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He had different tones offer the years... but he often has that very consistent overdriven tone on electric guitars that sounds like it has no attack and almost eternal sustain... it does not decay.
Sometimes he sounds like it is a bowed instrument because it does not lose intensity and he often cuts it abruptly.
I read some article but am not much of a rig guy... what is it about mainly? Compression, overdrive, some synth maybe?
Here he plays an archtop and still sounds like on one of his PRS
John McLaughlin: Straight No Chaser (Thelonious Monk) - YouTubeLast edited by Jonah; 01-25-2022 at 01:35 PM.
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01-25-2022 01:11 PM
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Well this is the photo on his website equipment page:
https://www.johnmclaughlin.com/equipment/
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Yes, thank you I saw that.. but without much of experience I could not figure out what benifites more into the qualities I mentioned.
I once occasionally bought old Tube Screamer which I liked... but never used a lot... then I bought a guitar and the guy said he quit music and gave me some stuff he had with the guitar for free - there was some distortion pedal (it was cheap one I do not remember the brand even)... but I decided to put them in line: overdrive and distortion - they gave somewhat similar effect together...
overdrive added fullness and warmth and distortion gave some more evenness: compression, sustain and support..
maybe there is sort of that thing there in that rig - just on the level of sophistication)
PS
One of the guys I know once saw my Tube Screamer, he said: who plays Tube Screamer today? You should get another overdrive... I never was so sensitive about these things to distinguish them to such an extent that goes beyond whether I just like it or not...
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I believe he went direct into a laptop during the Johnny Smith Archtop days. Later he’s gone direct with the pedals pictured above photo.
He doesn’t carry an amp since his earlier days say 1990 or so.
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No good asking me, I haven’t a clue what any of those funny little boxes are or what they do.
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Pedal boards are killing music.
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I do, I have a Korg Pitch-black tuner like that one. The others I have no clue.
Originally Posted by grahambop
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He has overdrives, a chorus and delays on that board. One can use those pedals to create a sound that sustains endlessly. The trick is dialing them in for a particular sound and figuring out the right order in the signal chain.
I have not had a fusion gig in over a decade, but I still own an overdrive pedal (Fulltone OCD) and a Chorus Pedal (TC Electronics Stereo Chorus plus) just in case I get a call for a fusion or blues gig (which is probably not very likely at this point in any case). Running my guitar through both pedals with just a little processing from each pedal does create a clean sound with a lot of sustain. While that is a pretty cool trick for certain single note lines, when using that sound, chords are muddier than a hiking trail after a big rainstorm.
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That is just plain scary. Originally Posted by grahambop
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“No one plays a TS” ... they are probably the most clones pedal out there. The vast majority of boutique pedal builders has a version of a TS. I have number of TS, but I am pretty sure my Earthquaker Plumes is a TS type pedal. That pedal is super sweet.
I think there is more “fusion” out there then we think there is. It has to do with how the word is defined. Things never really go away. They just ebb and flow. Music has an interesting way of
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I can’t stand cliffhanger endings.
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Do you wanna see something REALLY scary ? Originally Posted by Marty Grass
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Have you ever seen Joe Walsh's pedalboard? Or Nels Cline's? John's is minimalist compared to theirs.
I like John's recent albums quite a lot, but I can't help but wish he had played a regular old archtop with minimal overdrive on some of the tracks so we could hear each note more clearly.
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I agree with playing his Johnny Smith or similar and less overdrive,especially since he plays with such amazing technique already.
I get traveling with a small guitar makes sense, but I really dislike the PRS tone he uses. It seems quite mid heavy and nasally to my ears. But John McGlaughlin is so good it’s a minor quibble,Lol!
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I saw him 3 times between about 72 and 74. A big component of the sound then was volume. Lots of volume driven sustain. They were loud.
I love John, but I've had to work around his 'sound' to varying degrees. I saw the tour with Santana. Devadip blew Mahavishnu right off the stage due to his far better (to me anyway) tone. John has playing thru a fridge sized Acoustic solid state with the white bull-horn in it. Super mud. It was frustrating since I was there to see him, not the other guy!
Carlos had this tiny little amp that I'd never heard of sitting on a metal folding chair. Looked dinky and a bit silly on the big stage, but it sounded clear and truly glorious. It filled the theatre beautifully. I phoned Randal within days of finding out what that amp was. And I always used a chair.
Sorry I got off topic! That clip really brought back some memories. I have to say they were a LOT more impressive live.
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That Zen Drive pedal is wonderful - clean, round, and smooth when adjusted just right. I never bought one when they were readily available and regret it. I use a Wampler Tumnus, which is similar but not quite as smooth. Set properly for the pickups and amp with which they’re used, these pedals do let you control the gain with volume pot and pick attack. Unless it’s set to fuzzy, chords are no muddier than they are through a cranked Champ or Princeton that’s barely into mild breakup. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
The OCD V2 has a “low peak” setting that’s pretty smooth and does the same thing..
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I actually like his tone... on PRS too... that recent record at least.
I am surprised myself... I always admired John but never was a real fan.
And suddenly I really like the tone and the phrasing.
He was very big influence when I was in my teens (late 80s - early 90s) - especially through this collaboration with Al and Paco so I had a few of his recordings... but never really dug it much.
I like his Bill Evans tribute - but not that much his playing but rather overall arrangement and sound
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while we’re there
can anyone help
I’ve been wanting to know this for yonks
what is the device John uses here
for the sustaining poly synth sound
at 0:56
and 6:36 to the end
I know it’s some kind of synth
that he engages with a foot pedal
but what ?
I want one !
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Probably an EHX Freeze, or something similar.
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First thing I thought was Freeze... i do not think it is it. (Did it exist already in 1992?) Originally Posted by grahambop
I think it is some synthesizer... maybe tied up with looper or delay.. basiclaly freeze is delay.
Though probably pingu can try freeze to achieve the same effect... i use it a lot today with a piano pedal as a switch - it works great.
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I don’t believe Freezes etc existed at the Originally Posted by Jonah
time ....
does your freeze sound anything like that youtube clip ?
(none the freeze demos I’ve heard
sound like that ,
that clip sounds like a Prophet 5
.... gorgeous !
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He definitely changes something else... it is not only sustain. Originally Posted by pingu
He does somewhere on 5th minute without sustained.
My idea it is some synth+delay
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Wikipedia says he used a Photon Midi Interface on the Que Alegria album in 1992.
Que Alegria - Wikipedia
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Some more info. in this 1992 interview (he explains how he played that intro to Que Alegria with the synth):
Pages of Fire: Articles: A Continual Process of DiscoveryLast edited by grahambop; 01-28-2022 at 06:20 PM.
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I love John and this is certainly nitpicking, but at this point in my "listening career" I really like a stripped down sound without a lot of effects. Rudy van Gelder approach for instance, similar to John's very early albums. And a more stripped down ensemble.
I quite liked John's work with Joey de Francesco. Now there's a guy who can trade licks with JM.
I'm probably that way with most modern guitarists, with a few exceptions: Pat Metheny, who's going for a conceptual feel on his recent albums, i.e., more soundscapes than riffs, and maybe Ben Monder, just cause I think he has that heavily compressed/sustained tone copyrighted.
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