Premier Guitar March 2013

MarchHighlights
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DIGITAL ADVANTAGE
In addition to the insightful reads in our

March 2013 print edition, you also get the
following fantastic material when you head
online to premierguitar.com.
Sponsored by Dunlop
Digital-Only Reviews:
DR1
DR3
Pigtronix Infinity Looper

Fuzzhugger(fx) Pocket Arcade
builder profile:
bob bradshaw
Inside the shop of the tech to the stars.
eric bibb and habib koit
Guitarists from worlds apart discuss being

bonded by rhythms.
bad religion
Guitarist Brett Gurewitz talks about the punk heroes

16th album and the art of the two-minute tune.
REVIEWS:
Mesa/Boogie Pedal Line Teye R-Series

La Gitana TC Electronic Flashback X4
Epiphone 1962 Sheraton E212T
Strymon Mobius Roland GA-112 Carvin HH2 Allan Holdsworth Van Amps
Sole-Mate Jr. Takamine P3MC Vox StompLab IIB
bob bradshaw bad religion eric bibb & habib Koit

March 2013
MARCH 2013
premierguitar.com
13
New Reviews
Mesa/boogie stomps epiphone 62 sheraton tc electronic flashback x4
strymon mobius roland ga-112 combo vox stomplab IIb & more
The all-new, affordable line of StompLab effect processors gives you access to
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EDITORIAL
Editor in Chief Shawn Hammond
Managing Editor Tessa Jeffers
Senior Editor Andy Ellis
Gear Editor Charles Saufley
Senior Art Editor Meghan Molumby
Web Content Editor Rebecca Dirks
Associate Editor Chris Kies
Associate Editor Rich Osweiler
Associate Editor Jason Shadrick
Video Editor Steve Worthington
Acoustic Editor Gayla Drake Paul
Web Production Assistant Champ Long
PRODUCTION & operations

Operations Manager Shannon Burmeister
Circulation Manager Lois Stodola
Production Coordinator Luke Viertel
Sales/MARKETING
Advertising/Artist Relations
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Director of Retail Sales
Dave Westin
Marketing Manager Nick Ireland
Multimedia Coordinator Matt Roberts
EarthQuaker Devices
Handmade one at a time in Akron, Ohio
www.earthquakerdevices.com
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Its a Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod World BY shawn hammond
f youre even marginally into

guitar gear, you wont have any
trouble envisioning the vast conceptual chasm that opened before
us when we decided to do a series
of stories on guitar makeovers for
this issue. Even for players interested in the same style of music,
there are a zillion different cool
mods you could do to a zillion
different types of guitars. Factor in
all the genre and subgenre possibilities, and it gets even messier. If
we tried to please, say, the hordes
of blues and blues-rock players
in our audience, which canvas
should we start witha Les
Paul? A Strat? A Tele? Or one of
the many boutique variants that
blend elements of all three? You
get the idea. It was a bit daunting.
That said, weve got plenty
of makeover ideas for our own
gear, not to mention lots of
gear-crazy friends. So we were
confident wed find some cool
stories. We just knew we had
to choose things that were
unique enough that even guitartweaking junkies whove seen it
all would at the very least think,
Thats not for me, but yknow
whatthats still damn cool!
To that end, we thought Ben
Friedmans story of getting a
call from his art-collector friend
about an autograph-scribbled
80s Paul Reed Smith for sale
on an antique auctioneers website (Blasphemy or Alchemy?
p. 56) would appeal to more
traditional players because of
its quasi classicist bent. But the
companys reputation with upand-coming players in heavier
genres, as well as the storys
interesting historical considerations, should also render
it interesting to hard-rock or
metal fans, or anyone else whos
struggled over whether to mod
an old piece of gear. Thanks for
sharing your adventure, Ben!
I didnt originally intend
to put myself into any of the
makeover storiesyou get quite

enough of me on this page
every month as it is. But it just
so happened that I was scoping
out a Squier Vintage Modified
Telecaster Custom to upgrade at
the very time that someone else
on the PG staff suggested the
makeover theme. Knowing we
needed a project that fell in the
middle of the makeover-intensity scale, I eventually figured,
Hey, Im having Bill [Hook,
author of Surf-Twang Tweak-a-
Wayne Richman at ToneGuard pickguards was incredible. When I called him about
buying one of his anodizedaluminum pickguards for a Tele
Custom, but with a Jazzmasterpickup neck routea design
for which he didnt have a CAD
file yethe didnt even blink.
After seeing a pic of my guitar, he opened his Fender Tele
Deluxe rendering file, called
me up, and knew exactly which
areas to have me measure. He
Think Yuri Landmans beat-to-hell guitar on the cover of this issue is

freaky? You aint seen nothin. Even the four totally whack instruments
above arent the most out-there designs from his restless, fearless mind.
Brings new meaning to the term experimental, doesnt it?
Rama, p. 66] do stuff you dont

see everyday, so why not?
My whole project got a lot
more intense than swapping
pickups and modding the
ashtray bridge to work with a
Bigsby just when it was supposed to be done. One of my
pickup choices just wasnt sending my ears into fits of ecstasy
like I wanted, so I decided late
in the game to buy a completely
different type that required getting a new pickguard to mount
everything to. I want to publicly thank everyone who rolled
with the punches to make it all
come together lightning-fast in
order to meet our deadline.
tweaked his files measurements

a bit, then marshaled his NASAapproved vendors to make sure
something that normally takes
weeks happened over a weekend. Thats some serious hustle!
Curtis Novak got me his fantastic pickups in record time, too.
Mr. Hook then busted a move
on the guitar the same day I
got the pickguard. And last,
but definitely not least, senior
art editor Meghan Molumby
turned around and shot great
pics on a dime. Thanks to all of
you for kicking major ass!
We couldve gone many
different routes for the third,
more extreme makeover story,
but the provident timingand

extremely unique nature
of Yuri Landman and Bart
Hopkins new book, Nice Noise,
pretty much made Flying
Double Dutchman Crunch
(p. 74) a shoo-in. If you visit
issuu.com/yurilandman and
see some of the crazy stringed
instruments Landman specializes in, youll quickly realize
that the project he details for us
is actually pretty tame relative
to what he normally does. Yuri
was a pleasure to work with and
didnt hesitate to help when I
called out of the blue to recruit
him for the task. Thanks, Yuri!
So what about you? Im
guessing youre eager to share
your own mods, your dream
mods, and your opinions of the
ones we settled on. And, actually, we do welcome your input.
Hell, if the stuff so many of you
tell us about via email and on
Facebook is any indication of
the wider Premier Guitar audience, you guys have some pretty
damn ingenious and insightful
ideas. So consider this your
invitation. What are your most
adventurous makeover stories?
Wed love to hear them on our
Facebook page, on Twitter, or
via email.
Twang on,
Shawn Hammond
shawn@premierguitar.com
premierguitar.com
Music shook the studio walls,
then the world.
Singer and songwriter LP

Uke player 3 years
Learn more about the Martin 2 Concert Uke, Ocean Way Recording and Warner Bros. recording artist LP at martinguitar.com/lp
TABLE OF CONTENTS > FEATURES & REVIEWS
Contents
101
Volume 18 Issue 3 March 2013
FEATURES
56

Bad Religion
Blasphemy or
Alchemy?
PG reader Ben Friedman commissions
a makeover for his 80s PRS CE.
66

Surf-Twang
Tweak-a-Rama
A Squier Tele gets a Bigsby, Curtis
Novak pickups, and more.
74

Flying Double
Dutchman Crunch
Luthier Yuri Landman transforms a
cheap axe into a weird wonder.
84

Eric Bibb and

Habib Koit
Guitarists from worlds apart discuss
being bonded by rhythms.
Photo courtesy Epitaph Records
88
91

JD Simo
Nashvilles country hero steps out with
his psychedelic rock.
Builder Profile:
Bob Bradshaw
Inside the shop of the tech to the stars.
101 Bad Religion
Reviews
114 Mesa/boogie Pedal Line
120 teye R-Series La Gitana
123 TC Electronic Flashback X4
126 Epiphone 1962 Sheraton E212T
128 strymon Mobius
131 roland GA-112
134 carvin HH2 Allan Holdsworth
137 van amps Sole-Mate Jr.
140 Takamine P3MC
143 Vox StompLab IIB
120
Teye R-Series La Gitana
Guitarist Brett Gurewitz talks about the

punk heroes 16th album and the art of
the two-minute tune.
131
Roland GA-112
143
Vox StompLab IIB
premierguitar.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS > Lessons & departments
Contents
(Contd )
50
Volume 18 Issue 3 March 2013
Departments
16 Rig Rundowns
J Mascis, Dweezil Zappa, and Billy
Corgan tell us about their gear.
Vintage Vault
19 Opening Notes
24 Letters
26 News
28 Staff Picks
PG staff members and GNRs
Richard Fortus talk about their
makeover guitar dreams.
30 Media Reviews
Robben Fords Bringing It Back Home
Plus: Stray Cats DVD, Boz Scaggs, and
Ivan & Alyosha
146 New Products

Photo by Tim Mullally
150 Modern Builder Vault

Zeal Guitars
152 Gear of the Month

1968 Marshall 50-Watt JMP and 4x12
160 Last Call

Whats the Rush?
Columns
32 Tone Tips
Simplify Your Life
34 On Bass
Bass Pedals: Basic to Playhouse
36 Guitar Tracks
Addressing Home-Studio Hums
Tech Tips
38 State of the Stomp
What Does a Pedal Sound Like?
40 Esoterica Electrica
Private Domain: The Sound
Ethics Laboratory
42 Acoustic Soundboard
Designing and Ordering a
Custom Guitar, Pt. 2
44 Ask Amp Man

Adding an Extension Cab
to a Fender Combo
46 Mod Garage
The Ultra-Flexible Esquire
Wiring, Pt. 2
48 The Bass Bench

Custom or Boutique?
Vintage & Upkeep

50 Vintage Vault
1949 Gibson ES-350N
52 Guitar Shop 101

Fighting the Humidity Battle
54 Bottom Feeder
60s Silvertone Sharkfin
ET-460 K4L
19
Opening Notes
Photo by Barry Brecheisen
Gigging & Recording
ON THE COVER Three makeover axes: A budget double-cutaway experiment, a 1989

PRS CE, and a Squier Vintage Modified Telecaster Custom.
premierguitar.com
Photo Credit: Sigried Duberos
I like the sound of the

Elixir Strings better than
any other string.
- John Paul White
The Civil Wars
Extending your tone life

like no other string.
Every time you play your guitar, bits of you are left behind to invade the windings,
contaminate your strings and kill your tone. Elixir Strings is the only brand to coat
the entire string and form a barrier against tone-killing gunk. Thats why players
report with Elixir Strings their tone lasts longer than any other string, uncoated or
coated. Youll get the tone you dig and the feel you love gig after gig after gig.
Hear why John Paul White loves his Elixir Strings:
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GORE, ELIXIR, NANOWEB, POLYWEB, GREAT TONE LONG LIFE, e icon, and
designs are trademarks of W. L. Gore & Associates. 2012 W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.
ELX-132-R1-ADV-US-APR12
Web Exclusives
Only on PremierGuitar.com
Your guide to the latest stories, reviews, videos, and lessons on PremierGuitar.com
FEATURED
Access all of our lessons
online, for free, with streaming
audio and downloadable,
printable notation PDFs.
Diary of a
So-Called Shredder
Doom in E Minor
By Terry Syrek
Rhythm Rules
16th-note Accents
By Alex Nolan
Style Guide
Left-Hand Essentials
By Marc Schonbrun
Also
DIY: How to Change Guitar Pickups

Nashville luthier Tony Nagy shows you the step-by-step procedure for swapping the pickups in your guitar, with some Strat-specific tips and considerations, in our definitive DIY
video guide.
Yngwie Malmsteen talks about

Spellbound and Steve Lukather
discusses Transition in our
online-only interviews.
WEIGH IN AND WIN!
Weigh in at facebook.com/premierguitar or reply @premierguitar on Twitter with

hashtag #freshsounds for your chance to win new pickups from EMG.
When I want a fresh sound from my guitar, I

8%
Take a break and

come back later
14%
Mod with
new pickups
or wiring
15%
REVIEWS
Play something
new or in a
new way
26%
Adjust amp
and effects
Check out our latest reviews with audio samples of the FuzzHugger
Pocket Arcade, Godin Session Custom, Blackstar ID:60, and TC
Electronic Ditto Looper.
Looking for our giveaway listing?

Weve moved our contest schedule to page 158. Head there now to see whats coming up and a list of winners.
premierguitar.com
Steve Lukather Photo by Rob Shanahan
Lessons
rig rundowns
RIG RUNDOWNS
Our latest, greatest behind-the-scenes gear videos with the stars.

