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Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I realize this
stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice as to
amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb unit
through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of the
things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone is way
to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do so it
limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a song.
I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain and it
still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change out the
12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference. And one
final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps besides the
coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some pictures of
trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead of time
for all of your help!
How is the pickup height? Even if the bridge pickup is too high, or
the neck pickup is too low, I know that the Strat's bridge pickup
really does cut through. I have limited access to Stratocasters and
the one that I do, I don't really like, so maybe Ivan will speak up,
he is after all "the Stratocossack." That being said, I know to
some degree when I use the bridge pickup on my Jaguar by itself, if
I'm coming from having both pickups turned on or the neck pickup
I'll have to adjust my "Treble" on my Bandmaster. But, the Jaguar
has the choke switch, thank God for that!
My settings on my Bandmaster are similar to the settings I used on
my Super Reverb, which is probablly closer to your Hot Rod Deville.
Volume never over 7, Bass always at 3, and Treble in the 3-6 range.
With the Bandmaster I have no Mid knob, so I can't recall what I had
that set on the Super.
I think a lot of Trad bands didn't use Twins as much as they'd use
Showmans, Bandmasters, and Bassmans. I always associate piggy back
Fender amps with the trad. surf look.
Bill
www.reluctantaquanauts.com
--- In , "atbrcr" <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
wrote:
> Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I realize
this
> stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice as
to
> amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb
unit
> through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of
the
> things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone is
way
> to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do
so it
> limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
song.
> I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain and
it
> still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change out
the
> 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference. And
one
> final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps besides
the
> coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some pictures
of
> trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead of
time
> for all of your help!
--- In , "atbrcr" <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
wrote:
> Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I realize
this
> stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice as
to
> amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb
unit
> through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of
the
> things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone is
way
> to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do so
it
> limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
song.
> I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain and
it
> still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change out
the
> 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference. And
one
> final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps besides
the
> coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some pictures
of
> trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead of
time
> for all of your help!
Hi.
As alrady said you should check the pickup height. I received good
results from varying between 2-3 mm string space on the bridge to 3-5
mm on the neck (with the .13 gauge strings that is). Furthermore it
might be useful to solder one of the tone pots to the Bridge PU in
order to have a better controlable treble output.
Hope I could help you,
Theo
Ya, I agree....the pickup height is critical for
switching balance. and adding the tone control to the
lead pickup is a cool idea. On my strats (which I
seldom use on stage) I rewire the pickups and selector
switch to give a setting that will include the bridge
and neck together. Done correctly, this can still
yield a pretty good quack and also a fair Thunky/surfy
sound. You can liven up that rascal by replacing the
250K volume pot with a 500K. This will give it a
little more snarl similar to a Jaguar (which uses a 1
meg pot). Although the Strat is the world's most
popular guitar (by a long shot) I still prefer the
higher relative string tension on a Jazzmaster or
Jaguar for surf and instro.....I also have a hot
aftermarked lead pickup in one strat which gives a
really smooth increase in umph...Get out your
soldering iron (no guns please) and have some
fun........Eddie K
--- theo_reverb <> wrote:
> --- In , "atbrcr"
> <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
> wrote:
> > Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music
> experts. I realize
> this
> > stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give
> me some advice as
> to
> > amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people
> use to
> > aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a
> re issue reverb
> unit
> > through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod
> deville 4x10. One of
> the
> > things I've noticed is when playing the bridge
> pickup, the tone is
> way
> > to thin without really turning down the treble,
> but then if I do so
> it
> > limits pickup selection If I need to change in the
> middle of a
> song.
> > I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out
> of the chain and
> it
> > still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way
> I did change out
> the
> > 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable
> difference. And
> one
> > final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use
> bassman amps besides
> the
> > coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have
> seen some pictures
> of
> > trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman.
> Thanks ahead of
> time
> > for all of your help!
>
> Hi.
> As alrady said you should check the pickup height. I
> received good
> results from varying between 2-3 mm string space on
> the bridge to 3-5
> mm on the neck (with the .13 gauge strings that is).
> Furthermore it
> might be useful to solder one of the tone pots to
> the Bridge PU in
> order to have a better controlable treble output.
