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Tom's rare backup guitar used 23 years ago on the 2nd of October 1997


luisbootlegs

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  • 3 weeks later...

The mysterious '97 backup guitar! It had an HSS pickup configuration like the original Sticker Strat, but the bridge humbucker is not angled. The neck and middle pickups appear to be stock. The bridge humbucker is also black, I don't know what exactly the model is. It was also stickered differently, most notably the big alien head on the back. This guitar was used at only two other shows; Nile Theater, June '97; and Orange Pavilion, September '97.

This is the best footage I've seen of this guitar! Thank you for sharing this! This is one of Tom's most obscure guitars, hopefully this video can tell us more about it!

 

Tagging others who would dig this @daveyjones @blinkstillrules @mil182

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1 hour ago, Q182 said:

The bridge humbucker is also black, I don't know what exactly the model is.

i'm betting it's a seymour duncan distortion, since that's the brand he had on the sticker strat for the middle and neck. SD distortion hums were popular if you were playing hard rock, metal, and punk; that's what i dropped into my yamaha red rocker back in '99. it's like the SD version of the X2N.

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24 minutes ago, daveyjones said:

i'm betting it's a seymour duncan distortion, since that's the brand he had on the sticker strat for the middle and neck. SD distortion hums were popular if you were playing hard rock, metal, and punk; that's what i dropped into my yamaha red rocker back in '99. it's like the SD version of the X2N.

I can get behind that. I also wondered if this guitar is where he got introduced to the invader, if we’re betting it’s a SD pickup in there.

As far as the stickers go, I still can’t ID anything specific. Oh well...

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8 hours ago, daveyjones said:

i'm betting it's a seymour duncan distortion, since that's the brand he had on the sticker strat for the middle and neck. SD distortion hums were popular if you were playing hard rock, metal, and punk; that's what i dropped into my yamaha red rocker back in '99. it's like the SD version of the X2N.

It's probably a JB if it's Seymour Duncan.

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12 minutes ago, Depf said:

isn't the sh6 way scooped with a sharper high end? the x2n is all mids and bass, definately not quite invader level but i would think a JB or even a gibson dirty fingers is way closer than the sh6.

I also picked up on this. It sounded more on the warmer side, if its the sh6 I'd be able to take note of the sharper high end its known for.

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17 hours ago, Depf said:

i love how there are people on the blink182 forum of all places that can actually talk tone.

usually it's "thunderous, syrupy, woody, dirty, wooly,organic" or some BS.

I still think though you guys scoop your mids too much on your dude ranch soundalikes ;)

oops wrong thread

I thought so too but I think my last attempt is pretty fucking close. Anytime I added more mids than that it sounded shitty.

And maybe it's just me, but I think the radio edits of Dammit and Josie mixed and mastered by Tom Lord-Alge sound more mids heavy than everything else done by Trombino.

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8 hours ago, Depf said:

it is, for sure. Xenu knows what might get lost when mic-ing and compressing and what not anyway. all i'm saying is that if i plugged in your rig and tried to nail the tone i'd probably turn up the mids by 1 or 2.

There surely is some mid scoop, but i get the best results by scooping higher mids and leaving the low mids and low end kinda.... full, round, natural, sweet. 

i'll get my coat

I tried it with a tad more mids. Just wasn't right. Could be the room I'm in too. There's just so many variables. I'll have to do it one more time.

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1 hour ago, Depf said:

i hope for all our sake we never truly nail it. half the time i spend on my axe is turning EQ knobs.

 

isn't the frequency knob on the ampeg the one which defines what frequencies the mid knob regulates? like i said, i feel the cut is in the upper mids. i'll try to post a pic of my grapic eq that i use to fine tune my amp which is set quite flat.

According to the manual, the actual MID knob "allows for 12dB cut (full left) or boost (full right) at 40Hz. The center position is considered flat". My settings currently have it at about 2 o'clock.

The Frequency knob is "select channel II's mid range frequency by the setting of this five way switch. It's far left position (1) produces more dominant mid-bass tones; as you rotate the switch to the right (ending at 5) you'll get more dominant upper mid tones. A standard setting for humbuckers is 1 or 2 and single coils are better suited to 4 or 5." My Frequency is currently at 3.

