Les Claypool Amplifier and Effects pedals - Primus "Know Your Bass Player" (2/2)
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.ค. 2024
- Welcome back it’s part 2 of Les Claypool’s Amplifier and Effects Rig. Les’ amplifier rig is a little bit of a mystery. While he endorsed both Mesa Boogie and Ampeg over the years. It seems he was never satisfied with his rig.
Swapping amplifiers and cabinets, in and out more than any other bass player covered on the channel. Stay with me and hopefully it will all become clear.
Amplifiers mentioned, Mesa Boogie, Ampeg, SWR and Gallien Krueger.
*******************
SHOW NOTES
*******************
Head to the show notes for a list of all equipment mentioned today. This includes ALL the amplifiers and pedals and when they were used.
whichbass.co.uk/LesClaypool-Am...
*******************
Les Claypool's Basses
*******************
In part 1 we discover Les and his array of bass guitars.
whichbass.co.uk/LesClaypool
*******************
💪SUPPORT THE CHANNEL
*******************
🥇 Support WhichBass on Patreon / whichbass
🌴Buy anything on Amazon amzn.to/3TSrdpu
🛒 Find your dream bass on Reverb tidd.ly/49zHSUk
*******************
CONTACT
*******************
Follow me on Twitter @AlfieWilliamsUK or visit knowyourbassplayer.co.uk
Les Claypool: I'm not really a gearhead
Also Les Claypool: *has an iPad integrated in his effects chain and gear
Sure, but his allegiance to those Carl basses over all those years tells me there’s some truth to it
@@grant5603 in a way. He really only liked the piccolo 4 string and fairly quickly got bored of the 6 string ones. He's using them now for the songs they're needed on but doesn't play around much with them anymore. And he prefers the pachyderm basses over even the piccolo CTs he has. It's just that he's a very big guy who got used to playing a very small instrument with a very particular shape and feel so he was kinda stuck with the CT until he made his own bass
I always admired Les Claypool and Primus, He was the Man who inspired me to pick up a Bass Guitar. Thank you for sharing these videos. :)
Awesome Dr. If there's one player to inspire you to play you could do a lot worse than Les! Glad you enjoyed the vids!
Same
@Brantbass cuz primus sucks and les too
@Brantbass it’s a joke, it is not an opinion. It is band tagline - primus sucks
@Brantbass no problems bro xD
My hats off to you. This is the most detailed history of Claypools rigs on the entire internet. Fan of over 20 years and a Primus tribute band bassist.
Thank you Nuke. That was my plan. To get the most detailed rig possible and answer questions. Thanks for watching!
LEMMY!!!!!! Lemmy is a must and I look forward to your review of him... That being said, the only two that can follow Lemmy are dUg Pinnick and Geddy Lee. Love what your doing Alfie, keep it up.
Glad you're looking forward to Lemmy, it'l be a good one! dUg and Geddy are great suggestions. One of them is quite high up on the list. So we'll see ;)
LEMMY!!!
As a bass player myself,I always enjoy watching your videos,a great job of in depth knowledge of what the musicians have used throughout their careers, rock on!!!
Thank you Erik. Glad to have you watching. I hope you learned a lot!
Probably one of the most under rated bassists, Frank Bello. Can you please cover his rig?
Frank Bello is a beast 🤘
I don't remember where I heard this, but to get those interesting high end sounds, Les would crank up the middle a lot. This is the sound of the first 3 albums. I've been playing bass for 25 years, and Les is one of the reasons I started. I've gotten pretty good "Claypool" like tone by really focusing on the middle end. It's not exactly his tone, but if you're in a band and want to cover some of the older Primus songs, that's a really good starting point.
If you do remember I'd love to see the article/video for my collection! I want the full picture haha.
That's why claypool is awesome he is always restless & curious constantly experimenting with gear !👍
An inspiration for all! No doubt.
That's real fine detective work. Real fine.
Thanks chief.
I love his tone in the claypool Lennon delirium. It's got some of the best overdrive I can think of
bak 138 which overdrive does you think he uses in that project?
