Frequently asked questions

 

What kind of guitars do you play when playing solo?

I play a 12 fret '78 MARTIN D 35-S and a custom STEVENS OM
Sometimes I use a YAIRI DC-62 for its fine and simple stereo PU system.
Besides you might hear a 9-string custom STEVENS Cister and a WEISSENBORN style acoustic lapsteel.

Do you use fingerpicks or artificial nails when playing fingerstyle?

I don't use fingerpicks 'cause I don't get the dynamics I want.
I used silk repair layers with a paint coat over it, different hardener etc. That works quite well and you can fix it easily when worn out.
But for harder use I always come back to artificial nails.

What kind of tunings do you use in a solo set?

Here the most common ones with examples:
standard - Herbstgold,
F# lute-tuning - Slippery,
Open D,
Open D+9 - Song for rainy days,
DADgad,
Open G - Running downstairs,
Gsus with "e" - Blue passage
Open E (but strings tuned down!) - Rise above

What string gauges do you use?

Normally I use 0.12. Only the MARTIN and the WEISSENBORN have 0.13 and 0.16.

What kind of pickups do you have in your guitars ?

For the STEVENS and the MARTIN I use an piezo and an "Fishman Rare Earth" magnetic soundhole PU so they come out as a stereo signal.
The cister is equipped with a soundhole mic (that I rarely use) and an undersaddle piezo.
The WEISSENBORN runs on a "Sunrise" magnetic PU.

Which way do the signals go?

The "Rare Earth"/microphone with the piezos go with a stereo cable into a rack preamp where I can work on the signals separatly. From there I can send them two ways or as a pre-mix to the console.
The "Sunrise" of the WEISSENBORN runs through a floor preamp/ D.I.box and goes from there straight to the front.

Do you use any effect devices for your guitar sound?

Hardly. The piezo sound gets sometimes a bit hard and crisp. I use a T.C. Electronics chorus to smoothen the edges.
Sometimes compression is fine. But I don't work with that too much.
If you do you need good quality EQs.

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