Amp Holy Grails: Hear Rory Gallagher's Bassman, Brian May's AC30, a Marshall Super Bass and more!

Ever wondered what Rory Gallagher's legendary Fender Bassman sounds like up close? Or the AC30 Brian May uses for recording? So have we.
That's why we decided to enlist our test pilot Virgil McMahon to take them for a spin at Real World Studios near Bath along with a genuine '64 'blackface' Fender Twin and a rare Marshall Super Bass head.
Read all about it here: www.musicradar....
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[@andertons]

I got to meet Virgil (the guy in the video) a couple of weeks ago - a really humble, lovely guy & a demon guitar player. Search for his band Virgil & the Accelerators if you want to hear more...

[@maxs.3238]

9 years late I know but the first riff he plays through the 64 twin is their song 'love agression'. I watched this video by default years ago, got instantly hooked on that riff and it took me months back then to find out what the song was. I still come back sometimes to listen to this short version because it is perfect to me.

[@tomseiple3280]

God, they all sound beautiful...

[@CamRebires]

Brian May actually got the AC30 because he liked the sound of Rory's AC30 (+Treblebooster)

[@willphippsmedia9091]

Brian mays biggest influence was Rory!

[@Wardell43]

When I saw Rory on one of the early 70's rock concerts he was using a Marshall with a 212. MOST working guitarist have several rigs and use which ever rig works with the acoustics, so he may have also used a full stack outside. We all get hung up on What Amp was used for the sound on a record, it was probably a Fender Champ so they could crank it and still capture it on tape.

[@edberger4679]

That's sad !

[@Wardell43]

The purpose of a Marshall stack type amp, was to fill up the room with sound. Today we have large pa systems to carry the sound so boutique amps are making a comeback. a 20 or 30 watt amp will play most gigs, mic'd or not. I always play my Red Knob The Twin on the 25 watt setting. So My point is "Back in the day", Most groups and studios used small amp that sound great cranked up, giving you that sound!! 18 watt Bluesbreakers, Fender Deluxe, anything that won't blatt out when recorded through a mic like 100 Watt Marshalls may do. Many players today use that line out stuff or multi effects pedal board in the studio.

[@Mosedig]

Amen. Some people even *gasp* ran into the console!

[@oliverloy]

This is one of the rare videos on KZbin where you can hear how an amp should be miked and sound properly. Most of the videos with miked amps on KZbin sound like crap. Great job!

[@newking70]

Can't stand processed to hell guitar sounds.

[@0mik3mik3]

What the hell is up with the comments?! His playing is great, the tone is superb. The guitar is almost unnoticeably out of tune. Stop overreacting.

[@chucks1255]

Believe me if the dude was more normal looking these fuckers won't find flaws in this performance. Idiots just can't get over how he looks jeez, the guitar ain't even that out of tune.

[@connor_selby]

I agree it's a good video but to be honest it is quite out of time

[@connor_selby]

Tune I mean

[@davidjohnsen3245]

Exactly! Go back and listen to some vintage records from the 60s and 70s, guarantee their guitars weren't perfectly in tune! In fact Lennon famously tuned his g string flat just a little cause he wanted his aunt to know it was him haha.

[@asianroy7510]

Guys... when you're tone deaf you can't tell the difference. It's seriously off and should have been addressed before they recorded it. This isn't just some guy making a basement video, this is Guitarist mag.

[@SodabrotherNr1]

That Bassman... !! Such a sweet sounding amp!

[@Vataband]

For interest interest (and there appears to be few). The band is currently touring a new album and you will see them in various magazines, awesome reviews. September 18 GERMANY Aschaffenburg Club Dead End. 19 CZECK Klub Na Rampe Jablonec nad Nisou 20 GERMANY Kesselhaus - Singwitz 29 Album Launch The Borderline London October 05 Worcester Marrs Bar 11 SPAIN Calella RockFest 16 Chislehurst Beaverwood 17 Sutton Boom Boom Club 18 Manchester The Ruby Lounge 19 Classic Rock Festival 22 Southampton Talking Heads 24 Hullbridge Sports & Social 25 Co Durham Ferryhill Comm Ctre 31 Doncaster The Leopard November 01 Devizes Long Street Blues 02 Swansea The Scene 08 Derby Flower Pot 12 Wolverhampton Robin 2 14 Tenby Blues Festival 16 Ilfracombe Blues, Rhythm & Rock Fest 19 Gijon - Sala Acapulco 20 Madrid - We Rock 21 Lleida - Cafe Del Teatre 22 Zaragoza - Roxy 24 Ourense - Cafe Jam Session 25 A Coruna - Mardi Gras 26 Vigo - La Fabrica De Chocolate 27 Valladolid - Porta Caeli 28 Burgos - B N B 29 Bilbao - Crazy Horse