@@armata6530it comes from the sansamp I think
LEMMY 😍 and thanks for this complete run down of everything Claypool 💕
You are welcome Dam, very glad you enjoyed your self :D
This video was put together well and I found the information to be accurate and thoroughly researched.
Thanks Louie, that's all I strive for when I make these videos.
Really appreciate the good talking/script/editing/research.
Thank you Live Evil glad you enjoyed it.
The work Tod Langer did with his rig was bad ass. I was there at Tods place when he picked up his rig. Sweet sounding.
Never have I clicked on a video this fast and nice work as always!!
Haha thanks Default Guy, I appreciate that!
AWESOME videos!
Tons of great info
Les is my main man, and the one who influenced me to really get into bass.
I would note [ from personal experience ] over the 30-something claypool/primus shows ive seen over the last 15 years, i have primarily seen Les using the Ampeg PR410 cabs and usually around 4 SVT5 heads with various rackmount gear included.
Thats the main reason I picked up the same cab and amp and it sounds absolutely incredible. So much punch and fullness.
It wasnt until the last 3-4 years i noticed he ditched the SVT5s and switched to rackmount exclusively but still kept the Ampeg cabs.
And in the last 2 years or so he has switched back all MESA gear.
Personally I prefer the Ampeg sound he had along with his original CT 4 string as opposed to his new sound. It had so much crunch and power. I feel like his newer sound with the Pachyderm basses is more nasally and thin, but it does sound good in its own way.
I do miss his main 4 string, i was very sad to see him retire it.
The shows he played with that bass in the Fancy Band were some of the greatest times of my life.
That's a very insightful comment Reginald thank you. It's a shame about Ampeg, I wonder what drew him back to Boogie. Like you said though, his new sound is more nasal so I wonder if the Boogies compliment that approach. Rather than a full range.
Love your videos man! Keep it up!
Thank you Cheesy Cola! Glad to have you watching.
Good video. All I know after going to shows which Les was on bass(Primus, Sausage, Frog Brigade, C.C.B.B.B., Duo de Twang) his sound stayed consistent till 2003. It's when they started to form into a jam band and Les used a plethora of sounds and effects. After this his bass sounds revolved around his costume Pachyderm bass and the Rainbow 6 string. Now his sound is incredibly punchy and less "muddy", usually put thru some Ampeg unit. I know for a fact that he was indorsed by DR strings for a while. Read an article on how he could get DR strings at a light gauge in the 95 to 40 range for his 4 string basses.
Thanks great video as always been waiting for this!
Thanks Ben, I'm glad you enjoyed it :D
From memory, when i saw them in Brixton 1996, definitely Boogie, 1 4x10, 1 2x15, studio400's probably 2.
1998 shepherds bush, was 2 8x10 ampeg, 2 svt heads.
It's not always a question of endorsement, it's way cheaper to hire than ship these heavy old things.
That would explain the chameleon rigs over the years.
FYI, i play a 1979 Carl Thompson L/H, and Ashdown ABM500RC EVO II. through ABM810.
Bass has emg jset 9v, fx only sansamp bass driver.
Geddy Lee! He's had a ton of different gear over the years!
Gotta realise that when touring overseas back in the day he would likely just play the best amp available for hire
As always, a very interesting and very detailed video. Thanks for the good work, keep it up ! :)
Thank you Mukanda! Glad to you stopped by :D
No worries fella. Anyone else on about the captions? Huge Wimbish fan myself from Sugarhill/Tackhead/Living Colour days to present. Meet him once at a clinic in Dublin, (bass clinic, not a rehab), he wasn't in the best mood if I recall. Still he was very polite and explained his finger/thumb hammering technique to me.
Thank you Alfie
Really informative and extremely well presented.........
Thanks Steve, glad you liked it.
This was awesome, man, I love Primus and it was really cool learning about Les’s rig. Also I’m totally down from some Lemmy, he was such a badass bassist and Ace of Spades has one of the coolest intros ever
Awesome Andrew, glad you're looking forward to it. It should be a good one!
