Winter 1997 — through 3/18/97
Fall 1996 rig continues — final shows with percussion kit & Motion Sound Pro 3
Trey carried over the Fall 1996 setup through the Winter Europe tour and the one-off Burlington show on 3/18/97 promoting Phish Food. The 3/18/97 show marked the last confirmed appearance of both the percussion kit and the Motion Sound Pro 3 Leslie.
June 1997 — second Europe tour
New floor pedalboard · Goff Leslie 925 · Kriz-Kraft 17U rack debut
Major overhaul for the second Europe tour. Trey returned to a 1993-style floor pedalboard with Tube Screamers and Ross Compressor back at his feet. The Motion Sound Pro 3 was replaced by a Goff Professional-modified Leslie 925 head. The rack moved into a new Kriz-Kraft 17U case and was slimmed down to a single CAE 4×4 with four active loops.
November 7, 1997 — Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Modified Fender Deluxe Reverb appears for the first time
Phish debuted "Farmhouse" on Conan O'Brien. Trey appeared with a modified Fender Deluxe Reverb combo amp — the first public appearance of what would become his primary amp for the fall tour.
November 13, 1997 — Fall tour opener
Fender Deluxe Reverb becomes primary amp
The modified Deluxe Reverb made its official live debut as Trey's primary amp at the first show of the fall tour. The CAE preamp and Groove Tubes power amp remained in the rack and Languedoc cabinets stayed on stage — but as backup and visual presence only. All signal ran through the Fender combo.
Unchanged all year
The Languedoc Koa hollowbody — debuted in late October 1996 before the Halloween Remain in Light show — was Trey's primary guitar throughout all of 1997. No guitar changes this year.
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Feb 22, 1997
Teatro Olimpico, Rome — Talk (Peter Gabriel cover) featured Trey on acoustic guitar. The only confirmed acoustic guitar appearance in the Phish.net setlist data for 1997. The European winter tour context makes this a notable isolated instance.
Primary amp — from 11/13/97 New fall '97
Modified Fender Deluxe Reverb
A heavily modified silverface Fender Deluxe Reverb combo amp that became Trey's primary amp from the fall tour onwards. The two channels were voiced independently, enabling Trey to footswitch between the Normal and Vibrato channels for different tonal characters mid-show.
Backup / visual — full year Carried
CAE SE 3+ & Groove Tubes Dual 75
The 1995–1996 preamp/power amp setup remained in the rack throughout 1997. From the fall tour onwards it functioned as a backup and stage visual — the Languedoc cabinets stayed on stage but Trey's signal ran entirely through the Fender combo.
Speaker Cabinets ×2 Carried
Custom Languedoc 2×12 ×2
Both Celestion Vintage 30-loaded cabinets remained on stage, connected to the Groove Tubes power amp. From the fall tour, they were present as backup and visual weight — signal flowed through the Fender Deluxe Reverb's internal speaker.
Conan O'Brien — 11/7/97
Phish's appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien to debut "Farmhouse" was the first public sighting of the modified Fender Deluxe Reverb. Six days later it became the primary amp at the fall tour opener on 11/13/97.
The "prop" rig
From 11/13/97 onwards, the Languedoc cabinets and the CAE/Groove Tubes rack amp were present on stage but not carrying Trey's signal. The larger rig gave the visual impression of a full guitar stack while the Fender combo did all the actual work — a deliberate choice that reflected the tonal direction Trey was pursuing.
The Deluxe Reverb was extensively modified, with the core changes focused on separating and voicing the two channels independently. The shared second-stage cathode resistor and capacitor were split to give each channel its own values, and the coupling, bass, midrange, and treble capacitors were replaced throughout — with different specifications chosen for the Normal and Vibrato channels to give each a distinct character.
All resistors were swapped for NOS Allen Bradley carbon comp units, the feedback resistor was raised from 820 ohms to 12K, and a second 220K resistor was added before the phase inverter. The vibrato circuit was disconnected entirely. Both channels were revoiced to carry reverb and run in phase. Midrange pots were added to both channels via the Input 2 jacks, giving Trey independent midrange control on each channel.
The amp was retubed with NOS RCA 6V6GTA power tubes biased hot at 30mA, a NOS Mullard 5AR4 rectifier, and a NOS Mullard 12AT7 in the first preamp position replacing the stock 12AX7.
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Channel separation
Shared second-stage cathode resistor/cap split — each channel given its own 1.5K ohm resistor and 25mF capacitor for independent voicing.
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Capacitors
Coupling, bass, and midrange caps replaced with Sprague Atom Orange Drops in the Normal channel. Treble caps replaced with MICA types — 2× Russian Silver MICA in Normal, 1× Simplex MICA in Vibrato. All filter caps replaced with Sprague Atoms. Phase inverter fitted with original Mallory/Ajax blue molded .1mfd 400V caps.
