Song Rig

That Was Then, This Is Now

Andy Timmons · That Was Then, This Is Now · 2010

Tone Overview

What Makes This Sound Unique

Timmons' most mature album and his most compositionally sophisticated — the title track balances the emotional sustain of Cry for You with more complex harmonic movement. The AT100 and JCM800 combination is now at its most refined, with decades of dialing producing a tone that is simultaneously warm and precise.

Signal Chain

1Ibanez AT100 (refined after years of development)
2Marshall JCM800 (same amp, more experienced dialing)
3TC Electronic delays

Amp Settings

Gain / Volume7

Bass6

Mid7

Treble7

Reverb4

Slightly lower gain than the 2006 recordings — the 2010 Timmons tone has more note definition and less compression. The same fundamental rig but with more careful gain staging.

Technique

How to Play It

Compositional improvisation — the That Was Then album shows Timmons applying composition thinking to improvisation: planning the overall shape of a solo (intro, development, climax, resolution) before playing it, then executing within that structure.

Budget Alternative

Achievable With

Ibanez AT100 or Les Paul → Marshall JCM800 → before recording or playing a solo, sketch its overall shape: where does it start dynamically? Where is the peak? How does it resolve? Then improvise within that planned structure.

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