Progressive2016Handmade Cities

Handmade Cities Amp Settings

by Plini

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Original Recording Settings

EstimatedResearched tone data for "Handmade Cities" by Plini

Original Gear

Guitar: .strandberg* Boden (6-string headless; exact session model/year not documented) (inferred)
Pickups: Modern HH humbuckers with possible coil-splitting (inferred) (neck)
Amplifier: Modeler-based workflow (Axe-Fx II era likely; not confirmed by primary session documentation in accessible sources)
Channel: Clean amp model (estimated)
Tuning: standard (estimated; not documented)
Pickup Selector: neck
Strings: 0.010-0.046 (inferred from common modern Strandberg factory setups; not confirmed for session)

Handmade Cities was created in a bedroom workflow with sessions morphing into finals, per Plini’s interview; specific amp/preset details for the title track’s clean sections are not documented in the accessible sources here.

Amp Settings

Gain

2.0

Bass

4.0

Mid

5.0

Treble

6.0

Presence

5.0

Volume

6.0

No documented session preset/knob settings. Estimated for the title track’s cleaner passages: low gain, bright but controlled highs, tight bass for mix clarity.

Effects Chain

→

Modeler/DAW compressor

compressor

→

Digital delay

delay

→

Plate/hall reverb

reverb

→

1.Modeler/DAW compressor — Estimated; not documented.

2.Digital delay — Estimated for cinematic ambience; not documented.

3.Plate/hall reverb — Estimated; not documented.

Playing Technique

Sustain clean clarity with smooth legato and controlled pick attack. For the cleaner sections, keep chord voicings balanced and avoid aggressive attack that can overemphasize DI/modeler highs. Maintain strict muting so long reverbs/delays remain musical rather than noisy.

Sources+

Wikipedia: Handmade Cities (Plini) — album released 2016-08-26; produced/mixed by Plini.
Soundscape Magazine interview (2016): “Introducing Plini” — describes bedroom workflow and how demos organically become finals.
Reddit (r/Guitar) discussion referencing Plini modeler workflow (secondary; contextual only).
Stars Music: Strandberg Plini Edition listing — factory gauge reference (inference only).