Top: A cosmic trio (left to right): Schecter Stargazer 12-String, Schecter
Hellcat Vl,
Schecter Blackjack Baritone.
Bottom: A 1966 Ampeg B-15N bass amplifier works great for providing
rich low end to baritone and 6-string basses, and also adds body
to electric 12-string guitars, which can easily become too chimey
and shrill. Photos by Paul “TFO” Allen
Dialing in a guitar tone is
a lot like cooking a meal:
Every little ingredient or component
alters the final product, and
you have to make several crucial
choices as you create a dish. Most
of us have a pretty good idea of
how to pull up a good guitar
sound, but sculpting tones for
specialty instruments—like baritone,
6-string bass, and electric
12-string—is a little more elusive.
In this column, I’ll explain some
different qualities I look for in
specialty instruments, beginning
with the 6-string bass.
A 6-string bass, like a Fender
VI or Schecter Hellcat VI, offers
a great way to add a thick layer
of low-end reinforcement to a
riff. Because a 6-string bass is
tuned exactly one octave below
a guitar, you don’t have to mentally
transpose the fretboard. All
the chord shapes, fingerings, and
note names are identical to a
standard guitar—they’re simply
pitched an octave lower.
The Hellcat Vl has Duncan
Designed MH-102 pickups,
which do a great job of translating
both attack and rich lows. A
6-string bass can easily become
“woofy,” so I prefer low-tuned
instruments with pickups that
can be coil-tapped, like the
MH-102s. Coil-tapping the
pickup is a fast way to cut out
unwanted bass frequencies.
Coil-tapping is also a great
option on a baritone guitar, an
instrument that’s typically tuned a
fourth (B-B) or fifth (A-A) lower
than the guitar. My Schecter
Blackjack Baritone sports a pair
of Seymour Duncan pickups,
which deliver a nice variety of
tones. The ’59 series pickup in the
bridge position is huge sounding
for high-octane rock, but when
it’s coil-tapped I can also get tic-tac
bass tones that work really
well for old-time cowboy music.
Amps are another big factor
in the specialty instrument tone
equation. After experimenting with
many guitar heads, bass heads,
bass cabinets, and guitar cabinets,
I’ve settled on a 1966 Ampeg
B-15N bass head and a 2x12
Mesa/Boogie Lonestar cabinet for
low-tuned specialty instruments.
What usually stops me from
using a bass head for baritones
and 6-string basses is that most
bass amps are very high powered—
which means they generally
stay clean unless you push them
to extreme levels. The B-15 was
designed to be a bass amp, but it
only puts out 15 watts, so it reacts
very much like a guitar amplifier
and breaks up quickly at low
volumes. If you crank the volume
and treble to 10 on a B-15, it
produces an impressive classic-rock
crunch without getting muddy,
oversaturated, or too loud. Also,
the B-15 is very accepting of
pedals, which is good in case I
need to add more overdrive.
Normally, I have the B-15’s
treble set at 3 o’clock or completely
dimed. This helps more
of the guitar-like characteristics
on a low-tuned instrument
poke through the mix. B-15s
from the mid ’60s had a speaker
cable that was hardwired to
the amplifier and terminated
with an unusual, XLR-type
plug. Obviously, this plug does
not match the standardized
1/4" jacks on modern speaker
cabinets, so my B-15 has been
modified accordingly.
On the opposite end of the
tonal spectrum, let’s look at
12-string guitar. Most guitarists,
myself included, associate it with
tuning nightmares. One of the
main reasons I play a Schecter
Stargazer 12 is because it has an
adjustable bridge with locking
mechanisms. This really helps in
the tuning department, so I am
free to deal with other aspects of
the tone. Once again, the B-15
is my choice amp for this unique
instrument, because it adds body
to the 12-string’s sound. It’s easy
for a 12-string to get
too jangly and
produce an offensive high end, so
I use the B-15 to keep the upper
register smooth and under control.
Going back to our cooking
analogy: Creating an instrument
tone is like making a stew.
Frequencies are like flavors in
that a single ingredient shouldn’t
be too overpowering (too bitter
or too bassy), because then
it calls attention to itself and
detracts from overall enjoyment
of the dining or listening
experience. Ingredients should
work together to create a single
pleasant taste—or tone. Over the
years, I’ve found that most people’s
ears are like their taste buds:
They’re looking for quality that’s
full and evenly distributed.
If the stage is your kitchen
and your guitar rig is the cooking
equipment, remember that
it’s the chef that makes the meal
taste great—not the stove used to
boil the water. With that in mind,
have fun in your sonic kitchen
as you whip up some great treats
for the world to enjoy!
Paul “TFO” Allen
is a multi-instrumentalist
who has worked with
Big & Rich, Sebastian
Bach, 112, Jake Owen,
Montgomery Gentry,
Larry the Cable Guy,
and many others. He also has his
own project called Ten Finger
Orchestra, and can be reached at
tenfingerorchestra@yahoo.com.