Which Bass Of course, man, I always look forward to your vids. One other suggestion (aside from my “usual” Krist Novoselic) I’d love to see would be someone like John Paul Jones, Mark Hoppus or Nate Mendel, but I’ll still be waiting for Lemmy
Just sayin I saw the video 2 minutes after it was uploaded, just waiting to have some time to actually watch it. Love you Alfie
Apakep! I hope you manage to watch it in full and experience the full video haha. I feel the love Apakep thank you!
@@WhichBass finallly got some time after failing my exam. But whatever. That was a really really nice episode Alfie ! A very thorough work on Les's gear ; I was not expecting him to have so many different amplifier combination.
Super hyped for Lemmy ! Now I have my own wish [but I have no need for it to be granted] concerning who I'd like to see next, and that would Bryan Beller from the Aristocrats ! One of the best bassists I have ever heard and a lovely fellow from what I've read about him. Anyway, cheers.
I loved these Les videos! Even as a big Primus fan you bring up sources I've never even heard of before, thanks for the great work! I super pumped for a Lemmy video, but I'd love to see one on Frank Bello (Anthrax) or maybe Trevor Dunn (Mr. Bungle & more) sometime. Keep it up 🤘
Thank you Geddy Knee, I appreciate the compliment and that you learned something (good to know I'm thorough)! Frank and Trevor are great suggestions I'll see what I can do.
Alfie Ive never seen a guy change so much other than Primus , excellent video.
This may sound corny but I'll never forget the thundress boom from Mel Schacher from Grand Funk Railroad.
So much so I had to buy a bass of my own but this was a long time ago , I was 18 and the album Closer to Home was top on my list of music.
Hey Mark, good to see you back! Nah that's not corny, if something moves you it's great you could take inspiration from it and learn. I like people who know what they like ;)
I agree. Go with Lemmy.
Mr. Claypool is from another universe.
Les is a mad scientist when it comes to his rig and sound.
Alien or Mad Scientist - you decide!
@@WhichBass maybe abit of both.
I am in love with the SVT3 Pro, I got one for only $500, nearly mint! I can get a very similar tone to Seas of Cheese, Pork Soda and Tales from the Punchbowl.
Great amp! I've had a couple over the years. The SWR SM-400 is also a great head.
Awesome video! Can't wait for the Lemmy one. I would love to hear a rundown on Rex Brown's basses, amps and pedals too.
Also, as an Aussie, I'd love to hear about Midnight Oil's bassists' stuff too.
Thank you Sam, me too! It'll be a good one. Rex is a great suggestion I'd like to get to him soon. I'll put Midnight Oil on the list, watch this space!
Oh by the way Alfie when I told you I have an old SWR sm400 that is the exact SWR that I have two of. I love it so much I bought a second one. I always get compliments in studio and live from the engineers. Best amp I ever owned and i own about a dozen heads. I also use 2 swr goliath III 4x10s and 2 son of Bertha 1x15s all with dialable tweeters.
Good to see you back Lucie thank you! I must say that SWR caught my attention. I'd love to give it a try. I'll have to find some videos of it now!
Bravo! Mindboggling - great gear rundown M8
Cheers Angus, glad you enjoyed it.
Touring musicians often use a festivals house gear. Especially if it’s a fly date.
Awesome videos soo informative. Ty so very much🎉🎉🎉
Lemmy and Claypool being in the same video, in any way, will never fail to make me freak out
Really appreciate the info. Thank you dude. Nice channel.
My pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it Zaniel.
Which Bass, that is the best video of all time! :) I found Les Claypool to be a really cool Bass player. I've heard of him before. The things that you mentioned (The amplifier and Effects pedals) were pretty interesting. Keep up the great work my friend! But I'm excited to see the Lemmy video very soon! :)
Thank you so much Sonic, I appreciate the good words. What are you excited to see?! You didn't finish your comment!
