John Mayer's Live Amp Rig History - The Complete Guide

[@JensenSpeakersVideos]

Super nice video, Justin. As well as all others on your channel, full of excellent info. Very well done! My heart skipped a beat when I saw the "Heavier Things" rig, with the two vertical 2x12 TwoRock speakers at @04:18 facing backwards, and clearly showing they're loaded with Jensen Neodymium speakers AKA today as the Jensen Tornado 100 speakers. Never knew he had used them, it made my day!

[@JustinJeske]

Wow! Thank you! I'm a massive fan of your speakers, some of the best on the planet! Cheers 😎

[@JensenSpeakersVideos]

@@JustinJeske Awesome to hear :) JM has been one if not the main reason why I revamped my love for guitar, in the Trio/Continuum/WTLIS era, so everything about his tone and playing is always super cool to me. Actually a couple of speakers have been developed keeping his strat tone as one of the references, and now I have one more reason to know we were right! Maybe one time we could test them in a video or something... :)

[@JustinJeske]

Man I’m sure they are going to sound awesome, especially with his strat tone as a reference. Oh yes totally, we could definitely have some fun with some JM inspired speakers. Could be really useful information for people!!

[@baronfeaters7384]

Dude your dedication to JM fandom is impressive. I am here for it. Great content

[@YMESYDT]

I really believe that John thought he wanted something out of the PRS Sig gear (especially the JMOD) and when it materialized he realized it wasn't really what he wanted but he was too deep in to change his mind, so I'm guessing he slowly tweaks the Silver Sky closer to the BLK1 and the JMOD gets re-developed as an SSS variant at a lower price point. Super cool video Justin.

[@JustinJeske]

Could also do with the BLK1 slowly being retired over the time since the SS was born. Needed to cover a different ground at first but now needs to cover where the BLK1 sat as well. Thanks Cody! 🙏🏻

[@loganapplewhite496]

I heard he is playing BLK1 less because the neck warped on it

[@JustinJeske]

Yes, he tried two different necks on it and neither felt right. So he still uses it with the original warped neck. Essentially why it’s pretty much retired from being the main stage Fender guitar even. The 64’s taken that spot.

[@markinthemix6055]

This video taught me one BIG THING. the best JM tone is the Fender strats, the SSS D amps. The tone is simply BIG , OPEN , and ALIVE.

[@afterjoe3042]

For all the amazing amps he has had, I still think his early (AGT) days sounded the best. Lenny sounds amazing, so does covered in rain!

[@t33zy30]

AGT?

[@afterjoe3042]

@@t33zy30 Any Given Thursday

[@tubingforever]

@@afterjoe3042 Good news for you then. That means you can buy a shitty fender amp and be happy

[@burningblueskyband]

@@tubingforever vintage fender black face combos are shitty ???

[@marcusflores2184]

The dumble he used in D&C was Santana’s. Don’t know if he bought it or borrowed it.

[@chrisday5341]

Watching this for the second time, man.....it's time for another John Mayer signature amp.

[@ClayAllred]

I love the Super Reverb. Dang. Side note, I played the new TM Super Reverb the other week at a shop, and it was kind of amazing.

[@willdenham]

I own that same BF bandmaster. Highly underrated amp. My best sounding amp, gains up well too, comparable to JTM breakup.

[@DPCTechnology]

Tha rig rundown with Rebecca Dirks is worth a watch.. pretty epic stuff...

[@tomyates2551]

Nice video Justin - man, what lovely amps he’s used over his career. As soon as Mayer decides it’s time to slim his rig right down and just go with a Fender Bassbreaker 15, I’ll have everything I’ll need to mimic him.

[@MathewsGuitarWorks]

I have an Alessandro deluxe reverb. Unless John has some obscure modded deluxe Alessandro made for him, the Alessandro fender amps are pretty simple. There are two Deluxe Reverb configurations. 1- the standard ‘65 “reissue” circuit 2- the ‘68 custom deluxe reverb circuit (not a reissue circuit). Alessandro will wire either of those circuits in your amp. The Alessandro stuff is simply all the PCB components removed and replaced with a point to point component turret board. Essentially Alessandro takes new Fender amps, gut them and replace the pcb with all hand wired stuff like they did prior to the pcb era amps and put a GA64 speaker in it. The transformers are reused, the chassis is the same, the circuit is the same, just hand wired in either a straight up ‘65 reissue or the ‘68 custom deluxe circuit. You can choose either circuit for either face color amp too. He offers this hand wire service for most fender amp circuits to the general public.