[@jjcooter]

gosh love those fender tones

[@MichaelStJohn-jv6yh]

I seen Rory play a show with RedRider - lunatic fringe here in Toledo OH. around 1980-ish. hate to admit he was sooooo drunk falling down filthy t-shirt ripped denim jeans BUT! maaaan he tore that strat up!!? I was 16-17 yrs. old and I was blown away! he was very inspirational to me!!! I Evan dress like him today! at my age. 53 yrs. young.... RIP. MR Gallagher, Riffen it up, upstairs!!!!!!

[@randysexual3204]

This guy sounds great! Case closed.

[@markstiffler6898]

Loved the reverence and honor you showed these old amps - almost as much as I loved your playing! Thanks

[@johnsmith-sm6mh]

Saw this bloke in my local town Leicester a while back at the “ Musician “ venue Great musician and really nice fella All the best to you mate keep rokin 👍🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸

[@1971SuperLead]

The 54 Bassman got my vote.

[@michaelwoods9005]

Riff starting at 00.20 is from an alternate picking example by Eric johnson in his instructional video "total electric guitar" I've been watching that video since i was 9. Was shocked to hear it here

[@notchrisblock]

Can't find a video of that anywhere. Always thought that riff sounded awesome.

[@nineteensixty-eight2898]

thank you friend！i love that riff but dont know the name

[@StratmaNr08]

He uses a very similar sounding riff in a song called ‘love aggression’ on the album ‘army of three’. Great song and album is very solid also.

[@milowagon]

Every time I saw Rory in the 70's ( 4 times) he had an ac30 sitting on a wooden chair. No sign of a bassman, maybe that was later on. Freddie King had one cranked up to 11 when I saw him. Two legends.

[@cosmikrelic4815]

Yes, here in New Zealand in the 70s the same. AC30 wooden chair, tone wood chair though.

[@rafauleciaelcarpio]

That marshall with the les paul sounded so ZZtop, i'm loving it

[@davemanford4013]

Just stumbled on this. Huge Rory fan here and would like to say thanks for this wonderful demo. The Bassman takes it for me. Saw Virgil opening for Michael Shenker recently and he and his band were quite frankly amazing.

[@Steeve9292]

Christ almighty, some of the comments on most guitar videos never fail to depress me more than any other encountered. No wonder other musicians think we're all cunts.

[@turnpikedivide]

Some.

[@chucks1255]

+Egregious wtf you talking about?

[@chucks1255]

+Egregious wtf you talking about?

[@edberger4679]

You need to roll a big joint !

[@vvantherel5846]

ohoho periods are hella funny good one dood!!1! fkn mong

[@BoyajianDon]

What a great player.

[@terrytripp4545]

Honestly I was expecting to love the Marshall but maybe deep down I've always been a Fender Bassman guy.....this explains my love of JTM-45s.

[@norsangkelsang7939]

The Twin kills...

[@dimitriskovaios]

Dear, god...so many years, so many players, so many pieces of gear bought and sold... Arguably, my favorite Strat tones by this guy here in the first two sections of the video!

[@GobiPup]

Listen to classic rock. A large percentage of the guitars recorded have imperfect intonation. If you say otherwise you are lying.

[@darwinsaye]

Nobody noticed or gave a shit about imperfections in tuning or timing, especially in rock, until this era of DAW recorded, quantized, pitch corrected crap. Most people today don’t even realize or understand that NO guitar can ever be in perfect tuning because of physics ffs.

[@dinglegonzo]

@@darwinsaye you must not own a G&L

[@Thayne2222]

Brian May's AC30. Freddie Mercury's ascot

[@brettlac]

Thank you for close mic'ing the amps considering 99% of the time I play live the tech slaps a SM57 on the speaker. This helps me to get an idea of what the amp signal would actually sound like if I was playing it in a live situation. We also do some stuff in the studio with room mic'ing but there is still generally a 57 close as one of the main tones. Good work!

[@FerchitoMexico]

I'd like to see a more in depth demo of each. This is cool though.

[@funkuncle999]

Awesome to get a straight comparison like this with same guitar/player. Thanks guys.

[@kennypcoates]

Virgil McMahon.....Virgil and the Accelerators, saw this band a few years ago,opened for Southside Johnny in Holmfirth, great band

[@sandlmv8301]

Oh mannnnnnn. That Super Bass with the Les Paul. Had to listen to it over and over. Holy shit what a godly sound.

