John Entwistle's solo

IrishBassLad · #1 02-17-2009, 10:08 PM

Could somebody please tell what effects John is using here? or how to acheive that really nice tight sound?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVl39LBZGMw

IrishBassLad · #2 02-17-2009, 10:14 PM

OliverH · #3 02-17-2009, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrishBassLad

Could somebody please tell what effects John is using here? or how to acheive that really nice tight sound?

Well, I don't think his sound is particularly tight, or good, but it sounds like he just has some sort of distortion on his bass. Having played a buzzard bass I can say most of the sound he is getting is just due to the bass itself.

Chowderboots · #4 02-17-2009, 11:00 PM

I know he used one of these later in his career to process his sound sometimes.

http://namm.harmony-central.com/Newp...Tech/2120.html

I think a lot of the sound probably comes from his hands and a lot from his bass.

CayceG · #5 02-17-2009, 11:02 PM

I don't know what effects he's using, but 90% of it comes from the carbon fiber body of his bass, the brand new strings, and his finger style.

I'm sure there's some overdrive tossed into the mix, but it comes mostly down to the bass itself and the man playing it.

dannster · #6 02-17-2009, 11:07 PM

Here is the 2002 era breakdown..... tons of info at this site!

I actually talked with Ashdown about getting a set of his cabs made but the 115 folded horn cab alone was REALLY expensive and so bid I wouldn't have been able to get it inside my house. I still kind of want them though...hehe. stupid g.a.s. !

Ric5 · #7 02-17-2009, 11:14 PM

http://www.thewho.net/whotabs/equipm...ear-86-02.html

PBass101 · #8 02-17-2009, 11:25 PM

Ric5, that was not the rig Entwistle was using by the time of the Royal Albert hall show.

By 2000, he had a Digitech 2120 tube preamp for distortion feeding the top 2x12's and the Ashdown preamp for cleans into the other cabinets. Had a Digitech Studio Quad and TC Electronic 1128 for who knows what. Later he had a Trace Elliot v8 for added midrange, but not at this show.

dannster · #9 02-18-2009, 02:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PBass101

Ric5, that was not the rig Entwistle was using by the time of the Royal Albert hall show.

By 2000, he had a Digitech 2120 tube preamp for distortion feeding the top 2x12's and the Ashdown preamp for cleans into the other cabinets. Had a Digitech Studio Quad and TC Electronic 1128 for who knows what. Later he had a Trace Elliot v8 for added midrange, but not at this show.

Yeah that is the schematic from 1996. Those are the cabs though.

dannster · #10 02-18-2009, 02:30 AM

got a question regarding the ASS Cabs and thought I'd post some specs and such I got from Martin @ Ashdown back in 2005. Enjoy!

I actually still have the emails from 2005. but these were quoted then and he said they were 2-3years old so this is what they were priced in 2002-03.
and for curiosity's sake here are the size and weight specs too.
ASS212 = £599.00 GBP, ASS115 = £1199.00 GBP!
ASS212 = 41 kg and the ASS115 = 65kg
ASS115 H720mm x W740mm x 606mm

ASS212 H506mm x W740mm x 355mm
Add 100 mm for the wheels.

They actually hired out some guy in the south of England that made cabs to build these when they were doing them. The Company was Acoustic Sound Systems or ASS, hence the name of the cabs.
Here is a little Wiki on the company.

And some Porn to round out the subject:

Philbiker · #11 02-18-2009, 07:53 AM

I thought JE's tone in the last years was heinous. I think his hearing loss contributed largely to his inability to get any decent tone.

Ric5 · #12 02-18-2009, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PBass101

Ric5, that was not the rig Entwistle was using by the time of the Royal Albert hall show.

By 2000, he had a Digitech 2120 tube preamp for distortion feeding the top 2x12's and the Ashdown preamp for cleans into the other cabinets. Had a Digitech Studio Quad and TC Electronic 1128 for who knows what. Later he had a Trace Elliot v8 for added midrange, but not at this show.

I thought it sounded like a high end digitech multi-effects unit ... I was going to post that but I didn't have any proof that was what he used.

PBass101 · #13 02-18-2009, 12:50 PM

The Digitech originally sold for about $1,200 in the late nineties, I think the Studio Quad went for about $500. Of course you can get both pretty cheap off eBay now, even in good condition. The 2120 is actually fairly popular for guitar players and has its own little following.

I think his tone before his death was definitely something unique. He did call himself a bass guitarist, and for rock & roll bass guitar I think the distortion and all that fit him well enough, especially for The Who, where everybody got to play lead, all of the time. An over-the-top sound for an over-the-top player. He definitely wasn't after a "nice" bass sound, I mean look at the instrument he played...

Ric5 · #14 02-18-2009, 03:21 PM

I played in a band where the guitarist played through a digitech (I think it was 2120) and he had a VHT as well ...

It looks like 2 Digitech units in that rack there ...

Ric5 · #15 02-18-2009, 03:38 PM

The beauty of the 2120 is it has a real tube in it. You can change the character of the distortion by changing the tube.

PBass101 · #16 02-18-2009, 04:31 PM

The other Digitech is the blue 1u rack space deal, which was just a modulation/equalizer unit, the Studio Quad. The top rack case with the duplicate preamps/processors was just a spare.

The Digitech 2120 VGS has two tubes, 12AX7's. Dual distortion paths, tube and solid state. It sounds pretty good as a stand-alone bass preamp, which is what I use mine for. The effects and equalizer options are flexible enough to work perfectly with bass - with enough treble and a touch of tube overdrive and chorus, I can get that sharp Entwistle tone ala "Eminence Front." Too much distortion and it all goes south, though.

Ric5 · #17 02-19-2009, 10:04 PM

The 2120 is a marvelous piece of engineering ... The guitar player I used to play with that used one of these could pretty much dial in any sound he wanted ... The cheap digitech stuff is kinda crappy but the 2120 is really nice ... it is well worth its high cost ... I might even consider one of those myself ... except I really really like my current pedal setup ...

IrishBassLad · #18 02-19-2009, 10:09 PM

Phew, this is a lot of info. Thanks guys

Because I'm a noob with a Fretless Jazz MIM and a Rumble 25 amp.... how can I get that " Tight " sound he gets in the upper register using this equipment? No effects yet either. I'm not talking about the dist. either. :/

PBass101 · #19 02-19-2009, 10:11 PM

You can never have too much gear, and the 2120 does have an effects loop for all your pedal needs

PBass101 · #20 02-19-2009, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrishBassLad

Phew, this is a lot of info. Thanks guys

Because I'm a noob with a Fretless Jazz MIM and a Rumble 25 amp.... how can I get that " Tight " sound he gets in the upper register using this equipment? No effects yet either. I'm not talking about the dist. either. :/

For an Entwistle-esque sound, I boost the lower mids a bit, cut the upper mids some, and boost the treble. YMMV, but IMO this gives you the "bite" of his sound without the harshness and honk that I feel rests around the 1kHz range. Entwistle had a (beautiful) fretless Warwick Buzzard, but I don't think he ever recorded with it. Fretless might be tricky to get an Entwistle kind of tone.