Grateful Dead Music Forum

Hey Joe, What pick-ups will you be using in your new guitar? I also heard that the Fender Cs 69's come close to '72 Tone. Thanks Paul

Heya Paul...They are going to be custom wound to the specs I asked for. Alnico 5..42 guage..6.1-6.5k scatterwound etc. with custom taps somewhere around 5.5k. I havent tried those but i usually dont use anything made by modern Fender. Theres so many other great pickups out there I am actually tempted to use zexcoils. Hum free and sound super vintage. I am going to be rebuilding my '72 Ash /maple hardtail strat and will try a few singles for that. Maybe even '69's. I know I wont be satisfied until the pickups are perfect for that sound. I have the exact bridge that Alligator had on it and in the past have played it through a souped up '74 super reverb and it was amazing for Europe '72 stuff! Thanks

Will be looking forward to hearing sound clips when both guitars are done. Good luck

Thanks Paul...will be my first really good guitar...cannot wait to make some clips w these!! The '72 is a 3 bolt and covered in poly so thats going to be changed.

Oh man, I can't wait! great vid

Can a PCB Twin be modded with a switch to disconnect the tremolo circuit?
I have one of the original "anniversary" reissues from '91, and it has a ground switch that is not actually connected to anything(!), so that part is already done.

it depends what speakers your running...and guitar. How much gain are you after in the amp and how to set the feel of it all. Pulling the Trem tube is first step w eminence/fenders. W Jbls you may want more preamp squish and grit so you disconnect the trem wherever you like. The JBLs need right tubes and fattening done. good luck~

oldsmojo wrote: So many people have said that you need to have JBLs to get the Jerry tone and that might be true if you are going for exact as you can. While I like them and use them often, they are not ideal speakers as they reveal so many details..and nuances w little breakup and papery tone. They create ear fatigue faster than most other speakers and the beaming highs can get really annoying out in the audience. Bottom line is the amp has to be set up right for them and the playing has to be good! I highly reccommend trying difft speakers out there along with pickups ..guitars..etc. For me, theres so many other gear thats more fun to play than a typical Jerry style rig w jbls. This Idea that you have to have this or that to get this or that is just wrong. Its all in how you use your ears to put your rig together.

the jbl D123, though low wattage, can really get close with some nice warm breakup at low volume.

Here's a clip from last week using a "73 Silverface Twin" completely modded by Joe - it's now a 2013 Shakedown Amps Twin! I was also using my brand new PRS P24 - completely stock. I had planned on totally gutting it and Jerrifying it - but so far I really like it's tone as is. I do miss having an OBEL though... Anyhow, between the amp and the guitar - the tone completely blew me away.

Nice! Is that Scott's amp ? Thing sounds killer !!

Bro like I said last time...You feelin it and the rigs givin it...just keep doin it. Thanks again I will see you very soon. (for repair haha!)

Sorry guys I missed a couple posts...thank you for the kind replies...that guitar is a pretty cheap Cort m520 ..I got it from a cool Deadhead from Flemington, New Jersey w/ 3 super 2's and coil splitting via the push pull pots...Later I switched to the 2- PAFs by Peter Florance...he makes really great pickups of standard fare weaponry. Its still kinda dark and resonant for the "get as close to Jerry tone as possible" guitar but its toneful and warm and almost clear enough running through no tone controls yet needs a buffer to jump out into the mix with some zing. Will a stratoblaster sound good here?? I'm currently not psyched w these Paf's so going to get crazy, go in the opposite direction and put lipstick single in neck and a lollar p-90 in the bridge. Very cool clips coming in the next few weeks...some surprises from guitar buddies/their guitars and other fun stuff from Shakedown Amps!

sorry..not lipstick single...a nice strat single. It has to be powerful to compete with the Super 2 split coil thats louder. Def a p90 in the bridge. Will also be able to run both outside pickups at once like a Tele for some classic vintage tones.

Just curious...Did you do any mods to the reverb circuit and/or tank? Or did it just happen to be the way you like it?

I don't like most reverbs out there.. I prefer less prominent and longer decay reverbs. So you get more range out of the pot as well. A great reverb can really help inspire your playing and help you blend into the mix better. Hardly ever keep a reverb setup stock.