Lao Wu

A JCM900 combo is partially visible in this picture of the band in the studio with engineer Wang Xinbo, ca. 1991-2. It is likely that Lao Wu used this amplifier to record Tang Dynasty's debut album.

This is an HSH model which has been in Lao Wu's possession as early as 2008 as evidenced by this video. The guitar is clearly visible at the start of this video. Lao Wu prefers the Suhr for playing more aggressive music, and the instrument now serves as his primary live electric guitar. In this video at 5:04 Lao Wu reveals that the guitar has coil-splitting functionality, allowing the player to switch from humbuckers to single coils at the push/pull of a knob.

It is one of Lao Wu's few guitars to not be adorned with dragon decals.

See the guitar in action here.

Lao Wu owns several James Tyler guitars. His Studio Elite Burning Water was completed on August 29, 2005, and was reported to have been purchased by Lao Wu in China on September 1 of the same year. It was reported that Lao Wu had been searching for a guitar that suited his needs for a long time, and this guitar helped him complete that search. This guitar was used on Tang Dynasty's third album Romantic Knight, notably on the song Pathway, as revealed here at 1:03.

Lao Wu praises James Tyler guitars for what he deems their excellent tonal response, particularly from the 3rd and 4th strings. He believes that James Tyler guitars best reflect Chinese cultural values of moderation and balance. He can be seen playing a James Tyler guitar at the beginning of this video, using his signature "Split-Brain" hybrid picking approach that draws upon Chinese folk music.

A nice close-up of Lao Wu's Studio Elite can be seen here at 18:00.

Hear the Studio Elite in action here:

This was the main electric guitar Lao Wu used from 1992-93 at the start of his career. It can be seen in four of the five music videos Tang Dynasty shot for their eponymous debut album. Lao Wu also used the guitar at Tang Dynasty's 1993 concert in Berlin.

As of a few years ago, this guitar is still in Lao Wu's possession, as evidenced by this video at 1:15 and 3:16. It is most likely retired, as the body and finish have been worn down by years of playing.

Lao adorned this guitar by gluing several dragon decals to the body.

See the guitar in action here.

Tube Screamer-like overdrive. The pedal can be seen on his board at 0:04 in the attached video.

Distortion pedal. The pedal can be seen on his board at 0:04 in the attached video.

An Eventide Pitchfactor can be seen on Lao Wu's pedalboard at 0:04 in the above video. The first Tang Dynasty album features stereo, delayed guitar harmonies a perfect fourth (A Dream Return to Tang Dynasty; Legend) or octave apart (Soaring Bird; The Internationale). While the album predates the Pitchfactor by a decade and a half, this pedal is more than capable of recreating those sounds.

The pedal can be seen on his board at 0:04 in the attached video.

The pedal can be seen on his board at 0:04 in the attached video.

This is the guitar seen in Lao Wu's profile picture: a blue or teal burst Floyd-equipped HSS. The guitar has been in his possession since at least 2006, as shown in this video here (a good close-up can be seen at 7:03).

As he reveals at 6:28 in this video Lao Wu used this guitar on Tang Dynasty's third album Romantic Knight, notably on the song Screaming Train, citing its fluid action. In the same video at 2:29, he praises the guitar for its exacting craftsmanship and reliability.

As he has done on several of his guitars, Lao Wu adorned this guitar with a dragon sticker on the body.

See the guitar in action here.

Lao Wu used a Floyd Rose-equipped Fender HSS Stratocaster, adorned with dragon decals on the body, notably during Tang Dynasty's 1994 appearances in Hong Kong. The guitar appears on the cover of his first solo album, Walking in the Fog, released in 1997. According to this video at 8:35, Lao Wu lost the guitar in the years following the Hong Kong shows.

See the guitar in action here

On the homepage of his website, Lao Wu can be seen playing acoustic guitar through a red AER Alpha combo.

Hear the AER in action here:

Lao Wu owns several James Tyler guitars. He can be seen playing his blue Studio Elite HD at the beginning of the above video, praising the guitar for its sonic versatility.

Lao Wu praises James Tyler guitars for what he deems their excellent tonal response, particularly from the 3rd and 4th strings. He believes that James Tyler guitars best reflect Chinese cultural values of moderation and balance. He can be seen playing a James Tyler guitar at the beginning of this video, using his signature "Split-Brain" hybrid picking approach that draws upon Chinese folk music.

According to the above video at 3:56, Lao Wu used this guitar extensively for rhythm work on Tang Dynasty's third record.

A Roland VG-88 is briefly visible in the attached video at 10:30. Lao Wu states that he regularly uses this unit live. Lao Wu has owned and played a VG-88 as early as 2001, as evidenced by this video starting from 2:40:

At 1:52 in the attached video, Lao Wu talks about his Fender Showmaster, purchased about seven years prior to when the video was made. His particular version has a black finish, a 24-fret neck, dot inlays, and a Floyd Rose bridge. Lao Wu states that he swapped out the pickups for DiMarzios. Using a knife, he carved some etchings into the face of the guitar for aesthetic purposes.

Lao Wu can be seen playing the guitar - then without the knife etchings - at an outdoor concert on 20 August 2004, held in Beijing to cheer on the Chinese athletes participating in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

At 1:33 in the attached video, Lao Wu states that he was given the guitar by Ibanez while endorsed by the brand. It is said by some that Lao Wu was the first guitarist in China to play a seven-string guitar, although it is unknown if he actually used them on any recordings or concerts. Lao Wu also possesses a UV777, a rare predecessor of the UV777P.

See the guitar in action here:

A swirl-finish Ibanez UV777 appears on the cover of Lao Wu's 1999 solo album, 再渡归来 (Return Again). It is said by some that Lao Wu was the first guitarist in China to play a seven-string, although it is unknown if he actually used them on any recordings or concerts. By the time this video was shot, the guitar was basically retired, its finish completely worn off over years of heavy use. It remains in Lao Wu's personal studio for sentimental reasons. Like many of Lao Wu's guitars, it is adorned with a dragon on the body.

The UV777 was among the first mass-produced seven-string electric guitars, and only a few hundred models were built according to the Ibanez wiki. At 3:24 in the aforementioned video, Lao Wu confirms the guitar's rarity, saying that people from all over the world have come to visit him in hopes of getting a glimpse of the instrument.

As evidenced by this video at 3:15 the guitar was still in Lao Wu's possession as late as 2015.

Lao Wu also has a black UV777P - an updated version of the UV777 - given to him by Ibanez during his stint as an endorsee of the company.

Lao Wu is often seen playing Marshall heads through 4 x 12 Marshall cabinets live. Here he is seen playing a JCM900 4100 tube head at a guitar clinic from the mid-2000s.

This page is a good source for pictures of Lao Wu's gear.

A closeup of Lao Wu's Fender Bassman can be viewed above, with a hand-written "Fender Bassman" logo in place of the stock metal plate and adorned with a pair of hand-drawn eyes, presumably by Lao Wu himself. It is currently unknown whether he used this amp on any recordings or concerts.

The Fender Bassman is also visible in Lao Wu's office throughout this video.