-
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
Blackstar Amped 2
Satisfying Sounds
Blackstar’s entry to the growing market of “all in one” compact amplifier/effects units claims to offer a high degree of usability built around famous tones – but don’t they all?…
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…
Fender’s Player Plus Meteora HH
Familiar Face
Billed as “futuristic and familiar,” Fender’s Meteora design first arrived as part of the Parallel Universe line – mashups of Leo’s body types, hot-rod concepts, and blasts of pure guitar…
-
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
Rowan Cimarron
Amazing craftsmanship, aesthetic appeal
Michael Rowan operates a one-man custom gui- tar shop in Garland, Texas, and he recently submitted for review one of the most appealing guitars we’ve grabbed, groped, and fondled in…
DST MarWatt and UV6 amplifiers
Small-Watt Punch
DST MarWatt/UV6 Bob Dettorre and Jeff Swanson are longtime gearheads who played in bands starting when they were just kids. As adults, one went to college and worked a “real”…
The Siegmund Doppler Vibe
The Faster We Go, the Rounder We Get
Siegmund Doppler Vibe Price: $495 Info: www.siegmundguitars.com. It’s been said that Buddy Guy was the first guitarist to put his instrument through a Leslie rotating speaker. Supposedly, this was done…
Guild’s Starfire I DC GVT
Big Green Monster
Guild’s Newark Street guitars are a line of lower-priced instruments anchored by a reissue of the classic Starfire; the most distinctive is the I DC GVT. A handsome semi-hollow, it…
The Chicago Blues Box Buddy Guy Signature Amp
Buddy’s New (Tool) Box
Whether you’re a blues guitarist, jazz guy, or a power-chord rock player, certain players draw your attention, whether for the style, songs, or tone. Given Buddy Guy’s status, it’s fitting…
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.…
-
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
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…
Vox Giulietta VGA-3D
Unconventional Archtop
It may look like a conventional archtop, but Vox’s latest box offers something truly different. Within the Giulietta VGA-3D is a modeling engine that can conjure tones from humbucker and…
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…
Tech 21’s Boost Series Pedals
The Way Up
Tech 21 Boost Pedals Price: $149 each, street Contact: www.tech21nyc.com Tech 21’s new Boost Series of fuzz, overdrive, and distortion pedals offers a compelling concept – premium effects with the…
DryBell Unit67
Balkan Boost
DryBell Musical Electronic Laboratory has been kicking out great pedals for a few year, with clients like Mike Landau, John Mayer, Steve Stevens, and Joe Perry, to name a few.…
Rock City RockSlide
Alluring Accessories
The RockSlide Guitar Slide is the creation of Mark Morse, a guitarist who wanted more from a guitar slide. Morse found most conventional slides uncomfortable because they’d pinch the fleshy…
Analog Man BC183 Sun Face
Here Comes the (Black Hole) Sun
Analog Man BC183 Sun Face Price: $185 Contact: www.analogman.com Mike Piera has been building his line of stomp boxes bearing the Analog Man name since the mid ’90s. Famous for…
Carvin’s HH2 Allan Holdsworth
Off With Their Heads
Headless guitars and basses, which had their heyday back in the big-hair/thin-necktie ’80s (think Power Windows-era Geddy Lee), still have a few diehard fans who like the instruments’ compact, lightweight…
G&L S-500 Deluxe
Still hand-made, still Leo-like
The people at G&L Guitars consider themselves more than simply guitar builders. Rather, they are the caretakers of Leo Fender’s legacy. Built on what started as Clarence Leo Fender (CLF)…
Marshall JCM800 2203
Preamp tubes: three ECC83. Output tubes: four 6550. Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Pre-Amp Volume, Master Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass, Presence. Speakers: four Celestion G12T-75 12″ speakers per cab. Output: approximately 100…
The Winfield Dust Devil
Devil’s In The Details
Unlike most amp builders who take up the challenge to create amplifiers that replicate the sounds of the 1960s, Winfield Thomas was actually wielding those sounds as a musician in…
Gries 5
Champ of Champs?
Gries 5 Price: $879 Info: www.griesamps.com The Fender Champ is one of the most popular amps of all time. Offering great tone at low volumes, it’s ideal for both practice…
Yamaha THR10
Practice Perfection?
Yamaha THR10 Price: $299 Contact: usa.yamaha.com. As a rule of thumb, practice amps are a compromise. Blissfully portable, they typically lack tone and features. Yet whether in a bedroom or…
SurfyBear Compact Reverb
Bringin’ Springs
Reverb got a big push into the world of guitar when Leo Fender installed Hammond’s Accutronics Type 4 Spring Reverb in his 1962 Twin Amp. Ever since, players have pursued…
Carvin PB4
Classic Looks, Modern Function
Carvin PB4 Price: $1,899 (list/base); $869 (street/base) Info: www.carvinguitars.com. Trends come and trends go, but tradition stands the test of time. And while Carvin’s designs stand quite well on their…
VG PAF Shoot-Out 2005
Given the unwavering popularity of the humbucker pickup, the constant injection of new builders, and the popuarlity of our 1998 comparison feature, we thought we’d note the anniversary of the…
LBenito Alerce-topped Grand Auditorium
Hot Stuff from Chile
How much more vintage can you get? If you’re talking about guitar tone woods, not much more vintage than the tops on guitars by LBenito. Built in Chile, using alerce…
Tech 21 Fly Rig 5
Tone To Carry-On
Tech 21 Fly Rig 5 Price: $249 (list) Contact: www.tech21nyc.com Long before the Line6 POD, the Box of Rock, or the iRig, there was the SansAmp from Tech 21 –…
Positive Grid Spark
Cloud Nine
Once upon a time, you had a guitar, amp, and pedals – a complete guitar universe. Today, there’s a fourth factor to consider – the internet. Enter the Spark, a…
Supro’s Dual-Tone 1624T, Coronado 1690T
1964 All Over Again
Supro’s Dual-Tone 1624T, Coronado 1690T Price: $1,595 (Dual-Tone[LEFT]); $1,795 (Coronado) Contact: www.suprousa.com If there was a time machine handy to scoot us back to 1964, where we would naturally stock…
Demeter Mighty Minnie Pedalboard Amplifier
Mighty Fine
Demeter Mighty Minnie Pedalboard Amplifier Price: $899.99 Info: www.demeteramps.com Years ago, backstage after a concert, slide-guitar virtuoso Sonny Landreth mentioned to renowned amp designer James Demeter that it would be…
