{"id":10056124,"date":"2026-03-06T05:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/?p=10056124"},"modified":"2026-04-07T12:48:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T10:48:32","slug":"david-gilmour-80th-birthday-pink-floyd-sound","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/inspire\/david-gilmour-80th-birthday-pink-floyd-sound\/","title":{"rendered":"David Gilmour Turns 80: The Man Behind Pink Floyd’s Immortal Sound"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Since 1967, David Gilmour has earned a reputation as the undisputed master of psychedelic rock guitar as singer and guitarist for rock giants Pink Floyd and various other projects. \ud83e\udd18<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today he turns a proud 80 years old and can look back on a more than eventful life with a musical output of almost astonishing proportions. We congratulate him and have some interesting facts about the master and his craft ready for the occasion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Gilmour: a Childhood Friendship ends in Tragedy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

David “Dave” Gilmour began playing guitar as a teenager in various local bands in Cambridge, England. In his youth, he occasionally performed on the streets with his school friend Syd Barrett. Their main interest was the music of Bob Dylan, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it was precisely this Syd Barrett whom he would initially support in Pink Floyd from 1968 onwards, only to replace him when Barrett left the band in April of that year due to his drug use and mental illness. When Roger Waters left Pink Floyd in 1985, Gilmour took over the leading role and recorded three more studio albums with the band.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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David Gilmour\u2019s sure Instinct: the Sound comes from his Fingers<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After the Pink Floyd era, which had without a doubt been associated with various mind-altering substances, David Gilmour\u2019s performances were no longer drenched in visually stunning laser shows. But his inimitable guitar playing and his distinctive, instantly recognizable sound have lost none of their fascination. Like few others, he embodies the motto “the sound comes from the fingers”, continuing to impress with his sure instinct for harmonic and tonal relationships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How David Gilmour created his Sound<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

An important part of David Gilmour\u2019s iconic sound is, of course, his gear. Having relied on the famous black Stratocaster as his main guitar for many years, he later also played various other instruments whose sound suited the song. Back in the sixties, he often used a blonde Les Paul-shaped H\u00f6fner, which he played through a Vox AC30<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Today, he still mostly uses a modified 1957 reissue Stratocaster equipped with EMG pickups, an SPC mid-boost, and an EXG expander<\/a>. For his amps, he often relies on two 100-watt tops from Hiwatt, sending the guitar signal to the left amplifier through a CE-2 chorus<\/a> to widen the sound.<\/p>\n\n\n

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In addition to various distortion pedals, David Gilmour uses the legendary Lexicon PCM70 reverb unit, an ingenious old MXR delay system and a TC Electronic TC 2290<\/a> for his effects. The cabinets are usually two Marshall cabinets equipped with Celestion speakers. To control the entire setup, David Gilmour uses a custom-built pedalboard manufactured by Custom Audio Electronics.<\/p>\n\n\n

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David Gilmour turns 80: Recreate his Sound with these Pickups and Accessories<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In our shop, you\u2019ll find a fully pre-wired pickup set with 3 EMG SA pickups, volume control, EXG Guitar Expander for bass and treble boost, and a 5-way switch: EMG DG20 David Gilmour<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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David Gilmour: A Musical Workaholic even outside of Pink Floyd<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

David Gilmour became world famous as a key member of Pink Floyd, and most people most associate him with the mega band to this day. No wonder, as he was instrumental in shaping the sound of iconic albums such as “The Dark Side of the Moon” and “Wish You Were Here”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, David Gilmour has also released solo albums during his career and collaborated with other artists such as Sir Paul McCartney. He even discovered Kate Bush and Sam Brown, and made guest appearances on albums by Supertramp, Pete Townsend, Bryan Ferry, Elton John, B. B. King, Alan Parsons, Donovan and many others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s an overview of Pink Floyd’s studio albums featuring David Gilmour:<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n