Jim Davies

Mentioned in this November 2000 Guitarist interview

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals.

Davies' primary guitar throughout the 1990s and 2000s, according to the following sources.

Guitar, June 2000, "Fever Pitch"

'I've got two 550s, a 570 and an SCR model - that's a bit like the Satch thin-bodied one. It's really light and stealthy,' he details.

Guitarist, November 2000

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals. I have all Ibanez guitars, I endorse them and have always used them. I have a couple of RG550s and a few RG570s. My main live guitar is an SCR series Ibanez. They have a really stealth-like appearance which doesn't look too rock and they are really light.

My guitars are pretty much as they came out of the factory, although I recently had Ibanez remove the bridge and middle pickups and selector switch from one I never used them live. I recently had the Ibanez logo tattooed on my leg!

Unknown Electronic Guitar era interview, originally submitted by kkolar

Davies’ main guitars are Ibanez RG550s, and he eschews amplifiers for the most part, conjuring the majority of his tones and effects from a vintage Rocktron Chameleon rack unit that he ran directly into the mixing board, and Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 software.

Metal Discovery, May 7, 2009

MD: What’s your current main setup effects-wise? I think I read you use a lot of Line 6 effects.

JD: Yeah, I’ve got a Guitar Rig 3, that’s my thing at the moment. I use that on my laptop and that’s been revolutionary really for me with all the sounds you can get on that. I’ve started using a lot of Blackstar amps. I don’t use a lot of proper amps if you know what I mean - I tend to DI a lot of my stuff. I don’t really tend to mike it up because I’ve just always done that. When I started playing there was no room to mike up Marshall cabs so I’ve just always gone out of the back of my effects units and that, without me knowing, constituted getting my own sound. It helps when you play over dance music to DI stuff because it gives you that really harsh, abrasive sort of sound, you know, it really comes through. I’ve done a few gigs recently with just a laptop. I’m not doing that many gigs at the moment, but the ones I’ve done, with DJs and stuff like that, I had to stick the sound out my laptop and I’ve got Guitar Rig 3 on there, and it sounds amazing.

MD: And do you just use Ibanez guitars?

JD: Yeah, yeah.

MD: What ones out of interest?

JD: Well, I’ve never been really fussy about…I’m not one of these guitarists that you have to have a certain type of rosewood, and it has to be a certain gauge of strings. I’ve always like Ibanez because that’s what I grew up playing, and I’ve got an endorsement deal with them, but I was always quite good with that - I didn’t try to just blag as many guitars as I could. I always used to approach them for a guitar when I actually needed a guitar. Most of my guitars are like RG550s, old ones. I’ve got a Prestige Ibanez that I use quite a lot. But I wouldn’t say this album was done using…I don’t know, it’s hard to explain, but the amp side of things, and the effects side of things are probably more important to the sound than the guitars. Obviously if I used a Strat you’d hear the difference in tone but…I’ve always just liked Ibanez, and I’ve never been much of a guitar geek, to be honest. You know, I’m still absolutely shit at changing my strings! I’m still rubbish!

MD: Was that a bit of a ‘Passion and Warfare’ thing that inspired you to play Ibanez?

JD: Yeah, yeah. And it was Paul Gilbert really with his pink RG550.

MD: I fell in love with Ibanez when I saw the pictures on the cover to ‘Passion and Warfare’. I’ve still got one of the original RG560s.

JD: Yeah, I’ve got one of them as well. If you look carefully on the back of the album, there’s a little picture from inside the studio and there’s a bright yellow Ibanez, and that’s one of the ones that I wouldn’t dare take out these days, but that’s from that era, one of those original ones.

MD: And you said you have an endorsement deal with Ibanez?

JD: Yeah, I have, yeah. I’ve always been…with Ibanez, like I said, I’ve always only asked for guitars if I actually need them rather than just try and scam…because people are clever and they work that out very quickly. I’ve been doing this now for quite a while and that’s important because you can then go back to them when you actually need something. When I endorsed them if I was just like, “I need ten guitars”, and maybe they might have given them to me, but then they might not have given me anything else ever again, so I always try to…

MD: You don’t want to push it.

