Vega guitars serial numbers full#

Indeed, once the Schaffer-Vega was in connected, there, for the first time in 30 years, were those pure tones sought after by everyone. Olivieri: вЂњ Finally getting these units was a dream come true for me, as that sound had been haunting me almost all of my life. Awestruck by FilвЂ™s 30 year dedication and perseverance, KenвЂ™s last two remaining вЂњsouvenirвЂќ units were on their way from the back of his closet to a вЂњbetter home,вЂќ FilвЂ™s, in Rome. Not without some hesitation, Fil finally reached Ken Schaffer вЂ“ pleading for SchafferвЂ™s help in getting his hands on one of these magical units. The Schaffer-Vega system introduced a new twist to a process called вЂњcompanding.вЂќ Angus used the SVDSвЂ™ proprietary processing and companding to shape his sound and create his unmistakable signature. Less known is the fact that many SVDS users took their units into the studio with them and recorded with it. The Schaffer-Vega Diversity System (SVDS) had already succeeded in its raison dвЂ™ГЄtre: revolutionizing rock вЂn roll staging. It is really the case with Angus, who began using it from 1977 to at least 1984 (documented), in the studio, recording with it all the solos and overdubbing some rhythm parts of Powerage, Highway To Hell, Back in Black, For Those About To Rock and Flick Of The Switch. The Schaffer-Vega Diversity System was used by many artists of the magic era of the 1970s, even in the studio. What could be there in a wireless system that would cause Angus Young to use it even in the studio, just feet from his amps? It may sound sort of strange that a wireless system may be worthy of just an audio circuitry replication. What? Why had Olivieri never heard mention of this before? He scoured the globe trying to find one of these elusive 40 year old units. I have used the remote in the studio and it worked really good.вЂќ You can really give a guitar hell with вЂem. On the receiver youвЂ™ve got like a monitor switch you can boost the signal and in the transmitter youвЂ™ve got the same sort of thing. A question was asked about the recording of AC/DCвЂ™s iconic Back in Black album: вЂњDo you use any effects?вЂќ YoungвЂ™s reply was вЂњ I just have a Schaffer-Vega wireless system.вЂќ That next month, in Guitar World Magazine, he elaborated: вЂњ Yeah, I use the Schaffer-Vega. But something was missingвЂ¦Д®ventually, he happened onto a 1984 interview with Angus Young in Guitar Player magazine (вЂњAngus Young: SeriouslyвЂќ, Guitar Player, February 1984).

In pursuit of that sound for that long, Olivieri had bought and duplicated every piece of equipment Angus was known to use. SVDS artists вЂ“ including AC/DC вЂ“ were forced to move onвЂ¦ the legendary вЂњSchaffer SoundвЂќ slipped into obscurity.ДЄcross the world, in Rome, renowned AC/DC aficionado Fil вЂњSoloDallasвЂќ Olivieri had been obsessed by Angus YoungвЂ™s signature tone for more than 30 years. Soon, new, stricter FCC regulations on wireless specifications prohibited fully-analog wireless systems of its caliber from being used. Schaffer ceased production of the Schaffer-Vega Diversity System in 1982 to pursue other interests. SchafferвЂ™s wireless units became the system of choice for nearly every major artist of the mid-70s to mid-80s.

Notably, a mirror-image paired compressor and expander increased the radio circuitвЂ™s dynamic range to over 100 dB, 35 dB greater than the theoretical maximum that could otherwise previously be achieved within the bandwidth limits covering wireless systems by the US FCC.Д«eyond the staging freedom afforded by SchafferвЂ™s wireless, many A-list players discovered something unintended: the sonic result was pure magic! The wireless designвЂ™s unique preprocessing enriched their signal with copious amounts of harmonic content unlike anything theyвЂ™d ever heard. SchafferвЂ™s design incorporated ingenious pre-processing circuits to preserve the integrity of the wireless signal.

In mid-2014, three still-perfectly working units were cloned вЂ“ only their audio circuitry was вЂ“ to recreate as faithfully as possible the original sound of the Schaffer-Vega Diversity System. The SVDS was actually used well beyond 1981 (year of cessation of production), as it was a very well built unit. Many incredibly famous performers bought one (or two! Pink Floyd 20!) вЂ“ at the time extremely expensive.

Vega guitars serial numbers full#

The first prototypes saw light in 1976 and in 1977, full production was running. This unit changed the way Angus Young sounded and played.