•  Reverend Sensei H90

    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

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Martin CEO 8.2E

Corner-Office Acoustic

Which new Martin is based on a vintage-reissue with a pronounced low-end? Noooo, the model designation does not begin with a D!  The CEO 8.2E finds inspiration in the Martin…

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…

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…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Explorer

In the multi-verse of effects, Robert Keeley’s gizmos are a thing of beauty – particularly those that provide multiple sounds. Guitarists hankering for fuzz, delay, and modulation will dig the…

Epiphone’s ES-339 PRO

Scale-Sized Kicks

Epiphone’s ES-339 PRO Price: $400 street Info: www.epiphone.com. The Gibson ES-335 quickly revealed its versatility and tone following its introduction in 1958 – all warm ’n’ woody like a jazz…

Bad Cat Jet Black Combo

Back in Black

Guitar players around the globe praised Bad Cat’s Black Cat amp for its tone, but wanted more punch. Its ear twisted, the company delivered by doubling the output and tweaking…

Boss AC-22LX

Acoustic Air

On the surface, Boss’ AC-22LX is a 10-watt acoustic-electric guitar amp with two channels. But, dig in, and goodies are revealed. One is a drum machine with five sounds, from…

Eastwood Airline Deluxe

Get Yer' Wings

The demand for vintage and retro-style axes has become so prevalent in today’s guitar-crazy culture that there’s hardly a brand, style, or color of guitar from the ’50s to the…

Yamaha DG Stomp

Plug 'n' Play Preamp for Recording

It’s always been a struggle for home recordists to capture a good guitar tone on tape or hard disk. Yamaha, however, wants to cure that often aggravating dilemma. To that…

Killer Guitar Components Killer Trem Bridge

Bridging the Gap

In the mid 1950s, Leo Fender and his crew spent countless hours on the design and manufacture of their revolutionary new Stratocaster tremolo bridge. And in the 60-plus years since…

Guild’s S-200 T-Bird

Cult-Fave Phoenix

Sometimes admired, often maligned, the cult classic Guild S-200 T-Bird has enjoyed a rebirth in the hands of Black Keys guitarist Dan Auerbach, whose use of a vintage S-200 caused…

FireBelly Amplifiers’ Tweed 1955SE, PR3512SE

FireBelly Amplifiers’ Tweed 1955SE, PR3512SE

Tale Of Two Princetons

FireBelly Amplifiers’ Tweed 1955SE, PR3512SE Price: $949 (Tweed 1955SE); $1,595 (PR3512SE) Contact: www.firebellyamps.com The quest for vintage tone continues, and while budgetary concerns might keep many guitarists from owning the…

Waterloo WL-14

Waterloo WL-14

Modern Johnson

Waterloo WL-14 Price: $2,100, $1,890 (street) Contact: www.collingsguitars.com or www.waterlooguitars.com Robert Johnson slid into a photo booth, dangling a cigarette from his lips and holding a flat-top guitar. What brand…

Xotic RC Booster, AC Booster, Robotalk

High-quality, and a new twist

Some would argue that the world of guitars and amps has reached the point of oversaturation. And right along with the teeming mass of G&A, throw in effects pedals. Everywhere…

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…

B.C. Rich Eagle Supreme, Bich 10 Supreme

For the Metalhead in All of Us

From the Mockingbird to the Bich and the Eagle, since the 1970s, B.C. Rich guitars have been seducing players (and fans!) with their over-the-top looks and sexy body shapes. Loaded…

HomeBrew Electronics Power Screamer/Compressor Retro

Bit of This, Bit of That…

Seldom will you find a company more appropriately dubbed than HomeBrew Electronics. Joel Weaver, his wife, Andea, and their sole employee, Terri Landreth, build some of the most widely used…

Reverend Drivetrain Overdrive

Authentic crunch, Ry Cooder to AC/DC

The new overdrive pedal from the canny folk at Reverend Musical Instruments is cleverly named the Drivetrain Overdrive, and it weighs in at a mere pound or so. Overdrives and…

Prestige Heritage Premier P90 FM NAT

Liberating the P-90

Approach longtime players with a (yet another) single-cut/single-coil solidbody, and you may find it tough to get their attention. But, the Prestige Heritage Premier P90 does just that. Founded in…

Quilter Labs’ Aviator Cub

High Flyer

Quilter Labs has gained a rep for busting popular perceptions. They’ve attempted to step up their game with this single-channel combo voiced to deliver classic Fender tones – in a…

Rick Turner Model 1 Deluxe LB

All-Terrain Guitar

Ever wonder about that strange-looking guitar Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac has been playing all these years? The same one John Mayer has occasionally been spotted with as well? It’s…

Volt Electrics #004 Reverse

Mirror Image

From Johnny Winter and Stephen Stills to Scott Holiday, the Firebird has been turning heads since the early ’60s. Builders Sander de Gier and Ewout Nijman out of the Netherlands…

J. Rockett Audio Archer, The Dude, and El Hombre

Overdrive Ecstasy

Part of the success behind J. Rockett Audio Designs lies in the fact that, like any player who might tackle building a pedal for themselves, Chris Van Tassel and Jay…

The Preston Thompson 12-Fret 000

Old Soul

Until 1928 the largest and loudest guitar in C. F. Martin’s catalog was their 12-fret 000-sized guitar. Until the OM premiered in 1929, the 12-fret body was also the standard…

Republic’s Classic Concert Ukulele

Dainty Device

National launched its first ukulele in 1927, combining a brass-bodied, nickel-plated uke with the sweet-sounding amplification of a resonator cone. Plenty of vintage-uke fans see those rare National (and subsequent…

Mu-FX TruTron 3X

ToneVille Amplifiers Broadway

Red-Carpet Ready

ToneVille Amplifiers Broadway Price: $2,295 Contact: www.tonevilleamps.com What is it that drives boutique amp builders to expend gallons of skull sweat striving for a more-perfect union between the pluck of…

Blackstar Limited Edition JJN-20R MkII

Rockin' Blues Power

If you don’t know about Jared James Nichols, you likely will soon. One of the hottest up-and-coming blues/rock players on the planet, he recently teamed with Blackstar to develop a…

Martin D-13E Ziricote

Contemporary Cannon

From the time the first self-branded models shipped from Nazareth, Pennsylvania, in the early 1930s, the Martin dreadnought has been one of the most recognizable guitars in American music. The…

The Koch Studiotone

No-Sweat Double-Duty

Koch Amplifier’s 20-watt Studiotone uses an all-tube circuit powered by a matched pair of Ruby EL84 tubes producing 20 watts and three 12AX7A preamp tubes. The Studiotone’s lightweight, compact (19…

Charles Fox Ergo

A New Voice, From Experience

When experienced luthiers reach “a certain age,” they often make changes in their work.