Top 5Has said they use
Fender
Mustang“I got a Mustang in a trade, and I just really liked that the neck was so easy to move around on”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Independent research by truerecs. Not affiliated with, endorsed or verified by Death Cab for Cutie. Every item links to its public source.
13 items · Last checked What gear does Death Cab for Cutie use?
In MusicRadar's 2019 rig tour, Ben Gibbard had '70s Fender Mustangs, Dave Depper a Fano Alt De Facto PX6, a Novo Serus J and a Rickenbacker 330, and Zac Rae a Strymon Brigadier and Catalinbread Manx Loaghtan. The band toured with Fractal Axe-Fx modelling instead of amps.
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Top 5
Where to start with Death Cab for Cutie's gear.
01
02
Top 5Has said they use
EarthQuaker Devices
Dispatch Master“that I had a delay pedal in the Dispatch Master that I could use as a delay in case the TimeFactor went down!”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
03
Top 5Has said they use
Eventide
TimeFactor“The Eventides do not do well with [travel]”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
04
Top 5Has said they use
Strymon
BlueSky reverb“I finally went to the Strymon reverb after the last tour, because Dave had been using it”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
05
Top 5Has said they use
ZVEX Effects
Box of Rock“The Box Of Rock is a great pedal, but I found it was a little dark.”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
What gear Death Cab for Cutie uses: a sourced gear guide
Independent research by truerecs: every item links to the public source it comes from.
Ben Gibbard's rig
Has said they use
Fender
Mustang“I got a Mustang in a trade, and I just really liked that the neck was so easy to move around on”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Find it on
Has said they use
EarthQuaker Devices
Dispatch Master“that I had a delay pedal in the Dispatch Master that I could use as a delay in case the TimeFactor went down!”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Eventide
TimeFactor“The Eventides do not do well with [travel]”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Strymon
BlueSky reverb“I finally went to the Strymon reverb after the last tour, because Dave had been using it”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
ZVEX Effects
Box of Rock“The Box Of Rock is a great pedal, but I found it was a little dark.”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Electro-Harmonix
Micro POG“Most of the songs I'm using it on are just for any big delay swells”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Dave Depper's rig
Has said they use
Fano
Alt De Facto PX6“This is the sort of non-reverse Firebird guitar that I've been playing.”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Novo
Serus J (black)“I also have this lovely Novo Serus J that Denis Fano himself built for me”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Rickenbacker
Model 330“it just seemed easier to have a guitar dedicated to playing that song.”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Strymon
Timeline“the Strymon TimeLine and BigSky, which are my bread-and-butter pedals at home”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Strymon
BigSky“the Strymon TimeLine and BigSky, which are my bread-and-butter pedals at home”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Zac Rae's rig
Has said they use
Strymon
Brigadier dBucket Delay“It's basically for infinite sustain/feedback”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Has said they use
Catalinbread
Manx Loaghtan“I use that for big fuzzy things on The New Year and Bixby Canyon Bridge.”
Said in MusicRadar: Rig tour, Death Cab for Cutie, June 2019
Questions
About Death Cab for Cutie's gear.
What guitar does Ben Gibbard play?
MusicRadar saw him with a fleet of '70s Fender Mustangs. Gibbard said he got one in a trade and liked how easy the neck was to move around on, much like the Fender Bullet he played when the band started.
What guitars does Dave Depper play?
A Fano Alt De Facto PX6 and a Novo Serus J that Denis Fano built, fitted with Lollar Firebird pickups. He also played a Rickenbacker 330 in open F, just for the single Gold Rush.
Does Death Cab for Cutie play through real amps live?
In 2019 the band toured with Fractal Axe-Fx modelling, and the Fender Deluxe combos on stage were dummies. Gibbard said all he wanted was the way his Supro at home sounds, with real pedals.
What pedals are on Ben Gibbard's board?
MusicRadar listed an EarthQuaker Dispatch Master, Eventide TimeFactor, Strymon Bluesky, Z.Vex Box Of Rock, Xotic BB Preamp and Electro-Harmonix Micro POG.
What pedals does Zac Rae play?
A Strymon Brigadier for infinite sustain, a Boss PS-3 for reverse echoes and glitchy delays, and a Catalinbread Manx Loaghtan, which he described as an emulation of the Ram's Head Big Muff.
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Named in this guide
DC
Death Cab for Cutie
About this guide · Last checked
Death Cab for Cutie are the Bellingham, Washington band fronted by Ben Gibbard. This guide covers the guitars and pedals Gibbard, Dave Depper and Zac Rae showed MusicRadar on the Thank You for Today tour.
truerecs put this guide together from public videos, interviews and posts. Each item says how we know and links to the source. Death Cab for Cutie didn't write it or choose anything on it. How we source gear guides.
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