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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
Crucial Audio DUB-1
Lesson Learned
It’s not uncommon for novice guitarists to seek out stompboxes with zillions of features. As guitarists mature, however, they learn to chase something more important – sounding good. Crucial Audio’s…
Carvin Steve Vai Legacy 3 VL300
The Legend Continues
Carvin Steve Vai Legacy 3 VL300 Price: $899 Info: www.carvin.com. For more than 13 years, Steve Vai has been collaborating with Carvin on a signature amp line, and their third-generation…
Electro-Harmonix Pog and English Muff’n pedals
Sounds, Classic and Funky
For the last 37-plus years, Electro-Harmonix has been a prolific innovator and manufacturer of effects pedals and other preamp devices. A few times each year, E-H president Mike Matthews offers…
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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,
Danelectro ’59 Resonator
Book This Dano
While guitar enthusiasts expend a lot of brain power waxing poetic about tonewoods, for many VG readers of a certain vintage, that gateway experience with an electric guitar may very…
The KW Cabs ST-220T SSB
Who Woodn’t?
Like you, Kurt Wyberanec knows that good extension cabinets, like acoustic guitars, serve their player as resonant sound chambers. Those he builds go the extra mile with artful design, sturdy…
EHX Walking on the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix
Andy Flange
With its mouthful of a name – The Andy Summers Walking On the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix – the latest Electro-Harmonix stompbox is modeled after Summers’ legendary tone, with nuance that…
MXR’s M250 Double-Double Overdrive
Rectified!
Tone might be in the hands, but you need more than your mitts and a clean amp to bring that heavy-rock masterpiece to life. The list should include skull-caving midrange,…
Guild’s F-40 Standard
First-Rate Reboot
Bigger may not always be better, but sometimes having a little extra juice can make all the difference. Born in the USA, the jumbo acoustic is American as apple pie…
Blackstar’s HT Series Pedals
Gain to the Third Power
Blackstar Amplification is known for its successful Artisan, Series One, and HT amp lines. Its new HT effects line includes boxes for delay, reverb, modulation, distortion, drive, and boost. All…
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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
Full Dozen, Semi-Hollow
12 Variations on a Classic Design
To complement our February 2016 issue survey of the semi-hollow electric guitar, we tested 12 examples of the form as it exists today. Plus, check out 2 featured articles in…
Deluxe Dirt
Wampler’s Tumnus Deluxe & Paisley Drive Deluxe
Already road-proven overdrive stompboxes, the Wampler Tumnus and Paisley Drive have received a makeover for 2018. But, is there is anything new to gain? The original Tumnus was intended as…
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…
Godin
Godin’s 5th Avenue CW Kingpin II and Richmond Dorchester – Funky to Fab
We’re living in a golden age of retro guitars – a period when you can barely turn around without tripping over some cool, vintage-styled plank. Granted, the retro fad has…
The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier
Royal Rock
The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier Price: $429.99 Contact: www.peavey.com Famous for their sturdy build and quality overdriven sounds, Peavey’s original ValveKing amplifiers were marketed to musicians who required…
Peavey Vypyr VIP2
Backline in a Box
Peavey Vypyr VIP2 Price: $199.99 Contact: www.peavey.com For more than 40 years Peavey’s ongoing evolution while building guitars, amps, and pro audio equipment has attracted some big names in the…
Orange VT1000 Valve Tester
Orange VT1000 Valve Tester Price: $499 Info: www.orangeamps.com. Many a Vintage Guitar reader has a stash of tubes lying about their music room/workshop or in a box in a closet.…
Danelectro Minis
More Tasty Treats
Danelectro has been busy churning out yet another set of pedals that are inex-pensive and quite small. A good thing, since one can never have too many pedals. These are,…
TWA Triskelion MK3 Harmonic Energizer
Functional Filter
Based on the Systech Harmonic Energizer pedal made famous by Adrian Belew, Frank Zappa, and Greg Lake, the TWA Triskelion MK3 is a third-generation mid-boost that combines the features of…
Mercury Magnetics Fender Champion 600 Conversion Kit
Now It's a Champ!
Fender’s tiny Champion 600 is aimed at the guitarist who requires rich power-tube distortion at low volume levels. With just one 6V6 power tube putting out five watts, getting the…
Taylor AD17e
Tube SaviorDream Machine
Taylor’s AD (American Dream) line aims to put affordable U.S.-made acoustics in the hands of most any player. The new AD17e employs what Taylor dubs “woods with character,” meaning cosmetic…
The Collings I-35
Soul in the Details
Occasionally, in the world of guitars, events influence the market. The introduction of a new guitar can send ripples through the industry. Not so long ago, Paul Reed Smith redefined…
Walrus Audio Eons Five-State Fuzz
Hot on the heels of its Ages Five-State Overdrive and Eras Five-State Distortion, Walrus Audio has unleashed the Eons Five-State Fuzz. Multi-voiced dirt pedals are the latest thing, and the…
Effectrode Tube-Vibe and Goran Fat Boy
Premium Pedalin’
Effectrode Tube-Vibe Price: $429 (Tube-Vibe) Contact: www.effectrode.com Goran Fat Boy Price: $429 Contact: www.goranguitars.com In the annals of guitar stompboxes, there are no tones more elusive than the mystical swirls…
Gretsch’s ’55 Falcon G6136-55
Look at that “Cadillac”
Gretsch’s 1955 White Falcon was the pink Cadillac of guitars – quite possibly the most outlandish guitar ever produced. The latest Vintage Select Edition Falcon is all that and more.…
Walden Sean Harkness 12-String, CG4070E
Grand-Auditorium Cousins
Walden Sean Harkness 12-String, CG4070E Price: $1,100 (Sean Harkness Model); $1,350 (CG4070E-CERT) Info: www.waldenguitars.com. With 16 years of producing attractive, understated instruments, Walden Guitars puts an accent on quality materials…
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…
MXR’s M250 Double-Double Overdrive
Rectified!
Tone might be in the hands, but you need more than your mitts and a clean amp to bring that heavy-rock masterpiece to life. The list should include skull-caving midrange,…
Musicvox MI-5 12-String
That Timeless Jangle
The Musicvox MI-5 12-String Price: $899 Info: www.musicvox.com. Since its appearances in the Austin Powers movies, Musicvox guitars have received a cachet for cool ’60s hipness and wicked space-age designs.…
Mr. Mojo Sustainin’
The Teye Jazz Cat
Teye Wijnterp is a top-shelf guitar craftsman whose work brings to mind Keith and Ronnie’s famous Zemaitis guitars of the ’70s, but with an obvious Spanish influence. With its semi-hollow…
Fishman’s Fluence Greg Koch Gristle-Tone Pickups
Voices Not In Your Head
In 2014, Fishman introduced their Fluence line with the goal of combining vintage tone with freedom from the inductance problems that impact even the most hallowed vintage pickups. Rather than…
