Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment

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Category: Who Plays What

Last Updated on Thursday, 14 March 2013 16:53

Published on Wednesday, 07 May 2008 14:36

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Kim Thayil is best known as the guitarist for Seattle-based grunge band Soundgarden, which he founded with Chris Cornell and Hiro Yamamoto in 1984. Thayil was named 100th best guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine.

Let's look at some of the gear and equipment that has been seen in Kim Thayil's Soundgarden guitar rig. We'll give a list of gear he played throught Soundgarden's career.

Click the gear images for more info and specs at Musician's Friend

Guitars
- Guild S-100 and S-300 guitars (including some 90's reissues and original ones from 70's)

- Gibson SG

- Gibson Les Paul Custom Lite (black)

- Gibson Firebird (black. Also has a red 90's reissue one.)

- '57 Fender Telecaster

- Fender Telecaster (black with rosewood fretboard)

- Fender Jazzmaster

- Gibson 1966 ES335 Trini Lopez (used on "King Animal" for "By Crooked Steps")

- Gretsch Duo Jet (one of the multiple guitars used on "King Animal")

Amps and Cabinets

- Mesa Electra Dyne amps (seen 2010)

- Mesa vintage Tremo-Verb 2x12 combo amps (2010)

- Mesa Boogie Stiletto 4x12" Slant cabinets (2010)

- Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier

- Peavey VTM 120's, aka 5149's, the same head EVH used,and based the 5150 on. Also Peavey Cabinets.

- Music Man HD130

- Mesa Boogie 50-watt Mavericks

- Fender Super

- Orange Head

- Fender Twin Reverb

- Fender Vibro-Kings

- Marshall Cabinets

Effects and More
- MXR MC404 CAE Crybaby Dual Inductor Wah

- Boss Chromatic Tuner

- Electro-Harmonix Micro POG

- MXR Doubleshot Distortion

- EHX XO Deluxe Memory Man

- Hughes & Kettner Tube Rotosphere (MK I)

- MXR chorus

- Intellitronics LA-2

- Summit DIs

- Colorsound wah

- Jim Dunlop Rotovibe

- Mu-Tron

- Boss CE-2 Chorus pedal

- Arion Stage Tuner

- Ibanez CS-9 chorus

- DOD fx10 Bi-fet Preamp

- DOD flangers

- Mesa Switching pedals

- T-Rex Reptile pedal

- T-Rex Engineering Tap Tone Delay Guitar Effects Pedal

- Boss DD-7 Delay pedal

- Providence PEC-2 routing system

- MXR CAE Boost-Line Driver

- MXR CAE Boost/OverDrive pedal

 -Boss NS-2 pedal

Strings and Picks

- GHS electric strings (9 through 46 gauge)

- Ernie Ball Super slinky strings (.009 to .042)

- Dunlop .73 nylon picks

Comments  

 

0 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — Jäger 2013-02-21 16:12

New (and very exhaustive) Rig Rundown here: youtu.be/uEl7u9Z3lK0

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0 # rick hankins — rick hankins 2012-08-20 23:59

Why do you suppose he didn't just use vintage SG's? I understand he gets a pretty good sound and all, but using what essentially is a copy guitar seems like an odd choice for a musician of his caliber.

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+6 # RE: rick hankins — Dandelion 2012-10-05 18:48

Because the copy is better :)

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0 # rick hankins — rick hankins 2012-08-20 23:53

Quoting Kris Larsen:

Does anyone know what kind of pick ups were on his S-100? I have a 73 purchased in 75 from ponders vista Guitar shop. I had a number of different pick ups on it. Now using the Seymour Duncun Alnico 2s getting :woohoo: a very rich sound from a truly awsome ax

Are you talking about Monte Vista guitar shop in Tacoma WA? I bought some guitars there.

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-1 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — StevePhoenix 2012-02-22 22:53

In a Youtube gear rundown with Mesa Boogie, he's also using a T-Rex Reptile 2
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahUfbGLBcYs

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+1 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — Kubulek 2011-07-13 10:48

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yA4MDs3i4-g&NR=1 - he uses Guild S-300 here - www.vintageguitars.org.uk/guildS300.php

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+2 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — Jäger 2011-03-31 16:18

In this picture: soundgardenworld.com/.../... (January 21, 2011 - reharsal or recording sessions for the new album) you can see his current pedalboard: Boss Chromatic Tuner (TU-2 or TU-3?), EHX Micro POG, MXR Doubleshot Distortion, Dunlop Rotovibe, Dunlop Crybaby, EHX XO Deluxe Memory Man, Hughes & Kettner Tube Rotoshpere (MK I), plus (probably) amp footswitches.

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+1 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — Kubulek 2011-01-09 00:22

mesaboogie.com/.../...

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+1 # Gulid S-100 — Kubulek 2010-12-05 10:18

His signature polara model had Seymour Duncan JB and '59 pickups. www.seymourduncan.com/.../guild_guitars
On some songs he definitly used quite hot pickups - like Jesus Christ Pose (e.g. live from Telephantasm).

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0 # the guild s-110's — George 2010-11-30 22:48

Kim Uses Alnico Pro's by seymour duncan in his white S-100 guild, one of the black ones is all stock with guild pickups and the other one has dimarzios in it, he has about 5 s-100's and 2 gibson sg's,. They no longer make guilds, fender purchased the company and more or less closed it, they reissued the guitars for a while under the dearmond name and squier name, they had 3 different versions for each line, from cheap to high end all made in Korea

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0 # RE: Soundgarden - Kim Thayil Guitar Gear Rig and Equipment — Kubulek 2010-11-10 16:48

Since the reunion hes uses Mesa Electradyne heads + Mesa Cab and Rectoverb combos. Guitars - vintage Guilds.

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+2 # Kris Larsen 2010-01-01 19:04

Does anyone know what kind of pick ups were on his S-100? I have a 73 purchased in 75 from ponders vista Guitar shop. I had a number of different pick ups on it. Now using the Seymour Duncun Alnico 2s getting :woohoo: a very rich sound from a truly awsome ax

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0 # Cerebro 2009-12-09 03:50

Thayil liked to use his amps distortion, the Mesa Rectifier for leads, the Mesa Maverick for rythms (on albums).

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0 # Chicky Babar 2009-07-18 12:26

It doesn't say what kind of overdrive he used.

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0 # Love this info! — Chie Orogo 2009-04-12 03:58

I just got excited seeing detailed info of Thayil's rig!

I'm even prouder of my VTM 60 now.

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