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Tyler Bryant invited PG to his Nashville studio where he and Graham Whitford (above) shared some stories, jammed, and talked about the gear they use on their never-ending tour.
Tyler Bryant’s No. 1 is this sunburst 1960 Fender Strat. This Strat is strung with coated Ernie Ball .010-.052 strings and stays in Eb. Bryant has put some serious miles on this vintage guitar, but of late has been leaving it home. Bryant plays with Dunlop 1.0 mm Tortex picks.
This is Pinky 1, Tyler Bryant’s main touring guitar. It’s a Custom Shop Strat that Fender modeled after his original 1960 Strat. This guitar was stolen and went missing for over five years until it was returned thanks to River City Guitars in Spokane, Washington.
Pinky 2 is another one of Tyler Bryant’s Custom Shop Strats based on his ’60. Both guitars came from the factory with 7.25” radius necks, but Bryant takes them in to make them feel more like 9.5”. The bridge pickup is a Shawbucker that Tim Shaw himself installed, routing out the metal pickguard to make it fit.
The “Judge” is Tyler Bryant’s limited-edition Strat with a ’57 soft-V maple neck, an EVH humbucker in the bridge, and a Twisted Tele pickup in the neck. This guitar came with locking tuners but those were replaced with the vintage-style tuners immediately.
This 1931 National Duolian features a National Hot-Plate with a Lollar pickup that Tyler Bryant installed himself. He keeps it strung with Ernie Ball .013–.056 acoustic strings and uses a magnesium MagSlide.
Check out Tyler Bryant’s D’Angelico Deluxe DC that features a rose gold finish.
Tyler Bryant runs a two-amp setup. Here’s his stock Marshall 1959 SLP with two of the power tubes pulled out. This head feeds two Marshall cabs–a 1960AX and 1960BX–loaded with Celestion Greenbacks.
The second amp in Tyler Bryant’s rig is a stock Orange Rockerverb 100 running into two closed-back, Orange cabinets–a 4x12 and 2x12.
Both of Tyler Bryant’s amps run through this AmpRx BrownBox to keep the power clean.
The Marshall side of Tyler Bryant’s rig also features a SoloDallas Schaffer Replica.
Bryant’s pedalboard was wired by Randy Gabbard at Tour Supply in Nashville. The board features a Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q wah, ZVEX Mastotron, Jext Telez Dizzy Tone, Origin Effects Cali 76, and a signature Rodenberg TB Drive Shakedown Special. Other pedals include an Electro-Harmonix POG, Boss TU-3, an EHX Holy Grail, and a Strymon TimeLine. A Strymon Zuma gives power to the board.
Graham Whitford tours with this 1959 Gibson Les Paul Junior. This guitar, like all of Whitford’s, is strung with D’Addario NYXL .010–.052 strings and is tuned down to Eb. Whitford also uses Dunlop Tortex 1 mm picks.
Next up is Graham Whitford’s 2018 Gibson Custom Shop Standard Historic 1959 Les Paul featuring a Honey Lemon Fade finish and Custombuckers with Alnico III magnets.
Here is Graham Whitford’s 2013 Gibson Custom Shop 1958 VOS Les Paul reissue with Wizz pickups (Alnico 5 in the neck and Alnico 4 in the bridge).
Last is Graham Whitford’s 1971 Gibson Les Paul Custom loaded with DiMarzio PAF pickups.
Much like Bryant, Graham Whitford goes for a Marshall/Orange setup. Here’s is his handwired JTM 45 that feeds a 1960AX cab.
On the other side of the spectrum is Graham Whitford’s Orange Dual Dark 50 that’s matched with a Marshall 1960AX cab.
Graham Whitford’s board kicks off with a Boss TU-3 tuner before hitting a Klon Centaur, an Xotic EP Booster, a Strymon Flint, and a Strymon TimeLine. A Lehle switcher spilts the signal to the amps and a Strymon Zuma provides the power.
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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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