ONSTAGE GUITAR

I played Ovation guitars on stage for many years but since March 1999 I have used a 'Super Ace' designed by Paul McGill in Nashville TN. He sent me the guitar by UPS to try out (having never even met me) and I liked it so much that I used it the very next day in concert. Check out his site at http://www.mcgillguitars.com.

Since then, I have used it on dozens of appearances and I consider it a real breakthrough in guitar design. It is light, sounds great, and resists feedback. No more stuffing the soundhole with T-Shirts and packing material! It utilizes the RMC pickup that is also used in the Godin Classical, which I have also been using to great effect. Click the links to see photographs of Peter's red and blue McGill guitars.

GUITAR STRAP

I am currently using a hand tooled leather guitar strap which was given to me as a gift by my fan-club, The Caravan. It was hand made by Barry Wilder of Cowatcher Leatherworks, 3006 Industrial Drive, Raleigh, NC 27609. It has been personalised by embossing my signature along it's length. I really like it as it is light and folds up easily into my guitar case. Also it has been dyed only on the outside so as not to stain my clothing. (What a brilliant idea- with all other commercial leather straps that I have used the dye always rubbed off on my shirts on the shoulder.) Click *here* to see an image of the strap.

GUITAR STRINGS

I heartily recommend D'Addario Pro-Arte Classical Guitar strings, hard tension for stage and normal tension for recording. (http://www.daddario.com)

GUITAR PICK

I use a combination of fingerstyle and picking techniques (Fender medium pick). I have learned how to hide the pick under my index finger to free up my thumb and other fingers for playing fingerstyle and octaves. In this way, I can also play false harmonics, stopping the string at the octave with the thumb knuckle and picking with the ring fingernail.

ONSTAGE SOUND

For my onstage sound, I use a Boss SE-70. It is a small, half-space rack-mountable multi-effects unit that is SO useful because it has a built-in tuner. It can be set so that in tuning mode no sound is sent out, so I can be tuning during a bass solo (for example) and no one even knows! All this by pressing one button. To get back to full on sound, I just press the Exit button. Now as long as I can see these buttons in semi-darkness, this is quite an easy operation. I use a "Guitar Multi" setting on the unit with a hint of compression, a modicum of reverb and a slight 375 msec. delay. That's it, straight into a D.I. box and then into the P.A. It can be run in either mono or stereo. I set the input level selector on the back to -20. The input level control on the front can be set to where you see a little red-light overload on the loudest chords. (Watch out Van Halen!)

WIRELESS SYSTEM

Lately I have been using a Shure SC4-CP wireless system, which is excellent. The batteries seem to last forever and the range is fantastic. Also, I can silently switch the transmitter on and off during a show. In situations where I don't need to move around so much, I use a 25' cable with one right-angle end.

RECORDING GUITARS

For recording, I employ a variety of guitars, including Ovation, Takamine, Guild, Martin, and a guitar made in Taiwan that I bought used in L.A. for $85. I have used the Taiwanese guitar on many recordings, including my own albums. So, it is not true that the most expensive guitar is the best. A concert guitar with a big sound will not necessarily be the best for recording. I have found that a guitar with a loud tone will not sustain as much as a guitar with a soft tone. Sustain is something that I particularly look for on the higher strings.

NAILS

I generally don't use a pick for recording, instead keeping the fingernails on my right hand slightly long for finger-picking. Sally Hansen's Noticeably Stronger Nail Thickener with Iron is the only product I have ever found that keeps the nails hard and withstands the rigours of the road at the same time, i.e., it stays on. How about an endorsement deal guys!

RECORDING MICROPHONES

I have used a variety of condenser microphones: An AKG 451 for my first 2 albums - Reveillez-Vous and Excusez-Moi, a B&K 4000 series for my 3rd & 4th - Promenade and Reflections (A lovely microphone. I have since lost it, sniff, sniff, wipes a tear...), and on my 5th - Caravan Of Dreams, I used my producer's AKG 414 microphone with the bass rolled off (there is a switch on the back which performs this function). Incidentally, this microphone has also been used by Boney James on most of his recordings. It's a very good all-purpose microphone. When I sit, I place the microphone at a 45 degree angle to the left of the center of the soundhole, and about 9 inches away - still on that 45 degree angle (see diagram above) This way the microphone is actually pointed at the soundhole but far enough off axis to avoid unnecessary boominess (my wife says that's not a word either). Of course, the whole thing is reversed if you are playing left handed. A slight amount of limiting is all that is required to put the sound on tape.

I am not an expert on pre-amps, but I can only say that the more expensive the microphone pre-amp, the better the quality (Ask for professional advice on this question. I am not an engineer!)

SOUND ON TAPE

My last album was recorded on 2" analog tape and mixed to 1/2" analog tape, but I have also recorded digitally on Alesis ADAT and mixed to DAT, to good effect.