I know Ive asked ALOT of questions on this site and I wanna thank every one whose helped this young bassist through his first year of playing. I have another question. I love the way lemmy sounds. I heard he runs his bass through a marshall stack. I attempted this at my bands practice and my rythm guitarist runs over to me and unplugs me saying ill blow it up. Would i really blow it up? Does Lemmy really get his sound simply through a marshall stack or are there effects involved?
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How to get Lemmy Kilmister's sound?
- Thread starter JohnnychristFTW
- Start date
An EHX Bass Big Muff, or similar.
A Tech 21 VT Bass pedal are 2 of the best bass grind pedals that'll get ya very close.
A Tech 21 VT Bass pedal are 2 of the best bass grind pedals that'll get ya very close.
Marshall yes. Guitar stack no. His signature gear is a 100 watt tube head on a 415 cab.
Not really, the first is a fuzz, and the second is an Ampeg emulator. I'd go with a low wattage tube head (preferably marshall styled) into a ton of speakers. Or ask Clammy, because he does it well
Used peavey Windsor heads are around $225... You listen to mine and tell me what you think:
Peavey Windsor head demo with bass guitar - YouTube
Peavey Windsor head demo with bass guitar - YouTube
bongomania
Commercial User
To be absolutely clear, the key is to use BASS speaker cabs with a cranked distorted amp. The amp itself won't get damaged no matter how you turn it up--but the speakers must be able to handle huge wattage spikes.
There are actually several pedals that emulate the sound of a cranked Marshall; search on "Marshall" here in the fx forum to find them.
There are actually several pedals that emulate the sound of a cranked Marshall; search on "Marshall" here in the fx forum to find them.
You're lucky you didn't collect a smack in the mouth before the telling off. Guitar speakers can't make lows, they will die trying.
+1 I got a Ric years after I stopped the drugs. I think a Marshall with 4 x15's puts you in the neighborhood before your neighbors call the cops....................
I was suggesting the pedals as a cheaper alternative to buying a Marshall amp & a 412 & 415 & destroying the neighbourhood. 
I know the VT is Ampeg biased, but, imo, it gets close. Ymmv
Hadn't thought of Marshall pedals tho
I know the VT is Ampeg biased, but, imo, it gets close. Ymmv
Hadn't thought of Marshall pedals tho
Mr. Foxen
Commercial User
Lemmy's sound doesn't have lows, they are only bass cabs in that a bass is plugged into them, they are glorified guitar cabs. All the distortion and the OT cuts lows, the fact they are sealed cabs cuts lows and doesn't let the cones unload and break from overexcursion. You'll only blow up guitar stuff if you try and force it to sound like a bass, or it is badly maintained (in which case guitar will blow it up too).
Watch that film they made recently on him. I think it was actually called "Lemmy".
There's a great bit where he is asked what makes his sound, so he shows them whilst onstage doing a sound check.
Two things: Marshall stack with lots of gain and a Ric.
Was surprised to see how much he favors playing the D and G string. He was almost playing it more like a guitar than a bass.
Saying that, with my Jazz and a muff pedal I can play the Ace of Spades riff on the D string and it sounds pretty close to the original.
There's a great bit where he is asked what makes his sound, so he shows them whilst onstage doing a sound check.
Two things: Marshall stack with lots of gain and a Ric.
Was surprised to see how much he favors playing the D and G string. He was almost playing it more like a guitar than a bass.
Saying that, with my Jazz and a muff pedal I can play the Ace of Spades riff on the D string and it sounds pretty close to the original.
Doing a little research would also help. From Wikipedia's entry on Lemmy:
Lemmy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lemmy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lemmy uses no effects pedals: the distortion is produced naturally by the amplifiers, as they are set at such a high volume.
What a Legend.
What a Legend.
You will need this:
And some sort of a version of this:
The cab in my pic is a 412.
Then turn everything up louder then everything else.
And some sort of a version of this:
The cab in my pic is a 412.
Then turn everything up louder then everything else.
A Jazz bass with the bridge pup cranked and bright rounds will work but you need a lower powered tube amp CRANKED.
Stop practicing or paying attention to technique completely or maybe try playing with your feet? 
I love Lemmy, but unfortunately this is true. Take lots of speed, play as hard and fast as you can with a pick on a Ric with the tone pegged, and with the amp turned up as loud as it will go without blowing up.
Please understand that I DO NOT recommend this (especially the drugs part) but that's how you sound like Lemmy.
Oh, and if you gargle with a mixture of sulfuric acid, glass shards and razor blades, you can sing like Lemmy also.
Oh, and if you gargle with a mixture of sulfuric acid, glass shards and razor blades, you can sing like Lemmy also.
No, You need years of Jack & Marlboro's.
