Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

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guitar007
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by guitar007 » Mon Nov 02, 2015 2:06 pm

To muddy the waters even further there are countless shows where Eddie is surely using his variac but few, and only those late shows, where he's even sounding close to the first album. The variac is a piece in the puzzle...but a significant one.
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by jnew » Mon Nov 02, 2015 2:18 pm

rgorke wrote:My thinking is that we have discovered many different pathways to getting great tone. Many of those tones are as good as or are even better than what Ed had back in the '70s. Now, does that mean that is how he did it? I don't think so.

James is getting great tone using two variacs. I believe Ed just used one variac and has the benefit of having his hands.
Thanks Roger. Just made another quick clip BTW. Going very low on the both variac's this time.

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by markstullkc » Thu Jan 14, 2016 11:32 am

I remember Ed saying in early interviews that he bought the house PA amp from someplace in Pasadena.

A MARSHALL PA

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by jnew » Thu Jan 14, 2016 12:45 pm

I believe it was the house amp at the Rose Palace but not a PA head.
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by EJSLPlexi » Mon Jan 18, 2016 11:02 am

markstullkc wrote:I remember Ed saying in early interviews that he bought the house PA amp from someplace in Pasadena.

A MARSHALL PA
No eddie said his No.1 marshall plexi(12301) was the house amp at the rose palace in pasadena :wink:
He was talking to Jas O in GP mag
"GP: What kind of amps are you now using?

EVH: Well, in the studio I use my old Marshall, my precious baby. it gets a slightly different sound. Live I use new Marshalls. I made the mistake of taking my main one out on the road last year and I lost it on the way back from Japan. It was flying around India somewhere and six months later, thank God, I got it back. This is the one I bought when I was a kid. I didn’t even know what I had until now. It’s very old; it has a Plexiglas front. It used to be the house amp at the Pasadena Rose Palace; whoever played there has played through it. It’s a real good amp — unbelievable balls!
"

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by jnew » Mon Jan 18, 2016 11:07 am

It is that very quote above, that leads me to think that the mysterious pot (later replaced by a screw) was a master at some point. That would make a NMV, 4 hole input plexi, a functional house amp. :hide:
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by chrisom » Mon Jan 18, 2016 12:57 pm

It is that very quote above, that leads me to think that the mysterious pot (later replaced by a screw) was a master at some point. That would make a NMV, 4 hole input plexi, a functional house amp...
That makes sense to me. How many of us have installed a master volume only to later remove it in the interest of a simpler more organic circuit? :thumbsup: :vh:

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by jnew » Mon Jan 18, 2016 1:12 pm

DOH! Guilty. :stars: :stars: :stars: :lol:
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by JimiJames » Wed Jan 20, 2016 7:48 am

markstullkc wrote:I remember Ed saying in early interviews that he bought the house PA amp from someplace in Pasadena.

A MARSHALL PA
jnew wrote:I believe it was the house amp at the Rose Palace but not a PA head.
EJSLPlexi wrote:
markstullkc wrote:I remember Ed saying in early interviews that he bought the house PA amp from someplace in Pasadena.

A MARSHALL PA
No eddie said his No.1 marshall plexi(12301) was the house amp at the rose palace in pasadena :wink:
He was talking to Jas O in GP mag
"GP: What kind of amps are you now using?

EVH: Well, in the studio I use my old Marshall, my precious baby. it gets a slightly different sound. Live I use new Marshalls. I made the mistake of taking my main one out on the road last year and I lost it on the way back from Japan. It was flying around India somewhere and six months later, thank God, I got it back. This is the one I bought when I was a kid. I didn’t even know what I had until now. It’s very old; it has a Plexiglas front. It used to be the house amp at the Pasadena Rose Palace; whoever played there has played through it. It’s a real good amp — unbelievable balls!
"

Eddie's guitar tech, Matt Bruck :
"...I'm not sure exactly what year it is. I think it's either a '66 or a '67. Astonishingly, there is really nothing out of the ordinary about it. And contrary to popular belief, it doesn't feature any extra tubes or bizarre modifications--it's pretty much bone stock. Edward has replaced it's output transformers several times , but that's due to general wear and tear. He's had it since he was 14-years-old!
It's convenient--(with back removed) --and it also allows the amp to breathe better. It's lost a little sustain. We were in the studio recently and Ed played a note and held it until it died out. He said that the amp used to be able to sustain the same note for much longer periods of time. I guess it's just wearing down. You know how amps change from day to day? Well, this one is incredibly moody. I've heard it sound amazing, and I've heard id sound less than amazing. But I have yo say, though Ed feels the amp's sound has diminished, it's still one of the greatest sounding Marshalls I've ever heard".