[@space_cowboythecosmicbandi2935]

do you like the amp? i'm close to purchasing one, ive heard some ppl say its kind of a mini steel string singer, agree? I'm basically between the alessandro deluxe reverb, fender hand wired 64 deluxe reverb or modern vintage like a dual profesional or vibro king. Only problem with the vibro and DP is they are such super monster wattage amps at 60w and 100w, feel like i dont need that power for at home play as cool as it would be to own one.

[@MathewsGuitarWorks]

@@space_cowboythecosmicbandi2935 Save some money and get an Alessandro amp. I mean the HW64DR is a great amp and sounds good but it’s roughly $1k more expensive. I assure you a Deluxe Reverb will he plenty loud for just about anything you’re gonna need. As fas as liking the amp… put it this way. I’ll never not have one and this one will be in my casket with me when I die. Handwired fender amps are life changing. Get an Alessandro Dlx Rvb and you won’t regret it. I promise.

[@space_cowboythecosmicbandi2935]

@@MathewsGuitarWorks thanks man 🤝

[@MathewsGuitarWorks]

@@space_cowboythecosmicbandi2935 🤘

[@hjalmarconte4999]

Great video man ... really great stuff! And finally I have found someone who, like me, thinks that the tones JM was getting with his Dumble Overdrive Reverb and TR were the best ones! I much prefer those tones to the ones he later got from the combo TRJM Sig + SSS. That Dumble Overdrive Reverb had something special going on imo.

[@JustinJeske]

It makes me really want to look at an Amplified Nation Overdrive Reverb… sad thing is I know the ODR John had and the one it’s based off of are two different ODR’s. Might still be worth a look at though!

[@MrBrianMandl]

Another great one, man! Loved seeing the ODR by itself. Such a cool rig!

[@JustinJeske]

Thanks Brian. Appreciate you 😎🙏🏻

[@SCOTT-ki3ve]

Have you done any videos on John Mayer's speakers&cabinets? They have a huge influence on tone

[@dkuda1]

Nice video with great detail! I saw a 2017 show..I thought his tone was great. From my recollection, it sounded much cleaner and less drive-y then 2019...but I can see why 2019 is considered great to alot of people due to that.

[@goswo]

Really really great to watch. Ohh and what a great job you did. Im a massive Mayer fan, but somehow I have a hard time with him using PRS. Ever since everything just feels to safe and “perfect” :-( Bring the mojo back please :-)

[@JustinJeske]

Thank you!!!

[@sagegoodwin1]

Excellent stuff man! Thanks so much for your hard work researching all this amazing gear :)

[@_RLP]

Great upload. Subscribed to the channel and to the JMGL one. Keep'em coming!

[@JustinJeske]

Thanks Ricardo!

[@Levenbrech1]

Amazing thanks for the breakdown !

[@KaraMarisa]

I loved this, thanks for the run down!

[@gabrielmatsumoto2628]

Love your content! Great video once again!

[@ellleigh1216]

Thanks for the video, amazing work! Man I think we can all tell that when the original silver sky and JMOD was released, the tone just wasn’t there. It was just a big ol’ marketing ploy, like what’s happened with the super eagle? They just made a super expensive PRS, slapped his name on it and knew it would sell. The silver sky is going through a number of changes to be closer to the BLK1 and I’m sure theJMOD will start sounding like the Dumble soon.

[@JustinJeske]

I mean I personally don’t think it was all just a big marketing ploy but I agree with the tone. The Jmod has actually been receiving updates like the SS behind the scenes as production moves on and John’s personal ones change.

[@stevekirby7333]

The three amp set up with the four 2-12s, TR, SSS and Bandmaster may not have been for volume but it was certainly loud. I saw this tour in SAP arena and there was no guitar in the PA. The stage volume was carrying everything. In the days of soundmen telling every guitar player to use a Princeton and let them mic it, including playing it back though the wedges, it was interesting to hear that much stage volume from an amp rig.

[@melonfarmersounds]

Good to hear, but how do you know they weren’t amplified through the PA? They surely were miced?

