizz cap?
output couplers?
thanks man! more questions to come... but this would be a great starting point. much appreciated.

There a whole thread on vkaxeman's rockstah mod:

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

I reckon there's so much info there in that thread, that it's hard to digest for the rest of us. Would be great if you could summarize the parts used and list them as requested by rgalpin. That would rock. :

It would also help some of us with the learning curve and cut to the chase a little (rockstah would probably disagree ).

Anyways, FN great sound you have there vkaxeman and major thanks to rockstah for being a great mentor.

Hey rgalpin, your sound BLOWS me away.

cheers,
Alex

[vkaxeman]

(spaceace76)

WOW!!! awesome clips man!!! what are the guitar specs? with some reverb and JBL's you'd be spot on for the studio tone

Thanks!
The guitar is a stock ( 1992 or 1993 Year ? ) Fender Floyd Rose Classic Strat. Has the stock Dimarzio Bridge Pickup ( not sure what model the pickup is ), Stock Floyd Rose Original Bridge, Maple Neck with Maple fingerboard and has Floyd Rose Classic Strat Decal on the headstock.

[IloveMyMarshall]

I don't usually post my Marshall 1959HW amp mp3's in the Eddie Van Halen section but I did make me one of those Rockstah Line Out Boxes per Mark's diagram/spec and slaved my Marshall 1959HW that Rockstah helped me tweak to be dutch with a Marshall SLP Reissue. Sounds pretty FN good slaved and definetly leans toward the early EVH sound. At least to me anyway. So I thought I would share them.

MP3's of my 1959HW Slaved via Line Out Box (Rockstah Spec) to SLP Reissue:

With GE10EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463221" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463226" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463233" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With MXR 6 Band Blue EQ:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463236" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With GE10EQ again - changed settings:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463242" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Same as GE10 with changed settings and cranked the line out up some:
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7463248" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mark did one hell of a job on your amp!! Congrads!! Your playing is outstanding as well!
Well I guess I need to read the actually post lol Im sorry heck you did the work! Im sorry mark advised and he knows his stuff anyways great job, its got to be very rewarding to do the work then record and hear what you have accomplished!!! Im still reading the original post lol. Once again awesome man!!
You and Rob are getting it done!