TIM WHEELER
PLEASE NOTE: ALL THE LINKS YOU SEE HERE ARE TO ACTUAL PICTURES OF TIM'S GEAR

Early Days

GUITARS: Early information on the band is sketchy at best. In interviews, Tim has claimed his first guitar was a Destroyer copy that he got for Christmas. This is likely his 'Vietnam' era guitar, and the guitar mentioned in all the press releases when talking about how Tim and Mark both got guitars for Christmas when they were 12. Most likely, this guitar did not last long, as by 1993 Tim was using another guitar. Says Tim: " i think it is a 77 strat. it was red, then i stripped the paint off and varnished it, so it became a natural look. though it wasn't a particularly good job. i think i got it in time for the garage girl demos." This guitar can be seen in the artwork for the 'Jack Names the Planets' single as well as in early live footage released from the ill-fated 'Teenage Wildlife' video.

AMPS: Again, there is little by way of concrete information on this period of the band. However, it can be assumed that with the Destroyer guitar, Tim got an amp. Mark has stated his was a battery powered tiny combo amp, and it would probably not be far off to say that Tim's was of similar caliber (although Mark's amp did get used on released recordings!). When the band got serious, Tim bought a Marshall 6101 combo amp, which would become his main amp for the next 3-4 years. This amp is most likely what was used on the last demo, Garage Girl.

EFFECTS: Tim has stated that he didn't use anything besides a Jim Dunlop wah pedal in the early days of the band. It is not completely out of the realm of possibility that there were a few effects pedals kicking around, but I have no information on these if they do in fact exist. On the first demo of 'Girl From Mars', which Tim gave to a fan a few years ago, there is definitely a delay effect on the lead guitar. What is being used is unknown.

MISC: The other known item of interest is Tim's 4-track, which was used to record the aforementioned demo as well as a few other demos around that time period.

Trailer

GUITARS: Says Tim: "i got my les paul the day before we started trailer so i'm pretty sure that's what i used on that record. the strat became my backup for the next year. " The Gibson Les Paul in question is a 1990 Standard edition that is black in color, and would go on to be used (and abused) for years to come. In the old photos that were in the Intergalactic Sonic 7's singles collection, Tim is also seen with a Fender Telecaster: " the photo of me with a tele is from a gig at the limelight in belfast when i broke a string, and i borrowed that guitar off backwater for the rest of the gig."

AMPS: As mentioned earlier, Tim had a Marshall 6101 Combo amp for live work and studio work. In a shot in 'Teenage Wildlife', a Marshall half-stack is shown. Information on this is unknown; it may have been hired in for some gigs. In the early videos (petrol, uncle pat), you can see the 6101 miked up.

EFFECTS: As mentioned earlier, Tim has stated that no effects were used during the Trailer era besides the standard Jim Dunlop Crybaby wah pedal. There is a Boss TU-2 visible in the Trailer artwork (beside Punk Boy lyrics). Guitar tech Leif, who joined in June 1995, also believes a Mu-Tron III was used at some point. Again, Tim probably had a few different effects at this point that would be used on records.

MISC: N/A

1977

GUITARS: The most notable addition to Tim's guitar line up was his Gretsch Silver Jet. This guitar was purchased in Nashville during a US Trailer tour, and was Tim's main guitar for the 1977 era. It was also used for the recording of the album. Says Leif: "The Jet had an annoying bridge that wasn’t fixed in any one position, so the fuckin’ thing kept needed to be tuned (seriously) after almost every take." The Jet was a US reissue of the old silver jet. Tim said in an interview that he liked the guitar because it was the sweet spot between a Gibson and a Fender. There was also a 1961 Gibson Les Paul (which actually looks like an SG). Tim talks about this in an issue of 'The Guitar Magazine': "I've got this '61 Gibson SG...I bought it in July or August last year, just after 'Girl From Mars' was a hit and it's quite cool". There is definitely a good chance this guitar was used on some of 1977, and most likely used on 'Angel Interceptor' (as this was released before the main 1977 recording sessions). This guitar can be seen on the insert to 1977. Although Tim's '90 Les Paul was his main guitar up until this era, it did not appear on 1977. Taken from the same magazine: "I had this new Les Paul from the start, but I keep snapping the neck off it, so at the moment it's away having a major job done on it and I haven't been able to play it on the record at all". In Teenage Wildlife, you can see Tim tracking 'Darkside Lightside' with the 61 Les Paul.

