• Walrus Audio’s Mako Series MKII

    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…

    Read more >>

Gibson L-5S Ron Wood Signature

Serious Lumber

In 1972, Gibson introduced the L-5S as a smaller, thinner solidbody version of its L-5 hollowbody. Most mistook it for a Les Paul with a wider body. Though not Gibson’s…

EarthQuaker Devices’ Space Spiral Modulated Delay

Will You Repeat That?

One particularly well-worn joke about playing a bad note advises you to play it twice so folks will think you meant it. But what about all those good notes that…

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…

Jazz Trio

Fender’s Geddy Lee Jazz Bass and Ibanez’s Black Eagle Reissue Take On an Icon

Though it got most of the looks in the family, Fender’s Jazz Bass is nonetheless the tag-along younger brother to the Precision. Benefitting from the elder’s success, it was designed…

L-Guitar Lance Glass

Tweak City

Builders love tweaking the creations of Leo Fender and his squad of ’50s innovators; California luthier Lance McCormick is making his mark with the L-Guitar Lance Glass. It may look…

Genzler Acoustic Array Pro

Pro on the Go

As gigs at coffeehouses, street festivals, and farmers’ markets become more common, a growing legion of performers is being supported by an increasing array of portable acoustic/electric gear. The Acoustic…

Carl Martin Vintage Series Pedals

More Effect, Less Coin

If you’re the type of hardcore gear geek who spends as much time evaluating guitarists based on what’s in their hands, rigs, and pedalboards as you do actually listening to…

Sonic Machine Factory 15 Watter

With tube amp gurus like Mark Sampson and Rick Hamel piloting the crew, we had a sneakin’ hunch that the Sonic Machine Factory’s 15 Watter we received for review was…

Walla Walla Maverick Pro Series

To a T

Walla Walla has carved a niche in the world of highly customized guitars and basses in the tradition of those time-honored Leo Fender archetypes. Their Maverick Pro Series offers up…

Home Feature Image

Avid Technology Eleven Rack

Rack and Roll

The proliferation of digital guitar gear grows by leaps and bounds every year as more players learn to love the world of tones and effects offered by the technology. You’ll…

TWA Hot Sakè and Dynamorph

Circuit City

Totally Wycked Audio (TWA) builds a line of cool stompboxes that consistently push the envelope in the right direction. Two recent installments are perfect cases in point. TWA’s Hot Sakè…

The Iris Guitar Dan Erlewine DE-11

Renaissance Reimagined

Among the famous names in American guitar lore is Dan Erlewine – guitarist, builder, VG columnist and editorial consultant, and of course, world-class repair expert who literally wrote the book…

Electro-Harmonix 45000 Multi-Track Recorder

Gettin’ Loopy!

Electro-Harmonix 45000 Multi-Track Recorder Price: $476.21 (street); $119.25 (foot controller) Info: www.ehx.com. Looping has a rich history, with roots tracing to modern classical composers like Phillip Glass, Steve Reich, and…

Ramble FX Twin Bender Fuzz

Whole Lotta Fuzz

Fuzz comes in a lot of flavors. From spitty or choked-off splat to gritty gated sounds, from classic ’60s to ’90s grunge and beyond, Ramble FX’s take on the classic…

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…

Universal Audio Ruby, Woodrow & Dream

Model Of Perfection

With digital recording more popular than ever, audio designers are working to capture guitar tone directly, without miking an amp. Universal Audio – renowned maker of studio gear – has…

Effector 13 Improbability Drive

“Beam Me Up, Jimi” – The Effector 13 Improbability Drive – spacey, fuzzy, and funky

We understand how you might react. “Another drive pedal?” There are so many… a lot of them similar, or nearly identical? But then again, some are different… (Cue Captain Kirk…

Yamaha’s Revstar RSP20CR

Mod Rocker

Having spent the last 120 years perfecting righteous guitar tones, Yamaha has set out to increase their coolness quotient. The design of their latest guitar line – the Revstar Series…

Fulltone Clyde Wah

Vintage Tone For Modern Players

The original Vox Clyde McCoy wah pedals of the late 1960s are high on the list of soughtafter vintage effects. They were widely used during live performances and on legendary…

Bad Cat Cub V EL34 Amp

First-Class Blast

The Bad Cat Cub has evolved through several iterations since arriving with the maker’s inaugural lineup 25 years ago. It has gained (and lost) features, morphed into more-affordable PCB-based versions,…

Swart Atomic Jr.

Splitting The Atom

When Swart decided to split their Atomic Jr. five-watt combo into a piggyback, they not only went from an 8″ speaker to a 12″, they added more speaker options, including…

Lollar Pickups

Super-Suitable Substitutes

Seattle’s Jason Lollar not only builds fine pickups, he also builds archtop, solidbody, and lap steel guitars (his list of clients includes National, DeTemple, Harmos, and Zero Guitars). And he…

Music Nomad Precision Setup Gauge Set

The Set Up

There’s nothing like playing a properly set-up guitar, but taking it to a repair shop can be expensive – especially if you regularly play more than one instrument. With proper…

Dean Zelinsky Tagliare Z-Glide Custom

Dean Zelinsky Tagliare Z-Glide Custom

Future Tense

Every so often, a builder gives the art of guitar design a firm shove into the future. The Dean Zelinsky Tagliare Z-Glide Custom certainly fits into that category. On the…

Reilander’s Muckbucker Pickups

Fat, But Not Tubby

Reilander’s Muckbucker Pickups Price: $199 (set) Info: www.reilandercustomguitar.com In the 1970s, great guitar-pickup winders began wrapping extra wire on humbuckers, touting the resultant higher output and greater low-end response. Though…

Keeley Electronics Seafoam Chorus

Keeley Electronics Seafoam Chorus

Side Effects

Keeley Electronics Seafoam Chorus Price: $229 (list) Contact: www.robertkeeley.com In a world of proliferating effects pedals, discovering one that does what it promises well can be a rewarding discovery. Finding…

Oxford Guitar Supply

Fine Finish

One factor keeping many people from working on their guitars is the availability of tools and materials to make those repairs. For refinishers, it meant owning a spray booth and…

SviSound’a Overdrive OverZoid oz01

Svi Sound’s Overdrive OverZoid oz01

Full Steam

SviSound’a Overdrive OverZoid oz01 Price: $165 (list) Contact: www.svisound.com Tonally and aesthetically, SviSound’s Overdrive OverZoid is a study in good taste. Handcrafted in Bulgaria, the OverZoid matches a very natural-sounding…

PRS Swamp Ash Special SE

Bolt-On Beauty

Known historically for its set-neck guitars, PRS has produced a number of killer bolt-ons, like the CE and Silver Sky. A new version of its Swamp Ash Special is another.…

API Audio TranZformer GT and LX

Stripped Down

Automated Processing Inc. (API) is best-known for its high-end mixing consoles for broadcast and recording, along with the mic preamps, compressors, and EQs it has been making since the ’60s.…