Serious GAS for Les Paul...all thanks to Mark Knopfler!!!

[tucky]

I'm building a USACG strat copy of the David Gilmour strat. It should be a beauty...but after listening to Mark Knopfler's latest CD Get Lucky I am seriously questioning WTF I have done in building a strat. See on a couple of songs on the album, particularly "Cleaning my gun" and "So far from The Clyde" Mark gets a beautiful crying tone from his Les Paul. Its magic and gives me goosebumps. I can't possibly get this tone from a strat, especially a maple neck one.

I have always loved the shape of the Les Paul, but whenever I've played one I have never bonded with them. However the sound Mark gets is AWESOME. It makes me want one SO BAD!! :cry: They're about $6000 Australian dollars here for a new re-issue. :cry::cry:

[Ang3lus]

www.warmoth.com

nuff said :)

here is mine:

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=5309.0

all the quality without the huge price tag.

[oldgtarz]

www.warmoth.com (http://www.warmoth.com)

nuff said :)

here is mine:

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=5309.0

all the quality without the huge price tag.

You're kidding right? With all respect, that is not a Les Paul. It might look like one but it just isn't. It probably sounds great with the maple neck and ebony fretboard but it's not a Les Paul and built like that it will never sound like one either.

The OP might want to check out MLP (http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/les-paul/) for some nice Gibson Les Pauls

[funkmaster]

You're kidding right? With all respect, that is not a Les Paul. It might look like one but it just isn't. It probably sounds great with the maple neck and ebony fretboard but it's not a Les Paul and built like that it will never sound like one either.

The OP might want to check out MLP (http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/les-paul/) for some nice Gibson Les Pauls

of course its not a les paul. its only a les paul if gibson made it, because its their design and their name. you can call it a lp style but unless its made by gibson its not a les paul. personally, that thing looks like it will sound amazing. I can't warm up to les pauls either. to the O P, if you've never been able to warm up to the sound of an LP, try an LP with p-90's. the first ones had P-90's and if you're not a huge fan of that humbucker sound, those are a great place to start

[Ang3lus]

that's the reason I chose the warmoth, I digged the lows and versatility of the les paul to do jazz/blues/metal very well all within the same guitar, so I built that one.

I also got another which is a 59 replica (also warmoth) that was built by an ex-gibson employee, nitro finish and lollar pickups, SOUNDS like a les paul, but feels like a more modern guitar.

[Doc55]

To have Knopfler's tone you need three key ingredients:

1) One of the nicest 1959 Flame Top Les Paul's I've ever seen or heard...and I'm old enough to have heard and seen a few. No, no no...not a clone. Not a Gibson Heritage series, not a Custom Shop, not a Warmoth, or Beetlefly or Battlebutterfly or whatever you can scare up for cheaper dollars, but a real '59 with the PAF's he's got in there. That's a quarter million dollar guitar, ladies and gentlemen, and he plays it live!

2) Very high gain, PTP handwired expensive Marshall type boutique amps. Try a Bob Reinhardt like he uses lately, but get out your wallet.

3) 50% of his tone is in his hands according to MK himself. Get that part down first, then we'll worry about chasing warmoths or any other little insects that flutter about.

Boys...tone does not come cheap. Who ever told us that it was a budget based quest? :)

Cheers, Doc

[stratman89]

Mark makes a Les Paul sound sooooooooo good on those tunes!

Although he'd make a particle board guitar sing!

[saltydogg]

I've owned 6 Les Pauls and currently own 3 and I continue to battle Les Paul GAS as I have for over a decade. It's a disease and I'm dealing with it. How you ask? I just bought a Firebird-LOL......

[Doc55]

Mark makes a Les Paul sound sooooooooo good on those tunes!

Although he'd make a particle board guitar sing!

Exactly right. That and very very good vintage or boutique gear. There's no cutting corners, is there? http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon14.gif

[Bobby D]

Boys...tone does not come cheap. Who ever told us that it was a budget based quest? :)

Cheers, Doc

truer words have never been spoken.....it may be a 5% difference, but it's there. :aok

[Doc55]

Thanks Bobby..most of us have learned that the hard way I think!

