Read more: settings and setups
With Luck and Strange, David Gilmour is continuing the down to earth and intimate sound he established with his 2006 release, On an Island. He’s exploring new sounds, using an array of different guitars and pedals and the album’s production offer an honest and organic listening experience harkening back to his 1978 solo debut.
Large parts of the album, including the guitars, were recorded over a five months period in late 2023 and early 2024 at David Gilmour’s Medina home studio in Hove, Brighton. This studio was built for the recording of Pink Floyd’s Endless River and David’s previous solo album, Rattle That Lock, in 2014/15.
Note the Cumbus guitar, to David’s right, that was used for the Sings recording session.
Album recording session
The setup is very similar to the Rattle That Lock sessions, with mostly smaller combo tube amps, various pedals and guitars. New for this album, is a Gibson ES-335 and also the return of the old Yamaha RA-200 rotating speaker cabinet, which was used for both rotary sounds and ambience.
It’s difficult to pin down exactly what pedals David used for each song. Some tones might even be an amp being used alone. However, based on footage from the sessions and listening to the album, it’s clear that a Tube Driver was used extensively for both rhythm parts and most of the solos.
Similar to Rattle That Lock, David is relying heavily on compression. Either from pedals or in post production. Or both. It’s probably a matter of taste, David just preferring to have a more compressed tone, but it allows for more sustain and a more focused tone, without adding too much overdrive or distortion, which often results in noise and feedback issues. David is also using his fingers more, rather than a pick, which often require a bit of compression to enhance the attack and level the signal.
Effects recording session
Compression
– Effectrode PC-2A Tube Compressor (custom model for David Gilmour)
– Origin Effects Cali 76 Limiting Amplifier
BK Butler Tube Driver
– There are two in the rig stand, possibly with different settings
Electro Harmonix ram’s head Big Muff
– Scattered recording sessions
Tremolo
– The Piper’s Call recording session
Echo and delay
– Dawner Prince Boonar
– Providence Chrono Delay
– Free The Tone Flight Time Digital Delay
– Binson Echorec 2
Zoom 9030 effects processor
(top) Uni-Vibe, (middle) Effectrode custom PC-2A Tube Compressor, Origin Effects Origin Effects Cali 76 Limiting Amplifier, EHX LPB 2ube tube preamp, BK Butler Tube Driver, EHX ram’s head Big Muff, EHX triangle Big Muff, (bottom) BK Butler Tube Driver, Source Audio Programmable EQ.
Notes about the effects setup
Listed above are only the effects that, with some certainty, can be heard on the album. David’s Medina home studio feature a wide range of different pedals and effect units. Some mounted on a stand. Others are stand alone units.
David’s using a lot of compression but it’s uncertain which compressor pedal he used. Above are the two that are visible in his studio setup listed.
Most of the guitar tracks feature delay or echo. This can be added in post production, using either plugins or outboard gear but David usually prefer to record his guitars with delay. Listed above are the four units that are visible in his studio setup.
Guitars and amps recording session
Fender David Gilmour Signature NOS Black Strat “Black Cat”
– With a custom made sticker of a black cat on the upper body horn
Gibson Les Paul Gold Top
– 1956 model with Gibson P-90 pickups and Bigsby tremolo system
Gretsch Duo Jet
– 1950s model with Bigsby tremolo system
Gibson ES-335
– Vintage/tobacco burst
Rickenbacker 1933 A-22 “frying pan” lap steel
Anthony Zematitis 1978 custom short scale acoustic steel string “The Alice Guitar”
Cordoba acoustic nylon string
Martin 1945 D-18 acoustic steel string
Martin Ukulele
Cumbus guitar
Note: David’s Medina (Brighton) recording studio feature a wide range of different guitars. Some of which appears on a stand in the recording room. Listed above are only the ones that can be confirmed from footage from the Luck and Strange recording sessions and interviews with David Gilmour. Note also that some guitar parts were recorded in other studios and at different time periods.
Fender Tweed Bandmaster
Alessandro Bluetick tube head and matching speaker cabinet
Yamaha RA-200 rotating speaker cabinet
Alembic F-2B preamp
– Preamp for the Yamaha rotating speaker cabinet
Note: David’s Medina (Brighton) recording studio feature a wide range of different amps. Listed above are only the ones that are visible on footage from the recording sessions. Note also that some guitar parts were recorded in other studios and at different time periods.