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by JimiJames » Wed Jan 20, 2016 7:55 am

JimiJames wrote:"...What bugs me is the ghost knob on the left side of the back of his Marshall... Someone did that mod :?:
jnew wrote:It is that very quote above, that leads me to think that the mysterious pot (later replaced by a screw) was a master at some point. That would make a NMV, 4 hole input plexi, a functional house amp. :hide:
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by dirtycooter » Sun Jan 24, 2016 8:54 am

God forbid if anyone ever knew Ed had a bad tone day with THE MARSHALL!
If everyone here thinks he could whip this sound out with complete and utter confidence? Your joking yourself.
Maybe these crazy morphs and fluctuations in "brown ness" is what drove him to drink.
Maybe it was such a tedious "stars must align window" even he grew tired of the chase amd work to get it. I am sure Ed stressed and stressed about being able to maintain his tone, and maybe its what led to some of his musical stress over the years. Listen to all those different brown tones over the years.
Think that wasn't not just choice but gear bein weird or wonky??
I think seriously his whole direction now is to make gettin a sound he likes.... Simple. And repeatable.
I do not think every tone he has had has been the end all. Most YES. But even he had struggles.
Listen to Diver Down. Sustain and thickness issues-anemic really compared to FW.
But still agreat tone in the end.
The main tones that fly a huge dick difference for me are VH1, VH2, WACF era was different, DD, then FW was balls out one of my faves, and 84 was great but stupid BRIGHT! All of these are totally and completely different from each other. So I love the thread-which is the REFERENCE TONE FOR VH??

That is a big fat ass question. :popcorn:
Recognize the shades and differences on all of these records. Its really blatent obvious to me now.
Ed had struggles maintaining a tone and bein happy. Same as us jackasses :wink:

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by chrisom » Sun Jan 24, 2016 11:19 am

Tubes differ over time, and so do replacement tubes, then there is random weekly or daily fluctuations in the electrical utility supply lines, plus Don Landee's presence or absence, how much they partied the day before, and variations in mixer/outboard effects settings based on the console engineer's ears at any particular moment. It would actually seem impossible to get 'the same' sound from album to album unless somebody went 'way out of their way' to make sure they measured and recorded every setting and voltage. And I just don't get the feeling that that's what they were shooting for. Just a good sound for 'now' that day... :vh:

Ed had some great live tones using his Jose-modded touring Marshall Super Leads as well. Said they knew how to make newer Super Leads sound like the older ones (but more road-reliable than the old ones). Adjust the filtering, negative feedback and the secret Jose 'Fat cap' and variac. We all know that too now. I'm sure on Letterman Ed didn't bring his holy grail plexi, but he had his sound going on in spades because he knew what to do to get it. So he could still get it today any time with another amp "If he wanted to". That's my opinion anyway... :what: :peace: :rockon:

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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by JimiJames » Sun Jan 24, 2016 12:08 pm

chrisom wrote:"...I'm sure on Letterman Ed didn't bring his holy grail plexi, but he had his sound going on in spades because he knew what to do to get it. So he could still get it today any time with another amp "If he wanted to". That's my opinion anyway... :what: :peace: :rockon:
In '85 ? He sure did have 12301. You can see it? What you can't see are any signs of variac's :shrug:
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by guitar007 » Sun Jan 24, 2016 2:14 pm

According to Van Halen Rising....
1969 - Ed aquires a 1959 Marshall head and 2 matching 4X12s (he's 14!)
1975 - Ed aquires a Variac to reduce volume at club gigs

I can't seem to wrap my head around how an amp made in England in '68 has time to ship to the US, become a house amp at the Rose Palace, get a mod done to it, then sold to a local music store that Ed happens to work at. If the dates are accurate, the amp was essentially new when Ed acquired it. It seems more likely, to me, that this mod was an attempt by Ed to reduce volume (master volume) prior to discovering the Variac. It also seems unusual that no one at Camp EVH has ever, to my knowledge, spoke on record about that mod, when it was done, and who did it, and when it was "returned to stock"...but we have a and idea who may have performed the mod. Why the total silence on this significant aspect of the amp? 'Seems suspicious to me. 'Thoughts?
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Re: Picture of Eddie's Recording Rig for Early Albums

Post by Star*Guitar » Sun Jan 24, 2016 3:36 pm

Didn't Ed say he had two Marshalls? One he bought at a music store he worked at and the other from the Rose Palace? The one from the music store was set to 220.
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