Nirvana Tones using the 2016 Fender Duo-Sonic HS

[@Gmork-The-Nothing]

Your playing is so accurate. Many Nirvana covers online are played too neatly with none of that nice "looseness" that Kurt played with. Your Rape Me intro sounds identical to the record. Spot on!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks so much man, looseness is basically all I can do on guitar haha!

[@gdeAVX]

0:10 Rape Me 0:53 About a Girl 1:16 Dumb 1:34 Polly 2:05 Drain You 3:37 Lithium 4:30 Curmudgeon 5:00 D7 5:45 Heart Shaped Box 6:54 On a Plan 8:26 Smells Like Teen Spirit 10:07 Come As You Are 11:17 Token Eastern Song 11:51 Floyd The Barber 12:21 School 12:50 Dive

[@solarreturn7673]

on a plan

[@lapinnhd2306]

its on a plain

[@SMFSS]

I think Kurt would have loved this guitar if he was still alive today

[@alexrcowan]

Yeah I think he probably would. I reckon he would be all over it if it were released back in '93

[@rollingon5566]

Wasn't the duo sonic design the first of the Offsets?

[@rollingon5566]

Immortal Android then in theory shouldn't at least a few have been around in his day? Because if they were around. Which it was considering the duo sonic is apparently older. Doesn't it suggest that he may have been able to buy one. Bare in mind I don't have a history of reissues in my brain, I was just curious to if their were any in general circulation at that time

[@rollingon5566]

Immortal Android so he wouldn't have loved them. Tbh, Im not a fan, my mate is, but, I prefer Mustangs

[@Lat3xE4teR]

alexrcowan it was actually released originally in the late 50’s, specifically ‘58 and he did use it live when they played before they had released bleach because it made him look bigger and gave a nice sound (he was only 4”11’ at the time and Krist Novoselic was 6”7’)

[@ajp33green]

Amazing! Kurt is the reason I started playing over 20 years ago. I just bought that same guitar about a month ago. Going home to play Nirvana today. Thanks for your time and effort.

[@alexrcowan]

ajp33green he's the reason I picked the guitar up again a year and a bit ago after a 9 year hiatus from the instrument! Hope you have a great time jamming some nirvana tunes! Thanks for watching!

[@simonshah3566]

Drain You is spot on dude!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks man! :D

[@anttik5764]

Great tones! As a Nirvana fan, this was a very pleasing video to watch. Also, that is the exact guitar I'm looking to buy right now! Gotta save some money for that beast! \m/ :)

[@alexrcowan]

Haha thanks mate! It really is a great guitar, very versatile and great quality, particularly on the neck

[@brandongore711]

Dude if Fender isn't already paying you for this they should be now. I've never been more sold on a guitar. Target marketing! ;P Edit: Also I see you bringing out some of the rarities, they sound great!

[@alexrcowan]

Hahaha thanks man! Yeah as soon as I played this guitar for the first time I knew what style of music it was perfect for :P Also really loving the neck pickup of this thing for sonic youth songs. All in all its a versatile guitar that packs a punch for its size! And yeah good pickup on the rarer songs, I wanted to change up the rotation of what I usually play haha

[@brandongore711]

You're welcome! Ooh I love Sonic Youth! I've been meaning to upload a cover of theirs to my channel but I've been procrastinating doing the thumbnail :P I'd like to see you do some videos on Sonic Youth if you want to

[@alexrcowan]

Haha you should upload it man! And yeah I want to get some sonic youth songs on KZbin too!

[@brandongore711]

Just uploaded it about an hour ago! I look forward to potentially seeing some Sonic Youth songs on your channel in the future!

[@abelramirez7320]

alexrcowan would love to Sonic youth played on a jazzmaster!

[@bristolvinylguy9890]

Awesome video man! That tone that you had for Drain You was absolutely orgasmic btw.

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks man, I appreciate it! And glad you liked the drain you tone, absolutely love that song!

[@Ryngis]

I got one of these for christmas and fell in love with it straight away

[@alexrcowan]

Yep I can definitely relate to that, love everything about it

[@TkChannelAllGames]

Love your videos on Nirvana tones really helps me to find the right sound when playing!!!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks so much, I'm really glad they are useful for you!

[@rollingon5566]

I'm such an idiot, I thought drop D flat was different from c#

[@juneau.bandca]

Stupid man

[@fishin9157]

I really want to buy this now

[@alexrcowan]

Haha sorry! It is a great guitar though!

[@Esraug9012]

My girlfriend got one in the same color for Christmas and all I can say is that it fucking roars. Even with a cheap modeling amp you throw a distortion pedal in there and that humbucker can rip your face off. Plus the addition of a push pull coil tap means there's so much more variety you can get. I recommend this guitar definitely, especially for nirvana fans. Highly recommend

[@alexrcowan]

Completely agree. It may look like a small guitar, but boy can it roar! Excellent value for the money!

[@jayrobb9]

THANK YOU. This is what a demo should be. Songs people will recognize played correctly, well, and in tune, and most importantly playing clean AND dirty. So many 'guitar' demos pile on the distortion to the point you can't hear what the actual guitar sounds like. Thanks so much.

[@alexrcowan]

Yeah I was looking like for vids where they showed a proper clean and dirty tone for the duo sonic but couldn't find one (People are obsessed with reverb and delay) so thought I would try and make something when I got the guitar that would be useful to other people like me. And thanks so much, really appreciate the time you took for such great feedback!

[@Baku69895]

I actually have a Cobain Mustang and I gotta say, the duo sonic is pretty sweet in its own write. The mesaboogie amp is great too tbh

[@ulises_oliva]

Could you upload more videos playing with this guitar? It sounds awesome.

[@alexrcowan]

Sure, would love to!

