Staten Island, New York (October, 7, 2013) -- DiMarzio, Inc. is happy to announce the release of two new Titan humbucking pickups for 6-string electric guitars. The Titanā¢ pickups were designed and developed for Periphery guitarist, Jake Bowen, and his upcoming signature guitar by Ibanez. They are also available for retail sale from DiMarzio. Jake Bowen is one of the new generation of guitarists on the cutting edge of progressive rock. His sound is helping to redefine rock guitar, and his pickups play a major part. The Titanā¢ Neck Model pickup (DP258) is punchy and fat sounding, yet can handle multiple layers of effects without getting muddy. Jake says, āWhen I switch to leads, I go to the neck pickup which gives me more rounded notes and more attack. I also go to the neck pickup for cleans, depending on what my needs are."
Jakeās music often calls for ambient, clean passages as well as lead passages with lots of reverb, delay, and chorus. The Titanā¢ Neck Model has a balanced blend of highs, mids, and lows, and also works well for smooth, overdriven solos. Jake claims it enables him to retain the tone of his guitar as well as add a lot of effects without it getting "too messy."
Jakeās bridge pickup is crucial to his sound, and the most important feature is that it needed to be tight. It also needed to have good dynamics for right-hand playing yet still keep the aggressiveness and mid-range that Peripheryās music calls for. The Titanā¢ Bridge Model (DP259) is at home with both standard and dropped tunings. Additionally, Jake shares that āitās a very tight, aggressive palm-muted sound when I do palm-muting strokes but Āā when I play open chords ā everything rings out very nicely.ā Many high-output pickups are either very bright or very dark. The Titan Bridge Model is bright where it needs to be ā on the low end. The highs are warmer, and the Titan has a distinctive voice that doesnāt get lost, even in a dense, three-guitar mix.
DiMarzioās Titan Neck and Bridge Model pickups are made in the U.S.A., and may now be ordered for immediate delivery.
Pricing information:
$119 (each)
For more information:
DiMarzio
Huge shocker incoming: Zach Broyles made a Tube Screamer. The Mythos Envy Pro Overdrive is Zachās take on the green apple of his eye, with some special tweaks including increased output, more drive sounds, and a low-end boost option. Does this mean he can clear out his collection of TS-9s? Of course not.
This time on Dipped in Tone, Rhett and Zach welcome Tyler Bryant, the Texas-bred and Nashville-based rocker who has made waves with his band the Shakedown, who Rhett credits as one of his favorite groups. Bryant, it turns out, is a TS-head himself, having learned to love the pedal thanks to its being found everywhere in Texas guitar circles.Bryant shares how he scraped together a band after dropping out of high school and moving to Nashville, including the rigors of 15-hour drives for 30-minute sets in a trusty Ford Expedition. Heās lived the dream (or nightmare, depending on the day) and has the wisdom to show it.
Throughout the chat, the gang covers modeling amps and why modern rock bands still need amps on stage; the ins and outs of recording-gear rabbit holes and getting great sounds; and the differences between American and European audiences. Tune in to hear it all.
Get 10% off your order at stewmac.com/dippedintone
Hats off to Carmen Vandenberg of Bones UK, our celebrity Question of the Month respondent.
Guest Picker - Carmen Vandenberg, Bones UK
The cover of Soft, Bones UKās new album, due in mid-September.
A: My favorite method these days (and to be honest, from when I started playing) is to put on my favorite blues records, listen with my eyes closed, and, at the end, see what my brain compartmentalizes and keeps stored away. Then, I try and play back what I heard and what my fingers or brain decided they liked!
Bone UKās labelmade, Des Rocks.
Obsession: Right now, I am into anyone trying to create sounds that havenāt been made beforeābands like Queens of the Stone Age, Jack White, and our labelmate, Des Rocs! Thereās a Colombian band called DiamantĆ© Electrico who Iāve been really into recently. Really anyone whoās trying to create innovative and inspiring sounds.
Reader of the Month - Sam C. Schiff.
Sam spent endless hours trying to learn the solo Leslie West played on āLong Red,ā off of The Road Goes Ever On.
A: The best way to learn guitar is to listen to some good guitar playing! Put on a record, hear something tasty, and play on repeat until it comes out of your fingers. For me, it was Leslie West playing āLong Redā on the Mountain album, The Road Goes Ever On. I stayed up all night listening to that track until I could match Leslieās phrasing. I still canāt, no one can, but I learned a lot!
Smithās own low-wattage amp build.
Obsession: My latest musical obsession is low-wattage tube amps like the 5-watt Fender Champ heard on the Laylaalbum. Crank it up all the way for great tube distortion and sustain, and itās still not loud enough to wake up the neighbors!
Gear Editor - Charles Saufley
Charles Saufley takes to gear like a duck to water!
A: Learning by ear and feel is most fun for me. I write and free-form jam more than I learn other peopleās licks. When I do want to learn something specific, Iāll poke around on YouTube for a demo or a lesson or watch films of a player I like, and then typically mangle that in my own āspecialā way that yields something else. But I rarely have patience for tabs or notation.
The Grateful Deadās 1967 debut album.
Obsession: Distorted and overdriven sounds with very little sustaināKeith Richardsā Between the Buttons tones, for example. Jerry Garciaās plonky tones on the first Grateful Dead LP are another cool, less-fuzzy version of that texture.
Publisher - Jon Levy
A: Iām a primitive beast: The only way I can learn new music is by ear, so itās a good thing I find that method enjoyable. Iām entirely illiterate with staff notation. Put sheet music in front of me and Iāll stare at it with twitchy, fearful incomprehension like an ape gaping at the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Iām almost as clueless with tab, but I can follow along with chord charts if Iām under duress.
The two-hit wonders behind the early ā70s soft-rock hits, āFallinā in Loveā and āDon't Pull Your Love.ā
Obsession: Revisiting and learning AM-radio pop hits circa 1966ā1972. The Grass Roots, Edison Lighthouse, the Association, the Archies, and Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynoldsānothing is too cheesy for me to dissect and savor. Yes, I admit I have a serious problem.