Cheers

[tucky]

I'm fine with the all in the hands thing. I've been playing for 20 years now. The last 14 of those on the cheapest Yamaha Pacifica available in Australia with a few mods. I've really enjoyed playing the c*&p out of that guitar without worrying about scratches, dings, etc. But when you go into a shop and play a good guitar...MAN!!! the feel and the resonance even when played acoustically is great. And I agree to that the last 5% does seem to make a huge difference both soundwise...and costwise.

I know about MK connection to Reinhardt amps. I'd love one of those too as I have always been a marshall fan (currently play JTM 30 - all valve), but don't have the financial resources some on the forum do. It would be probably $3K to get one to Australia + $6K for a 59 re-issue.

With his tone though...if any of you guys have heard the tracks I referred to. Is his tone from high amounts of gain? It doesn't sound like that to me...but then I haven't had experience with a Les Paul apart from paying in music shops. It sounds more overdrive with an amp on the edge of breakup...but I am happy to be informed by those that have more experience in Les Paul and boutique PTP amps than I?

[tucky]

Ang3lus...nice guitar BTW. Maybe I'll look at that option as I won't have the dollars to buy a real 59 LP (not in this lifetime anyway).

I think thats cool that Mark actually plays such an expensive but obviously great sounding LP on tour rather than have it sit around in storage.

[OldSchool]

PRS DGT will get it in spades. Especially if you find one modded with 57/08's...........http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon12.gif

[Bandalero]

I've seen MK playing a '58 and '59, but its his PAF-equipped plain top '58 that he appears to use the most from Brothers in Arms and On Every Street (Dire Straits) to most of his solo stuff, and yes, whether its with a Soldano SLO-100, a Komet-60 or a Reinhardt Storm, he's usually playing at reasonably high gain. To me, that's the true key to his overall tone. That, his phrasing and his fingers. Watching and listening to him play just makes me want to give it up!

From Strats to Teles to LPs, he's an unbelievable player with incredible tone. Some of his warmest, nicest overdriven LP sounds appear on his joint offering with Emmylou Harris entitled "All The Roadrunning", particularly "I Dug Up A Diamond". The tone of his LP on that tune is just haunting!

[tucky]

:agree Bandalero I've got that album as well and that is one of my favourites on that one. Haunting is right.

[mojocaster.com]

On one of his recent DVDs - one night in London or the one w/ Emmylou - he plays a LP sitting on a chair. I think it's the Song for Sonny Liston tune... he just grooves on his own before the band joins in. That is the #1 best LP tone I have ever heard.

And because of it, I am also in the market for a Les Paul...

[Bandalero]

On one of his recent DVDs - one night in London or the one w/ Emmylou - he plays a LP sitting on a chair. I think it's the Song for Sonny Liston tune... he just grooves on his own before the band joins in. That is the #1 best LP tone I have ever heard.

And because of it, I am also in the market for a Les Paul...

Beware, the bear's in town
Somebody's money says
The bear's going down

Oh yeah, the bear never smiles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles

[Doc55]

Tucky, that high gain tone and very very good amplifiers is key. A good Marshall attenuator will allow a person to turn a powerful, high gain amp full up, and then starve output signal to the speakers. This allows full function and tone from the amp, making it work as hard as it possibly can. Mark's amps are extremely hot physically at the end of a night. Coupled with a Gibson Les Paul with original PAF's...there ya go! Trying to re-create his tone borders the ridiculous. Most of us have neither the hands to do so, certainly none of us have a '58 orignal LP, and possibly very few of us have a handbuilt (just for our specs) Bob Reinhardt amp.

He has all these things. Just enjoy what you hear.

[Ocelot]

Recorded and live, his tones are being run through the world's best mics, preamps, eqs, etc. I'm not saying his tone isn't amazing, it is, but if you were to sit in a room with him, both ten feet from your amps, maybe, just maybe, the difference wouldn't be as catastrophically huge as you might think. Then again, maybe it would be. :)

[Doc55]

I've sat 20' away from him, and his tone was everything as advertised. So was his playing. Chuck Ainsley, his producer , does get some very nice tone happening in the studio, using both digital and very old analog pieces of gear. However, live, up close, and very personal...he is the most tone conscious person I've ever heard. MK, Robin Ford, and Eric Johnson maybe. All these guys actually are tone freaks and gear maniacs, and understand exactly how to get there.