JD: Yeah, I stick with the people I like…like Blackstar, I’m using them a lot; I’ve got a really good relationship with them, and just don’t take the piss and then they’re far more open to helping you out and giving you stuff when you actually need it.

Instagram, December 27, 2019

My first proper guitar!..now pride of place in my Dads office!…Was an 18th birthday present from my folks…but only after id proved i was serious about music by playing the arse off the 99 quid starter guitar they got me from an advert in Kerrang 2 years earlier.. I remember so vividly unwrapping this guitar!…a proper Bill and Ted moment! Only a couple of years later i used it on a few rather big tunes.. (a clue is on the back on the guitar!) #ibanez #ibanezguitars #ibanezrg #ibanezrg550 #vintageibanez #guitar #guitaristofinstagram #guitarist #electronicmusic #electronicpunk #electronicrock #theprodigy

Instagram, December 28, 2019

The Yellow Peril!!-Another one of my old Ibanez RG550’s now being ‘cared for’ by my Dad! I brought it 2nd hand from a mate when I was in my first year at uni while going through a big Paul Gilbert phase (I still am!)..Funny/terrifying to think this guitar is now considered ‘vintage’ #ibanez #ibanezrg550 @vintage_ibanez @officialibanezguitars #guitar #guitaristofinstagram #guitarist @paulgilbert_official #paulgilbert #vintageguitars

Instagram, January 11, 2021

Photo 1-Me aged 16 with my first guitar (A 99 quid beginners pack from an advert in Kerrang) Guns n’Roses t-shirt obvs. Photo 2-Me on my 18th birthday with the ‘proper guitar’ my parents said they’d get me if I practised and showed I was serious on the first one! Loved that Ibanez RG550, in full Steve Vai obsession mode at this point...2 years later that guitar went on tour with me around the world...the jumper didn’t....aaaand feel free to rip the living piss out of me in 1-2-3 Go!

Used for "Trigger Finger", as stated by Davies in this April 16, 2020 Guitar World interview. It can be seen on Davies Instagram in posts dated October 14, 2019, December 4, 2019, January 22, 2021 and February 22, 2021 among others.

"When I was young, I was using all these spaceship-style Ibanezs and Mavericks and if you offered me a Telecaster I would have said, ‘No way, mate - that’s what Status Quo use!’ But this Tele is great, it’s a souped-up American model with noiseless pickups. It’s great at cutting through all the layers in my tracks. There’s one called Trigger Finger that I used that guitar for…”

Which, we have to say, includes some particularly nasty fuzz tones…

“Definitely - on that track I was messing around with a new pedal, the Electro-Harmonix Cock Fight, that a friend of mine had in the studio. I was playing and he was tweaking until I said, ‘Right, stop there! It’s like an envelope filter, I’ve always used wah-wahs, because I love those sweep-through filters.

"Davies’ main guitars are Ibanez RG550s, and he eschews amplifiers for the most part, conjuring the majority of his tones and effects from a vintage Rocktron Chameleon rack unit that he ran directly into the mixing board, and Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 software."

Used Guitar Rig 2 and 3, according to the following sources.

Computer Music, 2007

NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GUITAR RIG 2

"The POD was a bit of a milestone in guitar technology but I think Guitar Rig takes it a step further. I've turned up to session jobs with just my laptop with Guitar Rig on, to the horror of the producer! But one they get over the fact that I'm using a laptop rather than four Marshall stacks, they're normally raving about it. I love the effects you can get - really techno-sounding tones that you'd never think came from a guitar."

Unknown Electronic Guitar era interview, originally submitted by kkolar

Davies’ main guitars are Ibanez RG550s, and he eschews amplifiers for the most part, conjuring the majority of his tones and effects from a vintage Rocktron Chameleon rack unit that he ran directly into the mixing board, and Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 software.

Metal Discovery, May 7, 2009

MD: What’s your current main setup effects-wise? I think I read you use a lot of Line 6 effects.

