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Independent research by truerecs. Not affiliated with, endorsed or verified by The Doors. Every item links to its public source.
27 items · Last checked

What gear does The Doors use?

Robby Krieger played Gibson SGs, including a 1964 SG Special on Light My Fire, through a Fender Twin Reverb. Ray Manzarek was seen with a Vox Continental organ and a Fender Rhodes Piano Bass, John Densmore has said he loved Ludwig drums, and Jim Morrison sang into a Telefunken U47.

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AllTop 5Robby Krieger: guitarRay Manzarek: keyboardsJohn Densmore: drumsJim Morrison: vocalsJerry Scheff: studio bass (L.A. Woman)
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What gear The Doors uses: a sourced gear guide

Independent research by truerecs: every item links to the public source it comes from.

Robby Krieger: guitar

15 items

Ray Manzarek: keyboards

2 items

John Densmore: drums

5 items

Jim Morrison: vocals

2 items

Jerry Scheff: studio bass (L.A. Woman)

3 items
Questions

About The Doors's gear.

What guitar did Robby Krieger play in The Doors?

Gibson SGs. Guitar World says he played a 1964 SG Special with P-90s on Light My Fire, and Krieger has said the L.A. Woman SG was black with three pickups. His first was a red Melody Maker, and today he mostly plays a '67 SG his tech found in a pawn shop.

What keyboard did Ray Manzarek play?

Rolling Stone says Ray Manzarek played a Vox Continental organ and covered the bass lines live on a Fender Rhodes Piano Bass, organ in his right hand and bass in his left. On later albums he added a Hammond organ and a Rhodes electric piano.

Did The Doors have a bass player?

Not on stage. Manzarek played bass parts on a Fender Rhodes Piano Bass, and session players handled bass on some records. Jerry Scheff, who played on L.A. Woman, has said his oldest bass is a black 1962 Fender Precision and that he bought his Ampeg B-15 in 1964.

What drums did John Densmore play?

John Densmore moved from Gretsch to Ludwig in late 1967 and has said he likes the sound of Ludwig, including a Ludwig piccolo chrome snare. He kept a small kit, played a riveted ride on Riders on the Storm and took the bottom heads off his drums.

What microphone did Jim Morrison use?

In the studio, Sound On Sound says engineer Bruce Botnick recorded Jim Morrison's vocals for Strange Days on a Telefunken U47, and a Moog synthesizer was used to process his voice on the title track.

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The Doors
About this guide · Last checked

The Doors were the Los Angeles band of Jim Morrison, Robby Krieger, Ray Manzarek and John Densmore, behind Light My Fire, Riders on the Storm and L.A. Woman. This guide covers the whole band's documented gear: Krieger's Gibson SGs, Manzarek's Vox Continental and Rhodes Piano Bass, Densmore's Ludwig kits and the studio mics on Morrison's voice.

truerecs put this guide together from public videos, interviews and posts. Each item says how we know and links to the source. The Doors didn't write it or choose anything on it. How we source gear guides.

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