[Ocelot]

I've sat 20' away from him, and his tone was everything as advertised. So was his playing. Chuck Ainsley, his producer , does get some very nice tone happening in the studio, using both digital and very old analog pieces of gear. However, live, up close, and very personal...he is the most tone conscious person I've ever heard. MK, Robin Ford, and Eric Johnson maybe. All these guys actually are tone freaks and gear maniacs, and understand exactly how to get there.

You had an opportunity to sit 20 feet away from MK playing unmiked? Must've been nice.

[Doc55]

Yes, Ocelot..

Was extremely nice. He was miked for the house, but everything I got was right off the speakers his amps were driving as a result of being so close. Those opportunities are rare, and they are very humbling. At that point you realize many things, among them how stunningly gifted a craftsman Knopfler is.

Sounds like you care about tone, and that's to be respected!

[Ocelot]

Yes, Ocelot..

Was extremely nice. He was miked for the house, but everything I got was right off the speakers his amps were driving as a result of being so close. Those opportunities are rare, and they are very humbling. At that point you realize many things, among them how stunningly gifted a craftsman Knopfler is.

Sounds like you care about tone, and that's to be respected!

Nice! What gear was he using that night?

[Doc55]

Two red Reinhardts, once set up clean and the other one to high gain overdrive, both with red basket weave 4 X 12 cabs. Down the middle for the shimmery old Fender tones, he ran a boutique clone of what I believe to be his old brown face Vibrolux. The original is the old girl he keeps in the studio in London, the one that recorded "Sultans", etc...and still is uses for most of the clean Fender stuff he does.

He does a walk through of his studio on the Extra DVD that comes with his new CD. He points this old amp out in fact, and obviously it means a lot to him, as he owns over one hundred fabulous amps both boutique, and true vintage. He is not a financially poor fellow!

[Bandalero]

Trying to re-create his tone borders the ridiculous. Most of us have neither the hands to do so, certainly none of us have a '58 orignal LP, and possibly very few of us have a handbuilt (just for our specs) Bob Reinhardt amp.

He has all these things. Just enjoy what you hear.

Yup, I think this is 'precisely' right. It always amazes me when I read or hear that a guy needs this amp or that amp to re-create the MK sound. Forget about it!

We've seen the Music Man HD130-212, the Fender Twin, the brown Vibrolux, the SLO-100, the K60, the Storm-33, even the little Imperial. Half the songs on Shangri-La were done with an AC15 and the other half with a Vibroverb, Tweed Deluxe, and (Song for Sonny Liston) Tweed Bassman.

It ain't the amp that makes the Mark Knopfler sound. Its Mark Knopfler!

[goneracin]

Yup, I think this is 'precisely' right. It always amazes me when I read or hear that a guy needs this amp or that amp to re-create the MK sound. Forget about it!

We've seen the Music Man HD130-212, the Fender Twin, the brown Vibrolux, the SLO-100, the K60, the Storm-33, even the little Imperial. Half the songs on Shangri-La were done with an AC15 and the other half with a Vibroverb, Tweed Deluxe, and (Song for Sonny Liston) Tweed Bassman.

It ain't the amp that makes the Mark Knopfler sound. Its Mark Knopfler!
yes. That is a big part of it. I had the amazing pleasure of my own little concert session with him, we were just talking while he was playing and trying out a couple of amps. He can do more with his hands than anyone ive ever seen. I would never in a million years pictured the Storm being the amp to do Sultans of Swing, but there it is.... And just so you know, the poster about his own custom amp, he plays a "normal" Storm 33 live, no tricks or custom stuff. His clean amp (i think he used it for 3 songs) was a tone king, not sure what model, I was star struck.....lol. I did do a custom amp for him, but that wasnt what he used last year. And that amp is available as my Sultan

[Trebor Renkluaf]

To have Knopfler's tone you need three key ingredients:


2) Very high gain, PTP handwired expensive Marshall type boutique amps. Try a Bob Reinhardt like he uses lately, but get out your wallet.

