Pedalboard Archive

Willie NelsonGuitar Rig, 2012

Willie Nelson recorded at Pedernales in June 2012 with Trigger, his Martin N-20, cabled straight into his long-serving Baldwin C1 amp. No pedals.

Board
Trigger-to-Baldwin direct path
Context
Pedernales Studio, Spicewood, Texas
Board date
Evidence
Documented equipment · 2 cited sources
Order
Not applicable
Scope
Exact board snapshot
Routing
Not applicable
Audited
Signal
Direct · Guitar to amplifier

Trigger-to-Baldwin direct path

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InputGuitar
Direct signalNo floor effects
OutputAmplifier

Documented equipment · Documented order · Not applicable

Michael Hall observed Nelson and his band recording at Pedernales in June 2012 and explicitly traced the cord from Trigger, around a baffle and straight into the old Baldwin amplifier. Hall also documented that the amp retained its 1968 exterior while its internal electronics had been extensively renewed. Nelson's longtime luthier Mark Erlewine independently confirms the N-20's transferred Prismatone pickup, proprietary stereo cord and continuing use of the matching C1. This is the artist-controlled path witnessed at that session; microphones, console processing and any production added after the amplifier are outside its scope.

Cited sources

Methodology
  1. Texas Monthly (archived reprint)Trigger: The life and times of Willie Nelson's guitar
  2. Vintage GuitarMark Erlewine's 40 Years with Willie Nelson's Trigger

Questions about Willie Nelson's 2012 guitar rig

Did Willie Nelson use effects pedals in 2012?
No effects pedals are documented in this path. The archive records the guitar going straight into the amplifier, so the sound comes from the instrument, the amp and the player's hands.
When and where was this guitar rig used?
June 2012 studio session. Pedernales Studio, Spicewood, Texas. This is one dated setup as documented, not a career-wide gear list.
How does the archive know what was on this guitar rig?
2 cited sources, listed above with the date each was read, including Texas Monthly (archived reprint), Vintage Guitar. Among them a written article and an interview. The units are recorded as documented equipment, and the page was last audited on 2026-07-18.