What Famous Guitarists Actually Use — vs What Forums Say

The myth

Hendrix used a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face into a Marshall stack.

The reality

Hendrix's signal chain varied significantly across his career and between studios and live rigs. For much of the Electric Ladyland era he used a Univox Uni-Vibe, a Vox wah, and a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face — but into Fender amps (often multiple Dual Showmans) as often as Marshalls. The "Hendrix tone = Fuzz Face into Marshall" is a compression of three years of varied gear use into a single, memorable formula.

Why it persists: The simplified formula is easy to repeat and gives players a clear starting point. Forum accuracy suffers in proportion to how easy a myth is to share.

The myth

John Mayer's tone is all about his Two-Rock amp.

The reality

The Two-Rock Custom Reverb is central to Mayer's clean tone since roughly 2005. Before that, he used Dumble amps (borrowed from Stevie Ray Vaughan's estate and others) and Matchless DC-30s. His live rig includes multiple amp heads and the Two-Rock is not always the primary signal path. The "John Mayer = Two-Rock" formula is a snapshot of one period of a rig that has changed significantly over twenty years.

Why it persists: Two-Rock famously named a circuit "Mayer" and he has been photographed with it repeatedly. The association became the entire story.

The myth

SRV used 13-gauge strings tuned down a half step to Eb.

The reality

This is partially accurate but routinely mis-stated. SRV used 13-gauge strings on his main Stratocaster (Lenny) but tuned down a full step to Eb on some guitars and used different gauges across different instruments. The "13s to Eb" formula is documented but presented as a universal practice when it was closer to a primary preference with significant variation.

Why it persists: 13s tuned to Eb is just specific enough to sound authoritative. Specificity makes myths more convincing, not more accurate.

The myth

Clapton's Cream-era tone came from a Gibson SG into a Marshall Bluesbreaker.

The reality

The "Bluesbreaker" tone — the basis of the John Mayall record of that name — used a 1960 Les Paul Standard, not a Gibson SG. The SG came later, during the Cream and Blind Faith period, when he used Marshall Super Lead 100-watt stacks. The Bluesbreaker amp was a smaller combo used on specific recordings. Conflating the Bluesbreaker record tone with the Cream-era SG tone condenses two distinct periods and two distinct rigs.

Why it persists: The "Marshall Bluesbreaker" name makes the amp sound like the defining piece of equipment. The name is actually a tribute to the record, not the circuit.

The myth

Gilmour's "Comfortably Numb" solo used a Big Muff.

The reality

The studio version of the Comfortably Numb solo used a Hiwatt DR103 head into WEM cabinets, boosted by a Pete Cornish-built buffer/boost. A Big Muff was part of Gilmour's live rig but is not documented on the studio recording. Live versions of the solo varied. The myth that the Big Muff defines the Comfortably Numb tone is partly based on the live sound and partly on the fact that Gilmour is associated with the Big Muff from other recordings.

Why it persists: Gilmour + Big Muff is a correct association for other recordings. Players retrofit it onto every Gilmour tone because the association is generally true.

The myth

Santana's tone requires a Mesa Boogie.

The reality

The Mesa Boogie Mark I was central to Santana's tone from roughly 1971 onward and Randall Smith (Mesa's founder) has confirmed Santana was among the first players to use the amp. However, Santana's early Woodstock-era tone — arguably his most imitated — used a modified Fender Super Reverb and a Gibson SG. The Mesa association is real but post-dates the tone most players are trying to replicate.

Why it persists: The Mesa Boogie association is accurate for a large portion of Santana's career. Players apply a later-career fact to an earlier-career sound.

The myth

Slash's tone is a Les Paul into a Marshall, full stop.

The reality

The Appetite for Destruction tone used a rental 1959 Les Paul replica (the famous "Derrig" Les Paul) through a combination of Marshall Super Lead heads and, crucially, a Dunlop Cry Baby wah often left in a fixed position to add mid-frequency emphasis. The oft-omitted wah-in-fixed-position is a significant part of why that specific tone is hard to replicate. The "Les Paul into Marshall" formula is correct but incomplete.

Why it persists: The wah-in-fixed-position trick is unusual enough that it gets edited out of simplified recommendations. Two-piece formulas spread faster than three-piece ones.