Dinosaur Jr.
guitarist J Mascis
talks about his Jazzmaster
preferences, demos his pedals, and details his four-amp
setup in our Rig Rundown
video from the bands I Bet
on Sky 2012 tour. Below are
some highlights.
Mascis pedalboard is built around a Bob Bradshaw-built Custom Audio

Electronics switcher that gives him a multitude of effect combinations. Among
the notable boxes on the board are a ToneBender Mk I-clone/Rangemaster-clone
combo pedal built by Built to Spills Doug Martsch (bottom right corner), Mascis
first Electro-Harmonix Rams Head Big Muff (top right), an MC-FX clone of
a Univox Super-Fuzz, a CAE Twin Tremolo (upper left), a Z.Vex Double Rock
(two Box of Rocks in one, bottom left), and an Electro-Harmonix POG2 that
hes using to mimic Mellotron and organ sounds from Dino Jr.s latest album.
Dweezil Zappa demonstrates his Axe-FX

II and expansive pedalboard, and talks
about the prototype for his dads possible
Gibson signature model in our Zappa
Plays Zappa Rig Rundown from December
2012. Following are some highlights.
J Mascis main guitar is a sunburst

1963 Fender Jazzmaster with
original neck and pickups but aftermarket knobs and pickup covers.
Like most of his guitars, his No.
1 has a Tune-o-matic-style bridge,
disengaged top toggle switch, and
jumbo frets.
Zappa brings out a mostly stock Eric Johnson signature

Strat with a piezo pickup in the bridge. Hes also playing
a prototype of a (hopefully) forthcoming signature model
from Gibson. Based off of Frank Zappas Roxy-era SG,
it sports a white headstock, a series/parallel switch, and a
phase switchboth located on the lower bout.
The heart of Dweezils tone comes from a Fractal
Audio Systems Axe-FX II. In previous versions of his rig
he actually ran two units simultaneously due to the CPU
demand that his custom presets required. However, on
this tour he runs everything through the top unit and the
bottom is used as a backup or for any guests that might sit
in. In order to recreate his fathers famous tones, Dweezil
goes back to the master tapes to study and cop every little
detail in order to program the Axe-FX II presets.
premierguitar.com
rig rundowns
Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Billy Corgan

talks tunings, modded Strats, his long-lost Gish
guitar and why he doesnt use many pedals live
in our Rig Rundown video from the bands
Oceania 2012 tour.
Watch Now
Head to premierguitar.com/rigrundown
or youtube.com/premierguitar to watch
these three videos in their entirety, plus all
130+ Rig Rundowns in our archives.
Also new this month:
Lamb of Gods Mark Morton, Willie Adler

and John Campbell
Journeys Neal Schon
Madonnas Monte Pittman
premierguitar.com
Corgans rig consists of eight preamp modules custom built by Antonin Salva Salvation
Mods. Corgan flew the builder in to clone his personal amps: a 60s Selmer, Soul Marshall
2203, Reeves Custom Jimmy (Jimmy Page Hiwatt clone), Marshall Super Lead 1959RR
Limited Edition Randy Rhoads, VamPower amp with a fuzz mod (for Oceania material),
Diezel VH4, and a 69 Marshall Super Tremolo. This allows him to recreate his classic tones
throughout the night.
He uses Mesa/Boogie Strategy 500 power amps (from his Mellon Collie touring rig) modded with different tubes run at half power. A Palmer PDI-03 signal is mixed in with the
live micd signal from a 1960 Marshall 4x12 cab (also from his Mellon Collie rig) with new
Celestion 75-watt speakers.
PREMIERGUITAR MARCH 2013 17
AMPS SHOWN:
HELLRAISER USA 212 COMBO
HELLWIN SYNYSTER GATES SIGNATURE FULL STACK
HELLRAISER USA 100 FULL STACK
SCHECTERGUITARS.COM
OPENING NOTES
mark farner
November 23, 2012
The Fillmore Detroit
Detroit, MI
Photo by Ken Settle
Taking the stage at Detroits Rock

for Jobs benefit, Mark Farner digs
into Baby, his 1997 Parker Fly
Deluxe. Best know as lead guitarist and frontman for Grand Funk
Railroad, Farner was drawn to the
lightweight Parker after having neck
surgery in 1996 and being told no
more heavy guitars by his doctor.
Wired with the master volume pot
removed, his Fly Deluxe is loaded
with stock DiMarzio humbuckers and a Fishman piezo-equipped
bridge. Farner tells Premier Guitar,
This guitar made a better guitarist
out of me, and I couldnt play anything else now.
premierguitar.com
OPENING NOTES
premierguitar.com
OPENING NOTES
Dave Matthews
December 5, 2012
United Center
Chicago, IL
Photo by Barry Brecheisen
On the Chicago stop of his winter

arena tour, acoustic-rock troubadour
Dave Matthews and his crew deliver a
21-song set to a sold-out Windy City
crowd. Matthews sunburst steel-string
is a handcrafted Rockbridge Guitar
Company SJ (small jumbo)one of
eight Rockbridge guitars in his collection. Adorned with abalone trim, this
SJ features old-growth Brazilian rosewood back and sides, an Adirondack
spruce top, koa binding, and ebony for
the bridge, headstock, and fretboard.
Its powered by a Fishman Matrix
Infinity pickup and preamp system.
premierguitar.com
OPENING NOTES
Josh Rand
November 26, 2012
Alcatraz
Milan, Italy
Photo by Silvia Paveri
Stone Sour guitarist Josh Rand

serves up some metal to fans in
Milan, Italy, while touring behind
the bands recently released House of
Gold & Bones Part 1. Rands Ibanez
SA was made in the companys
L.A. Custom Shop and features a
mahogany body, ebony fretboard,
and a 3-piece maple-and-jatoba
neck. Its EMG 81 (neck) and 85
(bridge) pickups are controlled by a
3-way selector and a master volume.
premierguitar.com
TRUE BLUE.
MS-100BT MulTiSToMp guiTar pedal wiTh BlueTooTh.

Zooms MS-100BT is the first guitar pedal to truly incorporate Bluetooth
technology, with no cables needed to connect your iOS device.
In addition to the pedals 100 preloaded stompbox effects and amp
models, of which up to six can be used at a time, the MS-100BT allows
you to use Zooms StompShare iOS app (available for free in Apples
App Store) to browse, preview, purchase and download additional effects
instantaneously via Bluetooth from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.
2012 Zoom. Apple, iPad mini, App Store and Bluetooth are registered trademarks of their respective owners.
letters
Your Feedback
Berlin Walls
My First Amp
Greetings from up North,

After seeing my amp in your Trash or Treasure column in the
September 2012 issue, I wanted to share my amp story with
you. I bought my first guitar after being inspired by a Mike
McCready cover story in Guitar Player in 94. I worked at a
gambling riverboat casino with two friends who were also fellow
art students and guitarists. We ran a photo lab taking photos of
the passengers who boarded the boat. These guys convinced me
to go for it and get a guitar. I bought a Fender Standard Strat in
sunburst at Rondinelli Music Audio here in Dubuque. Another
art student who was older than us had a daily gig playing acoustic guitar on the riverboat. When he boarded the boat the next
day, I asked if he knew of anyone that had a used amp, since I
just got my Strat yesterday. He said he had an amp in his basement that he gigged with years ago that he no longer used and
said he would bring it by. The next day he brought the Music
Man 112RD with him and I asked him what he wanted for it.
Fifty bucks, he said. I said, Cool.
I always thought I had a Fender tube amp in all but a name
but was bummed to read in the column that Leo had nothing
to do with the amps. Oh well, still sounds great! Thats my amp
story and Im sticking to it! Im a new subscriber to your magazine and its a joy to get something other than bills in the mail.
Keep up the great work!
Michael Pankow, Dubuque, Iowa
So, everybodys happy but Jeff

Berlin? Im referring of course to
Jeff s outright dismissal of rock
schools, rock camps and rock
lessons [Interview: HBCs Scott
Henderson and Jeff Berlin,
February 2013].
Maybe Im taking this the
wrong way because I just
dropped a bundle to attend a
guitar/songwriting camp this
summer. Or maybe its because Im a retired high school
teacher. Or just maybe, its
because throughout my playing career Ive managed to
learn from a variety of different
sources. Thats right, Jeff. Ive
learned from DVDs, personal
tuition, CDs, books, magazines,
workshops, and seminars. Have
these made me a better player?
Probably. The point is, Ive allowed myself to take advantage
of many different opportunities
to improve. There is not one
right way to learn.
If ones motivation to learn
is genuine, then one can learn
from anything, anytime, anywhere. Maybe even at an HBC
show. Unless, of course, one was
entertained.
Ross DeAeth,
Lexington, Kentucky
Big Up to Big Jim
Dear Shawn and Staff,

Thank you so much and big ups
for the article in the February issue on Big Jim Sullivan after his
passing [Forgotten Heroes].
He was clearly one of the most
underrated guitarists of out
time, although he was truly a
guitar players guitar player.
I hung on every 30-second
bit that he did weekly on the
Tom Jones show. Imagine a very
impressionable, young 15-yearold guitar player watching Big
Jim and Tom tear up Guitar
Man. He made such a huge
impression on me with his

smooth style and class that I
believe he was largely responsible for me sticking with it and
following my dream. He was
arguably more of an inspiration
to me than either The Beatles or
The Stones.
Excellent choice of subject
material and great journalism by
Corbin Reiff.
Love the mag.
All the best,
Johnny Mau, San Jose, California
A Case For Bass
I just read some complaints in

your feedback section in the
February 2013 issue. A couple
of people complained about the
prior issue having too much
info on bass guitars. I play bass
guitar, electric guitar, acoustic
guitar, and even piano so I love
reading about all of it. Please
dont stop the bass articles.
Theres enough room in the
magazine for all of it.
Kathleen Lamb, via email
Uphill Both Ways
In regards to John Bohlingers

article on Shitegeist [Last Call,
December 2012] I cant agree
more. However, when I was
a boy, we had to save up that
dollar to buy a Beatles 45, or
the 3 to 5 bucks for the LP, then
get a ride to the music store and
try to decide which record you
were going home with. Not like
today where you just hit the
Buy it now button and instantly download your purchase.
Its just a symptom of the times
I suppose. Keep up the great
work, you guys are the best.
David Judd, El Cajon, California
Keep those
comments coming!
Please send your suggestions,

gripes, comments, and
good words directly to
info@premierguitar.com.
premierguitar.com
1971
MY PASSION FOR MUSIC CONTINUES

TO DRIVE MY RELENTLESS QUEST FOR GREAT TONE. - PATRICK QUILTER
See the latest Quilter amp designs at quilterlabs.com
2012
NEWS
News Bits
INDUSTRY
DAngelico Commissions
Premier Builders Guild for
U.S. Production
Pittsburgh, PA Recently relaunched
DAngelico will begin producing masterbuilt
U.S.-made instruments through the Premier
Builders Guild. The reissues will be built in
Arroyo Grande, California, by Gene Baker and
former Fender Custom Shop Senior Master Builder

Art Esparza. The line launched at NAMM 2013
with their first offering, a 1943 DAngelico Excel.
premierbuildersguild.com
FMIC Suspends Hamer

Guitar Production
Scottsdale, AZ Fender Musical Instruments
Corp/KMCMusicorp announced plans to
2013 DAngelico EXL-1
suspend the production of Hamer

instruments in January 2013. The company said in a statement that the move
would allow them to focus efforts on
other brands in the FMIC portfolio.
FMIC plans to continue support and
warranty service for Hamer instruments,
and says that, should the market dictate the need for Hamer instruments, it
will be considered.
OBITUARY
Ministrys Mike Scaccia

Dies at Age 47
Create intimate to enormous room sounds without overcrowding your

pedalboard. The SB2 Dimension Reverb packs the power of a rack system into a
super-compact, cast aluminum stompbox with 12 brilliantly engineered reverb
effects including Room, Spring, Plate, and Echo. It also features 2 user presets,
extended tweakability, and external expression, Hot Hand, or MIDI control
capabilities. Get roomy.
Compatible with
SOURCEAUDIO.NET
MARCH 2013
2013
26 PREMIERGUITAR MARCH
Fort Worth, TX Mike Scaccia, lead

guitarist for Ministry and Rigor Mortis,
died of a heart attack December 22,
2012, after collapsing onstage during a
Rigor Mortis show. He was 47.
Scaccia founded the thrash group
Rigor Mortis in 1983, and joined
Ministry in 1989, appearing on 1992s
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the
Way to Suck Eggs as well as other albums
including this years Relapse. Rigor Mortis
frontman Bruce Corbitt told the Metal
Injection LiveCast that the band would
not perform again under the same name.
CONTEST
Ernie Ball Launches Play

Crossroads Contest
New York, NY Unsigned musicians
can enter for the chance to perform
live on the main stage at Eric Claptons
Crossroads Guitar Festival at Madison
Square Garden on April 1213, 2013.
premierguitar.com
NEWS
David Bowie Returns With

The Next Day
New York, NY The new album, set for
a March 12, 2013 release, is very diverse
according to producer Tony Visconti. He
told The Hollywood Reporter, Its very
diverse. Some songs are up-tempo and
driving and some are completely far out.
Guitarist Earl Slick was in the studio for
the recording, though how much guitar

work made the final product remains to
be seen. I havent heard the finished thing
yet. He was still finishing and polishing the
lyrics when I left, Slick told The Guardian.
I cant actually figure out the titles Ive
seen. I dont know which ones I actually
played on.
davidbowie.com
Guitarists must complete a short profile

and upload an MP3 of their playing to
the Play Crossroads website. In addition
to the performance opportunity, the
winner will receive an Ernie Ball string
package and endorsement and an Ernie
Ball Music Man guitar endorsement.
playcrossroads.com
HONORED
Kennedy Center Honors

Led Zeppelin, Buddy Guy
Washington, D.C. The surviving members of Led Zeppelin were
honored at a White House ceremony
on December 2, 2012, along with
Buddy Guy, David Letterman, Dustin
Hoffman, and ballerina Natalia
Makarova. Tracy Chapman and Bonnie
Raitt led a tribute to Guy, while Hearts
Nancy and Ann Wilson sang Stairway
to Heaven with Jason Bonham on
drums. Lenny Kravitz also paid tribute with a rendition of Whole Lotta
Love. The program aired on December
26, 2012.
kennedy-center.org
MUSIC
Guitarist Rob Caggiano

Leaves Anthrax
Los Angeles, CA Anthrax lead guitarist Rob Caggiano has parted ways with
the band after 12 years. In a statement,
Caggiano explained that his focus will shift
to producing records, but added that he
does intend to get back on the road eventually. Anthrax tapped Shadows Fall guitarist Jon Donais for their upcoming Metal
Alliance Tour with Exodus, Municipal
Waste, High on Fire, and Holy Grail.
anthrax.com
twitter.com/robcaggiano
premierguitar.com
Pedals-Intro-HalfPage-PG.indd 1
PREMIERGUITAR MARCH
2013 27
1/7/13 12:45 PM
staff picks
Hocus Pocus
This month were in the magical makeover mood, whether grounded in reality or not (theres a little bit of both here). PG staff along with
our Reader of the Month Alex Cora and Guns N Roses guitarist Richard Fortus conjure up their dream guitars.
Alex Cora
Andy Ellis
Shawn Hammond
Reader of the Month

