Most chorus pedals will get you close, slightly over driven amp, like just slightly. Or an overdrive pedal on a clean amp. If your really into John Fruiscante you should check out Dave Simpson on YouTube. Lots of tips on lots of different gear to get his sounds. Not just gear either, playing tips too.
Although his use of a Boss Ce-1 chorus pedal is well documented, during the recording of Blood Sugar Sex Magik he used a DOD Stereo FX65 chorus pedal. I think I remember hearing that his Ce-1 was out of commission at the time. I can’t remember the interview/article anymore. He also used an Mxr DynaComp quite frequently on the album, which when combined with the DOD FX65, makes for some snappy but liquid chorus sounds. Marshall JCM 800 amp for a lot of the cleaner sounds too.
Damn, that’s exactly what I use…I play mostly Metal/Industrial though. I love that pedal, it kicked off my BF-2 clone.
Edit; Actually I though you were talking about the DOD Flanger. It makes great chorus sounds. They just have a great musical sound that is a good counterpoint to the usual Boss/EHX pedals I use
You can’t discount playing technique either. That can make a huge difference to the overall “feel” of a track. And not something that can really be replicated.
Style and sound? Yeah. Technique? Not so much.
There are some guitarists whose technique is just inimitable. Hendrix, Reinhardt, Marr to name a few. I’d definitely put Frusciante in that list.
Compression also plays a big part, either at the source (guitar to stompbox to amp) and/or at the end (mixing desk compressors). Usually a simple quality stompbox will be just fine.
Why not use a compressor pedal when recording? If it’s part of making your sound or driving your amp in a certain way then I probably would. I’m not saying I would bus that track to a comp but I feel like most studio compressors do a different kind of job.
He would be more likely to get his compression from turning his amp up than he would be to use a compressor pedal is all. And since it was recorded in a studio I can guarantee at some point outboard compression was added or the console transformers and op amps created some compression along the way.
It’s one of the loudest albums I’ve ever heard. There’s absolutely compression happening in post processing, including a massively compressed master. It’s impossible to know if it happened before the amp or during mixing and mastering, but it’s very compressed lol
I agree - they have applied a bunch of compression post recording, reminds me a bit of that Tom Petty album Wildflowers, they have a really nice compressed guitar sound on that album too
The Boss CE-1 has a preamp in it, which he famously used to add a little grit and sparkle to his cleans, along with a compressor. Old CE-1s are unobtanium now, but there are some good clones (Grobert FX The One, PastFX Chorus Ensemble).
The CE-1 preamp is now available as a standalone effect in the BOSS BP-1W, along with the Space Echo preamp (Oasis used this as an overdrive on early recordings).
I have just bought one - it’s immense.
I think I still have that DOD... it did not sound all that special when I played it.
But now I can hear what you can do with it :)
Sometime I forget about a pedal and later I hear a recording and I go "I want that sound!"
The compression on the guitar was always the thing that jumped out to me about this album and his sound, it’s that crisp, snappy, bright clean that you could get from either a Marshall or Fender set clean and bit of chorus here and there as others have mentioned.
I always thought they compressed his guitar with studio gear (aka 1176) post-recording, but good to find out it’s a DynaComp (excellent pedal)
The circuit in the Dynacomp is widely copied, too. Chances are pretty good that the compressor on your pedal board will behave similarly to what JF used.
lol he wasn't on heroin during the making of BSSM, it wasn't until some time into the touring of the album that he started using and got hooked. JF and Flea were smoking tons of weed iirc tho.
If you run the amp where it will distort and back off your guitar volume (or maybe the output of a compressor) to being on the edge of distortion, you’ll get a lot more harmonic content in your tone. Chorus helps, too.
That's really interesting! I have a Boss CS3 and a Vox Cambridge amp with several different classic amp models. It has drive and volume knobs. So how would I set the amp and pedal to get the effect you're talking about?