> Hope I could help you,
> Theo
>
>
>
>
______________________________________________________
Click here to donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.
> I still prefer the
> higher relative string tension on a Jazzmaster or
> Jaguar for surf and instro.....
Hey Eddie - I always prefered the Jaguar because it had less string
tension than the Stratocaster. I'm misunderstanding you?
Bill
Hi Theo_reverb,
I've just posted a wiring diagram of the Strat modification I like having on my
Strats. This mod allows you to have all 7 possible pickup combinations,
including the very surfy Bridge/Neck position. It also results in the bottom
tone knob becoming Master Tone for all 3 pickups.
I suspect part of the problem you're having, results from NO tone control for
the bridge pickup, so you're having to cut treble response on the EQ section of
your amp - NOT the best answer by any means. Check out "Strat Wiring Mod Made
Simple" in the Photos section on SG101, and I think you'll agree, this is very
simple, and if you do it, I think you'll really enjoy the additional sounds
you've now liberated from Fender's limited switching/control layout!
Good Luck,
Bruce D
theo_reverb <> wrote:
--- In , "atbrcr" <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
wrote:
> Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I realize
this
> stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice as
to
> amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb
unit
> through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of
the
> things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone is
way
> to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do so
it
> limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
song.
> I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain and
it
> still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change out
the
> 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference. And
one
> final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps besides
the
> coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some pictures
of
> trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead of
time
> for all of your help!
Hi.
As alrady said you should check the pickup height. I received good
results from varying between 2-3 mm string space on the bridge to 3-5
mm on the neck (with the .13 gauge strings that is). Furthermore it
might be useful to solder one of the tone pots to the Bridge PU in
order to have a better controlable treble output.
Hope I could help you,
Theo
.
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---------------------------------
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Hi Bruce!
BIg thanks for the schematics, I´ll check this out as soon as i can! I
like the idea to modify the strat to 7 switching positions very much!
Regards
Theo
Excellent! Thanks................
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Could be less tension on your jag depending on the
string type and gauge. Tension is definately higher
on a Jazzmaster though. And neither my Jazzmasters
or Jaguars had that sprongy feel that strats do.....I
use 12-52 chrome flats on them.....feel pretty stiff
to me.....ed
--- supertwangreverb <>
wrote:
> > I still prefer the
> > higher relative string tension on a Jazzmaster or
> > Jaguar for surf and instro.....
>
> Hey Eddie - I always prefered the Jaguar because it
> had less string
> tension than the Stratocaster. I'm misunderstanding
> you?
>
> Bill
>
>
>
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
Ed,
Now I guess I didn't miss read your original post.
The Jaguar has lower tension, and for a few reason. I've got 12s on
my Jaguar, and they feel like 11s on a Jazzmaster. Because the
shorter scale there is less tension on the Jaguar. The Stratocaster
and Jazzmaster are the same scale length, but the reason your
feeling less tension on the Jazzmaster is because of the string
break angle over the bridge as compared to the strings going onto
the Stratocaster bridge.
As for your Strats having more of a spongy feel when compared to the
others, I'm not sure about that.
Bill
--- In , John McCorvey
<eddiekatcher@y...> wrote:
> Could be less tension on your jag depending on the
> string type and gauge. Tension is definately higher
> on a Jazzmaster though. And neither my Jazzmasters
> or Jaguars had that sprongy feel that strats do.....I
> use 12-52 chrome flats on them.....feel pretty stiff
> to me.....ed
>
> --- supertwangreverb <supertwangreverb@y...>
> wrote:
>
> > > I still prefer the
> > > higher relative string tension on a Jazzmaster or
> > > Jaguar for surf and instro.....
> >
> > Hey Eddie - I always prefered the Jaguar because it
> > had less string
> > tension than the Stratocaster. I'm misunderstanding
> > you?
> >
> > Bill
> >
> >
> >
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> Do You Yahoo!?
> Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
>
To much teble from the bridge pickup can be a big problem on a strat.
