Tube amp loyalist and gear aficionado John Mayer has once again demonstrated his increasing affection for digital guitar gear by turning up to play at Coachella with an amp modeler – but it wasn’t one he has ever been spotted playing before.
On Sunday (April 13), the electric guitar giant joined German DJ and producer Zedd to perform two songs: Automatic Yes – a Zedd track Mayer features on – and Mayer’s own song, New Light, which was released in 2018.
For the short guest performance, though, the PRS signature artist opted against wheeling out his entire rig (it would have been entirely impractical to do so) and instead played through, for the first time on stage, a Neural DSP Quad Cortex.
As per the John Mayer’s Gear Instagram page, for the two-song cameo Mayer partnered his Faded Black Tee Satin Silver Sky with the acclaimed QC, which had been attached to what looked to be D’Addario’s XPND pedalboard.
Those familiar with Mayer’s guitar gear will be aware this isn’t the first time the guitarist has played through an amp modeler, either on stage or in the studio. At 2019’s Coachella, he performed with Khalid through a Fractal Axe-Fx III, and two years later he used a Fractal to record parts of Sob Rock.
Not only that, Mayer also reportedly owns a Kemper Profiler for casual use, and used a Fractal while supporting Ed Sheeran in 2023.
It is, however, the first time Mayer has opted to use the Neural DSP Quad Cortex in this capacity. Whether that means he’s decided to ditch his trusty Fractals altogether, or whether this was a one-time-only thing, it remains to be seen.
It also remains to be seen whether this is the start of a formal partnership with Neural DSP. Did the team use their T.I.N.A robot to model Mayer’s hugely sought-after and beloved Dumble-loaded rig? The tones, by all accounts (footage is yet to surface online) were on point during the set, so it’s not entirely out of the question.
All we’re saying is a Neural DSP Archetype: John Mayer would be the real deal. Highly unlikely, but we can dream.
“Incredible night at @coachella sitting in with @zedd for a couple of tunes,” Mayer wrote on Instagram after the show. “What a night! Massive crowd, absolutely locked with his every musical move, incredible crew, just a really great experience from rehearsal to soundcheck to show. Thanks Zedd for the opportunity to feel that energy. I’m inspired.”
Mayer has clearly been warming to developing digital amp modelers over the past few years. Back in 2021, he said amp modelers “don’t quite understand gain structure”, and claimed that such devices struggled to translate harmonic information as well as tube amps do.
However, he clearly has been won over by Neural DSP and Fractal in recent years, and earlier this year Mayer told Guitar World that he believed every young player should consider buying a Universal Audio Enigmatic ’82 Overdrive Special – an amp modeler inspired by a Dumble.
Neural DSP has been approached for comment.