[@fabybaby]

This guitar sounds goo, but I'm gonna go finally buy a bridge for my Univox Hi Flyer today. I should be fine without a new guitar for a while👍 Great Vid

[@alexrcowan]

You have a Hi Flyer? Which phase? I'd been looking for one for ages but no luck

[@fabybaby]

alexrcowan To be honest I don't know. Would you be able to tell if I showed you the guitar?

[@alexrcowan]

Well if it has p90 pickups its a phase 1 or 2. If it has humbuckers and a tremolo its a phase 3. And if it has humbuckers and a hardtail its a phase 4

[@fabybaby]

alexrcowan Then it is a phase 3, thanks!

[@alexrcowan]

Cool I'll check it out man!

[@bretthuhn8666]

Wow! That was lot of fun! Keep on Keeping On!

[@alexrcowan]

Brett Huhn thanks Brett! Appreciate it mate, glad you liked it!

[@Hows_Ur_Oulwan]

What should I buy if money was no object... a used Kurt sig jag, a reissue jag and mod to Kurt specs, a used Kurt sig mustang, a 65 or 69 reissue mustang and mod to Kurt specs or a warmoth mustang to Kurts specs??? I'm not really a fan of the new mustangs and duo sonics.

[@alexrcowan]

JE 123 I'd say get a roadworn Kurt sig jag if you can, they're amazing!

[@bucketeerbill7646]

damn i missed u , nice video like always

[@alexrcowan]

Haha thanks man! Glad you liked it, sorry it's been a while!

[@FRAGeditz]

holy shit, curmudgeon sounded sick!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks Dan, thought I'd unleash curmudgeon for once haha

[@adamguitar2335]

man all your videos are awesome! I can't wait for your next!😁

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks so much man! More will be out soon!

[@arwen69696]

Real nice video as always (there's a surf green duo-sonic in it, it literally has to be great xD). Great kind of review also, just hearing the tone on the songs you wanna play without someone else judging it

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks a lot! I love the surf green myself, that and sonic blue are my favourite fender colours! And yeah thanks, I thought it would be best if I just played the thing so everyone could make up their own mind about the guitar's tonal capabilities :)

[@PierAlexandreHarvey]

Man, I tried this guitar in a music store and I fucking LOVE it. The tone is perfect for nirvana

[@alexrcowan]

It's so good right?! Underrated imo, and yes perfect for nirvana!

[@looigaming3380]

Heart Shaped Box's tone sounds right on point. Amazing job man.

[@dmdivers]

Be aware that although the Duo Sonic HS is a short scale neck, the neck itself is quite thick and chunky in your hand. I'd definitely say to anyone to go and play the guitar in a shop first. The Fender Jaguar neck is a lot thinner and the fret wire thinner, too. It is more comfortable to play than a Duo Sonic and a still a short scale fret board. Bottom line, go play a Duo Sonic, Jaguar or Mustang in a shop first - either Squier or Fender versions (depending on your budget) - and see which one feels more comfortable in your hand. You'll be surprised just how different the necks physically all feel.

[@alexrcowan]

and then it depends which jaguar you play. For instance the Mexican Kurt Cobain jag has a neck with the same 9.5" radius and similar fretwire to the duo sonic, whereas a Japanese Fender Jaguar will have the thinner neck, the 7.25" radius and thinner vintage fretwire you described. It is always best to try before you buy!

[@dylansabbath9085]

this sounded very good great tones

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks Dylan!

[@davidlennox6242]

Just bought this bad boy in Daphne Blue, partly because of this amazing demo, sounds near identical during most songs. Planning on replacing the pickguard with red tortoise shell and swapping out the knobs for mustang ones. Great video man, absolutely killed it.

[@JimmyStrummer]

Have you ever tried out the Tech21 SansAmp Classic for the In Utero tone? Apparently that was Kurt's main distortion when recording the album and he used it from time to time on tour.

[@alexrcowan]

Jimmy Strummer yep I actually own an original 90’s sansamp. It sounds awesome!

[@andyragsdale5715]

I bought this exact guitar and swapped out the humbucker with a dimarzio super distortion. my jamming buddy has a Cobain mustang and the duosonic slays it on older nirvana tunes!

[@andyragsdale5715]

Also ran it thru a ds1 but bought a big muff and I don"t even pick up my other guitars anymore

[@alexrcowan]

I love the super distortion, I'm actually considering swapping out the JB on my jagstang for one. I also swapped the JB out of my cobain mustang for an SH5 Custom. I think I'm starting to move away from JB's.

[@brad7680]

Great vid! Been thinking of buying one!?!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks mate! They're a rad little offset, can't recommend them enough!

[@WilliamKnifeMan3202]

Thanks for sharing. My NIRVANA pick’n doesn’t sound quite right on these epiphones lol looking into my first fender guitar and now I know what I want!

[@toddswafford6513]

I had plans to get a squier vintage modified jaguar mainly because dave simpsons kurt cobain tone video using the squier jag, but this might have swayed me. Why, if you don't mind me asking, would you prefer the duo sonic to the squier jag?

[@jdaywork2693]

Yeah you're nailing man. Nice.

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks so much John!

[@paulburgundy2663]

another great video! keep it up!!!

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks so much, I really appreciate it!

[@Raiders757]

Not a big Nirvana fan, but great job. Love my Duo-Sonic HS. I have the same exact one you have, but I have already added locking tuners and strap locks to mine. They're nice upgrades to an already awesome guitar.

[@alexrcowan]

Such a great guitar! Yeah I'm thinking about adding straplocks to this and all my other guitars!

[@Raiders757]

It's well worth it. I have strap locks on all of my guitars. Also, all of my Fenders have locking tuners as well. I highly recommend them, as it makes strings changes a breeze. The Strat/Tele locking tuners fit the Duo-Sonic perfectly.

[@alexrcowan]

Raiders757 thanks man I'll definitely look into it. Just out of interest what strap locks and locking tuners did you use?