[@patdug286]

A rare good sounding amp demo! This guy is a great player, very musical!

[@Lea_Der_777]

Amazing sound...... Vintage musical gear (guitars, pedals, amps, speakers, synths, e-pianos, e-organs, etc.) - it's just a REAL MAGIC today...

[@deanhallett3696]

All these amps sound their best at full throttle - this guy is just tickling them!

[@petejt]

Agreed, he needs to crank them up.

[@PPoyares]

Give this guy an ear plug first hahaa

[@ssimon64]

Pedro Poyares lol yeah!

[@lukethedrifter3363]

It appears he likes to tickle more than amps

[@MartinStrang]

Great playing. About the amps they all sound wonderful, but since its a matter of personal style and taste, that twin reverb would be my holy grail thanx for letting me hear it

[@joseaquino8773]

Martin Endara The holy grail.of amps, indeed, best cleans and killer OD sound

[@felixrockss]

Would Kill to play trough rory's bassman !!!!

[@Jakelikeshiking]

That grit pinching through rorys amp was killer.

[@RochestersEarl]

@GuitaristMag I think you should do a 30 minutes version of this video. Amazing amps!

[@daviemcf]

Great demo...saw Rory 13 times late 60's with Taste then most of 70's with RG band it was mostly the Vox AC 30 I saw him playing....what a guitarist, I'm glad I was around in the early years....the blues years.

[@TheAllanLuke]

wonderful tones

[@Vataband]

Hey dude, that is a speed knob. Virgil does a lot of volume swelling and the speed knob gives more control. Good demo at 1:28 on this video - cannot post the link but search for Virgil and the the Accelerators 'Live at Marshall' .

[@Larrus2007]

Nice playing.

[@GuitarSlinger2112]

That is spectacular...

[@tommacmillan8831]

that marshall is amazing! nice playing too

[@andrebpt]

Tons of tones !!!

[@valisprochazka2597]

The young man really has beautiful phrasing.

[@jameswallace5967]

Great chops!!

[@rokkebill]

Wow, such a great demo. Made me wan’t one of each 🥳😆

[@sandbiker]

Nice demo video, all really nice amps but, that Marshall just sounds the best to me.

[@randysexual3204]

Great demo!

[@rafasounds2010]

sounds very in tune to me, for an electric guitar. this guy plays great.

[@kennypcoates]

Virgil and the Accelerators

[@michaelsievers8476]

rafasounds2010 hahaha same here .... he's a talented brother....kick-ass video...these guys...lol... playing ...line 6....and 150.00 import junk

[@abfaria83]

that riff at 0:19 is awesome. was he only jamming?

[@timijai22]

I'd LOVE to get that Marshall Super Bass. The tones he's getting out of that amp with the strat... I'd just love to plug mine in and see what I get out of it.

[@Vataband]

Well spotted, Phillip is awesome.

[@kelchnerguitarist]

What he starts playing at 0:20 is something Eric Johnson plays on his total electric guitar DVD!!!!

[@johncrace911]

You can tell from the comments that people's seeing and hearing with their eyes,ears. You hear what you want to hear. If person was your favorite player, you think that amp sounds best. They were each one fantastic amps.

[@super63strat]

great amps , I like the tone of the Les Paul through the 1969 Marshall Super Bass

[@topnobby]

No pleasing some people! Wonderful tones an a really nice player

[@ahankararockband]

Great playing on great amps ;-) Cheers! 💜👍💜👍💜

[@glenkepic3208]

From a while ago but relevant. Vids here about Brian May meeting Rory after a gig and AC30 was the amp. Me, Irish Tour '74 and interviews mentioned a Fender Bassman…."no, i'm not losing my mind..." Jimi at Monterey.

[@Jonathan-L]

Nice series of chords at 1:32 :)

[@nunooliveira4257]

Nice video. Why is the Twin Reverb distorting??

[@soothsayerofthedarkandexis8525]

Rory's amp goes to 12. Suck it Nigel.

[@ssimon64]

Tucker Farris Hahaha!

[@ianwalker6453]

Great demo! I enjoyed the contrasting sounds between the guitars!

[@18TMA]

i love this amp..

[@Claymor621]

Funny how he sounds really so much better on the Marshall compared to the others. The bit with the blues licks on the Les Paul us an excellent sound.

[@StealthBeeKid]

Marshalls really do bring the best of us everytime, they have some magic vibe in it that makes us all a bit better

[@djpert1]

Great playing dude!

[@gingerrussell]

Some great tones!