What are you listening to?
Genesis Revisited 2 by Steve
Hackett. I cant believe he
went back and did all my
old favorites with modern gearsome parts
sound better than the originals!
Youve just been granted a dream guitar
makeover from the guitar gods. Whatll
it be? The Crystar: a crystal, crescentmoon guitar that amplifies itself by tuning
into peoples brain frequencies. Its played
through telepathy, adding its own effects/
tone. A sphere of light green aura surrounds
the player as sparkles of gold dance around
its majestic shape.
Senior Editor
George Marinelli, Believe.
The new album by Bonnie
Raitts longtime lead guitarist
is packed with great tones and superb songs.
makeover from the guitar gods. Whatll it
be? Id ask to have a TV Jones MagnaTron
installed in the neck position of my
beloved ol G&L ASAT. Toss in a Hipshot
B-Benderno routing requiredand Id be
in honky-tonk heaven.
Editor in Chief
Dick Dale and His DelTones, Surfers Choice. Tauttoned twang, attitude for
miles, riffs that just wont quit, and glorious,
glorious reverb!
it be? See p. 66.
Nick Ireland
Chris Kies
Rich Osweiler
Marketing Manager
What are you listening
to? The Boys are Back by
Dropkick Murphys. This
romper had me stomping
my foot so hard at my desk, Im pretty sure
I hyperextended my knee.
it be? Id love to clean up the wiring
on my Squier Affinity Series Tele (from
my last mod attempt), install a Fishman
Powerbridge with a piezo pickup, new frets,
new nut, and have the body refinished in
the colors of Irelands flag. Signature model!
Associate Editor
What are you listening
to? Two new releases from
old favoritesDropkick
Murphys boisterous,
whiskey-swilling Signed and Sealed in Blood
and Clutchs Earth Rocker, featuring some
of the bands heaviest material since Clutch
and Pure Rock Fury.
it be? Id upgrade the pickups in my current rigeither some Duncan Dimebuckers
for my Jackson Dinky Pro or a Fralin P-90
Alnico neck model for my Squier Vintage
Modified Telecaster Special.
Associate Editor
Darlings, Perfect Trip. With
whiffs of Sonic Youth, Joy
Division, and Pavement,
the ultra-sludgy, lo-fi garage rock of this
second full-length effort is full of fun,
catchy jams and shenanigans.
it be? My first electric, a 75 strat-style
Epiphone that first belonged to my dad, is
all original. But I would happily allow
the guitar gods to replace its lifeless
humbuckers with a set of Seymour
Duncan SH-55s.
Richard Fortus
Charles Saufley
Jason Shadrick
Guitarist, Guns N Roses

Ariel Pink, Atlas Sound,
the last ZZ Top EP, Fiona
Apples Idler Wheel, Grizzly
Bear, Knife Party, Jim Jones Revue, xx,
new Crazy Horse, Imagine Dragons, Tame
Impala, Frank Ocean, Japandroids, Yuck, etc.
it be? James Trussart is making me a strattype with a reverse-angle bridge pickup, a
left-handed neck, steel top, and ash body.
The Arcane pickups are based on a 60 slab
board. I shunned Strats for years and have
recently fallen in love all over again.
Gear Editor
The new split 7" from Kurt
Vile and Meg Baird, Sic
Alps by Sic Alps, and demos
from the forthcoming Feral Ohms LP.
it be? Definitely a magical little dude
that changes the strings on my 12-strings.
Other than than, just a nice new neck
with a rosewood fretboard for my old
Squier Telecaster.
Associate Editor
Jonathan Kreisberg, One.
Kreisberg goes it alone and
places the focus squarely on
the guitar. With some acoustic textures and
subtle effects, he creates what could possibly
be Virtuoso for a new generation.
makeover from the guitar gods. Whatll it
be? I would take my old Mexi-Tele and swap
the current pickups out for some Lollars.
Then I would go all Brent Mason and add
a middle pickup with a blend control.
premierguitar.com
Media Reviews
ALBUM
Robben
Ford
Bringing It Back Home
Mascot Label Group
Over the course of his 40-plus year career,

Robben Ford has survived within a niche
that is just jazzy enough for the beboppers
and yet still contains enough soulful string
bending for the hardcore blues hounds.
With Bringing it All Back Home, he eschews his penchant for jazz-bop and instead presents a collection of blues and R&B tunes that focuses on the emotional content rather
than guitar pyrotechnics. Even though he is quite a prolific composer, Ford decided
to dig deep into the history of American music for the source material with only two
originals on the album. Everything from Charlie Patton and Allen Toussaint to Big Joe
Williams and Bob Dylan are covered here and masterfully interpreted by a group of
A-list musicians that includes organist Larry Goldings and drummer Harvey Mason.
Relying entirely on the neck pickup of his 1963 Epiphone Riviera, Fords tone
throughout the album is the unifying thread here. It also provides a complete argument for the musical clich that its all in your hands. During his solo on Birds
Nest Bound, you hear everything from crystal clear rhythm stabs la Cropper to
just a hint of breakup when he digs into some mean double-stops. Each track has the
looseness of a jam session but refrains from the extended over-soloingonly the instrumental On That Morning extends over six minutes. Ford breaks out some Wes-style
octaves for the head while Goldings lays down some of the most tasteful B-3 fills since
Jimmy Smiths Christmas album. With this album, Ford has found the right mix of
vibe, tone, and materialnot an easy task. Jason Shadrick
Must-hear track: Trick Bag
EDITORS NOTE:
We were not permitted to print our review of Jimi Hendrixs
People, Hell & Angels by press time. However, you can read the
review on premierguitar.com on February 15, or check it out in
our April 2013 print edition.
ALBUM
Boz
Scaggs
Memphis
429 Records
Boz Scaggs is
musically complicated. For Memphis, he
brought on producer Steve Jordan (John
Mayer) who also plays drums on the album,
and the rest of the studio band is also starstudded: Ray Parker Jr. (guitar), Willie
Weeks (bass), Lester Snell (string arrangements), and Spooner Oldham (keys).
They do a lot of genre-jumping together,

opening with a few soft jazz/R&B soul
grooves, until taking a turn into a cover
of Willie DeVilles Mixed Up Shook Up
Girl, where Scaggs channels Aaron Neville
in a croon that waltzes with an island-reggae riff and primitive percussion.
Itd be unfair to dismiss this as an
album of mostly covers, as the beautiful re-phrasing and interpreting travels
across the Delta and further, hitting a
Rainy Night in Georgia, before kicking out some Southern roots rock with
a ZZ Top-locomotive pace and vibrato
in Cadillac Walk, and then the blues
classic Corrina, Corrina is morphed into

a slowed-down, part-Willie Nelson, partMuddy Waters ballad. The guitar highlight
is Keb Mos slide resonator playing on
the reverb-soaked Dry Spell, his soloing
complemented by the amplified harp of
Charlie Musselwhite.
This Kentucky-Fried Al Green smorgasbord is a strange phenomenon, and likely
to throw some listeners off. Scaggs chose to
record at Royal Studios for a reason though,
and this album carries that weightat
times the familiarity is uncannybut when
Scaggs own musical voice shines, he brings
something to this place that weve never
heard before. Tessa Jeffers
Must-hear tracks: Mixed Up Shook Up
Girl, Dry Spell
ALBUM
Ivan & Alyosha

All the Times We Had
Missing Piece/Dualtone Music Group
Probably best
known for hometown hero Jimi
Hendrix and the
birthplace of a
particular music
movement that got
started in the 80s, music-rich Seattle has
long been churning out artists in the indie
vein. The Emerald City has also been home
to a vibrant folk-rock scene, further evidenced by the release of the first full-length
effort from Ivan & Alyosha, All the Times
We Had.
Formed in 2007 by core members Tim
Wilson and Ryan Carbary, and later joined
by Tim Kim and Pete Wilson, Ivan &
Alyosha has quickly built up both acclaim
and a loyal fan base by delivering their
happy ballads about love and life through
their shows and EP releases.
Floating above the hook-infused,
sweet guitar sounds throughout are Tim
Wilsons vocalsa haunting hybrid of
George Harrison and Roy Orbison.
Speaking of Harrison, theres a lot of very
inviting Beatles-esque feel here. And while
I also found myself reminiscing about
favorite melodies and harmonies from the
likes of Trip Shakespeare and Big Star,
what Ivan & Alyosha have going on is all
their own.
premierguitar.com
From the gorgeously bittersweet title

track (with guest vocalist Aimee Mann) to
the expansive sunniness of On My Way,
All the Times We Had is quite a killer collection of tunes. Rich Osweiler
Must-hear track: All the Times We Had
DVD
Stray Cats
Live at Montreux 1981
Eagle Rock Entertainment
Brian Setzers albums

over the last couple
of decades have been
so progressively ambitious that some might
look back on the early
Stray Cats days as
almost quaintlike he, bassist Lee Rocker,
and drummer Slim Jim Phantom almost
lucked out with a handful of catchy songs
when there happened to be a rockabilly
revival across the Atlantic.
But the 15 tracks on the new Stray
Cats DVD Live at Montreux 1981 will
smack any such notions right out of your
pompadour. Filmed six months after their
first album debuted, its a thumping,
sweat-soaked testament to just how hungry, relentless, and dedicated they were.
Setzer, just 22, looks like a London street
punk with his platinum hair, black leather, and sneering stage presence, but armed
with his famed 1959 Gretsch 6120 and
a blonde Fender Bassman head driving a
Vox AC30 cabinet, he howls and prowls
like a seasoned showman and holds the
elbow-to-elbow crowd enthralled for 70
minutes with the same raw rave-up riffs
and jazzy chords that are the core of his
style today. Rocker, then 19, is incredible toomanhandling his upright like
a vet with his taped-up knuckleswhile
Phantom, 20, stands atop his kit and
never misses a beat (the former also
croons shockingly well on his own blues
number Drink That Bottle Down).
This long-overdue release captures budding prodigies of the rarest sortthose who
dont let the drive for instrument mastery
overshadow energy, chemistry, and genuine
rock n roll swagger. A must for any serious
Setzer fan. Shawn Hammond
Must-watch tracks: Ubangi Stomp,
Storm the Embassy
premierguitar.com
Gigging & recording > Tone tips
Simplify Your Life: Portable Power Tools

for the Modern Guitarist BY Peter Thorn
emember the 80s? Im talking about

crazy parties and limos, huge stadium
tours, refrigerator racks, and 100-watt stacks.
Rock n roll excess! But its 2013 now, and
though gigs today require that you cover the
same ground guitarists did back then, theres
a catch. Budgets are smaller than they used
to be, and you are expected to do more
sometimes much morefor (and with) less.
Fortunately, we guitarists have some amazing
tools available these days to help us get killer
guitar tones, without having to haul excessive amounts of gear to sessions and gigs. In
this months column, Im going to talk about
some favorite musical tools that make my life
a bit easier. Each one of these pieces of gear
packs a huge range of tone and features into
a compact package, ultimately allowing a
guitarist to cover more ground with less.
Why Simplify?
I recently did some gigs with a well-known
pop singer, and their camp had gotten used
to touring with a very small crew consisting
of just a front-of-house engineer, monitor
engineer, and one tech. The tech was basically
focused on the artistleaving the rest of the
5-piece band to fend for themselvesand
thats how theyd always done it. We were playing some fairly big venues, including the first
gig of the tour in an arena for about 6,000
people. Some of you might be wondering why
there werent more techs at that level. In my
experience, once an artist gets used to touring
a particular way, they just dont want to spend
the money on more crewno matter how
successful they become. Younger musicians
seem to be okay with doing more work for less
dough, and most artists dont want to pay to
ship huge rigs overseas. Moral of the story: In
order to compete, its important for touring
sidemen to learn to be mostly self-sufficient.
Modeling Guitars
Lets say you have a gig where you need a ton
of different sounds at your fingertips. How
do you cover nylon-string sounds, 6- and
12-string acoustic sounds, Strat, Tele, and
humbucker tones in various tuningsand
maybe even a sitar partwithout hauling a
bunch of guitars to the gig? Go and check out
a guitar that uses modeling technology. The
VG Stratocaster from Fender and Roland is
a great choice because it will do everything a
standard Strat will do, as well as provide

all the aforementioned sounds, and
more. Its an incredible tool that beats
lugging 10 guitars around, and Ive used
mine for various gigs and sessions. The
Variax series of guitars from Line 6 is
another option worth checking out.
Dual Pedals
I have a few pedalboards, and my smallest one is no slouch. I use it for sessions
and gigs where portability is a must, so
I chose pedals that would provide maximum tone and versatility. There are a
number of manufacturers producing pedals
that do more than one thingwhich I call
dual pedalsand they usually have two
footswitches, allowing a player to access the
different effects individually. I keep four of
these pedals on my little, yet extremely powerful, pedalboard: a Strymon Flint for reverb
and tremolo, a Suhr Koko Boost for clean and
mid boost, a JHS Sweet Tea for distortion,
a TS-808-style overdrive, and a Red Witch
Medusa for chorus and tremolo.
Amp Modelers
Amp modeling is nothing new, but its
come so far in recent times. With advancements such as profiling (the technology
used for the Kemper Profiling Amplifier)
and tone matching (used for the Fractal
Audio Axe-Fx II), guitarists can now
essentially duplicate the tone of any amp,
speaker, or mic chain, and then store it as a
preset to carry it wherever they go.
The Kemper Profiling Amplifier is a curious- and modern-looking device thats about
the size of a lunchbox, while the Axe-Fx II
is a more traditional 2-rackspace unit. The
Kemper has a basic selection of effects, but its
forte is in profiling and storing the tones of
amps and cabs with uncanny detail and realism. The Axe-Fx II has a full complement of
effects that can be routed in any conceivable
fashion, and with the amp and cabinet modeling enabled, you can replace an entire amp
and effects rig. By disabling the amp and cabinet modeling, the Axe-Fx II also functions
nicely as a full-featured effects processor that
can be used with traditional guitar amps.
Be it for direct recording or playing live,
there are some die-hards that still scoff at the
idea of using units like these. But modeling
Compact yet loaded with effects, amp modeling,

built-in speakers and much more, the eBand JS-10
from Roland is an ultra-portable practice station.
has really gotten to the point where even tubeamp purists have to stand up and take notice.
Globe-trotting guitarist Dweezil Zappa has
totally replaced his amp rig and two refrigerator-sized racks with a pair of Axe-Fx IIs, saving
untold thousands in shipping costs. Likewise,
I left my traditional rigs at home for a couple
of European tours with Melissa Etheridge, and
used the Axe-Fx by running it direct to the PA.
A Portable Practice Solution
Plugging into an amp to practice isnt always
practical in, say, a cramped dressing room
or the back lounge of a bus. The best solution Ive found (and currently my favorite
piece of gear) is the Roland eBand JS-10.
With built-in speakers, its a totally selfcontained audio player that also boasts amp
modeling and effects. It has 350 pre-loaded
audio loops and drum grooves for you to
jam along with, but you can easily add your
own audio files for playback, too. Ive been
running my laptop into it with great results.
Its just a killer, portable, simple all-in-one
practice solution, and it sounds fantastic.
Now more than ever, modern guitarists
have incredible variety of powerful and portable tools for the studio, stage, and practice
room to choose from. I said it last month
and Ill say it again: Its never been a better
time to be a guitarist!
peter thorn
is an L.A.-based guitarist who has toured

and recorded with Chris Cornell, Melissa
Etheridge, Daniel Powter, and others. His solo
album, Guitar Nerd, is now available on iTunes
and through CDbaby.com. Read more about
his career and music at peterthorn.com.
premierguitar.com
Gigging & recording > on Bass
Bass Pedals: Basic to Playhouse BY Victor Brodn
student of mine recently asked me to