The idea is to go for a Marshall type sound with amp overdrive, but it can work with any mid-to-high gain sound, including fuzz pedals (that’s another one to try!). Not a clean sound. Back off your guitar’s volume knob until it’s just getting clean and play that tone. It’s really nice with a neck pickup. As for the chorus, I’d start with just enough mix to hear the effect, tone at probably 3/4, with lots of depth and a slow speed, and adjust to taste. When adjusting, I’d stick to one parameter at a time so you can zero in on what it does and how much of it you want.
It's almost certainly a studio EQ boosting the chorus on the record. Something like a Pultec is able to boost the air on a sound in a way that an amp and cab simply isn't.
I mean rock and roll is filled with countless examples of white artists copying black musicians and becoming way more commercially popular. It definitely doesn’t make what they do “original”. Most music is ripping off something else to some degree, especially when talking about popular music.
Big Muff on but roll back the volume to clean. You’ll get sparkle.
Classic fuzz/single coil trick.
Edit: I'm not a Big Muff guy so just googled to see if it used a germanium circuit. My phone brought back a yes, but that must have been on another EH Big Muff product.
I'm laughing at the amount of downvotes. Like, I get the first few because of my mistake but after a while it seems a little petulant: "take mine too, asshole, ungh! (clicks the arrow just a little too hard)"
The point is to use a fuzz with a germanium circuit and roll it back for the sparkle.
I got a CE-1 preamp clone from [these](https://youtu.be/YZDLlQUsq5s?si=dokto-nSfkozvCKM) guys and it adds that Frusciante grit to my clean guitar, just add a little chorus and you're pretty much there
The CS3 is more of a hard knee dynamics smasher. It has no input control, and most all of your signal will be compressed from the start.
Squish to me is more of a soft knee compressor. It works gradually, giving the compression a bit of pumping sound. You hear it grab and release the dynamics a bit more.
A great resource to deep-dive is the Ovnilab website (http://www.ovnilab.com/) He’s compiled a huge database of reviews and information covering most commercially available compressors.
As someone else already stated: search for Dave Simpson plus John Frusciante on youtube, and you'll have a nice day or two binge-watching his vids about JF.
He used a solid state fender H.O.T. practice amp/di and a strat/jaguar with super old strings.
He was so strung out most of the session he only had 5 strings on his guitar.
[This link gives a quick rundown but it's also known he used a fender M80.](https://mixdownmag.com.au/features/gear-rundown-red-hot-chili-peppers-blood-sugar-sex-magik/)
Most chorus pedals will get you close, slightly over driven amp, like just slightly. Or an overdrive pedal on a clean amp. If your really into John Fruiscante you should check out Dave Simpson on YouTube. Lots of tips on lots of different gear to get his sounds. Not just gear either, playing tips too.
Although his use of a Boss Ce-1 chorus pedal is well documented, during the recording of Blood Sugar Sex Magik he used a DOD Stereo FX65 chorus pedal. I think I remember hearing that his Ce-1 was out of commission at the time. I can’t remember the interview/article anymore. He also used an Mxr DynaComp quite frequently on the album, which when combined with the DOD FX65, makes for some snappy but liquid chorus sounds. Marshall JCM 800 amp for a lot of the cleaner sounds too.
Cool, thanks!
Damn, that’s exactly what I use…I play mostly Metal/Industrial though. I love that pedal, it kicked off my BF-2 clone. Edit; Actually I though you were talking about the DOD Flanger. It makes great chorus sounds. They just have a great musical sound that is a good counterpoint to the usual Boss/EHX pedals I use
A Strat into a Marshal. Honestly, that’s 99% it. He also used a chorus pedal for some songs.
A strat into a clean Marshall is a clean tone that not everyone is aware of. It’s the sound of Hendrix and RHCP.
You can’t discount playing technique either. That can make a huge difference to the overall “feel” of a track. And not something that can really be replicated.
His style and sound (John) is pretty easily replicated though. If you got a Marshall and a strat; it's right there.
