the INSANE amp Kurt Cobain used to record clean tones on in utero
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- Nirvana's In Utero clean tones are hands down my favorite guitar tones. I've spent to last 2 year years trying to figure it out, and with the help of Earnie Bailey (Kurt Cobain's former guitar tech) I was able to finally get it. Here's the story behind it.
Special shoutout to @isaiahgamervw7306 for helping me find pics of Kurts sound tech 2x12 cabinet!
Hey everyone! I’ve seen a ton of comments asking about the music in the video and where to find it. It’s all my own music I’ve been working on. So that’s why Shazam isn’t finding anything!
Ah! Well, it rips. Kudos!
Dawg you need to release an album please 🙏
Ahhhh!! Nice
When do you release it?
need those songs on Tidal
This whole _In Utero_ tone journey has been incredible to witness-is there anything left to uncover?
pls free kurt mustang
Just those amp schematics I suppose, hopefully Earnie gives the go ahead sometime soon.
You know your right tone , John peel session tone
@@UltraZombiethe ykyr tone is very close to the in utero tone with some tidying up in the production
@RevertFlip It's got a similar vibe for sure but the YKYR tone is a lot brighter with less focus on that grindy low midrange of In Utero. Pretty sure the pedal was an Ibanez Turbo Tubescreamer or something like that. Great sounds either way!
Dude, I love the production quality of your videos. More importantly though, I love the substance of them. It's not just a bunch of useless filler dribble wrapped up with a shiny bow around it.
The production quality is film studio documentary level. The intro scene made me think 'how is this guy is "just" a youtuber??'
Thanks - that means a lot!
@@lippi2171 seriously!
Definitely dope production.....Aaron has skill.
@@lippi2171 well he shoots on an Arri Alexa so… there’s that! 😮
If Earnie sold those Frankenstein amps he’d def make a lot.
I agree - I suggested this to him actually
I wonder how close it would sound to just slap a 12au7 or two in the preamp section of a Marshall, I’ll have to try it sometime.
if he did he could also hook up with Synergy and offer a module that goes clean and then superlead
@@AaronRashIf he doesn't, I hope you can share the specs some day if/when he gives the green light. Its kind of disappointing to watch the video only to discover that we don't get to know what produces the tone.
@@thomasclevelandI am far from nailing it as I don’t have the speakers and guitar but I was able to get in some sort of ball park with my Headrush by using a Plexi turning the normal volume to like 5 % and high volume to like 15% and then using a clean boost **after** the amp but before the speaker. He did note that it basically cut the gain down significantly, but without a mod like that you lose so much volume but at least digitally a clean boost remedies this. Perhaps a similar strategy with whatever gear you have at home may work with this. I’m curious to try the impulses when he has them available.
In my 34 years of brainless UA-cam scrolling, this video is the first one that really gets to me. It's the story, cinematography, our mutual love for music and some mystic sauce.
This is great, man. This is genuine cinema for the audiophile.
I'm pretty sure you haven't been scrolling through YT for 34 years... Brainlessly or otherwise.
It doesn't annoy you that he could've just fixed it in the mixer EQ?
this is peak youtube. it's like i'm watching a movie. we can see your soul and passion through your videos. it's amazing
Ok, so this is just the coolest fucking channel of all time.
That is exactly how I feel after watching this!!
it only gets better
you and Nirvana Guitars should totally collab
No disrespect to NirvanaGuitars, but Aaron is way out of their league
nirvana guitars not that close to the tone of nirvana
@@jessielike2maybe the tone isn’t the exact same but at the same time eric doesn’t really fiddle with amps
100%, the combination of eric’s guitars and aaron’s equipment would be legendary
that shows the genius of kurt. 2-3 ppl need to collab to get his tone 20 years later
Your video's make my day man, tysm for all the time and effort you put in making these.
Holy shit! It is so crazy, that you were able to get hands on mic that Kurt used. Every video is on a totally different level. I am absolutely speechless. Just WOW.