@@WhichBass Thanks. I'm so sorry if I forgot to finish my comment. What I meant to say was:
"I'm excited to see the Lemmy video very soon. I love Motor-head and Lemmy very much. He should be remembered".
there was also an EHX Hot Tubes used on The Brown Album and Antipop.
Great job! I would like to see:
1. Dug Pinnick
2. Tim Commerford
3. Chris Wolstenholme
Challenge accepted?
I've got all three on my list already, some higher than others so I'll see what I can do ;)
Dug is awesome I have seen him many times never disappoints.
Even though i am not a bass player i find your videos are super interesting and very well researched and put together. If i can i would like to suggest you cover two guys i like a lot,Steve DiGiorgio and Eerie Von,keep up the great work!!!
Thanks Orlando, I appreciate that, I'll add those guys to the list.
This was an awesome video. Super comprehensive. I almost felt like a stalker just watching it. Can’t wait for the next one.
Haha, leave the stalking to me Ant man. You sit back and enjoy ;)
Great video!
Thank you Hellchild, glad to have you watching.
My goodness, I got lost after minute 10. LOL! great video bro. You really did your homework on this one.
Thanks Haxaw, ah don't despair! Check the show notes if you need a list.
Just goes to prove, tone is in the hands. He always sounded like Les no matter what rig he played thru.
I'd LOVE to see Mark Michell in one of these. One of THE best bass sounds IMO.
Interesting suggestion J. You're the first person to suggest him. I think this might satiate you though ;) markmichell.com/gear/
Timmy C. He is the bass player that started my never ending tone journey
I'm digging it, I might do him sooner than expected!
Cool video 🤙
Great Job! Love What You’re Doing! 👍🏻🍺
Thanks Michael, glad to have you watching!
Awesome work on Les! I already suggested Juan Alderete but it'd be rad to get Bootsy Collins, also!
Thank you for watching LaTiger, glad you enjoyed it. Juan and Bootsy are great suggestions. Watch this space!
I suggested Jaco a while back. But how about John Entwistle from The Who?
Yes jaco
Why not both?! :D
Which Bass Very true.
Well they both used J Basses through an Acoustic 360 or 361, 1x18” baffled cabs and later 8x10 Acoustic cabs. Later Jaco used the first Hartke designed cabs and a few different basses not often talked about.
Awesome video as always!!! Peter Steele is still my main request xD but now with the Queen fever caused by bohemian rhapsody, John Deacon is a new request.
But well... Great video Alfie and have a good one!!!
Thank you Mega Kill. Peter seems to be rising up the list atm, watch this space! John Deacon seems like a missed opportunity now ... sshiiitt.
Lemmy, Geddy Lee, John Entwistle, David Ellefson, Gene Simmons, Ian Hill, John Deacon...please do all of them lol Love your videos, greetings from Brazil!
Thanks Aline, great suggestions. You tell Brazil I said hello and I'll see what I can do!
@@WhichBass You bet lol Looking forward to that!
Great video! I'd love to see Gene Simmons. They are going to embark on their last tour. Gene started out using Gibson and used some different basses in the 80's before going back to the axe and punisher. Also known for using a SVT rig he's actually changed it in the last couple years
Gene would be an interesting rig! I'd love to look into that. Great suggestion.
They’ve had like 6 final tours lol
@@Needawholepailofwater touché lmao
It seems Les was so wasted he kept forgetting which amps he liked better Ampeg or Mesa Boogie!! Thanks Alfie!
Haha sounds like it! Tom Jenkinson is a great suggestion btw! I'll put him on the list.
Very good and thorough! You missed on thing: he uses an Alesis Micron analog modeling synthesizer (located on his amp behind him). I’m guessing he triggers it with the foot pedals (possibly on the “Tom Sawyer” patch), that would explain why the Access Virus is not seen in some of pictures you showed of the foot pedals.
Thanks Cellar. Ah that's interesting. Do you have a picture or article I can read for more info?
Awesome
@616 The GKs on top were probably running the bottom end of those 8x10s those are biampable.