My americn standard dosn't seem to have it though. Every other strat
Iv'e owned did. Right now I'm playing with wiring a tone pot (youve
got two) as an indipendant volume pot for the neck pickup.Instead of
cutting trebe you roll some neck pickup in. Seems to help. Miller
--- In , "atbrcr" <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
wrote:
> Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I realize this
> stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice as to
> amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb unit
> through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of the
> things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone is way
> to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do so it
> limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a song.
> I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain and it
> still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change out the
> 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference. And one
> final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps besides the
> coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some pictures of
> trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead of time
> for all of your help!
--- In , "supertwangreverb"
<supertwangreverb@y...> wrote:
> How is the pickup height? Even if the bridge pickup is too high,
or
> the neck pickup is too low, I know that the Strat's bridge pickup
> really does cut through.
Good point. It's good to adjust the bridge pickup a bit lower than
the other two pickups.
> I have limited access to Stratocasters and the one that I do, I
> don't really like, so maybe Ivan will speak up,
> he is after all "the Stratocossack."
You called? Actually, I've given up that nickname, though clearly,
I'll still answer to it... Anyway, let me try to help. Basically,
I think both of the amps that this gentleman owns are 'treble-like-
ice-pick-in-the-ear' amps. Neither of them really sounds fat in the
way that vintage amps sound fat (or of course, my dear Dual
Professional!). Part of it is in the speakers, I think (ceramic,
non-alnico magnets in speakers tend to make the treble more
piercing). Part of it in the circuitry. Not that they're bad amps,
but just not as good for surf as one would hope. Also, what kind of
pickups are on that Strat? The pickups better have alnico magnets,
or it'll be trouble.
My tonal recipe for a good sounding surf Strat is, a Strat with a
rosewood fingerboard (mellows out the highs), alnico V pickups, and
a vintage bridge (newer 2-point bridges sound thinner); strung with
heavy (fatter the strings, fatter the tone) nickel (stainless steel
strings are too bright) strings - I prefer Rotosound Purples 12-52;
reverb unit with tone set around 5-6; handwired Fender amp (whether
vintage or newer) with good warm tubes - I suggest JJ tubes - with
alnico speakers - either 12" or 15". I keep my Dual Pro set in the
following way: Volume 5-9 (depending on how aggressive I'm feeling);
Bass: 8, Treble: 4-5, Mid: 4. The rest is up to your playing
style. I'd say that even with the best gear the Strat's bridge
pickup has a tendency to be very piercing, but if you have all the
above stuff, you can use that power on the occasions when it suits
it. It's clear that the Stratocaster masters like Dick Dale or the
Atlantics are constantly switching pickups, and playing some songs
on the bridge, others songs on the middle, neck, or some
combination. If you were to play the whole gig with a Strat on the
bridge pickup (I've done it a few times before!), I'd say the people
would find it a somewhat unpleasant experience. Currently I'm
constantly switching between the bridge and middle pickup, only
using the neck pickup on occasion.
BTW, you can certainly get good tones with the equipment that you
have, but probably not using the bridge pickup. Or I should be more
precise, you won't get the powerful Dick-Dale-like bridge pickup
attack with that gear. But you can probably get some cool Aqua-
Velvets-like Strat-on-bridge-pickup tones - as long as you pick with
more finnesse and go for the melody rather than power.
Hope that helps.
Ivan
PS I don't think any surf guitar players used the Bassman back in
the day - not that I'm aware of. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
But the amps of choice were really only the Showman and the
Bandmaster - the Bassman was actually used by the bass players! If
they weren't using a Showman themselves... And Bill was right that
very few surf bands used combo amps, as well. I wonder why that is?
> --- In , "atbrcr"
<Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
> wrote:
> > Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I
realize
> this
> > stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice
as
> to
> > amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> > aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb
> unit
> > through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of
> the
> > things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone
is
> way
> > to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do
> so it
> > limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
> song.
> > I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain
and
> it
> > still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change
out
> the
> > 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference.
And
> one
> > final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps
besides
> the
> > coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some
pictures
> of
> > trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead
of
> time
> > for all of your help!