Cheers, Doc
As far as the boutique stuff goes, Reinhardt isn't that expensive.

[Bandalero]

As far as the boutique stuff goes, Reinhardt isn't that expensive.

True dat! Compare (for example) the 50w 2X-EL34 offerings from Reinhardt and Komet (i.e., the Storm vs. the Concorde). For the price of the Concorde (~$3900), you could buy TWO Reinhardt Storms ($1875 each), one for cleans, one for OD), just as Knopfler did. Mighty big difference, especially when you recognize what we've already discussed here, that the amp itself has perhaps the 'least' to do with MKs overall sound:

Guitar
Strings
Pickups
Amp
Valve Type
Valve Quality
FX
Attenuator
Cab/Speakers
Fingers/Technique
Mix Down (added reverb, etc.)
Etc.

Bob - Thanks for sharing your experiences with MK and your views on his equipment. I can't imagine being in the same room with the guy! He's absolute "royalty" in my view.

[Section10]

im looking forward to explore my GAS into the electric world, been classical and flamenco exclusively for a long time.

I've realized that once I get a decent Knopfler tone, you cant necessarily switch to another song and expect that tone to satisfy. He does in fact change the tone quite a bit.

However my question. Whats the best, or atleast a few good well rounded amps that can handle his tone altogether at affordable prices?

For instance today I played a few different amps. Burgera was really inexpensive at 22w for $350ish. Fender Deluxe VM for $800 had a nicer tone of course. Burgera was more metalish, clean not near a fender.
Also played a Fender Deluxe (Hot Rod?) which had similar qualities.
Ideally for me a low watt tube amp should be best so I can turn it up to crank the tubes. Are Fenders high gain enough?
On my Vox tonelab that i fool arond with I notice the HIgh gain amps are too highgain to do his style lead, its more for rhythm, turning the gain down isnt always the good resolution.

Any thoughts?

[Bandalero]

I've realized that once I get a decent Knopfler tone, you cant necessarily switch to another song and expect that tone to satisfy. He does in fact change the tone quite a bit.

Ideally for me a low watt tube amp should be best so I can turn it up to crank the tubes. Are Fenders high gain enough?

On my Vox tonelab that i fool arond with I notice the HIgh gain amps are too highgain to do his style lead, its more for rhythm, turning the gain down isnt always the good resolution.

Any thoughts?

1) As an amateur hobbyist or home-studio based musician myself, this same question has puzzled me as well. How does he handle switching between different gain/tone/volume and different FX so effortlessly? I've seen Mark play live many-many times, and you're right, he switches almost seamlessly between low and high gain sounds, and between clean and dirty, without a hitch. A programmable TC-2290 can help a lot (which he has used extensively over the years), but other than volume swell, you won't see him using much in the way of floor pedals. So how is it done? It wasn't until recently, that I realized he was typically using two different head/cab assemblies at the same time (one for cleans, one for OD). He also plays a wider array of guitars on stage than any single artist I've personally ever seen in 40-years of concert-going. Not uncommon to see him use 7-8 different instruments in a 120-minute show.

2) For me personally, second to his fingering and overall playing technique, the flawless, high-gain part of Marks sound (whether early Dire Straits, later solo, clean or edge of breakup) is the most difficult component of his sound to emulate. It takes tremendous skill to play consistently error-free (as he does) when you're running that thermal. Sustain to burn. Vince Gill - same way. Plays 'clean' 90% of the time with little to no error, ever (!), and also at relatively high gain (EMGs through 2X-Rivera R-100s), although he's recently been playing a pair of BFDRs.

Hard to copy, but its a fun journey nonetheless. In fact, its perhaps the greatest tribute of all to an artisan (MK) that is truly "once in a lifetime".

P.S. - Don't discount the potential use of attenuators. Keep in mind that even he (Mark Knopfler) is noted for having used attenuators at times (with his Komet-60 for example) to get that characteristically warm, overdriven sound of his at reasonable volumes. He's widely reported to have used the K-60 in the studio on certain recordings, and that simply could not be done in practical terms without attenuation.

