Bono

Used for "Get On Your Boots", as stated by producer Declan Gaffney.

Most of Bono's vocals were recorded through a Shure Beta 58 dynamic mic, with some EQ (including the Waves VEQ3, top) and heavy compression from the Fairchild 660 plug-in. No reverb was used, but Sound Toys' Echo Boy provided delay.

(...) "When we were in France, we got this great vocal sound that Bono really liked, which was a [Shure] Beta 58, going through a 1091 and then an LA2A, into Pro Tools. I even A/B'ed the different 58s and Neves, and found my favourite LA2A, to get the best ones. I'm very proud of the vocal sound. I added a bit of compression while he was singing, and he got excited by that and adjusted his voice accordingly. When we were at Olympic, the vocal chain changed a little. I normally have two or three 58s up in a room, and at Olympic one of them would go through a Neve preamp and the LA2A, but the other would be Neve and then Distressor, and I actually preferred that sound. The LA2A sounded a little too thick. The Distressor had a sort of hardness that balanced the thickness out better.”

The Beta 58A was later used for the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour, as stated in this Mix Online article.

“Bono uses a standard Shure Beta 58A,” says his monitor engineer, Alastair McMillan. “Then I have an analog chain that goes directly into an SSL X desk to be summed with the SD7 outputs. It’s very clean in that classic SSL way and has loads of headroom, which was an important feature as his vocal is very dynamic. There’s something about his voice that hits the compressors and effects in a unique way. It’s impossible to replicate during setup! So I just have to start with a basic setting and dial it in once he starts singing.”

From the Sound On Sound March 1994 article "Robbie Adams: Recording U2's Achtung Baby & Zooropa":

Bono's vocals were largely recorded with an SM58 and compressed with a Summit compressor. Adams: "Instead of using the Summit, what we did on several of the tracks on Achtung Baby was to record his vocals on tape with Dolby SR and play it back without Dolby SR. It tightens up the vocal sound and gives it more brightness and presence. It makes his voice sit really nicely in the mix and easier to balance."

Paul Waller, a Master Builder in the Fender Custom Shop in Corona, California built this telecaster for Bono in 2011. In this photo, Bono can be seen playing the guitar during a live U2 performance (the pickguard appears to have been removed from the guitar). The guitar has a semi-hollow Fender Telecaster style body with f-holes, and the pickups look to be TV Jones Filter’Tron style pickups (possibly TV Classics). The guitar also features Gretsch style gold binding and Gretsch style knobs.

Some of the information is according to a forum post made by a user who says he's Paul Weller's father-in-law.

Bono has extensively used the Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp throughout his career, as evidenced by a photograph on PhotoBucket.

In this video, Bono can be seen playing a Black Fender Lead II in a live performance with U2 at Red Rocks.

In this photograph, we can see Bono playing his Elvis Presley Dove live onstage. He has been seen with the guitar many times over the years, starting primarily around 1991's Zoo TV Tour.

According to producer Phil Ramone, Bono used the AE5400 for "I Wanna Be Around" off of Tony Bennett's Duets: An American Classic.

Bennett and Ramone had collaborated before, and both were keen on using classic recording techniques so well-suited to these songs and artists. “I’ve always loved the way the AE5400 sounds for vocals,” says Ramone, who also produced two duet recordings with Frank Sinatra. “And I wasn’t alone — Bono told me he loved the dynamics of the A-T handheld AE5400. And the A-T microphones are able to capture every nuance of performance, so they fit a wide variety of vocal styles.”

In this video, at 3:05, Bono can be seen playing a Gibson Hummingbird in a wine red finish.

Here is a picture of Bono's handwired AC30 that was used for the U2 360 tour.

The transcribed article accompanying an equipment list from U2 MAGAZINE No: 1 in November 1981 states that "Bono also has a guitar - a black Fender Lead 2. This is fed through a Roland Bolt 60 combo miked with another Sennheiser MD421."

Used for the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour.

For in-ear monitors the band is trying something different—the JH Audio JH-16s for everyone except for The Edge and his engineer Richard Rainey, who opted for the JH Roxanne in-ears.

Here, Bono is shown with his custom black Gibson ES-175. In this photo the words "I Feel Good" have been added to the bottom of the guitar.

Bono can be seen in this photo playing a Gibson J-200.

The transcribed article accompanying an equipment list from U2 MAGAZINE No: 1 in November 1981 states that "Bono also has a guitar - a black Fender Lead 2. This is fed through a Roland Bolt 60 combo miked with another Sennheiser MD421."

We can actually catch a glimpse of the Bolt-60 onstage in this live video of U2's performance at the Werchter Festival in 1982. At the 26 second mark, if paused, the amp sits in the background to the left of the Edge's elbow.

In a YouTube video by RealCoolCat, Bono is seen playing his signature Gretsch G6136I Bono Irish Falcon while U2 performs Bowie's "Jean Genie."

