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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
Blackbox Effects Inferno, X-Ray, Cobalt, Ultraviolet 2, Oxygen
Stimulating sounds
During a recent chat with our friends at Willie’s Gui-tars, Minneapolis, we were turned on to an interesting new line of boutique stompboxes made by Blackbox Music Electronics – a…
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…
Eastwood Black Box Series
Stomp City
Eastwood Guitars promises retro-themed gear at wallet-reassuring prices, as seen in their new Black Box Series of stompboxes. Among the first flight are the BB-01 Manalishi Drive, BB-03 Blue Vibe,…
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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,
Stomp Under Foot Ram’s Head
Piece of the Pi
Matt Pasquerella has a reputation as a pi connoisseur… no, not the eating kind, the fuzzy kind. The creator of Stomp Under Foot effects has been building some of the…
Carr Impala
Big-Block Tone
Carr Impala Price: $2,490 (retail, in black); $2,640 (two-tone) Info: www.carramps.com. While the new Carr Impala amplifier gets its name and some of its aesthetic inspiration from the classic Chevy…
Friedman Motor City Drive & Fuzz Fiend
Sonic Rapture
An innovative designer, builder, and repairman, Dave Friedman has worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry, lending his artistry, experience, and great gear and amp mods…
Echopark Ghetto Bird
Sweet Emotion
Echopark Ghetto Bird Price: $6,800 (as reviewed) Contact: www.echoparkguitars.com You know you’re holding something special when the guy who previously borrowed your review guitar was none other than Aerosmith guitarist…
Grammatico LaGrange
Have Mercy!
Grammatico LaGrange Price: $1,850 Info: www.grammaticoamps.com. Stop the presses! John Grammatico has added a second amp to his line. Of course, this wouldn’t be headline news with most amp-makers, who…
BluGuitar Amp1
Tiny Tube Terror
The trend toward the miniaturization of guitar gear shows no signs of slowing. Thanks to modern technology, guitarists are fitting more and more sorcery in their bags of tricks. BluGuitar’s…
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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
Fender’s American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck
Still Killer After All These Years
One look Fender’s latest Frontline catalog and you’ll see a huge array of models – Custom Shop N.O.S., Closet Classic, and Relics, artist signature models, American Strats, Mexican-made Strats, vintage…
Maestro Electronics Titan Boost and Arcas Compressor Sustain
Louder, Tighter
Maestro Electronics has been around for 60 years and is best known for creating the FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone used by Keith Richards to play the legendary lick on “Satisfaction.” Maestro recently…
Carvin’s AE185-12
Stairway to Heaven
Carvin’s AE185-12 Price: $1,239 (base retail) Info: www.carvinguitars.com. Most guitarists love the sound of a 12-string, but the thought of owning one often raises several questions. Should you get an…
Fender Bassbreaker 45 Combo
Hybrid Love Child
Fender’s new nine-product Bassbreaker series combines popular traditional amplifiers with modern technology. Classic tones and flexibility are the name of the game, which means a plethora of wattages and sizes…
Carvin’s AE185-12
Stairway to Heaven
Carvin’s AE185-12 Price: $1,239 (base retail) Info: www.carvinguitars.com. Most guitarists love the sound of a 12-string, but the thought of owning one often raises several questions. Should you get an…
Fender Bassbreaker 45 Combo
Hybrid Love Child
Fender’s new nine-product Bassbreaker series combines popular traditional amplifiers with modern technology. Classic tones and flexibility are the name of the game, which means a plethora of wattages and sizes…
McGregor Pedals’ Crunch and Crunch Plus
Transparent Pair
McGregor Pedals founder and self-proclaimed “Chief Mad Scientist” Garth McGregor Heslop hand-wires pedals in his Vancouver shop. Two of them – the Crunch and Crunch Plus – are overdrives that…
Gamechanger Light Pedal
Spring Thing
All-analog and made with a genuine spring tank, Gamechanger Audio’s Light Pedal adds a wrinkle to the reverb equation in the form of optical sensors that move it beyond the…
Ya’ Gig What Ya’ Pay For
Incase’s Tour Bag is ultra-functional, durable
It wouldn’t be a surprising reaction. “A $200 gig bag?” And one could reasonably assume the price includes a guitar. But it doesn’t. It does include one of the best-conceived…
King Snake Three Bone
Latter-Day “Legend”
Gibson’s ES-5 is a legend, but it’s also a bit idiosyncratic thanks to funky out-of-phase pickups and a non-intuitive control setup. Plus, originals are now so pricey that few gig…
ToneConcepts’ The Distillery
100-Proof Tone
While many pedal makers tinker away on effects that exhibit their personal tonal philosophies, the fact is that most don’t play gigs or compose music. Seraphim Marcopoulous of ToneConcepts was…
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…
Louis Electric Buster
Beyond Deluxe
Louis Electric Buster Price: $1,595 (street) Contact: louisamps.com. Lou Rosano has been building amps in the Fender vein for more than 17 years. His first build wound up in the…
Gabriel Sound Garage Voxer 18
Buzz Buzz, King Bee!
The Gabriel Sound Garage Voxer 18 guitar amplifier is a tonal hybrid based on Marshall’s mid-’60s 18-watt amps and the Vox AC15. An all-tube/hand-wired amp built solely by Romanian emigré…
3rd Power Amplification’s Solo Dream 1, Solo Dream 4, and Switchback 112
Dream Babies
Recording/touring guitarist, studio engineer, and industry veteran Jamie Scott made the metamorphosis into amp designer by learning to repair and modify Marshall heads. He quickly realized that he wanted amps…
Ohana Ukuleles
Serious Fun
Ohana Ukuleles Price: $249 (SK-35, CKP-70R); $259 (SK-28) Info: www.ohana-music.com. Just like guitars, ukuleles come in all quality levels, from uke-shaped objects made of plastic, composite board, and unidentifiable materials,…
Brian Moore i2p
A modern guitar for the vintage fan
Brian Moore Guitars’ i2000 line of guitars offer some fantastic features and options, on instruments that have a unique feel and vibe while retaining certain vintage… uh… shall we say…
Cimarron Guitars’ Model P
From the Parlor to the Stage
Cimarron Guitars has being making custom instruments since 1978 in the dry, mild climate of southwest Colorado. The company’s Model P guitar gets its name from its parlor-guitar-sized body (“parlor”…
SIB Echodrive, Varidrive, Fatdrive
They Ain't "Heavy…"
Rick Hamel is one half of the design team behind the SMF 15 Watter amplifier we reviewed in the April ’03 issue. And given his track record, the company he…
Mesa Boogie’s Badlander 50 Combo
Rarin’ Recto
When Mesa Boogie introduced its Dual Rectifier amps in the early ’90s, they cemented a place in rock-and-roll history. Over the past 30 years, there have been several incarnations of Rectifier-series amps.…
Kendrick Sirius
"Star" guitar from the Lone Star State
In devising its limited line of gui-tars, Kendrick, the Texas-based custom amp and guitar builder, has stuck to traditional guns, offering a Strat-inspired axe in its Continental, and Les Paul…