explain bass pedals, from the basics on up.
Its no secret that almost every guitarist uses
pedals as part of their artistic pallet of sonic
colors and textures, and for a guitarist to show
up at a gig without pedals is almost unfathomable. Bassists, on the other hand, are usually
expected to bring only a clean, strong foundation, without any real color beyond the sound
of their fingers, bass, and amplifier. Ive gone
through stages as a player where I used pedals
for color only when absolutely necessary, and
Ive also gone through stages when the sounds
I heard in my head required some effect for the
type of gigs I was doing at the time.
Many pedal manufacturers use true bypass
as a major selling point, but in my opinion,
the richer harmonics of the sub lows of my
signal never stay completely unaffected when
my pedals are in standby mode. And for me,
this is the only major drawback of using pedals. While power buffers and quality patch
cables can help minimize this problem, I
play bass, not guitar (which exists more in
the midrange and is not quite as sensitive to
this issue), so I might opt for no pedals at all
to keep a pristine tonal path. In fact, the few
times my pedalboard has gone down midshow while out on tour, the FOH engineer
confirmed that he got a richer bottom-end
when the cable was plugged straight into the
amplifier. With all that said, my current local
gigs and main touring gig require that I use
pedals. And for me, there are necessary pedals, less necessary pedals, and candy pedals
(the ridiculously fun ones that will get you
fired from certain gigs if used too liberally).
The Basic Needs: Preamp/DI,
Compressor, and Tuner
I believe a preamp/DI pedal is an absolute
necessity. Not only will you be familiar with
the DI at the gig since its your DI, you also
have the opportunity to warm up the sound
and dial in some overdrive. (Personally, I
use this type of pedal as an amp simulator,
and never really dial up more of the heavily
distorted tones its capable of.)
The basic pedalboard for bassists should
also house a compressor pedal, since they
really help make most basses punchier and
more even. Because I play 5-string basses
almost exclusively, having a compressor
pedal helps that 5th string blend in better
with the other fourboth in frequency and
tone. And finally, a tuner should certainly
LEFT: Providing a big, warm, well-compressed tone with an option for extra distortion, this basic
pedalboard setup covers the needs for 90 percent of my work. RIGHT: For solo-bass performances and funk gigs, Ill bring a pair of envelope filters, along with synth-bass, chorus, and octave pedals to add to the necessities like the preamp/DI and compressor pedals from my basic pedalboard.
be part of the basic pedalboard, but because

of the tone-deterioration possibility mentioned earlier, I run a parallel line to it
instead of running my sound through it.
The Next Step: Secondary
Distortion and Octave Pedals
In addition to a tube-warmth pedal that
stays on my pedalboard permanently
(which I only use for amplifier-type coloration), I use a separate pedal for a heavier
distortion sound that really pops. I prefer
a very present bite in the high end, though
Ive noticed that a lot of other bassists try to
avoid this in their distortion settings. This
tone is equally usable for heavy metal and
Larry Graham-type lead-funk tones, and
thats why it is almost a necessity for me.
When it comes to octave pedals for bass,
their use can be heard on many classic records,
and they can really make a dramatic statement. During my first years as a professional
bassist, I was a 4-string player exclusively, and
using an octave pedal enabled me to play the
occasional low C or D when needed, and
more importantly, allowed me to cover basic
synth-like pop tones with a traditional 4-string
instrument. While it can be a cool and fun
effect for solos, an octave pedal can also be
used to propel an entire song and provide you
an additional voice as a playergiving you
the opportunity for a greater variety of gigs.
The Fun Ones: Envelope
Filters, Chorus, Reverb, and
Synth-Bass Pedals
I have to start this section with a disclaimer: If
you are a funk player exclusively, these pedals
might actually belong in the section for basic
pedals. Since I primarily play pop, rock, soul,
and modern country, these types of pedals are
pure, playhouse candy for me. An auto wah/
envelope filter is a pedal that is as effective
for bass as a traditional wah is for guitar. It

can make a solo or other part really sound
like its own thing by making a stronger sonic
imprint and stronger artistic statement. I
actually have two different envelope filters on
my pedalboard, so Im able to better replicate
different, classic funk tones. And for stepping
even deeper into funk land, I also employ a
bass-synth pedal for an assortment of wacky
settings for really out-there sounds, or more
traditional, moog-esque synth tones. But I
have to watch out: This pedal can absolutely
blow up a PA if used recklessly.
When playing solo piecesand ballads in
some casesa good chorus pedal will come
in handy by providing higher notes with a
gorgeous voice. Using chorus in a band setting also totally works (Duff McKagan on the
Appetite for Destruction album and Mark King
with the band Level 42 are great examples),
but you have to use diligence since its possible
to make the whole band sound slightly out
of tune. And when it comes to reverb pedals,
they too can be tremendously useful for basssolo pieces. I like to really indulge in reverb
when Im performing a solo piece in order
to emulate the acoustics of playing in an old
cathedral. It inspires me to play fewer notes
and helps me use a greater dynamic range.
Choices in pedals are such an individual
thing, and my pedalboard is a very personal
setup. So if you are just beginning your adventure in bass-pedal exploration, the best starting
point is to prioritize from basic to fun based
on whats ideal for you and your style.
Victor brodn
Nashville bassist and producer Victor

Brodn has toured and recorded with more
than 25 major-label artists, including LeAnn
Rimes, Richard Marx, Casting Crowns,
and Randy Houser. His credits also include
Grammy-winning albums and numerous
television specials on CMT and GAC, as well as performances on The Tonight Show and The Ellen DeGeneres
Show. You can reach him at vbroden@yahoo.com.
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Gigging & recording > guitar tracks
Addressing Home-Studio Hums BY Mitch gallagher
ve received a flurry of questions from

readers lately, so for this months column,
I thought Id share my responses to a handful of them in hopes that we can all learn
together!
Hi Mitch,
Im a Premier Guitar subscriber and enjoy
your columns. In a past column about
problem sources of noise [Silence is
Golden, November 2011], you mentioned
the following as a potential culprit:
You! Weve all experienced how the
noise a guitar produces drops dramatically as soon as you firmly make contact with the strings. This is because
the strings are grounded to the amplifier. Most players assume that when
you touch the strings, you ground the
guitar. But this is backwardyour
body functions as an antenna, picking
up noise. When you touch the strings
(assuming the strings are grounded
internally), the noise from your body
is dumped to ground.
This issue just recently became more severe

than it had been in only one location in my
house. I usually keep an amp in my bedroom
and various other amps in the rec room,
but only the bedroom has this issueso
Im guessing there is more RFI in the area.
To help remedy the situation, I bought an
Electro-Harmonix Hum Debugger, which
works pretty well, but I was wondering if you
had any other tips for one to keep their body
from being such an effective antenna.
Regards,
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
There isnt much you can do about your
biological antenna. The usual solution is the
string ground in the guitar, but the Hum
Debugger and other noise reduction systems
such as the Rocktron Hush will work well in
many situations. The only other solution I can
think of is to build a Faraday cage around
your bedroombasically a huge, grounded
shield that encompasses the entire room not
very practical for most studios!
Certain locations may indeed have more
airborne noise than others, as youve found
with your bedroom versus your rec room.
Sometimes, simply turning your amp or
guitaror yourselfin a different direction

can also help reduce noise.
Hi Mitch,
In my modest home studio, I have an
Mbox 2 interface, which is connected via
USB to a Dell laptop running Pro Tools
LE. I have pretty good luck micing guitar
cabinets and acoustic guitars, microphones
on vocals are okay, and my drums are all
plug-ins. The trouble I have is getting a
direct signal from a bass rig even though
the setup is relatively simple: bass guitar to
preamp, and XLR output to the Mbox. I
hear a high-pitched buzzing with irregular
pops and snaps, so my current conclusion is
that Im getting hard-drive interference.
I purchased a Radial JPC for running a
PC sound-card output into a mixer, hoping
that it would also remove the hard-drive
noise. When engaging the ground lift on
the JPC, there is a noticeable improvement,
but the noise is still there.
Im going to try moving some of the
equipment aroundincluding getting
the PC farther from the Mboxwith the
thought being it could be a proximity
issue. Another idea (although extreme) is to
replace the current, standard hard drive with
a solid-state drive that has no moving parts.
Regards,
Charles
Hi Charles,
Based on your email, if I had to guess, I suspect that your bass is picking up noise from
somewhere. What I would do is work through
the problem using the process of elimination,
by substituting new cables and pieces of gear
to find the source. From your description, the
problem arises when the bass is plugged in
not when youre using microphonesso that
should be your starting point.
If you can, try a different bass. Also, try
moving the bass away from the computer since
pickups will sometimes pick up noise from
computer monitors and other gear (such as
hard drives). It may help to move the Mbox
farther from the computer, but I suspect the
real culprit is your bass or the cable you use to
connect it to the system.
It could be that you have a ground loop
with your bass rig, since engaging the ground
lift on the Radial DI reduces the noise. Id also
try running your laptop on battery power
rather than plugging it into see if that helps.
Hi Mitch,
Im currently trying to put together a simple
bedroom studio setup, and as a music student, my main use of this rig will be for
arrangements. What I have in mind so far
is an M-Audio Fast Track C400 (which
comes bundled with Pro Tools SE software)
to record my bass and guitar, and an Avid
KeyStudio for a MIDI controller.
I dont know what to get for speakers
or headphones. And I havent considered
a microphone yet, since my priority is to
record the guitar and bass. I just want to be
able to record whatever idea I have and get
decent sound quality. I was told that Logic
works the best for arrangers, but since Im a
PC user, I decided that Pro Tools SE would
be good enough. Ive checked my computer
specs and it meets all the requirements for
the software.
Do you have any recommendations, or
am I at least on the right track?
Thank you!
Derek
Hello Derek,
Yes, I think you are on a good track and Pro
Tools SE will be fine to get you started. As
you progress, you might also look at Cakewalk
SONAR or Steinberg Cubase, which have a
lot of nice virtual instruments and MIDI/
scoring features that can help with arranging
and composing.
I would choose a good all-around microphone. A Shure SM57 dynamic microphone
works well for guitar and bass. And when
its time to record acoustic instruments or
vocals, a condenser microphone would be a
good investment.
And for speakers, a good set of powered
studio monitors, such as those from M-Audio,
Alesis, Samson, Focal, Mackie, KRK, or the
many other manufacturers, would pair nicely
with the C400.
Thats it for this time, faithful readers. If
you have questions, send them via my website. Who knows, you may find your question answered in an upcoming column!
Mitch Gallaghers latest book is
Guitar Tone: Pursuing the Ultimate Guitar

Sound. He is the former Editor in Chief of
EQ magazine. In addition to being a writer,
he is a freelance recording engineer/producer/mastering engineer, teaches music
business and audio recording at Indiana
University/Purdue University, and is Sweetwaters Editorial
Director. www.mitchgallagher.com
premierguitar.com
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tech tips > State of the stomp
What Does a Pedal Sound Like? BY Pete Celi
nlike a tree falling in the woods, a

pedal wont make a sound unless an
amplifier is there to amplify it. (If no one
is there to hear the amplifier, thats a different philosophical discussion entirely.) This
may seem a bit obvious, but when we talk
of a pedals tone we need to discuss it in
the context of a particular rig. This is particularly relevant when discussing overdrive,
distortion, and fuzz pedals.
In a typical rig, the signal goes from guitar
to pedals to amplifier. As the last item in the
chain, the amplifier has a great deal of say in
the matter of tone. Your amp acts as a mastering suite to your pedals, complete with EQ
and dynamics, and the results can vary greatlynot only from amp to amp, but within a
single amp, depending on the control settings.
When you run your guitar through a dirt
pedal, harmonics are generated as the signal
gets distorted. Higher gain or more distortion results in more harmonics. With more
harmonics, the tone of your amplifier becomes
more dominant. To make some sense of this,
lets look at playing an A power chord with no
dirt. After the initial strum, the strings natural
vibration quickly decays to a few harmonics
that are much quieter than the fundamental
frequencies, which would be 110 Hz and 165
Hz. There would be no appreciable harmonic
content above 1 kHz in your clean power
chord, so your amplifiers response at 2 kHz
doesnt matter. That same power chord, after
running through a fuzz box, will contain a
host of appreciable harmonics that extend
well beyond 2 kHz, making your amplifiers
response at 2 kHz very important.
Overdrive pedals have lower gain than
fuzz pedalshence fewer harmonicsbut
many still have distinctive EQ properties.
The low frequencies are reduced before
clipping for a tighter low end, and the
high frequencies are reduced after the clipping to create a smoother overdrive. This
creates a characteristic mid hump, which
is really a high and low trough. Not coincidentally, many Fender blackface amps have
a scooped clean tone, lacking in strong
mids, but full of strong lows and sparkling
highs. This clean response makes for great
chords and rhythm tones, but can be on the
thin side for soulful blues soloing. When an
overdrive with the mid hump is added for
soloing, its a match made in blues heaven.
This same overdrive in front of a mid-heavy
amp may be less satisfying.
Distorting a guitar
signal generates
more harmonics.
With more harmonics, your amplifiers inherent tone
becomes more
dominant.
Similarly, fuzz pedals that have an

extended high- and low-frequency response
were originally paired up with Marshall
amps that had a famously strong midrange.
Place this same fuzz pedal in front of the
bright channel of a Fender blackface amp
and it might sound thin or buzzy. So when
you talk about the tone of your pedal,
youre also talking about your amplifiers
tonestack frequency response, output transformer, speaker, feedback topology, and
more. Early dirt pedal designs were made
to purposely complement the tonal characteristics of a particular amp. While many
newer dirt pedals allow for a higher degree
of tone sculpting, they are still subject to
variation based on the amplifier they are
running into.
So how do you decide what dirt pedal

is right for your amp? Generally, the right
pedal will have a strong frequency response
in areas that your amp is lacking, and vice
versa. Ultimately, this is best determined by
trial and error. Borrow a friends pedal to
see how it sounds in your rig, or get suggestions from people who have the same amp
as you. If you try out a pedal in a store,
try to play through the same amp that you
have. As always, youre the final judge on
tone. Have fun playing in the dirt!
Pete celi
is the DSP Engineer at Strymon.
premierguitar.com
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tech tips > Esoterica electrica
Private Domain: The Sound Ethics Laboratory BY jol dantzig
hen Led Zeppelin appropriated