[@saucemiller]

Man, fantastic channel, so much info on tone!!!

[@JustinJeske]

Thanks Ryan! I appreciate it!!

[@petermunters4578]

All Dumbleland on Deadco 2021 tour. What is the prs with zebra pickups? That was my favorite sound of tour. Thanks for this awesome video!

[@sprinkles-hour9719]

In one of his smartphonevideochats or interview (sorry I can't remember but it can be found on the internet), John was talking about Jerry Garcia's gear. He pointed out that he personally is not a fan of Twin Reverbs not because they are objectively worse than SSS\Milkman\PRS\Whateverboutique, but because the main characteristic of the amp is not what he's looking for his sound. He said that he's looking for some kind of direct punch while the Twin Reverbs are known to be spongy and "laggy"(?), but that characteristic was indeed what Jerry was a fan of. So, just to wrap things up, it's really not about chasing the "whateveramp" because it's objectively better than Fender, but it's about chasing "whateveramp" because it gives a characteristic that you are looking for in your sound.

[@JustinJeske]

I don’t think anyone thinks John uses them cause they are “better”. He likes the Fender thing and the Dumble thing and has repeatedly said the Two Rock is the best of both Dumble and Fender amps, which he likes in that combination. Agreed on John liking stiff, immediate sounding amps. It’s why he loves the Dual Professional so much.

[@kevinborchers3522]

Alessandro did an interview where he talked about those Fender Deluxes for the dead and co 2018 summer tour. The JMod were there for the first few shows, John got the Deluxes a few shows in on the east coast

[@JustinJeske]

Do you have the link to that interview? I’d love to watch it! Yup you’re totally right that is a detail I should have clarified on! He had the Jmods the first show, moved to Jmods and Deluxes Camden night one (the second show) and on Camden night 2 the Jmods were gone. I totally could have been clearer on that! Writing my script I was trying to focus on the mains and left that out to my now annoyance haha

[@brandonclark7867]

Excellent detective work. Going where many men have daydreamed before us...🤘🏼😝

[@benjaminparker_]

Right on Justin!

[@peterhopqk]

Interesting video, imo the Continuum era was John Mayers best guitar tone

[@JustinJeske]

You are not alone!!!

[@jdcaporali]

Man! Thanks a lot for sharing this great information!

[@JustinJeske]

Glad to help out Javier!!

[@coryburns13]

Great info! Really dug this video, and I’d give a leg to be able to play on some of these amps, even for just a little bit lol

[@adrianhjordan1981]

Regarding Any Given Thursday, on the audio commentary John himself states that the ToneMaster was there just for the solo on Covered In Rain.

[@JustinJeske]

Can’t find this online but I’m gonna order that DVD now lol!

[@lucasgonzalezdealedo8556]

great video as always. This is 4th time i wach it :)

[@ericoglesby2614]

Is it just me or do I feel like you can get any of these tones with a fender blues junior and a couple drive pedals?

[@pipelobo08]

Live this video !

[@Diax1324]

I wish you'd tell us the deal with Two Rock. I can't find a single thread or anything that explains what happened between John and TR.

[@shankrl1]

John got annoyed they wanted to turn it into a cash cow and he bailed

[@melonfarmersounds]

They sold more than the agreed number of 25 of his sig amps.

[@Diax1324]

@@melonfarmersounds Why would he have them only make 25 tho? Was it because it was more/less a prototype or that he didn't actually want to mass market his tone?

[@JustinJeske]

No one knows exactly why the number was 25. But that was the deal, a very limited production run. There are only officially 25 JM Sig’s out there. Two Rock’s current ownership is actively searching out and purchasing back the unauthorized models at great expense to help right the wrong. Props to them for doing so.

[@melonfarmersounds]

@@Diax1324 I guess, probably to keep them super exclusive.

[@TheNewBDetailer]

Great video! I am wondering why I didn't see any discussion around the discontinuing of the J-MOD amp? It kinda felt like the pink elephant in the room.

[@JustinJeske]

This was more of a pure history timeline video. Not meant to be an overly heavy discussion on one single amp or anything!

[@TheNewBDetailer]

@@JustinJeske All good. The question was meant to be rhetorical in nature and not directed towards you. Many thanks!