Guitar and amp studio setup
David is using different models of Evidence Audio patch and instrument cables. All amps are mic’ed with Neumann U87s and KM86 and Shure SM7 for Yamaha RA200 cabinet.
Stage and tour
Based on the footage from the tour rehearsals, including the live stream held for the album’s release on September 6 2024, it appears that David’ mostly using the same rig as on the 2016 Rattle That Lock tour, with a couple of upgrades and additions. This guide will be updated along with the tour.
Effects, racks and additional units
Top of rack, top row
Electro Harmonix ram’s head Big Muff
Lehle parallel L
Electro Harmonix 1976/77 Electric Mistress
1 Chandler Tube Driver
2 BK Butler Tube Drivers
Dawner prince Boonar Tube Deluxe
Top of rack, bottom row
Effectrode PC-2A Compressor
Demeter Compulator
Origin Effects Cali 76 Compact Compressor
Sovtek Civil War Big Muff
3 Source Audio Programmable EQ
2 Free The Tone Flight Time Digital Delays
Comments on the effect rack
– The Lehle parallel L mixer is assigned to the Electric Mistress controlling the volume.
– Each EQ unit can be used for multiple combinations and patches.
– Each Tube Driver is set for different amounts of gain, providing clean boost, overdrive and distortion. David would also use the guitar volume control to adjust the amount of gain further.
Additional units
Effect rack, left
Skrydstrup MR10 Loop System
Custom built router or switcher connected to the Skrydstrup MR10 (unconfirmed)
Univox/Shin-ei Uni-Vibe (custom rack unit)
Peterson Autostrobe 490 tuner
Effect rack, right
Skrydstrup MR10 Loop System
Skrydstrup Custom Amp Splitter / Interface
Skrydstrup Custom SC1 Interface
Skrydstrup Custom Tuner Splitter
Skrydstrup SC1 Midi System Controller
Skrydstrup XT+ Module
– Main pedalboard, controlling the pedals and rack units, with options for either single effect switching or multiple effect patches.
Digitech Whammy 5
Pete Cornish line selector (main guitars/slides)
Ernie Ball volume pedal
Guitars and amps
Fender David Gilmour Signature NOS Black Strat “Black Cat” (Hendrix strap)
– With a custom made sticker of a black cat on the upper body horn
Fender David Gilmour Signature NOS Black Strat (black strap)
– Tuned down half step for Coming Back to Life and Great Day for Freedom (RAH)
Fender 57 reissue Candy Apple Red Stratocaster
– With EMG SA/EGX/SPC pickups and controls. David is seen playing one at the rehearsals in September.
Gibson ES-335
– Vintage/tobacco burst
Fender Esquire Workmate
– 1955 sunburst ash body with black pickguard and maple neck. Fitted with a custom Seymour Duncan neck pickup.
Fender Deluxe lap steel
– Blonde with stock pickups, with open G chord tuning (D G D G B E) for A Boat Lies Waiting (Brighton premiere only) and Great Gig in the Sky.
Jedson lap steel
– Red, fitted with an EMG-H pickup for High Hopes with an open Em chord tuning (E B E G B E).
Martin acoustic steel string guitar
Acoustic nylon string guitar
2 Hiwatt Custom 50W heads
– With Mullard 2xEL34 power tubes and 4xECC83 pre-amp tubes. Modified for linked normal and brilliance inputs. David’s only using one head. The other is a spare.
2 Alessandro Redbone Special 55w tube head
2 WEM Super Starfinder 200 cabinets
– With 4×12 Fane Crescendo metal dust cap speakers
Yamaha RA-200 rotating speaker cabinet
Alembic F-2B preamp
– Preamp for the Yamaha RA-200 (laying ontop of the amp heads cabinet)
Guitar and amp setup
The amp setup is in mono with all effects fed right into teh front end of each amp. The signal from the effects system is split into two – one for the amps and one for the Yamaha RA200.
All pedals, guitars and amps are connected with different models Evidence Audio cables.
