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2 PLAY, DON’T WORRY Ronson had a few favorite instruments, but was never a slave to his gear. Early on, he often played instruments in various states of disrepair, from missing strings to cracked necks held together with gaffer’s tape, but still managed to get the job done. At 19, Ronson acquired his first “really playable guitar,” a Fender Telecaster, but it wasn’t long before he switched to the 1958 Gibson Les Paul Custom with which he became most often associated. By mid-1973, Melody Maker listed Ronson’s rig as three Les Paul Customs strung with Rotosounds (.009, .011, .014, .025, .035, .044) pumped through a Marshall Major 200-watt head and one 120-watt 4x12 Marshall cabinet loaded with Celestions, plus a Cry Baby wah and an American Tonebender formerly owned by Pete Townsend. Ronson’s less-seen ’70s instruments included a Carlos Robelli acoustic, a black Gibson SG Special, and a Fender Mustang. He was also fond of Fender Pro Reverb amps and often employed an Echoplex and later, a Roland Space Echo—not only for delay effects, but to add warmth and just a touch of grit by hitting the front end of his amps a little harder. Though he also grew to love Fender Stratocasters, the Tele eventually became Ronson’s go-to guitar for the duration of the ’70s through the ’80s, when his amp collection also expanded to include various Music Mans and Mesa/Boogies. Though he swapped out guitars and amps with regularity (he preferred stock models), the Cry Baby wah, which Ronson would click on and leave stationary after finding the pedal’s edge-of-feedback sweet spot, remained a key component of his sound throughout his career. Coming from one who waxed so many monstrous and memorable guitar tones, Ronson’s casual attitude towards the tools of his trade may seem surprising, but the bottom line is that he simply looked at his gear as a means to an end. “Sometimes, I wouldn’t think of what I was plugging into,” he told GP, “as long as it works.” Only a poor craftsman blames his tools!

devnulljp wrote: a different circuit with only 2 trannies.

snipelfritz wrote:OMG I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY PERSON WHO LOVED MICK RONSON

but I kinda feel like he's one of those players that half his sound just comes from his fingers.