[Section10]

Thanks, i'm hoping to find a great toned amp thats versatile enough to play his different styles. The tonelab is fun because I can try different styles of amps, some of which are very appropriate for his style, but Im wondering about the sound quality of playing a "pedal" through an amp vs. having a great toned amp by itself. (im using my classical Roland ac-60)

I'm hopefully not gonna get involved enough to go the expensive amp/attenuator situation. Hopefully will find something thats good enough for all things. Fenders got my vote on the clean sound, the other great distortion amps seem to usually lack on clean..

[Bandalero]

I'm hopefully not gonna get involved enough to go the expensive amp/attenuator situation. Hopefully will find something thats good enough for all things. Fenders got my vote on the clean sound, the other great distortion amps seem to usually lack on clean.

Unfortunately, its not a particularly cheap proposition (or journey) for any of us. For many years now I've bought into the premise that a single amp could, would, might, somehow (??) do it all. In fact, I still find myself drawn (unnaturally) at times to some new age product or concept that claims to be able to do it all (e.g., pristine AC15/AC30 cleans with ample headroom plus Trainwreck OD all in one head or one combo) via power scaling or valve swapping or whatever, but I'm afraid it just ain't happenin'. And it hasn't happened for Mark Knopfler either, that's why he's reported to have 100+ different amps.

Translation? Ka-Ching$! You simply buy, sell, build, trade, barter, win, inherit, do whatever it takes, until you've got all the bases covered. There's really no other way. In the end, you're likely to need two different amps at a minimum.

Good luck.

[Section10]

Hey its better than my previous tone chasing of Eddie VH!

That sound is crazy setup. Wet/Dry/Wet Harmonizing to detune, mixing signals.
Took me years to figure that out Im just fascinated by the 'simple' but pure tone of Knopfler now. Only problem here is that he changes it too much!

But to be honest, nothing is more simple, relatively speaking, than my classical flamenco world, except for the "tone" chasing there costs about $10k for a comparable guitar. Ha thats a different kinda tone chase.

Hopefully ill find something simple that can provide versatile tones. Used to have a 5150 but thats really geared towards something specific. Cleans arent anything to brag about.

But you guys have more experience with amps,
would a Fender Deluxe VM for instance be lacking in something for the general sound I want? (which other fenders would be better btw)

For instance, I dont think a Marshall would have what im looking for, Mesa neither. So some amps I can rule out. Theres even some really fine amps called Vintage Sound by Rick Hayes locally here i've played, really awesome boutique amps, little pricey but worth it of course.

[Bandalero]

The early MK/Dire Straits cleans aren't too tough to achieve with a number of Fender units (do a search here on TGP and you'll find loads of info) - its achieving the MK overdrive (from the same 'clean' amp) that you're likely to find problematic.

As Bob Reinhardt has previously stated (above), MK has been using the tiny little Tone King 112 Imperial for cleans as recent as Kill To Get Crimson and perhaps even Get Lucky (?), but for Shangri-La (which is just as nice in many way), he used an AC15, and a whole host of small Fenders. See http://www.mark-knopfler-news.co.uk/SLguits.html

But to achieve that warm, overdriven '58 LP sound of 'Brothers In Arms' or 'You And Your Friend' or 'I Dug Up A Diamond', etc., you're going to need something else, and that's where the Reinhardt, Soldano, Komets have come into play. Can you get close with a Tweed Deluxe or Bassman? Absolutely.

[Tubebender]

Blah, Knopfler is Knopfler. IMO it's not the guitar. With good equip, of course a GREAT guitar player is gonna sound GREAT, despite the make and model....Get a signature on it, is it gonna make you play better?

[Section10]

Basically a simple question of what im asking is:

If Knopfler were to only pick one amp to play live. Which would it be that could have sweet clean tones and still high gain enough for his LP solo work.

Komet or Reinhardts are probably likely answers right?

Now, whats a small affordable version of those? What are those amps modeled after or sound like?

That would probably be the answer im looking for.

[Doc55]

Why do you insist that one amp will get you his overall sound when he doens't do it himself? And then ask for it to be a "budget 'priced unit" ? This is goofy!

