Rickenbacker 12 String Electric Guitars

For myself, it-all began with the two Godfathers associated with the electric 12 string: George Harrison regarding the Beatles and Roger McGuinn of Byrds. Obviously, the very first ingredient is a good 12 sequence. The Granddaddy of these all could be the Rickenbacker 12 sequence.

Ricks being handmade in the same factory in Santa Ana, California for several years if you will find a dealer that sells and stocks Rickenbacker, you may spend thousands and you may become waiting many months for style of your fantasies. I waited 8 months for my 360/12 traditional style when I bought it in 1990.

In the event that you play in a week-end band or jam with your pals, you might find the electric 12 sequence, once you have done every one of the necessary Beatles, Byrds, Animals, whom, Tom Petty, R.E.M., and Smiths tunes, has actually a fairly limited use throughout your arsenal. Or, not. If you’re just like me, you’d gladly have fun with the electric 12 through the night!

Crank up the input gain, compress the bejeezuz from your 12 string and jangle away!

Tone Secret Number 1: Compression!

George Harrison’s great 12 sequence tone originated in a variety of three things: their matchless technique, the venerable Vox AC 30, in addition to Altec limiter that was in the Abbey path studios. The Vox, featuring its all-tube EL 84 system and its GZ34 rectifier provides any electric guitar that creamy, brown, compression sustain and chime however it sparkles whenever you play an electric12 through it.

The Altec limiter is an old tube-type studio compressor/limiter that squishes the sound on blending system and enhanced the sound of these old AC 30’s.

Roger McGuinn of Byrds has said that his tone came from tracking their Rickenbacker straight into the console and working it through not one, but two Pultec Limiters in addition! Listen to the orifice figure of “Mr.Tambourine Man” and you’ll hear those compressors squeezing away!

Today i am aware many of you don’t have George’s or Roger’s strategy (neither do I), or access to old AC 30’s (that may cost upwards of $5, 000 for collectible instances) or old items of studio equipment like Altec or Pultec limiters, you could achieve equivalent effect with a decent high quality stomp box compressor. Our favourite could be the Diamond Compressor made here in Canada but any good compressor can do: Keely, Ross, Analog guy, Barber, MXR DynaComp, plus the old standby EMPLOYER CS-2 or 3.

Tone Secret Number 2: Flatwounds!

I came across this Tone Secret the afternoon I got my Rickenbacker 12. I had played other creates of electric 12’s before nonetheless they had never created “that sound” that my Rick had. What was various about it? The solitary coil pickups that come standard on a Rick? The way Rickenbacker arranged the strings aided by the root string over the top therefore the octave string underneath?

Both these things had an influence on just how it seemed although vital huge difference if you ask me was the strings. They were maybe not round wound like 99per cent associated with the strings being in the marketplace these days: they were flat injury!

When George and Roger had been young men (1964), and ahead of the late Ernie Ball began making round wound light gauge electric guitar strings in California, almost everyone played level injury strings – that’s that which was widely well-known and available at enough time. Round wounds were offered but it wasn’t until The Shadows made all of them preferred that there ended up being a need for them in European countries. Top flat injury strings on the planet originated from Germany (but still do) and had been offered under the manufacturers of Pyramid and Thomastik.