All WEM speaker cabinets are mic’ed with Shure KSM 32 mics slightly off centre of the cone.
Acknowledgements and credits
All information is gathered from the album Luck and Strange, official music videos for The Piper’s Call, Between Two Points and Dark and Velvet Nights and David Gilmour’s official social media channels, magazine interviews, the Rockonteurs podcast September 2024 interview with David Gilmour, Guitar World (October 2024), Rick Beato interview (November 2024), fan filmed concert footage and the David Gilmour gear forum. Special thanks to Kit Rae.
Hi Bjorn,
As always thank you for thorough dissection and assessment of the new recording. Compared to Rattle, the compression used in the post production mixing really hurts the sound quality IMO. Fortunately, the live shows made for it, but as other have said the previous tour was much more hard hitting; Sorrow as a great case in point. Thank you again for all that you do : )
Thanks Rob!
Hi Bjorn
What kind of Gibson es 335 do you think David plays, it looks like a 1961 ES-335 Reissue Vintage Burst from the custom shop, do you have any news?
Thanks
He talked about buying it recently and calling it “new”. A new aquisition or new reissue? I don’t know.
Hey man – thought I’d ask this here rather than on Facebook. I’ve been curious to your thoughts and possibly experiences with the Alessandro heads DG’s been using, specifically considering his previous much bigger headroom amps like the Hiwatts. Thanks!
I’ve never played Alessando amps so I can’t really tell. From what I’ve heard, seen and read, they have a unique tone and character, however, with an emphasis on vintage Fender tweed era. That’s probably why David like these amps too, as he’s used different Fender tweed amps for decades. Both alone and in conjunction with Hiwatts. On stage, he’s using several combinations of the amps, alone and together, so he will have a bigger pallette of tones. His Hiwatts deluver headroom and power, while the Alessandros, a bit more dirt but also more character for the more mellow stuff.
You can find the Alessandro amps schematics on several forums as well as picture of the guts to identify the parts…
Getting a big headroom is not forced to come from a powerful amp, you can have serious headroom from small amps too, but, seems most of small amps are intended to be also cheap amps, they tend to use cheaper parts, thus, modern PAs allowing to no more need for huge amps for 3 decades now, many guitarist have finally understood that you don’t need gigantic amps and you don’t need 10 HiWatts and 20 4×10 with Fane Crescendo to have your guitar heard at Earl’s Court without using the PA like in 1974… There has always been high-end small amps but these were a niche market mainly used by serious studios. Moreover, high sensitivity speakers allowing to use small amps as concert amps have became widespread, so it’s no more an issue to play with a drummer on a stage even with a 15-20W amp
There are several ways to improve headroom in any amp:
– Use ferrite/ceramic speakers with powerful magnets, large 2″ coils and serious X-max, i.e EVM12L (or clones of it) which I use… Beware : such things are very heavy and forget about hiding the misery: every detail of your sound will be heard, so either all your gear and playing is on par, or… With such speakers, you may need an EQ post-preamp, that’s why many Mesas voiced for the EVM12L/EVM12SRO/Altec417 have an EQ : you don’t have the usual 1.4kHz freq drop of most of guitar speakers, so, when you play distorted rhythm guitar, without an EQ, you may sound boxy… But you won’t have issues at getting Santana/Gilmour/SRV, etc beautiful medium-rich lead sounds.
– Note that if you use an alnico speaker, instead of large headroom and punch, you get natural compression and a vintage sparkle. Neodynium speakers are half way between alnicos and ferrites/ceramics.
– Replace ceramic capacitors or small value caps in your amp : there are very few and they just stand for very small values capacitors. Ceramic caps are the worst for audio quality, although you want them in your Ram’s Head Muff or your Supro amp because you want these to sound really dirty. For any cap under 1nF (nanoFarad) = 1000pF (picoFarad), use a Silver Micas or a Styroflex cap. Beware not to heat your silver micas with the solddering iron for too long: they don’t like it. To give you an idea, by just replacing 2 or 3 caps in a H&K Cream Machine, you end with a Plexi 1W of boutique amp quality in terms of sound…
– Go DC for preamp tubes. You’ll have to do a power supply mod. Tubes filaments are supplied in 6.3V AC. In high-end HiFi, they prefer AC as it brings more… headroom, less background noise too.
