Nov. '06 GT Interview -- PRSplaya

When did you start playing guitar, and why?

I started really getting into the guitar when I was around 14 or 15. I started out on the acoustic guitar, mainly learning country songs. I started out learning basic chords, and learning other chords and stuff from different books. I then started to be able to pick things out by ear, and carried on like that for about 5 years. During that period of 5 years, I started to get away from country music, and more into rock, hard rock, and metal. I've always liked all kinds of music ever since I was a little kid. I still like country, but rarely ever play it. After 5 years of playing the acoustic guitar, I finally got my first electric. It was an Ibanez RG420 and a Marshall VS100R amp. The amp was great, but the guitar left me with a deep hatred for Ibanez and Floyd Rose tremolos! Since then, I've just been teaching myself a little of this and that from various sources, with GT being the main (and most useful) source.

Oooh, shameless plug. Who are some of your favorite players?

Slash, Zakk Wylde, Jerry Cantrell, Monte Montgomery, Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, Warren Haynes, SRV, Brad Paisley, and the list could go on...

Unfortunately we don’t have that kind of time. What kind of setup (guitars, amps, pedals) do you use, and why?

Guitars:
PRS Custom 22 - Fits my hands perfect, has a nice and fat medium output modern tone

Yamaha AES620 - a nice comfortable and versatile guitar. The JB in the bridge give a nice in your face raw tone, and the Yamaha PAF in the neck give a nice vintage Les Paul type tone

Fender MIM Standard Telecaster - This is the most versatile guitar I've ever played. It can go from sparkling clean to rip your face off metal. A great backup or #1 for pretty much any style

Fender Redondo Acoustic - This was my first guitar, and it's been everywhere and through everything. It's a real trooper. It's getting kinda worn out now, but it's still a great guitar, minus the shoddy intonation.

Peavey Grind BXP 6-string bass - this baby takes care of the bottom end.

Amps:
Peavey 5150 2x12 combo - The tones from this amp just fit me perfect. Contrary to popular belief, it is actually quite a versatile amp. I like my clean channel to have some grit and balls to it, and this amp does that perfect. I like my dirty channel to have a nice raw and in your face growl to it, and to have a really tight bottom end, and again, this amp does that perfect.

Peavey Valveking 1x12 combo - The 5150 is a monster of an amp to carry around, so I've got this amp for when I don't need as much amp as the 5150 is. Tone wise, the amp could be called the little brother to the 5150. It's clean channel is very nice, and really lets the tone of your guitar through. The dirty channel can go from light crunch up to screaming metal. I swapped the speaker out for an Eminence Wizard, and the tubes with a set of JJ preamp tubes, and Ruby power tubes. That really opened the amp up, as the stock speaker and tubes were holding it back from it's full potential.

'61 Gibson GA-5 1x8 combo - This amp was a "hand me down". It's basically a clone of the old Fender Champ. 5 HUGE watts of Class A tube goodness.

Pedals:
Ernie Ball volume pedal - used first thing in my effects chain in front of my amp. I use it mainly to lower the gain when needed, without having to turn the guitars volume pot down

Dunlop CryBaby wah - I don't use wah much, but when I do, this one works fine, and didn't cost too much... simple as that.

MXR 6-band EQ - used to shape the guitars tone a bit, and also for a bit of a volume and gain boost

MXR ZW-44 Wylde Overdrive - used as a gain boost and to tighten the distortion up

Carl Martin PlexiTone - I really only use this pedal when recording. It pretty much turns my Valveking into a Marshall Plexi on crack, which is awesome!

MXR M117R Flanger - This was the flanger that was used to get those EVH flanging tones on songs such as "Unchained", "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", and many more. It can even do a convincing chorus and "Leslie".

Boss CH-1 Chorus - It's simple, and sounds great! Definitely a pedal I couldnt' live without.
Boss DD-3 Delay - A simple and decent delay. Works great in front of an amp, or in the loop
Boss TU-2 tuner - Keeps me in good enough tune while jamming. I wouldn't suggest it for studio use, or when setting up a guitar though.

Other gear for recording and such:
Peavey Rockmaster tube guitar preamp, PODxt w/ Metal Pack & Bass Expansion pack installed, POD 2.0, Behringer DEQ2496, Crown CE1000 power amp, Furman Power Conditioners, Yamaha MG 12/4 mixer, PreSonus Comp16 compressor, PreSonus FireBox soundcard, M-Audio Axiom 49 MIDI keyboard, M-Audio BX8 studio monitors, Shure SM57 dynamic mic, MXL 990 condensor mic, Sennheiser headphones

That was wildly in-depth. What is your current practice regimen?

Honestly, I don't have a practice regimen. I pretty much just pick up my guitar and start to jam on various things, and try to come up with new ideas. I should really make an effort to start actually practicing more though.

Surely you must have some sort of project in the works...

I'm not really involved in anything at the moment. I'm in the process of moving, and am very busy. So, I'm trying not to get too involved with anything until I get settled into my new home.

Do you have any advice for beginners?

Never give up! There will be times when you get frustrated, and times where you'll want to break your guitar in half, but that's just part of it. Keep pushing yourself to continue learning new things. If you feel like you've fallen into a rut, take a few steps back and give yourself a fresh start.