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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
Blackbird Guitars’ Lucky 13
Nice Roll
Blackbird Guitars’ Lucky 13 Price: $1,850 (list)/$2,050 (with Fishman electronics) Info: www.blackbirdguitar.com What has a 13-fret neck, a small-but-curvaceous body like a classic early-’30s Gibson, and a sound that conjures…
Ernie Ball’s Music Man Cutlass/Stingray
Talkin’ Tonewoods
For many builders of solidbody guitars, the challenge is to improve on a handful of pioneering designs from the 1950s and ’60s. No one knows this better than Ernie Ball…
Area 51 Fuzzwah
Two Great Tastes
Fuzz wahs are nothing new, of course. Released under scores of badge-engineered monikers, they’ve promised aural overload ranging from sirens to tornadoes. Problem is, most have sounded like novelty toys…
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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,
Strymon’s Riverside Multistage Drive
Down By The River
At first glance, the Strymon Riverside Multistage Drive doesn’t look much different from the rest of the herd. But dig deeper and you’ll find this is not just another overdrive…
PRS SE 245 Single Cut
Dressed to Impress
PRS SE 245 Single Cut Price: $650 (street). Info: prsguitars.com Pick up the PRS SE 245 and turn it around a few times. After blinking repeatedly at its finish, you…
EHX Canyon Delay & Looper, Blurst Modulated Filter
Ambient Possibilities
Today’s guitarists looking to create those sounds they imagine in their heads have it easier than ever before. Electro-Harmonix can be partially thanked for this. EHX is notorious for creating…
Rockn’ Stompn RS-4
Order!
Powering up your favorite rig in the wrong order can lead to, at minimum, a loud pop through your valued speaker. Rockn Stompn solves that problem with the RS-4; a…
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…
Arteffect Bonnie Wah
Cry No More!
Israel-based Arteffect’s new Bonnie wah pedal is an accurate re-creation of the highly soughtafter vintage Vox Clyde McCoy wah. The “Clyde wah,” you’ll recall, was designed to help guitar players…
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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
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…
Capo Glider
Capo The Glider
Evolution has had fun with the trusty old capo. Invented in the early/mid 18th century as a way to simultaneously fret all the strings of an instrument, allowing quick key…
LsL Instruments’ Soledad
T-Bone with a Side of Sustain
Based out of Santa Clarita, California, LsL Instruments was founded by Lance and Lisa Lerman in 2008 after many years in the furniture-manufacturing business as well as guitar building. Today,…
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…
Strymon Ultraviolet Vintage Vibe
Modern Spin
Pioneered by Jimi Hendrix, the Uni-Vibe became synonymous with psychedelic rock sounds in the 1960s. Strymon’s modern interpretation is the Ultraviolet Vintage Vibe. The Ultraviolet offers a variety of tone-shaping…
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…
HomeWrecker Pickups
Slumbering Strats, Awake!
In 2011, session guitarist Joshua Hernandez began winding pickups in his living room. From these modest beginnings, and with no desire simply to replicate the sounds of vintage pickups, Hernandez…
Magnatone Varsity Reverb
Too Cool For School
Face it. They may look oh-so-cool, but rarely do you really, truly need that full amp stack. Most gigs for mere mortals these days are in smaller venues where smaller…
A Little More Better
CopperSound’s Foxcatcher Boost/Overdrive and Polaris Chorus/Vibrato
Offering hand-built pedals from their shop in Easton, Massachusetts, CopperSound seems to be finding a niche among small-batch builders, namely by rethinking some well-loved tones and technologies. One recent offering…
The Mercury Magnetics Epiphone Valve Junior Mod Kit
Small Cha-Ching, Big Bling
Last year, Epiphone tossed a small pebble into a large pond with the introduction of its Valve Junior amplifier – and its launch caused a tsunami. Available as a stand-alone…
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 Supro Delta King 10
Down To The Crossroads
With the increasing popularity of compact, low-wattage combo amps has come an overwhelming variety of choices. Supro has entered the fray with its new Delta King series, ranging from a…
David Allen Fat ’59 Tele Pickups
Sparkle and Twang
At their best, Tele pickups deliver unparalleled twang – versatile and fat. Conversely, poor T-style pickups are flat and screechy or thin and brittle. Understanding these variables and knowing the…
Blackstar HT Club 40
Monster of Rock
Blackstar HT Club 40 Price: $699.99 (list) Contact: www.blackstaramps.com Standalone combo amplifiers that cover broad sonic terrain are popular with guitarists looking for quick, pedal-free stage setups. Blackstar’s HT Club…
Fender Acoustic Pro and Acoustic SFX
Curved Air
Fender has been making acoustic guitar amps for decades – now they’re reinventing the genre, and their designers deserve a round of applause both for the visual makeover and the…
Radial Cabbone, Switchbone, and Loopbone
Switcher's Paradise
Radial Cabbone Switcher’s Paradise Radial Cabbone, Switchbone, and Loop-bone add incomparable versatility Bob Tekippe Though Radial Engineering’s Switchbone, Cabbone, and Loopbone pedals can all technically be classified as “switchers,” each…
Gurus Amps’ SexydriveMkII
Bellissimo!
Chalk up another score for Italian innovation. Chicco Bellini and his company, Gurus Amps, are among the top dogs in the Italian gear market. They’ve also been gaining steam worldwide…
Dawner Prince Electronics Pulse
A New Spin
There are plenty of takes on the Leslie rotating speaker and its most famous stompbox offshoot, the Shin-ei Uni-Vibe. Dawner Prince Electronics’ Pulse, however, is an open-cabinet revolving speaker emulator…
Amptweaker’s TightFuzz and Bass TightFuzz
A Good Buzz
Amptweaker’s TightFuzz and Bass TightFuzz Price: $280 retail/$199 street (TightFuzz); $310 retail, $219 street (Bass TightFuzz) Info: www.amptweaker.com. Since the birth of the fuzz pedal in 1960s, its scratchy, buzzy,…
The Budda Twinmaster
Return of a Boutique Legend
In the early days of boutique-amp building, there were but a few contenders on the scene. One of the strongest amplifiers in those days was made by Budda. First released…
Brown Fretted/less Bass
Catches with the eye, keeps with the feel
The Brown’s Guitar Factory Fretted/less bass leaves an immediate impression. Yes, its Purpleheart body wings are attractive, as are its ebony-veneered maple headstock with abalone/mother-of-pearl, engraved/inked logo, and its graphite-reinforced…
