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EquipmentStudio · 72 values
CategoriesStudioEquipment
Studio

Equipment

Specific instruments or gear identified

72
values
1427
total uses
See alsoSession durationStudio technique
Did you know?more like this →

The Moog synthesizer first appears on a Beatles record on 'Because' (1969).

Because1969Moog IIIp
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Values Over Time

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All Values(72)

#ValueSongs% of total
1EMI REDD.51 console

Late-1950s valve mixing console used at EMI Abbey Road through 1968.

152
10.7%
2Ludwig Super Classic

Ringo Starr's 22-inch Ludwig Super Classic in Black Oyster Pearl finish, his main kit from May 1964.

109
7.6%
3Hofner 500/1

McCartney's iconic violin-shaped Höfner 500/1 bass – the visual symbol of the early Merseybeat Beatles

93
6.5%
4Rickenbacker 4001S

McCartney's Rickenbacker 4001S bass – its bright, punchy, trebly tone defines the mid-period Beatles sound

86
6.0%
5Studer J37 4-track recorder

Four-track tape machine – the Beatles' standard recording machine 1965-68.

78
5.5%
6Gibson J-160E

Acoustic guitar with built-in pickup – Lennon and Harrison's main acoustic 1962-64.

66
4.6%
7Epiphone Casino ES-230TD

The semi-hollow Epiphone Casino electric guitar played by all three guitarists in the later period

55
3.9%
8Sonic Blue Fender Stratocaster

Three-pickup contoured-body electric guitar.

44
3.1%
9Rickenbacker 325

Lennon's three-quarter-scale solid-body electric guitar of the early 60s.

44
3.1%
10EMI REDD.37 console

EMI's REDD.37 valve mixing console, in Abbey Road's studios until 1964.

42
2.9%
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11Telefunken M10 4-track recorder

Telefunken's four-track studio tape recorder, used at Abbey Road in the mid-1960s.

42
2.9%
12Ludwig Hollywood Maple

Five-piece Ludwig drum kit in maple finish – Ringo's primary kit from 1967 onwards.

38
2.7%
133M M23 8-track recorder

American eight-track tape machine – used at EMI from late 1968.

34
2.4%
14EMI BTR2 twin-track recorder

EMI's valve British Tape Recorder, the two-track machine used at Abbey Road in the early 1960s.

33
2.3%
15Ludwig Downbeat

Ringo Starr's first Ludwig kit, a 20-inch Downbeat in Black Oyster Pearl finish, bought in May 1963.

32
2.2%
16Steinway Vertegrand

Abbey Road's upright Steinway piano (the 'Mrs Mills' piano).

32
2.2%
17Hamburg Steinway

The Steinway baby grand kept in EMI's Studio Two, played on many of the group's piano parts.

32
2.2%
18Hammond RT-3

The Hammond B-3 tonewheel organ, typically routed through a Leslie rotating speaker cabinet

28
2.0%
19Gretsch 6122 Country Gentleman

Harrison's main hollow-body electric guitar of the mid-60s.

25
1.8%
20Gretsch 6119 Tennessean

Hollow-body electric guitar played by Harrison.

25
1.8%
21Vox AC30

British 30-watt valve combo amplifier – the Beatles' primary stage and studio amp through the mid-60s.

24
1.7%
22Leslie speaker

Rotating-speaker cabinet originally built for Hammond organs, used widely on Beatles vocals and guitar.

20
1.4%
23EMI TG12345 console

EMI's first solid-state mixing console, installed at Abbey Road in 1968.

19
1.3%
24Fender Rosewood Telecaster

Solid rosewood-bodied electric guitar – Harrison's main guitar through 1969.

19
1.3%
25Premier Mahogany Duroplastic

Ringo Starr's pre-Ludwig Premier kit in mahogany Duroplastic finish, used on the earliest EMI sessions.

16
1.1%
26Martin D-28

Large-bodied dreadnought acoustic guitar with a powerful low end.

16
1.1%
27Rickenbacker 360/12

Twelve-string semi-hollow electric guitar central to A Hard Day's Night.

13
0.9%
28Gretsch Duo Jet

Hollow-body electric guitar with mahogany construction – Harrison's first quality guitar.

13
0.9%
29Gibson Les Paul Standard

Solid-body humbucker electric guitar with sustain-rich tone.

12
0.8%
30Challen tack piano

Upright piano with tacks set in the hammers for a tinny honky-tonk sound.

12
0.8%
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31Gibson J-200

Large-bodied acoustic guitar with a powerful bass-rich tone.

11
0.8%
32Hohner Pianet

Hohner electromechanical reed piano with thinner, reedier tone than a Rhodes.

