Many amplifiers have come and gone in my music room through the years, and a small handful have been genuinely missed. One in particular that I was always interested in having back in the fold was an original 1968 Marshall model 1959 Super Lead with the serial number range in the 12,000s. I owned just one many years ago but had needed to sell it, along with many other pieces, during a more challenging time in life. The memory of that amp remained with me through the years that followed as it had that perfect blend of creaminess and crunch in its tone as well as a feel that delivered the perfect amount of compression. Indeed, it was truly one of the good ones. And no doubt the best Marshall I’ve ever had.
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Tag Archives: Brown Sound
David Szabados Interview on GEARCAST Show
Check out the recent GEARCAST show on Kyle Bull’s YouTube channel where I had a great discussion about all things related to guitar tone and music.
Mojave AmpWorks PeaceMaker and Plexi 45 amp heads
Most readers at this site understand I’m a big time “amp nut” – with a special love for old Marshalls in particular. Some readers have even complained, “Too much Marshall!” in terms of content and asked me to pay attention to some other amps out there.
Well, o.k., I’m going to move away from the Marshalls, but not too far for the moment as the Mojave AmpWorks Peacemaker and Plexi 45 certainly share the Marshall heritage – in the case of the Plexi 45, its circuit is as dead-on of a true JTM 45 clone as you’ll find in any new amp built today. The Peacemaker however, adds some twists to the legendary Marshall tone, which we’ll dig into shortly.
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Exploring Edward Van Halen’s Early Legendary “Brown Sound”
Edward Van Halen’s technique, tone, and style are legendary. Growing up listening to earlier-era Van Halen, I was awestruck by the raw, pure rock sounds that Edward produced from his guitars. In a period where rock guitar had become stagnant, Edward burst onto the scene like a fireball. As we moved into the 80’s, it seemed everyone had become an Eddie-clone, with their custom hot-rodded guitars strat-styled guitars and Marshall 100 watt tops. Edward’s sound from that era has been dubbed the “brown sound”. Let’s look into how what he used in the early days of Van Halen.
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