Mark Tremonti and Myles Kennedy (above) have played together for over 12 years, recorded five albums, and toured hard both domestically and internationally. Before their recent Nashville show, Tremonti and Kennedy hung with PG’s John Bohlinger to talk tone.
Tremonti was the second artist to have a PRS signature model (Carlos Santana was there first). Nicknamed “Dimebag” after Tremonti’s late friend Darrell Abbott, his No. 1 stays in dropped-C# tuning and is strung with D’Addario strings, gauged .010-.049.
For something a bit different, Tremonti plays this prototype PRS with a unique shape and reverse headstock. It also stays in dropped C#.
Tremonti’s most striking guitar is this Tremonti PRS with artwork by English artist Joe Fenton. It’s tuned down a half-step to Eb.
A rather minimal pedalboard lies at Tremonti’s feet. It starts with his signature Morley wah and goes into an Ibanez TS808HW Tube Screamer, Dunlop UV1 Uni-Vibe Chorus/Vibrato pedal, T-Rex Octavius Tri-Tone Generator, and ends with a Palmer PGA03 Splitter that sends the signal to the amps. A T-Rex Fuel Tank Juicy Lucy sits alongside and handles the power.
The Palmer splitter sends one signal to this Mesa/Boogie Triple Rectifier head that drives a Mesa/Boogie 4x12 Rectifier Standard Oversize cab.
Just below the Mesa is a Bogner Überschall, which is the other half of Tremonti’s punishing dual-amp assault. A G-Lab SD-1 Smooth Delay is connected through the effects loop and is constantly on. Both amps run through Palmer PDI09 passive DI boxes before hitting the cabs.
Tuned down a half-step and strung with D’Addario EXL140s (.010-.052), Myles Kennedy’s No. 1 is this PRS SC 245
This 2009 PRS McCarty serves as a backup and has a custom set of D’Addario EXL140 strings with a .056 on the bottom.
Kennedy reaches for this 2013 PRS SE Angelus Custom acoustic for the mellower tunes. Strung with a set of D’Addario EXP19s (.012-.056), it’s tuned to open G (D–G–D–G–B–D).
Kennedy runs two Diezel Herbert MK1 heads, which he controls with a Diezel Columbus foot controller. The amps run into two Diezel 4x12 cabs loaded with green Tone Tubby Hempcone 40/40 Ceramic speakers.
On his pedalboard, Kennedy runs a Fulltone Ultimate Octave, MXR GT-OD, Dunlop MC404 CAE Wah, Line 6 MM4 Modulation Modeler, Fulltone Deja ’Vibe, and a Boss TU-2 Chromatic Tuner.
Special thanks to Jeremy “Frosty” Frost and Ian Keith.
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John Bohlinger is a Nashville-based multi-instrumentalist best known for leading the band on NBC's Nashville Star, serving as music director for the CMT Awards and specials on PBS and GAC, and of course for his appearances in PG Rig Rundown, Review Demo, Axes & Artifacts, and What Bohlinger Plays videos.
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