Guitar and bass legends Steve Morse and Andy West showcase their contrasting rigs—two amps vs. no amps—and custom instruments on a Dregs reunion tour date in Nashville.
Steve Morse and Andy West are legendary players. In addition to co-founding the Dixie Dregs together in Augusta, Georgia, in 1970, both virtuosos have colorful personal resumes.
Guitar giant Morse’s is more high-profile. He remains the leader of the Steve Morse Band, who opened the Dregs’s late April show at Nashville’s CMA Theater, where this Rundown was filmed, with 45 minutes of smart shred. He’s also been a member of Kansas and Deep Purple, as well as another instrumental powerhouse, Flying Colors.
Besides his tenure in the Dregs, West has recorded with Vinnie Moore, the Steve Morse Band, Paul Barrere, and Henry Kaiser, with whom he’s been a member of the Mistakes, Crazy Backwards Alphabet, and Five Time Surprise, which also includes Messthetics guitarist Anthony Pirog. (Full disclosure: I recorded a version of Steppenwolf’s “The Pusher” with Kaiser and West as part of Kaiser’s Moods & Modes of Halloween video quarterly in 2023.)
The Music City show was classic Dixie Dregs, with more than two hours of high-wire playing, all anchored by the bold melodies that mark their compositions. Joined by longtime Dregs drummer Rod Morgenstein, violinist Allen Sloan, and special guest and former Dregs keyboardist Jordan Rudess, now from Dream Theater, the concert was an affirmation of Morse and West’s vitality and musical partnership after sharing stages for more than 50 years.
In the video, Steve and Andy explain their rigs in person and in detail. Their setups:
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The Warhorse
Steve’s number one guitar is literally serial No. 1—the first Steve Morse signature model to come out of the Ernie Ball Music Man shop in 1985. Its appointments include a Tune-o-matic bridge with thumbwheel height adjustment, a roasted maple neck, Schaller tuners, a graphite-acrylic-resin-coated body cavity and aluminum-lined pickguard, master volume and a highly responsive tone control, 22 frets, and DiMarzio’s Steve Morse signature pickups. Two toggles control his mix of humbuckers and single-coils. The wear makes this instrument a thing of beauty—it’s clearly, like its owner, led a storied life. At the headstock, you’ll notice a homemade foam mute (with Ernie Ball’s name on it) that Steve fashioned to compensate for the arthritis that makes it painful to bend his hand. That said, it doesn’t seem to slow him down a bit.
The Mute
Here’s a close-up look at Steve’s handmade mute. Currently, it’s in muting mode. Flip it up and the strings ring open.
Next!
Steve’s backup signature model has a little more chunk in its voice, and the neck pickup has more clarity, he tells us. “I could pick it up and play it all night long.” He is using Ernie Ball Paradigm Slinky strings, gauged .009–.042. And his picks are flexible nylon Ernie Balls with a serrated edge. “The hard celluloid picks really impact my wrist,” he says.
Synth-tillating!
There’s a Roland GK-3 divided pickup at the heel of Steve’s main axe, so he can use a synth to add strings and pads to accompany himself as he plays in the Steve Morse Band.
The Engl's Have Landed
Steve plays through a pair of 3-channel Engl Steve Morse signature 100-watt amps—one wet, one dry—but his volume can go down to a whisper without losing a bit of tonal depth thanks, in part, to the amps’ careful tube interaction and circuitry. In fact, Steve says he can play his nylon-string acoustic guitar through these powerhouses. He keeps the amps on their sides to disperse the sound to the left and right.
Stack of Synths
And Steve’s synth of choice is the Roland GR-55. It comes stock with 910 tones, 93 effects, and three foot-pedal controllers.
Pedal On!
His pedal chain is a Keeley Compressor, two Ernie Ball volume pedals, two TC Flashbacks, a Korg Polytune, and a foot controller for his 3-channel Engls.
Wet or Dry?
Perched atop an amp head is a GigRig wetter box, which allows Steve to fade reverb or delay into his dry-signal cabinet. The reverb and delay are generated by two adjacent TC Electronic Flashback pedals (using his own TonePrint settings) and a TC Hall of Fame reverb.
The Bass-ics
Two key components of Andy’s rig are his main G. Gould 6-string bass and these flat-response EV monitors, which serve as his instrument’s audio feed on stage. Between them is a Line 6 Helix floor unit—the sonic spine!
Good as Gould
The G. Gould was custom-made for Andy about six years ago. Despite being a 6-string, it has a 5-string neck, because he plays with a pick and prefers tight string spacing. It has a pair of EMG pickups. The neck is graphite, made by Goeff Gould, and it has two volume controls and a coil-splitter.
Second Bass
Built in 1985, this bass was designed by Andy and Geoff Gould, who was the founder of Modulus Graphite guitars. It has a graphite neck and originally had a tremolo bridge, but it started to crack the neck, due to its additional tension, so Andy had a wood block inserted plus a more conventional 6-string bass bridge. It has EMG pickups, too. The robust flame-maple finish is killer.
What's My Line 6?
Andy’s amp is a Line 6 Helix floor model and he uses a few key tones, with a lot of midrange focus, some chorus, a lower octave, and overdrive—“all really subtle,” he observes. And the signal goes directly to the EV monitors onstage. They have two 12" speakers and tweeters, and the signal also goes direct to house, of course.
