If Cream-era Clapton had a Vintage Modern ...

Postby **jsegovia** » 13 Jan 2009, 10:19

He'd probably put it in Low range and dime the Master Volume, right? What would he do with the preamp controls?

I've read Clapton dimed all the EQ controls of his JTMs. Are the EQ controls of the VM similar to those of an old JTM? I could dime all the EQ knobs of my JCM800 2203 combo and it sounded great - big and full - but from my experience you can't do that on a DSL or TSL. Those controls are so alive it's almost like they're active - it's just too much of everything to turn them up much past 12 o'clock.

I just set my VM on Low, dimed the Master Volume and both preamp controls and played around with the tone knobs and tried the Mid boost in and out with my LP Custom. I get sort of a cold, harsh distortion - it reminds me a lot of my JCM800 with everything except Master Volume dimed and that at around 9:00 o'clock. To my ears it cries out for an overdrive pedal or *something* to push it into crunchy Marshall heaven - it sounds nothing to my ears like Cream. It does clean up amazingly well just rolling the volume off to 7 or 8.

But doing that changed all my old settings, and in trying to get back where I was I ended up in High range with Mid boost in, Bass and Mid dimed with EQ and Treble at twelve o'clock with the Body dimed and Detail at noon. Wow, I got another new, great tone out of this amp! It sounds to me like the VERY nice rthythm tone Alex Lifeson gets on mid-era Rush tracks like 'Red Barchetta.' I can't wait to try these settings with my band this Saturday. I LOVE this amp!

Jesse

Postby **lukemc** » 13 Jan 2009, 10:54

definetly use the high range with the master really high and the pre amps set low but high enough to get that fat smooth woman lead tone with your tone knob on 3.

Postby **surfnorthwest** » 13 Jan 2009, 11:05

There are many collectors that would love to have those old Cream amps.

Postby **coldsteal2** » 16 Jan 2009, 19:14

surfnorthwest wrote:There are many collectors that would love to have those old Cream amps.

I being one of them!

Postby **lukemc** » 17 Jan 2009, 02:37

Clapton still owns at least one of them.
maybe he goes home after every gig and hugs his marshall & apologises for using his Fender style amp.

Postby **Onza_Jk** » 17 Jan 2009, 03:02

lukemc wrote:Clapton still owns at least one of them.
maybe he goes home after every gig and hugs his marshall & apologises for using his Fender style amp.

lol :P

Postby **SteveD** » 17 Jan 2009, 04:25

lukemc wrote:Clapton still owns at least one of them.

I'd be surprised if he did otherwise he would probably have used it at the reunion shows.

I don't think Eric is that precious about his past amplification, he's used many different brands over the years.

Postby **lukemc** » 17 Jan 2009, 04:40

I'd be surprised if he did otherwise he would probably have used it at the reunion shows.

I read in a guitar magazine that when they visited the Cornell workshop(his new amp manufacturer) one of his JTM45/100's was getting serviced apparently.
once again dont beleive anythnig you read in papers/magazines however.

he also still had the ES-335 when they reunited didnt he? he didnt use that either.

Postby **jsegovia** » 17 Jan 2009, 07:54

lukemc wrote:
he also still had the ES-335 when they reunited didnt he? he didnt use that either.

Hadn't he already auctioned it off to Guitar Center by then?

I saw a bit of the reunion show on PBS (the only good thing about public television, IMO, is when they play rock shows), and although they sang and played well, much better than a lot of reunion bands, I just couldn't get into Clapton's funky Strat tone on Cream songs. Even when he cranked it up and played through the neck pickup for 'Sunshine of your Love' it just wasn't right.

I believe he had a Leslie speaker onstage for that show. Which songs featured the Leslie?

Jesse

Postby **coldsteal2** » 18 Jan 2009, 02:58

Its the combination of Strat and Fender amp that sounds so wimpy, we all know a strat can kick major
butt on a Marshall.

Les Paul and Fender amp sound good, but fender and fender, to wimpy

Postby **SteveD** » 18 Jan 2009, 03:01

I believe that preamp in his guitar gives a healthy mid boost to get him into humbucker territory.

Postby **coldsteal2** » 18 Jan 2009, 03:06

SteveD wrote:I believe that preamp in his guitar gives a healthy mid boost to get him into humbucker territory.

I have one on one of my strats and its very fat sounding through my VM,
Eric needs a VM!

Postby **snatch** » 18 Jan 2009, 07:06

fender guitar and fender amp sounds to wimpy? i dont think there is anything wimpy about stevie ray vaughns tone. and he used a strat with single coils. i have an american deluxe fat strat that has a humbucker in the bridge and it has never sounded wimpy through anything ive ever played through. actually it is almost to powerful sometimes and can be a little heavy on the bottom end

Postby **coldsteal2** » 19 Jan 2009, 18:17

Im talking comparing the sound Clapton had in Cream to the sound he has now
which is wimpy compared to his old sound, not Fenders through Fenders in general

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60Mskdg5_HA

compared to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KduxC-rafTE

Postby **surfnorthwest** » 19 Jan 2009, 20:34

Im talking comparing the sound Clapton had in Cream to the sound he has now
which is wimpy compared to his old sound, not Fenders through Fenders in general

Nice save dude' :lol:

If Cream-era Clapton had a Vintage Modern ...

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