Tonemaster Joey Landreth takes PG through his current touring rig, from his Novo baritone to a trio of trusty Two-Rocks.
Canadian alt-country group the Bros. Landreth have become known for bringing not just layers of blues, rock, and eclectic modern influence to the traditional country sound, but for Joey Landreth’s depth as a guitarist and stunning tone on the instrument.
Built on a lifetime of brothers Joey and Dave’s absorbing classic country music, the band was launched with the release of 2013’s Let It Lie, through which they not-long-after made a mark on the scene when the album garnered a JUNO Award for Roots and Traditional Album of the Year in 2015. Following the release of 2019’s ’87, the group later received another major accolade when Bonnie Raitt covered Let It Lie’s “Made Up Mind” on her 2022 release, Just Like That…
While the original lineup included drummer Ryan Voth and pianist Alex Campbell, and the band has toured with guitarist Ariel Posen, the brothers have since taken a step back from the larger band arrangement to lead as a duo. Their latest, 2022’s Coming Home, spotlights the two in that dynamic, while featuring a few backing players.
Joey Landreth hung with John Bohlinger and the PG team before the Bros. Landreth’s show at Nashville’s Riverside Revival, where Landreth played some mind-blowing guitar and demoed his unique method for reproducing his studio sound live.Brought to you by D’Addario String Finder.
Golden Tradition
Landreth has been seen playing a Sorokin Goldtop for years. His new No. 1 is the Sorokin Pluma, handbuilt by Alex Sorokin in Edmonton, Alberta. “Alex is a master builder, and he has nothing but respect for the tradition of these guitars,” says Landreth. The Pluma features a one-piece Honduran mahogany neck and body, Eastern hard-rock maple top, hide-glue construction, and Ron Ellis LRPs pickups. It’s strung up with Stringjoy .019–.056 or .017–.054, depending on tuning.
Built Like a Mule
This Mulecaster was built in Saginaw, Michigan by Landreth’s good friend Matt Eich. Constructed with a metal body, it comes loaded with two benders, and according to Joey, Eich builds everything on the guitar (with the exception of the benders), including the pickups. “The first tune in our setlist is a song called ‘Forgiveness,’ and the benders are a big part of the hook,” Joey shares. “I can’t play that song on literally any guitar, so this guitar comes along to play that tune and a couple of other ones.” Strings are Stringjoy flatwounds, gauged .019–.056 or .017–.054, depending on tuning.
High-Strung Baritone
Joey mainly keeps this Novo baritone, which was built in Nashville and features Lollar pickups, in low open tunings. He’s worked with Stringjoy to get just the right strings to play comfortably in those tunings. “That's the thing about those guys,” he says, “is you can say, ‘I like .011s in E, what would be a comparable set of strings for D? And they’ll plop it into their computer and say, ‘This is what we think would be comparable.’” Joey asked the company for a set that would work with an Ab tuning on the baritone, and they hooked him up, but—“I have no idea what’s on this guitar. I hope I don't break a string.”
Landreth uses his Rock Slide signature slide, Paige Capos, and Blue Bell Straps, made in Spain. Landreth uses mostly Digiflex cables, but also has a few Caulfield cables as well as some made by Runway Audio Cables out of Nashville. As for picks, he doesn’t really have a preference.
Choice Circuits
Landreth uses a three-amp combination, the center being his new signature Two-Rock, which only carries the dry signal. The development of the amp came out of a meeting with guitarist Josh Smith, who turned Joey onto Two-Rock’s tones after Landreth jammed with his model. Joey reached out to Two-Rock, and a few years later, the company agreed to work with him on an amp that included a complicated-to-install harmonic tremolo, on his request. When he was sent the third and final prototype, he says, “I plugged it in and legitimately shed a tear,” laughing. “It was like, ‘It’s beautiful.’”
The two other amps in Landreth’s trifecta are Two-Rock Studio Signatures. Where the first only carries dry effects, these two only carry wet. With 1x12 speakers, they’re considerably smaller. “They are killer little amps,” he says. “Part of the appeal is that, if we’re going to go do a quick press video or something, I can just grab one of those little guys … and we don’t have to unpack the entire van.”
