Microphones Accidentally Created Iconic Tone

The iconic guitar tone on Dire Straits' "Money for Nothing" emerged by accident from an unusual microphone setup that included one mic pointing at the floor and another not properly aimed at the speaker. British guitarist Mark Knopfler played a Les Paul Junior through a Laney amplifier while engineer Neil Dorfsman tried to capture a ZZ Top-style sound, but the misplaced microphones produced something distinctive instead. Dorfsman's team later tried the same amplifier, setup, and microphone models at the Power Station but could never perfectly recreate the sound.

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