Request/challenge : Knopfler's tone on "Sultans of Swing", "Alchemy" version

[dgzieg]

The original was a Fender Vibrolux I believe if memory serves from old guitar mags here in the UK. There's a few pictures from the era 77/78 that show the amp. I was about 18 months old at the time so can't remember! I think he kept that amp for a while.

He used Boogies before the Soldanos, that was a bit later.

Hope that helps

I think it's great you were reading at that age!

 

[RDH]

Mid 80's I think, could have been Boogie MKII , Jim Kelly , JTM 45 or Bassman. More than likely the Boogie. Pretty sure he used EV 12L's

 

[PinkFloyder]

In the studio, it was pretty basic - a Strat through his Fender Vibrolux with reverb and compression (Dan Armstrong Squeezer compressor). Live, as in Alchemy, he used that while incorporating a few other kinds of Fender amps including the Super Reverb, among other brands. He plays the famous red Strat, for the rhythm he uses the middle pickup, for leads the uses the middle/bridge. In interviews he also mentions using the neck pickup to occasionally fatten up his leads (the breakdown part comes to mind). Obviously you need to work on your finger picking game, chords and leads. Using my Strat through a 68' Fender Deluxe Reverb with a Keely Compressor Pro and a good dose of spring reverb, I can nail the tone from Sultans, studio and Alchemy. The bite comes from cranking the amp. You should be able to dial that in with your AX-FX.