And Les Claypool says he is not a gear head😄.Great job again mate you always put a lot of effort into it.🤘👍
Thank you Ben, I know he's a goddamn liar and he knows it!
@@WhichBass 🤣🤣🤣
Touring musicians often get loan gear, and sometimes for 1-off shows or short tours (like Oysterhead) they may not truck their amps or drum kits around and just use a loaner from the company they endorse. That happens even more often on international tours. I get the impression Les relies more on his basses and outboard for his tone, he often goes DI for recording, so maybe he’s just not super picky about amps and cabs and will just use the closest thing to an Ampeg SVT head and a 4x10/2x15 he can get, or an equivalent Mesa Boogie.
It was probably covered, but how does Les get that envelope filter sounds on Oysterhead (specifically the bass solo)?
Ah who knows with Les, the mad scientist he is. Could be anything.
My vote for Lemmy next! What a Legend!! Great videos by the way... Have subscribed ;)
Thanks for the sub Simon I appreciate that! Lemmy is nearly done, it's gonna be awesommeeee!
I think the AMPEG Rig was probably just the backline provided for that show. I can't tell you how many times I've used that same setup at festival gigs. Just a theory ...
Is a good theory Pat, I haven't seen footage from the rest of the show so it's possible.
okay the strings element is really interesting, using hella light strings does make sense for chords and bends, i wonder what he does for the B and c on his 6 string basses
If I have to guess, he probably used the next gauge down so used EEAAGG. Just my opinion not fact!
@@WhichBass I would have thought he'd go eaaggc, eeaagg would throw things off by a string wouldn't it?
I've read that his 6 strings always were regular gauges.
BEADGC, but I could be wrong.
well thats tuning not gauge, we were referencing which strings he would be using, i.e. using an A string for the E so its thinner, easier to play
@@TacticalHyena So did I.
Les has a particular tone on different albums. He may be using the solid state GK head on Sailing the Seas of Cheese. Particularly Blue Collared Tweakers, Tommy the Cat and Jerry.
Great job as always! I would love to see you take on the Rig of Chris Wolstenholme of Muse!
But Lemmy is fine for a start ;)
I'd love to do Chris one day. Watch this space!
Alex Webster of Cannibal Corpse would be an interesting one. I really like his tone and his bass solos on their early work were always killer.
A lot of love for Alex Webster, I'm liking it Eldritch. Watch this space.
John Paul Jones, John Entwistle, Geddy, Paul McCartney, just a few suggestions....Can't wait to see Lemmy!!
All great suggestions Crandon and all on the list thanks!
also peter hook would be interesting gear-wise, anyhow great vids mate!!
That'll be a good one, thanks Ilias, I'll see what I can do.
Great video! Please do Billy Gould from Faith No More! 🙏
Billy is a great suggestion, I'll see what I can do!
I know I'm 5 years too late for this, but the Gallien Kruger heads could have just been a part of a the backline for the festival they were playing, and were just stacked there to make change over easier between bands.
Thank you!!!!!
Thank you Leo, big fan of your work sir ;)
@@WhichBass yours as well. (I see you with that Lakland tho)
Lmao, you had me choking on my coffee there. Underrated comment.
Very interesting! If i had that many amps id change it up alot too haha and yes lemmy next!
You must be one of those people who embrace change. I don't! I like to stick to what I know XD
With the Boogie rigs, what was used for power? The MP-2s are just preamps, and the Boogie cabs aren't powered. So, what was used for power?
I'm so looking forward to Lemmy and I think you should profile David Ellifson of Megadeth and John Myung of Dream Theater
Brilliant, glad you're looking forward to Lemmy. I am too! Dave is high up on my list so I am considering him, we will see!
Awesome! Thank You! :-)
Thank you THX, glad you enjoyed it.
I was gonna say Cliff Burton, but I see you’ve done him. I’ll watch it now.
Correct!
Maybe.... Les plays bass for a long time, and has got some different amps, either by having an endorsement or buying them by himself?
