Gretsch hollowbody with express clone?

[bcmatt]

I'd say the power-scaling idea makes feedback easily controllable with any guitar because you aren't forced to play at deafening levels.

What I like about using a 335 style guitar is that I can get feedback and ride it easy enough at normal band-practice volumes and at volumes that wouldn't anger the patrons at a small club.

I need to really turn up the voltage and get quite loud in order to get that effect from a solid body, or even a smaller sized semi-hollow on my Liverpool...

We have a song that my band-members really want me to just let feedback slowly build during verse 4, but they know it is just too hard to pull off perfectly on non-hollowed guitars unless they are willing to let me turn off the vvr (which I've never yet done with them while playing indoors) I guess I'm shy; it hurts my feelings too much when they tell me to turn down, so I try to avoid it as much as I can...

I've been checking out Big Sugar today. I heard that guy always played deafeningly loud. He would have to to do all those sustaining notes that sound so great on solid-body guitars too! (Oh! I just realized he uses a Herzog):
http://youtu.be/GQ0GEbCTEyY
Sorry about the weird patriotic canadian content... I hope it's not offensive to you guys down south of the border.

[jezzbo]

Ha! very nice to hear there are hollowbody players with TW amps!
I think I'm gonna have to try it i guess.

And if it don't work out. I can always use the TW with my SG or tele.

Thanks

[overtone]

yes try it, I use an old battered hollow body ES-295 straight into a Rocket build. I also use a '61 SG Junior + a roll-your-own tele. All are great, maybe the SG has the edge, but, like bcmatt posted, I find you can control the feedback in a very musical way with the ES295 & Rocket. It is all in the positioning. Move around very, very slowly and let the hollow body and the rig do the work,
best tony

[jezzbo]

An ES-295, that's even a bigger (deeper) hollowbody than my Gretsch guitars.
Good to know, thanks.

[Zippy]

An ES-295, that's even a bigger (deeper) hollowbody than my Gretsch guitars.
Good to know, thanks.

yes try it, I use an old battered hollow body ES-295 straight into a Rocket build.

Note that it's a Rocket, not an Express or Liverpool.

[overtone]

Note that it's a Rocket, not an Express or Liverpool.

Correct and I was hesitant to post because the OP asked specifically about the Express.

[jezzbo]

Is it a big gain difference between Express, Liverpool or Rocket than?
(sorry for the noob question)

[geetarpicker]

Is it a big gain difference between Express, Liverpool or Rocket than?
(sorry for the noob question)

The Express and Liverpool are very close in gain, but the Liverpool might be a little less gainy but with perhaps even more high end potential so it's kind of a wash overall. In my experience even though the Liverpool my have a tiny bit less gain it seems to break up earlier so the clean to mean range is a little less dramatic.

The Rocket on the other hand is considerably less gainy, and therefore more forgiving of pedals, tube issues, and even playing technique.

[jezzbo]

thanks for the info.

[jezzbo]

Ok, so I bought a Ceriatone Expression secondhand. (an early one with the Trainwreck logo)
It was cheaper than building my own.
It's very nice build and there is no noise. The OT is a Heyboer with the two primary. It's 6K6 primary is connected.
It also has a PPIMV. But I don't really like that. (so it's flat open )

She sounds nice with my Gretsch, and not totally out of control.
(but I do have to be carefull though) It goes easily into second harmonic feedback.

At the moment I tried two different speakers.
A Weber Alnico Silver Bell 100W (sounds nice, maybe a bit to nice)
An Eminence Wizard, I don't really like this speaker with this amp.
To ragged (is that english?) sounding. And way to loud! (103db)

So now comes the search for a nice sounding speaker for my 1X12 cab.
(1X12 to keep the volume a bit down)