[@Raiders757]

I used Dunlop Strap Locks (SLS1031N). The screws that come with them are a bit wider than the ones on the Duo-Sonic, but no worries. The screws on your Duo-Sonic work perfectly with them. Since the Duo-SOnic didn't come with a felt washer, I added those as well. The locking tuners I used were your standard Fender Locking Tuners. They're made for the Strat and the Telecaster, but they also fit the Duo-Sonic perfectly. Just a heads up. You can get the strap locks, felt washers, and the locking tuners on Amazon cheaper than you can get the anywhere else.

[@alexrcowan]

Ahh cool, thanks man! I looked around on amazon, cant find any good ones that ship to australia :/ got some loxx straplocks instead, they seem pretty good and were cheaper than schallers etc. I'll keep looking for tuners!

[@sophiegauchetfousse3589]

I have the same of you she's fucking awesome hade I agree it's a perfect guitars for playing nirvana

[@alexrcowan]

Haha it almost feels like they were made for nirvana!

[@cloudmonkey2686]

alexrcowan I mean a humbucker and hardtail on a mustang? It's modeled after kurts lol

[@chileglatorianz]

Daniel Malone *Duo Sonic

[@smurphy28]

This sounds great! Do you recommend this model or getting a MIJ Mustang and changing it with a JB Jr?

[@alexrcowan]

Probably this one man, its overall gonna be cheaper and it's a great guitar!

[@bottomtext9999]

Hey love the video and the guitar sounds great but do they do it left handed?

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks mate, nah I don't think they do unfortunately, I wish they did do the new offsets in lefty for all you guys :/

[@DaveWire]

do you have strings 10-52 like cobain ? and how are tuned ? thx nice video j just wait for mine

[@alexrcowan]

Hey Dave, I actually use 11-49, and tune in E Flat. You'll love the guitar man!

[@DaveWire]

hey alex :) which gauge string do you advice me on the same duo sonic as you if i tune my guitar half step down? thx i'd like to keep the powerful sound like in the intro of rape me. I dont understand, kurt used 10-52 and tuned his guitar half step down too, but for a short scale 10-52 is enough ? thx

[@Dan-Bass]

Sounds great! I know what I'm saving up for now :-)

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks man, and it's a great guitar! It won't disappoint you!

[@comradekirilov3483]

I picked that up at a guitar center and realized it's basically Kurt's sound lol. I'm a much bigger fan of the Mustang 90 tho cause I just like the look better and the MP90s are basically beefed up mustang single coils anyways so I'll replace the bridge with a humbucker and get the same sound but a little better ;)

[@alexrcowan]

Awesome man! I do really like the look of the P90 version!

[@StillLivinTheBlues]

Awesome job, man!!!!

[@aerojascruz]

can i gig with this guitar? ..also how thin is the neck? is it close to an ibanez gio neck?

[@alexrcowan]

You certainly can gig this guitar, it's solid. I've never played a gio so I couldn't compare it for you but it feels great, certainly made to be easy to play. It's a thin neck, it's not jagstang thin, but its thinner than my strat neck.

[@aerojascruz]

alexrcowan thanks for the info dude. i was inquiring about the neck because i have a telecaster that is hard to play because it has a huge neck and i have short fat fingers hehe. i will try the duosonic as soon as i see one at a guitar store

[@alexrcowan]

no problems man, and the neck is definitely not huge like some teles and strats. I have short fingers too so I can relate to needing thin necks. The short scale also makes it easier to play

[@aerojascruz]

alexrcowan great i'm sold. i saw that they are really cheap. like less than 500 dollars. that's great considering it is a real fender

[@alexrcowan]

aerojascruz yep the bang you get for your buck out of these guitars is amazing. I don't think enough can be said about that!

[@soc2902]

The DS has a three way selector switch with the pull knob for full length coil split. Does that mean there's technically 6 configurations to choose from? What does each setting do? I have an idea but I want to make sure I understand. Ty!

[@alexrcowan]

Scott O'Connor the coil split only effects the bridge humbucker. So by my count that gives you five settings. You have your 3 standard settings while on humbucker mode (neck pickup, both pickups, bridge pickup). Then you have two additional tones when you split the humbucker since bridge pickup alone will now be single coil and both pickups on together will sound different. The neck pickup by itself isn’t affected by the push/pull coil split. Hope this helps!

[@Rjhorning]

Hey man, I was talking to Josh Jamison about a week ago, and he suggested I message you because he said you should be able to point me in the right direction. I'm looking into get a new guitar soon. I love to play Nirvana and I've always loved Kurt's sonic blue Mustang. But as I'm sure you know, they're hard to find and really expensive. Now would you recommend getting the VM Mustang and doing the mods to get close to Kurt's? I don't know enough about the internals of a guitar so I would have to pay someone to do them. Or should I get the Daphne blue Duo Sonic and buy the tortoise pick guard for it and call it close enough. I mean, it already comes with the humbucker and its already a hardtail so I wouldn't have to deal with the shitty mustang bridge and trem. I'm in the U.S. and I can get the Duo Sonic for around $525 while the VM Mustang is around $300. How much would the mods to the VM Mustang cost? And if I'm going to get a Duo Sonic for $525, do you think I should just throw a little more money and get a blue Jagstang? I'm really undecided on what I should do. I don't want to buy a Squire and put a shit ton of money into it and at the end of the day, I've still got a Squire. Sorry for the long message but I know you have the answers and are educated enough on the matter to give me a good opinion. I'm 36 years old now and I've lived through the whole "Nirvana thing", but unfortunately this is something I've never grown out of. I've always played cheap, shitty, second hand guitars and for once in my life I'd like to have something nice that is a pleasure to play. Sorry for rambling, lol. Thank you for your time and I look forward to your response. Have good day.

