Follow John Bohlinger as he shows you how to quickly upgrade your sound with a speaker-swap tutorial.
For today’s mod, we're got three core pieces of gear: A StewMac ’66 D-Reverb, which is inspired by the classic Fender Deluxe; a StewMac Pre-wired speaker harness; and a ToneSpeak Austin, which is a 12-inch, 50-watt, 8 ohm speaker, but you can do this kind of speaker replacement on any 1x12 or 2x12 combo. And remember, always match the ohm rating of your amp to your speaker. If you don't do this, you could blow a speaker or damage your circuit. No bueno.
Step 1: So, let's start with our D-Reverb amp. Put a towel down on the floor or your work bench or table, to protect the amp’s face, and put your combo face down on that towel. You'll next need to take your wire clippers and cut the wires at about one inch away from the mounting posts on the speaker that they're connected to. That inch will come in handy later if you want to de-solder the wire ends from the speaker, so you can re-use the speaker later, for another cabinet.
Step 2
Step 2: With the wires separated from the speaker, unplug the wires from the 1/4-inch speaker output jack on the back of the amp, and then remove the wiring. You don 't need to have a set of loose, dangling wires in your way when you remove the speaker or install its replacement.
Step 3
Now, using your drill—set to a gentle speed—or using your screwdriver, you'll want to unscrew all the screws holding the speaker to its frame in the speaker cabinet. Be careful to place each screw in a small container as you remove them. And when you've removed them all and placed them in your container, put the lid on it. You don't want to drop a screw and have to hunt for it on your hands and knees, or misplace one, because you're going to need them to put the replacement speaker in.
Step 4
Gently lift out the original speaker.
Step 5
Inspect your replacement speaker—our Tone Speak Austin— one more time to be sure there are no obvious flaws, and then move it into place, aligning its screw holes over the screw holes in the frame.
Step 6
Open your container, and use the screws you saved to screw the new speaker gently and securely into place.
Step 7
Now it's time to wire the Tone Speak Austin speaker up. I like to use a fresh wire harness, because if you're replacing a speaker, there is a good chance the old wire harness has been in place for a while. There's nothing better than a fresh start. So, in this case, I'm using the StewMac harness, which comes pre-wired and ready to go—which saves a lot of steps. There's no wire cutting, no attaching a 1/4-inch jack or speaker post connectors to the wires. Just plug the harness’ 1/4 -inch jack into the speaker out on the back of the combo, and, since the StewMac harness is pre-wired with clips, just slide the clips over the speaker posts. You can solder those in place later, so they don't come loose, but right now you can pick up the amp, plug it into an outlet, and plug in a guitar to test the speaker. And it's gonna fire up and sound good, since the only connections you've made so far are plug and play.
Step 8
Once you know that everything works, just place the speaker back down on its face and start heating up your soldering iron. You'll want to make the joints of the speaker posts and speaker wire harness clips permanent. Otherwise, the wires will shake loose with travel or use. It's also a good idea to put a piece of aluminum foil under the area where you'll be soldering, to protect your new speaker from any drips of solder that might fall.
Austin 1250 Speaker
Balance, punch, fullness, and clarity are at the forefront of this speaker. The mids are tailored and even, enabling the articulation, openness, air, and a nice glassiness to shine through in the highs. The tight, solid, and responsive lows round out the tone and perfectly balance the detail in the highs. A very musical speaker, optimized for the ever so popular Deluxe Reverb, yet suitable anywhere you want pure American tone.
StewMac '66 D-Reverb Amp Kit
Perfect for recording and performing, the D-Reverb produces warm clarity that absolutely refuses to get lost in the mix.
One of the most popular amps ever built, the original AB763 circuit puts this amp in the happy middle between bright clarity and rich distortion. It excels in the studio and on the stage. While capable of crystal clear tones at good volume, you can push this beloved classic into beautifully saturated, touch-sensitive distortion. It's all here: clarity, distortion, and rectifier tube sag.
