DESCRIPTION:
***UPDATED CLIPS***
Here I show you how to get the *real* Eddie Van Halen 1st album brown sound.
READ FURTHER BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH THE VIDEO (click on the "show more" below).

Here's a side-by-side comparison clip with Ed's original album tone on the left and my tone on the right:

- Runnin' With The Devil (Ed on the left, me on the right)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiYW16ZEJoZVdOSXc/view?usp=sharing


Here's a couple clips using my guitar with the original backing tracks:

- Feel Your Love Tonight
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiWm9YNHBTTzNGTUU/view?usp=sharing

- You Really Got Me
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFidUVnSV9wbEVZTzQ/view?usp=sharing


Here's more newer clips just for fun:

- On Fire
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiTXNldXBYbEhhY0U/view?usp=sharing

- Atomic Punk
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiSE9GYWwxVGhoWmc/view?usp=sharing

- Mean Street
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiSFdPSDlEaVl4NFU/view?usp=sharing

- Light Up The Sky
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiNmZaa0d3UXY0NFE/view?usp=sharing


Here's the obligatory "Unchained" clip:

- Unchained (Ed on the left, me on the right)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6fVBUL3SmFiX3V1TzVOcllLTkU/view?usp=sharing


FYI's:

This is the album tone; this isn't "jam tone" or "live tone"... it isn't some Ed clone plugging in and playing Ed riffs and claiming that the tone coming off the speaker "sounds exactly like Eddie!" without a single ISO reference track... like so many do. I did some mild EQing as well as echo chamber and panning here. Aside from a little speaker EQ curve tweaking (which I have figured out at this point now), it's very close... for the album tone. And not a single OD/dist pedal was used. Listen to the clips!

Anyone who does any serious recording knows that the guitar tone that ends up on the album is usually different than what you're hearing by the speaker cab; recorded tone is typically an illusion.
It may sound great in the room, but what matters is how it sounds in the mix. The guitar must sit within the mix correctly and this usually means some EQing/notching/etc... The real test is to put your tone side-by-side to Ed's album tone... in the same clip. Then you'll see just how close or far you really are. You *must* use a real-time reference (ISOs are great) for accurate comparison (I've provided one in my case).

The above is what particular clowns over at Metroamp.com forums can't get through their thick skulls; repeated here by Dave Friedman:

"Now also remember the original had 2 different speakers on it blended. You hear a lot of engineering on the albums its not really what came out of eds amp exactly."

...and here:

"You guys are chasing a ghost. So much is the recording and his hands. None of you are replicating the post eq from mic pre's or the tape or reverb chamber etc. there is so much to it and yet it is so simple. Have fun."

Keep in mind I am achieving this using not a single period-correct piece of gear. In fact, the speaker I mic'd is a '67 Oxford. By following the 3 prerequisites, you'll be very close yourself. The rest is fine tuning and studio work.

I intentionally used a particular amount/type of reverb on my voice (guitar playing too) as a homage of sorts to the famous Sunset Studio Echo Chamber; those in the know will recognize it. The actual effect used is the Waves iR-1 Full w/ Sunset Studios Chamber impulses.

Also, I am not playing actual VH riffs in the vid due to YouTube's copyright policies. I attempted to sound "Halenesque" without blatant copying; not as easy as it sounds when you're playing off the top of your head. If you want to hear actual VH riffs with my guitar, check out the aforementioned audio clips.

Due to some not paying attention throughout the vid, here's the actual rig rundown. Some people think I run my signal through every piece of gear seen in the vid. However, I do not use *all* of the equipment that is visible in the video as the camera pans around, only certain parts (as I explain step-by-step):

Guitar (A5 PAF ~8.9K)
|
Badgerplex Trilogy (true EP3 preamp)
|
Variac'd Marshall (slaved; slaving is purely optional)
|
Suhr ISO Line Out Box
|
MXR Smart Gate
|
Strymon El Capistan (one repeat)
|
'67 Fender Deluxe
|
SM57 mic
|
UA LA610MkII tube mic preamp
|
DAW

Now, if I had a set of those old G12M20s and JBLs... (hint hint)



Recorded audio clips for this episode found below:

LLLG&AE EP02 Brown Sound 1:
http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=12...

LLLG&AE EP02 Brown Sound 2:
http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=12...

LLLG&AE EP02 Brown Sound 3:
http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=12...