The death-metal nomad welcomes us into his converted-cargo-trailer home/studio to detail his extended-range rumblers and mobile recording setup.
Facing a mandatory shelter-in-place ordinance to limit the spread of COVID-19, PG enacted a hybrid approach to filming and producing Rig Rundowns. This is the 20th video in that format, and we stand behind the final product.
On the heels of releasing Enterprise Earth’s Foundation of Bones EP, Mangold virtually welcomed PG’s Chris Kies into his converted cargo trailer where he lives and records. (During the filming he was parked at the foothills of Rio Grande Gorge near the Sangre de Cristo Foothills in Taos, NM.) The vagabond guitarist opens up about creating pulverizing rhythms on 7- and 8-string beasts and using 21st century tech to create anywhere and everywhere he and his dog Jiro may roam.
Almost a decade ago, Gabe was surfing eBay and his inner ’80s shredder came out when he stumbled across a loud neon purple 1991 Ibanez RG550. He bought the radical guitar and it soon became a staple of his arsenal. The band he was in was filming a music video and he wanted to celebrate the guitar’s awesomeness by spinning it around his head via the strap. Unbeknownst to him, the strap lock wasn’t on the same page and the guitar went sailing. The body split in half and the guitar was shelved until he bought a 1987 RG550 body off eBay. To make the mashup more his own, he attempted to give it a Steve Vai-inspired “Multi Swirl” paint job seen on the icon’s JEMs. The original pickups have been swapped out for Bare Knuckles—Nailbomb humbuckers and a Trilogy Suite single-coil in the middle position. Because Enterprise Earth tunes down so low this 6-string doesn’t see much action in that group (aside from some recorded solos), but it does come out to play in his other bands, Delusions of Grandeur and The Harvest of Colour. He’s been using a droney C minor tuning a lot (C–G–C–G–C–Eb).
His other main 6-string is this early 2010s Suhr Modern that also sees studio time for soloing with Enterprise Earth and his less-aggressive bands Delusions of Grandeur and The Harvest of Colour. A big reason he continues to bond with this instrument is because “its tone is clear, crisp, and slices right through a mix.”
Here is one of his extended-range monsters—a custom made Dalbello Undici Modern 8-string that features a swamp ash body, Lundgren M8 humbuckers, and a multi-scale neck that goes from 26.75" to 28.25". It takes D’Addario NYXL (.009–.046) guitar set with an additional .066 and .094 strings. He often tunes in double drop-D (D–A–D–G–C–F–A–D).
Above you see a custom Strictly 7 String Cobra that has a 7-piece maple-walnut neck, ash body capped with a flame maple top, and an ebony fretboard. This is his backup 7-string for the road and typically is tuned to drop B.
This is nearly identical recipe to the red-and-black Strictly 7 Cobra in the previous slide, but it was built earlier in 2012 and is an example of their killer work that Mangold refers to “that’s when they were making the best extended-range instruments.” He really appreciates the craftsmanship and overall comfortability thanks to its teardrop D-profile neck that’s ergonomic and fast. It has a set of Bare Knuckle ’buckers—Nailbomb in the bridge and Aftermath in the neck.
While his converted cargo trailer allows him to record anywhere, anytime, there are times where Mangold truly goes off the grid and jams in the wilderness. To perform those solo endeavors (and for acoustic moods while recording), he trusts nothing but this Martin DCPA4. (Check out his Instagram account to see what majestic backdrop he plays in front of next.)
Whether it’s writing, recording, or even onstage performing, Gabe relies on a Kemper Profiler for his tone.
For Enterprise Earth’s brand-new EP, Foundation of Bones, Mangold used this setup to track all of the guitar tones.
Here’s Mangold’s world … all fit into this 16'x9' renovated cargo trailer.
And we’d be remised if we didn’t share this wonderful shot of all Gabe’s guitars and his travel companion Jiro.
Click below to listen wherever you get your podcasts:
D'Addario XT Strings:https://www.daddario.com/XTRR
The Texan rocker tells us how the Lonestar State shaped his guitar sounds and how he managed to hit it big in Music City.
Huge shocker incoming: Zach Broyles made a Tube Screamer. The Mythos Envy Pro Overdrive is Zach’s 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. He’s 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
Guest picker Carmen Vandenberg of Bones UK joins reader Samuel Cosmo Schiff and PG staff in divulging their favorite ways to learn music.
