If I did, however, I think people would be surprised at their simplicity or even disappointed that, again, despite having access to a digital model of almost every guitar amp and effects pedal known to mankind, I haven’t gone all out to replicate David Gilmour’s rig, even in the digital realm.Īgain, I don’t want to upset that guy in Ohio who complained that my guitar didn’t have a Fender logo, but rather than set up sounds using my eyes, I instead opted to edit by ear, as I would with any other amp. While I don’t currently make any of them available, I haven’t ruled out the possibility of doing so at some point in the future. I have been asked on a couple of occasions to share my Axe FX presets. I still need to be there – It’s not that clever!) In fact, all of the sounds you hear coming from my side of the stage at a Brit Floyd gig are coming at you direct from the Axe FX (via my guitar and my hands, of course. I could go on and on about Fractal Audio’s little box of wonders, but I’ll cut a long story short by saying, “Believe the hype!” This little unit does everything I need it to, both live and in a studio environment. Previously, I’d shrugged off using amp-modeling technology for live use since, to my ears, it lacked warmth and rarely captured the valve saturation of a classic amplifier. I mean, who needs valves anyway?īefore I bought the Axe FX, I was becoming frustrated with constantly trying to shoehorn more and more pedals and effects into my rig, just to achieve one particular sound in one particular song. The Axe FX is arguably every touring guitarist’s dream and every purist’s worst nightmare.
However, as soon as I discovered the Axe FX by Fractal audio, I immediately called off the search. I’ve used every kind of setup, ranging from more rack effects than you can shake a stick at, to the fantastic G System by TC Electronic. I know people that have, but unless you have upwards of 20 grand to spend, a backup for everything and at least two guitar techs on hand in case just one thing goes wrong in the complicated effects chain and derails the entire gig, you’re far better off keeping things simple. Regardless, people are often surprised at the fact that I haven’t attempted to replicate David Gilmour’s set up. People enquire frequently about my amp and pedal set up, which has evolved constantly over the years my touring rig is actually now in its third incarnation. This lead me to believe that when it comes to guitars, amps and effects, a lot of people subconsciously listen with their eyes, rather than their ears. I won’t bore you with the spec, but it’s absolutely perfect for my needs (in both feel and tone) and it sounds more like a classic Strat than any left-handed Fender I’ve owned.ĭespite this, I have fallen under criticism on a couple of occasions by gig-going purists for the fact that my Strat-style guitar doesn’t have the word “Fender” on its headstock. My main guitar for my work with Brit Floyd is my much-loved Suhr Custom Classic. I have owned many Fender Stratocasters over the years, which is no mean feat, given that I am far less spoilt for choice than right-handers. The second reason is that I’m much more comfortable playing an instrument that feels the way I want a guitar to feel, rather than one designed with somebody else’s hands in mind. I may be wrong, but the last time I checked, Fender didn’t manufacture a lefty version of the David Gilmour model. There are two reasons: The first is that I’m left handed.
I spend a great deal of my year on tour, recreating the music of Pink Floyd and I am often asked why I don’t use a signature model guitar for my work with Brit Floyd. The fact is, buying the signature guitar, amp or pedal of your favourite guitarist probably isn’t going to make you sound any more like that player than any other gear will – especially if you’ve only been playing for a short time. Again, he naively assumed that if he learned the basics, the guitar would do the rest of the work. More recently, I met an absolute beginner whose first guitar was a rather nice David Gilmour signature Fender Stratocaster. Zakk was this student’s favourite player and he genuinely believed that if he spent £2500 on his first guitar, he’d be good enough to play with Ozzy Osbourne by the end of the month. “Wait…That’s not David Gilmour’s guitar rig!”Ī few years ago, I was providing private guitar tuition from my home and a new student showed up for his first lesson with a Zakk Wylde signature Gibson Les Paul.