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Riff Tone

Sultans Of Swing (Live At Hammersmith Odeon, London/1983)

Dire Straits

Guitarrock1980s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Stratocaster (likely 1961, maple neck, stock single coils)
AmpFender Vibrolux (early 1960s brownface, model 6G11 or 6G11-A)

Amp Settings

gain0
bass5.5

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Effects & Signal Chain

Notes

Live performance at Hammersmith Odeon, London, 1983. Mark Knopfler is confirmed to use a Fender Stratocaster and a Fender Vibrolux amp for Sultans of Swing in this era. No evidence of additional pedals for the riff section; amp reverb likely used. Settings estimated based on typical Vibrolux clean tone for classic rock/blues in a live context.

Tone Character(10)
bright and articulateclean and glassypercussive attackdynamic and touch-sensitivewarm but clear highsslightly scooped midssubtle amp reverb depthno audible distortionclassic Strat 'quack' in position 2responsive to fingerstyle technique

Difficulty

The riff requires advanced fingerstyle technique, precise muting, and dynamic control to capture the percussive, articulate sound. The syncopated rhythm and string skipping add to the technical challenge.

This tone has been researched 2 times by the community

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