Les Finnigan

Kispiox Valley Music Festival 2000
Can everybody hear me out there?

Watch Gear Overview Video (2005)

Guitars

2008 - Alberico OM (German Spruce / Nicaraguan Cocobolo)
1996 - Bourgeois, Martin Simpson Model
1987 - Martin, D - 12 - 18
1976 - Martin, D - 28

Strings

Elixir, nanoweb, phosphor bronze, medium gauge strings. To get a more even string tension and volume, Les substitutes the plain strings, .013 & .017 for ones a gauge heavier, so the gauges are .014, .018, .026, .035, .045 & .056.

Pick-ups

All 4 guitars have a Sunrise magnetic soundhole pickup and are wired directly to an endpin jack to use with an outboard tube pre-amp.

Recording gear

Neumann, KM 184
Audio Technica, 4033a (x 2)
Sunrise, magnetic soundhole pickup
ART, PRO MPA - Stereo tube mic pre-amp
Pendulum Audio, SPS-1 Stereo pre-amp/parametric EQ
Alesis, Midiverb 4 (plate reverb setting - drastically modified)
Panasonic, SV-3800 DAT (digital audio tape recorder)
Planet Waves twisted pair cables throughout
Audio Technica, ATH-M40 headphones
Tannoy, PBM 6.5 II monitors
Dynaudio, BM6 monitors

All studio recordings are done without compression or EQ and go live directly to 2 track DAT without subsequent mixing. This process can be a bit more time consuming but results in a more audiophile quality recording. Subtle equalization and compression is done at the mastering stage.

Live gear

Sunrise, magnetic soundhole pickup
Fishman, piezo under-saddle pickup (1995 - 2007)
ART, PRO MPA - Stereo tube mic pre-amp
Pendulum Audio, SPS-1 Stereo pre-amp/parametric EQ
Alesis, Midiverb 4 (customized plate reverb setting)
2 balanced XLR outputs to the P.A. system

Casual gigs (no P.A.)

Sunrise, magnetic soundhole pickup
Presonus, tube pre-amp
Alesis Picoverb (room/chorus setting #1)
Roland, AC-100 acoustic guitar amplifier
(Amplifier modifications include an Electrovoice 12" P.A. speaker, and side and rear mounted tweeters.)