[@alexrcowan]

Hey mate. It sounds to me like a VM mustang might not be worth your time and might not be as cost effective as your other options. they are great don't get me wrong, I used to have one myself. They're a bit heavier and are a slab body because they are based on a '65 mustang, whereas Kurt's sonic blue mustangs were '69 mustang reissues, which have contoured bodies like a strat. Anyway by the time you get a VM mustang for $300, and spend the money on the mods (which will cost a bit, when you consider you will have to buy a JB humbucker, a gotoh tuneomatic, and pay someone to do those modifications; which involves routing the body of the guitar and modifying the bridge post holes to accommodate a new bridge, which may not be difficult but is a time consuming process) it may cost you more than it would to just get a duo sonic. To do those mods in Australia professionally it would cost around $250-$300AUD ($195-$234usd) including the parts. To that end, I think the HS duo sonic would be a better option for you, it sounds great straight out of the box, and as you say, no messing around with the annoying bridge that comes with the vm squier and it has solid tuning stability. While it also has a slab body it is slightly thinner than the vm stang body I believe, and it feels lighter to me. Also with its push/pull coil tap you can get some more versatile tones out of the humbucker. Also while I definitely understand the appeal of the jagstang (I love mine to death), honestly think the duo sonic is more cost effective. As you've seen on this video it nails those nirvana tones stock. While if you go for a jagstang, you're gonna open a whole new can of worms. In Australia sonic blue ones are super rare and expensive, i'm not sure whether that is the case over in the states. But if you can find one that hasn't been trashed, and isn't all that much more expensive than a duo-sonic, then sure go for that. The nirvana nostalgia makes it a great collectible for a nirvana fan, aside from it being a quirky and fun instrument to play. Sonic blue Jagstang's go for around $860-$940 usd over here so it's quite a jump up in price brackets from the duo sonic. Again I'm not sure what the second hand market is like over in the states. Also a jagstang will be second/third/fourth hand, while the duo is brand new which is something to consider. And you may have to spend further money on a jagstang, because the stock humbucker is quite awful (in my case it was a very low output pickup reading around 6K so I had to change the humbucker to a JB reading 16K for it to sound good) and also since they are old they may require a fresh setup unless you can find one that has been recently setup. So if I'm conservative and say that a good quality, second hand jagstang will cost $650-$700 over there (because for some reason in Australia everything is always more expensive even considering the conversion rate) you may potentially have to spend more money on that, and it may not be as playable as a duo sonic anyway. Ultimately it comes down to what you're willing to spend. I don't have any bias against any of these 3 guitars, I have owned all 3 and loved them all, I just think you can rule out a VM mustang for cost effectiveness reasons. It would maybe be the number 1 choice if you were confident enough to do the modifications yourself to get it to Kurt specs, but I honestly think the duo-sonic will be the most effective option in terms of having great fender quality (Fender Mexico have really stepped up their neck crafting quality, my duo sonic had no faults with any frets or anything), and giving you the most bang for your buck. So for me, my safest recommendation is to go that way, but if you can find a jagstang for not too much more, and is in great condition without requiring you to do all the expensive things like a setup, a refret or even installation of a new humbucker (also make sure the truss rod works) then definitely go for that because they are a great nirvana nostalgic item! Sorry for the long reply, I hope you got some useful information to consider!

[@Rjhorning]

alexrcowan Hey man, no problem with the long reply. I really do appreciate you giving me your honest opinion. I think I'm gonna end up going the duo sonic hs route. I like the fact that it'll have fender quality and I won't have to mess around with locking a trem and changing a rattling bridge. It appears they have already taken care of those issues. Other than changing pick guards to get the color combo I'm looking for, its literally ready to roll out of the box. Do get me wrong, I like working on things. I'm a professional car mechanic with thousands of dollars worth of tools so I'm definetly mechanically inclined but working on a guitar is kind of a different ball game. So the less work the better. I'd love to have a jagstang cause that's like "the holy grail" for me. But any jagstang that's in my price range is either a complete shit show owned and fucked up by god knows how many other people, or fiesta red. For some reason the red ones are a lot cheaper and more plentiful. And I just don't want that 1. So to get a quality guitar the color I want without having to do a lot of work to it or having to drop over a thousand dollars on it, based on your info I think the duo sonic hs is right for me. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me. I really needed someone else's input. Great job on the videos man. Keep up the great work. I must say, it really takes balls to get in front of a camera and sing and play in front of the whole world. You've got way more guts than I do and your really good at it. And I particularly love the videos on getting the polychorus sound with other pedals. I looked for that specific info for a long time before I found your channel. Well thanks again and be well my friend. Nirvana will always be alive in our hearts. As long as people like you and I play and share their music with others.

[@alexrcowan]

Yeah it sounds like the duo sonic would be the best option, it doesn't disappoint. it may be a $500 guitar, but I've owned $1000 guitars which weren't nearly as good. And yeah the fiesta red's seem to be a lot more prevalent than the sonic blue jagstangs, I guess sonic blue is liked more so less people sell the ones they have. You never know, they are a cult classic so they may get reissued at some point in the future! I hope they do anyway haha, I think they are underrated... anyway I digress, I'm sure that a duo sonic will suit all your needs, and will save you time and money since you won't really need to do anything to it to make it sound good! And thanks man, I'm always nervous every time I upload a video because I really want them to be good and useful to people! Yeah I want to make more videos along the polychorus tutorial lines about going into detail about how to construct specific sounds. Thanks again for watching and the kind words, I hope you love the duo sonic when you get it (I'm sure you will!)

[@azt3ca]

you nailed the tone ;)

[@alexrcowan]

azt3ca thanks mate! 😊

[@stacy9240]

He definitely would have used this recording “In Utero”

[@anthonysclafani3963]

The DS2 seemed to make a click sound like a standard pedal power button- is there some kind of button under the DS2's power switch? My DS1 doesn't make any noise & I don't have a DS2 yet- is yours modded or do DS2's always make that click sound when you turn it on?

