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Posts Tagged ‘Aracom PLX18 BB’

New Song: Strutter

Posted in Guitars, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 2, 2009| 3 Comments »

Song Information

Title: Strutter

Guitars: Rhythm – Strat, Lead/Melody – Saint Guitars Messenger (Goldie)

Amps: Rhythm – Aracom VRX22, Lead/Melody – Aracom PLX18 BB Trem

Guitars were recorded at conversation levels using the Aracom PRX150-Pro attenuator.

Effects: KASHA Overdrive, GeekMacDaddy Geek Driver

Audio

About the song

I wrote “Strutter” a couple of weeks ago. Like many of my instrumentals, it started out as a backing track that I could practice over. I was simply experimenting with doing leads over a dominant 7th chord progression after watching more of Chuck D’Aloia’s “Blues with Brains” instructional video and wanted to try out some of the stuff he talked about. Well, one thing led to another, and I started getting ideas that I started running with. So I laid them down.

I actually completed the recording several times using different guitars and amps for the lead, but every time I listened to it, I just wasn’t satisfied with the lead. I knew I wanted a bright sound tone, either from a Strat or from a bridge humbucker, but I wanted the lead to have some hair as well. My Strat just didn’t work here because of the vintage-style low power single coils I have in it. And the PLX18 BB was just a bit too fizzy with the stock speaker. So I sat on the song for awhile, though I did keep on refining the phrasing. As far as amps are concerned, I have several to pick from, but their tones are very vintage smooth. Even my go-to amp, the VRX22, was just too “nice-sounding” for what I wanted.

The PLX18 BB got me right into the ballpark. It doesn’t have loads of gain, and while the breakup is smooth and expansive – very 3D – it also has lots of balls for which Plexi-style circuits are known. But even then, the speaker I had in it was just too harsh in the highs, with an overabundance of fizz. In earlier recordings with the amp, I had to bleed off highs. I really didn’t like doing that because I don’t like to EQ my guitar parts. So it wasn’t until last night when I swapped out the stock speaker (Eminence Red Coat Red Fang) with a Fane Medusa 150 where everything came together.

Previous versions of the lead track included wah, but I removed the wah and re-recorded that portion of the song mainly because I just wanted a slightly fatter tone. The amp was already dimed, so I just added a couple of stacked overdrives using my KASHA overdrive and Geek Driver. This resulted in a bit brighter, but fatter tone.

Finally, the cool thing was that I recorded the song in two takes. The second take was the ending. I think my hand was getting tired from all the bending, and I made a couple of mistakes. 🙂 It’s amazing how your playing flows when your tone inspires you!

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It Takes Two to Tango… Revisiting the Fane Medusa 150

Posted in amplifiers, amps, Amps/Amplification, aracom amps, attenuator, EL84, fane, GAS, gear, gear reviews, goldie, guitar, guitar attenuators, guitar gear, guitar gear reviews, guitar reviews, guitarists, Guitars, musicians, PLX18 BB, prestige guitars, PRX150-Pro, speakers, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 2, 2009| 2 Comments »


When I first reviewed the Fane Medusa 150, though I gave it a pretty good rating at 4.5 Tone Bones, I wasn’t really blown away by its tone because of its big bottom end, and recommended that the speaker be put into a 2 X 12 balanced out by a speaker with more top-end sparkle. What I didn’t consider was how it could be used to balance out the tone of a naturally bright amp.

Take, for instance, my review on the Aracom PLX18 BB Trem. One of the nits I had with the combo was that the Eminence Red Coat Red Fang was way too bright for the already naturally bright amp, causing me to bleed off highs when I was mixing the song. FYI, EQ’ing my guitars in my recordings is usually a real no-no with me because I like the pure sound of my guitars and amps on a recording. The only things I’ll add in production are reverb or a touch of delay if necessary. I love the tone of the PLX18, but that speaker just didn’t work for me.

Enter the Fane Medusa 150. That speaker is actually on loan from Tonic Amps. I’ve actually had it for a few months now, and I keep on forgetting to drop it off at Darin’s new place. Well, it looks like I’m probably going to buy it off him after all because I swapped out the Red Fang for the Medusa 150 in the PLX18, and suddenly the seas parted and a way was made clear! The PLX18 tone was completely transformed! Instead of being a purely bright amp, the PLX18’s tone became much more balanced. The highs and high-mids were still present but were much more tame. This resulted in a much richer tone.

As you may know, I’ve been working on a new song called “Strutter.” I actually had the song completely recorded, but I hadn’t finished it because I just haven’t been completely satisfied with the lead guitar tone. When I got the PLX18, I knew it would be the amp I’d use to record the song. But with the stock speaker, and even with my Jensen P12N, it still wasn’t cutting it for me. I even mentioned that the amp loves the Red Coat “The Governor,” and it does, but I still wasn’t completely satisfied. Now, with the Medusa 150 in the cabinet, I’ll be completing the song. Let’s compare, shall we?

Here’s the original, recorded with the PLX18 BB with the stock Red Coat. I’m playing my LP copy, Prestige Guitars Heritage Elite:

Now, here’s a clip of the song with the Fane Medusa 150. I’m playing Goldie in her bridge pickup:

Sorry for the differences in volume levels. But where the Red Fang has much more presence, and an in-your-face presentation, the Medusa’s tone is so much more three-dimensional and more refined. The mids and highs are still present and incredibly articulate, but they’re so much less piercing! And one thing that I noticed immediately with the Medusa is the clarity of the notes through the entire EQ spectrum, whereas the Red Fang seemed to lose a bit of clarity at high-gain settings – especially when I play those transition chords. Note that the amp and mix settings stayed completely the same between the two recordings, and both guitars were played through the Trem channel which was completely dimed. I also removed the wah from the second clip because I didn’t feel the need to mix it up. For that part, I did stack my KASHA Overdrive and Geek Driver overdrive pedals, but set to unity gain, and to add just a touch of compression and sustain. Not much, but just a touch.

So what’s the moral of the story? Simple: Amp and speaker combinations are critical to good tone. Some speakers, like my P12N work with a bunch of different amps. But some speakers, like the Medusa, work much better at balancing out certain amp characteristics. I’ve learned a good lesson here: You have to try out gear in different configurations and situations. Had I not tried to experiment with the Medusa, I probably would’ve just passed it off as a good speaker that belongs in a 2 X 12 cabinet with a bright speaker.

For more information on Fane speakers, talk to Darin at Tonic Amps! Tonic is the North American distributor for Fane speakers.

For more information about the incredible Aracom PLX18 BB Trem, please go to Aracom Amplifiers.

By the way, both clips were recorded at conversation levels using the fantastic Aracom PRX150-Pro attenuator, by far the best attenuator on the planet, from my perspective. I just couldn’t live without this device!

Now, both amp and speaker get:

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