As lead guitarist for Quicksilver Messenger Service, John Cipollina helped create the psychedelic sound that was a hallmark of San Francisco music scene in the 1960s. The group's long instrumental jams, in which Cipollina played a central role, were legendary, both on stage and on record. Some of John's legendary equipment is on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. To create his distinctive guitar sound, Cipollina developed this one-of-a-kind amplifier stack. All of his guitars, including the one here, were wired with two pickups, one for bass and one for treble. The bass pickup fed into the two Standel bass amps on the bottom of the stack. Each Standel was equipped with two 15-inch speakers. The treble pickups fed the two Fender amps-a Fender Twin Reverb with two 12-inch speakers and a Fender Dual Showman- that drove the six Wurlitzer horns.

John Cipollina - Technical Corner - Tech Talk



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