While those were Tim's own guitars for the record, he also hired in some others: "We've got some stuff from Harris Hire, 'cos I said to them that I really wanted the Brian Robertson sound and the Tony Iommi sound, so we got in this really cool old Les Paul and a mad SG".

Tim also used guitar tech Leif's Gibson ES-330 (red) for one of the songs, which I think was 'Let it Flow'. This guitar can also be seen in the 1977 artwork.

For live work during this era, the Silver Jet was the main guitar with the Les Paul as back up. Tim also had a purple Guild for back-up, but this guitar did not see much use. Tim also bought a Fender Mustang reissue around this era, the competition model with the racing stripes. This guitar can be seen in the 'A Life Less Ordinary' video. Says Tim: "it got lost somewhere, which is a total muthafucka! i think i might have used it live a couple of times. it looked great but was actually quite a shitty guitar, i don't think i ever recorded with it." This guitar was used live during the 1977 Australian Tour, as a backup guitar seen here.

There is also a Fender Stratocaster used in the UK version of Girl From Mars. Chances are this is a prop guitar, as it was covered in paint like everything else in that video.

There is also the small matter of the acoustic guitar used on 'Girl From Mars'. I will get to the bottom of it.

AMPS: For the recording of the album, the Marshall 6101 Combo was primarily used: "...we didn't actually use the speakers - just put the signal through a Palmer speaker simulator (*NOTE: this may in fact be a 'Groove Tubes' speaker sim) and from there into the desk." As with the guitars, lots of stuff was hired in: "...an old Marshall and of the old Orange amps. We just started using those over the past week, and it's and impeccable sound. Even when you're using distortion, they sound really clear - you can make every note out." Also, there was a "Mesa Boogie Mk II which we'd just got in". The Marshall is likely a JTM-45. Information on the Orange head is unknown, but Tim has said it was used primarily for solos.

Tim increased his live rig significantly during this era. He bought the head version of the 6101, which has the model number 6100. He apparently owns three of these heads now. A Marshall 4x12 1960A cab was used with this head. A limited edition half stack of the 6100, produced in blue tolex, was also bought and used for special TV appearances and the like. Tim also used an Orange head into either an Orange cab or another Marshall 1960A. The set up changed depending on where the band was touring: when touring as a support act for Weezer, the rig was cut down a bit, while on their own headlining tour it was more 'complete'. The Marshall/Orange setup.

EFFECTS: There aren't many effects heard on 1977, besides wah: A tremelo on 'Gone the Dream', flanger on the bridge of 'Goldfinger', phaser/delay for noise on 'Angel Interceptor' and at the end of 'Darkside Lightside'. There is also the beautiful mess that is the breakdown on 'Innocent Smile', which could be a lot of different stuff. Leif has told me that there was a pile of gear in that studio, so a lot of that may have been house stuff, it's quite hard to say. Most rhythm guitars were through the 6101, but it is not unlikely that lots of things were used at various intervals in the studio.

Tim's pedalboard during the 1977 era became significantly more interesting. Leif reports: " Tim’s pedal board was a mass of wires and insanity. It was about 3 feet wide and looked like a spaceship. (I built it.) It had a power supply that sent power to the Digitech Whammy pedal and a bypass unit. The bypass unit was designed by Pete Cornish. Here’s what I can remember about that board:
Maestro Parametric Filter
Digitech Whammy, Boss Digital Delay + Pete Cornish bypass unit and custom power supply
Jim Dunlop 535 Wah
Pete Cornish Attenuator
2 Roger Mayer A/B boxes
Big Muff (rusty, old home-made looking)

Maybe I'm missing something, I'm not too sure. I can't remember the signal chain, but I can tell you that it was not "as you see it". I know the guitar went to a pedal in the middle of the board, then something on the far right, then to the left, then somewhere else, it was a bit of a nightmare if something went down during a show. The big muff was used only with the Orange. The Big Muff stayed on, and an A/B box directed the signal to the Orange."

The Maestro Parametric filter was purchased in Philly during the 1977 tour. Like his amp rig, the live effects rig changed depending on the tour: The only known picture of tim's pedalboard during this era is a piece of carpet with the Maestro, the wah, and the 6100 channel switcher on the other side.

Tim talks about the digitech whammy: "I've also started using the Digitech Whammy, which makes the guitar capable of of these parts that sound really like a keyboard. The mad vibrato things you can do on it sound really disgusting, and the other important thing to avoid is sounding like Page Hamilton! So you've got to be clever with it. It's a mad pedal, though." NOTE: This is the black version of the digitech whammy, known as the 'whammy II'.