I agree with most of what Ivan says below concerning tone but, being the eternal
skeptic that I am, I submit it is a myth that the maple neck strat with glued on
rosewood fretboard produces a more mellow tone than the same guitar with the
50's style solid maple neck. This is only a suspicion at this point 'cause I
have yet to give it the acid test (A/B blindfold and/or spectrum analyzer). In
my experience, having strats of both neck configurations, I haven't noticed the
difference.
I suspect the myth was largely born of the notion that rosewood is softer than
maple. Or maybe it came from transposition of the fact that the different woods
used in the bodies of acoustic guitars do indeed significantly affect tone.
Brazilian rosewood is harder than maple. I don't know if the Indian rosewood now
commonly used is softer than maple but even if it is, I don't believe enough of
the tonal make up of the sound coming through the magnetic pick-ups on a bolt-on
neck strat results from a glued-on fretboard.
The Ebony fretboard on a Les Paul Custom is significantly harder than rosewood,
yet we don't hear that the Les Paul Standard with it's rosewood fretboard has a
more mellow sound than the Custom. Of course those Les Paul players usually have
so much distortion goin', how can they tell?!!
The bottom line is that, while many many guitarists will say that the rosewood
fretboard is the mellower of the two, the evidence is only anecdotal. I think
the mellowness of rosewood conclusion is more due to imagination. Then again,
I'm afraid that my counter claim is also only my observations.
-Marty
----- Original Message -----
From: ipongrac
To:
Sent: Monday, September 05, 2005 9:25 PM
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Tone Control
--- In , "supertwangreverb"
<supertwangreverb@y...> wrote:
> How is the pickup height? Even if the bridge pickup is too high,
or
> the neck pickup is too low, I know that the Strat's bridge pickup
> really does cut through.
Good point. It's good to adjust the bridge pickup a bit lower than
the other two pickups.
> I have limited access to Stratocasters and the one that I do, I
> don't really like, so maybe Ivan will speak up,
> he is after all "the Stratocossack."
You called? Actually, I've given up that nickname, though clearly,
I'll still answer to it... Anyway, let me try to help. Basically,
I think both of the amps that this gentleman owns are 'treble-like-
ice-pick-in-the-ear' amps. Neither of them really sounds fat in the
way that vintage amps sound fat (or of course, my dear Dual
Professional!). Part of it is in the speakers, I think (ceramic,
non-alnico magnets in speakers tend to make the treble more
piercing). Part of it in the circuitry. Not that they're bad amps,
but just not as good for surf as one would hope. Also, what kind of
pickups are on that Strat? The pickups better have alnico magnets,
or it'll be trouble.
My tonal recipe for a good sounding surf Strat is, a Strat with a
rosewood fingerboard (mellows out the highs), alnico V pickups, and
a vintage bridge (newer 2-point bridges sound thinner); strung with
heavy (fatter the strings, fatter the tone) nickel (stainless steel
strings are too bright) strings - I prefer Rotosound Purples 12-52;
reverb unit with tone set around 5-6; handwired Fender amp (whether
vintage or newer) with good warm tubes - I suggest JJ tubes - with
alnico speakers - either 12" or 15". I keep my Dual Pro set in the
following way: Volume 5-9 (depending on how aggressive I'm feeling);
Bass: 8, Treble: 4-5, Mid: 4. The rest is up to your playing
style. I'd say that even with the best gear the Strat's bridge
pickup has a tendency to be very piercing, but if you have all the
above stuff, you can use that power on the occasions when it suits
it. It's clear that the Stratocaster masters like Dick Dale or the
Atlantics are constantly switching pickups, and playing some songs
on the bridge, others songs on the middle, neck, or some
combination. If you were to play the whole gig with a Strat on the
bridge pickup (I've done it a few times before!), I'd say the people
would find it a somewhat unpleasant experience. Currently I'm
constantly switching between the bridge and middle pickup, only
using the neck pickup on occasion.
BTW, you can certainly get good tones with the equipment that you
have, but probably not using the bridge pickup. Or I should be more
precise, you won't get the powerful Dick-Dale-like bridge pickup
attack with that gear. But you can probably get some cool Aqua-
Velvets-like Strat-on-bridge-pickup tones - as long as you pick with
more finnesse and go for the melody rather than power.
Hope that helps.