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Resistors
All resistors replaced with NOS Allen Bradley carbon comp units. Feedback resistor raised from 820Ω to 12K. Additional 220K resistor added in parallel before the phase inverter (equivalent to a single 110K). Normal channel slope resistor changed from 100K to 56K.
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Reverb & vibrato
10pF capacitor wired in parallel with the 3.3M reverb tank resistor removed. Vibrato circuit disconnected entirely. Both channels revoiced to carry reverb and run in phase.
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Midrange controls
Midrange pots installed on the front panel via Input 2 jacks — 25K pot on the Normal channel, 10K pot on the Vibrato channel.
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Power tubes
2× NOS RCA 6V6GTA (clear glass) biased hot at 30mA per tube. Bear Claw retainers installed on rectifier and power tube sockets.
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Preamp tubes
V9: NOS Mullard 12AT7/ECC81 (replaces stock 12AX7). V4, V7: CV4024 (British Military 12AT7). V5, V8: RCA 12AX7A. V6: RCA 12AX7 ECC83. Rectifier: NOS Mullard 5AR4/GZ34.
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Other
Bright cap removed. 3-prong power cord installed. 3" cooling fan added on a removable cable via the amp's courtesy outlet. Bias set to 30mA per tube.
Through 3/18/97 Carried from '96
Motion Sound Pro 3
Carried over from Fall 1996. Last confirmed appearance was the 3/18/97 Burlington Phish Food promotional show. Retired before the June Europe tour.
From June 1997 New June '97
Goff Professional — Modified Leslie 925
A Leslie 925 head modified by Goff Professional — Trey's third Leslie unit and the one that would define his rotating speaker sound for years. Debuted on the second Europe tour in June 1997 on top of the new Kriz-Kraft 17U rack.
Kriz-Kraft 17U rack — debut June 1997
The Goff-modified Leslie 925 sat on top of a new Kriz-Kraft-built 17U rack case that debuted at the same time. The Kriz-Kraft replaced the previous road case and became the home for Trey's consolidated rack gear going into the summer and fall.
From June 1997, the rack was significantly slimmed down. The CAE 4×4 Audio Controller was reduced to a single unit with four active loops. Three Alesis Microverb units remained in the rack but only one was active — the unit set to the Reverse preset that Trey had used since the earliest days. The CAE preamp, Groove Tubes power amp, Black Cat Vibe, and Super Tremolo all carried over.
Amplification
1U
CAE SE 3+ Preamp
Preamp Backup from fall
2U
Groove Tubes Dual 75
Power Amp Backup from fall
Effects — 4 active loops via single CAE 4×4
1U
Ibanez DM2000
Digital Delay Carried
1U
CAE Black Cat Vibe
Univibe Carried
1U
CAE Super Tremolo
Tremolo Carried
1U
CAE 4×4 Audio Controller
Loop Switcher Now ×1 unit
Reverb — 3 units present, 1 active
1U
Alesis Microverb — "Reverse" Active
Reverb Carried
1U
Alesis Microverb — "Vast" Inactive
Reverb
1U
Alesis Microverb — "Full" Inactive
Reverb
Three Microverbs, one in use
All three Alesis Microverb units remained physically in the rack, but only the one set to the Reverse preset was plugged in and active. The Vast and Full units were present but disconnected — suggesting they were kept as potential options or simply never removed from the case.
Winter 1997 — through 3/18/97
Same as Fall 1996
- Whammy II
- CAE RS-10 MIDI Controller
- CAE Super Tremolo rate pedal
- Motion Sound Pro 3 controls
(Mute & fast/slow footswitches)
- Ernie Ball Volume pedal
- Dunlop Crybaby Wah
June 1997 — Europe tour
Back to a floor-based setup
- Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer(s)
- Ross Compressor
- Dunlop Crybaby Wah
- Whammy II
- Ernie Ball Volume pedal
- CAE Super Tremolo rate pedal
- Motion Sound Pro 3 / Goff Leslie control
(Mute & fast/slow footswitches)
Fall 1997 — from 11/13/97
Fender channel switching added
- Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer(s)
- Ross Compressor
- Dunlop Crybaby Wah
- Whammy II
- Ernie Ball Volume pedal
- Custom A/B channel switcher
(Normal ↔ Vibrato channel, Fender Deluxe)
- Dual footswitch — CAE Super Tremolo
(Chop/Normal & Mode functions)
- Goff Leslie control
(Mute & fast/slow footswitches)
June 1997 — return to the floor
The June 1997 pedalboard marked a significant philosophical shift — Tube Screamers and the Ross Compressor moved back to the floor after being racked since 1994. This "back to basics" approach on the floor mirrored the overall rig simplification of the June setup.