The limited-edition 1963 ES-335 1963 ES-335 by Gibson Custom, in collaboration with SLASH, features light aging by the Murphy Lab, Bigsby tremolo, and Custombucker pickups. Only 50 hand-signed guitars available exclusively at Gibson Garage Nashville.
Made in close collaboration with Slash and the expert luthiers of the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, Tennessee and artfully aged by the Murphy Lab to match the original guitar, only 50 of these Collector’s Edition hand-signed guitars will be available exclusively via the Gibson Garage Nashville, alongside an exclusive VIP live performance at the Gibson Garage with the artist this summer. For more details, call the Gibson Garage Nashville (615) 933-6000.
“I used a beautiful and killer sounding 1963 ES-335 Gibson for more than a few songs on Orgy of the Damned,” says SLASH. “Gibson has now built a fantastic replica of this extraordinary guitar. Same dot neck, Bigsby tremolo, and finish. You have to check it out.”
Slash’s original ES-335 is a super clean example from 1963 which proved inspirational when recording his latest solo record, the star-studded blues album Orgy of the Damned, out May 17 on Gibson Records. In celebration of the release of Orgy of the Damned, buyers of the Collector’s Edition SLASH 1963 ES-335 will receive a rare assembly of case candy that includes a hand-signed copy of SLASH’s new album, Orgy of the Damned, a signed copy of the The Collection: Slash coffee table book, and a Certificate of Authenticity. In addition, buyers will be invited to attend a once-in-a-lifetime exclusive VIP experience at the Gibson Garage Nashville, where SLASH and his blues band will treat fans to an intimate live performance and signing event.
Photo by Gibson
For each Slash ES-335 purchase, buyers will receive two (2) tickets to attend an “Evening with Slash & Friends in Nashville, Tennessee” on June 30, 2024. This special evening at the Gibson Garage Nashville includes a live performance with SLASH and his blues band, as well as an intimate, moderated interview with SLASH and Mark Agnesi, Gibson’s Director of Brand Experience, a photo opportunity, receipt of the Slash 1963 ES-335 Collector’s Edition guitar from Gibson Custom, a copy of the new Orgy of the Damned album, and a The Collection: Slash coffee table book, all signed by SLASH. Food and Beverage for the event will be provided onsite.
*Travel expenses for the event are not included, and no cash value has been assigned to the Experience and no exchanges or refunds will be offered or given for those unable to attend the Experience.
Photo by Gibson
Slash announced he will officially release his sixth solo album, a star-studded blues record titled Orgy of the Damned, on May 17, 2024, via Gibson Records (Firebird Music distribution). A collection of 12 dynamic songs that revitalize blues classics, on Orgy of the Damned SLASH reteamed with storied producer Mike Clink and enlisted the album’s diverse guest vocalists, which include Gary Clark Jr., Billy F. Gibbons, Chris Stapleton, Dorothy, Iggy Pop, Paul Rodgers, Demi Lovato, Brian Johnson, Tash Neal, Chris Robinson, and Beth Hart. Rounding out his blues band in the studio and on the road, SLASH reunited with two of his bandmates from his Blues Ball outfit in the 90s, bassist Johnny Griparic and keyboardist Teddy ‘ZigZag’ Andreadis, and brought on drummer Michael Jerome and singer/guitarist Tash Neal.
For more information, please visit gibson.com.
The durable but often maligned overdrive has thrived for more than 30 years. And not just on shredders’ pedalboards. Here’s why.
With over a million produced, the MT-2 Metal Zone is Boss’s second-most-popular overdrive ever—a significant accomplishment, considering Boss pedals have been ubiquitous for decades. I’ve got two Metal Zones. But, much like the late Rodney Dangerfield, the Metal Zone often “don’t get no respect.”