This is why he chooses the amp and cab of his choice for the event/venue he is playing. This is how I do it, owning several Amps like GenzBenz GBE 1200, 750 and 600, Genzler Magellan 800, a GK 400 RB, Ampeg V4b Ri, Ampeg SVP Pro + RedRock Modus M 4.5 power amp, Peavey TMax, Bugera BVV 3000 (Ampeg SVT VR Knockoff), Marshall MB 4411 Combo, Ibanez Promethean 5110, and several cabs as there are 2 x Tecamp L 810", Tecamp L 215, GenzBenz NeoX 212", SWR Workingman 212", 2 x Peavey TVX 410", 2 x custom built 114" + 5", and a custom built sealed 410" (built after specs of a half Ampeg 810"Flatback"), loaded with Celestion 10g50.
Due to transport possibilitys, venue and stage size and "sound-taste of the day" I pick what I need / want to have.
That's a hell of a collection, how'd you have all the room?! I have no doubt it's a split between endorsement and buying his own stuff.
I went to a Q and A with Primus over the summer and some one asked him what amp he uses and he basically said he is sponsored by Mesa Boogie and they are really good amps he just plays what ever they give him. And it didn't seem like he cared that much about the specifics of the amp.
Oh that's really interesting. It does look like he'll happily play with anything and make it sound good.
@@WhichBass What's interesting is that he's not even using the D800+, which is the newest class D amp that Mesa makes. It's the D800 with a few more useful eq controls. I'm sure the roadies are happy to not have to move such heavy cabs anymore since those 1x12 Subways come in at like 33 lbs each. Truly some of the best bass gear that Mesa has ever made!
Love the content! so much to learn !
Thank you for the kind words Robby, happy to have you watching.
but what was the studio setup for pork soda?
Rob Trujillo?
Yes! I'd love to finish the Metallica trilogy. One day soon I hope!
I do know that like Claypool, Rob uses SVTs
On that one pic with the 2 mesa diesel cabs with the mesa 400, is that a 4x10 the amps sit on with primus on it? Is there a reason we assume he doesnt use it? Lots of other sources, using that picture dont mention it either. Just tryna decide if i needa get a 4x10 or 2x15, and i want it to be a 15 lmao
Way more simple than most would think. Wonder why he never explored GK anymore than he has?
Maybe a video on Glen Benton of Deicide somewhere down the line?
I like it Andrew, sounds interesting. Watch this space.
Modern day does he use the mesa boogie subway live with his fractal audio axe fx ? Or does he just use the axe fx for primus ?
I haven't seen what he's up to these days so I can't say for certain.
Could you please talk about Shavo Odadjian from System Of A Down?
I like it Noah! Watch this space.
Fantastic Upload! ! I like it. Keep it up!
like #442
Thanks very much Monster, I appreciate the the 442nd like :D
Love to know the mystery behind bass of doom for Jaco couldn’t be the same one all those years
A classic, I like it Suzanne. I'll see what I can do.
You need to do a video on Lemmys gear
Lemmy's a coming. He's next.
Keep the great work up Alfie,what’s next on your list for Bass players?
Thank you Daniel, nice to see you back! Did you not watch the video to the end?! The next player is Lemmy and it's going to be amazing.
Awesome work my friend,Can’t wait for the next video,how your Polish coming along 😜
Dzięki! Moj polsku jest chodzic ok! ... Chyba XD. Staram sie uczyc codziennie.
Brilliant video man. Can we see shavo from SOAD soon??
Thank you James, Shav is on the list! Hopefully I'll get to him sooner rather than later :D
Touring musicians sometimes need/prefer to use equipment that isn't theirs (rentals, other band's gear, etc) for certain shows. That doesn't mean they've switched out their own gear.
How the heck do you find all this amazing information??
I use the svt 4 pro such a killer amp!! Wonder why he changed so much
Lot's of Googling, lots of watching TH-cam and lots of reading! Glad you enjoyed it Jeremy. I've enjoyed replying to all your comments. It's nice to see you progress through the back catalogue!
Peter Hook of Joy Division/New Order!!
That's an interesting suggestion thanks Luke.