-
VG Approved Gear
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
Dynamic Amplifiers 2040 Series
Tone to "Dy" For
Dynamic Amps 2040 series Price: $2,570 (VA Combo) David Carambula’s Dynamic 2040 series of amplifiers consists of three models: Vintage American (VA), Vintage British (VB), and the HG DynaLead. All…
The MXR Eric Gales EG74 Raw Dawg
Bark And Bite
During a recording career that spans three decades and includes 19 albums, blues guitarist Eric Gales has achieved a reputation for solos that are a deluge of precise notes delivered…
EHX’s Bad Stone Phase Shifter, C9 Organ Machine, and Pitch Fork Polyphonic Pitch Shifter
Pedal Heaven
When it comes to stompboxes, there are the standard go-to effects that every guitarist, whether a gigging musician or a bedroom noodler, seems to have in his or her arsenal.…
-
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
-
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
-
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
Earthquaker Devices Sea Machine
Chorus of Praise
Earthquaker Devices Sea Machine Price: $215 Contact: www.earthquakerdevices.com Known primarily for its monstrous distortion and fuzz units, the folks at Earthquaker Devices have decided to tackle what has often been…
Electro-Harmonix POG III Big Generator
Big Generator
Introduced in 2005, the Electro-Harmonix Polyphonic Octave Generator – a.k.a. POG – has spurred a handful of offshoots and updates. Born as an ultimate octave box, it conjures everything from…
EarthQuaker Devices Zoar
Fuzz Fury
An all-analog, transistor-based fuzzbox, EarthQuaker’s new Zoar is billed as a “Dynamic Audio Grinder Distortion Pedal.” In plain English, it delivers square-wave sorcery for guitar or bass rigs that’s great…
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…
Citron CS1
Citron Guitars CS1
Harvey Citron has been building instruments since the 1970s, and was co-founder of Vielette-Citron in 1975. His own line of instruments, whose users range from James Taylor to Skunk Baxter,…
Fender’s ’57 Custom Pro-Amp
Big Brother
When most guitarists consider Fender’s famed vintage tweeds, the first that come to mind are the 5E3 Deluxe and 4×10 Bassman. The 1×15 Pro-Amp? Not so much. It’s perhaps the…
-
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
-
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
-
Soldano SLO Plus Super Lead Overdive
Icon In Reach
If the iconic Soldano SLO-100 is perpetually on your wish list but its price tag keeps you from pulling the trigger, its creator now has a realistic alternative. Expanding on the original single-channel SLO Overdrive pedal, the SLO Plus introduces a Normal channel alongside Overdrive, each with dedicated controls that allow for detailed tweaking of
-
Orange Dual Baby, Gain Baby, and Tour Baby 100
Playpen Power
For 2025, Orange has expanded on its compact Pedal Baby introduced a few years back with a new trio – the Dual Baby, Gain Baby, and Tour Baby. All 100-watt amps with solid-state Class A/B output stages, Jfet preamp stages (another form of solid-state), and two footswitchable channels, they’re housed in 12″ x 3.25″ x
-
Boss SDE-3 Dual Digital Delay
Double Echo
Based on the famed Roland SDE-3000 rack unit, Boss’ SDE-3 combines some classic delay sounds of the 1980s, updated with a bevy of modern tricks and features. Like a lot of delays, it can be run in mono, but you’ll get the biggest bang going in stereo to different amps or outputs. The core of
-
Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ Reissue
Dual-Mode Delivery
The evolution of Randall Smith’s legendary high-gain Mesa/Boogie design into the revered Mark IIC+ of the mid ’80s established a rock amp that many guitarists still consider the epitome of the form. Building on what was already a high-gain amp by the standards of the day, the M/B team piled on even more gain, more
Effector 13 Improbability Drive
“Beam Me Up, Jimi” – The Effector 13 Improbability Drive – spacey, fuzzy, and funky
We understand how you might react. “Another drive pedal?” There are so many… a lot of them similar, or nearly identical? But then again, some are different… (Cue Captain Kirk…
Elektron Analog Drive
Big Swede
