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VG Approved Gear
Reverend Sensei H90
Live Wire
So you want a Gibson-style solidbody that can cover humbucker-powered rock, yet also twangier/glassier tones using a P-90 pickup. Check. You also want to grab high frets via double-cutaway and have the pitch reliability of a tune-o-matic bridge and locking tuners. Got it. One more thing: it’s got to look cool and old-school. Hmm…. sounds
Guild Standard Series Acoustics
Legacy, Cont’d?
Founded by a jazz guitarist as jazz-box builder, the Guild company also built a solid reputation with its ’50s acoustic guitars. The brand’s profile as an acoustic builder was certainly…
KJL Dirty 30 amp
It's "Fat," It's Purple…
What’s Fat, purple, and loud? Well, Barney the Dinosaur is one answer, but not the one we’re looking for here. The correct answer is the KJL Dirty 30 amplifier head.…
Smit Boosted Classic and Bucker Lite pickups
PAF Plus? S
Smit Boosted Classic/Bucker Lite Being a guitarist for more than 30 years, Kevin Smith learned much in his quest for great tone. For years he has dissected pickups while devising…
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PRS Swamp Ash Special
Narrow(field) Win
The bolt-on Swamp Ash Special has been around for nearly three decades, but PRS just retooled the U.S.-built version and dropped it at NAMM. There are significant upgrades. While earlier versions had humbuckers with a single-coil pickup between them, this latest plank has a PRS Narrowfield (NF) humbucker in the middle. Another bonus is the
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Martin D-28 Standard
If nobody mentioned that Martin’s new Standard line had been updated, a player might be forgiven for not immediately noticing that the latest D-28 has been subtly changed. After all, it’s the D-28 – one of the most recognizable and enduring American icons – and the thought of altering such a flagship is likely to
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Carr Skylark Special 1×12
Take Flight
Arriving a little more than 10 years after the original Skylark, Carr Amplifiers’ new Skylark Special adds versatility and enhanced tonal depths to squeeze a lot more into this diminutive combo. Specs remain much the same, deriving 12 watts of power from a pair of 6V6GT output tubes into a 12″ Celestion A-Type speaker. But,
Gibson Les Paul Goldtop Reissue
Nice reissue, aging optional
The Gibson Les Paul. Four words. Sixteen letters. Major guitar history. No, it wasn’t the first electric guitar. Nor was it the first solidbody electric. But when the model was…
MTD Kingston Rubicon 6-22
Crossing the Rubicon
MTD Kingston Rubicon 6-22 Price: $999 Info: www.mtdkingston.com Intuitive, player-oriented design, prime materials, and first-class execution distinguished Michael Tobias’s work even before he began concentrating on innovative electric basses in…
Mu-FX Boostron 3
One For All, All For One
Leave it to Mike Beigel to create a masterpiece of a stompbox… again. The Mu-FX Boostron 3 is three pedals in one. But it’s also so much more. Sure, you…
Strymon Ultraviolet Vintage Vibe
Modern Spin
Pioneered by Jimi Hendrix, the Uni-Vibe became synonymous with psychedelic rock sounds in the 1960s. Strymon’s modern interpretation is the Ultraviolet Vintage Vibe. The Ultraviolet offers a variety of tone-shaping…
Trussart Steel
Classic Designs, Never Before Seen
James Trussart is a luthier who recently moved his headquarters from Paris to Los Angeles. A guitar builder since 1980, in recent years, he has upped his profile and reputation…
Washburn Pilsen Idol electric and D78SW acoustic
Ready For Prime Time
Washburn Pilsen. Most often when you see a Washburn guitar, it’s in the hands of artist endorsees (including Nuno Bettencourt, Dimebag Darrel Abbott, etc.). For whatever reason, though, the brand…
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Walrus Audio’s Mako Series MKII
Walrus Audio’s Mako Series MKII bolster the sounds of their first-gen predecessors, using altered algorithms, new controls, and better tonal quality. The most-obvious changes are new fine-tune settings and a menu screen. The M1 High-Fidelity Modulation Machine offers Chorus, Phaser, Tremolo, Vibrato, Rotary, and Filters. Running between a Deluxe Reverb a Les Paul Traditional or
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LSL Instruments’ Lucid OD and OG OD
Lively Drives
LSL Instruments is best known for high-end Leo-style guitar builds, but they’ve also started delving into overdrive pedals. The Lucid OD is their version of a Klon Centaur – one of the priciest stompboxes in human history ($5,000-plus for the first-gen gold box with the horse logo). The box offers Volume, Gain, and Tone knobs
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The Chase Bliss Clean
Posh Squash
With is Clean compressor, Chase Bliss set out to create a pedal that would duplicate the vivid interactivity of a dirty tube amp, but with a completely clean tone. While a standard compressor can give your guitar (bass, keyboard, etc.) a professional sheen, the Clean is a stereo unit that can polish mixes or deliver
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The Eastwood Super Axe
Chet Powered!
