HoosierRock wrote:Man, that is some killer tone in that video. Almost sounds like an old Marshall being smoked with a treble booster. Best distortion/overdrive pedal I have used in awhile is a Rockbox Boiling Point. Very expensive, but it works great with my Marshall (JCM 900 MK III) or my old Fender Bassman head. It cuts better (stronger mids) than my OCD and has more sustain with a ton of gain if needed. But the tone in that video still reminds of a Keeley Java Boost I had for awhile. I think the OCD is too thick to get that tone.
And here is to digging a forum post from the grave. So after many years and constant research through the internet to find someone who nailed the Pincushion tone and others from the Antenna record, finally came across someone who mailed it. Turns out HoosierRock was correct and the secret, in part, is a treble booster. I actually tried several and could not get the right sound. I was able to nail other tones but not the Antenna record. So I came across this video and decided to ask the guy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZuwpXklZm8
The fellow replied within a few hours with a detailed message. Turns out that he started his tone quest to match Marc Bolan's tone. As such, he picked a very affordable, old HH IC-100 amp. That's right, an old solid state amp. He then proceeded to test hundreds of germanium transistors in a rangemaster clone, and when he stumbled upon the OC71 transistor (which I never had in any of the boosters I tried) he stumbled on the ZZ Top tone that I so craved. So the recipe is:
Les Paul -> rangemaster with OC71 -> delay and or chorus (he is using a jacques meistersinger for chorusing) -> HH IC-100 combo amp (costs abotu 400 bucks for the combo).
Now, this is not to say that this is the exact gear Gibbons used, and it likely isn't, but the fact that the combination nails the tone is undeniable.
Now, I play very different gear, and I am more about my own thing, but it is cool to see these happy accidents.
Amp: Firebird Musical Amplifiers
Guitars:62 LP SG , 02 FB VII, JB FB I, 76 Electra Omega, 64 Firebird V, 73 LPC, 61 Custom Tele, 59 and 60 Melody Maker
Effects: Mythos Chupacabra, Strymon Deco/Flint