Pete Cornish has also built some other stuff for Tim which he has listed on his site. Not cheap!

The Big Muff was found in Czechoslovakia. A good example of it is the '96 Peel session version of 'I'd Give You Anything'.

MISC: The guitar straps Tim has used since 1977 are mostly from www.builtbywendy.com. He has one with 50's pin-up girls, and one with the rolling stones all in various color combinations. Also, the hit 'Kung Fu' was not even recorded with their own gear, but rather the Verve's: "we recorded Kung Fu using all The Verve’s equipment coz it was during our Christmas holidays and they were taking a break so we went in and bashed it our in a couple of days"

A Life Less Ordinary

I added this section to Tim's page because it was around the time of the recording of A Life Less Ordinary that Tim bought his favorite guitar, a 1960 Gibson Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. He bought this guitar after performing on a television show with a gospel choir at which he received a "stupid amount of money". This guitar was used on the A Life Less Ordinary sessions, and pretty much every Ash record that followed. Tim told me this is the one piece of gear he couldn't live without. This guitar does not 'tour', and has only been used live a handful of times (in the UK).

Nu-Clear Sounds

GUITARS: The most notable change in Tim's guitar repetoire was the retiring of the Gretsch and the addition of the Gibson Flying V. Tim on the switch: "i just wanted another guitar that would stand out as much as the gretch so i got the flying v. i think i just got tired of being associated with that guitar." The V in question is from 1982 and is fitted with a '58 zebra coil PAF pickup. This guitar has been Tim's main guitar for live work since 1997. It is a great guitar, but it has never been used in the studio (apart from some radio sessions - maybe). Info on the V: "It's allegedly made from the same Korina wood that was used to make the batch in '68". The 1990 Les Paul was the backup guitar for the tour, and one magazine claimed that Gretsch was used nightly for 'Goldfinger' (although that hasn't been confirmed.)

Every song on Nu-Clear Sounds features the Black Beauty. (more pictures here and here)

Acoustics on Nu-Clear Sounds were done by Martin and Ovation, models are unknown at the moment.

In the 'Fortress rehersal studios' Footage released on www.ash-official.com, Tim played his telecaster (discussed later) and an sg.

AMPS: Tim moved away from the 6100 for the recording of Nu-Clear Sounds, using his 1967 Marshall JTM-45 on most of the record. He also used a Matchless DC30 on the record, and some Fender amps: "We used some Bassmans, and a Deluxe, amongst other things".

Info on the Nu-Clear Sounds Tour by Ian Laughton: "Tim used a Matchless DC30 head and Matchless 4 x 12" cabinet. when we where in Japan, Australia etc we used DC 30 combo (Matchless). Also to augment the sound we had a Marshall JTM45 head and Marshall 4 x 12" cabinet." The touring JTM-45 is likely the reissue.

EFFECTS: Tim's pedalboard during this era is a bit of a mystery to me, but from live recordings it sounds pretty standard. The Maestro Parametric Filter was used for sure, as well as the Jim Dunlop Crybaby. I am also pretty sure Tim used a Boss TU-2 pedal during this era, and perhaps an Electro Harmonix Microsynth. The Big Muff may have been used, but this is not confirmed. More info when I can get it.

In terms of studio, Tim had this to say: "Fortune Teller has got seven different distortion sounds going through it." Speaking about the Big Muff: "It's completely rusted, but it rocks big time. I used it on Burn Out...I had the distortion full on while sustaining notes, and then I kept moving it about so I could get these funny harmonics".

I wasn't in the studio, but by this time Tim had a pretty good collection of effects pedals which he would have used at various points. I will ask him about them when I get the chance.

MISC: Because I am selfish, I asked Tim to talk specifically about one of my favorite Ash songs, Projects: "i used to layer my rhythm guitars up a lot in those days, here's what i'm guessing i used: my 1960 les paul with my big muff pedal through the my 67 marshall jtm 45. then i probably used the same set up but with my roland double beat pedal instead of the muff. it's got a really mean bassy distortion on it. in the middle section i used an echoplex tape echo with my maestro parametric filter sweeping about for all the echo background guitars. i think that's the maestro doing the filter sweeps in the intro of the songs, almost sounds like a phaser cos i was doing it pretty steadily. well that's what i'm guessing! tim"

Free All Angels

GUITARS: The 1960 Black Beauty got the call for most of Free All Angels as well. Tim also used his 1967 Strat and his 59 (or 57) Telecaster on this record (and perhaps Nu-Clear Sounds as well).

