Brian May early tone

Ahmed Badreldin

Ahmed Badreldin

Inspired
Not meant to offend anyone and all the tremendous effort that goes along with creating a patch, but I've downloaded every Brian May and Queen related patch I can find. This also went for the HD500 Line 6, but why does every patch sound super clean? I've tried pretty much all, and my own efforts were useless but why do all patches lack the creamy gain that he uses? I'm wondering if people are using a tone that maybe he used in the 80's but two called Brighton Rock are too clean to even compare and too thin. Thing is I know what he's sound is but can't touch it. Best one I ever got was on my HD500 that was the closest. I know his tone is almost impossible but surely the gain bit would be the easiest.

This is not a dig by the way, I'm just frustrated that with a million EVH and Brown Sound patches, these sound miles away from the tone he has.
 
I have never found a convincing tone or been able to create one sadly. I have even tried putting a fryer treble booster in front of an AC30 model plus cab of 2 x Blue alnicos - not close.
I use a Deacy amp / TB and mic it. Or my AC30 amp
I still my Axe Fx2 though....for everything else.

Check out my friends site this gear really does emulate Brian's tones.

https://www.doxyworld.com





Www.theprudes.com
 
Cheers mate, bit disappointed really but then again his profile has dropped over the years but love his tone, just so hard to nail....or even get close
 
i think so much depends on his pickups and the sixpence. i got a passable tone a few weeks ago when i was messing about (just out of curiosity). i used the treble boost with level on 10, into the class-a 30w with everything on default, except input drive, which was on 10. i ran that into a stereo cab with "2x12 class-a tom's mix left" in one slot and "2x12 class-a tom's mix right" in the other. i have the boost switch in the amp tied to a switch so i can turn it on for solos. i sounds good enough that i could get away with it on a gig if we did a queen tune (which was basically my goal). i know forum member "aircadet" is in a queen tribute band, so maybe he's had more luck dialling something in....worth asking him, perhaps?
 
Simeon I'm straight on the case mate, I'll try your settings. Ha ha the sixpence! Now I know the problem, I was using a £5 note! Only joking no I know the sixpence is key but even his sustain and tone when notes are ringing out..then I'll use a 10p..if I can afford it. Cheers mate
 
I have a Red Special Super and a lot of sixpence- Fractal just cannot replicate this tone. Brian plays clean and dirty all off the volume pot and fully open the treble booster compresses the signal into creamy lead tones - at 1 or 2 it's clean as a bell. As I own about the nearest real gear to Brian (Only a Guyton guitar is closer but still has same pick ups) I know the tone close up.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
For what it's worth, this is how I got a tone close to the early BM tone, bear in mind, this kinda worked for me, my guitars, my playing style and, let's not forget, my ears. So result May (pun intented) vary...

I took the Bohemian Rhapsody preset, maxed out the pick attack control and increased the harshness of the amp. Then I took a metal pick, set my guitar (a 5 way switch HB-SC-HB) in the middle-neck position and started to fiddle around with the toneknob on my guitar only to discover that leaving it more or less halfway gave the best results. Then I started to try diffrent mikes in the CAB block. Depending on your guitar you might want to try adding a PEQ block in the beginning of your chain, there's so much you can achieve by pre-EQing your signal. Try boosting the mids and keep the Q kinda narrow.

Just my two cents...
 
Here´s a recording - One Vision, which I did last year with FW 14 or 13 (can´t remember exaktly).

Two Rhytmguitars Stereo panned with Humbucker and Splithumbucker on Strat.

USB-Tonematch + 2x12 Silver Cab, AC 30 + Treble Boost + Phaser Stereo Stage in front of amp.

I´m shure, this can also be done much better with FW 19beta2 and the new drives.....



Only the Rhythm:

 
If you are not currently using some sort of metallica pick I would give one a try, you can really hear it escpecially on the rhythm parts in One Vision.
 
Hubi thats awesome mate, although I prefer his earlier sound to the processed chorus heavy sound at Wembley, but I love it all. Cheers mate. Is that in the Axe Exchange?
 
Ahmed Badreldin said:
Hubi thats awesome mate, although I prefer his earlier sound to the processed chorus heavy sound at Wembley, but I love it all. Cheers mate. Is that in the Axe Exchange?
Click to expand...

No, it isn´t. It was my own test to reach a Queen-ton for my Livesound.

But I have to make it new in this final 19-Firmware - so I can it on Exchange - if you like. Or the old Preset..........
 
I play in a queen tribute & have done for about 15years but never owned a vox. I think it's more about feel & vibe than anything. In my axe I use matchless 30 for cleans & AC 30 with drive in front, both going into vox cab. I get people all the time telling me I nailed the sound which makes me laugh as I just try to get in the ball park & depend on my playing. Biggest part to me is the vox cab.
 
An old thread.

But I just watched Queen back in the 80's on MTV Live, and holy schnikey, Brian May had glorious tone there. I wouldn't begin to figure out how to accomplish this outside of the standard AC30, Treble booster. And that guitar is like a NASA panel, how does he keep track of all that stuff?

I'm sure it COULD be done in the Axe...but it would take a much stronger hand at preset construction than I.

And I will state that he's possibly one of the most underrated guitarists in a long time. His command over the instrument, and the wildly varying FX that he employs masterfully is...impressive.
 
kgk said:
Didn't he use a VOX AC30 or something?
Click to expand...
Not to sound like too much of a jerk, but did you read the thread at all? Pretty much every post mentioned the AC-30 :)

I'm not a super Queen fan but I am familiar with a fair bit of the music and like a lot of it... But I have subscribed to several guitar magazines for 20+ years and so have read a number of interviews and articles. It's also pretty well known that a lot of what he recorded was done with a custom built Deacy amp which I think was so named because it is DC powered.
 
Without snarkyness.

From memory, I thought John Deacon's brother built the treble booster Deacy (or was it John?) and modded his AC30's for his distinctive sound (without research, I kind of remember BM removed all the non-top boost stuff from his amps), and the signal was more about a single, pure, overdriven tone that worked well with his guitar (that was heavily designed to work well with the amp).

Regardless, have you looked at the intellectual qualifications of the band? Again, from memory, they have serious degree's. Done AFTER they were well known and did not need the 'backup' of an education.

An interesting, and very non-standard band.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom