How To Get That Eric Johnson Tone

Without a agnosticism Eric Johnson is one of the greatest guitarists of our time. His music and arena accept afflicted abounding guitarists and his amazing guitar tones accept shaped the face of avant-garde guitar sounds as we apperceive it.
Below are a few tips that may advice you get a bit afterpiece to that Eric Johnson tone.
Guitars
Eric Johnson is a lot of generally associated with best Fender Stratocaster's. In contempo years he has aswell added his Fender signature archetypal guitar to the mix, which, IMHO, is easily down the best off the shelf Fender Strat you can buy today. Ironically, the tune he is a lot of acclaimed for "Cliffs of Dover" was tracked on a Gibson ES-335. An important modification fabricated to his Stratocaster's is that the arch auto is active to the accent control. This allows him to cycle off some of the top end on this individual braid pickup.
Amps and Pedals
In general, his palette of tones can be torn down into one of three types: apple-pie rhythm, bedraggled rhythm, lead.
Eric Johnson's apple-pie tones consistently absorb some blazon of best Fender amp like a Deluxe or a Twin; generally run in stereo application a T.C. Electronic Stereo Chorus. If you accept a Fender amp try out Acute at 4.5, Middle at 8, Bass at 8 and Reverb on 4. He aswell uses adjournment furnishings (Echoplex and Memory Man). You accept abounding options for adjournment pedals. Try 380 milliseconds with 20-30% feedback.
Eric Johnson's bedraggled tones are based on blame the ability tube area on a non-master aggregate Marshall. At the volumes Eric runs his Marshalls there is already abundant acute and presence, so he tends to accumulate these set appealing low. Bass is set at about 5. You may not accept a best Marshall or the affluence to crank it, but the capital affair actuality is to administration in the high-end on your amp.
For his advance accent Eric uses an overdrive or down pedal into an already apprenticed amp. The layering of accretion stages is a key point if aggravating to accomplish a "clear", articulate, baloney complete with circuitous over tones. Eric uses a Chandler tube overdrive, a Down Face or a Tube Screamer. There are abounding clay box options on the bazaar - Experiment.
Picks
The cheapest and easiest affair you can do to get afterpiece to the "Eric Johnson tone" is to use the aforementioned aces he uses: a Dunlop Jazz III. Aside from aggravating to challenge his acrimonious technique, which is a affair for addition time, you will actual apprehension a aberration in the accent advancing out of your absolute rig if you just about-face to this pick.
One final accent secret; you will never complete absolutely like Eric Johnson and that's OK. Use these tips and his accent as an afflatus for award your own signature sound. Experiment and try altered things, afterwards all that is how Eric Johnson evolved(s) his tone.