The vaughan-morse-caster
So the VaughanMorseCaster is a conglomeration of many different kinds of guitars and various parts, inspired by an article titled "How To Play Guitar Like Steve Morse" (my all-time favorite guitar hero).
Step 1: Build a monstrosity.
Step 1: Build a monstrosity.
So Steve Morse was infamous for his original FrankenTele - a Fender
<<< Telecaster body with a rosewood Strat neck, vintage Les Paul pickups, and multiple knobs, switches, and pots that he used to create his unique sound that covered many different styles. Don't miss the guitar pick under the trapeze to fix a string height problem.
Now I understand and accept that I will never be able to play guitar like Steve Morse, but "Build a Monstrosity", THAT I can handle!
<<< Telecaster body with a rosewood Strat neck, vintage Les Paul pickups, and multiple knobs, switches, and pots that he used to create his unique sound that covered many different styles. Don't miss the guitar pick under the trapeze to fix a string height problem.
Now I understand and accept that I will never be able to play guitar like Steve Morse, but "Build a Monstrosity", THAT I can handle!
So the VaughanMorseCaster is:
- a Jimmy Vaughan Signature Fender Stratocaster
(picked this up from a friend and instantly fell in love with it. It was just . . . right!)
- (2) DiMarzio "Steve Morse" Custom humbucker pickups,
- (1) stock Fender single coil pickup, center position
Rewired the whole thing for 1 volume, 1 tone (moved out of hand bumping range.)
Used a Fender Telecaster 3-position switch to select between the humbuckers.
Then routed out the body to add a Gibson 3-position switch in the forward position to select between single coil and whatever the humbuckers are doing.
So, for example switching: (with the forward switch down)
3-position switch - down = bridge humbucker only
3-pos - center = bridge/neck humbucker combo
3-pos - up = neck humbucker only
(just like a Les Paul)
BUT THEN: with the forward switch in play:
Up/Up = single coil ONLY
Up/Center= neck humbucker and single coil combo
Down/Center= bridge humbucker and single coil combo
Center/Center = all 3 pickups!
That's a lot of switching, but it's actually pretty easy on the fly.
Why bother? Well, because it gives a wide range of sounds to try to emulate the great guitar heroes, like Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Alex Lifeson, Mark Knopfler, David Gilmour, Jimi Hendrix, Dave Murray & Adrian Smith, and even Chet Atkins. Plus, more importantly, it was fun to build! This guitar already played great so it was fun to transmogrify it into a dream guitar.
- a Jimmy Vaughan Signature Fender Stratocaster
(picked this up from a friend and instantly fell in love with it. It was just . . . right!)
- (2) DiMarzio "Steve Morse" Custom humbucker pickups,
- (1) stock Fender single coil pickup, center position
Rewired the whole thing for 1 volume, 1 tone (moved out of hand bumping range.)
Used a Fender Telecaster 3-position switch to select between the humbuckers.
Then routed out the body to add a Gibson 3-position switch in the forward position to select between single coil and whatever the humbuckers are doing.
So, for example switching: (with the forward switch down)
3-position switch - down = bridge humbucker only
3-pos - center = bridge/neck humbucker combo
3-pos - up = neck humbucker only
(just like a Les Paul)
BUT THEN: with the forward switch in play:
Up/Up = single coil ONLY
Up/Center= neck humbucker and single coil combo
Down/Center= bridge humbucker and single coil combo
Center/Center = all 3 pickups!
That's a lot of switching, but it's actually pretty easy on the fly.
Why bother? Well, because it gives a wide range of sounds to try to emulate the great guitar heroes, like Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Alex Lifeson, Mark Knopfler, David Gilmour, Jimi Hendrix, Dave Murray & Adrian Smith, and even Chet Atkins. Plus, more importantly, it was fun to build! This guitar already played great so it was fun to transmogrify it into a dream guitar.
What's a cajon?
A cajon ("ka-HON") is a Latin American percussion instrument, basically a beat-box with an internal snare mechanism that makes it sound at times like a snare drum, but also with a wide soundboard that makes it sound like a bass drum.
This simple but versatile instrument in the hands of a pro can be made to sound like a full percussion kit - bass drum, snare, toms, bongos, and much more!
At acoustic gigs, Steve has been known to simultaneously hold the beat on the cajon while playing harmonica on headgear, and singing back-up vocals in between.
A cajon ("ka-HON") is a Latin American percussion instrument, basically a beat-box with an internal snare mechanism that makes it sound at times like a snare drum, but also with a wide soundboard that makes it sound like a bass drum.
This simple but versatile instrument in the hands of a pro can be made to sound like a full percussion kit - bass drum, snare, toms, bongos, and much more!
At acoustic gigs, Steve has been known to simultaneously hold the beat on the cajon while playing harmonica on headgear, and singing back-up vocals in between.