Wait – what? Did Eastwood just bring back the Super Axe, that incredibly rare bird from the late ’70s? Indeed, they did. A Korean-made reissue, it captures the spirit of Gretsch’s chambered curiosity. Grabbing one, the first thing you’ll notice is the oversized yet thin body, with its arched top and the enchanting lines of
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The Bad Cat Era 30
Retro-Great
So often has the phrase “Mark Sampson era” been applied to pre-2000 Matchless amps or early examples of the Bad Cat line that the term has become a “thing” in and of itself. As applied to Bad Cat’s new Era 30, it means Sampson is back in the fold (see our interview in the March
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Eastwood MRG Lap Steel
Slide Piece
Now more than 90 years old, the lap steel was the earliest example of an electric guitar and remains a stringed instrument every guitarist should try, largely because it’s so accessible. In fact, a lap steel is about as straightforward as you can get – it’s a plank that sits on your lap and is
Ernie Ball’s Music Man Cutlass/Stingray
Talkin’ Tonewoods
For many builders of solidbody guitars, the challenge is to improve on a handful of pioneering designs from the 1950s and ’60s. No one knows this better than Ernie Ball…
New Orleans Guitar Company Model 8
Sonic Mojo
New Orleans Guitar Company Model 8 Price: $2,999 Contact: neworleansguitar.com For over a decade, the New Orleans Guitar Company has been producing handcrafted electrics with an attention to design and…
Ibanez GB10SE
Jazzed Up
In the late ’70s, Ibanez debuted the GB10, a signature jazzbox for crossover icon George Benson. It turned heads with its novel approach – a smaller design, but still fully…
Carr Bel-Ray 1×12
Brit-Based Invasion
Carr Amplifiers are renowned for their build quality and vintage-inspired tones. Not one to rest on his laurels, founder Steve Carr continually pushes the envelope with designs that capture the…
Frantone Peachfuzz
One Furry Lead Tone
The Frantone Peachfuzz bears a strong physical and functional resemblance to the Frantone “The Sweet” pedal we tested in the December ’01 issue. Like the Sweet, the Peachfuzz is housed…
Epiphone Greeny Les Paul
A Legend Within Reach
Following Peter Green Collectors Edition and Custom Shop tribute models from Gibson (priced in the tens of thousands), Epiphone recently jumped into the segment with its version, the Kirk Hammett…
Fenders American Vintage Series
Devilish in Detail
Fender American Vintage Series Price: $2,400 retail/$1,999.99 street (’52 Telecaster); $2,874 retail/$2,299.99 street (’59 Stratocaster); $2,874 retail/$2,299 street (’65 Jazzmaster and ’56 Stratocaster) Contact: www.fender.com When it introduced the American…
Carr Amplifiers’ Mercury V
Carolina Combo
Back in June 2003, Carr’s original eight-watt Mercury combo earned high praise in VG for its top-of-the-line components, attention to detail, and wide-ranging “Tone of the Gods” voicing. Recently, Steve…
Siegmund Missing Link
Rounding Out the Board
Looking like a Sputnik-era satellite, the Missing Link from Siegmund Guitars and Amplifiers may be the perfect way to – pardon the pun – round out a pedalboard. Encased in…
Baker B1H and BJH
Top quality looks, playability, and tone
This month, the VG Product Advisory Council received a pair of Baker guitars, a B1H and a BJH, from new-kid-on-the-block Gene Baker, in California. Both guitars are mid-sized semi-hollow designs…
PRS NF 53
Mojo, Distilled
Players who appreciate simple, elegant, well-built guitars may find themselves enamored with the new PRS NF 53, inspired by one of Paul Reed Smith’s favorite Fenders – a ’53 Telecaster.…
To The Limit
The Effectrode LA-1A Leveling Amplifier
In the world of guitar effects, there are consumer-grade pedals and pro-grade pedals. The former are affordable and fun, the latter are for players who crave stellar sounds and are…
Retro Guitar MelodyBurner
Bite and Bark
Retro Guitar MelodyBurner Price: $999 (options available) Info: www.melodyburner.com In the realm of hot-rodded cars, there’s a cool genre known as rat rods – old, relic’d automobiles that sport a…
Paul Hartmann Stormy Monday
Travel Tunes
The typical “travel guitar” is a small, budget-minded instrument that offers varying levels of construction and quality, often forcing compromise in playability and usefulness. Luthier Paul Hartmann takes a different…
Maestro Comet Chorus and Discoverer Delay
Return to the Space(y) Age
Maestro’s Comet Chorus and Discoverer Delay, from the company’s Original Collection effects series, may have a retro-chic aesthetic, but they bring a pronounced (and welcome) modern twist. Both are analog…
Dr. Z Mini Z
We Don't Got To Show You No Stinking Headroom!
The Mini Z is amp builder Dr. Z’s (a.k.a. Mike Zaite) entry into the low-watt/single-power-tube practice/recording category of amps. Extremely compact at under one cubic foot in size, and weighing…
The Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi
Smooth Successor
Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi Price: $133 (list)/$99.75 (street). Contact: ehx.com. The Big Muff Pi overdrive is the effect stompbox that put Electro-Harmonix on the map, and in the…
Reverend Sensei H90
Live Wire
So you want a Gibson-style solidbody that can cover humbucker-powered rock, yet also twangier/glassier tones using a P-90 pickup. Check. You also want to grab high frets via double-cutaway and…
EarthQuaker Devices’ Space Spiral Modulated Delay
Will You Repeat That?
One particularly well-worn joke about playing a bad note advises you to play it twice so folks will think you meant it. But what about all those good notes that…
ToneTron’s Billy-Rocker
Best Amp You've Never Heard of
ToneTron’s Billy-Rocker Price: $1,200 Info: www.tonetroamps.com. On a quiet residential street in Minneapolis lives a mad scientist. Erstwhile rockabilly guitarist Jeffrey Falla is the brains behind ToneTron. And from his…
Wylde Audio Odin Grail Genesis Bullseye
Berserker Broadax
Zakk Wylde emerged from New Jersey in the late ’80s to give Ozzy Osbourne’s music a style and attitude unlike that of any guitarist before him, using an approach spawned…