Joey Landreth's Pedalboard
Mounted on a pedalboard made in Melbourne, Australia, all of Joey’s pedals go directly into the GigRig G3, with the wet effects all going into a Morningstar ML10X that lives under the board. It allows Landreth to do more complex routing with custom routing for every preset, and also lets Landreth only use one stereo loop for all wet effects. Those pedals include the Empress Echosystem, Chase Bliss Thermae, Chase Bliss Blooper, Chase Bliss MOOD MkII, Chase Bliss Generation Loss, and Chase Bliss CXM 1978.
They all go into the ML10X which then goes into the GFI Duophony, which gives Landreth a parallel mixer with a ton of options, including gain for each individual loop. Landreth uses the Duophony as a master volume for all wet effects, which are set up on an expression roller that Landreth controls with a custom box that he built. The Duophony also allows Joey to add the dry signal back in, either by preset or just in real-time—which is ideal when Landreth uses a backline with only one or two amps.
Among Joey’s additional pedals is the Shnobel Tone VPJR tuner mod, plugged directly into the EXP input of the Chase Bliss Condor for volume and low pass filter control. The remainder of his board is made up of the Maxon SD-9, Fairfield Circuitry Randy’s Revenge, Fairfield Circuitry Shallow Water, DanDrive Bonk Machine, Mythos High Road Mini Fuzz, and Axess Electronics Obvious Boost/Overdrive.Shop Joey's Rig
Shop Lindsay's Rig
Gibson originally launched the EB-6 model with the intention of serving consumers looking for a “tic-tac” bass sound.
The Gibson EB-6 was announced in 1959 and came into the world in 1960, not with a dual-horn body but with that of an elegant ES-335. They looked stately, with a thin, semi-hollow body, f-holes, and a sunburst finish. Our pick for this Vintage Vault column is one such first-year model, in about as original condition as you’re able to find today. “Why?” you may be asking. Well, read on....
When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye. The real competition were the Danelectro 6-string basses that seemed to have popped up out of nowhere and were suddenly being used on lots of hit records by the likes of Elvis, Patsy Cline, and other household names. Danos like the UB-2 (introduced in ’56), the Longhorn 4623 (’58), and the Shorthorn 3612 (’58) were the earliest attempts any company made at a 6-string bass in this style: not quite a standard electric bass, not quite a guitar, nor, for that matter, quite like a baritone guitar.
The only change this vintage EB-6 features is a replacement set of Kluson tuners.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
Gibson, Fender, and others during this era would in fact call these basses “baritone guitars,” to add to our confusion today. But these vintage “baritones” were all tuned one octave below a standard guitar, with scale lengths around 30", while most modern baritones are tuned B-to-B or A-to-A and have scale lengths between 26" and 30".)
At the time, those Danelectros were instrumental to what was called the “tic-tac” bass sound of Nashville records produced by Chet Atkins, or the “click-bass” tones made out west by producer Lee Hazlewood. Gibson wanted something for this market, and the EB-6 was born.
“When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye.”
The 30.5" scale 1960 EB-6 has a single humbucking pickup, a volume knob, a tone knob, and a small, push-button “Tone Selector Switch” that engages a treble circuit for an instant tic-tac sound. (Without engaging that switch, you get a bass-heavy tone so deep that cowboy chords will sound like a muddy mess.)
The EB-6, for better or for worse, did not unseat the Danelectros, and a November 1959 price list from Gibson hints at why: The EB-6 retailed for $340, compared to Dano price tags that ranged from $85 to $150. Only a few dozen EB-6 basses were shipped in 1960, and only 67 total are known to have been built before Gibson changed the shape to the SG style in 1962.
Most players who come across an EB-6 today think it was a response to the Fender Bass VI, but the former actually beat the latter to the market by a full year.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
It’s sad that so few were built. Sure, it was a high-end model made to achieve the novelty tic-tac sound of cheaper instruments, but in its full-voiced glory, the EB-6 has a huge potential of tones. It would sound great in our contemporary guitar era where more players are exploring baritone ranges, and where so many people got back into the Bass VI after seeing the Beatles play one in the 2021 documentary, Get Back.
