Fender Precision Bass
The Fender Precision Bass was the first commercially successful solidbody electric bass. Played somewhat like a guitar and sporting a fretted neck, the “P-Bass”...
The “Last” Trainwreck?
Ken Fischer’s prolonged illness and subsequent death at the age of 61 remains one of the great tragedies of the guitar-amp world. Aside from...
Gibson GA-80T Vari-Tone
In the late ’50s and early ’60s, Gibson was apparently convinced the Vari-Tone switch was the way of the future, with its instant access...
Gibson Firebirds
Say the words “custom color” to a collector or enthusiast and most will think of “Fender.” But Gibson had its own multicolored baby –...
Vox AC50
Vox AC50
Preamp tubes: one ECC82 (12AU7), three ECC83 (12AX7)
Output tubes: two EL34s, fixed-biased
Rectifier: solidstate
Controls: Volume, Treble and Bass for each channel.
Output: nominally 50 watts...
Recording King Ray Whitley
As a maker of high-quality instruments, Gibson was hit hard by the onset of the Depression in the 1930s. Company president Guy Hart, a...
Late 1920s Gibson L-1 (Flattop)
Because I don't know what to call this Gibson guitar, I refer to it as a "Florentine," for lack of a better name. Though...
Star Board: Craig Bartock
This month, we take a guided tour of the pedalboard belonging to Craig Bartock, guitarist with Heart.
Craig Bartock, a well-known (and busy) guitarist/composer, has...
George Fullerton’s Fender Jazzmaster
This Jazzmaster is an interesting example of what went on behind the scenes at the Fender factory with the research and development of body...
Orville Gibson A model
All carved-top guitars and mandolins trace their ancestry back to Orville Gibson of Kalamazoo, Michigan. However, as this A model mandolin illustrates, Orville’s designs...