Nail the ToneStevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble

Cold Shot

Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble · Couldn't Stand the Weather · 1984

The main riff is Number One through an EV-loaded blackface Fender Vibroverb driving a Fender Vibratone rotating cabinet, which is where the seasick wobble comes from — not a chorus pedal. Set the amp just at the edge of breakup and let pick attack do the rest; the Tube Screamer is a solo boost, not part of the rhythm sound. Tune down a half step or the shapes will be in the wrong key.

Where these numbers come from: worked out from the documented rig and the sound of the record

Tuning

Eb standard (down a half step)

Played in A minor shapes (Am7–Dm7–E7#9), sounding in Ab minor because of the half-step-down tuning; SRV used heavy strings, roughly .013–.058.

Part: Riff

Guitar

  • Fender Stratocaster "Number One" (1963 body, 1962 neck) · Fender single-coils (stamped 1959) · position 4 (neck + middle)

Amp

1964 Fender Vibroverb (EV-loaded) into Fender Vibratone

GAIN
6.0
BASS
4.0
TREBLE
5.5
REVERB
2.0

Volume 6 / treble 5½ / bass 4 are the dial positions tech Cesar Diaz said Vaughan used on essentially every amp; the blackface Vibroverb has no mid or presence control. Tech Rene Martinez confirmed an EV-loaded Vibroverb was the amp that powered the Vibratone rotating cabinet heard on this riff.

Amp

Fender Super Reverb (blackface, EV-loaded)

GAIN
6.0
BASS
4.0
MID
5.0
TREBLE
5.5
REVERB
2.0

Vaughan's amps were stacked in an isolation booth at the Power Station and blended; the Super Reverbs and a Dumble Steel String Singer were in the room for these sessions, but no source itemizes which amps were open on this specific track.

Pedals

  • Fender Vibratone · rotating speaker cabinet · Slow-to-medium rotor speed, running full-wet off the Vibroverb — this is the swirl on the main riff
  • Ibanez Tube Screamer (TS9) · overdrive / clean boost · Level near maximum, Drive around 2–3, Tone ~5; kicked in for the solo rather than the riff. Sources disagree over TS9 vs TS-808.
  • Roland SDD-320 Dimension D · studio chorus (rack) · Button 1–2, subtle; ridden in and out at the console on solos during mixdown

Tone character

clean edge of breakup · rotary Leslie swirl · strong Strat mids · single-coil bite · percussive muted attack · light spring reverb

medium

The riff itself sits in one position, but it lives or dies on a swung shuffle feel with tight palm-muted stabs, clean double-stops, and dead-note rakes between the notes.

Want this on your own amp?

These are the record's settings. Tell us what you play through and we'll translate every knob to the amp you actually own — free.

Adapt it to my gear

Sources