Effects and Amps used by Third Day?

kenp2600 · #1 12-15-2005, 03:22 PM

I was curious if anyone knows what amps and effects the Third Day guys use. I've been trying to recreate their sound on a few songs (Consuming Fire in particular) and can't quite get it right.

Thanks!

whamonkey · #2 12-15-2005, 09:11 PM

Here Goes:

Brad Avery

Mark Lee

Start saving up those $$.....Vox AC30's are expensive.......

trpullen · #3 12-15-2005, 10:23 PM

We are doing the Third Day "Do You Hear What I Hear?" this week at church....what a band.

whamonkey · #4 12-16-2005, 05:31 AM

I agree there....been following them since around '95 when the "Consuming Fire" single was a giveaway at Family Bookstores. My wife and I saw them perform at a church in Boca Raton, Florida about 7-8 years ago and there were maybe 400-500 people there so it was really cool. The church was packed out and man was the place was jumpin'! Mac actually stopped the show about 3/4 of the way through and gave an invitation for salvation; about 30-40 teens gave their lives to Christ that night.....awesome time!

ryanspeer · #5 12-21-2005, 11:23 AM

I've loved them since their first album came out as well. In my mind, they reached a pinacle with "Time" and "Offerings 1", but I don't think their albums since then have really matched the quality of those two. "Come Together" wasn't bad, but wasn't quite as good as "Time" IMO. I thought "Offerings 2" was a horrific excuse for an album quite frankly - and this from someone who was really excited to hear it, too!

I love a lot of their songs, but as for their tone, I just don't hear anything spectacular in their studio albums. You'd think with the quality of instruments going through the quality of effects and ending up in the quality of amps that they use, you'd be in tonal nirvana, but their studio cuts sound . . . so . . . bland and sterile to me for some reason. Mark's rhythm is generally pretty cool, but it sounds like he relies too much on effects and not enough on his amps. Brad's leads and solos have great creativity, but their don't have this tube-soaked euphoria that I'd want from an LP through a Marshall that's getting pushed by a Keeley Comp and some quality overdrives . . . .

Not sure what the deal is with their tone, but I sure admire their faith!

reags · #6 12-25-2005, 04:43 AM

saw em live jan this year @ hillsong - man they were unreal & mark's PRS hollowbody sounded so great that alot of people I spoke to were amazed at how real it duplicated an acoustic guitar - it was a great concert/worship night to remember =)

here's one of a handful of pics I took on the night

Deadduck · #7 12-27-2005, 02:16 PM

TRPullen,
We started doing "Do You Hear What I Hear" at Christmas in 2003, and is always a crowd pleaser. We did "Manger Throne" this year, and it turned out great. We've done "Theif" around Easter several years, and I often do "Love Song" by myself around Easter. In addition, we do "Sing A Song" now and again in our regular services. I just wish I had Mac Powell's voice!

Kenp2600,
The links above show the latest gear these guys are using, but Consuming Fire was first recorded in 1995 on their debut album and again in 2000 on Offerings, so it was recorded using different equipment than they are using now. Also, most bands record with smaller amps than they tour with to keep the studio sound levels down. Then, after the tracks are laid, the recording engineers go to work and add studio effects to the tracks, things that can't be done in real-time. I've heard ThirdDay several times, and they often don't capture the same sounds that they have on their albums.

I've been following these guys ever since they hit it big, and their gear has changed somewhat over the years. Originally, Mark Lee played Epi SG guitars mainly, and used MXR effects. Not sure on his amp back then. He later switched to PRS guitars, though I've seen him play others as well.
Brad has always mainly played Epiphone Les Pauls, but he usually puts Gibson 57 Classic pups in them. He used to always use a Matchless Cheifton head with cabs. A couple of years ago he was using 4 Epiphone Galaxie 25's with extension cabs. Epi discontinued those amps, so I think he's back to the Matchless now. Brad used to use a Boss Blues Driver and Ibanez Tube Sceamer for drive, Boss Digital Delays and compressor. Looks like from the link above that he's changing his pedalboard out to get a new sound.
I used to have a link that had interviews with the guys showing their pedal boards and amps, but I can no longer find them.