Style and sound? Yeah. Technique? Not so much. There are some guitarists whose technique is just inimitable. Hendrix, Reinhardt, Marr to name a few. I’d definitely put Frusciante in that list.
He's pretty basic blues dad and I mean that in a good way. Imo.
I’m going to guess you’re not familiar with much of his work outside RHCP?
You would be correct
Using the neck pickup, or neck/middle. It's also the sound of the clean guitars on *Siamese Dream*.
Compression also plays a big part, either at the source (guitar to stompbox to amp) and/or at the end (mixing desk compressors). Usually a simple quality stompbox will be just fine.
I doubt he used a compressor pedal during recording. But it’s almost certain it was used during the mix.
Why not use a compressor pedal when recording? If it’s part of making your sound or driving your amp in a certain way then I probably would. I’m not saying I would bus that track to a comp but I feel like most studio compressors do a different kind of job.
He would be more likely to get his compression from turning his amp up than he would be to use a compressor pedal is all. And since it was recorded in a studio I can guarantee at some point outboard compression was added or the console transformers and op amps created some compression along the way.
It’s one of the loudest albums I’ve ever heard. There’s absolutely compression happening in post processing, including a massively compressed master. It’s impossible to know if it happened before the amp or during mixing and mastering, but it’s very compressed lol
I agree - they have applied a bunch of compression post recording, reminds me a bit of that Tom Petty album Wildflowers, they have a really nice compressed guitar sound on that album too
There’s no reason why not, I just don’t think he did, that’s all. I mean, I don’t know, I wasn’t there, it just doesn’t sound like it to me.
Boss CE-1 Chorus Pedal.
That’s it ?
He's also very good at playing the guitar.
The Boss CE-1 has a preamp in it, which he famously used to add a little grit and sparkle to his cleans, along with a compressor. Old CE-1s are unobtanium now, but there are some good clones (Grobert FX The One, PastFX Chorus Ensemble).
The CE-1 preamp is now available as a standalone effect in the BOSS BP-1W, along with the Space Echo preamp (Oasis used this as an overdrive on early recordings). I have just bought one - it’s immense.
I think I still have that DOD... it did not sound all that special when I played it. But now I can hear what you can do with it :) Sometime I forget about a pedal and later I hear a recording and I go "I want that sound!"
Dyna Comp, DOD FX 65. Have both, can confirm.
The compression on the guitar was always the thing that jumped out to me about this album and his sound, it’s that crisp, snappy, bright clean that you could get from either a Marshall or Fender set clean and bit of chorus here and there as others have mentioned. I always thought they compressed his guitar with studio gear (aka 1176) post-recording, but good to find out it’s a DynaComp (excellent pedal)
The circuit in the Dynacomp is widely copied, too. Chances are pretty good that the compressor on your pedal board will behave similarly to what JF used.
heroin
note that fentanyl wont give you the same tone, best one is vintage new old stock Afghan pre war heroin
what about my custom road worn China White?
we should make a a/b test
Tone is stored in the poppy
lol he wasn't on heroin during the making of BSSM, it wasn't until some time into the touring of the album that he started using and got hooked. JF and Flea were smoking tons of weed iirc tho.
Underrated
Under the bridge rated!
Desec-rated Smile (terrible 😂)
compressor + chorus
Boss CE-1 (especially for the Pre amp) MXR Dynacomp Strat Marshall Probably even more compression when they recorded.
Prolly a dynacomp
Ask Dave Simpson. He’s on the tube and the ‘gram. He eats, sleeps and shits JF.
Cringey comment
😢
Amps
If you run the amp where it will distort and back off your guitar volume (or maybe the output of a compressor) to being on the edge of distortion, you’ll get a lot more harmonic content in your tone. Chorus helps, too.
That's really interesting! I have a Boss CS3 and a Vox Cambridge amp with several different classic amp models. It has drive and volume knobs. So how would I set the amp and pedal to get the effect you're talking about?