[@Zeppelin180]

Brilliant vid again, Justin 👍

[@leannemacdonald5478]

2x 2Rock - 1 Vibro, John Mayer, 2x Matchless30 - VibroKing a rig of Robert Cray and others.That combo seems to be a cornerstone for him. I am not a JM expert at all

[@tengiz911]

Thank you^ Justin! But you never talk about the signal chain and the amp setup, is Mayer going W/D/W or Stereo with his amps? Why does he need 3 amps on stage

[@MrVillejohansson]

Thanks for the video! I recently bought a Bassbreaker 18/30 but concerned with the fact that there is no reverb on the amp. What do you recommend, should I go for a different amp or settle for pedal? Without busting bank!

[@drayve8590]

What’s the story with John and Two-Rock??? I’ve never heard exactly what happened.

[@pipelobo08]

Great job

[@JustinJeske]

Thank you Andres!!

[@gazwilliams1629]

Yes!! Awesome💪👌

[@bryanfaulkner3405]

Instant like. Don’t even have to watch first

[@JustinJeske]

You're the best Bryan!!!

[@sethpatrickmusic]

What’s the idea behind using multiple amps especially if it’s multiple of the same amp?

[@kvvnng]

How does John mix his 3 amp rig?

[@AntonioLopez-wv8pj]

Anyone know what his beef is with Two Rock?

[@costa_martins]

I'm pretty sure that red amp on the Any Given Thursday DVD is a Framus Ruby Riot and not an AC30.

[@JustinJeske]

I'm just going off of what Donmiguel, "Michael Chaves", said as he was physically there on stage lol. His word is better information than anything else we can honestly deduce from the stills. If he says lighting made the AC30 look red and it is his old AC30 with the Vox logo off, then I believe him!

[@costa_martins]

@@JustinJeske I have the original DVD copy bought in 2002 or 2003 (I'm old) and there's a section called "Any given sound check" where you can see the crew setting up the stage during the day. There's a red amp there. I'm not doubting the guy but I'm surely not doubting my eyes too. Now, I'm not saying there were no red AC30s back then but it looks more like a Ruby Riot because it looks to have a narrower top above the grill cloth than an AC30.

[@JustinJeske]

Hmmm. The mystery continues, I have to get that DVD!

[@clipdump]

The vibroverb is my endgame

[@mougabo]

when he has 3 amps on stage he is actually playing through all of them at the same time? also, could you share links to see which in your opinions where his best performances tonewise ?

[@trentwaterman7049]

Did anyone notice that in a few instances the fenders weren't plugged in? I would assume he was running into the effects loop in the back for a wet dry signal?

[@JustinJeske]

Which parts are you talking about? I might be able to provide some insight!

[@trentwaterman7049]

@@JustinJeske oo nevermind, I didn't realise the input is the vibro part to the right sorry.

[@henkkman]

Cabs and speakers next 🙏🙏🙏

[@saucemiller]

I’m curious about the falling out with two rock…

[@JustinJeske]

You can google it if you really want to know! I’d rather not discuss it on my channel haha

[@khktgnk57]

I cant really find anything specific, maybe a lot of the old forum threads are gone? If anyone could point me in the right direction that would be great

[@HorusReign]

@@khktgnk57 yea I’m with this. I can’t find anything so if someone could show me where to start, it would be much appreciated!

[@IvanTheMic]

@@HorusReign tl;dr TR guys made more-than-agreed-to signature (and other clone) amps behind Mayer's back, understandably this did not fit well to him

[@budgetguitarist]

@@IvanTheMic Thanks - I was curious and I, too, couldn't find anything online. This makes sense.

[@captainbackfirejr]

Dude wasn't that the Victoria Bassman though?

[@anmolatwal]

His one was the best from Any Given Thursday onwards till he dropped the two rocks from the rotation. He has to sort out his J MOD thing....but keep using the dumbles and two rocks......

[@JustinJeske]

I think he fixed that with the 2019 World Tour. The tones then were incredible!

[@dkuda1]

What blend do you think we hear of the amps out in the crowd? Im guessing its not a 3 way even DB mix we hear....for examle..2019 more JMOD and Dumble with the two rock just a bit lower in the mix?

