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Q: What makes a guitar good for playing fingerstyle?
A: Giving it to a good fingerstyle guitarist! Yes, I'm being funny... but there's a lot of truth in that, too. The guitar is a much smaller part of the equation than most people realize. For example, if I were to list my preferences for a "fingerstyle guitar," you'd end up with almost the exact opposite of the guitar that Michael Hedges used (a Martin D-28), and it would obviously be silly to suggest that he was using the wrong guitar! Ultimately, there's no "right" answer to what makes a good fingerstyle guitar.
Q: For years you've been playing guitars with cedar tops, and now your main guitar has an Adirondack spruce top. Why the switch?
A: I love cedar tops because they sound a little richer and warmer to my ears, and generally have more overtones than spruce--which gives a little more complexity to the sound. Cedar tops sound great with my sparse, melodic style. However, I had the opportunity to play Al Petteway's new guitar--a small-bodied Circa (made by luthier John Slobod) with an Adirondack top and maple back and sides. Although I expected it to sound fairly bright, I was surprised at how nice it sounded; it was not thin or bright sounding at all.
More recently, I played (and quickly bought) another small-bodied guitar with an Adirondack top. This one was made by Simon Fay, and featured Malaysian blackwood back and sides. It had the overtones and the richness I like from cedar tops, but still retained the clarity and snap of spruce. It was like having the best qualities of cedar and spruce. I really like the way it sounds, especially with my light attack.
Q: What pickups do you use in your guitars?
A: The Simon Fay OM has a dual-source setup, using a K&K Pure Western Mini along with a K&K FanTaStik. This setup gives me a very natural sound and the flexibilty to blend the signals from the pickups to suit the performance situation. The Rainsongs both have Fishman Prefix Plus-T systems installed, which are surpisingly natural sounding, considering that they are undersaddle transducers in graphite guitars.
Q: Why do you use Kyser capos? Don't they pull your strings out of tune?
A: Yes, the fact that the spring tension is non-adjustable on the Kysers means that they'll sometimes put too much pressure on the strings and pull them slightly sharp. But here are four reasons why I use 'em anyway: 1) I'm used to them. I've been using Kysers for 20 years. 2) The handle-grip design makes it easy to place the capo or change positions quickly with one hand. 3) They clamp nicely to the end of the headstock. I like a capo to be close at hand when I need it. You never see a guitarist who uses Kysers patting their pockets and looking around on the floor trying to find out where they left their capo. 4) I can place my Kyser and tweak the tuning faster than I can fiddle around with adjusting the tension on other types of capos. And most of the time, the tuning still needs to be adjusted regardless of what capo is used.
Q: What's in the rack you use for live performances?
A: I have a 6-space SKB rack, with the following gear (from top to bottom): 1) Korg DTR-1000 digital tuner; 2) Rackrider RR-15 power conditioner and light module; 3) Rane AP13 acoustic preamp (this is the key unit); 4) Rane AP13 acoustic preamp (had to have a backup, just in case); 5 & 6) Samson S62 mixer/amplifier.
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