– Go 12.6V AC for preamp tubes : each 12AX7, etc has two circuits each having its own filament. Put these in series and provide them with a 12.6V DC… Note that you may need a small transformer, current regulators, etc… This is what is used for the CAE 3+SE preamp and the secret of its impressive dynamics.
– Opt for higher end caps in your amp, wherever the caps have an effect on the signal…
Note that the caps are the 2nd at making the grain of your amp, after the output transformer and a little over the tubes you use (yup), so, if you have a Marshall-typed amp, you want polyester caps like the 60’s Philips Mustard Caps, if you have an US-typed amp like a Mesa or Fender, you want the polypropylene Orange Drop 716P instead what’s in (Mesa : OD 715P)…
But you can go much further if you’re ready to spend more, i.e I sometimes used Audience Auricap or SolenFast ones where I couldn’t get the right 716P values… then there are also oil-can capacitors (I don’t recommend paper-oil as these will dry up much faster than oil-cans which are sealed). Things can go as far as going for silver/gold oil caps at astronomical prices… Some Mundorf models used in ultra high end audiophile amps can cost more than €700 for a single capacitor (!!!)
=> The best way to achieve Pink Floyd/Gilmour tones may NOT be using the same gear as David!
Dave goes for this or that because he considers he gets the best tones under HIS fingers and the best choice for YOU may not be using a HiWatt or an Alessandro, in fact, even a Strat, etc, may not be the best choice too, as well as trying to replicate in every detail may end making you play with an overprocessed emotionally sterile sound.
In fact, from my POV, the only thing I considered necessary in Gilmour’s collection of gear, is having a Ram’s Head Muff as close as possible as his, and this is the case with Kitt Rae’s… And Kitt fully reverse engineered his, measuring each part separately, so you can select the right parts with the right values. Your best asset is pre-dist/preamp and post preamp EQ.
I was for 3 years in a PF tribute band at the end of the 00’s and had no issues using what already was my go-to amp and still is by now, and it wasn’t acquired to especially go into Gilmour’s sound but simply because it’s what works the best with MY fingers.
Hey Björn, in his recent Rick Beato interview (https://youtu.be/O3OazxoPRK8?si=jGpSOTvZFM9kuDHR), David mentioned that he wasn’t using compression with his Big Muff. Do you have any idea what his signal chain might be when the Big Muff is used? I always thought that the classic (Comfortably Numb etc.) DG Muff sound was a Coloursound Power Boost basically destroying the input of the Big Muff. Perhaps he’s not doing that? Or perhaps one of the Tube Drivers is boosting before or after the Muff. I’d love to hear your thoughts! Keep up the great work!
I haven’t seen any setup patches for this tour. He’s done different things over the years – combined the Muff with both compressors and boosters. Listening to the tone now, I’m guessing that he’s using the Muff alone or, with a clean Tube Driver after it, much like an EQ.
Hey Bjorn,
Do you you which strings David uses on his Gretsch Duo Jet? If not, what would you suggest? Something light or heavy?
Thanks
Jeff
In 2006 he used his custom Stratocaster set as far as I know. Probaly still does.
Thank you, that’s what I use on my Strats so I’ll give them a try on my new Gretsch.
Hi Bjorn, the thing with the old Zoom 9030 multieffect unit is very interesting. I can clearly see in the making of video of the Luck and Strange Album that one is build in, in his Medina Studio desk and one is on his desk in his barn home studio at his home.
As David said that it was used on Coming back to life, in my opinion the intro of this song has this thin sound of the early multieffect units.
Any reason why David switched to source audio EQ over the GE-7? Only reason I can think of is the MIDI function for easier switching.
