[lespaul3013]

What is the best live guitar tone you have ever heard??

If possible...include rig info (amps, guitars, effects...)

[Tim Possible]

Billy Gibbons. No idea what he actually had in his line.....

[Sean.thomson]

Josh Homme. Anything from roaring weird space reverb monster to a tin can about to explode.

[ibanez_dude]

He's not always near the top, but Brad Avery's tone here is fantastic, from like 3:40 to the end.
John Mayer's Belief from Where The Light Is, specifically the solo from 3:35-4:00 here. Actually, most anything by JM

[Tim Possible]

Are we talking in person, or 'live recorded'?

[jeepnstein]

Live shows? Stevie Ray Vaughn, Jerry Garcia, Tom Sholz, and Tony Rice.

Stevie Ray was just completely unbelievable. None of his live recordings do it justice. This would have been around 1985 or so.

Jerry Garcia was just so clean and loud. His playing was always just somehow an extension of his voice. The improvisational parts of their shows were always a treat. Garcia's tone was more playful than powerful.

Tom Sholz. The first concert I ever attended was Boston back in 1977 or '78. I'd never heard anything like that before. His sound just soared into the rafters. I still consider it one of the essential rock sounds.

Tony Rice. Playing Clarence White's old guitar into a microphone. I'm not sure it really needed to be miked. That thing was LOUD. This was with what was passing for J.D. Crowe and the New South that night. Crowe, Rice, Ricky Skaggs, Jerry Douglas, and Keith Whitley. I can't recall who the bass player was that night but he was the regular for the Dirt Band. It was the best acoustic guitar playing I've ever heard.

[dailybeans]

The best live tones I've ever heard were from:
Tim Reynolds who was using a Marshall JCM2000 and a Mesa/Boogie and a fender Strat.
Matthew Bellamy, using a Diezel head into a Soldano cabinet, with a Hugh Manson guitar.
The Edge, using a couple of 70's AC30TB's and I think he was using an Infinite Guitar
and John Mayer, but I have no idea what he was using except a fender Strat haha.

[lespaul3013]

Originally Posted by Captain Kilt, Zombie Lord of CPF

Are we talking in person, or 'live recorded'?

Preferably in person, but "live recorded" is fine too.

[ibanez_dude]

Originally Posted by dailybeans

The best live tones I've ever heard were from:
Tim Reynolds who was using a Marshall JCM2000 and a Mesa/Boogie and a fender Strat.
Matthew Bellamy, using a Diezel head into a Soldano cabinet, with a Hugh Manson guitar.
The Edge, using a couple of 70's AC30TB's and I think he was using an Infinite Guitar
and John Mayer, but I have no idea what he was using except a fender Strat haha.

Yeh, whatever people may say about the Edge and his playing style (I personally love it, but some don't), his tone through his old AC30 can really just be phenomenal sometimes

[dtaylorl]

A guitarist at a church in Sand Point, Idaho. I really wish I had taken the time to ask him about his set up. I'm pretty sure it was a Gibson Les Paul into a Fender Deluxe Reverb. Not sure about the pedal, etc. which I have a feeling may have been somewhat critical to his setup...

[jamforchrist123]

Maybe not the best tone EVER, but the first few chords at the very beginning of this as well as the lead coming from that matchless just make me want to sell my car and buy a matchless+whatever the heck those guys are using. That is the tone I want to have under my fingers.

YouTube - Your Love Never Fails -Chris Quilala / Jesus Culture

[MJ_Avalanche]

Distorted tone
Bob Hartman - Petra

This was in... 2003 or 2004. Can't remember which one. They played at the Night of Joy event at Universal. His tone was just massive, but it was so clean. All he had to do was hit one chord and my face just blew off. Wish I could tell you anything he was using at the time. I seem to recall a Les Paul (maybe with a tremolo), but I think all his amps were offstage. Don't remember seeing anything onstage.

The second best distorted tone came from Jamie Kime (I think that's how it's spelled). The second guitar player for Zappa Plays Zappa. He was playing an LP most of the night through a Bogner Alchemist (actually to be completely honest it could have been one of the other models, but I remember as an Alchemist). Not sure what was on the floor. He only took one solo, but his tone was masterful. Smooth as silk.

I don't think I've heard the best clean tone yet. Maybe John Mayer could count, but I didn't like his concert so maybe not.

[AudioAUnderdog]

SRV for me, but I can't really say I ever actually saw him live. It was enough seeing him on TV for the first time though. I originally didn't even like the music, it was the tone that kept me listening long enough for it to grow on me.

[jthomas1600]

Originally Posted by Captain Kilt, Zombie Lord of CPF

Billy Gibbons. No idea what he actually had in his line.....

I was recently watching a ton of youtube videos of a wide variety of bands doing live shows. So many times I'm disappointed because to my ears bands just can't live up to the sound they created in the studio. No such thing with ZZ Top. Some of the clips looked like they were recorded by some guy using his Walmart camcorder and they still sounded great.

[guit22]

Just talking live concerts I have been to:
SRV, Chet Atkins, Don Felder.