Def Leppard. How do I get there?

[joshuaaewallen]

Hi All,

I am playing a PRS Custom 24 through a JCM2000 TSL122. I love the hard rock tones that come out of this rig. However... I have a major jones to get some Def Leppard guitar sounds going on. Think anything and everything from the Hysteria album, and newer sounds like Promises and anything from the Sparkle Lounge cd.

I have been playing for years, but really haven't delved much into the world of effects other than a little bit of chorus (mostly on my cleans), and some delay. Currently I own no effects at all. I sold everything but three guitars to get my Marshall.

That being said... How can I get that guitar tone using my Marshall/PRS as my starting point. I'd like to hear what you all have to say on the subject. Thanks guys, Rock On!

 

[WrenchDevil6]

What era?

There was a big change from the On Through the Night and High 'N Dry sound to Pyromania and Hysteria.

Look for the Classic Albums DVD. When they interview Phil, it pretty much has his whole rig right there with him. Best I can remember, tons of rack gear.

But:

Here's a place to start.

 

[joshuaaewallen]

What era?

There was a big change from the On Through the Night and High 'N Dry sound to Pyromania and Hysteria.

Look for the Classic Albums DVD. When they interview Phil, it pretty much has his whole rig right there with him. Best I can remember, tons of rack gear.

But:

Here's a place to start.

Era... Hysteria & Now.

I know I'm not likely to peg that tone dead on since I don't have the $$$ for a Jackson PC-1 and a whole rack full of gear, but... Really what I'd like would be a few pedals or the like which can get me as close as possible without spending $3G's...

That being said... I guess I was hoping for pointers on:

A) effects to use... and
B) settings to use on the afore mentioned effects.

I think that with my current rig I've got a good starting point, I just need to figure out what else to add in to make the recipie complete...

Thanks for the respnse. I appreciate it. The link turned me on to the need for a flanger, but where to go from there, and how best to use it?

So... Whaddaya think?

 

[Shawn Fate]

I know they used a SLX for a entire album.

 

[sojatriani]

The main thing is to use a stereo rig with chorus and delay. That creates that big glossy sound they had. Good starting place...

 

[joshuaaewallen]

so... how do i go about creating a stereo rig?

 

[Bluemoon78]

This is a hard one to get. Hysteria was recorded using rockman amps and multilayered about a million times. Their live sound is a bit easier to get because they use marshalls and in particular a JMP-1 preamp. Essential is chorus and a little delay. Also some dimarzio's in your guitar will help with heavy strings.

 

[MG100]

so... how do i go about creating a stereo rig?

As a by the way - the band I was in played support to Def Leppard in 1986 during their pre-Donington warm up tour.
Phil Collen is a really good role model - great tone, great mind, and all round nice guy.

See attachment - this is my stereo rig.

For Def Lepp tone....

Keep it relatively clean (more overdrive than distortion), lots of compression, chorus, delay, good and loud to make those notes ring out....

 

[joshuaaewallen]

ok... So... Here's what I see so far...

I've been doing lots of reading on the web, and regarding Hysteria I do see the name rockman mentioned alot.

Do they still make the Rockman units?

Can the same/similar tonal qualities be obtained by pre or post distortion eq'ing?

Next up... I clearly need chrous & delay. Correct? If so... Good suggestions on pedals to try?

Also... What about their current sound (Songs From The Sparkle Lounge, which is a seriously under-rated album)? I keep reading about how they've gone back to Marshall's and all that, but I just don't seem to find that sound through my TSL or any other amp that I try.

And... Sorry if I am kicking a dead horse here... To be song specific I am also thinking of the main/lead riff from the song "Promises" (found on the Euphoria cd). This song has a great distorted guitar tone that clearly is laden w/ effects (hard to imagine for Def Leppard, right? ), but I just can't peg what they are using.

So... Now whaddaya think?

I'm sure it's a bit looney to go chasing after a sound that I'll never ever be able to put to any "practical use". My wife laughs when I talk about getting "that tone", because she doesn't get it, but there is nothing more gratifying that (even when all along), jamming away with yer favorite axe to your favorite song, and you just sort of merge into the song, becoming one with it and for a brief moment you forget everything else... Whew! Where did that come from? Anyhoo... Please keep your thoughts on the subject coming. The more ideas I can get the better off I'll be. Thanks guys!

 

[joshuaaewallen]

See attachment - this is my stereo rig.

For Def Lepp tone....

Keep it pretty clean, lots of compression, chorus, delay, good and loud.

What kind of alternative layout would you recommended, using my current gear as a starting point? (See Below)

 

[Bluemoon78]

Hey Joshua. I know what you mean about struggling to get this sound. I've been trying for years and have given up. Its probably the layering that makes it so hard. Oh, and yes "Songs from the sparkle longe" might be the best thing they've done.

