Guitar Amp Blog

In Blind Faith, Eric used a Gibson Firebird through either Fender Dual Showman or Marshall amps. But, at the band’s debut performance in London’s Hyde Park, he played a Fender Telecaster with a Stratocaster neck.

While with Derek and the Dominoes, Eric switched to maple neck Fender Stratocasters (primarily “Brownie”). During the band’s UK Tour, he would still play Gibsons. The Fender Champ was his main studio amp used in recording “Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.” On stage, he used Fender Dual Showmans or Marshall amps with Fender cabinets.

In 1976, Eric used his Cherry Red Gibson ES-335 for slide playing. It was strung with Ernie Ball Super Slinky’s .009 - .042 and he used an Isis medium slide. He utilized Modified Music Man amps (HD 130 Reverb) with the bias up all the way and special open-back cabinets. He also used a Leslie cabinet with JBL components and had a special foot switch with fast/slow and on/off positions so that the guitar could go either through the amp, through both the amp and the Leslie, or just through the Leslie at either fast or slow speeds (as in the song “Badge”). Eric also used a Crybaby wah-wah pedal. His Fender Stratocaster of choice was Blackie, with the tobacco sunburst Brownie on standby.

In his first band, The Roosters, Eric played a double cutaway Kay through a Selmer Futurama III Amplifier. During his tenure with the Yardbirds, Eric played a Fender Telecaster through a Vox AC-30 amplifier.

While in John Mayall’s Blues Breakers, Eric played a 1960 model Les Paul Standard through a 45-watt model 1962 Marshall 2×12 combo (JTM 45). The amp was stock except that the output tubes were replaced with KT66s which have a more refined mid-range and clearer top end than either EL34s or 6L6s. The amp was usually turned up full volume, even in the studio. When the engineer complained that his amp was too loud, legend has it that Eric replied “That’s the way I play.”

In Cream, Eric switched to 100-watt Marshall heads and 4×12 cabinets using two full stacks. He also used a Vox wah-wah pedal and occasionally a fuzz effect pedal. For a while, he used Les Paul guitars exclusively. Sometime in 1967, he started playing a 1964 Gibson Les Paul SG. He had it painted by The Fool and it is as famous for it’s paint job as for its association with Clapton. The Fool Guitar is not a 1961 model as commonly believed as it has six screws on the scratch plate. This number of screws came into use in 1964. During the Spring of 1968, he switched Gibson Firebird with a single pick-up. He then alternated between the Firebird and his now-famous Cherry Red Gibson ES-335 guitar for the US tour through Cream’s farewell concert.

In Blind Faith, Eric used a Gibson Firebird through either Fender Dual Showman or Marshall amps. But, at the band’s debut performance in London’s Hyde Park, he played a Fender Telecaster with a Stratocaster neck.

I’ve been using Peavey amps way back in 1978. Since then I’ve owned a succession of Peaveys; Studio Pro, Delta Blues, Classic 30 and a Rampage. Currently, my amp collection includes a tweed 4×10 Classic 50, and a compact Classic 30 - for the past 10 years of so, these have been my main gigging amps because of their portability, durability, flexibility and great tone. Despite being a big fan of Peavey, until I started developing the Peavey section of this website, I had no idea the breadth of the company’s offering.

The Bandit 112 and Envoy 110 solid-state models are perfect for practice, rehearsal or stage use, with plenty of power and tone at wonderfully affordable prices. For low-volume practice, the 10-watt Backstage or 15-watt Rage just can’t be beat.

The Peavey TransTube series, including the Transtube 100, 112, 212 and 258, bring the reliability of solid-state to amazingly authentic tube tonality. Built-in digital effects make the is series the complete on stage solution to great guitar tone.

For singing all-tube tone, check out the Classic series and brilliant Delta Blues series - amazing vintage tone in a rock solid package. To take that all-tube performance to the boutique level, you need the ValveKing, which as hot rodded sounds that can sweep between Class A and Class A/B power amp configurations.

If you’re after serious rock or metal crunch, then prepare yourself to experience the awesome 120-watt, 3-channel Triple XXX head and matching 4×12s cabs. I recently saw Ted Nugent playing one of these pups at a concert and it was definitely balls-to-the-wall. Another great rock amp is the Peavey Penta, a single-channel amp with five totally different personalities derived from it’s selectable EQ/gain voicings.

If you’re after your favorite artist’s tone, check out Dweezil Zappa inspired Wiggy or one of my favorites, the shredder-approved Joe Satriani JSX model.