I don’t know but I assume he found them more versatile. Companies send him stuff all the time and I guess some stuff gets his attention. He’s been using the GE7s for decades and although his are modified for better tone, they’re not the best EQs out there.
having used both extensively the GE-7s are def more noisy compared to the Source Audios. even with Pete’s mods (i’ve also used)… and of course the multiple settings/midi integration.
bjorn anyway you can find info on the other guitarists kit? honest, i love phil magnifico but this guitarist is the best gilmour has ever had. his vocals on ‘in any tounge’ was mind blowing.
from what i saw he was playing one of the old Cornish boards… maybe the some one that Phil M. used? he also had a FTT Flight Time on top…
Yes, I haven’t tried to research what board it is but it might be the old 80s board that Phil used on the prior tours.
I saw the MSG show this last Monday (11/4). David’s tone and playing were sublime of course. I only saw him previously in 2015, and the real change for me seemed to be how dry his tone really is now. From the 1994 Division Bell tour that was laden w/ the Doppolas, CE-2 and delay (and more saturated), to 2015 where there was less delay, no chorus anymore, but notably a lot more Electric Mistress on most of his solo tones.
This time there was even less delay and the even the mistress is gone, or not really used. All of his tones were very powerful, but noticeably dry, just a bit of delay. I think the doppola like sounds are long gone, he has the RA-200 on stage but it was used either very sparingly or mixed very very low. And as powerful as the tones were, they were definitely even less saturated than in the past. Things like the opening to Sorrow and even Comfortably Numb didn’t hit quite as hard anymore, less power, less feedback, less wash and ambiance. Still a beautiful show all around, though mellower than 2015.
Thanks for your insights. Yes that’s my impression as well although only based on YT clips. The Yamaha seems to be mixed quite high though, with a distinct rotary effect on almost all of the tones and the high gain stuff in particular.
Hi Bjorn:
Are those two HiWatt 50 watt heads the original slave heads he’s used since the early days?
I’m not sure when he got these but back in the 70s he only used 100w as far as I know.
hi, Björn . David said he uses a zoom multieffect. Do you think it is for demos? it cannot be seen in any picture! it seems to be a 9023.
He used one for Division Bell and I’m sure he has one laying aroudn at home.
I am looking to purchase my first lap steel guitar. Most important to me is being able to capture the tones used on DSOM but want to be able to hit tones on other songs such as High Hopes. Leaning towards the Fender Deluxe 6 – your thoughts?
Yes, that would be spot on.
Bjorn – just want to thank you for posting this. I just caught two shows at the Hollywood Bowl (amazing!) and have been curious about the gear being used as I am seeking to expand. Thanks for your hard work as always!!
Cheers!
Hi Bjorn,
One thing I noticed while watching the making of of Luck & Strange, was the return of the Boss CE-2 Chorus. Have you spotted it as well? It’s behind him in many of the videos at his Medina studio. I haven’t seen that pedal near him since 1994 (maybe in his Cornish board?), so it must have been used on the album, right?
Greetings! ;)
Yes, I saw that. Doesn’t have to mean that it was used. It appears to be laying unconnected. Still, there are som rhythm parts on Sings that clearly has some chorus. It might be the CE2.
Looking at the picture of the tweed amp in the studio with the tuner on top; isn’t that a Bandmaster?
If you zoom in really close, there appears to be three speakers? The name plate also seems to have a lot of characters for a twin. ????
I wasn’t sure but you might be right. Thanks!
hi bjorn: long time lurker. excellent post as always. one quick detail to add: i saw him saturday night (10/12) at RAH, and he has a 2nd black strat tuned down a half-step that he used on “great day for freedom” and “coming back to life”. you can tell because that guitar had a plain black strap (i.e., not the jimi strap). first time i can recall him tuning down a half-step.
Thanks! Yes, I checked a video clip from RAH now and I hadn’t noticed that they tuned it down.
The Tweed there looks earlier than a ’58. ’58 would be wider 5F8.
Thanks for the article. I am wondering, are the Hiwatt Custom 50 Watt new or old? Any thoughts?
I don’t know their history but they started to appear during the latter part of the On an Island tour. He used a couple of 50w on TV appearances and smaller gigs. They replaced the old 100w for the Rattle That Lock tour. I assume they were new in 2006 but I’m not 100%.
Dear Björn, thanks for the insights. Would be interesting to know whether these 50 watt Hiwatts actually might be vintage amps, or perhaps some modern iteration of Hiwatt. Considering the turbulent recent decades of the Hiwatt brand, I have no idea if present day Hiwatt Custom amps are currently very different from the original designs from the 70s, or if they are actually more or less true to them.