My first Metal Zone was simply abandoned at a guitar camp I taught at. Despite efforts to find its owner, it was never reclaimed. The second one was part of a package deal where the seller must have been getting rid of what he considered his undesirables: a Boss BF-2 with a faulty power-supply jack that only works with batteries, a Boss BCB-60 pedalboard with foam that stinks and is filled with irremovable allergens or something that always makes me itchy, and a perfect-condition Metal Zone—all for a mere 35 bucks.
But somehow, over the decades, the Metal Zone got a bad rap. The endless hordes of preteens that butchered “Crazy Train” through a Metal Zone at their local Guitar Center probably didn’t help. Even with a new Waza Craft edition in Boss’s lineup, things haven’t changed much. If you read an internet discussion of the Metal Zone, you’re guaranteed to find someone boldly commenting that it sounds like “buzzing bees.”
Likewise, if you search “Boss Metal Zone” on YouTube, the first thing that comes up is Ola Englund’s “Boss Metal Zone—Worst Distortion Pedal Ever?” video, which currently has over 3.5 million views. You’ll also see “What’s the Worst Pedal Ever? Boss Metal Zone Pedal, Demo” by Marty Schwartz, a famed YouTuber with over four million subscribers. And there are many more videos along the same lines. But if you dig deeper, you’ll find that despite those derisive, clickbait titles, many Metal Zone videos actually praise the little demon. And with good reason!“What immediately grabs my attention is its ridiculous sustain; for soloing, the pedal makes legato licks feel fluid and easy to play.”
When the Metal Zone first came out in 1991, it was literally the hottest piece of gear in the guitar world. It was the undisputed star of a stompbox shootout of 29 pedals in the October 1992 Guitar Player. The magazine’s editors proclaimed: “We knew the Metal Zone was a hot item when we couldn’t keep our test sample long enough to photograph it. The store we borrowed it from had sold it and was back-ordered 50 units.” The story was followed by comments like, “This thing starts off where others leave off,” “Mind-blowing. Never heard so much bass,” “Definitely a must-have,” and “Totally sick!” The shootout concluded with “The Boss Metal Zone easily grabbed top metal honors. Its absolutely fierce sounds make the $139.50 price tag [editor’s note: list price] seem like a deal.”
If you’ve used one before, you’ll likely agree—this silicon-driven, two-stage-clipping circuit is a really badass pedal! What immediately grabs my attention is its ridiculous sustain; for soloing, the pedal makes legato licks feel fluid and easy to play. For sharp and percussive metal rhythms, the Metal Zone also kills. With its massive bottom end, it has given me heavier sounds than I’ve gotten with more expensive pedals or high-gain amps.
The Metal Zone has more tone-shaping options than many other dirt pedals. There are six controls crammed into the space of four. In addition to the level and distortion knobs, the EQ dials are dual-function concentric—high and low, and mid freq and middle, which boosts or cuts the frequency you have the mid freq set to. Some players enjoy using the Metal Zone as a preamp, straight into the effects loop. Others put it between the guitar and amp. However you fire it up, if you invest time into fine-tuning the settings for your needs, you’ll be greatly rewarded.
If you’re a hard-rock or metal player, the Metal Zone is a no-brainer. Pro players like Biffy Clyro’s Simon Neil and Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine have used the Metal Zone. But it’s also surprisingly versatile—even Prince used one! Despite its name, it can convincingly get into mid-gain overdrive territory, and with the distortion knob around 9 o’clock, it’s pretty touch sensitive.
At only $99 new—$50 more for the Waza version—and, if you’re lucky, maybe $20 or so used, the Metal Zone is incredibly undervalued. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Metal Zone makes its way back to the top of the pedal pyramid some day. Guitar players are notoriously fickle and tend to be very impressionable. It just takes something as simple as one artist association and the tide can turn for any piece of gear. The Marshall ShredMaster became a cult classic simply because it was used by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead. Maybe if John Mayer uses a Metal Zone the next time he covers “Panama,” it will again reign supreme.