JD: Yeah, I’ve got a Guitar Rig 3, that’s my thing at the moment. I use that on my laptop and that’s been revolutionary really for me with all the sounds you can get on that. I’ve started using a lot of Blackstar amps. I don’t use a lot of proper amps if you know what I mean - I tend to DI a lot of my stuff. I don’t really tend to mike it up because I’ve just always done that. When I started playing there was no room to mike up Marshall cabs so I’ve just always gone out of the back of my effects units and that, without me knowing, constituted getting my own sound. It helps when you play over dance music to DI stuff because it gives you that really harsh, abrasive sort of sound, you know, it really comes through. I’ve done a few gigs recently with just a laptop. I’m not doing that many gigs at the moment, but the ones I’ve done, with DJs and stuff like that, I had to stick the sound out my laptop and I’ve got Guitar Rig 3 on there, and it sounds amazing.

Featured in this February 22, 2021 Instagram post.

Now you see Boris, this is exactly the problem with your silly lockdowns, if you make someone like me stay indoors on a Saturday night, with a few beers, Pantera playing on repeat and a bored credit card easily within reach then packages like this arrive on Monday morning...I’m invoicing you Boris you bastard... #anothernewguitar #dimebagdarrell #pantera @deanguitars #letsshred #metal #guitars #ripdimebag

Visible in this February 13, 2021 Instagram post.

Featured in this February 9, 2021 Instagram post.

When 7 strings aren’t quite enough....Then cometh the 8 string...be afraid....be very afraid, shits about to get heavy (er) @shadowaddictofficial #newtoys #8stringguitar #schecterguitars #newguitar @schecterguitarsofficial

Visible in this January 7, 2019 Instagram post.

Brighton(punk)Rock.....Day 1 @bossfx_us #newyearnewnoiz #guitarist #guitarpedals

Mentioned by Davies in his guest column for the March 2001 issue of Total Guitar, as sourced from a scan on the "Information" page of Davies' official website.

Other effects I use a lot are the envelope filter as it's like an auto wah but has a wider and 'squelchier' range of sounds. With fig 5 (CD track 22) I've used a Guyatone wah rocker pedal. As with most envelope filters, the sound you get depends on the threshold and decay settings plus the type of pick attack you use. You can hear this on the CD as I play a funk riff on the higher strings for three bars then switch to the low fourth string for the last bar. By dampening the string, some really cool low end 'squidgy' frequencies are achievable.

Mentioned in this June 2000 Guitar interview and this November 2000 Guitarist interview.

Guitar, June 2000

'I've got two 550s, a 570 and an SCR model - that's a bit like the Satch thin-bodied one. It's really light and stealthy,' he details.

Guitarist, November 2000

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals. I have all Ibanez guitars, I endorse them and have always used them. I have a couple of RG550s and a few RG570s. My main live guitar is an SCR series Ibanez. They have a really stealth-like appearance which doesn't look too rock and they are really light.

My guitars are pretty much as they came out of the factory, although I recently had Ibanez remove the bridge and middle pickups and selector switch from one I never used them live. I recently had the Ibanez logo tattooed on my leg!

Mentioned in this November 2000 Guitarist interview.

When I record a guitar part into the computer I have a vast array of plug-ins at my disposal, to effect the guitar sound. It's well known, I think, that I'm not the purist of guitarists. Programs such as Amp Farm allow you to record your guitar through any amp ever made, virtually. I have no interest in spending hours setting up amps and mikes, using this kind of pick up or guitar when the technology now can do it for you in seconds. I'm sure some guitarists think that it's a total cop-out, but to me it's just the next logical step.

Used for or after Deviant, according to the following sources.

Guitarist, November 2000

I think the POD is one of the most important new pieces of guitar equipment in decades. It sounds amazing. I use it to demo songs on the road or in the studio, it makes recording on the road so easy. When I recorded the demos for Deviant, I had to to have a separate live room with the Marshalls cranked up. From now on I'll just use the POD and not have to make a load of noise and take up an entire room. I have no problem with bands who want to do things totally analogue or guitarists who want to record normally, it's just not my thing.

