One of the most overlooked pieces of equipment a musicians uses is his cables. Spend all that you want on a guitar and amp, the tone will only be as good as the signal connecting them. Choosing cable can be a bit perplexing. Most music retailer and websites will have tons of options. Adding to this conundrum is pricing. A 10 foot guitar cable can retail for anywhere from $5 dollars to $125. Read the rest of this entry »

D’Addario is proud to announce Planet Waves’ American Stage cables were named winners of Winter NAMM’s Best in Show “Gotta Stock It” Category; Best in Show Awards are part of a NAMM University educational program featuring six panelists who represent single-store operations, small- to mid-sized chains and one of the industry’s top trade magazines.

Recipient of the “Gotta Stock It” category, Planet Waves’ American Stage cables have been designed and manufactured in the U.S. This special cable features Planet Waves’ exclusive In=Out technology for optimum signal transparency, 180-degree solder joints for superior conductivity and strength, and the exclusively patented Geo-Tip design for improved fit in all jacks. Read the rest of this entry »

That Guitar from “Back Then” You Always Wanted! Every player dreams about the guitar or bass that lit the original fire to become a musician: a used Stratocaster like the one Hendrix played, or a used Les Paul like Jimmy Page’s, even a used Rickenbacker, just like the one John Lennon played. They’re all still out there! And you still want one, but where can you find it? Read the rest of this entry »

Shred Les Paul Studio If you’re seeking a full-bore Les Paul primed for the rock excesses of the 21st century, the new Shred Les Paul Studio with Floyd Rose™ from Gibson USA is the way to go. This guitar has all the ingredients that have helped to make the Les Paul a legendary rock axe since the 1950s—including the classic mahogany and maple body construction, glued-in mahogany neck, and dual humbucking pickups—enhanced with the versatility of a genuine Floyd Rose™ vibrato bridge. To make it all the more appealing for the demanding guitarist on a tight budget, the entire package is wrapped up into the Les Paul Studio format, making the Shred Les Paul Studio with Floyd Rose™ the latest in a long line of guitars that have been consistent favorites since their introduction in 1983. Blending genuine Gibson Les Paul quality and construction with trimmed-down, no-nonsense styling, the Studio range offers unbeatable value, and provides the perfect home for the powerful new Shred Les Paul Studio with Floyd Rose™. Read the rest of this entry »

The Seymour Duncan Custom Shop has teamed up with blues-rock virtuoso Joe Bonamassa to produce the Joe Bonamassa Signature Pickup Set. This immaculately crafted and calibrated dual-humbucker set accurately replicates the P.A.F. pickups in Joe’s beloved 1959 sunburst Les Paul. Their rich, dynamic, and nuanced voice will appeal to all tone connoisseurs who cherish the passion and power of the original humbucker. Read the rest of this entry »

Moog Music has announced that it has won an Outstanding Technical Achievement award from the TEC (Technical Excellence & Creativity) Foundation in recognition of its Slim Phatty analog synthesizer, launched in 2011. Mike Adams, CEO/President; Cyril Lance, Chief Engineer and Steve Dunnington, Product Development Specialist of Moog Music were all on hand to accept the award during a special recognition ceremony held at the 2012 NAMM show in Anaheim, CA on Friday evening. Read the rest of this entry »

Up to 10 musicians can simultaneously control their StudioLive monitor mixes using an iPhone® or iPod touch® and PreSonus’ free QMix™ app. QMix builds on PreSonus’ original Virtual StudioLive (VSL), which provides bidirectional computer control of PreSonus StudioLive™-series mixers via FireWire. Next came StudioLive Remote for iPad®, which provides wireless control of StudioLive mixers. Read the rest of this entry »

Fender is very proud to introduce its new top-of-the-production-line best: the Fender Select series. Designed as “Select instruments for select individuals,” the five guitars and two basses in the series are designed to be players’ instruments that put more than six decades of Fender experience and expertise on outstandingly appointed display and bring a wealth of high-end features and elegant design options to discerning musicians everywhere.

With choice tone woods, figured tops, strikingly beautiful finishes, figured and quarter-sawn maple necks with compound-radius fretboards, specially voiced Fender Select pickups that deliver masterful tone, and other first-rate features, the US-made Select Series presents Fender’s finest selection. Read the rest of this entry »

Meet Greta™ and Excelsior™, Fender’s new and coolly unconventional Pawn Shop Special amplifiers. The two stylish amps resemble the esoteric finds you might discover in a pawnshop or second-hand store, and make for the most distinctive addition to any musician’s collection.

