Adrian Emsley
We get to grips with Orange's leading stompbox innovator on how to squeeze out the best fuzz and juice up your tone...
1
What was the first pedal that you built and how did the design come about? “The Bax Bangeetar was the first pedal I designed for Orange. I just wanted to do something differently. It’s got four stages of amp-like gain with a Neve channelstyle EQ strip. It’s got a lot of output and you can really hit the front end of an amp with it hard.”
2
What’s your favourite vintage pedal and why? “Probably the early 70s fOXX Tone Machine. It’s a great fuzz. I also like late 60s Fuzz Faces a lot. The old Boss DM-2 pedals are cool – I’ve got a couple of old original ones and one of the Boss Waza Craft reissues; I think they’ve done a great job on those. The original Binson Echorec has to be mentioned, of course!”
3
What new pedal triggers your GAS most now? “The Catalinbread Echorec – I like that! I think they’ve done a really good job. Obviously it’s never going to be exactly the same because it’s digital, but it’s a really nice box. I like the way they’ve done the playback head combinations.”
4
What’s your best tone tip? “Don’t use Tube Screamer-type overdrives into a clean amp; use them into an amp with some hair, otherwise it might sound thin and horrible. Also, don’t use distortions into a dirty amp; use them into a clean amp, or it will probably lose a lot of projection, especially on stage. Fuzzes are an exception; you can use most good fuzzes into either. The mark of a good fuzz is it works with an amp with some hair, without it cancelling out or getting quieter.”
5
Name some common mistakes that guitarists make with effects... “Using too many effects that aren’t really changing the sound that much, or using more than they need to and doing things too subtly; it’s a common mistake because the audience isn’t going to hear the difference. Things get so vague in a live situation when you’re watching a band, especially on a big stage. It’s the big steps that really stand out – the big boosts. If you’re going to hit a boost then make sure you’ve got a good few more dBs coming out of the amp when you do that (to make it noticeable). There’s nothing wrong with a massive pedalboard if you know how to use it, but keep the rig simple and solid, is my advice.”
6
Tell us a secret about effects you’ve discovered... “Using a compressor in the effects loop – but it has to have lots of headroom and stay clean with a massive signal going into it. That’ll give you a decent volume boost and works really well if you’re using a nice, simple setup. The Kongpressor is great for that because it just stays clean, whatever you put into it.”
7
If you had a three-pedal ‘desert island’ pedalboard what would be on it and why? “I’d have the Orange Fur Coat on there first, or a fOXX Tone Machine. I’d also have a Catalinbread Echorec and an Orange Kongpressor last. I could live without overdrive and distortion; as long as I’ve got fuzz I’m good!”
8
What are your favourite effects pedal moments to be heard on record and why? “One of them has got to be Time, by Pink Floyd – it’s the Binson Echorec and fuzz sound. Jimi Hendrix’s Voodoo Child (Slight Return) – that’s up there. Proper fuzzes work great into an amp with some hair on them and that’s a prime example of it. The Sex Pistols’ Did You No Wrong is a great distortion sound; [Producer] Chris Thomas told me he was using a cranked Vox AC30 with a blown speaker, so the surviving speaker is taking absolute hell. It’s a killer sound.”
9
What problems do effects designers have yet to crack? “I think Voodoo Labs and Daniel Steinhardt from The GigRig pretty much addressed it, but power supply is really important: there’s so many terribly noisy power supplies out there. We need to educate the pedals buyers not to plug the wrong power supply in!”
10
Are there any long lost gems that you think would be worth a reissue? “Most of what was worth reissuing probably has been. I’m always dubious about doing direct reissues because you might not be able to make it exactly as it was done years ago and, by the same token, if you don’t make it exactly the same it’ll get destroyed by the punters! Personally I prefer to do takes on stuff rather than reissues.” www.orangeamps.com