Question: What is your favorite method of teaching or learning how to play the guitar?
Guest Picker - Carmen Vandenberg, Bones UK
The cover of Soft, Bones UK’s 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 UK’s labelmade, Des Rocks.
Obsession: Right now, I am into anyone trying to create sounds that haven’t been made before—bands like Queens of the Stone Age, Jack White, and our labelmate, Des Rocs! There’s a Colombian band called Diamanté Electrico who I’ve been really into recently. Really anyone who’s 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 “Long Red,” 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 “Long Red” on the Mountain album, The Road Goes Ever On. I stayed up all night listening to that track until I could match Leslie’s phrasing. I still can’t, no one can, but I learned a lot!
Smith’s 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 it’s 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 people’s licks. When I do want to learn something specific, I’ll 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 “special” way that yields something else. But I rarely have patience for tabs or notation.
The Grateful Dead’s 1967 debut album.
Obsession: Distorted and overdriven sounds with very little sustain—Keith Richards’ Between the Buttons tones, for example. Jerry Garcia’s plonky tones on the first Grateful Dead LP are another cool, less-fuzzy version of that texture.
Publisher - Jon Levy
A: I’m a primitive beast: The only way I can learn new music is by ear, so it’s a good thing I find that method enjoyable. I’m entirely illiterate with staff notation. Put sheet music in front of me and I’ll stare at it with twitchy, fearful incomprehension like an ape gaping at the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey. I’m almost as clueless with tab, but I can follow along with chord charts if I’m under duress.
The two-hit wonders behind the early ’70s soft-rock hits, “Fallin’ in Love” and “Don't Pull Your Love.”
Obsession: Revisiting and learning AM-radio pop hits circa 1966–1972. The Grass Roots, Edison Lighthouse, the Association, the Archies, and Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds—nothing is too cheesy for me to dissect and savor. Yes, I admit I have a serious problem.
Diamond Pedals introduces the Dark Cloud delay pedal, featuring innovative hybrid analog-digital design.
At the heart of the Dark Cloud is Diamond’s Digital Bucket Brigade Delay (dBBD) technology, which seamlessly blends the organic warmth of analog companding with the precise control of an embedded digital system. This unique architecture allows the Dark Cloud to deliver three distinct and creative delay modes—Tape, Harmonic, and Reverse—each meticulously crafted to provide a wide range of sonic possibilities.
Three Distinct Delay Modes:
- Tape Delay: Inspired by Diamond’s Counter Point, this mode offers warm, saturated delays with tape-like modulation and up to 1000ms of delay time.
- Harmonic Delay: Borrowed from the Quantum Leap, this mode introduces delayedoctaves or fifths, creating rich, harmonic textures that swirl through the mix.
- Reverse Delay: A brand-new feature, this mode plays delays backward, producing asmooth, LoFi effect with alternating forward and reverse playback—a truly innovativeaddition to the Diamond lineup.
In addition to these versatile modes, the Dark Cloud includes tap tempo functionality with three distinct divisions—quarter note, eighth note, and dotted eighth—ensuring perfect synchronization with any performance.
The Dark Cloud holds special significance as the final project conceived by the original Diamondteam before their closure. What began as a modest attempt to repurpose older designs evolved into a masterful blend of the company's most beloved delay algorithms, combined with an entirely new Reverse Delay setting.
The result is a “greatest hits” of Diamond's delay technology, refined into one powerful pedal that pushes the boundaries of what delay effects can achieve.
Pricing: $249
For more information, please visit diamondpedals.com.
Main Features:
- dBBD’s hybrid architecture Analog dry signal New reverse delay setting
- Three distinct, creative delay modes: Tape, Harmonic, Reverse
- Combines the sound and feel of analog Companding and Anti-Aliasing with an embedded system delay line
- Offering 3 distinct tap divisions with quarter note, eighth note and dotted eighth settings for each of the delay modes
- Pedalboard-friendly enclosure with top jacks
- Buffered bypass switching with trails
- Standardized negative-center 9VDC input with polarity protection
Dark Cloud Multi-Mode Delay Pedal - YouTube
Curious about building your own pedal? Join PG's Nick Millevoi as he walks us through the StewMac Two Kings Boost kit, shares his experience, and demos its sound.