[@alexrcowan]

Anthony Sclafani that click is just because I’m set up playing too close to the microphone at too low a volume, the mic is just picking up the sound of me tapping the pedal on. It operates exactly like the DS1, so there won’t be a noise 😊

[@anthonysclafani3963]

alexrcowan ok cool thanks!

[@joshmell4603]

hey Alex love ur videos man what's ur settings on ur amp man

[@alexrcowan]

Hey man thanks so much! Check out 13:30 on the video, I have a picture of all my settings on my amp. The picture probably explains it better than I can, especially with the equalisation haha

[@wilmadj532]

is the duo sonic much different to the squier 2017 bullet mustang? great video btw

[@peterfoghnielsen7831]

In quality, yes

[@alexrcowan]

I haven't gotten my hands on the new bullet stang. I'd say the quality of the build on the duo sonic would be superior, I'm really loving the new stuff out of Mexico, particularly the fretwork! Not to say that the bullet mustang is a bad guitar, because i've heard nothing but good things about it, especially considering it's price point. I just haven't had the chance to try one, but when they become available in Australia I'd be interested to test one out for myself! Apart from the quality, the pickups would probably be different, the squier mustang has 2 humbuckers to begin with , while the duo sonic has a single coil in the neck. But I'm sure both are great for nirvana! And thanks for the kind words man!

[@wilmadj532]

alexrcowan I'm in Australia too, the land of 3 digit shipping it seems, but Anderton's music in Britain has somehow found a loophole in shipping and you can get one with a case including shipping for I think 300 Aud more or less? decent deal I think it's a good guitar for the price ive heard, perfect for getting into modding! have you thought about doing any Alice in Chains tone videos?

[@alexrcowan]

Oh wow, excellent find. Thats very good deal, I bet when (if) they finally sell them here they will be for a lot more. What case do you get for it? Considering grabbing one at that price

[@alexrcowan]

And also yes, I do want to get into Alice in Chains videos, trying to work my way through the remainder of nirvana things I still want to do on KZbin haha. I think I need be a lot more regular in my uploads

[@pressstartfrank8606]

I saw one in person last night and boy did they look rad as fuck! Too bad they don't make them for left handed musicians :/

[@alexrcowan]

They're sooo damn rad! Yeah I really feel like fender are shooting themselves in the foot not making lefty ones

[@DannysChannel100]

Do you think this guitar is a good choice for beginners ? Looks perfect for playing Nirvana songs. My Squier Strat i've owned for years now isn't too good for that kinda stuff.

[@alexrcowan]

Yep its a great guitar for beginners, the small scale helps unless you have massive hands. And it's got a lot of bang for it's buck!

[@GreenPilz]

Thanks for replying. You're right. I ended up buying it and i just love this guitar. (this is my second account). Thanks for recommending it to me.

[@guitarguy7847]

Such a cool guitar! If you don’t mind me asking, how do you afford all this gear? Greetings from the other side of the world!😊

[@alexrcowan]

GuitarGuy totally! Well, apart from getting money working I get gear by selling/trading. I don’t necessarily keep all of the stuff that I use on these vids. For example I actually sold this guitar after this video (as a cool side story I sold it to someone who saw this vid and now we are in a band together and I still get to use the guitar!). So yeah I don’t actually still own all the cool guitars and gear that I’ve used in all these vids over the years, I’ve needed to sell a lot of stuff to get other gear 😊

[@guitarguy7847]

alexrcowan ah ok. 😊

[@fedestrat2caster]

Hi! I have a question, please. When you use the guitar in standing position, hanging on a strap: Does the neck dives? I mean if the neck tend to down to the floor, as in some SG's type guitar. Thank you!

[@alexrcowan]

Hi, No I haven't experienced any neck dive with these guitars. Hope that helps!

[@DylanHutto]

Wait, is that a Strat with a Mustang put together? that thing looks awesome!

[@alexrcowan]

Haha it does kinda look like that with the strat style headstock, but a duo-sonic is a duo-sonic, its very similar to a mustang but a few differences like the positioning of the bridge pickup, and not having a trem or 3 way slider switches. Apart from that its pretty much a mustang!

[@WuziTV]

you'd think a guitar shape popularised by someone left handed would have left handed model oh well i must carry on looking

[@alexrcowan]

Yes I wish they would make more lefty models, hopefully soon Fender will give their lefty customers some more options!

[@WuziTV]

alexrcowan fingers crossed 😂😂

[@onereviewforeveryonechanne1565]

Is the finish of the guitar very shiny? Sounds so good for grunge lovers like me! Thanks!

[@alexrcowan]

It's pretty shiny, I love the finish. It's metallic surf green but not so metallic that it's overpowering if that makes sense. And yes, it's the perfect grunge guitar! Couldn't be happier with it!

[@onereviewforeveryonechanne1565]

alexrcowan Thanks for the answer! Gonna be my next guitar ;)

[@alexrcowan]

No problem! I'm sure you'll love it!

[@Jobvdschouw]

I think you would like the G&L Fallout as well. G&L is actually Fender, but remastered: it is also by Leo Fender but with some tweaks like a better bridge and all, but a less exciting name

[@randywoolum2648]

Nice work! But everyone I see always plays "Lithium" different from the way it's originally recorded. If someone is trying to achieve the album style, the intro is not just strumming chords, there's palm muting, and single note plucking. Everyone I see, seems to be doing it like Kurt did live. Which is fine, but the album intro is cool sounding.

[@alexrcowan]

Yeah I'm just skipping the intro in this one. When I do a cover of Lithium I plan to do it properly in D standard with the proper intro, and will use an ab pedal to go from using the small clone to the big muff in the chorus to get it sounding a bit closer to the recording.

[@jacktilghman9797]

Randy Woolum half the time live kurt would use an open d chord instead of the power chord

[@lal2235]

please Im in a budget, I wish I could afford a mesa boogie, but I can't, what is the best amp I can buy in the range of 30 watts to 40 watts, for cheap, I have many pedals, and I have an epiphone les paul, and a yamaha, I like real rock, does it matter the distortion of the amp?, I was looking around at the mg30dfx or the fender frontman 25r, any suggestions???