On a different (allthough kind of related) note, I read in the 2019 Hiwatt sales catalogue that the company´s current “DR201 Hiwatt 200 Bass” amp is “currently on tour with Roger Waters”. So it seems that at least some of the new amps holds up to some kind of serious, professional standard. Whereas Hi-tone and Reeves amps get lots of (good) reviews, I haven´t seen much analysis / discussion on the most recent products from the actual UK Hiwatt company.
I would assume that the 50w are old 70s models but possibly new in David’s collection. At least, I haven’t seen him use them before. Pete Cornish did a complete overhaul of both the 50w and 100w heads some years back.
I often get new DR103 heads when I’m on tour and we rent backline. They sound really good so I guess you’d have to line up a vintage head and do a A/B test to tell the difference. Old heads might sound better but can also sound like shit if not properly maintained. I’ve been using a Reeves Custom 50w for years and I couldn’t be happier. The Hiwatt Tube Series are really good. Can’t speak for the other spin offs.
Always old amps. Look at Pete Cornish wash&Brush, you can see the amps he used.
Interesting, looks like three vintage DR103 100 watts, a vintage 50 watt, and a newer 50 watt (it has the “LINKED” channel designated on the faceplate, instead of with a label stuck on). I don’t know when they started to build them with the “LINKED” configuration onboard.
http://www.petecornish.co.uk/dghiwatthistory.html
Hi Bjorn,
I confirm for the Cordoba, amazing guitar that Romany used at the pub event.
Please, I am looking for years to the sound of the solo on between two point. What are the effects?
How can we do as setup to match this amazing sound ?
Merci ?
That last solo is most likely a compressor, Tune Driver and that throaty tremolo sound is the Yamaha RA200 rotating speaker cabinet. He probably used a Stratocaster.
Bjorn,
Thank you again for your insight. I was more impressed by this album and by the rehearsal stream then I thought I would be. Where do you think the bulk of the distortion is coming from? I can’t tell if it’s a Big Muff or the Tube Driver with high gain settings. I’ve read somewhere he uses the Tube Driver in places he uses to use the Big Muff, but I’m not sure that’s accurate. I lean towards the Tube Driver, but it’s really hard to tell sometimes. I’d love to get your opinion, as I know you have a better ear for this stuff than I do!
Thanks again, keep up the great work!
Chris
Thanks for your kind words! On the album, the only place I can hear a Big Muff is that last solo on Scattered. Other than that, it’s the Tube Driver.
Hi Bjorn!
I Have 2 questions.
– do you know what’s the rack just between the Skrydstrup MR10 Loop System and the Uni-Vibe?? Looks like a multi effects but I don’t know and it’s not listed here.
– The other question is, David is playing Marooned on this tour, isn’t he using any chorus on that?? Or what are the setup for that song if you know? Instead of the tube driver, compressor, eq and delay.. any modulation? (Univibe or flanger?)
Sorry for my english, im from argentina and dont speak english so well
1. I haven’t managed to figure that one out. For the Rattle That Lock tour, there was a MXR Digital Delay in that spot but there seems to be a new unit. I haven’t managed to get a good enough image of it yet.
2. No chorus this time but keep in mind that the Yamaha RA200 rotating speaker cabinet is on for all the guitar parts, which will create some chorus effect. After listening to the Brighton rehearsals, I’m gessing compression, Tube Driver, delay and of course the Digitech Whammy for pitch.
Thank you!! If I manage to get a good picture of the rack, I’ll send it to you.
I love your solo work and with Airbag as well. Greetings from Buenos Aires.
I’ve been looking into the setup more in-depth these past few days, mainly on the David Gilmour Equipment page, both on Facebook and Instagram, and I couldn’t find much information about that rack unit either. It seems that the four brands are LED VU meters that light up as he plays. Could it possibly be a splitter for the amps? I also saw that he replaced one of the Skrydstrup units on the right rack; it’s not the same one he used in 2015/16 (probably to add a new output for the Yamaha RA200).
Not sure about that unit. I might be mistaken but I don’t think it’s an amp splitter as he has one on the right side.