Ivan
PS I don't think any surf guitar players used the Bassman back in
the day - not that I'm aware of. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
But the amps of choice were really only the Showman and the
Bandmaster - the Bassman was actually used by the bass players! If
they weren't using a Showman themselves... And Bill was right that
very few surf bands used combo amps, as well. I wonder why that is?
> --- In , "atbrcr"
<Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
> wrote:
> > Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I
realize
> this
> > stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice
as
> to
> > amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> > aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue reverb
> unit
> > through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One of
> the
> > things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone
is
> way
> > to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I do
> so it
> > limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
> song.
> > I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain
and
> it
> > still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change
out
> the
> > 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference.
And
> one
> > final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps
besides
> the
> > coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some
pictures
> of
> > trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead
of
> time
> > for all of your help!
.
Visit for archived messages,
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
- I like the easstethics of a strat, but I've always wondered why
they angled the bridge pup like that, and not the other way round. I
suspect it would make the overal output the pridge pup better, a tad
mellower on the treble side, more punch on the bass-side.
- as for the tonestack of two-tone-knob fender amps, they do have a
three stage tone control, it's just that the mid knob is a fixed
resistor instead of a pot. I don't know enough about electronics to
say at what 'number' it is fixed, but my estimate is at a rather high
setting. anyway, if you have a non-collectible amp you don't mind
fooling around with, you could try a different resiter value there,
or even build in a pot to have a true mid. if you only use one
channel, you could rewire to one of the other channel's pots, as a
completly reversible mod, just for the experiment. I plan to to try
it, but i probably won't get to it till after my retirement (which
will be another 33 years or so ;-) )
WR
--- In , "ipongrac" <ipongrac@g...>
wrote:
> --- In , "supertwangreverb"
> <supertwangreverb@y...> wrote:
> > How is the pickup height? Even if the bridge pickup is too high,
> or
> > the neck pickup is too low, I know that the Strat's bridge pickup
> > really does cut through.
>
> Good point. It's good to adjust the bridge pickup a bit lower than
> the other two pickups.
>
> > I have limited access to Stratocasters and the one that I do, I
> > don't really like, so maybe Ivan will speak up,
> > he is after all "the Stratocossack."
>
> You called? Actually, I've given up that nickname, though clearly,
> I'll still answer to it... Anyway, let me try to help. Basically,
> I think both of the amps that this gentleman owns are 'treble-like-
> ice-pick-in-the-ear' amps. Neither of them really sounds fat in
the
> way that vintage amps sound fat (or of course, my dear Dual
> Professional!). Part of it is in the speakers, I think (ceramic,
> non-alnico magnets in speakers tend to make the treble more
> piercing). Part of it in the circuitry. Not that they're bad
amps,
> but just not as good for surf as one would hope. Also, what kind
of
> pickups are on that Strat? The pickups better have alnico magnets,
> or it'll be trouble.
>
> My tonal recipe for a good sounding surf Strat is, a Strat with a
> rosewood fingerboard (mellows out the highs), alnico V pickups, and
> a vintage bridge (newer 2-point bridges sound thinner); strung with
> heavy (fatter the strings, fatter the tone) nickel (stainless steel
> strings are too bright) strings - I prefer Rotosound Purples 12-52;
> reverb unit with tone set around 5-6; handwired Fender amp (whether
> vintage or newer) with good warm tubes - I suggest JJ tubes - with
> alnico speakers - either 12" or 15". I keep my Dual Pro set in the
> following way: Volume 5-9 (depending on how aggressive I'm
feeling);
> Bass: 8, Treble: 4-5, Mid: 4. The rest is up to your playing
> style. I'd say that even with the best gear the Strat's bridge
> pickup has a tendency to be very piercing, but if you have all the
> above stuff, you can use that power on the occasions when it suits
> it. It's clear that the Stratocaster masters like Dick Dale or the
> Atlantics are constantly switching pickups, and playing some songs
> on the bridge, others songs on the middle, neck, or some
> combination. If you were to play the whole gig with a Strat on the
> bridge pickup (I've done it a few times before!), I'd say the
people
> would find it a somewhat unpleasant experience. Currently I'm
> constantly switching between the bridge and middle pickup, only
> using the neck pickup on occasion.
