Riff Tone

Breathe (In the Air)

Pink Floyd

Guitarrock1970s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Stratocaster (early 1970s, likely 1969 black Stratocaster with rosewood neck for studio recording)

AmpHiwatt DR103 Custom 100 (with WEM Super Starfinder 200 4x12 cabinet, Fane Crescendo speakers)

PickupsFender single-coil pickups (original vintage spec, likely stock 1969 Strat pickups)

Amp Settings

gain3.5

bass6.5

mid7

treble6

reverb5.5

presence5.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1972-1973, The Dark Side of the Moon sessions. Gilmour used his black Stratocaster for the main riff, plugged into a Hiwatt DR103 head and WEM cab. No evidence of fuzz or overdrive pedals for the riff section; mild amp breakup only. Effects are primarily reverb (likely plate, possibly from EMT 140 in studio).

Tone Character(10)

warm and smoothairy and openslightly compressedlush reverb tailrounded attacktouch-sensitivenot heavily distortedclassic British amp breakupdynamic and expressivefull-bodied neck pickup sound

Difficulty

The riff is not technically fast or complex, but requires nuanced dynamics, smooth chord changes, and expressive vibrato to capture the feel and tone of the original recording.

Sources

Breathe guitar sound : r/pinkfloyd - Reddit Steven Drozd of The Flaming Lips Talks Gear & Sounds Best Reverb Pedals for Guitar | Gear Guides - Equipboard

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