The rockman is available from jim dunlop, but its more like a headphone amp. No idea why they chose to use it for Hysteria. Never used it myself although there is a rockman simulator on my GT-8. Maybe I can give it a thorough try and get back to you.

I'd recommend a boss CH-1 chorus or maybe a digitech chorus factory, any half decent delay would do. For the promises sound, you might not get that from the TSL without help. Maybe a distortion like the DS-1 would come close?

 

[MG100]

What kind of alternative layout would you recommended, using my current gear as a starting point? (See Below)

Hi Joshua


I wouldn't get too caught up in the stereo rig idea -
you should be fine in mono

For Dep Lep - If you have a decent chorus and delay in your fx loop, thats most of what you'll need.

If you don;t have an o/d box, see what you can get from the amp on a mild OD setting. I run a CS3 into a BBE tubescreamer clone with the gain set to 0 through the clean channel of my MG100 amp for tones in that ballpark.

Make sure you use the guitar vol control to back off on the level hitting the amp. You really do need the amp to be quite loud to get the "organic" ringing, sustain and feedback. It will sound completely different (and better) when you open it up (like you didn't know that already! )

Good luck and have fun!

 

[HOT TUBES 70]

Hey Joshua. I know what you mean about struggling to get this sound. I've been trying for years and have given up. Its probably the layering that makes it so hard. Oh, and yes "Songs from the sparkle longe" might be the best thing they've done.

The rockman is available from jim dunlop, but its more like a headphone amp. No idea why they chose to use it for Hysteria. Never used it myself although there is a rockman simulator on my GT-8. Maybe I can give it a thorough try and get back to you.

I'd recommend a boss CH-1 chorus or maybe a digitech chorus factory, any half decent delay would do. For the promises sound, you might not get that from the TSL without help. Maybe a distortion like the DS-1 would come close?

don,t bother , the rockman sims in the GT8 are noy worth a shit !!!!

 

[thrashforlife95]

use a chorus and delay and on my tsl 122 i have it on lead gain 10, treble 3, mid 3, bass 8, and that gives me a deacent tone for hair metal

 

[Silverbursted]

A big part of his setup is with his guitar, he used a double-bladed Sustainer humbucker up front, a DiMarzio HS2 in the middle and DiMarzio Super 3 at the bridge on his Jackson. That Jackson also was made using a mahogany body with maple cap. Your PRS should be the same wood, so you are half way there.

 

[Mase947]

You know I'm not sure that Def Leppard used these, but after seeing them live a few times, I'm convinced they use tape echoes... So maybe try one of those out.

 

[joshuaaewallen]

I know they used a SLX for a entire album.

I think I read somewhere too that they used the SLX on the "Slang" album, which in my opinion was highly underrated. That one was definitely not a "critics darling", probably because it was such a dramatic departure from Leppard's previously known style.

Hey thanks everyone for your input. :eek2:

Please keep the suggestions coming!

 

[VHFreak]

Great Post! I have been chasing this tone as well for years glad to hear that I am not the only one! Its kinda weird for me though. I am an absolute VanHalen nut hence the screen name but I have always dug that polished sound Def Leppard had on Hysteria. Maybe it is because it was the sound I heard when I was starting out on guitar on the radio 24/7. I still remember hearing Armageddon it and just totally digging that sound. I listen to it now and I still want that tone. The two guitars had a large impact on their sound as well. They complimented eachother very well. I am thinking stero rig with my 5150 combo stage right and 6100 stage left hmmmmm the posibilities!!!

 

[joshuaaewallen]

Indeed! Hysteria is the record that made me want to play guitar. One of the first songs I learned in earnest was Armageddon It. It really is a phenomenal album even to this day.

 

[MartyStrat54]

use a chorus and delay and on my TSL 122 I have it on lead gain 10, treble 3, mid 3, bass 8, and that gives me a decent tone for hair metal

Josh, several players made this suggestion and I would have to agree with them. However, in reality, DL used a ton of rack gear. You would have to experiment with your distortion box and a combination of chorus and delay.

I don't play Def Leppard anymore, but when I did, I had four programs in my DigiTech RP-12 to emulate the rhythm, (2) modes and the lead (2) modes.

These rhythm modes consisted of delay, large hall reverb and chorus. The lead had two different sounding distortions. One had delay on it and the other had some chorus.

As stated, they played through stereo rigs. This would enhance the chorus and delay effects. In reality, you don't need a stereo rig, because you are not going to "nail" the exact CD sound. Hell, they probably have a hard time getting their old sound themselves.

Take a little time and mess around with the stated effects. You can get close and close is good enough.