Day 6 & 7: Gremlins & Discoveries
Day 6:
Today has been marred by gremlins in the pedal board. No testing occurred today due to noises off taking over my board. Would I ever buy a G2 System? Yes please if it sorted out all the issues I have with pedal board gremlins!! For a brief period of time a Teleaster was plugged raw into the Deluixe and a truly, truly stunning noise emerged but then one of the pedal gremlins obviously leaped into the guitar electrics and buzzy doom ensued. Ah well better luck tomorrow maybe.
Day 7:
Today I have learnt that when you use one of these:
and your pedal board gets to a certain size
This is the most important video you will ever need to watch:
My gremlins yesterday were generated by the incorrect use of the letter C. (Specifically Boss Tuner pedals providing onward power to another pedal need to have the right current to power both the tuner and the next pedal in the chain AND Whammi Ricochet pedals have a 300mA draw and don't work at 250mA!) Lesson learned and my apologies to Mick and Dan for not paying attention the first time!
So I finally got to plug in a single coil guitar! I don't own a Stratocaster so its off to my Fender Wilko Johnson Telecaster I go. With thanks to Andertons for this. I ordered it on line the second it became available. I had been hoping for one for years and, as they were limited numbers, pressed the button the moment they were released. Purists please note that I have replaced the screw type steel saddles supplied as standard, with a Wilkinson brass set. Initially this was to limit string break ages but I'm pretty sure its warmed the tone ever so very slightly. I notice the one that Mr Johnson plays has had the same mod.
Forgive me but its is personal opinion time. This amp longs for single coils, it wants them and it desires them. Being a humbucker guy this upsets me slightly but I try not to take it personally.
The sound with these two together is magical. I talked on an earlier post about Telecasters and V40s being magic. If that is true then Telecasters, Deluxes and Peacekeepers are Sorcery!
The happy place I found on previous pages I've kept and while I like the clenaliness I get from the lower output single coils and the spank that you would want from a Tele is there in spades, for me, I need some bite so on goes Mr Thorpe's Peacekeeper. And that's me for the evening. All 3 positions, quiet, loud, whatever. If I was to get a Deluxe full time my currently low level GAS for a US Tele with a Bigsby would reach unpleasant heights as this is a truly wonderful sound and you can do anything with it too. Warm crunchy neck, ear splicing spank, whatever you need is a few tone control, pickup selector tweaks away.
I turn up the reverb and dial in the tremolo and I am in a place long ago and far away.
The other discovery / realisation today is that this isn't just a Victory V40 with deluxe appointments (valve reverb and trem), this is a different amplifier. The V40 Deluxe is more direct, it has more piercings, it is blunter / harder than the V40; the sort of amp you don't want to meet down a dark alley. It just happens to be wearing some very posh clothes.
Back to the normal practice routine for a day or two now and then Saturday is gig #2 with the Deluxe. I will report back. I will also use different guitars for this gig than the last one; just for fun.
Today's tools:
Quick aside: Blue guitars can be pretty, but are really not my thing. Sounds amazing though. If only it came in a different colour...
Simon is a guitarist in Salisbury Classic Rock covers band Break Cover.
Break Cover website
Break Cover Facebook
Day 7:
Today I have learnt that when you use one of these:
and your pedal board gets to a certain size
This is the most important video you will ever need to watch:
My gremlins yesterday were generated by the incorrect use of the letter C. (Specifically Boss Tuner pedals providing onward power to another pedal need to have the right current to power both the tuner and the next pedal in the chain AND Whammi Ricochet pedals have a 300mA draw and don't work at 250mA!) Lesson learned and my apologies to Mick and Dan for not paying attention the first time!
So I finally got to plug in a single coil guitar! I don't own a Stratocaster so its off to my Fender Wilko Johnson Telecaster I go. With thanks to Andertons for this. I ordered it on line the second it became available. I had been hoping for one for years and, as they were limited numbers, pressed the button the moment they were released. Purists please note that I have replaced the screw type steel saddles supplied as standard, with a Wilkinson brass set. Initially this was to limit string break ages but I'm pretty sure its warmed the tone ever so very slightly. I notice the one that Mr Johnson plays has had the same mod.
Forgive me but its is personal opinion time. This amp longs for single coils, it wants them and it desires them. Being a humbucker guy this upsets me slightly but I try not to take it personally.
The sound with these two together is magical. I talked on an earlier post about Telecasters and V40s being magic. If that is true then Telecasters, Deluxes and Peacekeepers are Sorcery!
The happy place I found on previous pages I've kept and while I like the clenaliness I get from the lower output single coils and the spank that you would want from a Tele is there in spades, for me, I need some bite so on goes Mr Thorpe's Peacekeeper. And that's me for the evening. All 3 positions, quiet, loud, whatever. If I was to get a Deluxe full time my currently low level GAS for a US Tele with a Bigsby would reach unpleasant heights as this is a truly wonderful sound and you can do anything with it too. Warm crunchy neck, ear splicing spank, whatever you need is a few tone control, pickup selector tweaks away.
I turn up the reverb and dial in the tremolo and I am in a place long ago and far away.
The other discovery / realisation today is that this isn't just a Victory V40 with deluxe appointments (valve reverb and trem), this is a different amplifier. The V40 Deluxe is more direct, it has more piercings, it is blunter / harder than the V40; the sort of amp you don't want to meet down a dark alley. It just happens to be wearing some very posh clothes.
Back to the normal practice routine for a day or two now and then Saturday is gig #2 with the Deluxe. I will report back. I will also use different guitars for this gig than the last one; just for fun.
Today's tools:
Quick aside: Blue guitars can be pretty, but are really not my thing. Sounds amazing though. If only it came in a different colour...
Simon is a guitarist in Salisbury Classic Rock covers band Break Cover.
Break Cover website
Break Cover Facebook
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