[@JustinJeske]

Honestly I have no idea. In 2019 the J-Mod was running through the 1x12 in the center so I assume based on that and the actual tone being closer to the sound when it was just the JM Sig and the Dumble the J-Mod is actually less in the mix and not filling as big of a role if anything. Just for the 2019 Tour at least.

[@adamf5541]

That was great man, thank you! So for the rest of us who don’t have two rock money what amp would you recommend that is a good substitute for the overall JM tone?

[@JustinJeske]

This is something I have to think about… maybe I’ll make a video on it!

[@adamf5541]

@@JustinJeske that would be awesome

[@adamf5541]

@@JustinJeske also how is he running them? Wet dry wet? Apologies if you’ve covered this, but obviously a super important part of the sound. Cheers!

[@melonfarmersounds]

Ceriatone Joyful Music.

[@namgiang3107]

Am I the only here wonders what kind of amp John uses for acoustic guitar...?

[@JustinJeske]

Sorry for the late response, I wasn't 100% sure on this so I checked in with my pal @JohnMayerGear and Candler @CAEMusic! John runs into an Avalon U5 and then DI out from there, so I hope that helps!

[@namgiang3107]

​@@JustinJeske wow didn't expect to get an answer cause I was just being curious haha. Thank you! I notice his acoustic guitar tone actually got better through the year as well. Once I watch an acoustic live session he did many years ago and the tone was just horrible. Never like the sound of a piezo pickup. kzbin.info/www/bejne/imLYnJiQaqioi8k

[@frankiewalnuts]

Has anyone got any amplitube 5 patches for John's setups?

[@laaronml]

🔥🔥🔥

[@scottheins]

Do we know if John ever used a Fuchs amp?

[@JustinJeske]

I mean you can’t say for certain behind closed doors but never on stage or in anything I’ve seen.

[@michaelclark5020]

So I would like to see John do a reaction video and talk about his thoughts on all this info and talk about his gear. Since he is pretty helpful at talking about his projects. John’s awesome check out his new record and go back and listen to his old stuff.

[@jgamble5977]

I wonder why it said Big Pilot on that rack unit

[@JustinJeske]

I think that's a nod to the watch. Just like how John had a G-Shock sticker on his #1 2019 MS SS.

[@jgamble5977]

@@JustinJeske of course! Didn't think of that. thank you for all your hard work and passion, Justin. Can't wait for more videos!

[@jgamble5977]

@@JustinJeske of course! Didn't think of that. thank you for all your hard work and passion, Justin. Can't wait for more videos!

[@AntonioLopez-wv8pj]

Do you know of any companies that make a clone of the Dumble Overdrive Reverb?

[@JustinJeske]

Yeah so both Welagen and Amplified Nation do ODR clones, however neither of them to my knowledge are based on John's specific ODR but rather on other ones produced by Dumble that are voiced differently. I know the guy who owned that specific ODR so I'm trying to gather as much info as possible on it. It's a Grail amp of mine so getting a clone is a goal but figuring out which to get or the specific characteristics of that amp isn't easy. I'll share my findings though when I know more info!

[@brentporter9324]

Do we know if his pedals run to all 3 amps or is he running wet/dry/wet or dry/wet/dry?

[@JustinJeske]

Pedals usually go into all 3 amps. He has run some W/D/W setups but as far as I'm aware that is mainly for the Bricasti Reverb units not any actual effects pedals in stereo or anything

[@melonfarmersounds]

@@JustinJeske There were several shows in which his two sig amps were wet amps and the 002 was used for the dry signal, mainly during the sig/002/sig setup era.

[@dincorcelles]

How does JM split his guitar signal to 3 amps?

[@JustinJeske]

Usually Radial JD7’s!

[@dincorcelles]

@@JustinJeske thanks👍

[@thirus8312]

is there any cheap combo amps that simulate a two rock/dumble tone? i don’t wanna have a head because i only play at home and small gigs

[@realkylehooks]

Good God, please match volumes better between talking and John playing. I got blasted a couple times. Otherwise though, great video and great information

[@Selzman10]

Do the speakers 🔊

[@wrenguitar2813]

🤘🏽🤘🏽

[@JakeBisognin]

I’d love to know how he uses the 3 amps; is he splitting the one mono signal to all 3, or are some getting the Bricasti reverb in stereo or the Victoria Reverberato etc?