The live duties were handled at first by the Korina V and the (by now) beat up Les Paul. As time went on, Tim got more V's for live work: two cherry red ones, and a white jimi hendrix reissue v. At the Astoria gig in 2000 which previewed two songs that would be on Free All Angels, Tim used his telecaster. It has appeared at various times live over the years.

Acoustics on this album are unknown, but a guess of Martin/Ovation would probably not be far off.

AMPS: At this time, Tim switched over to the world of Mesa Boogie amplification. While it is very likely most of the old amps got used on the record (Matchless/Marshall/Fender), Tim's main live rig consisted of an old two channel Triple Rectifier through a Mesa 4x12 with a new Dual Rectifier for backup. Tim has told me that 'everything sounds better through a Mesa', and it is now his main amp. For some television appearances, the Matchless combo showed up, although it does not appear to be plugged in (although it is mic'd, so who knows....). Tim also has a Vox AC30 head and 212 cab which probably got used on Free All Angels as well.

EFFECTS: The record shows obvious examples of the Microsynth at various points (the e minors in Burn Baby Burn, Shark, the bridge of Shining Light). There is also a trem on the Shining Light bridge, which is quite possibly the Dunlop Tremolo of Tim's. The phaser on the Shining Light solo is a vintage Electro Harmonix Small Stone. The beginning of Burn Baby Burn is a Moogerfooger 12 stage phaser and a microsynth.

Live, Tim used: A Boss TU-2, a Microsynth, a Moogerfooger 12 stage phaser, Jim Dunlop 535 Chrome Wah, and Mesa channel switcher. The band's first tour of the US in support of Free All Angels saw a stripped down pedalboard consisting of the guitar going into the moogerfooger 12 stage phaser, a dunlop 535 wah, and finally the mesa channel switcher. (and fork)
When the band toured the US in support of the US release of Free All Angels, Tim had ditched the microsynth and added a Way Huge Green Rhino overdrive pedal which he was using on the then new songs, Orpheus and Renegade Cavalcade. He also had a new Electro Harmonix Deluxe Electric Mistress (although he told me he should have bought the normal one) which he used on Orpheus. As the tour went on, he picked up a script logo MXR phase 100.

MISC: Tim started using a wireless shure system to let him roam around the stage a bit more. He also started using a capo on Walking Barefoot.

Meltdown

GUITARS: The Meltdown tour saw continued use of Gibson Flying V's for almost all live work: The '58 Korina, the Cherry re-issue, and the sparkly finish V (which was used for capo-ed songs Walking Barefoot and Renegade Cavalcade). The battered Les Paul was still in use for some shows as well.

Tim had access to a lot more gear in the studio for the recording of Meltdown. The 67 strat and the old tele were used, and there is a good chance the black beauty was used as well. For the MTV.com video of Orpheus, Tim is playing a goldtop Les Paul. He also used a tobacco burst les paul, and a gold gibson hollowbody (probably a 335).

AMPS: The Mesa Triple rectifier has been Tim's main amp for the Meltdown touring, with the Dual Rectifier playing backup. The mesa 412 is still in action as well. The triple rec sits offstage on top of the rack setup, while the Dual Rectifier is the 'onstage' amp.

lots of amazing amps in the studio, here and here. The amps that appear to be used most are the jtm 45, hiwatt custom 100, hiwatt lead 100, the mesa triple rec, an unidentified orange and laney, and a jcm 800. Cabinets are the mesa 412 and a marshall 212. The Vox AC-30 and 212 cab are clearly used as well. Here is another shot of stuff stockpiled in the studio.