[@hahalmao8047]

this is late but a marshall mg30cfx would be good lol

[@lal2235]

@@hahalmao8047 Ive tried it before, I need something more powerfull, well I want, actually, lol,

[@jamesogilvie1649]

I've never been a massive fan of the short scale fenders but I like the way you play yours.. Just for the record I play a 1981 tele that I've butchered a pair of dearmond humbuckers into.. A strat (origin/year unknown) with a mod scratch plate br: Jb Jr, mid: cool rails, neck: Danelectro 59 lipstick, and my favourite is my Gretsch electromatic club jet...

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks man I appreciate that, especially since short scales are definitely not everyones cuppa tea! And nice man I bet they sound amazing. I love my strat with a jb jr in the bridge (best single cil size humbucker imo)! I bet the tele sounds killer! I've never played a gretsch, always been interested to try one out

[@jamesogilvie1649]

alexrcowan the tele and the Gretsch are pretty similar sounding due to the fact the dearmond pickups in the tele came out of a knackered Gretsch nashville but theyre very different to play. The action on the tele is low and easy and the neck is fast as hell,(2 piece rosewood) and the Gretsch is high action and a little fatter round the neck and just takes a little more effort to get up and down the neck which also has a rosewood board but it has the glossy varnished neck which is the only thing on it that I don't like so as much as it's my favourite guitar it's the one play least.. I gig the 2 fenders with the tele kept in open G and the strat in standard tuning but it can be put in drop D, flat E etc...without too much hassle. I must admit I haven't gigged the Gretsch at all.. So what's your "go to" guitar?

[@alexrcowan]

James Ogilvie ahhh they sound really cool! Have you thought about sanding the glossy neck on the gretsch down a bit? That would definitely help it play faster. Makes sense to gig the fenders, I never gig my favourite guitars either haha. My go to guitar is probably my weird Japanese Kurt Cobain jaguar. It was made in '95 well before the MIM signature models so it's unique. It's pretty much a '66 reissue with two dimarzio super distortions rather than single coils. I've also modified the control plate to have a 3 way toggle for the pickups as well as the bass kill slider. So it's a very unique jag. Unfortunately I've had a lot of back injuries in the last year, so it has got a bit heavy for me to gig and jump around with for extended periods of time, which is why I jumped on the new duo sonic. It sounds nearly as beastly in the bridge position as my jag and it's a hell of a lot lighter!

[@jamesogilvie1649]

alexrcowan I've never played a Jaguar or a jazz master.. I've tried a mustang/duo sonic and a music master and just couldn't get away with the narrow frets as I have big sausage fingers ha ha.. I had Di marzio s/d's in my first guitar which was a Dearmond Jetstar special in black and it was a beast. I don't really want to ruin the finish on the Gretsch neck as I really invested in it rather than as a work horse.. It's the only guitar I've paid any more than £50 for ha ha I'm a bit of a tinkerer so cheap guitars leave my conscience clear as I totally destroy all the stock parts on them and make them into playable instruments.

[@alexrcowan]

James Ogilvie yeah the short scale isn't for everyone, but they suit my small hands perfectly! You should try a jazzmaster some time, they're actually standard scale length like a strat and they have a very unique feel/sound! Those jetstars are really cool looking! And fair enough about the gretsch. I also like tinkering on cheap guitars, I'm too paranoid about doing modifications to the expensive ones myself. I even had a luthier set up and and file the nut on the duo sonic cos I didn't want to muck it up myself.

[@owenwebster]

Damn Curmudgeon was spot on

[@alexrcowan]

Cheers Owen!

[@starlord9956]

I'm assuming the stock pickups are fine. I was debating on replacing them as soon as I get this guitar

[@alexrcowan]

Star Lord yep I actually really liked the stock pickups. It’s all down to personal preference at the end though

[@caleblocke1111]

What pedal boards have have used in the past for lesser pedals

[@brad7680]

Love your gear

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks mate!

[@jacktilghman9797]

I think I'm gonna pick up one of these I've been getting by with my Ibanez Jet King 2 which does a surprisingly good at job at capturing his tone but half of that is my fender amp. Strange though never thought an Ibanez could get so close.

[@alexrcowan]

Yeah plus the Jet King's look so cool! But yeah the duo is a perfect, relatively low budget (compared to KC signatures), no modification needed, one stop solution for nirvana guitar tone imo

[@jacktilghman9797]

alexrcowan is it versatile as in could it work for other things as well?

[@diegomanuelcampuzanosolis4749]

Fender will always be Fender, excellent!

[@anthonysclafani3963]

+alexrcowan how much of an impact does the short scale length on mustangs have on the tone?

[@alexrcowan]

Anthony Sclafani quite a bit depending on what strings you use! If you use standard 10 gauge strings the guitar is a lot slinkier and rubber band-y, both in feel and tone, whereas 11’s and up will make the tone tighter if that makes any sense

[@anthonysclafani3963]

+alexrcowan What sounds best for Nirvana? I'm pretty sure Kurt used GHS 10's

[@alexrcowan]

Anthony Sclafani imo if you play hard, 11s are your best shot. If you have a light fretting hand you can get away with 10’s but they’re too light for my touch.

[@anthonysclafani3963]

Awesome, thanks for the help- keep up the good work!

[@alexrcowan]

Anthony Sclafani anytime man, thanks!

[@Billikid666dead]

great sounds +++

[@znet9452]

Think I might get one of these ;)

[@jaimacpherson1082]

Hey man could you tell me your amp settings and your ds-2 settings?