tunes like Babe Im Gonna Leave
You and Whole Lotta Love, some peopleincluding the original authorscalled
it stealing. True enough, Jake Holmes 1967
composition and recording of Dazed and
Confused predated Zeppelins version by
two years. Although Holmes settled out of
court with Jimmy Page after filing suit, others like Willie Dixonwith the same axe
to grindhave been awarded back royalties
and are now credited on Zep albums.
Plagiarism, whether intentional or not,
has always been part of the music landscape. In fact, the idea of a traditional
folk song is itself a tradition. And verbatim
borrowing has been taken to new heights
with the ease afforded by digital sampling
and manipulationsome of the biggest
songs of the last two decades have employed
the cutting and pasting of previous hits.
The issue is more than just credit due. Its a
financial one that hinges on the interpretation of copyright law. And as sung by Liz
Phair in her song Shitloads of Money,
Its nice to be liked, but its better by far to
get paid.
In the world of mechanics and technology, a system or practical idea can be
protected from unauthorized use by a patent, which is different from a copyright
or trademark. So what happens when
a musical instrument, effects pedal, or
amplifier effectively clones a sound identified with a particular manufacturer? Weve
all seen modeling amps with tongue-in-
Some of the biggest songs

of the last two decades have
employed the cutting and
pasting of previous hits.
cheek setting names that hint or outright
point to their influence and origin. Is it
stealing or merely flattery? Certainly, if a
product used a competitors trade name
to describe a setting, it would be a case of
trademark violation. But what about the
actual sound itself?
This has all come to an even more complex debate with the arrival of new electronics that are able to analyze and mimic
existing equipment on demand. And this
new technology has provided a way for
Todays increasingly sophisticated technology is making it easier and easier to identically duplicate the sound of a particular manufacturers instrument, amp, or effect. Once cloned, who then
really owns the produced sound?
touring acts to consolidate their backlines

in order to shave down shipping costs
and reduce complexity onstage. Players
like Brad Paisley, John Mayer, and Joe
Bonamassa appear onstage with a veritable
guitar shop of amps in order to deliver the
sounds they need for performance. The
setup time alone is a factor, not to mention
the wear and tear on vintage equipment. So
why gig with four or five different amps,
cabinets, and a slew of effects pedals when
it can all be copied into a single box in a
few hours time?
All of this begs a seemingly simple
question: Be it a guitar, amp, or effect, is
it thievery to duplicate a sound? In the
world of fragrance, a similar debate has
raged in European courts for decades.
Perfume giants like Lancme and Gaultier
have sought legal remedies against clone
products with varying results. In the
case of scent, it can be argued that every
individuals olfactory reaction can be different and subjective. On the other hand,
computer analysis of the actual molecules
can be accomplished. Although there has

been little consistency in court outcomes,
this sort of intellectual property litigation
is clearly becoming more frequent in areas
that were previously somewhat immune. It
wouldnt be hard to look at a breakdown of
an amplifiers sonic signature and then compare it to another.
What this means going forward for
instrument builders is anybodys guess. New
technologies open one door and unintended opportunities and consequences shadow
them right over the threshold. Can we
imagine a time when the Les Paul sound
is protected by law? Will SWAT teams with
sound-sniffing technology rush your bar-gig
stage some day? It shouldnt surprise you if
there are attorneys already working on this
right now.
jol dantzig is a noted designer,
builder, and player who co-founded Hamer

Guitars, one of the first boutique guitar
brands, in 1973. Today, as the director of
Dantzig Guitar Design, he continues to
help define the art of custom guitar. To learn
more, visit guitardesigner.com.
premierguitar.com
tech tips > acoustic soundboard
Designing and Ordering a Custom Guitar, Pt. 2 BY Mark Dalton
n my previous column [Designing

and Ordering a Custom Guitar, Pt. 1,
December 2012], we began discussing the
initial steps and process of having a guitar
custom built. We talked about choosing a
dealer or individual builder, determining
the best body shape and size for your needs,
and selecting the size and shape of the neck
that will be most comfortable for you. This
month, lets take a look at the next step in
the process: choosing the woods.
Body Wood Selection

So much has already been written on this
subject that Id barely be able to scratch
the surface even if I had 10 pages to do it.
What Ill do is keep it brief and general in
scope by listing some commonand not
so commonwoods, and provide rough
characterizations of their tonal properties.
Remember, nothing compares to your own
ear as the best device in helping with your
selection. So, get out and play a bunch of
guitars before making your choice!
Indian rosewood provides warm tone with
lots of sustain. The tonal characteristics of
this wood will back vocals very well, but
can lack in note separation and hinder lead
playing. Good-quality Indian rosewood is
readily available and its a very stable wood
over the long haul.
Cocobolo is our favorite, exotic rosewood
these days. It has all of the same properties as
Indian rosewood, but with an added reverb
effect thats similar to Brazilian rosewood.
Brazilian, as many of us know, is in such short
supply now that it doesnt warrant further
description. But if you want Brazilian tone
from a guitar that you can own without having to take a second mortgage on your home,
cocobolo might be a good choice for you.
Honduran rosewood is another good
Brazilian substitute and is extremely dense,
which results in a very glassy and trebleheavy tone. It will produce a lot of volume,
but can sound a bit harsh, especially when
paired with a dense top-wood such as
Appalachian red spruce. Honduran rosewood is also prone to cracking.
Mahogany is less warm, but more woody
than Indian rosewood. Notes die-off faster,
which creates better separation for leads,
and mids and trebles are clearer. While
Honduras is no longer the main country of
origin, mahogany is still readily available.
And though some mahoganies are a little
softer than what we used to use, this just

makes them a bit harder to work with and
wont have much affect on your guitars tone.
Walnut may very well be our favorite
mahogany-style back and side wood. With
tonal properties very similar to mahoganybut with just a bit more darkness to
the tonewalnut is a great in-between
choice if neither rosewood nor mahogany
quite floats your boat.
Koa is certainly hard to beat for sheer
beauty, and there is still a bit of it available
thats very nice. Koas tone is very mahogany-like, with just a touch more sustain in
the treble register.
Prized for its beauty, koa possesses tonal

characteristics similar to mahogany when
used as a back and sides wood, and is
one option to consider when planning your
custom instrument. Photo by Kimberly
Lanier Dalton
Australian/Tasmanian blackwood is pretty

much the same thing as koa, only its not
grown in Hawaii. It looks very similar to
koa, provides virtually the same tone, and is
less expensive.
Top Woods
The soundboard certainly plays a major role
in determining the overall tone of an acoustic guitar, so lets take a look at the variety
of top woods, running from some softer
options to the harder and denser.
Western red cedar is a very responsive tonewood with a broad tonal spectrum. Though
its mostly prized for fingerstyle playing,
Western red cedar will take a light flatpick
very well. The main drawbacks are its softnessmaking it prone to scratching and
denting easilyand its low-volume ceiling.
Redwood has all the volume and response
of cedar, with a bit more insofar as the
volume ceiling. Redwoods dark, red-brown
color is very attractive, but this wood can
be hard to find.
Engelmann spruce is commonly used as

a top wood on guitars built for fingerstyle
and light flatpick playing. Engelmann will
break up tonally if played too hard, but not
as quickly as cedar. Its common drawback
is the occurrence of run out, which causes
a visual light/dark effect, depending on the
direction from which youre looking at the
top. This is mostly a cosmetic issue, however,
caused by the small size of Engelmann trees.
Sitka spruce is probably the most commonly used top wood and is said to have
the best of all tonal worlds. This can also
mean, though, that its a middle-of-the-road
top wood, and may not exactly meet specific
needs. If you strictly play fingerstyle, you
may want to go with one of the aforementioned woods, and if you plan on plowing
away with a heavy flatpick, you may want
to consider a European or Appalachian
spruce. But if youre looking for a versatile
guitar that you can play in many styles and
settings, Sitka may be the ticket.
Alpine/European spruce has Sitkas headroom for hard playing, but also has the
responsiveness of a cedar or redwood. In the
interest of space, Im lumping Alpine and
European together, but most of this type
of spruce weve been using lately is coming from the Italian Alps. Its currently my
favorite top wood, and the only downside is
the price tag.
Appalachian red spruce, commonly
referred to as Adirondack spruce, is the
granddaddy of them all. Before it was
severely logged out during World War II, it
was the tonewood of choice for the iconic,
pioneering guitar builders. The headroom
(aka volume ceiling) on this stuff is off
the charts, but its also quite responsive to
softer playing styles. An expensive option,
the other downside is cosmetics because the
red spruce available today is often wider in
grain and less sheet white in color than
some other high-end top woods.
So weve covered body woods in a whirlwind sort of way this month. Next column,
Ill talk about binding possibilities and head
toward the homestretch of the finish and
setup rooms.
Mark Dalton is a founding part-
ner of Huss & Dalton Guitar Company.

When not building guitars, Mark and his
wife, Kimberly, tend to the draft horses
and mules that inhabit their farm in the
Piedmont region of Virginia.
premierguitar.com
Practice until your fingers bleed.

Go where youve never been before.
Write it down before you forget.
Then take a moment to reflect on it all.
JonathanSchneck
Guitarist, relient K
waldenguitars.com
tech tips > aSK AMP MAN
Adding an Extension Cab to a Fender Combo BY Jeff Bober

Hi Jeff,
I have a reissue Fender Princeton
Reverb. I play clean and always use
the Princeton in conjunction with a
5-watt Laney Lionheart 1x12 combo.
I configure these amps in stereo with
modulation pedals between them.
To beef up the sound, Im considering buying an extension speaker cab
for the Princeton. Searching online,
I cant find any recommendations for
an extension speaker to use with the
Princeton. The Princetons rear panel
says the amp should have an 8 load,
which confuses me. Am I supposed
to disconnect the Princetons internal
speaker? What I really want to do is
add a 12" speaker and use it in conjunction with the amps 10" speaker.
Is this possible? I appreciate any advice
you can offer.
Thanks,
Jimfre B.
Hi Jimfre,
I selected your question because it has
caused confusion for decades. I hear this all
the time: Whats the proper way to use the
extension speaker jack on the rear panel of
most vintage Fender combo amps? For me,
the short answer is, there is no proper use
of those extension speaker jacks.
Let me explain.
On all Fender combo amps and heads
that have only two speaker output jacks
(main and extension) and no other impedance setting controls or explanation of jack
functions (such as series or parallel, as on
some later Fender amps), the two jacks are
simply wired in parallel.
Now, the multiple speaker jacks on most
amps are typically wired in parallel, which
is not a problem for an amp with impedance-selection capability, but this isnt the
case with these Fender amps. The output
transformers on these types of Fender amps
have only one set output impedance, and
in the case of the combo amps, the output
impedance is optimized for the amps internal speaker load.
For example, a Fender Deluxe Reverb
combo has a single 8 12" speaker, so
the output transformer is designed to
have a dedicated 8 output. A Fender
Twin Reverb has two 8 12" speakers

wired in parallel to create a 4 load, and
a transformer with a 4 output. A Super
Reverb has four 8 10" speakers wired
in parallel to create a 2 load. In each
case, the transformer output is matched
to the combos particular speaker load.
This produces the highest available output power from the amplifier.
Once another speaker is added to the
equation, the impedance now becomes mismatched and the power becomes reduced.
So for example, if you were to add another
8 extension cabinet to the already
existing 8 internal speaker, the output
transformer would then be presented with
a 4 load and your 12 watts of available
clean output power would be reduced by
approximately 40 percent to 7.2 watts. Not
the result you were hoping for, Im sure.
In addition to that, the transformer
becomes stressed because of the additional
load placed on it. In some amps, this can
absolutely lead to transformer failure, but
fortunately the transformers in most vintage Fender amps seem to have been sufficiently overbuilt to stand up to this abuse
for decades without fail. But now knowing
this, Im sure that you can see adding an
extension speaker cabinet to your Princeton
Reverb will achieve the exact opposite of
what youre looking for.
Yet I have a suggestion: Consider adding
some additional external power. There are
a couple of different ways you can accomplish this, but well focus on approaches
that hopefully let you retain the integrity of
the Princeton sound.
You need two things: First, a line-level
signal from your amplifier derived at the
output stage so it retains the tonal characteristics of the amp, and second, an additional power amp to amplify this signal.
You can accomplish this in a couple
of different ways. You could simply send
the signal from the external speaker jack
to any direct box capable of converting a
speaker-level signal to a line-level signal.
Unfortunately, most of the line-level outputs on these boxes are available only as an
XLR connection, so you will also need an
XLR-to-1/4" converter, so the signal winds
up in a 1/4" format.
Another option would be to have the
external speaker jack on your Princeton
Fenders reissue 65 Princeton Reverb includes

a 10 Jensen C-10R, a long-spring reverb tank,
a pair of 6V6 power tubes, and a 5AR4 rectifier
tube. Photo courtesy of Fender
converted to a line-level output. This could

easily be done by any competent amp tech
in your area. I would strongly suggest adding a control so the output signal level is
variable. This allows you to precisely adjust
the signal level going to your external amp
as required.
Now for the other half of the equationpower. Here you have many
options, as well. One suggestion is to use
a small, portable power amp, such as the
Electro-Harmonix 44 Magnum. The size
of an effects pedal, this box produces 44
watts of power that you could then use to
drive your external speaker cabinet. This
would certainly give you enough additional clean headroom and power for your
application.
The other option would be to use another small combo amplifier with a line level
input or effects loop return, possibly something like the ZT Lunchbox amp. This way
you have power amp and speaker all in one.
There you have it! I hope this makes
your Princeton Reverb big enough for any
job. See you next time.
Warning: All tube amplifiers contain lethal voltages. The most dangerous voltages are stored in
electrolytic capacitors, even after the amp has been
unplugged from the wall. Before you touch anything
inside the amp chassis, its imperative that these
capacitors are discharged. If you are unsure of this
procedure, consult your local amp tech.
JEFF BOBER, one of the godfathers
of the low-wattage amp revolution, cofounded and was the principal designer
for Budda Amplification. Jeff launched
EAST Amplification in 2010, and he can be
reached at pgampman@gmail.com.
premierguitar.com
Many styles
One voice
Robben Ford is the

master of many musical
styles. But when it
comes to his speakers,
theres only ever been
one choice.
Celestion.
Dont trust your tone

to anything less.
www.celestion.com
tech tips > mod garage
Click here for larger photos of these schematics
The Ultra-Flexible Esquire Wiring, Pt. 2 BY Dirk wacker
ast month, we began a special project: We

wanted to squeeze as many useable sounds
as possible from a single-pickup Esquire
[The Ultra-flexible Esquire Wiring, Pt. 1,
February 2013]. And as regular readers will
recall, this was part of a larger investigation
into equipping an Esquire with a humbucker
[Humbucker Pickups in an Esquire, Pt. 1 &
2, December 2012 and January 2013].
In the first installment of this series, we
freed our Esquire 3-way pickup selector
switch from its former function of switching the two coils of our humbucking pickup, and we also installed and connected a
new on/on/on mini toggle switch to handle
the coil-switching function.
Now, Ill show you how to proceed further and how to use this technique with any
Esquire circuit of your choice to cook up
your own ultra-flexible wiring.
As youll recall from the last column, we
wired the on/on/on switch in front of the
pickup selector switch, and the pickup is
directly connected to the on/on/on switch.
Of course, this means the signal arrives here
before hitting the pickup selector switch.
Keep this in mind because its the key to
creating your own personal Esquire wiring:
You simply combine the on/on/on switch with
its three functions as a kind of preset switch
with any Esquire wiring after it. And heres the
good news: Its as easy as painting by numbers!
ABOVE: Fig. 2. Remove the pickup from the

