“For the most part, new products in the pedal world are just different colored housings of the same circuits we’ve all been using for decades”: What does a Dumble-whispering tone nut keep on his pedalboard? Ask Kenny Wayne Shepherd...

KWS is a connoisseur of tone, but less enthusiastic about pedalboard tap dancing. Here he discusses his essentials, the old-school sounds he’s looking for and why the King Of Tone is the king.

“The recipe is, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. A number of different things have come out, but I think we can universally agree that, for the most part, the new products in the pedal world are just different colored housings of the same circuits we’ve all been using for decades.

“I’m using a primitive setup, but I haven’t had many problems with it or had to make many repairs to it over the years. It comes from a need – or a desire – not to have to tap dance quite so much.

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“For most of my show, I can get through with just the guitar and a couple of pedals – that’s it. Most of my tone is just the guitar and the amp – but every single one of these pedals makes an appearance once or twice.

“I have a Boss TU-3 [Chromatic] tuner in the middle. On the one side, I’ve found that the Ibanez TS808 Tube Screamer works great as an overdrive, and my AnalogMan King of Tone overdrive is a staple in every pedalboard configuration I’ve ever had since that pedal came out.

“I’ve got a [Thomas Vox] Clyde McCoy wah and a Roger Mayer Spaceship version of the Octavia [fuzz]. I’ve used different ones over the years – and I have an original one – but the Roger Mayer is supposed to have a circuit that’s authentic. Then I’ve got the [Sir Henry by Tinsley Audio] Univibe.

“My tech, Dustin Sears, makes those; it’s the most faithful recreation of the vintage style you’ll find anywhere. On the other side of the pedalboard, I’ve got an AnalogMan [Standard] Chorus. It’s two choruses in one; I can also have a slow speed for a Leslie sound and a regular chorus.”

“I’ve also got a Free the Tone [Ambi Space] Digital Reverb and a Free the Tone [Flight Time] Digital Delay. The whole thing is controlled by two Voodoo Lab [Pedal Power x4 4-output Isolated Pedalboard] power supplies and a Voodoo Lab pedal-selector switching system. Like I said, it’s a primitive setup.

“I put that on the board when I was experimenting with them when they first came out in the early 2000s. It’s working fine and has been relatively bulletproof. It takes up a lot of real estate, and my board could be much smaller without it, but it works, it’s programmed with what I want it to do, and I don't have to worry about it.”

If I had to choose only one pedal for a full show...

“The King of Tone pedal – without a doubt!”

• Young Fashioned Ways is out now via Deep Rush.
• This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.