Alan Sparhawk

You can here the distinctive sound of the Count to Five used throughout the set on the Double Negative Tour and it can be seen in the foreground during some shots of the pedals at Sparhawk's feet.

In the 1995 Guitar Geek article detailing Alan Sparhawk's setup for the band Low, the Ibanez AD9 Analog Delay is listed as part of his guitar rig. This suggests that Sparhawk used the AD9 for its analog delay effects, rather than a digital delay.

"Sparhawk’s a great experimenter when it comes to pedals. For the album, he relied on a DwarfCraft Devices Great Destroyer, Red Panda Particle delay, and especially a ZVex Instant Lo-Fi Junky."

"Right now, it’s a Les Paul with P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem into a Z-Vex Octane 3, an SIB Mr. Echo, a Z-Vex Lo-fi Loop Junkie, & then a Z-Vex Super Hard On. Amps vary, but I like the 1965 reissue Fender Twin with the 15 inch speaker, &/or a Traynor Bassmaster head into a 1x12 cab. With Low, I’ll use smaller amps - a Carr Mercury, Fender Vibroverb, or just a Champ."

This is a photo of Sparhawk's pedals from a Low concert that took place in Saskatoon, SK, Canada on June 23, 2017. You can see the new Afterneath pedal there on the right.

In this rendition of song "Nightingale", Sparhawk used Danelectro 5005 Convertible which had a different headstock than other Convertibles do.

According to Guitar Geek, Sparhawk has Fender Telecaster which is a 1962. reissue and has Gibson Humbucker. It is tuned to DGDGBD (Open G).

This video starts with a clear shot of Alan Sparhawk's pedal setup. The MicroPOG can be seen in the front.

According to Guitar Geek's rig diagram, Sparhawk uses Vox V15.

"Right now, it’s a Les Paul with P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem into a Z-Vex Octane 3, an SIB Mr. Echo, a Z-Vex Lo-fi Loop Junkie, & then a Z-Vex Super Hard On. Amps vary, but I like the 1965 reissue Fender Twin with the 15 inch speaker, &/or a Traynor Bassmaster head into a 1x12 cab. With Low, I’ll use smaller amps - a Carr Mercury, Fender Vibroverb, or just a Champ."

In this KEXP performance, throughout the whole show, Sparhawk can be seen playing this creamy coloured Gibson Les Paul Custom. This one also includes Bigsby.

This is his main guitar most of the time and he uses it a lot for shows.

"Sparhawk’s a great experimenter when it comes to pedals. For the album, he relied on a DwarfCraft Devices Great Destroyer, Red Panda Particle delay, and especially a ZVex Instant Lo-Fi Junky."

"Right now, it’s a Les Paul with P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem into a Z-Vex Octane 3, an SIB Mr. Echo, a Z-Vex Lo-fi Loop Junkie, & then a Z-Vex Super Hard On. Amps vary, but I like the 1965 reissue Fender Twin with the 15 inch speaker, &/or a Traynor Bassmaster head into a 1x12 cab. With Low, I’ll use smaller amps - a Carr Mercury, Fender Vibroverb, or just a Champ."

At around 4:58 minute mark, Sparhawk is visible playing Epiphone Les Paul Baritone, which is rumoured to be paint sprayed in gold colour.

A Roland JC-50 can be seen in Alan's rig in this photo from a Low concert circa 2013.

"Alan – Fender Pro Jr. amp is still the best buy out there - 15watts, tube, simple circuit. The Traynor Bassmaster head can be found pretty cheap, but it’s one of the best sounding amps in the world. Over the years I’ve found things cheap here & there - a Micro-Moog synth for $150, the first Roland drum machine for $25, the Silvertone I use in the Snakes, etc. I’ve had to buy gear on the road in emergency situations & it always goes bad - a Victoria Tweed amp, a JMI AC30 copy, newer AC30s."

An EarthQuaker Devices Avalanche Run can be seen in Alan's pedal chain.

"Then I think my dad gave me an Aria Pro 2 ZZ Deluxe - a baby blue Explorer-shaped thing. Once I could buy my own, I traded it in for a stripped 1964 Mustang. Still have that."

In an interview with Silbermedia, Alan Sparhawk discusses using the Carr Mercury amplifier during his performances with Low and Retribution Gospel.

"Right now, it’s a Les Paul with P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem into a Z-Vex Octane 3, an SIB Mr. Echo, a Z-Vex Lo-fi Loop Junkie, & then a Z-Vex Super Hard On. Amps vary, but I like the 1965 reissue Fender Twin with the 15 inch speaker, &/or a Traynor Bassmaster head into a 1x12 cab. With Low, I’ll use smaller amps - a Carr Mercury, Fender Vibroverb, or just a Champ."

A Zvex Instant Lo-Fi Loop Junky can be seen at the start of Alan's pedal chain.

According to Guitar Geek's rig diagram, Sparhawk uses Fender Vintage Vibroverb.

"Right now, it’s a Les Paul with P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem into a Z-Vex Octane 3, an SIB Mr. Echo, a Z-Vex Lo-fi Loop Junkie, & then a Z-Vex Super Hard On. Amps vary, but I like the 1965 reissue Fender Twin with the 15 inch speaker, &/or a Traynor Bassmaster head into a 1x12 cab. With Low, I’ll use smaller amps - a Carr Mercury, Fender Vibroverb, or just a Champ."

"Alan – Black late 1980s Les Paul standard with Rio Grande P-90 pickups & a bigsby trem. I have a few Les Pauls & they’re all pretty exciting to play (most Les Pauls are not), but this one seems the most reliable & consistent. It’s a very heavy piece of wood & whoever had it before me played it a lot. I used to play telecasters with a humbucker & bigsby, but then I crossed over like DRI. In the studio, I’ll usually use several different guitars to get different textures, plus it kinda helps justify having more guitars than you really need. On tour, I’m usually doing it all with just the one."

"First guitar of my own was a Japanese copy of an SG bass. Still have it. Then I think my dad gave me an Aria Pro 2 ZZ Deluxe - a baby blue Explorer-shaped thing. Once I could buy my own, I traded it in for a stripped 1964 Mustang. Still have that."

In this KEXP performance, Sparhawk is seen singing into Neumann KMS104 microphone.

Seen on Alan Sparhawk's pedalboard at their April 4th 2022 show at the Axis Club in Toronto, on the Hey What tour.

Seen on Alan Sparhawk's pedalboard at their April 4th 2022 show at the Axis Club in Toronto, on the Hey What tour.

Seen on Alan Sparhawk's pedalboard at their April 4th 2022 show at the Axis Club in Toronto, on the Hey What tour.

Seen on Alan Sparhawk's pedalboard at their April 4th 2022 show at the Axis Club in Toronto, on the Hey What tour.