Housed in the playfully diminutive form of a vintage tabletop radio, the Pawn Shop Special Greta model is quite possibly the most unusual Fender tube amp ever (in fact, you’ll be hard pressed to find the name “Fender” anywhere on it). It’s a charming two-watt tabletop beauty with a 4” Special Design speaker, old-school VU meter with “clean to overload” indicator display, simple volume and tone controls, and a 1/8” back-panel auxiliary input perfect for iPod or other media player use. Read the rest of this entry »

When KISS hit the stage at Nippon Budokan in Japan in 1977 with guitarist Ace Frehley behind a Cherry Sunburst, three-pickup Les Paul Custom, the entire package—band, guitarist, guitar—embodied the height of glam-rock excess and success for the ’70s. This was the ultimate marriage of pop and heavy rock, driven to meteoric heights by the record industry marketing machine, and ultimately attaining that otherworldly presence that great stadium rock should achieve: unbridled fantasy and party-hard reality rolled into one glorious explosion. In celebration of Ace Frehley’s unquestionable status as a rock icon, and the epitome of glam-rock stardom that KISS represented at this crystalline moment in time in 1977, Gibson Custom proudly announces the release of the Ace Frehley “Budokan” Les Paul Custom, produced in a strictly Limited Edition of 50 hand-aged guitars signed by the artist, with a further 100 hand-aged guitars, and 150 guitars treated in Gibson Custom’s VOS process. Offering everything you’ve come to expect from Gibson Custom’s artist replica guitars, the Ace Frehley “Budokan” Les Paul Custom is a painstaking recreation of Frehley’s modified Les Paul Custom, based on intimate examination of the instrument’s current condition. Read the rest of this entry »

Morley, manufacturers of world famous Wah, Volume and Switching devices announced the release of its newest product – the Buffer Boost. The Buffer Boost is a combination buffer circuit and clean boost pedal. The buffer circuit maintains guitar tone and overall signal strength even when using it with effects that typically load down your signal. It is the culmination of years of buffer circuit designs used in Morley pedals like the Steve Vai Bad Horsie Wah, the Mark Tremonti Wah and the George Lynch Dragon 2 Wah. Read the rest of this entry »

Before his untimely and senseless death Darrell “Dimebag” Abbott was just beginning to share with us the tools that helped shape his signature sound. From Randall Amps to Dean Guitars Dimebag’s endorsement would be an indication to guitarists that the piece of equipment in questions was designed for maximum aural assault.

One piece of equipment in my opinion that best captures Dimebag’s sound is probably the most misunderstood, Seymour Duncan’s Dimbucker hi-output pickup. The Dimebucker weighs in at 16.25 k we are talking about twice as hot as your average rock pickup. Once you step on your distortion box strap in, you are about to see how hot this pickup actually is. The Dimebucker will take you on a wild ride. The hi tones are crystal clear and bright despite this pickup having an incredibly low bottom and powerful bass. Read the rest of this entry »

Fender is proud to introduce the all-new members of the popular Super Champ series. The new Super Champ X2, Super Champ X2 Head, and SC112 Enclosure bring exciting, brand new modeling and user-friendly features, providing great tone for blues, rock, country and more.

Made in Ensenada, Mexico, the ultra functional Super Champ X2 combo amplifier combines 15 watts of rich dual-6V6 tube amplification with a Fender Special Design 10” speaker for dynamic combo amp tone. This simple, easy-to-use platform includes two switchable channels and several modern extras, such as a voicing knob for selection of 16 different amp types (Tweed, Blackface, British, Metal and more), 15 effects with level control, dual-channel switching Read the rest of this entry »

Fender is thrilled to introduce new Bassman Pro series of heads and cabs that will tug at the heartstrings of bass players worldwide. Decked out in ’60s blackface, and supercharged with monstrous sound and rock-solid strength, the six new members of the Bassman Pro series are designed with world-tour ready features and enormous Fender tone.

The Super Bassman is a pummeling, 300-watt tube head designed to tear up the largest arenas. Features include a tube preamp (two 12AX7s) and tube power amp (one 12AX7, one 12AT7, six 6550s); vintage channel that delivers the full, warm sound of a classic Fender passive tone stack; Read the rest of this entry »

As part of NAMM Show 2012 being held on January 19-22 in Anaheim California, guitar manufacturing mogul Phillip Jarrell will showcase the latest and greatest creations in the Jarrell Guitar collection. Featuring the debut of the revolutionary Monte Pittman Signature Series of 3 guitars: MPS.1, MPS.f, and the MPS*Classic, attendees will have the opportunity to get ‘hands on,’ up close and personal with the new line, experiencing the unique vibe for themselves at the Jarrell Booth (4198). A press conference will be held on Saturday, January 21st at 11 a.m. with Jarrell Guitars, Seymour Duncan, Orange Amps, and Monte Pittman. Read the rest of this entry »

As I have said in previous columns, guitar picks are the least expensive and most important upgrade you can make to your guitar playing. When deciding on what picks to use try everything out there you can find. Every time I go to a music store I pick up a pick or two I have never used before.

The reasoning for this is if you are going to paint a sonic picture you are going to need many different brushes. My brush of choice and a mainstay in my arsenal are my heavy and extra heavy picks. Read the rest of this entry »