EFFECTS: It is almost impossible to even begin talking about the myriad of effects used on Meltdown. Start drooling here, and continue here, here, here, and here. a list of what is pictured (well some of it anyways: lovetone ringerstinger, lovetone doppelganger, lovetone meatball, lovetone ?, way huge green rhino, way huge purple platypus, way huge saffron squeeze, way huge piercing moose, way huge foot pig, way huge blue hippo, foxx fuzz wah and volume, original digitech whammy, digitech talker, moogerfooger phaser, moogerfooger ring modulator, moogerfooger lowpass filter, ibanez LF7 lofi, prescription electronics experience, prescription electronics ultimate overdrive, sovtek bassballs, sovtek small stone, boss syb-3 bass synth, digitech xp300 space station, boss rv-3 digital reverb, boss ls-2 line selector, boss pn-2 tremolo/pan, DOD flanger 670, zvex fuzz probe, lovetone big cheese, nu-wa x3, nu-wa fuzz, boss fz-2 hyper fuzz, zvex machine, zvex fuzz factory, boss df-2 super feedbacker and distortion, boss oc-2 octave, pro co rat, Ebow, ibanez graphic equalizer, zvex, super duper 2 in 1, zvex seek wah, zvex wooly mammoth, marshall jackhammer, DOD FX25 envelope filter, hughes and kettner red box, mxr octave fuzz, mxr distortion +, mxr dyna comp, mxr microamp, mxr phase 90, mxr classic fuzz, electroharmonix deluxe memory man, electroharmonix deluxe electric mistress, maestro parametric filter, voce spin II, electro harmonix hot tubes, line 6 mod pro, line 6 filter pro, line 6 echo pro, line 6 fm-4, electro harmonix microsynth, foxrox paradox TZF flanger, roger mayer mongoose fuzz, roger mayer octavia, Korg x911 guitar synth, roland jet flanger, maestro echoplex, 2 x dunlop 535 wah's, morley a/b switches, roger mayer voodoo vibe, studio electronics modmax filter. I think that's it.

** The live rig has been given it's own page which you can find here **

In terms of effects used on the record, a few things are certain: Wah on Meltdown, Out of the Blue, Vampire Love. A similar effect to the one found in Burn Baby Burn is found in Meltdown, and is made by the moogerfooger. There is delay at the beginning of On A Wave, which is likely done through the Line 6 Echo Pro. The flange on Orpheus is likely the Deluxe Electric Mistress that he had been touring with prior to the recording of the album. Some of the most interesting sounds on the album are on Clones, which I think is a mix of the Korg X-911 guitar synth and wah.

MISC: The Ground Control Pro switching system is how Tim controls the mammoth amount of effects he has rackmounted.

A SPECIAL NOTE ON TIM'S CHOICE OF GUITARS: I asked Tim about Gibson versus Fender, here is what he said: " my first good guitar was a strat, so i used that loads early on. i like the humbucker sound, which is why i use gibsons mostly, they have a bigger sound which i needed when we were a trio. i think single coils have more expression though. on the records i use a lot of strat and tele too.

There are lots of things that Tim has that may not be used live or very often in the studio. Ian Laughton gave me a list of stuff Tim had which was current as of 2003:

Guitars:
GIBSON LES PAUL (BLACK WITH 3 PAF PICKUPS)
19?? FENDER TLECASTER (CREAM)
FENDER STRATOCASTER (CREAM)
FLYING V (KORINA WOOD WITH ZEBRA PATHE PICKUPS)
FLYING V (CHERRY RED)
FLYING V (WHITE JIMI HENDRIX RE-ISSUE)
GUILD (PURPLE)
GIBSON LES PAUL (BLACK AND BURNT)
GRETSCH (SPARKLY SILVER)
GIBSON LES PAUL JUNIOR SG (BROWN WOOD)

Amps:
VOX AC30 HEAD(MODIFIED BY)
MARSHALL JTM45(WHITE BACK)ORIGINAL HEAD
MARSHALL 6100 ANNIVERSARY COMBO
ORANGE HEAD
ORANGE HEAD
ORANGE COMBO
MATCHLESS DC30 COMBO
MATCHLESS DC30 HEAD
MATCHLESS HEAD
MARSHALL JTM45 RE-ISSUE HEAD
MARSHALL 6100 ANNIVERSAY HEAD
MESA BOOGIE TRIPLE RECTIFIER(OLD)
MESA BOOGIE DUAL RECTIFIER(NEW)

Cabinets:
VOX 2 x 12" Cabinet
MARSHALL 4 x 12" slope front cabinet
MATCHLESS 4 x 12" cabinet

Misc:
FENDER RHODES 88(USED IN THE STUDIO AND LIVE)
ROLAND JP800 KEYBOARD
GROOVE TUBE GUITAR SPEAKER SIMULATOR
TASCAM DA88
MACKIE 16/4 DESK DRAWER
1960 VALVE COMPRESSORS

One of the Orange head's, the one used live on the 1977 tour, was later modified to have an overdriven preamp (Leif says it may have been done by a lad named Callum. Perhaps.)