>
> BTW, you can certainly get good tones with the equipment that you
> have, but probably not using the bridge pickup. Or I should be
more
> precise, you won't get the powerful Dick-Dale-like bridge pickup
> attack with that gear. But you can probably get some cool Aqua-
> Velvets-like Strat-on-bridge-pickup tones - as long as you pick
with
> more finnesse and go for the melody rather than power.
>
> Hope that helps.
> Ivan
>
> PS I don't think any surf guitar players used the Bassman back in
> the day - not that I'm aware of. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
> But the amps of choice were really only the Showman and the
> Bandmaster - the Bassman was actually used by the bass players! If
> they weren't using a Showman themselves... And Bill was right that
> very few surf bands used combo amps, as well. I wonder why that is?
>
>
> > --- In , "atbrcr"
> <Sandmansrfgtar@a...>
> > wrote:
> > > Hi everyone. Need some help from ye surf music experts. I
> realize
> > this
> > > stuff is probaby top secret. But could you give me some advice
> as
> > to
> > > amp tone settings, and pickup seletions you people use to
> > > aquire "the"sound. My setup is a strat through a re issue
reverb
> > unit
> > > through a re issue twin reverb or a hot rod deville 4x10. One
of
> > the
> > > things I've noticed is when playing the bridge pickup, the tone
> is
> > way
> > > to thin without really turning down the treble, but then if I
do
> > so it
> > > limits pickup selection If I need to change in the middle of a
> > song.
> > > I've experimented with taking the reverb unit out of the chain
> and
> > it
> > > still doesn't make alot of difference. By the way I did change
> out
> > the
> > > 12ax7 in the reverb unit to a 12at7. No noticeable difference.
> And
> > one
> > > final note, did a lot of trad surf bands use bassman amps
> besides
> > the
> > > coveted dual showmans and twin reverbs. I have seen some
> pictures
> > of
> > > trad bands with guitarists plugged into a bassman. Thanks ahead
> of
> > time
> > > for all of your help!
> - as for the tonestack of two-tone-knob fender amps, they do have a
> three stage tone control, it's just that the mid knob is a fixed
> resistor instead of a pot. I don't know enough about electronics to
> say at what 'number' it is fixed, but my estimate is at a rather
high
> setting. anyway, if you have a non-collectible amp you don't mind
> fooling around with, you could try a different resiter value there,
> or even build in a pot to have a true mid. if you only use one
> channel, you could rewire to one of the other channel's pots, as a
> completly reversible mod, just for the experiment. I plan to to try
> it, but i probably won't get to it till after my retirement (which
> will be another 33 years or so ;-) )
>
> WR
Greetings All -
My 2 cents:
I'm not a circuit expert but my experience is this: on Fender Amps
with a Mid control, if you turn down all the tone controls to zero
you
will get no output. On Fender Amps with no middle control, if you
turn
down bass and treble to zero you will get output. If you run the
three
tone control amps with the tone controls down low, you need to boost
the volume up to compensate.
I run my Dual Professional (running into one JBL K120) with treble at
zero, Mid all the way up, and bass between 2 and 4 depending on how
loud I'm playing. At low volumes I use more bass but at higher
volumes
a high bass control setting adds more distortion. I also use the fat
switch at low volume gigs (volume at 2 1/2 or below) and turn it off
at
higher volumes unless I want some grit. I have never played this amp
with a volume setting higher than 3 1/2. I love the built in Reverb
and my standard setting is 4-4-10, but, like Dave Wronski, I use a
tape
echo (a Dynacord, not an Echoplex), along with the Spring Reverb.
This is with a '59 JM with D'Addario Chrome 11's, GraphTech Saddles
and
a buzz stop. I keep my pickups kinda low, never measured the
distance,
just set them by ear.
Boulder Bob
The Beloved Invaders
Hey Ivan, thanks for steppin in. I really appreciate the info. I'm know that
If I set up my amp accordingly I can get some really good sounds from the
neck and middle pickups. When I do, the bridge pickup tends to sound almost
Telecaster like. Any way with all of your advice, time to experiment more!
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