The Edge - Full Rig Rundown

guitars4you

some might like this - courtesy of Premier Guitar - Video clip of The Edge's live rig with his guitar tech

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/27653-rig-rundown-u2s-the-edge?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=New U2 RR&utm_term=PG Weekly

Hattigol

Thanks Mark. Loving this. Fashionable to bash them as a band but he is a unique and hugely influential guitarist. Not great technically in the conventional sense but you always know it's him when you hear him. 

I reckon there are only about a dozen guitarists you can say that about?

That gear.... 49 guitars on tour! What a life.

pintspiller

It's a crazy concept to only play songs on guitars they were written recorded with! All amateurs and most professionals just have one guitar

Gadget

pintspiller said:

...All amateurs and most professionals just have one guitar

Erm...

kt66

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Hattigol

kt66 said:

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Sorry in what way?

impmann

So many people knock him, but genuinely, I think he is actually technically pretty good - playing sparsely, playing economically and playing *THE SONG* seems to be three things most guitarists find impossible to do, these days. Most of those held up as "great" guitar players overplay...

And those that cover his work tend to sound nothing like him, or anywhere near as 'clean' as his playing is.

Musicman20

impmann said:

So many people knock him, but genuinely, I think he is actually technically pretty good - playing sparsely, playing economically and playing *THE SONG* seems to be three things most guitarists find impossible to do, these days. Most of those held up as "great" guitar players overplay...

And those that cover his work tend to sound nothing like him, or anywhere near as 'clean' as his playing is.

Agreed.

I'm not a huge U2 fan, I like their earlier work but then I lost track, but he's playing songs, not trying to impress. The guitar suits the song. Who cares about anything else?

jonnygreentrees

Not a U2 fan but appreciate the Edge's approach to FX and playing which is much closer to the stuff I like to do than most "guitar heroes"

Was really surprised to see he used the DM4 a lot for dirt!

StuartMac290

impmann said:

So many people knock him, but genuinely, I think he is actually technically pretty good - playing sparsely, playing economically and playing *THE SONG* seems to be three things most guitarists find impossible to do, these days. Most of those held up as "great" guitar players overplay...

And those that cover his work tend to sound nothing like him, or anywhere near as 'clean' as his playing is.

Couldn't agree more, he's a wonderful musician and guitarist. He's also incredibly precise and accurate live.

HarrySeven

Hattigol said:

kt66 said:

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Sorry in what way?

Yeah, I don’t get that either?

CHRISB50

HarrySeven said:

Hattigol said:

kt66 said:

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Sorry in what way?

Yeah, I don’t get that either?

His hair?  

Gagaryn

HarrySeven said:

Hattigol said:

kt66 said:

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Sorry in what way?

Yeah, I don’t get that either?

Maybe for  having to spend time with Jack and Bob.

mudslide73

Gagaryn said:9

HarrySeven said:

Hattigol said:

kt66 said:

Watch that video with Jimmy Page and Jack White, I actually started to feel sorry for the Edge. 

Sorry in what way?

Yeah, I don’t get that either?

Maybe for  having to spend time with Jack and Bob.

Jimmy is a bit dismissive of him imo.. especially when he's showing them the riff to "I will follow".. like "are you sure you play your song like that?". Jack and Jimmy deffo team up imo. 

Cirrus

jonnygreentrees said:

Was really surprised to see he used the DM4 a lot for dirt!

I've said before on here, the DM4 is way under rated. It sounds great. I mean, people assume dirt is going to be the worst thing to digitally model, but the DM4 is full of great sounds. It's the second best Rat I ever used, and totally held its own alongside a big muff, fuzz face and tubescreamer I had at the same time.

The only potential problem with it is that every pedal model ends up with extra tone controls, so there's more to dial in.

Cirrus

Re; it might get loud, every guitarist walks away from that film with a different opinion of who they did/ didn't like, and how the three guitarists stack up against each other.

I think it reflects the watcher more than the players, most of the time.

Moltisanti

Edge is one of the few genuinely original masters of his craft, if you've not seen U2 live it's quite an experience in the flesh. The bass and drums are so simple, then on top it's just Edge's guitar and 2 vocals and it sounds immense. His singing never gets talked about either, he has the voice of an angel and his harmonies are a huge part of the U2 sound.

impmann

Cirrus said:

jonnygreentrees said:

Was really surprised to see he used the DM4 a lot for dirt!

I've said before on here, the DM4 is way under rated. It sounds great. I mean, people assume dirt is going to be the worst thing to digitally model, but the DM4 is full of great sounds. It's the second best Rat I ever used, and totally held its own alongside a big muff, fuzz face and tubescreamer I had at the same time.

The only potential problem with it is that every pedal model ends up with extra tone controls, so there's more to dial in.

THIS.

Edge has a special rack-mount DM4 that has was built for him by Line6 US. He also has a stomp box with a very special distortion model in it - just one only - and that is the drive sound in Vertigo. He's been a Line6 exponent for years.

I was disappointed he's stopped using the custom Variax 700s that we built him (the silver one and the red one with circles on it) - I forget what song it was that he used them for, but it didn't sound like an acoustic once it had gone through his rig!

Cirrus

That'd be "Love and Peace (or else)" From the Vertigo tour, I remember it sounded pretty cool live. Oh, Think he used it on "The Fly" too, with the spanky bright wah distortion riff?

impmann

Cirrus said:

That'd be "Love and Peace (or else)" From the Vertigo tour, I remember it sounded pretty cool live. Oh, Think he used it on "The Fly" too, with the spanky bright wah distortion riff?

The Fly - thats the one.

The guitars were custom built for him by someone I used to work with. I did a minor repair on one once.

impmann

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