People don't realize the art of recording. Musicians, Equipment, Room, Microphone types and placement, Engineer/producer and so on and so forth. Love it
The whole overall studio is a whole other overall instrument in itself. A lot of people don't realize this.
My skin was tingling when you got the tone just right, you can feel the connection to the music in that exact tone at some core emotional level. Thanks for taking us on the journey with you.
I just came across this video through a friend and my gosh…
There’s just something about it that hooked it to me. The production, the transitions, the story behind it has such a mystique and special kind of mood around it that is just absolutely wonderful.
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this
Your videos are very interesting, it’s almost like a deep down of a Nirvana mystery that not everyone knows or doesn’t know, love how you bring it out to other people, especially for Nirvana fans❤
This was one of the coolest videos I've seen in awhile.
This is amazing wow!
Shoulda named it the Kurt & Earnie!!!
This was really cool to watch!
Cobarnie
Have the head and the small cab and name them Kurt and Earnie
First gear video I've seen that looks like it was filmed with legit film production cameras. Audio is great as well. Thanks so much for this!
i've waited for your video everyday
Same bro
Same 😭
This dude takes so long to upload but it's so worth jt
@@pollyslate456
Well it ain't cheap
man you're incredible you really show how much love you put into those videos and in music, sincerely thanks man
i cant wait for the day you release some of your original stuff its so good!! love the cinematography n everything on this as always
You should start making amps for sale. I'd love to buy an actual Frankenamp like that. The clean tones matter to me the most and I love those clean tones!
dude your dedication and persistence are mind boggling to me. I'm so proud of you for finally getting it though, after reaching for the tone for so long.
Heya man, you're getting very close to Kurt's sound. I was lucky enough to see Nirvana live in Germany in 1989. Thanks for taking the time to figure this out.
These videos are so good man. All I know is that you have a whole army of people wanting to get their hands on the IR pack and Guitar. Proud of you bro this is quality content
Clean sound is spot on. Sounds awesome. I’m glad Earnie shared it with you. It’s perfect clean tone
OMG! This is so amazing! What a great story. Thank you so much for all the effort that went into making this video. I think it's amazing that you were able to create an identical amp. I had no idea that there were kits out there in the world! I look forward to everything else you post. Thank you for posting!
Perfect cinematography along with an incredibly detailed journey of rediscovering nirvana history, this video was crazy, the effort into building a totally new amp 1:1 to Earnie’s, the American idiot tone surprised me but Rape Me literally blew me away I was in awe sounds 100% the same even without the aluminium guitar, so much has been discovered and this is a gift to Nirvana fans, extremely grateful to Earnie, Steve, you and everybody who contributed in this project, very excited about the U47! Love you and your videos! A sincere thank you for keeping Nirvana alive.
I always love reading your comments, its been a journey, you've been here since the beginning, thanks for all the love and support!!
I remember back in the day trying to replicate the clean tone on "Rape Me." I wish UA-cam and this video existed back in the day. Thank you for sharing your journey on achieving the tone.
It's such a weird tone - but I love it!
I remember the tip back in the day was to hit your distortion pedal but turn your volume nearly all the way down on the guitar itself.
Yeah, not quite!
I’ve been binge watching your channel over and over again for the past few days and this popped up in my notifications ❤
Dude keep em coming no matter what it's about love your style/channel! Been waiting for a while for this 😂
So much ambition wrapped up in a chill vibe. Crazy that's how Cobain got his very plain and honest clean tone. There's a warmth there and a nice mid-rangey ness. Shoutout to your own recorded tunes in this video.
Great video, in every aspect! The song at 12:20, is that your own or what is it?
Such a soul grabbing tune!
Cheers from Sweden.
I'm curious too!
me three@@zpope9
up
fascinating story. that had to be satisfying to figure out the riddle and make the sound work out like you knew it could be done. i'm a 1991 high school grad, so their music was part of many of my blurry memories.