Bono used a Gibson ES-335 from 1987-1990, during the Joshua Tree &Rattle and Hum tours.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpozVvYe-h4

Used for the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour.

“Bono uses a standard Shure Beta 58A,” says his monitor engineer, Alastair McMillan. “Then I have an analog chain that goes directly into an SSL X desk to be summed with the SD7 outputs. It’s very clean in that classic SSL way and has loads of headroom, which was an important feature as his vocal is very dynamic. There’s something about his voice that hits the compressors and effects in a unique way. It’s impossible to replicate during setup! So I just have to start with a basic setting and dial it in once he starts singing.”

Used for "Get On Your Boots".

Most of Bono's vocals were recorded through a Shure Beta 58 dynamic mic, with some EQ (including the Waves VEQ3, top) and heavy compression from the Fairchild 660 plug-in. No reverb was used, but Sound Toys' Echo Boy provided delay.

An image of the settings can be found here.

According to Gretsch's blog, Bono is quoted as saying, "“The (GRETSCH)RED guitar is a guitarist’s dream. And the reality is that every time someone buys one, it’s raising money to fight AIDS. That money can buy life-saving medicine for pregnant mothers living with HIV, and prevent their babies being born with the virus. They’re the same pills that will help deliver an AIDS Free Generation.”

Bono can be seen in this photo playing a Yamaha CP 80.

In this top of the pops performance of "New years day" in 1983, Bono is seen with a Fendere telecaster deluxe in black.

In this photo from the Zooropa sessions, you can see Bono playing a Gibson Les Paul Custom. (Photo from Vox Magazine, August 1993 page 21, according to website U2 Bono Files.)

This guitar was used by Bono during the Popmart tour for "Gone," as seen in this clip here.

In one scene, Bono can be seen using a Fender Precision bass in this mini-documentary

Used for "Get On Your Boots".

Most of Bono's vocals were recorded through a Shure Beta 58 dynamic mic, with some EQ (including the Waves VEQ3, top) and heavy compression from the Fairchild 660 plug-in. No reverb was used, but Sound Toys' Echo Boy provided delay.

An image of the settings can be found here.

Used on the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour.

“The DiGiCo SD7 I’m using is extremely powerful and reliable. It can do anything we throw at it,” says Bono monitor engineer Alastair McMillan, pictured at left with monitor engineer CJ Eiriksson (Larry Mullen, Adam Clayton) and monitor engineer Richard Rainey (the Edge), each of whom also has an SD7. “We’re using all of the available processing power, which is quite impressive for a four piece band! I’m a big fan of the new classic EQ option and especially the multiband compressors. With those two features I have everything I need so I decided not to opt for the Waves grid. We’re all running at 96k. I am hooked up to Pro Tools via two Madi bridges which are able to sample convert in real time. This way we can run our Pro Tools sessions at 48k, making them a much more manageable size.”

Producer Declan Gaffney stated the following about the recording of No Line On The Horizon:

"We wanted to keep the recording setup small, so we just had a few microphones, a Control 24, Pro Tools, and three drives, so we could move easily and quickly between different songs. Other than Pro Tools, the recording setups for most of the sessions were pretty similar. Edge's old Neve desk was pulled apart for on-location recording, and its 1091 and 1093 mic preamps were racked. Everything was going through these mic pres, or a small Neve sidecar, then through any required outboard, and monitoring was via two Mackie 24-channel desks."

Producer Declan Gaffney stated the following about the recording of No Line On The Horizon:

"We wanted to keep the recording setup small, so we just had a few microphones, a Control 24, Pro Tools, and three drives, so we could move easily and quickly between different songs. Other than Pro Tools, the recording setups for most of the sessions were pretty similar. Edge's old Neve desk was pulled apart for on-location recording, and its 1091 and 1093 mic preamps were racked. Everything was going through these mic pres, or a small Neve sidecar, then through any required outboard, and monitoring was via two Mackie 24-channel desks."

Producer Declan Gaffney stated the following about the recording of No Line On The Horizon:

"We wanted to keep the recording setup small, so we just had a few microphones, a Control 24, Pro Tools, and three drives, so we could move easily and quickly between different songs. Other than Pro Tools, the recording setups for most of the sessions were pretty similar. Edge's old Neve desk was pulled apart for on-location recording, and its 1091 and 1093 mic preamps were racked. Everything was going through these mic pres, or a small Neve sidecar, then through any required outboard, and monitoring was via two Mackie 24-channel desks."

Used for "Get On Your Boots".

Most of Bono's vocals were recorded through a Shure Beta 58 dynamic mic, with some EQ (including the Waves VEQ3, top) and heavy compression from the Fairchild 660 plug-in. No reverb was used, but Sound Toys' Echo Boy provided delay.

An image of the settings can be found here.