What I Use
Welcome to my equipment page. This is a quick rundown of the guitar gear and accessories that I personally use. When friends and family ask me about buying tuners or picks, these are the things I recommend.
A lot of this stuff is not expensive, and you may be able to shop around for some cheaper versions. However, if you're serious about playing guitar, it's worth investing in a good set of tools. The less you have to worry about the gear, the more you can just have a good time playing.
If you are looking to purchase individual items that I mention on this page, I’ll provide a Amazon link in each item’s description. Please know that I do earn a small commission for any Amazon orders purchased within 24 hours of clicking through any of my affiliate links. I appreciate the support of those who purchase through my affiliate links.
Thank You!
Guitar
Larrivée Model D-60 Dreadnought
A beautiful, solid guitar with ringing overtones and a big sound. I love this thing. Mahogany neck, Sitka Spruce top, Rosewood back. Craftmanship is excellent, with some tasteful Herringbone inlay around the binding and soundhole.
Amazingly, you can get Larrivées through Amazon...
Amplifier
AER Acouticube IIa
An amazingly powerful and clear little amp. A friend referred me to this a while ago (quite a while ago, now that I think about it...) and I haven't looked back.
2 channels (1 for guitar, 1 for vocals), built in effects, speaker out, and impressive clarity. Acoustic Electric Research (AER) has discontinued the IIa and is now producing the Acousticube 3.
Link to the new Acousticube 3:
Pickups
L.R.Baggs iMix System
The iMix combines L.R.Baggs iBeam and Element pickups so that you can create a mix between a more natural "woody" sound and the normal piezo pickup sound.
Volume and mix knobs are right under the lip of the soundhole, really handy. I've installed this on my last several acoustics.
Picks
Dunlop .60mm
I usually turn this pick in my hand so that I'm playing with one of the blunt corners. I talk more about picks here.
Dunlop Medium (Tortoise Shell)
A standard for fingerpicking and dobro.
Strings
Elixir NanoWeb Light-Medium (.12-.56)
I use these on my Larrivée acoustic guitar. They sound great and last a long time.
D'Addario EJ42 Phosphor Bronze Resophonic Guitar (.16-.56)
The friend who gave me my dobro setup used these. They sounded good, so I've just kept with them.
Strap
Franklin Leather Guitar Strap
This is a picture of my actual leather guitar strap by Franklin. Double-layered suede, nice and simple. Unfortunately, Franklin seems to have a discontinued it. But it looks they have an updated version.
Link to updated version:
Tuner
OnBoard Research Corporation's Intellitouch
The Snark series of tuners has become the quick, cheap, and popular clip-on tuner recently. But I'm still rockin' my old Intellitouch. I've written more on tuners here.
I also use a tuner app on my iPhone quite a bit, more on that here.
Link to new version of Intellitouch:
Capo
Kyser KG6B 6-String Capo
This capo is solid and is easy to quickly move around. I've used it quite a bit live, so being easy and dependable have been really important.
Miscellaneous
Tuning Tool
I think I've used the same simple guitar tuner tool for over 15 years. Cheap and effective.
Wire Cutter
This doesn't need to be fancy. The wirecutters from your toolbox, or from a hardware store are perfect.
Cable
I've used a Guardian Cable for a while, but they're no longer around. I've also been happy with the Hosa cables. I like at least a 10' cable so that I have room to move on stage without knocking things over.
Cleaning Cloth
I simply use a basic polish cloth, no micro-fiber synthetics or anything.