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beatles effects?


adelphi710

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The phase shifter as we know it hadn't been invented yet. The uni-vibe may have been around, but I don't associate the Beatles with the Uni-Vibe. What part are you talking about? I don't have the song right now to listen to, but as I remember it goes right from the classical/flamenco guitar intro to the "Hey Bungalo Bill" vocals part and then into "Happieness".

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Originally posted by fxmods

As far as I know, all the effects were added in the studio by producer George Martin. I don't think the Beatles used any specific effect pedals as such.

 

 

Well, not completely. They did use a few fuzz pedals and things of that nature... but things like modulation and delay based effects were control room processes back then... ADT was done with two tape decks and a varispeed, delays were done with tape decks, and yes, Leslies were used on guitar parts too... but while many of the effects stompboxes we use today didn't exist back then, a few - such as the previously mentioned fuzzboxes (Maestro) were actually around.

 

This book is the bible when it comes to the Beatles recording sessions. :)

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isn't it weird...

if someone here asks what pedal was used by EVH or MBV everyone's quick to answer. but it seems every time someone asks about the BEATLES, most of the time the answers are vague or intentionally funny.

 

why?

 

1.) we don't know. as much as we all love em and know their gear, we know little about how they made certain effects.

 

2.) we're too embarassed to admit that we, as FX geeks, don't know how certain effects were accomplished by THE MOST FAMOUS BAND IN THE WORLD. sad really. :(

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Originally posted by GuyaGuy

isn't it weird...

if someone here asks what pedal was used by EVH or MBV everyone's quick to answer. but it seems every time someone asks about the BEATLES, most of the time the answers are vague or intentionally funny.


why?


1.) we don't know. as much as we all love em and know their gear, we know little about how they made certain effects.


2.) we're too embarassed to admit that we, as FX geeks, don't know how certain effects were accomplished by THE MOST FAMOUS BAND IN THE WORLD. sad really.
:(

 

Not to pat myself on the back, but my post was accurate and not joking around. :) They used a few pedals, but not many. Most "effect" things on Beatles records were being done in the control room, and not with guitar pedals. Again, they DID use pedals for some things (such as fuzz pedals), but a lot of the effects we can purchase in pedal form today didn't exist as pedals back then.

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Originally posted by fxmods

I don't think the Beatles used any specific effect pedals as such.

 

There used to be an ad for Electro-Harmonix that showed a check and invoice to John Lennon for just about every pedal in their line... I'm not sure if they were ever used on any Beatle recordings.

 

Lennon used a Maestro Fuzz-Tone on some early recordings. Also "Think for Yourself" featured a two-knob Tonebender on the bass.

 

Some other fuzzboxes were custom-made by the Abbey Road engineers.

 

In the movie "Let It Be", Harrison is using a Cry Baby wah in almost all of the practice sessions.

 

regards, Jack

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This book is also very useful. Although it covers all the instruments the Beatles used, all the guitar stuff is there.

 

As Phil O'Keefe has said though, much of the "effects" sound on Beatles records is studio based and not necessarily something you can replicate with modern effects pedals".

 

Manual double tracking, tape flanging and phasing, blending the sounds of several acoustic "conventional" instruments into something that sounds unnatural (something George Martin did a lot of for the Goon Shows) and running instruments into "effects"- like the Leslie speaker- that were never intended for were all pretty commonplace, as was all the latest technology- because they were the Beatles, they could afford just about anything, and manufacturers would be falling over themselves to get the Fab Four seal of approval.

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The story that I heard was John screwed around with his Echoplex and, I believe, moved the heads closer together to get that sound. I've also read this as the origin of the Flanger's inverted effects.

 

As for the part about their sound being mostly studio trickery, English Bob is right, although the Beatles were more involved than it sounds in your statement. They were quite fond of the Echoplex, which they tacked onto nearly everything for doubling, chorusing, etc. John took apart his Echoplex to create sound loops, the said flanger noises, and may have been the one who spliced the tape to invent the backwards delay (although it was probaly Martin who engineered it).

 

In addition, they did play with some early synthisizers, a mellotron, and scads of other strange instruments that produce noises we associate with pedals. They got a lot of this stuff sent to them, bought it on their world travels, and scourred Abbey Road's closets for anything strange. George Martin, and some other Abbey Road types, were also known for tracking down strange equipment and noises.

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Originally posted by english_bob

This book
is also very useful. Although it covers all the instruments the Beatles used, all the guitar stuff is there.


As Phil O'Keefe has said though, much of the "effects" sound on Beatles records is studio based and not necessarily something you can replicate with modern effects pedals".


Manual double tracking, tape flanging and phasing, blending the sounds of several acoustic "conventional" instruments into something that sounds unnatural (something George Martin did a lot of for the Goon Shows) and running instruments into "effects"- like the Leslie speaker- that were never intended for were all pretty commonplace, as was all the latest technology- because they were the Beatles, they could afford just about anything, and manufacturers would be falling over themselves to get the Fab Four seal of approval.

 

Good post! :thu: And I'll second that book too - I also have that one, and it details all of their personal gear.

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Originally posted by Phil O'Keefe



Not to pat myself on the back, but my post was accurate and not joking around.
:)
They used a few pedals, but not many. Most "effect" things on Beatles records were being done in the control room, and not with guitar pedals. Again, they DID use pedals for some things (such as fuzz pedals), but a lot of the effects we can purchase in pedal form today didn't exist as pedals back then.

 

oh, i wasn't saying you were incorrect...i was just speaking in general terms.

 

i was just noticing that no-one was offering an answer to the quesion about the specific effect--and no-one gave a concrete answer till megadan and nosferatu, each one different. me, i'm leaning more toward flange, as it's pretty slow and i don't think leslies go quite that slow. i could be wrong.

 

but to add to your point, i'll also say that a lot of pedals that we now know and love were developed to emulate the very tricks that martin and co. used in the studio. everyone makes a big deal about jimi's univibe but it wouldn't been designed if harrison hadn't played through that big spinning speaker from a jazz organ.

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