• 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…

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E.W.S. BMC2

E.W.S. BMC2

Tiny Green Giant

As mini-sized pedals continue to gain in popularity they are also becoming increasingly refined and versatile in their layouts. One of these, the popular BMC (Bass Mid Control) from E.W.S…

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…

Budda Verbmaster 112 Home

Budda Verbmaster 112

Versatile 18-Watter

Budda Verbmaster 112 Price: $1,800 (street) Contact: budda.com As part of its Hand-Wired series, Budda has reissued the tube-rectified Verbmaster 1×12 combo that differs from similarly powered amps because it’s…

Seymour Duncan Shape Shifter

Tremolo Transformed

Tremolo is a simple effect: the amplitude, or volume, of an incoming signal is raised and lowered in pulsating waves. With the Seymour Duncan Shape Shifter, the player is invited…

“Tremolo” Trio

Three new approaches to replacement vibrato systems

Three new aftermarket vibrato systems for common double- and single-cutaway solidbody guitars offer the convenience of “drop in” installation. Each system boasts unique features and improved performance. SuperVee Tremolo System…

Melancon Custom Artist/P-90 Artist

Attention to Detail

Hailing from Louisiana, Gerard Melancon is a former professional gigging and studio player who parlayed experience on the road and as a guitar repairman into a devout attitude toward building…

Maxon Fuzz Elements Pedals

Maxon Fuzz Elements Pedals

Elemental Fuzz

Maxon Fuzz Elements Pedals Price: $189 to $199 Contact: www.maxonfx.com Classic fuzz pedals are some of the fine wines of the vintage guitar world. Guitarists talk like Frenchified sommeliers when…

Area 51 The Alienist Voicing Boost

Manmade Tone Monster

Gather ’round, children, for a scary bedtime story. Once upon a time, there was no such thing as a high-gain amp. So, wizards built treble boosters – like the Dallas…

Gretsch Roots Collection: Jim Dandy Flat-top, Dixie 6 Guitar-Banjo

Back to the Country

Gretsch Roots Collection: Jim Dandy Flat-top, Dixie 6 Guitar-Banjo Price: $239 retail (Jim Dandy Flat Top) and $499 retail (Dixie 6 Guitar-Bajo) Contact: www.gretschguitars.com Cynics inclined to dismiss Gretsch’s Roots…

Evil robot Feature Page

Evil Robot EVR-C30

Advances in Mojo

Evil Robot EVR-C30 Price: $999 (list) Info: www.frettedamericana.com. In 2010, music retailer Fretted Americana joined forces with amp wizard John Kasha to “reimagine” the tonal qualities of a vintage Magnatone…

The Wampler Catacombs

Shimmer Box

In the pedal market, the category of reverbs and delays is straight fire these days. Wampler has jumped in with the Catacombs, a stereo box that can operate as a…

Guild’s S-200 T-Bird

Cult-Fave Phoenix

Sometimes admired, often maligned, the cult classic Guild S-200 T-Bird has enjoyed a rebirth in the hands of Black Keys guitarist Dan Auerbach, whose use of a vintage S-200 caused…

Mesa/Boogie Mark Five: 25

Mesa/Boogie Mark Five: 25

Stage, Studio, Etc.

Mesa/Boogie Mark Five: 25 Price: $1,299 (list) Contact: www.mesaboogie.com Housed in teensy cabinets, so-called “lunchbox” amps are all the rage, and to varying degrees do a nice job of living…

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…

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…

Ceriatone’s OTS Mini 20 Overtone Lunchbox

Meal Ticket

For years, Ceriatone fans have suggested the amp maker offer its stellar Overtone Special sound in a scaled-down, affordable package. The OTS Mini 20 was Ceriatone’s answer. The control layout…

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs

Switching Up

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs Price: $600 each with gigbag Info: www.rmi.lu. Part DI, part preamp, and part A/B switcher all rolled into one pedal with a big emphasis…

ToneTron Billy-Rocker 10

Small Is Beautiful

Small amps are big. As venues become increasingly intimate and amplifiers are miked through sound systems rather than muscling-up to broadcast across a full room, you no longer need to…

MXR Dyna Comp Mini

A Classic, Compressed

In the ’70s, the original MXR Dyna Comp found its way onto a plethora of now-classic vinyl sides and was a key ingredient to the soundtrack of a generation. With…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Fare

In the multi-verse of effects pedals, Robert Keeley’s compressors, dirt boxes, and workstation gizmos are a thing of beauty – particularly in the realm of pedals that provide multiple sounds.…

Fire Custom Shop Sweet Chilli and Carpe Diem Overdrives

Brazilian Heat

There are some nifty analog effects pedals coming out of São Paulo, Brazil, nowadays, and among them, Fire Custom Shop should be on your radar. Fire Custom’s small but efficient…

Vibesware Guitar Resonator GR-Junior II

Vibesware Guitar Resonator GR-Junior II

Sustain For Days

Vibesware Guitar Resonator GR-Junior II Price: $175 (list, depending on exchange rate) Contact: www.vibesware.com In the beginning, there was the E Bow, a handheld device that used a powered magnet…

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…

Lace California Twister

Just This Side of Twisted

When most people go shopping for a new guitar, they look for one with a nice, straight neck. But maybe we’ve been doing it all wrong… The California-based Lace company…

Orange Super Crush 100 Head

Convincing Crunch

When speaking of guitar amplifiers that have become part of rock-and-roll lore, you best mention the iconic Orange brand as helping pave the way – their bright tolex and pictographed…

Fender’s Duel Pugilist Distortion & Dual Marine Layer Reverb

Double Trouble

Fender launched its Pugilist Distortion and Marine Layer Reverb in 2018, after VP of Innovation Stan Cotey – who’d previously helped design signature amps with Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, and…

Reeves Custom 100

Big Brit tone, top-notch deployment

Reeves Amplification founder Bill Jansen knows full well that anyone shopping for a boutique guitar amp has gobs of options, and vying for the player’s dollar is all about tone,…

The EHX Super Pulsar

Superstar Trem

The new Electro-Harmonix Super Pulsar may not be the most tremolo for your buck, but then again, it’s tough to think of any unit anywhere at any time that gives…

B&G Guitars’ Caletta Standard Build

Small But Mighty

B&G Guitars are made in Tel Aviv by a talented shop that translates the best traits of traditional guitars into high-quality instruments for today’s player. With the Caletta, their aim…

Koch Twintone

Bantam Tough-Guy

The Twintone is the Netherlands-based Koch Guitar Electronics company’s mid-sized guitar amp, a 1×12″ combo that, like the entire Koch line, uses top-quality components including cold-lacquered transformers, fiberglas-reinforced PC boards,…