Ted Nugent's Amps

[ch willie]

Back in the days before I knew what an idiot Ted Nugent was, I liked him, especially the first three solo albums. Back then when I saw him, he played through a wall of Fenders, which he claimed were all hooked up and playing.

Does he still play through Fenders? I was listening to a more recent album and his playing sounds like it's going through Marshalls.

I don't know why I even care, but I've been on a nostalgia trip by listening to Free For All.

[NeoFauve]

Something that loudens riffs in A.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5I7o3TxH7o0

[chuckocaster]

last i saw it was peavey, a 5150 or 6550, whatever they call it now.

[Gravity Jim]

Isn't that The Tone King?

Well, have you ever seen a picture of them together?

[Erock_Germany]

Back in the day he played the short-lived but brutally loud Super Twin 2x12s. A monster of an amp that sported like 11 tubes, weighed like 100 pounds and was supossed to put out 180 watts.

To add insult to injury, he had 2x18 extension cabinets underneath.

All that times three!

He claims they were daisy chained and that all were running pretty much dimed....jesus, I can not imagine the earth shattering sonic pressure....

Good thing we learned how to use microphones with small amps and PAs to run sound in big venues....

[Gravity Jim]

I remember reading somewhere - maybe the Encyclopedia of Rock - that Ted Nugent became famous through sheer persistence; that no matter how badly his work was received, he simply would not go away.

[Kap'n]

I thought that was only true of him after he had his one hit. Didn't know it was true before.

[elicross]

No need to apologize for liking Ted Nugent back in the day. The fact that he's a lunatic doesn't mean "Free For All," "Stranglehold," and "Cat Scratch Fever" are no longer fun to listen to.

[Bill Moore]

Just went to his website, seems he's booked more with hunting, and archery than music these days.

[Kap'n]

Something that loudens riffs in A.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5I7o3TxH7o0

They're not all in A.

Hey Baby is in E.

[ch willie]

I can't stand Nugent as a person, but I love those albums with Derek St. Holmes, a fantastic singer.

When I saw him in the 70s, he had those large cabinets, and he was loud.

[ampdan]

Like this...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9UJT0dRXyM

[FrankJohnson]

My Friend rob has a Sunn Enforcer - the Ted Nugent Series

only like 200-300 made

dont' know how long ted used those

[juniorspecial]

I remember reading one of those old Guitar Player interviews, back in the day, where he talked on and on about how wonderful he was. I remember it distinctly because he claimed he played so loud at festivals that birds flying in front of his amps would be completely vaporized. They would just disappear, and leave a few fluttering feathers falling through the air.

I swear, torture would be to be locked in the same room with Ted and his ego...

[NeoFauve]

A high school friend of mine liked basically three bands/artists, the Nuge, Neil Young and Pink Floyd.

I wondered if he really paid attention, or he was jusy going along with the stoner crew from Pathmark.

[Kap'n]

A high school friend of mine liked basically three bands/artists, the Nuge, Neil Young and Pink Floyd.

I wondered if he really paid attention, or he was jusy going along with the stoner crew from Pathmark.

Just imagine what would happen to his head if he heard this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR9d4...eature=related

I've probably played worse at keg parties.

[rudutch]

Just imagine what would happen to his head if he heard this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR9d4...eature=related

I've probably played worse at keg parties.

that's $#@% awful

[Kap'n]

that's $#@% awful

ZAppa would have called the drum track Xenochrony, even if it wasn't.

[rudutch]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiheU...eature=related

that's what I remember (not in Gemany) but I saw him many times 1976- 1982...

loud!

I still think the LP "ted nugent" is a classic

[Kap'n]

I still think the LP "ted nugent" is a classic

Yes it is. Derek was great, as was Cliff Davies. Ted played his best stuff on that album, but in many ways he was the weakest link of the band.

[rudutch]

and it all went down hill from there..

[dez]

Ted's an idiot, but he did make some good records in the 70s.

[Erock_Germany]

Yeah, I liked some of his stuff. It has energy and it was kind of nutty and impressed me as a teenager in the late 70's. Back then I knew and understood hew was a bit off the wall but that was the appealing thing somehow...

I never really registered how deranged he really was until I saw something about him on TV and his fights with the animal rights groups standing there and plugging his hunting videos with "'Ya gotta kill it before 'ya grill it..."

Then I realized I had to have been a bit off the wall when I was a teenager but that is actually no secret...

[ch willie]

I knew he was crazy. I remember an interview from Creem mag in the 70s. The highlighted text?: "I'd rape (or "kill," I forget which) a nun if she got in my way." Or something equally as vile.

[KYChucky]

I think if you look at the Cat Scratch Fever cover it says guitar in to marshall, thats it, no FX or something like that.

[bluespckr]

For many, many years Ted played a Gibson Byrdland guitar though Fender Dual Showman cabs powered by what looked like Twin Reverb Amps for "heads" (something like four of these huge combos on each side of the stage).

[soundguy]

I worked at a few Nugent arena shows back in the seventies, and I do recall him using six Super Twins on top of Dual Showman cabs, in a slight semi circle. Just his Byrdland and a curly guitar cable like we all used back in those days.
All cabs were nicely finished wood, paralleled together and dimed. All of 'em, no dummies. He wore one earplug. We called him Mr. Rude, for his insanely high SPL onstage. It was fun at the time, but thank god those days are over.

