Aaron Marshall Schooled Us at the Schecter HQ

Ryan got to sit down with Aaron Marshall at the Schecter HQ and dive deep! We learned all about the guitars he has released with Schecter (and more coming). Aaron also spilled some of his pre-show rituals and tips to help the new guitarists of the world. Oh, We also learned about his friendship with Wolfgang Vanhalen — who may or may not have called Aaron his favorite guitarist. 

Aaron connected with Schecter in 2021. He remembered, “It’s one of those things when you get the call, how do you say no!?” Aaron was familiar with Schecter, and he was consistently blown away by the quality of their American guitars. He loved the fit and finishes, the fret work, and the overall consistency the brand could deliver. He knew prior to getting the call that if he ever got that opportunity, it was a definite yes.

Aaron seems to love more than just the guitars at Schecter. He likes the company too. He said, “Schecter has been the easiest in terms of interfacing with a company. On the guitar side of the industry, it's important to find a company that believes in the artist, or in this case me and having a company believe in what you do.” 

When you do get that call to make a guitar, it also matters who’s on the other line. He specifically liked the attitude of Adam from Schecter and other people who have worked with them in the past. To Aaron, it was a no brainer.

Ryan was curious about what the building process was like and if they ever said no to his ideas. Aaron mentioned that the first two renditions of his guitars process were more structured with presets and specific goals in mind, but Schecter was always open to more creative ideas. “The answer is rarely no… But I think moving forward there are some exciting conversations happening currently where the answer ‘no’ has not currently presented itself in any of those conversations, which is amazing.”

Aaron stated, “We did the diamond series guitar with US pickups which is the red thread between both series, and the voicing is ultimately the most important part. The physicality of a guitar is one thing, but the pickups are a microphone that hear all the nuances and idiosyncrasies of how you touch a guitar and play the guitar and what you expect to hear from the guitar. The ability to influence the voice through the pickups was really important, and we spent a lot of time working on it.” 

Both series rock the Alnico 8 in the bridge and the Alnico 6 in the neck, which was a combo that they came to after a ton of testing. Aaron wanted a muscular humbucker that was snappy and immediate with a modern feel that doesn’t have a wicked-high output.

Ryan and Aaron agree about how the pickups sound transparent. They pick up everything Aaron says. “It almost has an ASMR quality to the high end… You have stainless steel frets, you have a hi-fi kind of bridge especially in the low register.” They have a three way switch and two humbuckers, but there’s a ton happening under the hood. “It lets me kind of get into that place where you can’t really tell what the pickup configuration is.” It’s perfect for the riff and lead style Aaron prefers. It gives the same energy of a good singer in front of a good microphone: You want to amplify what your hands and your ears crave. It allows for the guitar to be predictable!

We had to ask for some of the best guitar shredding tips and pre show rituals! Aaron wasn’t shy; he gave us the full scoop!

His number-one tip was to practice warming up on the fly — sometimes even without an amp. “Warming up on the instrument without a practice amp or being able to monitor yourself.” Sometimes you only have about 10 minutes with the guitar, and you might not have that kind of time to warm yourself up in perfect conditions. “You might have to warm up quickly in a hallway right before you walk out on stage.” Being ready for anything is a lot more realistic and helpful than getting completely “zen” in your green room or the bus. It's not sustainable or reliable.

Aaron also mentioned that you should be practicing your left hand, then your right hand, and then they should lock in together or “have a conversation with each other.” He specifically mentions getting your left hand online is very important and showed us some exercises we can do on the fretboard: a total finger stretcher! 

His final note was all about mindset. “Tension is the enemy. If your odds are 50/50 that a line is  gonna come out good, you can let fate determine it and tilt towards negativity, or you can relax and deliver with the least amount of power necessary. You don’t have to force it. You have to will the guitar, as it does all the work! The more you relax and let the machine do its job, you can turn those 50/50 odds to a 60/40 or maybe a 70/30!

Aaron just so happens to be great friends with Wolfgang Van Halen. Can YOU imagine that? Aaron can’t either! “It’s still a hard one to wrap my head around. Wolfie’s the best. Interval’s got to support Mammoth as well in 2024. He is just a great human being and went out of his way to do that for me. He’s been a big champion for my music and for me and my team.”

Aaron thanks Wolfgang and mentions that he is one of his favorite people he knows. He cherishes his friendship and for what he’s done for him as well as his music and reputation. 

Aaron's admiration for Wolfgang is so genuine! “He’s a machine of inspiration himself, possibly due to his genes, but definitely because of his hard work and dedication and just being who he is. He earned everything he has himself with a lifetime of experience to back it up.” 

This bromance started back when Wolfgang mentioned the Circadia album in Guitar World Magazine to be his favorite record from the pandemic album time period, which is how they got to know each other on a personal level. Aaron said, “I was beside myself. I couldn’t believe he would take the time to do that. He has worn an interval shirt in places I could never imagine. He also showed myself and my parents the demos to the album that's out now.” Aaron says he feels blessed.

We might not be able to help you play like Aaron Marshall, or become besties with Wolfgang Van Halen, but we can help you at least sound like him with all the Schecter guitars and gear you could ever want! Check out all the latest Schecter releases, along with some Aaron Marshall signature models, right here at AMS.

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