Fall 1997 — new switching demands
The modified Fender Deluxe's two independently voiced channels required a custom A/B switching pedal on the floor — a new addition unique to this rig configuration. The CAE Super Tremolo also gained a dedicated dual footswitch for its Chop/Normal and Mode functions, which had previously been handled by the RS-10 MIDI controller.
Fall 1997 configuration · exact internal order not fully confirmed
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Primary amp
Fender
Deluxe Reverb
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FX Loop
Microverb
"Reverse"
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Green border = rack unit · Amber border = floor pedal · Highlighted border = new in fall 1997 · Dashed = effects loop
CAE SE 3+ and Groove Tubes Dual 75 remain in rack but carry no signal — backup and visual only from 11/13/97. Exact floor pedal order not fully confirmed.
1997 was the most eventful single year in Trey's rig history since 1994. Three distinct configurations across twelve months reflected a restless pursuit of a new sound — and the fall tour's modified Fender Deluxe Reverb represented the most dramatic tonal departure since the Mesa Boogie was retired in 1995.
The June overhaul told one story: simplification. The rack was slimmed to four active loops, the Tube Screamers and Ross came back to the floor, and the Motion Sound Pro 3 gave way to the more refined Goff Professional Leslie 925. The whole setup felt leaner and more direct.
Then November rewrote the rulebook entirely. The modified Fender Deluxe Reverb — extensively reworked with independently voiced channels, carbon comp resistors throughout, NOS tubes, and midrange controls on both channels — replaced the CAE/Groove Tubes system as Trey's primary amp. The rack stayed on stage but was effectively retired as a signal carrier. The sound that would define Phish's late-1990s peak had arrived.
The 3/18/97 Burlington show deserves a footnote: it was the last time the percussion kit appeared on stage with Trey's rig, quietly closing a chapter that had opened somewhere in 1996.
Fender Deluxe Reverb
Conan O'Brien — 11/7/97
Goff Leslie 925
Kriz-Kraft 17U rack
Floor pedalboard restored
DM2000
Black Cat Vibe
Whammy II
3/18/97 — last percussion
1997 is the year many fans point to as the peak of Phish's "cow funk" era, and the archive reflects that. Slip Stitch and Pass is the official document of the March Europe tour. 11/17/97 Denver (Live Phish Vol. 11) is widely regarded as the definitive Fall '97 single show. The Hampton/Winston-Salem box set covers the first Hampton two-night stand in full.
Mar 1, 1997
Slip Stitch and Pass
Markthalle, Hamburg, Germany
The second official live album. Recorded on the Winter Europe tour with the Fender Deluxe Reverb still weeks away — this is the last major official document of the CAE/Groove Tubes amp system in full command.
Stream or download →
Nov 14, 1997
Utah '97 — "E" Center
"E" Center, West Valley City, UT
Second show of the Fall '97 tour and the second ever with the Fender Deluxe Reverb. A landmark early entry in "Phish Destroys America" — the Goff Leslie 925 in full flight with the new amp.
Stream or download →
Nov 17, 1997
Live Phish Vol. 11 — McNichols Arena
McNichols Arena, Denver, CO
The consensus Fall '97 showpiece. Tweezer, Reba, and Ghost fill the first set; Down with Disease > Olivia's Pool > YEM dominate the second. Trey's Fender Deluxe Reverb at its most authoritative.
Stream or download →
Nov 21–23, 1997
Hampton/Winston-Salem '97
Hampton Coliseum, VA & Winston-Salem, NC
Seven-CD box set of the first Hampton two-night stand plus Winston-Salem. Eight hours of soundboard from Paul Languedoc. The Fender Deluxe Reverb era in peak form.
Stream or download →
Research needed
The following items represent open questions for this era — areas where documentation is incomplete or evidence is not yet confirmed.
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Acoustic guitar — make/model
The specific acoustic guitar used for "Talk" at Teatro Olimpico, Rome (2/22/97) has not been confirmed. Make, model, and year of the instrument are unknown.
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Fender Deluxe Reverb — exact modifications
The precise modifications made to Trey's Fender Deluxe Reverb by Safe Harbor Amplifiers have not been fully documented. The nature and extent of the circuit work is based on partial information.
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Languedoc cabinets — signal from 11/13/97
From 11/13/97 onwards the Languedoc cabinets and CAE/Groove Tubes rack amp were present on stage but believed to not be carrying Trey's signal. Whether they were ever switched back in during 1997, or remained purely decorative, has not been fully confirmed.
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Motion Sound Pro 3 — miking vs. direct
Whether the Motion Sound Pro 3 Leslie was miked to front-of-house, run direct, or both during 1997 performances has not been confirmed from available sources.
Trey on Conan O'Brien — 11/7/97
Modified Fender Deluxe Reverb
Goff Professional Leslie 925
Floor pedalboard — June 1997
Floor pedalboard — Fall 1997
3/18/97 Burlington — last percussion kit show
Trey live, Fall 1997 tour
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