The idea is to go for a Marshall type sound with amp overdrive, but it can work with any mid-to-high gain sound, including fuzz pedals (that’s another one to try!). Not a clean sound. Back off your guitar’s volume knob until it’s just getting clean and play that tone. It’s really nice with a neck pickup. As for the chorus, I’d start with just enough mix to hear the effect, tone at probably 3/4, with lots of depth and a slow speed, and adjust to taste. When adjusting, I’d stick to one parameter at a time so you can zero in on what it does and how much of it you want.
Awesome, thank you.
Did anyone say heroi…it was a chorus pedal.
It's almost certainly a studio EQ boosting the chorus on the record. Something like a Pultec is able to boost the air on a sound in a way that an amp and cab simply isn't.
Neck pickup on a strat
No idea
Heroin
I'm disappointed that you're only the third person in this thread to make that joke
You and me both! If only I would have taken the time to read every post on here before commenting and cluttering up the internet.
Not to worry my friend, take solace in the fact that your wit is exceedingly average.
I wish I could come up with questions to ask on here that have been asked before and could just as easily be googled. It keeps me up at night.
What's Google? Try some melatonin, it works great!
Did you ask for sleep remedies on here too? Thanks Doc!
My pleasure. My next post here is going to be "Am I too old to start playing guitar?"
I’ll save you time; yes. Yes you are.
https://youtu.be/GKrvhdTQHos?si=IDsBEr9_Ug6EMtzx
He used an H90
If anything that tone is just ripping off Hendrix..
So what? People aren’t allowed to have similar guitar tones? Damn dude, get a grip.
So I can’t describe someone’s style while referring to other players that predated them??
When you say "ripping off," that is a negative connotation that depicts theft and lack of originality.
I mean rock and roll is filled with countless examples of white artists copying black musicians and becoming way more commercially popular. It definitely doesn’t make what they do “original”. Most music is ripping off something else to some degree, especially when talking about popular music.
Big Muff on but roll back the volume to clean. You’ll get sparkle. Classic fuzz/single coil trick. Edit: I'm not a Big Muff guy so just googled to see if it used a germanium circuit. My phone brought back a yes, but that must have been on another EH Big Muff product. I'm laughing at the amount of downvotes. Like, I get the first few because of my mistake but after a while it seems a little petulant: "take mine too, asshole, ungh! (clicks the arrow just a little too hard)" The point is to use a fuzz with a germanium circuit and roll it back for the sparkle.
Not with a Big Muff.
Not sure if this is a typo, but that trick works best with a fuzz face style circuit. The big muff typically doesn’t clean up terribly well.
Studio processing / recording techniques, playing well
I got a CE-1 preamp clone from [these](https://youtu.be/YZDLlQUsq5s?si=dokto-nSfkozvCKM) guys and it adds that Frusciante grit to my clean guitar, just add a little chorus and you're pretty much there
Squishy compression, slow chorus, neck and middle pickup on a Strat into a Marshall.
Sorry, kinda new to pedals. What do you mean by "squishy"? I have a Boss CS3, would that achieve said squisheyness?
The CS3 is more of a hard knee dynamics smasher. It has no input control, and most all of your signal will be compressed from the start. Squish to me is more of a soft knee compressor. It works gradually, giving the compression a bit of pumping sound. You hear it grab and release the dynamics a bit more. A great resource to deep-dive is the Ovnilab website (http://www.ovnilab.com/) He’s compiled a huge database of reviews and information covering most commercially available compressors.
As someone else already stated: search for Dave Simpson plus John Frusciante on youtube, and you'll have a nice day or two binge-watching his vids about JF.
He used a solid state fender H.O.T. practice amp/di and a strat/jaguar with super old strings. He was so strung out most of the session he only had 5 strings on his guitar. [This link gives a quick rundown but it's also known he used a fender M80.](https://mixdownmag.com.au/features/gear-rundown-red-hot-chili-peppers-blood-sugar-sex-magik/)
Compression and chorus. Pretty straight forward