[svanangen]

I've seen MK playing a '58 and '59, but its his PAF-equipped plain top '58 that he appears to use the most from Brothers in Arms and On Every Street (Dire Straits) to most of his solo stuff, and yes, whether its with a Soldano SLO-100, a Komet-60 or a Reinhardt Storm, he's usually playing at reasonably high gain. To me, that's the true key to his overall tone. That, his phrasing and his fingers. Watching and listening to him play just makes me want to give it up!

From Strats to Teles to LPs, he's an unbelievable player with incredible tone. Some of his warmest, nicest overdriven LP sounds appear on his joint offering with Emmylou Harris entitled "All The Roadrunning", particularly "I Dug Up A Diamond". The tone of his LP on that tune is just haunting!

It's true that he uses his plain top 58 a lot, however; that is not the guitar of Brothers in arms-fame. The 58 came to Marks possession a lot later. The one he played on Brothers in arms is an early 80's standard that has a little mod that his old tech Ron Eve used to call the "Peter Green-mod".

[Section10]

Why do you insist that one amp will get you his overall sound when he doens't do it himself? And then ask for it to be a "budget 'priced unit" ? This is goofy!


Because its out there. The amps people have mentioned have been well thought out and turned out to be very helpful. He DOES in fact do it. He used Komet for a majority of his live tours, then later used Reinhardt for a majority of his Kill to Get Crimson tour. As for certain songs and effects I have that covered with my Tonelab. I dont need to buy a Fender Deluxe just for 10% of the songs I play. Id rather play through an Egnater which gets close to that without sacrificing the overdrive tone.

Goofy would be buying a $3000 Reinhardt, $1000 Vintage Sound combo, Fender Tweed Deluxe for each group of songs.

My question was designed for me to avoid certain amps that WOULD NOT be suitable for most styles of playing. If I were to buy a Vox AC15, it wouldnt give me enough tone for some of my music. Not high gain enough. If I try a Marshall combo, the clean wouldnt be nice enough for the stuff I play. Soldano would be plenty high gain but also would not match some of my music in other deparments.

The answers people have given me have been great and have helped me. Couldnt have been that goofy.:D

[Bandalero]

Section -

We're all on this same journey to a lesser or greater degree (depending on the tone we seek or the artists we most admire), but I think what Doc was trying to say here is that it generally cannot be accomplished with a single amplifier, certainly not for an artist whose tonal palette and musical interests (or styles) are as diverse as MK. You may perhaps get close (depending on how discerning your own ears are), but its going to be pretty tuff, and I would have to respectfully disagree with your statement that . . ."he (Mark Knopfler) DOES in fact do it".

I'm far from an expert on amps or Mark Knopfler, but I've seen him perform many-many times over the years dating back to 1978, including some very short sessions in small venues, and I don't believe there's been a single time where he relied upon just one amplifier in a live performance; he's certainly never made a complete commercial LP or CD recording with just one. He's known to have recorded or appeared live with all of the following amps at some point in his nearly 35-40 year career, and this list is by no means chronological or all inclusive:

MM HD-130-212
Silverface Twin Reverb
Brown Vibrolux
Tweed Deluxe
Tweed Bassman
Vibroverb
Mesa Boogie (heads)
Gallien & Krueger
Jim Kelly (heads & combos)
SLO-100
Komet-60
Storm-33
JTM-45
Crate VC5212
AC30
AC15
AC10
TK Imperial

So, by extension, if the spectrum of tones he sought was fully achievable with any single one of these amps (or any other single amplifier available out there), why would he bother to own or use (and transport) all of these various amps? Public records out there show that he has used as many as four (4) Komet-60s on a single concert or tour, each adjusted to different settings. Do you see where I'm coming from? It just ain't happening.

But as I said earlier, the journey is half the fun, so good luck to you!

[Mark C]

I'll throw in my .02. You'll never 100% nail anyone's tone IMO, but to get close to his neck pickup LP tone - get your hands on a lively LP style guitar and throw a Duncan antiquity in there. Plug it in to a Marshally amp, then stop worrying and practice, practice, practice. I personally feel the most important aspect to his tone is in his hands. There may be slight differences from each recording he's done, but his overdriven tone has a consistent quality to it, no matter what guitar or amp he uses.