Guitar, 2000, "Pitchshifter - Shifting the Pitch"

"It's all so pretentious," he muses. "I use these sort of strings and this sort of wood and I get my sound from these picks. I really hate all that. Just give me a Pod unit, give me an Ibanez and I'm all right."

Computer Music, 2007

NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GUITAR RIG 2

"The POD was a bit of a milestone in guitar technology but I think Guitar Rig takes it a step further. I've turned up to session jobs with just my laptop with Guitar Rig on, to the horror of the producer! But one they get over the fact that I'm using a laptop rather than four Marshall stacks, they're normally raving about it. I love the effects you can get - really techno-sounding tones that you'd never think came from a guitar."

Mentioned in this November 2000 Guitarist interview

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals.

According to Maxon's website, Davies uses the Maxon PT-999 Phase Tone pedal.

According to Maxon's website, Davies uses the Maxon PH350 Rotary Phaser pedal.

"The guitarist did, however, employ a few pedals. “I used the Line 6 FM4 Filter Modeler so much that I broke it,” he says. “Now it makes noises it’s not supposed to.” Davies also used a Line 6 DL4 Delay Modeler to create cool, swell-and-recede effects on “How We Roll,” and on “Empire” he used a Digi-Tech Whammy pedal to sustain a note and then “play” the melody by manipulating the pedal with his foot to change the pitch."

Featured in this August 19, 2020 Instagram post and visible in this January 27, 2021 Instagram post.

dred2008 I have a fucking anchient rat peddle, metal case... Killer noise

jimdaviesmusic @dred2008 lost all my old ones/drowned them in beer on tour...this ones new unfortunately

Featured in this December 30, 2019 Instagram post.

Continuing the Yuletide Ibanez fest with my current fav...such a cool shape...(why are most of my guitars always missing a volume or tone pot!)

Featured in Instagram posts dated February 6, 2020 and January 9, 2021.

February 6, 2020

New addition to the gang! Some 7 string rudeness...things are gonna get heavy...💀🤘🎸#7string #7stringguitar #espguitars @espguitars #producerlife #studiolife #guitaristsofinstagram #guitarist #guitarporn

amphetaminereptile @jimdaviesmusic what model is that? Always wanted a Page Hamilton Horizon.

jimdaviesmusic @amphetaminereptile its an -ESP LTDMH-1007ETBLK (according to the invoice!)....always loved helmet!

January 9, 2021

Bringing the pain today...(quite literally with a still partially frozen shoulder) tracking some serious new riffage on the 7 string...2021 is gonna be heavy.....Trrrrrrrrrrruuuust me daddy. @espguitars #dropaalltheway #heavy #electrometalchaos

Featured in this January 8, 2019 Instagram post.

Brighton Rock Day 2-Finally...my time machine appears to have worked....#roland #akai @akai_pro @roland_uk #studio #recordingsession

Featured in this January 9, 2019 Instagram post.

Brighton (Punk) Rock Day 3-Keeping it simple, Boss Blues driver into this little beaut....#voxamps #guitartone #guitarist #bossguitarpedals @boss_europe

Used on Headwars, as stated in this April 16, 2020 Guitar World interview and as specified in this March 27, 2020 Facebook post by Blackstar. It is visible in this August 19, 2020 Instagram post.

So did you end up using any amps at all?

“I actually used my Blackstar HT20 a lot. My studio setup is really basic, everything I need is in my computer. I don’t really use outboard gear or synths. I like coming straight out of the emulated output of that Blackstar head. I have my old Rocktron unit, which I dug out of the loft… it’s what I used on a lot of the Prodigy and Pitchshifter stuff and amazing it still works, though it’s just about hanging in there. It has all my old settings on it.

"Guitar-wise I’m not fussy. It doesn’t have to be a certain wood or set of strings. It doesn’t really bother me that much. I’m not really a purist or guitarist’s guitarist. That said, I really love the Blackstar stuff. I’ve known their artist rep, Joel Richardson, for a long time.