[@AndreAmeli]

to me the best guitar player in the world right now

[@chrisflynn6474]

All the classic Rory and Brian May tones are achieved using boosters. Get em switched on and turned up!

[@guitarcleveland]

Joey Lawrence. Whoah.

[@timcotterill3952]

Nice run through some classic tones

[@pabdiary]

Can't pick between a Les Paul and strat. They're both so essential. Like biscuits and gravy

[@HigherPlanes]

The Strat is the gravy baby

[@soofitnsexy]

tremendous player!!

[@PAHGOO666]

The guitarist in my band has a Twin Reverb like from the beginning of the video. Sounds so nice in person.

[@timijai22]

I dunno if I agree with you. Yeah, it sounded great with the LP, but it gives the Strat a great, full bodied sound. I play both types, but I'd use it more often with my Strat.

[@ColinDaviesGTR]

Those amps sound next level!

[@JamesRussoMillas]

Wow that is if not the best AC30 I've ever heard in any context!

[@augustodealmeida9377]

I have a superlead plexi copy and i've been dying to add a superbass switch to it. Trying to convince my tech to do the bright cap, tonestack, coupling caps and cathode things on a switch

[@BobFridzema]

'Slip Away' by Philip Sayce (2nd part from about 2:39)

[@14lamnc1]

Why does that '69 plexi has the modern big size logo instead of the late 60's smaller logo?

[@J8D2]

Because you touch yourself at night.

[@14lamnc1]

***** what????

[@gtamodman122]

+Nathan Lam it's a replacement, owner put it there because I guess he didn't like the look without the logo, and he didn't have an era-correct one laying around, so he took a big one.

[@14lamnc1]

gtamodman122 ohh i see, makes sense then

[@purplelookplay2364]

Great great job !❤

[@dachapple]

Excellent vid

[@emefcue]

should have shown more of ac30! :p cool video

[@wessebren4474]

That twin reverb is so sweet sounding

[@agusg.t.8950]

Which one😂

[@drewsutton1441]

nice! Great vid and Great Guitar player too! who is he?

[@michaelclark2357]

Good Stratocaster 1959 I would guess because of when the red in the sunburst was introduced

[@m15t3rm4lw4r3]

Great demo!!! All very nice sounding amps!!!

[@AndreAmeli]

2:30 philip sayce riff!!

[@charlestheos8954]

This guy plays great guaranteed better than 99% of the haters. All the tones were phenomenal and some choice licks

[@ZekeMan62]

I'm a Fender guy, but the Marshall sounds sweetest here.

[@TomPark1986]

I like the twin reverb the most.

[@joethrelfall6370]

Brian may's ac30

[@elliot1405]

yea I know what u mean. I have a '78 silverface twin reverb at home. they always sound so much better in person. I dunno why they just seem to sing a little more in person. more so than most other amps I've used too

[@jensschettler1732]

Bassman sounds like magic

[@Bo_Brown_Fishing]

Agreed! Thats pure magic tone there!

[@Tonetwisters]

I love AC-30's ... but no way that had more bottom and tone than that Bassman. Love the Super Bass, too. But the tweed Bassman still rocks it. Fender Bassman wins.

[@josevillegas9029]

Gotta give credit to the Marshall as well, gives off that well known SRV bluesy tone with the strat; other than that, the twin kills!

[@donharrold1375]

Marshall sounds great with the Strat and Les Paul. Would have been interesting to hear the AC30 and the Bassman with a Les Paul.

[@ilypch]

this young lady might not be much to look at, but she really knows her stuff

[@sguitar2002]

The twin reverb takes it. You can get transparent overdrive out of it too if you use a pedal not saying which one though

[@seanhudsonbro4636]

This guy is a great guitarist in my opinion. I taught originally Rory played through an ac15 which as far as I know he messed with the speakers and ended up ''breaking'' them but kept playing through it because it gave a distorted sharper tone. Surly this would be more of a holy grail than his Bassman. if this isn't true please someone let me know. But really like the video. people stop hating because you don't have the nuts to be BE UR OWN MAN. does it give you a hard on cyber bulling.

[@ModNicGuitars]

SEAN HUDSON BRO I always thought Rory used a AC30 early in his Taste days and early 70's then you can see through the mid to late 70's he is using this Bassman, watch the great 74 Irish Tour video and he talks about it catching fire. The 80's I think he went to Marshalls and others. Cheers

[@seanhudsonbro4636]

picklemetro thanks for the reply

[@shckltnebay]

very close but the twin will get louder and stay clean at high volume level, my friend has had three 1964's and i had a 79 and other friend has a reissue