"Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

[IanBallard]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

Didn't Seymour do winding for Might Mite in the 70's?

[Jakek5150]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

Here's something to consider: If tone is in the fingers, how does one go about getting EVH's fingers?

[MetalManiac]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

Here's something to consider: If tone is in the fingers, how does one go about getting EVH's fingers?

Tone isn't in the fingers. the fingers can't put anything in the equipment that isn't already there. Of course, someone can utilize that tone more effectively or at least differently than someone else does by the way they play. If you wanna use that foolish extrapolation of sound theory "tone is in the fingers" , you might as well just say "tone is in the stones".

[IanBallard]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

FWIW, I've heard a GAZILLION attempts at playing EVH licks and songs on YouTube from every Boo-teek guy who builds a Plexi clone or people trying every "VH" pickup out there. Many of them sound great and are DAMN close. The best ones, are people who "get it" when it comes to the way he mutes, releases and picks. Whether they are using a '59, a '78, Super Distortion or whatever, all those pickups can get you in the ballpark, if you are playing the songs correctly and getting close to the way he approaches it, technique-wise. This is why the "which pickup did he use on VH1" argument is silly.

Honestly, I can only play a handful of Van Halen riffs and ZERO songs all the way through... maybe "Ain't Talkin'..." but that's only two chords. But getting THAT sound, requires some serious attention to palm muting and proper release of the notes. This is particularly true with "Somebody Get Me a Doctor". The riff is simple... just A pentatonic stuff with a little "sus" in there. But getting THAT tight mute/release after the scratching in between chords is HARD. That's what is so cool about Eddie. He's not doing rocket science, Berklee theory acrobatics up there... most of the Roth stuff is just pentatonic licks but getting that stuff to sound like Ed... fogettaboudit!!!

[MetalManiac]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

F
Honestly, I can only play a handful of Van Halen riffs and ZERO songs all the way through... maybe "Ain't Talkin'..." but that's only two chords. But getting THAT sound, requires some serious attention to palm muting and proper release of the notes.

Thats actully the best argument for "tone is in the fingers" Ive heard; when you put it that way, tone IS in the fingers sort of..not really, I mean not literally, the tone is all there in the instrument and amp, but figureatively, yeah,

[Ed Hunter]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

Didn't Seymour do winding for Might Mite in the 70's?

that has been said but never confimed?

[Ed Hunter]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

FWIW, I've heard a GAZILLION attempts at playing EVH licks and songs on YouTube from every Boo-teek guy who builds a Plexi clone or people trying every "VH" pickup out there. Many of them sound great and are DAMN close. The best ones, are people who "get it" when it comes to the way he mutes, releases and picks. Whether they are using a '59, a '78, Super Distortion or whatever, all those pickups can get you in the ballpark, if you are playing the songs correctly and getting close to the way he approaches it, technique-wise. This is why the "which pickup did he use on VH1" argument is silly.

Honestly, I can only play a handful of Van Halen riffs and ZERO songs all the way through... maybe "Ain't Talkin'..." but that's only two chords. But getting THAT sound, requires some serious attention to palm muting and proper release of the notes. This is particularly true with "Somebody Get Me a Doctor". The riff is simple... just A pentatonic stuff with a little "sus" in there. But getting THAT tight mute/release after the scratching in between chords is HARD. That's what is so cool about Eddie. He's not doing rocket science, Berklee theory acrobatics up there... most of the Roth stuff is just pentatonic licks but getting that stuff to sound like Ed... fogettaboudit!!!

yeah no one will ever sound exactly like him, he could play any pup,amp,guitar and it is always going to be the trademark VH style.
ed was/is a tone chaser but that never stopped him from playing his guitar as much as he could. back when he was first starting it has been said he played as many as 12 hours a day. i dont know many that can say that they play that much each day. but unless you are a prodigy thats what it takes. not what pup or amp you use

[Ed Hunter]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

Here's something to consider: If tone is in the fingers, how does one go about getting EVH's fingers?

by playing 12 hours a day every day! the guy i posted playing a$99 squier bullett loaded with a POS pup should be a lesson to us all that it is not the gear it is the player

[WhoFan]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

you guys should read the little article in the new Guitar World on Van Halens Ibanez Destoryer and VH1.... it's the issue with Randy Rhoads on the cover... shows a photo of the Destroyer from the Starwood December 1977 after Ed had painted it white... this was before he cut the piece out and painted silver and red...

it has strat knobs on it... they say in the article the chrome covered humbuckers look stock Ibanez... the end result of the article is they say half of VH 1 was recorded with this guitar and the tone on the album is not the result of a magic PAF in the Frankie...

of note in that mag they also talk about Randy Rhoads using a Variac on his Marshalls as well to lower the voltage to 92...

[WhoFan]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

another article i was reading on Marshall was interesting... they say the JCM 800 line was a result of watching what various mods were being done to Marshalls... and then the 900 line was again watching what more popular mods players were doing to the 800's... LOL... makes me wonder if any of these mods were from the VH camp...

[WhoFan]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

and 3rd note is i read an article about Ed borrowing a destroyer off another LA player for other early VH sessions since he destroyed his... LOL

[MetalManiac]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

and 3rd note is i read an article about Ed borrowing a destroyer off another LA player for other early VH sessions since he destroyed his... LOL

Congrats..hope your findings impel you onward to have an interest in this fascinating subject.
I think the only way we will truly know is to strap Ed down and shoot him with truth serum, and even then, I doubt he'd remember nuthin' from his alcohol fueled drug crazed youth.
Those things you wrote are pretty much de rigeuer tip of the iceberg common knowledge for people getting into this stuff. I must have done 40 hours research on this by now.
The Ibby destroyer was used on all Vh-1 not requiring tremolo, and the stock pickups are generally accepted as Super70's A8's. Some even think thats what Ed transferred to his Boogie Strat for the rest of it.
The Destroyer was said by Ed to be Korina, but Ibanez never made a Korina 'Splorer". Its accepted that the Exploere was a wood called "Sen", the equivalent of a japanese cheaper -in-price furniture grade wood called Japanese Ash that has warmer
Limba-esque properties.
( see, I pulled this all outta my a**- I told you I researched all this backwards and forwards)

[pittbull]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

All the songs on Van halen 1 that didnt have any tremolo were done with the destoyer,songs that did have tremolo were done with the original frankie.

[Ed Hunter]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

and 3rd note is i read an article about Ed borrowing a destroyer off another LA player for other early VH sessions since he destroyed his... LOL

he borrowed that other destroyer from chris holmes the guitarist in WASP

[Ed Hunter]

Re: "Seymour Duncan Special Van halen pickup 1979"

heres a good VH tone

http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=6822593