Just think about Kurt watching from the sky above seeing a young man doing everything to chase his guitar sound. He would be proud of you Aaron! Superb video as always :)
Thanks for paring your years-long efforts down to less than 15 minutes! Your studio time machine and this tale are inspiring.
Mr. Rash has came to us with another vid 🙏. you're like a blessing to the nirvana community man, thank you for everything you're doing. the clean tone is sooo amazing, eargasm. looking forward to new videos!!
Your obsession with getting a certain tone and your tireless pursuit... man is so inspiring, thank you and congratulations!
Yes! New vid! Keep up the amazing work!
I feel like Kurt would appreciate you’re dedication man this is awesoy
Hey Aaron, hope this message finds you well. Man…I’ve been following this journey you’ve been on, from pretty close to the beginning.
Well done brotha. Super cool stuff. Also love (as many do) the video journal style and overall production value of the content. I also appreciate that you don’t bombard your audience w/ unnecessary videos just to maintain “consistent content output”. It makes your content more interesting and valuable when a video is posted, as it contains an actual development. Feel like that makes the content a bit more special when it’s launched. Anyways, above and beyond all that, I’ve also loved the grape me tone for along time and whenever it’s come on have wondered what made it sound so distinct when they tracked it. I’m not sure if this’ll be useful but I wanted to offer something anecdotal for consideration. Granted it might be a little too late, but if you haven’t already completed the IR sessions yet at Lang’s studio..throw that Coles 4038 on the 2x12. I saw a 4038 in the b-roll and thought I’d throw it out there as conjecture..that mic absolutely has a sound. It’s dark and has a good low end thump to it. The intro guitar has that dark, subdued top, smooth mid, and full low/low-mid (that somehow remains really clear) tonality that I’ve always associated w/ that intro gtr track. Suffice to say this is simply a suspicion…but I think it’d be worth a shot. The intro guitar is pretty dark, a little scoopy, and the sonic signature of that mic to me at least checks off all the boxes for what we hear on the record. Obviously it’s not all the mic, signal chains are cumulative but…might be worth a try.
Cheers,
- Izzy
Hey Izzy, thanks for all the awesome words, that means so much! You're right about the 4038, it's an absolute god of a mic. It sounds huge on everything, Don't worry I will definitely throw it on the 2x12
yo bro, your studio and equipment setup is insane, thanks for this video🙏
That track starting at 11:58 seriously needs to be a whole thing of its own!
Yesssss
The drums and drum pattern and everything
Absolutely!! I need this track in my life!
Great guitar tone, and awesome research. Your wife is definitely a champ for coming along for the journey to get the Hi Watt lol
Damn, I thought I was a Nirvana nerd. You put me to shame. Love this video. Great storytelling and production value. What's the dark song at the 11:50 mark? Love it and need to hear more.
I would buy that music @aaron rush
Can we have more?
This video is so beautifully made. I just stumbled across it in my feed, and I'm really glad it I did.
Nice, a new video on my birthday, this is honestly one of the best gifts possible
happy birthday!
Happy birthday!
@@AaronRash thanks 🥰
@@thesheaves27 thanks =)
@@BrunaHera 👍
That was one hell of a job, brotha. Hats off to ya!💯💥
It's funny, I thought I was the only one on Earth who loved that grain of the clean tones on In Utero, never being able to find it again. You are a god to me for investigating all this research!!
Thank you Dave! Yeah it reminds me of a guitar coming through my grandmas AM radio, truly unique!
@@AaronRash until today I always thought it was like a 10w practice amp
@@AaronRash ahaha there is something of that order there! I don't know what you think about it but I find that we get closer to this sound in the live on French television of "Nul Part Ailleurs" (just 30 years ago), the clean tone of Rape Me is really excellent and yet it's not at all the same equipment that is used, what do you think? This tone makes me so crazy lol. At the end of your video I also wanted to point out that your acoustic composition, I love it, the sound is so pure, you have a real treasure in front of you, this microphone... I'm impatiently waiting for your impulse responses my friend, at the end of your video it's not clear what's written because it advertises your avatar and a video to watch, so it hides but I I understood that it was going to be released shortly!!