modded Eldred wiring, but leave the two pickup
wires untouched. RIGHT: Fig. 3. This Esquire
wiring yields nine different sounds.
So here we go ... Ill guide you through

this procedure using a specific example
the wiring from one of our custom Esquirestyle models called the Mnajdra. Fig. 1
shows a version with sandy-white finish and
a real celluloid pickguard. I bet youve seen
this pickup before? Yup, thats the DiMarzio
Chopper Ive been telling you about.
Step 1: Decide on an Esquire wiring
you want to use for your personal setup
and either download the circuit drawing or
make your own. In this case, I decided to
use the modded Eldred wiring scheme we
previously discussed in detail [The Modded
Eldred Esquire Wiring, September 2012].
Step 2: Simply erase the pickup from the
modded Eldred wiring, but leave the two
pickup wires untouched, as in Fig. 2.
Step 3: Now, insert the on/on/on switch
wiring from last month, and connect the
extension of the red wire from the on/on/on

switch labeled to 3-way switch with the grey
(hot) wire of the modded Eldred Esquire wiring and the extension of the green wire from
the on/on/on switch labeled to ground with
the black (ground) pickup wire. Dont forget to
connect the bare ground wire from the pickup
to ground. It should now look like Fig. 3.
Congratulations, youre done! You now have
an Esquire wiring with a total of nine different sounds: the three basic tones from the on/
on/on switch (the normal humbucker, the
hum-free, fat-sounding single-coil, and the true
single-coil), plus the three options from the
modded Esquire wiring (true-bypass, volume
with tone control engaged, and small capacitor
plus engaged volume control for that cocked
wah tone). Using the tone control will extend
the sonic palette even more. And, of course,
you can experiment with the values of the pots
and caps, as well as the type of caps.
A guitar wired this way is very flexible and
many players wouldnt need another guitar to
play all night long in a Top 40 band. Give it a
tryIm sure youll love it. It should be easy for
you now to create your own custom wiring by
simply following the three steps above to combine these two elements in any possible way.
Stay tuned for next months column, where
we will continue to explore the Esquire wiring
by taking a deeper look into Leo Fenders original two-pickup Esquire circuit, which was
also the original wiring for his early Broadcaster
model. This wiring was almost forgotten for a
long while, so its time to bring it back again.
Its a very special wiring conceptI think
youll like it. Until then, keep on modding!
Dirk Wacker lives in Germany and
Fig. 1. Though the Mnajdra only sports a single pickup, it delivers nine switchable sounds.
Photo and illustrations courtesy of singlecoil.com
is fascinated by anything related to old

Fender guitars and amps. He plays
country, rockabilly, and surf music in
two bands, works regularly as a session
musician for a local studio, and writes
for several guitar mags. Hes also a
hardcore guitar and amp DIY-er who runs an extensive
websitesinglecoil.comon the subject.
premierguitar.com
tech tips > The Bass Bench
Custom or Boutique? BY Heiko Hoepfinger
eading PGs Staff Picks in the

January 2013 issue, I stopped and
pondered the question of the month:
Whats your favorite bass line of all time?
It seems like a simple question, but the
moment I tried to answer it, I hit a wall,
ricocheting through different decades of my
musical passions and life while pondering
the many people Ive played with and all
those whove inspired me.
Because I couldnt come up with a short
answer, I thought Id tackle a simpler question: Whats my favorite bass of all time?
It took me half an hour to name the 10
models that have impressed me most, and
Im still unable to reduce the list to one or
two. In fact, rarely did I think any of these
was perfect for me, as each bass had its benefits and drawbacks.
Perhaps youve reached a similar conclusion. This realization drives some bassists to
start building their own perfect vision of a
bass (and maybe make it a business). Others
are motivated to look for a luthier who can
fulfill their dream.
In the early days, potential bass customers drooled over the gear their heroes
played, yet most often ended up with an
instrument from the limited selection at
the local shop. Though the choice was
narrow, you were always able to touch
and hear an instrument before you took
it home.
At the time you read this, odds are
youve already cruised through pages of
printed reviews, articles, and ads, or an
equivalent amount of material online. The
number of bass models and makers has
increased so much that no one knows them
all. And today, knowing means seeing
pictures and maybe getting an audio sample.
Many instruments are simply not available
for you to demo in person. So how can you
find your dream machine?
If youre a regular reader, you know
PG focuses on high-end gear for the huge
custom and boutique market. The truth is,
this really isnt a market, so we can skip all
those check your budget and ask yourself
this or that kinds of questions you find in
a typical buyers guide. Its difficult to draw
a line between custom and boutique, as
the distinction isnt entirely clear.
For example, nowadays all of the bigger
brands carry a custom line where instruments can be built to order by choosing
some special finishes, a couple of options,

or simply get a famous name on the headstock. The focus is on distinctive visual
elements, but fundamentally these are still
series instruments that simply bear the
custom tag.
So, as an experienced player with some
particular needs, you might turn to boutique builders for your instrument. But are
boutique instruments really any different or
just pricier?
The French word boutique originally
just meant a small store, but it was later
used for little shopsoften linked to fashionrun by very specialized experts. In
our world, boutique can be described as a
low-volume production of high-end customizable instruments that are individually
tailored for a specific client.
The definition is not as clear as it
sounds because for some, putting a grade
AAA+ top on a Jazz-bass clone qualifies it
as a boutique instrument. Another story
goes that a luthier was once given around
1. For an instrument to be
boutique, it should be in some
way personal. 2. Mike Sabre
builds basses with passion.
This is his new Dominique
Di Piazza Signature Model.
Photo courtesy of mike-sabre.
com 3. Looking at Bas Wittenbergs 1-string doubleneck, its hard not to smile and
immediately feel the fun he
had building it. Its unique and
dead-on target! Photo courtesy of bas-extravaganza.nl
$20,000 to make a beautiful, exclusive

bass. He took his regular $6,000 model
and added a diamond worth $14,000. The
result might be a nice collectors item, but
is a lost investment for the bass world.
Because of the price, everyone would call it
boutique, but Id lean toward custom.
For an instrument to be boutique, it
should be in some way personal, whether
its in the string-spacing, shape, choice of
hardware, or even where you want your
volume knob. Boutique is the personal
business, which often means pricey, but
not necessarily so. Its a concept that ideally
offers some individual, unique selling point,
where as a buyer you get part of a philosophy and passion.
Heiko Hoepfinger is a German
physicist and long-time bassist, classical

guitarist, and motorcycle enthusiast. His
work on fuel cells for the European orbital
glider Hermes got him deeply into modern
materials and physical acoustics, and
led him to form BassLab (basslab.de)a
manufacturer of monocoque guitars and basses. You can
reach him at chefchen@basslab.de.
premierguitar.com
vintage & upkeep > VINTAGE VAULT
1949 Gibson ES-350N
A beautiful 1949 Gibson ES-350N, serial #A4308.
50 PREMIERGUITAR DECEMBER 2012
premierguitar.com
vintage & upkeep > VINTAGE VAULT

By Dave Rogers, Laun Braithwaite, and Tim Mullally
ibson introduced its first electric

guitarthe ES-150in 1936. Its
acceptance by influential players like Eddie
Durham and Charlie Christian led to the
manufacture of both lower- and higher-end
models (the ES-100 and ES-250, respectively) over the next few years. These earliest
electric guitars were amplified with a magnetic bar pickup (later called the Charlie
Christian pickup) designed by Walter Fuller.
The apex of Gibsons pre-war electric production was the 17" wide ES-300, which
used a long diagonal pickup in an attempt
to deliver a more natural acoustic sound.
Gibsons refinement of the electric guitar
was halted briefly during World War II. When
production had fully resumed after the war, a
cutaway version of the ES-300 was designed
called the ES-350 Premier. This guitar was
initially equipped with one neck-position P-90
pickup (also designed by Walter Fuller), covered by a black plastic shell. By 1949, a bridge
pickup was added and the model became
known simply as the ES-350. The ES-350
remained in production until 1956, when it
was replaced by the thin-bodied ES-350T.
The natural finished 1949 ES-350 pictured
this month perfectly matches the description in
the original 1949 Gibson catalog:
Beautifully figured curly maple body
and neck with Gibson Golden Sunburst
or selected natural wood finishes.
Modern cutaway design to make all 20
frets readily accessible.
Clear, brilliant solos or full, mellow
backgrounds by regulated dual pickup
amplification.
Alnico No. 5 magnetic poles individually adjustable for tone balance.
Gold-plated metal parts offer rich
decorative accents.
Tone and volume controls make possible wide, powerful electronic range.
Body size 17" wide and 21" long.
The 1949 list price for an ES-350N was
$340, plus an additional $39.75 for a plush
hardshell case. The current value is $7,500.
Detailed in-depth information on the
ES-350 and other Gibson electric guitars
can be found in Gibson ElectricsThe
Classic Years by A.R. Duchossoir.
Original price: $340 in 1949, plus $39.75 for
hardshell case
Current estimated market value: $7,500
premierguitar.com
1. The ES-350N boasted a 17" wide body with

two P-90 single-coils designed by Walter Fuller.
2. This guitars truss rod cover is engraved with
Earl, which helps explain the EJS initials on
the pickguard. 3. In 1949, if you wanted a natural
finish instead of a sunburst finish, you paid a $15
premium. 4. Gibsons elegant natural finish reveals
a highly figured curly maple body and neck.
Daves Guitar Shop
Dave Rogers collection is tended by Laun Braithwaite

and Tim Mullally and is on display at:
Daves Guitar Shop
1227 Third Street South
La Crosse, WI 54601
davesguitar.com
Photos by Mullally and text by Braithwaite.
PREMIERGUITAR DECEMBER 2012 51
vintage & upkeep > Guitar Shop 101
Fighting the Humidity Battle
ave you ever wondered why your

guitar plays great one day, yet feels
completely different on another? Suddenly
the fret edges are sharp or the action has
shifted and the guitar wont play in tune
anymore. These changes can happen overnight, especially in the winter. Cold, dry
weather brings low humidity and that
causes cracked guitars. Winter is my busiest time of year for structural repairs, and
most of these repairs are preventable with
an inexpensive humidifier. Ive been preaching this message for more than two decades:
Preventive measures are the key to keeping
your guitar in top condition.
Dealing with humidity. Humidity is the
amount of moisture or water vapor in the
air. The more moisture in the air, the higher
1
the humidity. Lesser amounts of moisture

results in lower humidity.
Theres a popular myth that a guitar
sounds better when it dries out. Actually,
it just cracks and then I get to charge a
fortune to repair it. This myth is often confused with a guitars natural aging process.
When a guitar ages, cells in its wood begin
to crystallize and harden, causing the guitar
to get louder and more dynamic. But if
its not properly humidified, the wood will
crack. (Did I mention structural repairs are
very expensive?)
But you can have too much of a good
thing: When a guitar is over humidified,
it swells up and loses volume and tone.
(Think of a tub of lard with strings.)
High humidity can also cause finish
discoloration and even allow mold to grow

inside the guitar.
The way to avoid these problems is to
maintain a consistent humidity level for
your instrumentparticularly an acoustic
hollowbody. This will prevent a host of ailments and costly repairs.
Symptoms of low humidity. One of the
common telltale signs of a dry guitar is sharp
fret ends. When a guitar dries out, the fretboard shrinks and the frets protrude beyond
the wood. Correcting this problem requires
3
Fig. 1. This top cracked from lack of humidity. Fig. 2. Fretboards can also crack as a result of low humidity. Fig. 3. The Humidipak guitar humidifier
system. Photo courtesy of Planet Waves Fig. 4. A room humidifier in action. Fig. 5. Thanks to heat exposure, this bridge separated from the top leaving
a gap big enough to slide in a seam separation knife blade. Fig. 6. Use a wood conditioner to protect your rosewood or ebony fretboard.
52 PREMIERGUITAR DECEMBER 2012
premierguitar.com
vintage & upkeep > Guitar Shop 101

Story and PHotos by John Levan
re-humidification, conditioning, and fret

filing. If your guitar is showing signs of low
humidity (sharp fret ends, cracks, or separated glue joints), you need to have it evaluated
by a reputable luthier.
This is what happens to a dry guitar in
various levels of low humidity.
Below 35 percent humidity:
Action (string height) changes.
The top flattens out.
Fret ends feel a little sharp.
Fret ends become very sharp.
There are drastic changes in the
playability.
Seams begin to separate.
Theres a slight separation between the
bridge and top.
The finish starts to sink.
Cracks appear in the top and body
(Fig. 1).
The bridge and fretboard crack (Fig. 2).
The glue joints in the neck, bridge,
and braces begin to separate.
All of these ailments will greatly lower the
value of the instrumentnot to mention your
enjoyment of playing itso be sure to maintain your guitar at the proper humidity level.
What is the best humidity level for my
guitar? Most experts say 40-50 percent. At
this level, a guitar will sound and play its
best. A great way to control humidity is to
use a humidifier. Think of it as an inexpensive insurance policy to protect you from
very expensive repairs.
A guitar humidifier is easy to use and
very effective. Some guitar humidifiers are
suspended between the 3rd and 4th strings
and contain a damp sponge that needs remoistened every two or three days. This
type of product works okay, but its not consistent. The humidity will spike at first, then
slowly diminish as the sponge dries out.
The more modern guitar humidifiers
use a gel that not only emits humidity,
but also absorbs it if the humidity gets too
high. This technology was first developed
for cigar humidors, and now its available for guitars. Planet Waves makes a
great humidity control system called the
Humidipak that uses this technology. Id
premierguitar.com
Wood Conditioning
Conditioning the fretboard
and bridge can keep them
looking new and slow the
effects of humidity changes. This should be done
every time you change
strings. Dont worry about
over-conditioningthe
wood will only absorb
what it needs and sweat
out the rest.
There are several wood
conditioners on the market, and I recommend
Planet Waves Hydrate. It

penetrates deep into the
wood and stays there.
The other great benefit
of using Hydrate is that
it wont damage finishes.
Planet Waves asked me
to do some beta testing
on Hydrate several years
ago and I was amazed at
how well it workedeven
on vintage instruments.
For years Ive used lemon
oil, but over time, it breaks
also recommend using a hygrometer to

measure the humidity.
Another great way to control humidity is
to use a room humidifier. This is a great idea
if you have multiple guitars in one room.
Humidifiers come in all shapes and sizes, but
be very selective, as some work much better
than others. I use a programmable humidifier
that utilizes both warm mist and ultrasonic
technology. It also has a built-in hygrometer
and a UV light to help purify the water. This
type of humidifier is much healthier than the
cool mist types that require a filter.
What guitars need to be humidified? All
guitars should be humidified, even electric
solidbodies. Newer guitars generally need more
moisture because the wood is kiln-dried, as
opposed to a vintage guitar made from air-dried
wood. The difference between kiln and airdried wood is dramatic. Kiln-dried wood uses
heat to dry the wood to accelerate the aging
process. However, these guitars require more
moisture to prevent warping and cracking. Airdried wood is more stable, especially in vintage
guitars, because the wood was generally aged
over a decade before being made into a guitar.
As a result, the cracked wood was removed
from the pile and used for something else.
Guitars made from air-dried wood still need
humidity to sound best, but they retain moisture better than their modern counterparts.
Too hot to handle! Heat exposure can also
have destructive effects on a guitar. When a
guitar is left in the trunk of a carespecially
on a sunny daythe glue joints can fail.
Imagine the shock of opening your case and
finding a pile of wood where your guitar used
to be. Once again, I get to charge a fortune for
repairing heat-damaged guitars, so be vigilant.
down nitrocellulose lacquer. Since most of the

guitars I restore are vintage
instruments, Hydrate was a
welcome improvement.
That said, if your guitar
has a maple fretboard,
lemon oil is still the best
product to use. Hydrate
is a better conditioner but
it will turn maple reddish
pink. So, unless you plan
to tour with Pink, use
lemon oil on maple.
A frigid nightmare. Cold is also an enemy.