My guess would be some kind of 4-channel mic preamp.
Hi Galo! Hi Bjorn! I’ve left the comment here but it’s not here for some reason. There’s a better non-cropped view on this device between MR10 and Uni-Vibe. Still no clue at the exact name. But I’m pretty shure it’s a 4-channel preamp. Still need to find the exact name for it. It has a white LED on the left side, four white screens I guess and rather big black know on the right. Cheers!
Thanks!
Hey Bjorn,
David is apparently using acoustic simulator for the Scattered solo. Do you have any idea what it may be?
He’s playing an acoustic on the album. Live, he’s playing the Black Cat Strat instead of an acoustic. There’s no simulator but a cleanish tone, possibly with a compressor and a clean set Tube Driver.
Yes my bad, after seeing the footage of Scattered I see that Charley Webb is playing the beginning of the solo on the acoustic guitar.
Hi Bjorn I seem to recall that you used to document which guitar / petals were used on each track on his studio and live albums. Do you not do that anymore?
Jon
Yes, there is a READ MORE link under the heading of each gear guide headning. Luck and Strange settings and setups is here
https://www.gilmourish.com/?page_id=11069
That EMG strat has a fairly unique tone . I can’t hear it on the new album . Hope he uses it on the tour
This is probably a long shot, but do you have any idea what kind of strings David uses on his Cordoba? I ask because I bought a C10 Crossover because of David, and I absolutely love it.
I have no idea.
Ernie ball classical
Hi, in the picture of his amp setup in the rehearsal live stream it says there are two Hiwatt DR103 but below you refer to 50w heads, which ones was he using? Has he changed to 50w since not so much volume is needed? (it must be still deafeningly loud, I always wonder about the stage volume they must have)
Thanks! Bad proof reading on my part. He’s using the same stage rig as on the last tour and the heads are Custom 50w. He started to use these on the latter part of the On an Island tour. They’re loud enough for the venous David’s playing now. It’s a matter of taste I guess. He can keep the volume lower on the stage, although it is very loud, and get a bit more grit in his tone, with teh 50w having slightly less headroom than a 100w.
Also, is it possible to identify the Martin ukulele he plays on “The Piper’s Call”?
I went to the Hollywood Bowl last time and I was pretty high up, but I swear I could still hear the Hiwatts on stage as well as in the PA. I think it’s fairly loud!
Excelente Información, Saludos desde Mexico
Thank you!
I don´t think , he playing on the pic with the steel string acoustic , a Martin D-18 from 1945 . The Heringbone binding fits not to an old D-18 , also the finish of the top looks much newer . It could be, that this guitar on the pic is his Martin D-35 David Gilmour Signature from 2020 . ( Note : his D-35 Signature model has no binding on the the neck , in contrast to the normal D-35 guitars , there were made 150 6 strings and 100 12 strings of the Martin David Gilmour D-35 Signature , all signed by him )
Cheers Uli
Thanks! You’re right. Bad quality check on my part. Updated now.
You´re welcome
If you look at Polly’s Instagram, you’ll find a photo from earlier this month showing Gilmour playing a 57 CAR Strat with the same EMG setup as his old one. It’s likely his spare “Red Strat.” I believe he used it for rehearsals, but I’m not sure if it was used in the studio.
You’re absolutely right! Yes, that’s probably the spare he bought in 94.
I’m sure that I have seen a picture of DG with a new red Strat at the L&S rehearsal.
Yes, you’re absolutely right! I don’t think it’s a new one but possibly the spare he’s had since 94.
I would be interested to know what was done to the solo on “Between two Points” … sounds like a pipe was placed between the amp and the mic!! Very unusual – but suits the song so well !!
As always – love the website.
PS, would love to see Airbag in the UK sometime!
Thanks for your kind words! What you hear is the guitar going into a Yamaha RA200 rotating speaker cabinet. It’s used for most of the guitar parts but on this track it sounds like it was mixed high creating that unique rotary sound.
I agree Bjorn. Appears that he has used yamaha rotary and perhaps rolled back the tone Knob on the guitar by 20%-30% not sure though. Will need your help in obtaining the near-exact sound in this track