@@eddominatesthat is a pretty common way to do it so in lieu of some white whale amp, that’s what I would do.
This is the best UA-cam video I watched this year. Bro didn't even released his songs and I'm already addicted to it
Are the songs yours? E.g. at 12:00? Love that song and sound! Wish I could listen to the whole thing. Same with the acoustic bit at the end. Is there a chance to listen to it somewhere?
+1 ....... I'm searching these comments for clues about that song
Not just a great story, it's a great film too. It's shot and edited so well, it's a joy to watch.
Oh baby here we go.
I was so surprised when I saw a new video and it is one of the videos I love. I continuously watch the amp videos. I don't know what it is but I am obsessed with them. Godly Videos
My GOD. That IS it!!! The back to backs are like the same exact recording!!!
It's cool seeing how generations can ask love the same thing and it means so much to do many in such different ways. Your pursuit of a tone. My trip to Carolina 30 plus some years apart. Same album. Nearly the same sense of resolution. It's wild man.
what is the tracks starting at 4:44 and 12:18 THEYRE AMAZING Also congrats on the tone really happy for you
12:18 is something I‘d also like to know!
Me too!
This video is the definition of passion, love your work!
what's that song snippet at 12:15?
It's better than almost everything on In Utero
Wow!!! YNYR is maybe my favorite Nirvana song. I've had the isolated tracks for some years now and listen to them one by one obsessively very often. Great to get to see the studio and that mic and you fixing it and singing with it....thanks for the vids!!
That’s DEAD ON. such a great video.
Super super interesting! Thanks for putting in all this effort! I've always thought the In Utero clean sound was super weird. Overly bassy, but not muffled, just really strange. Very very cool!
that first driving song is dope, u should leave a tracklist in bio or some links
thanks! it's a random song I have to complete
please complete the song it is awesome, got goosebumps while listening@@AaronRash
Love this, super engaging, well shot, and most importantly, beautiful sounding. Thank you!! Really strikes an emotional chord.
Thank you for the great content. A new fan. My take out: kurt cobain was a tone wizard like Van Halen.
So amazing what you accomplished, Aaron. Kudos! Pure gold to all KC fans.
Whats the song during @4:44?
This channel has some of the most beautifully shot videos on all of UA-cam - the thumbnails are works of art themselves!
Will you ever release full original songs? I really like the snippets you put in your videos and I'm sure more of us would like to listen to maybe a whole album of your original works!
It’s crazy that after all this time, you’re the only person in the world to figure out how he got the sound. From all of us nirvana fans in the world, thank you so much!
What's the name of the song at 12:10? Thanks
Gosh Thank you !! I am in love with all the work you do. I've been following you for years and I'm sure you might be someone in the music world. I wish you a career that pleases us with your tone but especially your talent.
Wow, thank you!
bro is so accurate that this video is at risk for copyright infringement
This is the first time over ever stumbled on your channel. I haven’t even looked at any of your other videos, but I subscribed right away. This is outstanding, even in a world filled with incredible content already
The real secret to recreating Kurt's guitar tones is the incredible support of your awesome wife.
Great video! I like the dedication and eventhough i thought i dont care about the clean tone of In Utero I became interested in the process
12:18 that song sounded awesome?
Is that available anywhere?
first time viewer by chance. not sure how you are connected and have the ability to get your hands on, let alone be allowed to fix music history so props my friend. Thx for sharing
Aaron, just found your channel and really impressed and grateful for the time and effort you've put into this quest, across speakers, tone and classic music. really enjoyed your vids and insights. quality stuff, cheers mate!
Let’s take a minute to thank Aaron’s wife, I don’t think we’d have these videos if she wasn’t so supportive 🎉
You're totally right 😂
@@AaronRash 😁🥳
Thanks Aaron's wife!