11
0.8%
33Fender Jazz Bass

The Fender Jazz Bass: a slim-necked electric bass with two single-coil pickups and a bright, punchy tone.

10
0.7%
34Gibson SG

The Gibson SG: a lightweight solid-body electric guitar with a thin double-cutaway body and a biting tone.

9
0.6%
35Framus Hootenanny

Twelve-string acoustic guitar – John Lennon's instrument on early 1965 sessions.

8
0.6%
36Jose Ramirez classical

Spanish concert classical guitar.

8
0.6%
37Hammond L-100

Hammond's compact spinet organ, a smaller drawbar instrument than the studio's RT-3 console model.

7
0.5%
38Fender Bass VI

A six-string bass guitar providing a broader harmonic and melodic range than a standard four-string

7
0.5%
39Sound Techniques console

The Sound Techniques-built mixing console at Trident Studios.

7
0.5%
40Fender Rhodes

Electromechanical tine piano with a bell-like sustained tone.

7
0.5%
41Fender Esquire

Single-pickup version of the Fender Telecaster electric guitar.

6
0.4%
42Mellotron Mark II

Polyphonic tape-replay keyboard with flute, strings, and brass voices.

6
0.4%
43EMI BTR3 twin-track recorder

A later EMI valve British Tape Recorder used at Abbey Road.

5
0.4%
44Moog IIIp

The portable version of the Moog modular synthesizer.

5
0.4%
45Trident 8-track recorder

The eight-track tape machine at Trident Studios.

5
0.4%
46Epiphone Texan FT-79

McCartney's Epiphone Texan FT-79 flat-top acoustic guitar, used on Yesterday and other recordings.

4
0.3%
47Blüthner grand piano

German concert grand piano installed at EMI Abbey Road.

4
0.3%
48Bechstein grand piano

The Trident Studios house piano Paul McCartney played

4
0.3%
49Hohner Chromonica

The C chromatic John Lennon played; the source puts a chromatic on all four

4
0.3%
50Steinway Grand

A full-size Steinway concert grand piano, used at EMI for the more formal piano parts.

3
0.2%
51Mannborg harmonium

A reed harmonium made by Mannborg.

3
0.2%
52Baldwin Satin Ebony Grand

A Baldwin grand piano from the studio's own stock.

3
0.2%
53Burns Nu-Sonic

A short-scale bass built by the British maker Burns of London in the mid-1960s.

3
0.2%
54Hammond C-3

Hammond's church-style console organ, the tonewheel instrument usually paired with a Leslie cabinet.

2
0.1%
55Bartell fretless guitar

Fretless electric guitar built by Paul Barth – used by George Harrison on Indian-flavoured tracks.

2
0.1%
56Gretsch 6120 Chet Atkins Nashville

Gretsch hollow-body electric guitar from the Chet Atkins line.

2
0.1%
57Vox Continental

Transistor combo organ with distinctive reedy tone, used widely in 1960s rock.

2
0.1%
58Rickenbacker 425

Solid-body single-pickup electric guitar – George Harrison's first Rickenbacker.

2
0.1%
59Fender Bassman

American 50-watt valve bass amplifier, used by the Beatles for both bass and guitar.

2
0.1%
60Schiedmayer celesta2
0.1%
61Fender Twin Reverb

American 85-watt valve guitar amplifier with built-in spring reverb.

2
0.1%
62Ampex AG-440 4-track recorder

Ampex professional multitrack tape recorder used at some outside studios.

2
0.1%
63Baldwin harpsichord

Electric harpsichord with built-in amplification.

2
0.1%
64Lowrey Heritage Deluxe DSO-1

American spinet electronic organ – McCartney's instrument on 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.'

2
0.1%
65Hohner Echo Vamper2
0.1%
66Neve 8078 console

The analogue desk at McCartney's Hog Hill Mill studio, where the reunion singles were mixed.

2
0.1%
67Olympic custom console

The custom-built mixing console at Olympic Sound Studios.

2
0.1%
68Hofner 5140 Hawaiian Standard

A lap steel guitar, played across the lap with a slide rather than fretted.

1
0.1%
69Bill Black double bass

The upright bass Bill Black played on Elvis Presley's 'Heartbreak Hotel'. Linda McCartney bought it for Paul in the late 1970s, and he played it on the 1995 reunion single.

1
0.1%
70Rickenbacker 325/12

The twelve-string version of Lennon's Rickenbacker, a rarity on record.

1
0.1%
71Challen blond-wood spinet

A small blond-wood Challen upright piano, distinct from the tack-treated Challen used elsewhere at Abbey Road.

1
0.1%
72Hammond M-102

A compact spinet model of the Hammond tonewheel organ.

1
0.1%

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