Marshall Major...so, let's build our own... (S03E01: Axe-FX III edition)

[Piing]

This is Season III, Chapter 1 of the thread initiated by @xarkon :

https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/no-marshall-major-so-lets-build-our-own.83791/

I have created a patch for the Axe-FX III using some of the excelent tips from the contributors on that thread.

Playing a Strat with a Seymour Duncan SSL-5 on the bridge and Fender CS Fat '50 on the neck.
The preset contains 4 Scenes with different Marshall combinations and 4 with AC30 experiments. My favorite so far is #4

I've used the song "Waster Sunsets" as a reference. Not exactly there, but it doesn't sound too bad. Lets' continue from here

I am using the CAB "OH 412 MAR H-PR-55 SS Live-Vint" (from the Ownhammer Studio Mix Collection) on User1 #191. I would like to hear other CAB suggestions. IR's are a rabbit hole for me.

ps:
Other threads on Blackmore and the Marshall Major:
https://forum.fractalaudio.com/thre...-tone-is-this-attainable-with-axe-fx-2.40515/
https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/do-you-want-a-marshall-major-in-the-axe-fx-ii.73388/

 

[unix-guy]

I really like Wasted Sunsets, and actually the whole Perfect Strangers album.

But my understanding was that Blackmore primarily used AC30s in the studio and the Marshalls were reserved for live playing.

I'm far from a Blackmore expert... So I'm happy to be enlightened

 

[JoKeR III]

There's an interview floating around in which Blackmore supposedly says that Marshall couldn't quite get the tone he was looking for so for live amps they put the AC30 in a Marshall cabinet.

Wouldn't be the first time anyone actually used something different than was seen on stage.

 

[xarkon]

Thanks Piing! I look forward to trying it out.

As regards what amps were used on albums and live, there's a lot of misinformation, much of it from Blackmore, who is reputed to enjoy winding up interviewers. I'll write more later - have read Blackmore's bio (by Jerry Bloom) and most of the Deep Purple bios, as well as every Blackmore interview I can find - but some generalities as follows:

- Blackmore's AC30 (non-Top Boost, Greenbacks or something similar) with a Hornsby-Skewes treble booster probably was used on nearly every studio album for Mk I and Mk II Deep Purple

- The ES-335 (w/Bigsby) was the guitar for Mk I and is on In Rock and perhaps some Fireball tracks; Strat after that. (There's a whole web page devoted to Blackmore's Strats and pickups; I'll link it later when I have more time.)

- Made in Japan is the Marshall Majors; Dawk Stilwell, who was Ritchie's tech for several years, made that statement on his web forum (sadly no longer available as Dawk passed away unexpectedly a few years ago)

- There are photos from various gigs of the AC30 inside a Marshall cab. How this might have been configured isn't clear - I've read both that it was miked directly and others say the preamp out was used to drive the Marshall.

- Some or all of the Rainbow albums may be the Majors; I would have to go re-read quite a bit of stuff - e.g. there are comments that they were set up in the studio for the recordings and used.

- The Major was modified by Dawk - a few times - probably the main change was to add another preamp gain stage, though this may have later been removed

- Ritchie started using the Aiwa tape recorder as a booster for the Major, probably around Mark III or maybe Rainbow (can't recall for certain)

- Engl has a signature amp for Ritchie; it's a 100w head. Never played one, as I have little use for that much power and don't want to mess around with big cabinets anymore.

- In Blackmore's Night, he's using a smaller Engl combo. The tone is pretty excellent, IMHO:



More later.

 

[Piing]

Some related threads:
http://www.woodytone.com/2009/04/20/ritchie-blackmores-tone-and-more-part-1/
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/i...p-to-capture-ritchie-blackmores-tone.1778461/
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/ritchie-blackmore-tone.738301/
https://www.guitarworld.com/artists...ep-purple-years-and-a-rocking-rainbow-revival
https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/art..._the_link_between_hendrix_and_van_halen-62045

I've read somewhere that the Perfect Strangers album was recorded with full cranked Marshalls inside a room; he recorded several takes of the solos, and let the engineer select his choices. They also say that he played with the pickup switch, even while playing the same note during a solo. But with this guy everything is uncertain. Wasted Sunsets solo doesn't sound like a full-cranked Marshall, anyway. It is more subtle. Perhaps a full-cranked AC30? I am going to try it now

 

[electronpirate]

Huge fan.

I've chased this a few times, and been close. The Marshall seemed to work the best for the most part, but that intro to 'Highway Star' screams AC30.

I think that it's tough to do since his fingers do so much of the work. RB is one of the most underrated guitarists of this time IMO. If you watch this video, it's ugly, clearly all sorts of chemical/booze/whatever involved in the performance (messy! woo!), but you can see what input he's using, some strange small cable into one of the Marshalls, and that he bounces all over the place with the PUP selector.



You can't tell with this guy, it's like he gets bored after every riff, so changes PUP. All I did for the most part was keep gain low, dial up B+, crank mids, and zero (or almost) bass. There were some moments where I used the Marshall and AC30 in parallel that came close as well.

But, without the guitar, and those fingers, I was content to get 'close'.

R

 

[Piing]

Hey! At 8:40 he is playing some Jazz

The scalloped neck is another plus. Now I am scalloping the neck of a MIM Fender Deluxe.

Chapter 2: The Phaser.

Wasted Sunsets solo has a Phaser. Here is another take with fully-cranked AC30 (scene 8). Channels A to C of the phaser are different experiments.

 

[unix-guy]

Some related threads:
http://www.woodytone.com/2009/04/20/ritchie-blackmores-tone-and-more-part-1/
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/i...p-to-capture-ritchie-blackmores-tone.1778461/
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/ritchie-blackmore-tone.738301/
https://www.guitarworld.com/artists...ep-purple-years-and-a-rocking-rainbow-revival
https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/art..._the_link_between_hendrix_and_van_halen-62045

I've read somewhere that the Perfect Strangers album was recorded with full cranked Marshalls inside a room; he recorded several takes of the solos, and let the engineer select his choices. They also say that he played with the pickup switch, even while playing the same note during a solo. But with this guy everything is uncertain. Wasted Sunsets solo doesn't sound like a full-cranked Marshall, anyway. It is more subtle. Perhaps a full-cranked AC30? I am going to try it now

A couple years back I came across a very nice Blackmore sounding tone while just noodling around (totally unintended). It was using the AC20 Bass model...

 

[Piing]

Six different Marshall flavors. Based on the Mistreated intro at the Made in Japan album (first clean notes with the neck pup, vol rolled down, then roll up for the riff). Strat with Fender CS Fat'50

Volumes of all the scenes may not be matched. Needs some adjustments, but the raw tone is there. I still don't know which one is my favorite.

BTW: I've loaded the old preset that I shared at the OP, and it sounds so bad It must be the FW version