It may be hard to believe, but you support.. actually helps others learn
ALOT of priceless information ...
Your
Thank you wife. You're the real deal.
great journey researching these tones and I really liked your tunes. looking forward to listening in the apps.
What’s the name of the song which starts at 11:50 and where can I listen to it?
have you found it?
@@zygis881 no, check Aaron’s pinned comment
Great content. I admire how dedicated you were finding that tone/amp. Also big props to your awesome wife for being so supportive to your passion. Cheers and rock on!
Beautiful name for the amp
The fact you got that microphone is actual insanity, it's not just any microphone Kurt used to sing with, it's the microphone used on Nirvana's last recorded song ever, that to me makes it that much more special.
Ill never understand ppl who wont ship amps. Like how do you think they got from the factory to stores? If shipped right theres no problem, and if youre that concerned you can spend the money and get someone that specializes in that kind of thing instead of UPS or fedex.
dude, your commitment for finding tone is unlike any other I've seen. It's so awesome watching you finally find all the different tones, and sounds you've been searching for. I've gotten into guitar almost a year ago, and I'm on the hunt of trying to find a tone that's perfect for me. I'm a huge Weezer fan, and their tones on the Blue Album is something I've been wanting to achieve but crunchier, as I love a good heavy, crunchy, yet fuzzy guitar sound. something similar to what they did for their song "In The Garage" and in The Rentals song "Friends of P.". You're basically the reason why I've been looking for this tone since I watch the Holy Grail Nirvana Jag video. Your videos rock dude, love to watch them.
Enjoyed the video, thank you! Can you tell me what the music at 12:00 is?
Wow bro. Your dedication is amazing. I'm 42 and I remember when Kurt died. Thank you and from Iceland. Takk fyrir
Hey @AaronRash
Myself and my Cobain obsessed 6 year old have been following your journey for the past 2 years. He literally woke me up at 7am this morning playing Rape Me on his strat, desperately trying to figure out the intro clean tone. He'll be thrilled to see this in the morning. Not so thrilled that we'll never get the tone without those secret schematics.
Your videos have been an absolute treasure to us, all the way over here in Seattle-like Ireland.
Cannot wait for the Aluminium guitars and IR pack to be ready. You did the best marketing campaign for them I've ever seen. Amazing authenticity, something a cult following can get behind and a great story.
And a huge high five to your partner in crime. She seems awesome.
Finally... Can you please hurry up and get your tunes onto Spotify? That Serve the Servants cover in particular sounds like it's going to be epic and your originals sound amazing.
I AM AMAZED BY YOUR EDITING STYLE AND THE BREAK DOWNS YOU DO BROOOO!!! Love your vids man. I would LOVE to see you tackle the Roseland Ballroom tone!!
Please share the amp schematics. We really want to know what mods the amp had and why it sounds the way it does.
Earnie and I were talking over instagram and it looks like his page is down - I didn't get a chance to ask him about sharing anything before the fact, so as much as I would really love sharing the mods, it wouldn't be right for me to share his work without his permission
Today the intro riff just wandered through my head and i forgot where i heard it but then i found out and here i am again. Hope you made this into a full song
What song is @12:00
What a studio!”
What are your rates?
leaving comment here incase someone replies
Dude, the quality of your production and story is seriously next level. Great job!
Let me guess. You did not changed the 12AX7 for 12AU7 for less gain. Instead you removed all the bypass cathode capacitors in the preamp. Making V1 a full range amp, and every other triode having 20x less gain. Making the amp less gainy so less noisy perfect for cleans.
Definitely sounds like that to me.
I love the level of dedication you put into this. very inspiring
Does anyone know the song at 4:40 ?
hey man, i’m so stoked you found the in utero clean tones. Love your music and singing too!!
Bro spent so much money on reverb they’ve commented 😂😂😂
Awesome video! You nailed it. There’s something about the hunt and the lengths we go to for guitar tone.