[@alexrcowan]

Hi! My amp settings are at 13:29 on the video and my ds2 settings are level around 3 o'clock, tone at 11 o'clock, distortion full and mode 1

[@jaimacpherson1082]

Thanks man, hey also I already have a fender Mustang amp, and a Marshall amp with a cab, but I'm looking for an amp to record with and I love the sound of your mesa boogie would you recommend it? Where did you obtain it and what price would I be looking at?

[@alexrcowan]

Illiteracy will Prevail yep I love the mesa boogie! It sounds so big and takes pedals well! I got mine second hand off a fb buy/sell group. You might wanna keep your eye open on second hand markets

[@alexrcowan]

Price-wise I paid $750 (Australian dollars) for mine

[@jaimacpherson1082]

Yeah my that's within my budget. Although I live in the U.K so it might be less. Or more.

[@vaperrecon165]

I bought the squire vm mustang and it has some bridge buzz. I thought I also heard this in duo sonic. how can I fix it?

[@alexrcowan]

Haha I get a bit of buzz in mine because I have my action super low and usually I have it tuned in standard. When it's in standard it's nearly 100% buzz free. And I had the same problem when I had a vm mustang. To fix it I replaced the bridge with a tune-o-matic and shimmed the angle of the neck a bit and it was perfect. I would try a fender mustang bridge instead of the squier one first though, it's a simple drop in replacement with no modification required so that could be the easiest solution.

[@vaperrecon165]

alexrcowan thanks man

[@alexrcowan]

No problem!

[@rolitasdefran9989]

excelente segui haciendo oportunidad a Kurt Cobain

[@Eino06]

Is that like hybrid of mustang and stratocaster

[@caivsivlivs]

cool tones

[@b-regsproductions]

Any body know the string spacing of a 2016 duo sonic???

[@OuchMyHooves]

I bought one, and I found out that mine has a push pull coil split on the tone knob. Is that standard on every Duo-Sonic, or is mine modded? EDIT: I bought it used if that helps.

[@saqibshabir9755]

All the Duo-Sonics with a humbucker and a single coil will have a coil split so that you can still use single coil sounds in the bridge which I think is great. I tried one at a shop and it played amazingly! Comfortable too. Also nice profile pic!

[@OuchMyHooves]

@@saqibshabir9755 hm, thought I deleted the comment, but oh well! Also, thanks man!

[@stacy9240]

What pedal were you using for Curmudgeon btw??

[@alexrcowan]

Mr Grunge it wants an mar phase 100 combined with the DS2 I believe

[@stacy9240]

alexrcowan Thanks!

[@erichaheidrich4593]

Well done ..

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks! :D

[@erichaheidrich4593]

alexrcowan I ve got a real '63 duo sonic however couldnt find the original pickups yet

[@alexrcowan]

Oh that would be rad! Hope you can find some to bring that bad boy back to it's former glory!

[@ethanneigum6993]

What's you setting on your small clone for smells like teen spirit and come as you are

[@alexrcowan]

Ethan Neigum for teen spirit depth switch was down and rare was nearly full, like at 5 o'clock or a bit more. For come as you are depth switch was up and rate was at around 10-11 o'clock

[@ethanneigum6993]

alexrcowan thanks and your channel is awesome. Also I think what you do is better then gaming channels I'm a guitarist myself I wish I had a fender jaguar

[@alexrcowan]

Ethan Neigum thanks mate, I really appreciate that! So nice of you to say! And I hope you get a fender jaguar, they at truly amazing guitars!

[@scojat28]

hey brother your tone sounds great. Ive got a gibson explorer and just picked up a turquoise mim fat strat that the origional owner swapped out the stock HH with a diamarzio super D. do you think the duo-sonic hs would be worth picking up or would it be to similar to them fat? I love the sonic but im curious if it would have a tone that would justify buying it.

[@carlsmith1263]

duo sonics and mustangs are basically the same thing lol, only differences are the humbucker in the bridge and a mustang (yes a mustang pickup in the neck ). The tonal woods in the duo sonic sonically speaking are the main difference besides the almost strat style pick guard. The lengths of the neck are consistent with mustang as well. The new ones are more or less poplar or basswood I believe. The duo sonics in my opinion are a bit more trebleish(I know that's no word lol). But all in all I'd say you have Kurts mustang tone at about 98% and that is very good. I as well jam to some Nirvana for warm ups before I get into my songs as I write dark twisted shit like Kurt in a sense. I've taken in my opinion Nirvanas bleach and incesticide years and married them to a Soundgarden esq blackness. I truly am a lyricist before a musician but I've been playing guitar since age 8, so I've had a shit load of time to write and make music. Just waiting honestly to find the right people to jam with as around my neck of the woods it's all redneck cat beating trash milk puppets. But fuck it someone has to try and bring real music back, I also commend you for understanding simple is sometimes more unique than super mosh deathstar 2 technical doom baritone djent horse shit. Kudos and Come as you are as you were, and as we all were (meant) 2 be. -Skin Salad-

[@alexrcowan]

Mustangs and duo sonics are very similar, especially since now they both are made with fixed bridges. The neck pickups are different, duo sonic neck pickups are wound a bit hotter than stang pickups. Now mustangs have the same control scheme as duo sonics but the simple 3-way toggle is a big departure from the phase switches they used to have. Also a minor detail but the duo sonics have a strat style headstock while the mustangs have the larger style headstocks. Otherwise as you say they are very similar! And thanks man, I love simple nirvana style music, to me it sounds more substantial and real compared to what is out there these days!

[@carlsmith1263]

alexrcowan True true bro, keep it up

[@carlsmith1263]

Waiting on the 65 mustang, saving to buy an original. Couple grand later I'll be a happy musician lol. I love my stratocaster but love me some offset guitars, always admired the bronco as well. The Broncos sound pretty damn good, a lot of people use them for country but put a sansamp or ds1 on it and it'll come to life, very hot pups tho.