When a guitar is exposed to low temperatures
and then brought into a warm environment,
the finish can develop checking. Checking
creates tiny hairline cracks in the finishlike
someone laid a spider web over the finish
and you cant polish this out. Finish checking
is permanent and can only be repaired by
refinishing (not something I would recommend). Finish checking is basically the result
of the finish changing from one temperature
extreme to the other. This causes the finish to
expand and contract too fast, and that makes it
crack. To minimize this, when you bring your
guitar in from the cold, dont open the case
until the outside of the case is at room temperature. Even then, theres no guarantee the
finish wont check, but it will lessen the odds.
Okay, lets reviewheres how to prevent
damage to your beloved guitar:
Buy a guitar humidifier.
Keep your guitar at between 4050
percent humidity.
Use a hygrometer.
Keep your guitar in a consistent environment (one thats comfortable for you).
Keep it out of direct sunlight and out
of the car trunk.
These simple steps can save you hundreds
of dollars in repairs.
John levan, Nashville guitar tech,
has written five guitar repair books, all

published by Mel Bay. His bestseller, Guitar
Care, Setup & Maintenance, is a detailed
guide with a forward by Bob Taylor. LeVan
welcomes questions about his PG column
or books. Drop an email to guitarservices@
aol.com or visit guitarservices.com for
more info on his guitar repair workshops.
PREMIERGUITAR DECEMBER 2012 53
vintage & upkeep > bottom feeder
60s Silvertone Sharkfin ET-460 K4L BY will ray
here was a time when a man was

judged by the number of pickups on
his guitar. Ah, those were the daysthe
glorious 60s!
After seeing some 4-pickup Silvertones
show up on eBay over the years, I decided I
needed to experience one. So I bookmarked
this particular guitaran old 60s teal-colored Silvertone ET-460 K4L. Nicknamed
the Sharkfin, the instrument was made
in Japan by Teisco. On this model, each of
the 4 pickups has its own on/off switch, a
system that allows a mind-boggling number
of different pickup combinations. (Okay,
thats only 15, not including all off, but
compared to a Tele, Les Paul, or Strat, this
seems almost infinite.)
The seller admitted that his tech had
declared the neck was slightly twisted, and
this probably kept bidding low. It was also
missing one of the bridge roller inserts for
the low-E string, as well as the Silvertone
headstock logo.
I decided to take my chances anyway
because everything else seemed to be there,
and apparently all the pickups worked.
Also, someone had replaced the tuners with
nice Grovers, and the original tuners would
be included in the case for the winner. I
always figure when an owner changes out
the original tuners for Grovers, the guitar
must be pretty decent, so I bid on it.
I won it for $262, plus $18 shipping.
Not exactly a steal, but definitely within
bottom-feeder territory. It arrived with no
strings on it (usually a bad sign), and I
immediately took it to my tech Jack Dillen
for an assessment. He was amused by all the
pickups and switches. He put on a single
high-E string, started fretting it all over the
neck, and after a few minutes gave me some
good news: The neck was actually in good
condition. It only appeared to be twisted
because a half-dozen frets were popping up.
After Jack applied a few dabs of super
glue and clamped the loose frets to reseat
them, the neck seemed to be just fine. He
also looked in his parts box and found a
compatible roller bridge saddle to replace
the missing one. These simple modifications made my Sharkfin work just fine.
Bottom Feeder Tip #2,289: Keep your
friends close, but keep your guitar tech even
closer. It was my guitar tech against the sellers tech ... and mine won. So is it a keeper?
Absolutelyit now has super-low action,
1. When three pickups simply wont do, reach for a Silvertone ET-460 K4L. 2. This guitars
Sharkfin moniker comes from its cool, sculpted headstock. The Grover tuners were added by
a previous owner. 3. The entire guitar sports a teal paint job. 4. The Bigsby-inspired bridge
includes roller saddles.
plays like a dream, and seems to possess a

gazillion different sounds, thanks to all the
unusual pickup combinations. I also dig the
cool pointy Jetsons vibe. Shes a real retrofuture looker!
will ray is a founding member of the
Hellecasters guitar-twang trio. He also does

guitar clinics promoting his namesake G&L
signature model 6-string, and produces
artists and bands at his studio in Asheville,
North Carolina. You can contact Will on
Facebook and at willray.biz.
premierguitar.com
feature > prs makeover
the transformation of a vintage paul reed smith
A longtime Premier Guitar fan scores an autograph-laden 80s

CE and struggles with the dilemma of keeping it all-original or
having the PRS Technical Center update it to current specs.
by Ben Friedman
bout four years ago, a

good friend of minea
collector of art and firearms
called to ask if Id ever heard
of a Pairs guitar. From time
to time, this friend reaches
out if he runs across a guitar
in one of the many obscure
auction sites he frequents.
Naturally, I was puzzled. As
a lifelong guitar enthusiast,
how could I have missed these
rareand apparently valuablePairs guitars?

To help me understand
what he was talking about,
he directed me to an auction
website where, amongst lots of
old furniture and artwork, there
was a listing for a PRS Guitar
(autographed).
After breathing a sigh of relief
that there wasnt some obscurely
amazing brand of guitars Id
somehow been oblivious to all

these years, I had to chuckle at
my friends innocence.
But waitit gets funnier.
I clicked the link and up
popped a series of pictures of
a beat-up 1989 PRS CE as
bright and gaudy as Thomas
Magnums Ferrarionly after
itd been tagged by a bunch of
Sharpie-wielding 80s artists,
including Julian Lennon, the
Vixen vixens, the guys from

House of Lords, Henry Lee
Summer, and the ax-wielders
of Molly Hatchet. Needless
to say, the more affordable
bolt-on model bedecked with
celebrity autographs of yesteryear wasnt quite a rare find of
the sort dreamt about by your
average guitar collector. But
under the scribbles and blinding red finish I could still see
premierguitar.com
ABOVE: The PRS was originally outfitted with Standard Treble and Standard Bass
pickups, and a 1-piece MannMade brass bridge. RIGHT: The CE after the off the
frame customization.
that there was a (hopefully)

nice vintage PRS guitar looking
for a new home.
Ive always appreciated older
PRSes, because they remind
me of my early guitar-playing
days, when PRS hit the scene
with its innovative, Gibsonmeets-Fender hybrid design.
Nostalgia factor notwithstanding, I also had a soft spot
for older PRS instruments.
premierguitar.com
Though I didnt think of them

as better or worse than current
models, the fact that theyre
from a very different period of
the companys historyway
before it became the thirdbiggest player in the industry
intrigued me. And when no
one placed the $750 minimum
bid, how could I say no when I
called and was offered the guitar for $600?
The Hour of Reckoning

When the guitar finally arrived,
it was both better and worse
than I had expected: Most of
the time, getting the original
case with a 24-year-old guitar
is pretty cool. But opening the
CEs unleashed a stench indicating that, at some point, it
had been used as a cats litter
box. On top of that, the guitar
had seen better daysthe frets
and nut were worn down, the
tremolo was out of balance and
missing its arm, the finish was
worn off in spots, and the body
had a bunch of dings and dents,
probably from a bunch of Less
Than Zero-type moments back
in the day.
On the plus side, it was alloriginal. It still had the coveted
Standard Treble Standard Bass
humbuckers. It still had the
1-piece MannMade tremolo
bridge. It still had Phase I
winged tuners with the Dand G-string units that share a
mounting screw. And it still had
the 24-fret, Indian-rosewoodtopped maple neck with the
shorter neck heel. Typical of
well-played guitars, it had a
wonderful, broken-in feel and a
balanced, snappy acoustic tone,
thanks to its aged alder body.
Despite needing some TLC, the
guitar was very resonant and
comfortable to play, weighing in
at 7 pounds, 6 ounces. Plugged
in, the guitar sounded really
nice, too, though signal-cutout
and grounding issues made it
clear the electronics needed
some help.
Having assessed the pros
and cons of my new find, I
faced a big dilemma: Should
I stay grounded in PRS history and keep the guitar in its
original condition or keep the
best of the old and upgrade
the stuff that could be better?
Certain PRS enthusiasts would
say this early CE represents
the companys golden era
and that changing its original
components would amount

to blasphemy. Others take the
position that PRS has pretty
much only gotten better over
the years and that currentproduction guitars incorporate
decades of innovation and
refinement.
Truth be told, I hadnt kept
up with the companys major
design and hardware changes
over the last 10 years. Ive
always tended to believe that
most well-established manufacturers truly groundbreaking
ideas came out with the initial
designs of flagship models. In
my somewhat jaded view, subsequent innovations are more
often than not spawned in the
name of cost cutting or creating
marketing buzzwords. Either
way, such measures dont usually
improve the tone or playability
of an instrument. Im sure Im
not the only one who thinks
this way, either.
I did some research to
help me with my decision
and found the folks at PRS
formally established the PRS
Technical Center (PTC) in
2009 at the Stevensville,
Maryland, factory to expand
the capabilities of the in-house
team tasked with providing
warranty-fulfillment services. I
reached out to Shawn Nuthall,
whos been with PRS for 11
years and is manager of the
PTC, to learn more about
the center. According to him,
the PTC was formed at the
direction of Paul Smith and in
response to demand from PRS
owners who wanted custom
work. Staffed by a committed, seasoned team of five
PRS employees whose average
tenure with the company is
12 years, the PTC still provides owners of PRS guitars
with warranty work, but it
also fields requests for repairs,
custom work, and restorations.
The PTC also offers retrofits
of older PRS guitars with the
The autographs from members of Vixen, Molly Hatchet, and other 80s bands ...
latest hardware and

design updates found
on current-production
guitars. Shawn shared
his position that current PRS guitars reflect
the golden era for
the company and that
I should consider having the PTC team
undertake a full off
the frame restoration
of my 89 CEa bold
proposition to prove
out a bold claim.
I was intrigued.
Could there really be
... even spilled over to the rear of the CE.
some sort of guitar
alchemy going on here, or
current home, the PTC team
was it merely marketing hype?
assessed it and then, over the
There was only one way to find phone, Shawn walked me
out. I packed the guitar into its through what the job would
original litter-box case and sent entail. Off the frame restorait to Stevensville with mixed
tion is exactly what it sounds
emotions and an air freshener.
like: It calls for taking the
When my Magnum P.I.
guitar down to bare wood
PRS arrived at the companys
and rebuilding it with current
premierguitar.com
production components and

techniques, along with a few
proprietary artist tweaks. The
only original components that
would remain would be the
wood, tuner housings, neck
plate, and single-action truss
rod. In deference to the 80s
artists who had autographed
the guitar, we discussed the
pros and cons of refinishing it
but decided it needed a full-on
makeover. All the PTC team
needed was my approval, my
selection of current-production
PRS pickups and finish, and
three weeks to work on it. I
gave a hesitant yes, gave them
my finish and pickup preferences, and waited.
The guitar also came with its original PRS Phase I winged tuners.
Stripping, Buffing,
and Refinishing
As the before and after pictures
here show, the PTC teams work
reflects both their expertise and
their commitment to perfection.