Take a look at your pedalboard. You probably have three or four overdrives and fuzzes hooked up – and are looking to find the cash and real estate to add…
Newman Guitars Lake Placid Blue
Portrait in Blue
Excitement at the arrival of this offset beauty was dampened by the sad news that its creator had passed away July 1. Ted Newman Jones was known for building guitars…
Jam Pedals Harmonious Monk Mk2 & Boomster Mk2
Brothers In Tone
Jam Pedals continually evolves its line by creating a cool menagerie of point-to-point stompboxes that adapt to a multitude of sonic applications while maintaining residency on the pedalboards of stringbenders…
Friedman Amplification JEL-20
Firebreather
For 25 years, Dave Friedman has been creating amplifiers that helped him (eh-hem) gain amp-guru status. His limited-run Jake E. Lee signature JEL-100 met with enough demand that he’s now…
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 Cub V EL34 Amp
First-Class Blast
The Bad Cat Cub has evolved through several iterations since arriving with the maker’s inaugural lineup 25 years ago. It has gained (and lost) features, morphed into more-affordable PCB-based versions,…
Kay’s K161 Thin Twin
Post-war Blues Box
In his day, Jimmy Reed was a huge influence on everyone from Eric Clapton and Mike Bloomfield to the Rolling Stones and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Among its reissues, Kay Guitar…
Furch Blue Deluxe SW
Czech Mate
You might not recogonize the Furch brand, but the Czech Republic builder has spent that last 40-plus years gaining a reputation for building high-quality acoustic guitars. One of the company’s…
The Drew & Sebastian Avenger
Multi-“caster”
At first glance, the D&S Avenger looks like a long-lost prototype from Leo’s shop, with its offset-waist shape and familiar pickup/ hardware/ control setup. The Avenger’s two-piece alder body sports…
The DGN Custom Guitars Paragon Standard
In Search of Perfection
DGN custom guitars paragon standard Price: $3,000 (base) Contact: DGNcustomguitars.com. For the past few years, luthier Dan Neafsey has been making a name for himself from his small workshop in southern…
Harden Engineering BluesBird
Bird Can Sing
If you’re wondering about builder Bill Harden’s inspiration in creating the BluesBird, think Coodercaster – a customized Frankenstein’s monster of a guitar based on a pickup or two that wail.…
Crazy Tube Circuit White Whale V2
Twin Tones
Introduced in 2017, Christos Ntaifotis’ original White Whale tremolo/reverb became one of his company’s best sellers. Its success, however, didn’t breed complacency, and after years of gathering user input, they…
Supro Huntington
Looking supremely ’60s-like with its gorgeous, vintage-y cherry-red finish, petite body, and fancy-topped pickups, the Supro Huntington is inviting as all get-out. A short-scale axe, it combines a classic shape…
Guild Jetstar
High Flyer
In 1964, Guild launched its original Jetstar as the company’s budget-friendly solidbody. With a more-conventional shape than the S-200 Thunderbird introduced shortly before, the Jetstar didn’t quite set the market…
Keeley Monterey Rotary Fuzz Vibe
Stomp Festival
Jimi Hendrix passed into infinity at the tender age of 27. The fact that his influential career lasted only four years over 45 years ago speaks volumes. A visionary former…
DiPinto Mach IV
Garage Days
There are times when a traditional Strat or Tele won’t scratch a particular itch, and you need a retro plank with a specific look and sound to get the job…
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…
Epiphone’s Wilshire and Coronet
Gotta Rock
Some elemental solidbodies were born to rock – the SG, Telecaster, and Les Paul Special and Junior come to mind. Born in the late ’50s, Epiphone’s Coronet and Wilshire were…
Jam Pedals Harmonious Monk Mk2 & Boomster Mk2
Brothers In Tone
Jam Pedals continually evolves its line by creating a cool menagerie of point-to-point stompboxes that adapt to a multitude of sonic applications while maintaining residency on the pedalboards of stringbenders…
Larrivée D-03E
High marks in the "bang for the buck" category
Not all great values are old instru-ments. For you newcomers, in this column we focus on musi-cal gear that presents extraordinary “bang for the buck.” This month’s entree, the Larrivée…