[yankeerob]

For many, many years Ted played a Gibson Byrdland guitar though Fender Dual Showman cabs powered by what looked like Twin Reverb Amps for "heads" (something like four of these huge combos on each side of the stage).

Correct - loaded with 15" EV SRO's - and the twins were loaded with 12" SRO's... he had a good deal with the Boys from Buchanan and they stood up well to the abuse by all accounts - the legend says he replaced an average of 1 driver per year over the 3 yrs he used them...

As previously stated... he used Super Twins later on but had 4 BF Twins on top of 4 DS cabs and had also used a Marshall head with that rig in the later years of TN and the Amboy Dukes era... quite how it was employed I'm not sure but there are enough photo archives that show a Marshall head on top of that 4 amp set-up to suggest it was used somehow...

That - IMO - was when he was at his peak - before the solo stuff and all the magazine interviews... he's always been an *sshole, people I've met in later life from the Flint/Detroit area have unanimously confirmed this but it hasn't tarnished the memory of seeing him goodness knows how many times - mainly at the Spectrum in Philly but also at MSG a coupla times... another aspect of these tours was his use of a Klipsch sound system that was incredibly efficient - the combination of Twins and that PA meant you heard him loud and clear an I mean really L/C - and I don't remember him hitting a bum note - this of course is tempered by the fact that he wasn't exactly that technical a guitar player - the keys of E and A have already been mentioned but there were a few in B too

There was a distinct change in both the live and studio sound when he went to the Super Twins and for some stupid reason he went to six ST's when he did... to my ears the sound got thinner and fizzier and I kind lost interest because even thought the songs were already pretty nonsensical - they went from there to unbearably stupid at that point...

As an aside - the latest from our friend Joel Wheeler at Electricamps is that he's supplied some of his amps for Ted's latest exploits... see http://www.motorcitymadamp.com/... these are built along the lines of Matamps and are - as you might expect - built as well as they look like they are... not exactly sure what the whole rig is but if Joel has anything to do with 'em - they're as per the usual Ted scenario - ridiculously loud

[rudutch]

he has 're-invented' himself a few times and seems to be doing well..
from sellin out big arenas to talk shows to hunting shows.. better than most of his 'peers' from that era

[ch willie]

I'd love to find out that he had a Fender Champ miked behind those stacks.

[Offshore Angler]

He's such a blowhard I'm surprised he needs an amp. Seems like all he's have to do is shove the cord up his ass and open his mouth.

[ch willie]

[gooman]

journey to the center of the mind always stood out to me, great tone and pretty radical for the day.His later stuff got mundane but no more than say judas priest ect. I have respect for the fellow,he has sold a lot more albums than me

[yankeerob]

He's such a blowhard I'm surprised he needs an amp. Seems like all he's have to do is shove the cord up his ass and open his mouth.

LMFAO!!! I couldn't have put it any better... and I'm still a fan

[Cygnus X1]

Great post again Rob.
I really don't care about artists political rants one way or the other, just don't stop the show to "convert me".
It always comes up with Ted because he chooses to do so.

Loved that Amboy Dukes sound, and just about everything with the Byrdland/Fender setup.
Like AC/DC...plug in and GO.

Here's something controversial...I think both he and Santana lost a lot of tone when they switched to PRS.

[ch willie]

I've never been a fan of PRS, although they make some damned fine looking guitars. Santana needs to strap on a LP, and Nugent should go back to the Byrdland or at least to a Les Paul.

[Kap'n]

Santana needs to strap on a LP, and Nugent should go back to the Byrdland or at least to a Les Paul.

I suspect it's not the instrument, but the artist losing his way, and trying to mix it up to get something going again.

[Rickenjangle]

I suspect it's not the instrument, but the artist losing his way, and trying to mix it up to get something going again.

I like Ted's earlier sound too, and the Byrdland was my favorite of his guitars... but Santana has been playing PRS into a Boogie for a very long time now...I saw photos of him in the early days playing an SG but that was in the 60's, and more than 40 years ago...I don't think you can blame PRS for Santana's tone choices...seems like he only uses the most super-sustaining sounds anymore -- a far cry from the Evil Ways tone, to be sure...

[gooman]

Cygnus I agree with what your saying about these artists that try to shove their political views at you, bonzo in u2 comes to mind as countless others , whats the old saying , shut up and play, dont care about your politics just your music.......... and yes give me a lp,tele,sg or strat and a fender or vox or marshall over a prs and mezaboogies any day

[Kap'n]

Santana has been playing PRS into a Boogie for a very long time now...I don't think you can blame PRS for Santana's tone choices...seems like he only uses the most super-sustaining sounds anymore -- a far cry from the Evil Ways tone, to be sure...

I don't think Santana has been interesting since he stopped playing the Yamaha. I don't think the PRS is to blame. I think Carlos' playing has just become dull and predictable and his choice of sound (not the instrument but amp gain) has been more buzzy and compressed.

Except of course, when he played a Strat on I'm Winning. A return to form.