AC/DC

[AX17609]

Originally Posted by tinnitus

Sometime back in the 1990s, I thumbed through a guitar magazine detailing the complicated processors that some BIG rock star guitarists use to get their signature sounds onstage and in the studio. We've all seen them at concerts - besides extensive pedal boards, they're those 3-4 foot tall vertical racks of components glowing with little colored power lights and meters. The schematic descriptions of some player's signal chains took up entire pages in the mag, and I understood maybe half of what I read.

Angus Young was the last on the list:
Gibson SG guitar, 20' cable, Marshall amplifier.

I agree. That's all you need. Substitute a Les Paul if you have to, but the SG will get it done just fine. And there's no substitute for an old school Marshall.

[Scott O]

Originally Posted by DavidE

Not hard to do at that time. I saw Golden Earring blow them off the stage around that time.

I've heard the same thing about Guns n Roses blowing Aerosmith off the stage when they opened for them. Wait, what's this thread about again?

[Ozzy the dog]

Originally Posted by Scott O

I've heard the same thing about Guns n Roses blowing Aerosmith off the stage when they opened for them. Wait, what's this thread about again?

To bring it back on track, I saw Axle Rose fill in for Brian Johnson. He had a pot leg on at the time as he'd been previously blown off stage.

[Pura Vida]

Originally Posted by Dirk Hofman

Thanks for the tip! The opening riff sounds very Malcolm. As a youth they were one of my all-time favorite bands, and still are with the old stuff. They lost me after "For Those About To Rock" for the most part, occasional awesome song like "Thunderstruck" aside.

Malcolm is one of my favorite guitarists of all time, and my favorite rhythm player ever. Losing him and EVH in such a short time is sad.

I gotta say though, watching some old videos on YouTube as a man in my 50's, what an odd group of little dudes. But they sure knew how to rock it. For me they were never the same after Bon Scott died. Probably the only rock star death that actually affected me, I remember to this day where I was and who I was with when I found out he died. Super bummed. But again, watching him perform live now, they're just an odd crew. Interesting.

Anyway, thanks again for the tip and the trip down memory lane.

As a rhythm-focused guitarist, while guitarists were flocking to become the next Eddie or Angus, I was hanging back and appreciating the amazing work that Malcolm Young created for AC/DC's catalog.

And I totally agree with you about preferring the Bon Scott jangly, rockin', bluesy, garage band era. I've never been a Brian Johnson fan, so I never bothered to see them live until 2015 (sadly, after Malcolm had retired from the band). The rest of the band was solid, but Angus' energy blew me away.

Originally Posted by hairpuller

Saw them open for Aerosmith in ('77?) at the Long Beach Arena.

Let's just say they kicked Aerosmitih big time!

Never owned an album, but to this day I still love that Angus tone!!

scott

Originally Posted by Scott O

I've heard the same thing about Guns n Roses blowing Aerosmith off the stage when they opened for them. Wait, what's this thread about again?

I saw GnR right before they exploded, and then again a few months later, opening for Aerosmith. There was a mutual respect on that tour. GnR stole the show, but we could see Slash and Duff hanging on the side of the stage, head bobbing to "Toys In The Attic." They wisely disappeared by the time the power ballads made it into the set.

I saw GnR twice more: infamous 1992 stadium tour w/ Faith No More and Metallica and then the reunion show in 2016. The 2016 show was perhaps the best set I've ever seen them play, and Angus came out and performed "Whole Lotta Rosie" and "Riff Raff" with them! I actually enjoyed Axl's AC/DC vocals better than Johnson's... he's much closer to Bon Scott's vocal style.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by Scott O

I've heard the same thing about Guns n Roses blowing Aerosmith off the stage when they opened for them. Wait, what's this thread about again?

I saw Guns 'n Roses open for Iron Maiden in 1988. This was before Sweet Child o Mine became a hit and they were still relatively unknown. They played great but by no way did they blow Maiden off the stage (fantastic concert and stage show).

I think this thread is about open acts blowing the main act off the stage .

[Pura Vida]

I don't know very many bands that could even compete with Iron Maiden's live shows.

[ghostnote]

On a technical level, that AC/DC rhythm sound is easy to get: humbuckers and a cranked Marshall, as noted several times. But on a practical level, who has the space and isolation to crank a big Marshall up to ten? Pretty much nobody, which is one big reason why that tone is so fabulous - hardly anyone can actually do it in the real world, so when we hear it, it's just too cool.
Excuse me, I'm gonna go put the Back In Black album on the big stereo now...

[tinnitus]

Originally Posted by ghostnote

On a technical level, that AC/DC rhythm sound is easy to get: humbuckers and a cranked Marshall, as noted several times. But on a practical level, who has the space and isolation to crank a big Marshall up to ten? Pretty much nobody, which is one big reason why that tone is so fabulous - hardly anyone can actually do it in the real world, so when we hear it, it's just too cool.
Excuse me, I'm gonna go put the Back In Black album on the big stereo now...

Which (not to veer too far off course, and then only for a moment), leads us to Eddie Van Halen's serendipitous discovery of a cranked Marshall amp with a non-decapitating Variac (Variable AC) power source. Dimed tube amps sound great - if you can handle the pressure.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by tinnitus

Which (not to veer too far off course, and then only for a moment), leads us to Eddie Van Halen's serendipitous discovery of a cranked Marshall amp with a non-decapitating Variac (Variable AC) power source. Dimed tube amps sound great - if you can handle the pressure.

+1. Eddie was an innovator - not just with his playing technique but also getting the best out of his 'tools' by modding them. I'm guessing some guitarists damaged amps by using a variac trying to emulate the brown sound.