 

PDF of the Ampeg VL-1002/502 Manual: https://ampeg.com/support/files/Discontinued User Manuals/VL-502, 1002/VL502_1002_OM.pdf

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3 hours ago, Depf said:

 

@daveyjones do you remember any sort of boost ever being used around that time? lots of folk use a tubescreamer as an always on pedal.

at least through 97, tom was a no pedal dude.

the pic we have from the whiskey show opening for descendents in october 96 shows tom running two VL-1002's, either bridged (like fletcher in PW does with his mesas) or one on clean and one on overdrive.

i assume tom recorded at least parts of dude ranch on one of his VL's because a.) it sounds like something he would do b.) trombino isn't a gear hound like jerry finn was, with dozens of amps around to try c.) they were at a rented at-home studio (big fish, encinitas, CA) that probably wouldn't have much gear anyways.

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19 hours ago, Depf said:

ok that sounds like rather than turning up the mids i personally would change the frequency to 2 or even 1. But like i said that is only what i personally hear and since i do not own an ampeg (just a jcm 800) its all guessing on my part.

i have to say though, i would not be surprised if the dude ranch amp was actually either a boosted 800 or a 900. the bottom end, while very present and full, sounds very focused which suggests some sort of diode clipping to tighten a otherwise overwhelming low end.

The tone is full of bass, but not mud.

@daveyjones do you remember any sort of boost ever being used around that time? lots of folk use a tubescreamer as an always on pedal.

The preamp knob on the Ampeg is essentially a built-in overdrive pedal.

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4 hours ago, Depf said:

makes total sense. makes me wonder how close my boosted jcm and your ampeg are. 

i'd expect them to be almost equal...minus the fact that the knobs on the marshall don't do much and make an EQ pedal necessary lol

I bet they're close. The Ampeg is said to be a "JCM 800 on steroids". Based on the JCM 800 circuit but with more gain and features.

Which 800 do you have? I love JCM 800s.

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On 10/21/2020 at 6:25 PM, daveyjones said:

at least through 97, tom was a no pedal dude.

 

The first time I ever noticed effects pedals was on TOYPAJ. Story Of A Lonely Guy sounds like he's using some chorus and a slight delay.

Up to and including Enema I'm not hearing anything but guitar and amp. I could be wrong but I know his live setup never had pedals from the start to the Enema era. I saw them play live during TOYPAJ but can't remember ifStory Of A Lonely Guy had the effects live. I'd have to go listen to some recordings.

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4 minutes ago, Depf said:

Just the classic 2203 into a v30 loaded 2x12" . 

more gain than i'd ever need, especially if high output PUs or the screamer are at play. 

dude ranch is my fav album but man, the EOTS tone is to die for. i would love to someday get a mini recto and a/b/y it with the jcm.

i really hope @Ry-Bread keeps up the good work and we get to find out more about the guitars used pre untitled album.

sorry for the off topic banter haha

2203 is my fave 800.

I have a single rec series 2. With the invader it's pretty dead on for Enema. Would love to a/b/y it with a 900 like Tom though.

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12 minutes ago, Depf said:

maybe just a Studio thing, but on the live album adams song sounds a bit modulated. very subtle flange/chorus. i only ever got to see them in 04, by that time it was flanger galore and fuck... the tone was incredible. surprisingly little gain too.

Adam's Song was guitar and amp with the a/b/y switcher when I saw them right before TOYPAJ came out. It was a smaller venue.

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50 minutes ago, Depf said:

ah man, if this was a regional board i'd have you and your rig over for pizza and Soundcheck asap.

tom used the 900 dual reverb right? quite different to the other 900s and basically 800 with the ability to go cleaner. i bet recto+800 is dead on.

when did he stop using the marshalls anyway? ive seen pictures of rackpreamps and what not. but starting around 2001 all you see is the mesa cabs and who knows what went in them.

what happened to the amp thread? all dead foto links. bummer

That would be awesome.

I'm not sure which 900 he used. Maybe @Q182 knows?

 

I know he was still using the Triple Rec in 2004 but I don't remember if the 900 was still in the setup. He went to that shit Vox/Fender garbage with AvA and brought that to blink when they reunited.

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1 hour ago, blinkstillrules said:

That would be awesome.

I'm not sure which 900 he used. Maybe @Q182 knows?

 

I know he was still using the Triple Rec in 2004 but I don't remember if the 900 was still in the setup.

@Depf He used the Hi Gain Dual Reverb JCM 900. His Triple Rec (Tan/Burgundy) is a 2 Channel Revision G. Not many people know this unless you’re familiar the illustrious history of those amps. 

And no, the 900 got taken out of his setup in ‘04. I would also like to know what was going into those half dozen Mesa cabs.

 

So how about that backup Sticker Strat, eh? 

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