[@alexrcowan]

Haha the originals are sweet! They've just never managed to truly replicate the sound on the reissues (thats why I've had no problem with swapping out pups on my reissue mustangs). I've never played a bronco, but they look sweet. I really love all of fenders offset guitars. I own 3 reissue mustangs, a duo-sonic, a jazzmaster, and 2 jaguars! Oh and of course my jagstang!

[@Bobby_Uterus]

Well yeah, but do you know any nirvana tunes?

[@skye7690]

Am i supposed to play all these in E-flat? Guess so ;)

[@stacy9240]

Why the boogie amp though. I mean it actually sounds good to be honest

[@ethanneigum6993]

Hey were did you get your mesa boogie studio 22 from?

[@alexrcowan]

Ethan Neigum Hi, I bought it second hand from someone on a buy/sell fb group based in Melbourne. Hell of a find!

[@DaveWire]

i bought this guitare (i'm waiting for it) and ordered a seymour duncan sh4 for the bridge, i create my own cobain :)

[@feugodelplancher]

Best guitar i've got ! I even got the jaguar for a while...better go with theduo sonic + JB for the price. Jaguar is for huge fan like us haha

[@franjosue8718]

wow its a cool guitar

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks, it certainly is!

[@feugodelplancher]

I guess i need a mesa boogie studio 22 for my clean tone :o so perfect !

[@alexrcowan]

The mesa clean is my favourite!

[@jeffreybiscoe6]

Sounds good

[@sethpujol7393]

Hey buddy! How are you? Nice duo-sonic! How do you like it?? I was really considering buying one beings it's so hard to find the Kurt cobain mustangs now, and if you do find a good used one, they're usually asking a retarded amount of money for it. I'm kicking myself in the ass for not buying one when I had the chance when they were all over eBay and you could get them for like 7 to $800 dollars! I wish fender would do like another special run of them for another year or 2 so I could get one lol. I do like the duo-sonic's though as well and really considering buying one. Hope all is well!

[@alexrcowan]

Seth! How's it going mate? Im' great thanks. The duo-sonic is an absolute badass guitar! Can't recommend it enough, awesome value for the money and it's looks are killer! And yes I know what you're saying about the KC stangs, I've been very lucky to snatch one up myself at a reasonable price! It would be cool if fender could reissue the KC stang and Jag really haha, I would love to see the prices restored to normal. But definitely check the duo-sonic out, I can definitely say that its the next best thing that you can get for a decent price. You could get a '69 reissue mustang and do all the Kurt mods yourself but that gets expensive so if you can't do the mods yourself, so in that case you might as well get a really expensive second hand signature KC stang haha. So the duo-sonic would save time and money, and in my opinion is a really good guitar in it's own right!

[@sethpujol7393]

alexrcowan You should move to the US so you and me could start a Nirvana cover band! Haha wouldn't that be badass?? I would definitely be living a dream if I could do that!

[@alexrcowan]

Haha yeah wish I could, I'm starting a nirvana cover banc down here, will hopefully post some vids to youtube when we get gigging

[@Dwoff-mt6dd]

I recently bought this guitar and was wondering why one side of the single coil pick up is higher than the other if anyone could answer that'd be great, thanks

[@alexrcowan]

Hey mate, I believe it is slanted so that the poles on the pickup on the bass side (low E string side) of the guitar are more bassy (the closer the pickup to the neck, the bassier it sounds), and the poles on the treble side (high E string side) of the guitar have more treble (the closer the pickup to the bridge, the more treble is pronounced). Hope this helps

[@Dwoff-mt6dd]

alexrcowan thanks, man I'd been having trouble finding an answer online

[@TheFingersmithsBand]

Mainly out of curiosity, do you prefer the Mesa or the Hot Rod deluxe??

[@alexrcowan]

Keegan Brown it really depends on what guitar I'm playing and what pedals I'm using man. If I'm playing jazzmasters or strats and am messing around with fuzzes and overdrives I prefer the clean hot rod deluxe. If I want a really beefy sound out of my humbucking guitars with a huge bass-thumping heavy distortion I use the mesa boogie

[@TheFingersmithsBand]

alexrcowan yeah I thought that'd be the case. I'm a big fan of the hot rod, but the mesa just sounded huge there. Love the video man, cheers 🤘🏻👊🏻

[@alexrcowan]

Yep I love both, but you're right the mesa sounds huge! And thanks so much man, I really appreciate it!

[@человеквгорахкрасивый]

Why no Chorus in Lithium?

[@alexrcowan]

I played the live version, I'm lazy and didn't want to do the pedal dance changing from chorus to distortion haha

[@feugodelplancher]

I've buy second hand the duo sonic and put JB in, best sound really...i've got the jag for a while, and really this DUO with JB is the SAME as the mustang....really. i've got the boss katana 100 and i'm really happy. better have duo sonic with great AMP than have the Jaguar on cheap AMP

[@motorbreath88]

What do you like more this or the mustang

[@alexrcowan]

Haha depends what mustang. My shortscale ranking between mustangs and duo sonics that I've tried/owned goes: 1. Kurt Cobain signature Mustang 2. Duo Sonic 3. Fender Mustang '69 reissue 4. Squier VM Mustang 5. Squier Bullet Mustang 6. Fender Mustang '65 reissue (poplar body, a bit heavy for a mustang imo)

[@preston_4824]

Why can they make this left handed man it sounds so good

[@Luke-xq6iu]

What settings do you use for your DS2?

[@alexrcowan]

Hi! level was around 3 o'clock, tone at 11 o'clock, distortion full and mode 1

[@Luke-xq6iu]

alexrcowan thanks! great vid btw :D

[@alexrcowan]

No problem! And thanks for the kind words!

[@danielsgrunge]

Fucking awesome

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks Daniel

[@brad7680]

Alex, what hard shell case fits this guitar?

[@alexrcowan]

Hey man, I just use a generic hard case I got from ebay. Any case along the lines of a warwick rockcase should do!

[@seblar10061]

Nice ! :)

[@alexrcowan]

Thanks mate!