Shop Dixie Dregs' Rig
Roland GK-3 Divided Pickup
Engl Steve Morse Signature 100-Watt Amps
ENGL Amplifiers E412VSB 240-watt 4 x 12-inch Amplifier Cabinet
Roland GR-55 Synthesizer
Keeley Compressor
TC Electronic Flashback
TC Electronic Hall of Fame Reverb
Ernie Ball 2023 Super Slinky Paradigm Electric Guitar Strings - .009-.042
Line 6 Helix Guitar Multi-effects Floor Processor
Electro-Voice ZLX-12P-G2 1000W 12-inch Powered Speaker Pair
“Frusciantes’ Strat is right up there with the most iconic Fenders of all time; being able to work on his first-ever Signature model was a true privilege,” said Paul Waller, FCS Master Builder. “Recreating this instrument’s many beautiful imperfections was no easy feat, but behind every ding and dent is a story and it’s our job to make sure that this guitar’s narrative is told in full, stunning detail. For an instrument this heavily reliced, it still retains so much of its original beauty. A ton of work went into this one, and while much of that can be reflected in its visual components, the whole team is tremendously proud of how this thing plays. The neck has that singular worn in quality that is usually only attainable with a pre-owned vintage guitar and the Abby hand-wound pickups really speak to Fruscinate’s expressive, crystalline tone.”
While Frusciante has been known to wield a number of different Fenders, his 1962 Sunburst Stratocaster is by far the most well known. Much of Frusciante’s style can be attributed to his tremendous technique and otherworldly fusion of punk rock intensity and complex funk rhythms, but the Stratocaster® guitars unique voice informed his playing and signature sound. While many players might relegate themselves entirely to the bridge or neck pickup, Frusciante taps into the Strat guitars true potential by frequently switching between all five pickup combinations. Thanks to the bridge pickup’s midrange bite and robust output, his solos cut through both on records and live. With the flip of the switch his tone seamlessly turns crystal clear, delivering lush rhythm lines with all the roundness and warmth one could hope to expect from a neck pickup.
To honor the indelible mark that John Frusciante has made on the musical stratosphere, the Fender Custom Shop™ has spared no expense in recreating his beloved 1962 Stratocaster. The unmistakable reliced finish is expertly cast onto a two-piece alder body that is as comfortable and lightweight as it is deeply resonant. The early-60s style “C” shape rift sawn maple neck and slab rosewood fingerboard harken back to the prized trappings of the Stratocaster guitars golden era—this will leave Fender obsessives jumping for joy while players across all skill levels will revel in the neck’s comfort and playability. A set of three '60s-style Strat pickups handwound by legend, Abigail Ybarra, sing with profound dynamic range, versatile frequency response and sheer sonic power. An Ilitch Electronics Hum-Canceling system allows players to experiment as wildly with gain effects pedals as Frusciante himself without the need to worry about excessive noise.
Masterbuilt Paul Waller John Frusciante Stratocaster® Heavy Relic®
After joining the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1988 at the age of 18, John Frusciante was quickly embraced by fans thanks to his unique blend of intricate, funky, soulful playing and unmistakable tone. Over the next three decades, Frusciante’s 1962 Sunburst Stratocaster became his go-to guitar. For this limited run, Fender Custom Shop Senior Masterbuilder Paul Waller painstakingly replicated this cherished guitar—from the faded and beautifully aged lacquer finish down to the heavily worn body contours. All the dings, dents and scars that cover this infamous Strat give players the feeling of holding a true piece of rock and roll history in the palms of their hands. The highly-resonant, select two-piece alder body, early-‘60s “C” profile rift-sawn maple neck and slab rosewood fingerboard are perfect examples of prized golden era Stratocaster appointments. The combination of those quintessential pre-CBS specs and the trio of Abigail Ybarra Hand-Wound Stratocaster pickups, with an Ilitch Electronics Hum-Canceling system, gives players the same warm, clear and expressive tones that are the foundation in Frusciante’s signature sound. Other premium features include 7.25” (184.1 mm) radius, 21 narrow tall (6105) frets, Vintage Strat wiring, 5-way switch, vintage-style synchronized tremolo, vintage-style tuners, bone nut, wing string tree with metal spacer and certificate of authenticity. Available in 3-Color Sunburst
“Skunk” Baxter has had an interesting career. The Washington, D.C.-born musician was one of Steely Dan’s founding members in the early 1970s, and played on some of their most iconic numbers, like Can’t Buy a Thrill’s’ “Reelin’ in the Years” and “Do It Again,” or Pretzel Logic’s “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number.” Then, he moved on to join the Doobie Brothers, from roughly 1974 to 1979, where he fatefully invited Michael McDonald into the band. After that stint, he became a go-to session player for artists like Rod Stewart, Joni Mitchell, Dolly Parton, and Donna Summer, and a touring performer for Elton John and Linda Ronstadt, among others.
That was just the beginning. Baxter’s interest and background in electronics, science, and recording technology gained him a position in the U.S. defense industry. Turns out, a lot of digital music gear shared similar principles with emergent defense tech. “Basically, a radar is just an electric guitar on steroids,” says Baxter, noting the same four fundamental forces at work over everything in our universe.
Wong and Baxter trades notes on how to navigate studio sessions (“Just shut the hell up,” offers Baxter), early conversions of pitch into digital signals, and how Baxter cut his solo on Donna Summer’s “Hot Stuff” on a $25 guitar. And can mediating between artists and producers feel like high-stakes hostage negotiations? Sometimes. Tune in.