Same thing with every great player who has a signature tone - Eric Johnson, Gilmour, Beck, Gibbons, Van Halen, Robben Ford, Larry Carlton, Hendrix, David Grissom, SRV, etc, etc... How many times have people been confused about what exact amp and guitar one of those guys used on a particular track? Frequently.

They always sound like themselves no matter what the gear - it's all in how they approach the instrument. Yes, it would be nice to have the komets and 59' LP's, but let's face it - most of the guys who can afford that stuff will still never sound anywhere near as good as MK.

[fenderiarhs]

To have Knopfler's tone you need three key ingredients:

1) One of the nicest 1959 Flame Top Les Paul's I've ever seen or heard...and I'm old enough to have heard and seen a few. No, no no...not a clone. Not a Gibson Heritage series, not a Custom Shop, not a Warmoth, or Beetlefly or Battlebutterfly or whatever you can scare up for cheaper dollars, but a real '59 with the PAF's he's got in there. That's a quarter million dollar guitar, ladies and gentlemen, and he plays it live!

2) Very high gain, PTP handwired expensive Marshall type boutique amps. Try a Bob Reinhardt like he uses lately, but get out your wallet.

3) 50% of his tone is in his hands according to MK himself. Get that part down first, then we'll worry about chasing warmoths or any other little insects that flutter about.

Boys...tone does not come cheap. Who ever told us that it was a budget based quest? :)

Cheers, Doc

Before you do all that you got to throw away your pick and learn to play with your fingers.

[Rock Johnson]

It's true that he uses his plain top 58 a lot, however; that is not the guitar of Brothers in arms-fame. The 58 came to Marks possession a lot later. The one he played on Brothers in arms is an early 80's standard that has a little mod that his old tech Ron Eve used to call the "Peter Green-mod".

Seriously?

Just an 80s standard out of phase?

Cool.

[Emiel]

Though I never tried one, I think the Tone King Imperial might be the amp, as it is a bit like a Fender blackface (clean tones) and tweed (overdriven tones) in one amp. Pare it up with a good Stratocaster and Les Paul (with low output PAF like pickups) and you're done... I have Seymour Duncan Antiquity pickups together with '50s style wiring in my '93 Les Paul and it delivers the goods :)

I've been looking for one for a while now, but the sad thing is that I live in Europe and it's a pain in the ass to find a Tone King amp here.

Check these two vids...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBaPoK-6zoc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkwGlFIuwnU

[hbentley]

yup, this one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_wKquxOBF8&feature=related

amazing LP tone...

On one of his recent DVDs - one night in London or the one w/ Emmylou - he plays a LP sitting on a chair. I think it's the Song for Sonny Liston tune... he just grooves on his own before the band joins in. That is the #1 best LP tone I have ever heard.

And because of it, I am also in the market for a Les Paul...

[beNsteR]

Knopfler's '58 les paul through a komet on 'Back To Tupelo' off his Shangri-La studio album -> best guitar tone i've heard in my life. totally murdered me.


here's a not-so-good quality amateur youtube video of the song played live
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMrf2YcjpqA

[mojocaster.com]

yup, this one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_wKquxOBF8&feature=related

amazing LP tone...


Yes, that's one! I love how he builds up that groove. That's just kileer right there.

[Aran]

www.warmoth.com (http://www.warmoth.com)

nuff said :)

here is mine:

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=5309.0

all the quality without the huge price tag.

Very nice. :)

[Bandalero]

Knopfler's '58 les paul through a komet on 'Back To Tupelo' off his Shangri-La studio album -> best guitar tone i've heard in my life. totally murdered me.

"Murdered" is right! "Oh death, where is thy victory, where is thy sting"?

Can you imagine? Some guys suggest that he can no longer play!

He could play his way out of a coma.

[Earplayer]

Same here... the best LP tone was/is with the Komets!!! Live and on the Record. I´ve seen many concerts of MK and he had the BEST tone with the Komets - i hope he will use the Komet again... :phones

[smogfalls]

so on which records can we hear him using a Komet?

is he using one in the video posted at the top of this page? ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_wKquxOBF8&feature=related )


Thanks muchly,
Xan :)