It’s sadder, still, how many original-era EB-6s have been parted out in the decades since. Remember earlier when I wrote that our Vintage Vaultpick was about as original as you could find? That’s because the model’s single humbucker is a PAF, its Kluson tuners are double-line, and its knobs are identical to those on Les Paul ’Bursts. So as people repaired broken ’Bursts, converted other LPs to ’Bursts, or otherwise sought to give other Gibsons a “Golden Era” sound and look ... they often stripped these forgotten EB-6 basses for parts.
This original EB-6 is up for sale now from Reverb seller Emerald City Guitars for a $16,950 asking price at the time of writing. The only thing that isn’t original about it is a replacement set of Kluson tuners, not because its originals were stolen but just to help preserve them. (They will be included in the case.)
With so few surviving 335-style EB-6 basses, Reverb doesn’t have a ton of sales data to compare prices to. Ten years ago, a lucky buyer found a nearly original 1960 EB-6 for about $7,000. But Emerald City’s $16,950 asking price is closer to more recent examples and asking prices.
Sources: Prices on Gibson Instruments, November 1, 1959, Tony Bacon’s “Danelectro’s UB-2 and the Early Days of 6-String Basses” Reverb News article, Gruhn’s Guide to Vintage Guitars, Tom Wheeler’s American Guitars: An Illustrated History, Reverb listings and Price Guide sales data.
Originally released in the 1980s, the Victory has long been a cult favorite among guitarists for its distinctive double cutaway design and excellent upper-fret access. These new models feature flexible electronics, enhanced body contours, improved weight and balance, and an Explorer headstock shape.
A Cult Classic Made Modern
The new Victory features refined body contours, improved weight and balance, and an updated headstock shape based on the popular Gibson Explorer.
Effortless Playing
With a fast-playing SlimTaper neck profile and ebony fretboard with a compound radius, the Victory delivers low action without fret buzz everywhere on the fretboard.
Flexible Electronics
The two 80s Tribute humbucker pickups are wired to push/pull master volume and tone controls for coil splitting and inner/outer coil selection when the coils are split.
For more information, please visit gibson.com.
Gibson Victory Figured Top Electric Guitar - Iguana Burst
Released in 1983, the Roland SDE-3000 rackmount delay was a staple for pro players of the era and remains revered for its rich analog/digital hybrid sound and distinctive modulation. BOSS reimagined this retro classic in 2023 with the acclaimed SDE-3000D and SDE-3000EVH, two wide-format pedals with stereo sound, advanced features, and expanded connectivity. The SDE-3 brings the authentic SDE-3000 vibe to a streamlined BOSS compact, enhanced with innovative creative tools for every musical style. The SDE-3 delivers evocative delay sounds that drip with warmth and musicality. The efficient panel provides the primary controls of its vintage benchmark—including delay time, feedback, and independent rate and depth knobs for the modulation—plus additional knobs for expanded sonic potential.
A wide range of tones are available, from basic mono delays and ’80s-style mod/delay combos to moody textures for ambient, chill, and lo-fi music. Along with reproducing the SDE-3000's original mono sound, the SDE-3 includes a powerful Offset knob to create interesting tones with two simultaneous delays. With one simple control, the user can instantly add a second delay to the primary delay. This provides a wealth of mono and stereo colors not available with other delay pedals, including unique doubled sounds and timed dual delays with tap tempo control. The versatile SDE-3 provides output configurations to suit any stage or studio scenario.
Two stereo modes include discrete left/right delays and a panning option for ultra-wide sounds that move across the stereo field. Dry and effect-only signals can be sent to two amps for wet/dry setups, and the direct sound can be muted for studio mixing and parallel effect rigs. The SDE-3 offers numerous control options to enhance live and studio performances. Tap tempo mode is available with a press and hold of the pedal switch, while the TRS MIDI input can be used to sync the delay time with clock signals from DAWs, pedals, and drum machines. Optional external footswitches provide on-demand access to tap tempo and a hold function for on-the-fly looping. Alternately, an expression pedal can be used to control the Level, Feedback, and Time knobs for delay mix adjustment, wild pitch effects, and dramatic self-oscillation.
The new BOSS SDE-3 Dual Delay Pedal will be available for purchase at authorized U.S. BOSS retailers in October for $219.99. To learn more, visit www.boss.info.