Lou ReedPedalboard, 1997

Lou Reed's amplified acoustic set at Meltdown in July 1997 ran an Olson guitar with a Sunrise pickup through one box: a custom two-channel Pete Cornish Feedbucker, into a Tone King amp.

Board
Perfect Night acoustic feedback-control path
Context
Royal Festival Hall, Meltdown Festival, London
Board date
Evidence
Documented equipment · 3 cited sources
Order
Source-described
Scope
Core signal path
Routing
Serial path
Audited
Signal
1 unit · Guitar to amplifier

Perfect Night acoustic feedback-control path

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InputGuitar
OutputAmplifier

Order evidence: A source states the sequence

Inside the rig · 1 units

Pedal roles & evidence

How each unit fits Lou Reed's 1997 setup. Board-specific roles and the evidence behind each identification and position.

Cited sources

Source-described orderIdentity and position are evidenced separately. Reconstructed positions are not observed connections.

Documented equipment · Documented order · Serial path

In the September 1998 Guitar World interview, Reed describes the Olson, Sunrise pickup and Tone King combination, then explains that Pete Cornish built a two-knob Feedbucker after the same setup fed back at New York's Supper Club. The interview presents that device as the solution that enabled the subsequent amplified-acoustic project, while Cornish's client register independently records both a two-channel Feedbucker and acoustic-guitar preamp in 1997. The Royal Festival Hall recording date comes from the Perfect Night archive. Only the source-described feedback processor is drawn: the separate preamp is omitted because the interview does not establish whether it was in this concert path, and no source exposes the box's internal filter order or exact frequency settings.

Cited sources

Methodology
  1. Guitar WorldLou Reed talks about the Velvet Underground, songwriting and gear
  2. Pete CornishPete Cornish client list: Lou Reed 1997 systems
  3. AllMusicPerfect Night: Live in London - recording date and location

Questions about Lou Reed's 1997 pedalboard

What pedals did Lou Reed use in 1997?
This dated entry lists one unit: Pete Cornish 2 Channel Feedbucker. This is the recorded inventory, not a claim that every connection or model identification is confirmed; see the evidence and routing notes.
What order were Lou Reed's pedals in?
A cited source states the order: Guitar → Pete Cornish 2 Channel Feedbucker → amplifier.
Is this Lou Reed's full guitar rig?
No. This dated entry covers one unit in the effects path, not every piece of gear Lou Reed owned or used. Floor pedals, rack units and routing devices are included only where recorded; omitted equipment and uncertain connections are explained in the notes. It is not a complete or current rig inventory.
When and where was this pedalboard used?
July 3, 1997. Royal Festival Hall, Meltdown Festival, London. This is the core signal path documented for that period, not a career-wide gear list.
How does the archive know what was on this pedalboard?
3 cited sources, listed above with the date each was read, including Guitar World, Pete Cornish, AllMusic. Among them an interview, an official listing and an archive record. The units are recorded as documented equipment, and the page was last audited on 2026-07-18.