[@andrewandthecatfives]

When he uses 3 amps, it has typically been a wet/dry/wet setup where the amps on the left and right sides receive signal from his stereo pedals.

[@JakeBisognin]

@@andrewandthecatfives he doesn't seem to run stereo out of his pedalboard though, let alone a dry send. Is he running the effects loop on some of his amps to wire some rack reverbs in? But he seems to be using the preamps of all his amps, so none of them are purely slaves for stereo returns.

[@JustinJeske]

It depends on the Era. Born & Raised was W/D/W, the whole 2019 World Tour wasn’t. It was mono straight into the front of the amps. For example. In terms of like the Bricasti’s it again depends. In the JMOD loops 2017 World Tour, but in the mixing console for 2019 so we don’t know what capacity they got used in then, but they were there.

[@abnzg]

if only he'd tour with the SLO...

[@JustinJeske]

It’d be worth it to hear LTH, just have that on the side mic’d and swap amps for that song. Even have it in a rack behind the main rig and be able to swap that in.

[@jamesf2918]

😯

[@nuendo2496]

I heard Mayer mostly plays through his Wimpler 2000....that's how he achieves that boring sleepy sound. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[@Faded0811]

In a caption you claim he’s using SSS 004 in 2012, but then later in the video you claim he gets 004 in 2016. Dude, I’ve watched three videos of yours and all three had errors in the information you’re purporting as fact. If you want to claim to be an expert and put this information out there at least get it right.

[@JustinJeske]

Erik I’ve already responded to your three comments yet you’re incapable of replying back to me for some reason. I never claim to be 100% accurate when it comes to Mayer’s gear, know everything about every single thing, or that I don’t make mistakes in editing. You just clearly can’t understand that so feel free to just not watch my content anymore or even better, create your own! I see you post in the John Mayer Gear Lounge on Facebook!

[@Faded0811]

Not incapable, just hadn’t seen the replies. I understand you haven’t claimed to know every single thing about every single thing, but if you’re going to tell folks about the “top things people get wrong” then at least be right about the things you do purport to know. You’re making highly niche content about nuanced subjects. And you’re doing a fine enough job of it. But if you’re sharing technical information be certain so people aren’t confused. They come to this channel specifically for those details. Keep up the good work though, it’s broadly correct and you’re doing well.

[@middle_pickup]

What amps did he use on that awful Van Halen cover? Lol

[@middle_pickup]

Mayer is such a drama queen. How long do you guys think he'll stick with PRS before he sours that relationship too?

[@JustinJeske]

You clearly know nothing of his relationship with Two Rock and/or Fender if you think he’s the cause or the party to put majority blame on relationships ending or going sour.

[@middle_pickup]

@@JustinJeske school me then. What am I missing?

[@JustinJeske]

Mike his main contact and go to at Fender leaves, someone who he could call up and chat with on ideas or just have as a main contact. Someone who made him feel valued. Fender as a company does not try to continue that relationship with him more or less. Feels like a company and not people he is dealing with. (Jyst of it). He tries to give certain ideas on products and they decline. Not wanting to work on stuff other than what they want with him. He says, okay no hard feelings and seeks out a smaller, more personable brand that he can work with the creative people more directly. He calls PRS and gets a phone call back from Paul himself. They work on the Super Eagle and Jmod first. Not the Silver Sky, that came after their relationship was 4 years in. Mayer has said he has no bad blood or issues with Fender at all. Just the sad truth their relationship was never the same so why stay. Two Rock’s ownership at the time just saw him as a cash cow and went against things they agreed on, behind his back. So he ended his relationship with them. Anyone would have. I won’t go into specifics on this out of respect for the new ownership who I know for a fact is working so hard to mend this and make it right. So yeah. If you think he’s a drama queen and souring relationships… okay lol.

[@middle_pickup]

@@JustinJeske all I'm saying is that drama follows that guy. It's been funny to watch. You don't have to search hard for hilarious statements he's made about nearly anything. I wish anyone who endeavors a business relationship with Mayer good luck.

[@JustinJeske]

So you just ignored all the information I provided, cool. You clearly haven’t been “watching” cause you think it’s him causing drama. I think PRS doesn’t need your good luck with Silver Sky’s 1 year out on preorders and a healthy 7 year relationship goin strong.