The Edgar Winter Group · Album, 1973
They Only Come Out at Night
10 sourced items across 5 sectionsVerified2Reported8
This is an album-level record: the sources describe how the album as a whole was recorded, not one song. Where a detail belongs to a single song, the row says so.
Songs this record stands for: Frankenstein, Free Ride. We found nothing specific to these songs, so this album record is the closest account we have.
What the sources do and do not say
One Mix Classic Tracks article (first printed July 2011) on Frankenstein and the album sessions at The Hit Factory. Song-specific gear is the ARP 2600, wah-wah pedal, The Cube and timbales; the layout, tape machine and console are album-level. Microphones and preamps are not named, and the second guitar overdub gives no model.
Guitar
2 items
Ronnie Montrose
Instrument
The real chain
Gibson Les Paul
Reported
Montrose's guitar, set up to the left of the room. (recalled with uncertainty)
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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No plugin suggested. A guitar is the source of the sound, not a process applied to it. No plugin stands in for it.
Amplifier
The real chain
Marshall Amplifier (model not stated)
Reported
Montrose's amp, miked at the cone and usually pulled back a foot or so, further back the louder the band played. (recalled with uncertainty)
- Position
- Miked at the cone, typically pulled back about a foot to a foot and a half
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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Covers this kind of unit
IK Multimedia AmpliTube 5
amp and cabinet simulator
An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear.
Also worth a look 1
- Native Instruments Guitar Rig 7 Pro (An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear)
Bass
1 item
Dan Hartman
Instrument
The real chain
Fender Precision Bass
Reported
Hartman's bass, set up at the far left of the room. (recalled with uncertainty)
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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No plugin suggested. A bass guitar is the source of the sound, not a process applied to it. No plugin stands in for it.
Drums and timbales
2 items
Chuck Ruff
Instrument
The real chain
Ludwig Drum kit (model not stated)
Reported
Ruff's kit, with one rack tom and two floor toms, screened off in the far right corner of the room. (recalled with uncertainty)
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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Approximate
Toontrack Superior Drummer 3
drum instrument
A sampled drum instrument. It does not claim to be this kit or drum.
The real chain
Unidentified Timbales (model not stated)
VerifiedOne song
Winter switched to timbales for the recording instead of the two drum kits he used onstage.
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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Approximate
Toontrack Superior Drummer 3
drum instrument
A sampled drum instrument. It does not claim to be this kit or drum.
ARP 2600 synthesiser
3 items
Edgar Winter
Amplifier
The real chain
Recorded direct (DI), no amplifier
Reported
The ARP was recorded both direct and through a miked amp.
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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No plugin suggested. Recorded direct, so there is no amp to model. Leave the amp simulator off.
Input chain
The real chain
Unidentified Wah-wah pedal (model not stated)
ReportedOne song
Winter put a wah-wah pedal on the synth sound during the solo.
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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Approximate
Native Instruments Guitar Rig 7 Pro
amp and cabinet simulator
Includes a range of modelled pedals. Whether this exact pedal is among them was not checked.
Mix effects
The real chain
Unidentified The Cube
VerifiedOne song
A small device Szymczyk had, used to give the ARP a boxy small-room sound, with the processed sound on one channel and the unprocessed sound on the other.
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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No plugin suggested. The source does not name the model, so no specific plugin can be suggested.
Recording medium and console
2 items
Input chain
The real chain
Ampex 1000 16-track
Reported
The tape machine on which the album was recorded, onto 2-inch tape.
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
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Approximate
Slate Digital Virtual Tape Machines
tape
Models two Studer machines, not this recorder. It gives the general behaviour of analogue multitrack tape.
Also worth a look 1
- Universal Audio Studer A800 Tape Recorder (Models a Studer A800, not this recorder. It gives the general behaviour of analogue multitrack tape)
The real chain
Unidentified Custom console (somewhere between API and Trident)
Reported
The Hit Factory control room's custom desk, described by Derringer as sitting between an API and a Trident. (recalled with uncertainty)
Source: Mix, accessed 15 Nov 2026
Get the sound · our suggestion
No plugin suggested. The source does not name the model, so no specific plugin can be suggested.
Sources
- Classic Tracks: The Edgar Winter Group's "Frankenstein", Mix, 2011-07. Accessed 15 Nov 2026.
What the ratings mean
Stated by the engineer, producer or artist, or by the manufacturer.
Stated by a reputable secondary source.
An educated suggestion, not a documented fact.
Disclosure: plugin links currently go straight to the maker and earn us nothing. If that changes, affiliate links will be marked here. Suggestions are chosen on fit, never on commission, and are kept separate from the recording facts. More.