"I used to be with Marshall years ago and he gave me a shout early on when he was starting something new, asking if I was interested and the answer was yes. The HT20 is brilliant, you can crank it or play quietly and still get a good sound… I couldn’t do that with an old Marshall in the house. It just wouldn’t work.”

Mentioned by Davies in his guest column for the March 2001 issue of Total Guitar, as sourced from a scan on the "Information" page of Davies' official website.

Another cool effect is the Boss bass synth pedal which although designed for basses, also sounds great for electric guitars. On CD track 23 I've played a dampened percussive rhythm with my right hand while adjusting the resonance pot on the pedal to create a cool Roland 303 synth sound.

Used live, as specified in Marshall Law Issue #5, Spring 2000 and Guitarist, November 2000.

Marshall Law #5, Spring 2000

Jim Davies the guitarist with Pitchshifter has a 1959SLP with a 1960AX which he uses with a PB100 Powerbrake. A JMP-1 has been used in the studio to record their forthcoming album Deviant. Bassist, Mark Clayden, goes for the clean power of the DBS model 7400 with 7412 4x12 cabinet.

Guitarist, November 2000

What amps, guitars and pedals do you use to get your sound live?

Live, I use a Marshall 1969 re-issue 100 watt head, this is basically my power amp and doesn't affect my sound much. My pre-amp is a Rocktron Chameleon (the old one) and my main distortion comes from this. I use about six patches from it live; one for the cleaner sounding into to Everything's Fucked, one for a delay, one for a harmoniser / pitchshifter and one for lead. I find it easier using patches from my pre-amp than adding separate pedals as it increases the likelihood of things going wrong in the chain.

Specified in Marshall Law Issue #5, Spring 2000.

Jim Davies the guitarist with Pitchshifter has a 1959SLP with a 1960AX which he uses with a PB100 Powerbrake. A JMP-1 has been used in the studio to record their forthcoming album Deviant. Bassist, Mark Clayden, goes for the clean power of the DBS model 7400 with 7412 4x12 cabinet.

Specified in Marshall Law Issue #5, Spring 2000.

Jim Davies the guitarist with Pitchshifter has a 1959SLP with a 1960AX which he uses with a PB100 Powerbrake. A JMP-1 has been used in the studio to record their forthcoming album Deviant. Bassist, Mark Clayden, goes for the clean power of the DBS model 7400 with 7412 4x12 cabinet.

Used for Deviant, as specified in Marshall Law Issue #5, Spring 2000 and as visible in photos from 2000 posted to Davies' Instagram.

Jim Davies the guitarist with Pitchshifter has a 1959SLP with a 1960AX which he uses with a PB100 Powerbrake. A JMP-1 has been used in the studio to record their forthcoming album Deviant. Bassist, Mark Clayden, goes for the clean power of the DBS model 7400 with 7412 4x12 cabinet.

December 19, 2019

jimdaviesmusic Looking very ‘Jim Shady’ here with the ‘Apple ibanez’ During the recording sessions for the Shifter ‘Deviant’ album (I think!) thanks to @doseprod for the pic! #ibanez #recordingstudios #guitaristofinstagram #guitars #pitchshifter

leatherbackworld Is that the JMP-1 in the background??

jimdaviesmusic @leatherbackworld yep it is, but I don’t remember ever really using it much...think it was just in the studio at the time.

December 23, 2019

Been asked a few times recently what I used on the Pitchshifter ‘Deviant’ album...it’s a bit of a blur but this pic I found recently might help answer some questions... my trusty ‘Apple Ibanez’ makes another appearance, as does my appalling roots... #ibanez #ibanezguitars #bogneramps @bogner_amps #guitars #guitaristsofinstagram #pitchshifter #recordingstudiolife @officialibanezguitars #punk #electronicrock #electronicpunk #industrialrock

Mentioned in this November 2000 Guitarist interview

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals.

Mentioned in this November 2000 Guitarist interview

So what stuff gets you through those studio sessions?

In the studio I use so many pedals - the entire new Ibanez range, a micro synth, loads of old sixties pedals.