The first step was stripping the
guitar of the nitro finish on the
neck and removing the acrylic
finish from the 3-piece alder
body. Indentations in the body
and neck were then sanded out,
the frets were removed, and the
Indian rosewood fingerboard
was re-profiled. The neck was
then refretted with mediumjumbo standard nickel-silver
fretwire made specifically for
PRS. (Its similar in size to 6150
Dunlop fretwire.) The original
Delrin nut was replaced with
PRS current composite nut,
which was designed and perfected through a series of trial
and error to maximize sustain
and tuning stability.
PRS finishes have apparently
evolved over the years, as well.
Current methods call for maple
necks to receive a proprietary
finish that seals the wood from
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the inside out, resulting in a

very natural, bare-wood feel
that does not get gummy like
nitro can after long periods of
playing. The body received the
companys new V12 hybrid finish, which purportedly retains
the hardness of acrylic and the
dipped-in-glass look PRS guitars are known for. However,
like nitro, its very thin, which
allows the guitar to breathe and
resonate. I was told that there
has been a continued emphasis
on reducing the thickness of
the finish over the years and
that V12 is actually thinner
than the base coat used on
PRS guitars like mine from the
80s. Given that my guitar has
a 3-piece body, the PTC team
recommended I get an opaque
finish. I chose frost blue metallic, a welcome update to the
PRS color palette that has a
subtle glow.
Hardware Upgrades
The Schaller-manufactured
original locking tuners were
truly innovative in the 80s, but
obviously the guitar-building
universe has learned a lot since
then. PTC rebuilt my Phase I
tuners using components from
current-production PRS Phase
II and III tuners, including
mass-reducing hollow buttons,
grommets that are countersunk
into the headstock, unplated
brass tuner shafts (PRS has
determined that removing plating from hardware that has
contact with the strings results
in clearer, more open tones),
and string-release mechanisms
that are much easier to use
than the original wing design.
Current PRS tuners feature
an open-back housing (which
the company says is purely
cosmetic) with a smaller footprint than the original Phase
I tuners. Among other things,
this eliminates the need for the
shared mounting screw for the
D- and G-string units. In lieu
A PRS Technical Center luthier removes the worn original frets.
The back of the headstock gets its finish removed.
PRS is meticulous about instrument and worker safety.
Sadly, the signatures had to come off for the greater good.
The final fretwork is exemplarytheyre perfectly seated and the ends are immaculately dressed.
premierguitar.com
H OT R O D YO U R TO N E
MICK THOMSON
SLASH
A kid I went to junior high school with

played a guitar with Duncan pickups, and
it sounded infinitely better than whatever
stock pickups were in the guitar I had at
the time. Ive always liked the sound of
a passive pickup, but when it comes to
doing what I do, the bottom end washes
out too easily and it isnt tight. I love the
u p p e r har monics an d t h e rich n e ss of
passive pickups, but with high gain at
really high speeds, you can lose articulation
sometimes, and thats why I always liked
Duncan Blackouts for what I do.
Something people dont know about my

introduction to Seymour Duncan is that
I worked in a music store in the early 80s,
right before I started a band with the
guys in Guns N Roses. I learned about
most of the popular brands of pickups at
that time. From working in a music store
and having them replace pickups all the
time, I discovered that Seymour Duncan
made the best pickups. So when I got the
Les Paul with the Seymour Duncans in it, I
knew that those pickups were going
to be killer.
Its happened to all of us: We fire up the amp, plug in our favorite guitar, hit the first chord and boomthe tone
just isnt there. Whats going on? The answer lies underneath the strings.
Pickups are essential to unlocking the sound you crave. Whether you need shimmering chords, Texas swamp sludge
or out-of-control gain, pickups create your signature tone.
Changing pickups isnt rocket science, but if its too daunting there are thousands of qualified guitar techs out
there who can help you. Plus, all of us here at Seymour Duncan are happy to assist you in choosing the right pickup
and getting it installed.
OUR FORUM
HOW TO CHANGE PICKUPS VIDEO
WIRING DIAGRAMS
guitarpickups.com/forum
guitarpickups.com/changeyourpickups
guitarpickups.com/wiring
REAL SOUL.
GENUINE TONE.
Slashs guitar painted by Eva Gelbart
of putting extra holes in my

guitar, the folks at PTC rebuilt
the tuners on my guitar, putting
the guts of current machines
into the Phase I housings.
My CEs original MannMade
USA Vibrato, which PRS
used from 1985 until the early
1990s, is highly regarded by
many PRS enthusiasts. The
unit was constructed from a
1-piece brass casting with either
nickel or gold plating, and it
won many fans quickly with its
smooth action and tuning stability. Unfortunately, over time
and with heavy use, the knife
edge begins to dig in and tuning stability begins to suffer. My
guitar apparently saw its fair
share of whammy dive-bombs
over the years, so I decided to
replace the MannMade unit
with the current-production
tremolo, which comprises a
milled-brass bridge and plate
screwed together. The bridge

unit is still nickel plated, but
the plating has been removed
from the parts of the bridge
saddles that come into contact
with the strings because PRS
says that bare brass offers more
favorable tonal characteristics
than plated brass. The brass
saddle-height and intonation
screws are unplated for the same
reason. These tweaks are representative of PRS commitment
to refining an established design
for the sake of tonal improvement, not cost cutting.
Changing pickups was by far
the most trying decision for me,
because the original Standard
Treble and Standard Bass units
sounded great and are coveted
by many PRS aficionados. To
my ears, they definitely had
a vintage vibe, with a touch
more compression and output
than other vintage pickups Ive
Changing pickups was by far the most trying

decision ... the original Standard Treble
and Standard Bass units sounded great and
are coveted by many PRS aficionados.
used over the years. The extra
compression was particularly
nice when paired with a good
overdriven tube amp. Back in
the 80s, they were Paul Smiths
best interpretation of a classic
humbucking alnico pickup,
and they were known for their
upper-midrange response and
pronounced bite.
But theres a saying at PRS
that goes something like this,
There are three levels of
hearing: What humans hear,
what dogs hear, and what Paul
Reed Smith hears. Since the
early 90s, Smith and his team
have been challenging themselves to create the ultimate
vintage-PAF-style humbucker.
These R&D efforts were augmented in 1994, when PRS
brought in veteran Gibson
executive Ted McCarty as a
consultant to offer insights on
the guitar designs and pickups
of golden-era Gibson electrics
from the late 1950s and early
60s. Combined with input
from big-name artists and the
same sorts of materials used to
manufacture original Gibson
PAF humbuckers, these insights
led to a series of vintage-style
PRS pickups, culminating in
2008 with the 57/08 humbuckerwhich Paul Smith feels is
the best PAF-style humbucker.
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Since then, PRS has also added

models such as the 59/09 and
53/10, which offer slightly different tonal responses.
Even PRS knobs and wiring
have been improved over the
past 23 years. My CEs original
black speed knobs were replaced
with the companys current
11-sided, tapered lampshade
knobs, which are easier to
manipulate and aesthetically in
keeping with the guitars new
color scheme. Likewise, the
original, industrial-sized chrome
pickup selector switch and
black pickup covers were also
replaced with crme currentproduction parts that complement the overall aesthetics. The
guitar was completely rewired,
and the PTC crew even provided a pleasant little surprise
by augmenting the original
3-way switch with a push-pull
coil-splitting function on the
tone knob, which provides three
additional sounds I really like.
The Other Hour of
Reckoning
As of press time, Ive had my
CE back for a month and Im
very pleased with the results
theres a substantial improvement in tone, playability, and
aesthetics. My only regrets are
losing the character and signatures of yesteryear. When I got
the guitar, it had a great brokenin feel and it just reeked a late80s vibe that brought back a lot
of memories. I cant complain
about that loss of character too
much, though, because the PTC
gave my CE a vast improvement
in all aspects. The re-fret and
leveling of the fretboard took
away some of that broken-in
feelbut hey, its my turn to
break it in. The neck feels amazing, toothe finish is natural
feeling and plays fast. The guitar
just rings like a bell.
It would be challenging to
identify exactly what yielded
such significant improvements to
The completed guitar features new PRS 57/08 pickups, exposedbrass string-contact points, and tapered knobs.
the tonal response and playabilityIm not sure if its the finish,
the pickups, the exposed-brass
string-contact points, or just the
whole package togetherbut Ill
share some thoughts.
First off, although changing
pickups was the most difficult
decision, its the one Ive been
the happiest with. The original
pickups were cool in a band
settingthey were hotter and
more compressed than the
57/08s, and they cut through
wellalthough they werent as
appealing when playing unaccompanied. In the past, some
players have been critical of
PRS pickups because they felt
they were lifeless and/or too
hot. Personally, I wasnt crazy
about the pickups in a McCarty
I owned. But the 57/08s change
all that in my book. To my ears,
theyre warmer than the originals, but just as capable of cutting through a band mix while
also maintaining a pleasing,
balanced tone thats a lot of fun
when youre playing by yourself. They have amazing clarity,
theyre very dynamic when
you adjust the volume knob,
they have the right amount of
high-end bite that you expect
from an authentic-sounding
PAF-style pickup, and

theyre equally surefooted
with clean or overdriven
tonesI noticed a big
difference in string-tostring definition. And
the natural overtones are
plentiful and glorious.
The split tones are
useable, albeit not very
Fender-ishwhich is
The tuners now feature modern PRS parts
often what players are
in the original Phase I housings.
going for when they
decide to split coils. They
and neutral soundingits set
also come with the usual volume
up perfectly, with just a touch
drop, and the tone knobs tapered of float, it stays in tune with
shape takes additional effort to
slight trem moves and divepull outalthough Im sure Ill
bombs alike, and it does not
become more adept at it over
rob the guitar of any sustain.
time. The new PRS 408 pickup
I hate to gush, but after a
system does the split-toneslong hiatus, I am squarely back
and-stable-volume thing more
on the PRS bandwagon. In my
convincingly, but the 57/08s are
opinion, Paul Reed Smith and
some of the best vintage-soundhis team remain as committed
ing humbuckers Ive encountered to innovation and improvein a long timeand Ive had my
ments to their offerings as they
share of great-sounding Lindy
were 25+ years ago. I want to
Fralin, Gibson, Wolfetone, Suhr,
extend a special thanks to the
Peter Florance Voodoo, Seymour
PTC teamShawn Nuthall,
Duncan, and DiMarzio pickups.
Scott Bloomfield, Dave
My experience with the new
Meredith, Len Johnson, and
bridge tells me that the 1- vs.
James Zimmersfor a job well
2-piece trem debate will likely
done. Oh, and to any of you
continue for hardcore PRS fans. guys who signed this thing way
All I can say is that, to me, the
back whenyoure welcome to
new 2-piece unit is very stable
come autograph it again!
premierguitar.com
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feature > squier tele makeover
Guitar guru Bill Hook turns a Squier Tele

into a customized twang machine at a fraction
of the price of custom-shop axes.
By Bill Hook
remier Guitars editor in

chief, Shawn Hammond,
is a huge fan of taking wellbuilt, affordable guitars and
customizing them to sound as
good as axes many times their
price. Hes already had me
do work on a Squier Classic
Vibe Telecaster 50s, which he
upgraded with Fender Custom
Shop Jim Campilongo pickups. This time around, hes

asked me to really go to town
on a surprisingly great, brandspankin-new Squier Vintage
Modified Telecaster Custom,
which has a street price of
$299. Were going to turn
this Tele into a head-turning,
twang-bangin monster!
The Squier Vintage Modified

Tele Custom comes stock with
a humbucker in a Wide Rangestyle housing and a Duncan
Designed bridge pickup.
Photo courtesy of FMIC
premierguitar.com
The completed project

features Curtis Novak
JM-V (neck) and TEL-V
pickups, a Tone-Guard
anodized-aluminum
pickguard, a Bigsby
B5 vibrato, compensated brass saddles,
and upgraded pots,
output jack, tone-pot
capacitor, and knobs.
premierguitar.com
The Vision
When Shawn first bought this
Squier, it was mainly so hed
have at least two Teles on hand
in case one died or had a string
bust during a gig. What Shawn
wanted to see when I was done
with it was a guitar that sounds
and looks great. Hes not concerned about knee-jerk reactions that other players might
have to the headstock decal. In
fact, he hopes to maybe help
a few players out there realize
its not the price or the brand
name that matters, but knowing
which things to change to get a
fantastic-sounding guitar for a
very reasonable price.
To that end, the first nobrainer upgrade for almost any
guitar this affordable is new
pickups. Shawn wanted authentic Telecaster twangsparkly, complex tones with some
spankfrom the bridge pickup,
so he went with a handwound
Curtis Novak TEL-V. The more
he thought about the project,
though, the more he wanted to
have some fun with it.
Shawns also a big Bigsby
fan, and given that Teles with
Bigsbys are pretty rare on the
wholelet alone at a low price
pointhe added that to the
upgrade list, too. He was also
intrigued by Tele-forum talk
of keeping the ashtray bridge
rather than using the standard
Bigsby Telecaster kit (which
requires replacing the ashtray
assembly with a chromed
pickup surround that has a
Mustang-style bridge attached
to it), so he asked me to mod
the ashtray bridge to work
with the B5. He also wanted to
replace the Squiers original steel
saddles with compensated brass
ones that would facilitate better
intonation while maintaining
old-school tones.
Because Shawn usually prefers single-coils and
often finds neck pickups too
bass-y for his bands original
indie-twang-punk tunesand
because he still hasnt been
able to add a Jazzmaster to his
collectionShawn decided to
swap the Tele Customs stock
humbucker with a Jazzmasterstyle pickup. I want to be
able to get that hollowed-out,
ghostly twang without having
to pick way back by the saddles, he told me. Having heard
great audio samples online,
he decided to go with Novaks
JM-V, which is based on the
pickup in the builders own
1963 Jazzmaster. The pickup
is narrower and has different
screw placement than a Wide
Range-style humbucker, so this
also required a new pickguard.
Shawn chose a visually striking
gold-anodized aluminum model
from Tone-Guard.com. He also
wanted the guitar set up to play
with .011.052 string sets.
Exploration and
Brainstorming
Although I knew what Shawn
wanted from the final product
when he dropped off the guitar
and the main parts, I still needed to give the Squier a thorough
exam to see if there were any
other issues to address in the
process. When I did, I found
that it has a good, solid feel and
really nice fretwork for its price.
But once it was on my workbench I noticed the neck angle
was slightly crookedthe low
E was almost off the edge of the
neck near the body (Photo 1).
Luckily, when I took the neck
off to see what was causing the
misalignment, I found that it
was due to a bit of sawdust and
polishing compound wedged
in the pocket. Cleaning that
out allowed me to remount the
neck at the proper angle.
When I plugged the Squier
in, I was surprised by the quality of the pickups. The neck
pickup looks like the Wide
Range unit used in the first
Telecaster Customs from 1972,
Photo 1. The Squiers low E was originally misaligned, but cleaning excess
sawdust and polishing compound out of the neck pocket remedied the issue.
Photo 2. The Teles interior was nicely shielded and grounded straight
from the factory.
but it sounds like a very generic

stock humbucking pickup.
Shawn told me before dropping off the guitar that he was
surprised how good the Duncan
Designed bridge pickup sounded. Its a little thin sounding,
he admitted, but it does have
that essential Tele character. I
plugged it in to hear for myself
and found that the bridge
pickup indeed had a lot of that
classic Tele twang. It also had
decent output and balance after
some height adjustment.
Moving on, I noted that the
volume and tone potentiometers had a slightly loose but
smooth feel, but most of their
taper was all at one end of the
rotationand every now and
then the bridge-pickup volume
pot shorted out when I turned
it up all the way. Gotta fix that!
The knob and switch placement
were comfortable, but though I
liked the look of the press-on,
amp-style knobs, they felt a little
less than robust. I decided to
replace them, too. Lastly, I love
the simplicity of the Tele output

jack, but I knew from experience
that it will eventually come loose
and either require annoying
tightening every time someone
plays the guitar, or possibly fail
at a critical moment. For that
reason, I suggested to Shawn
that we install an Electrosocket
jack mount, which screws directly into the body to prevent loosening of the jack. I also figured
I might as well install a sturdier
output jack and drop in some
more reliable CTS pots and different capacitors while I had the
Squier in pieces.
After finishing the external
exploration, I moved on to looking at the guts of the Vintage
Modified Tele. First, I had to lose
the strings. Next up, I removed
the 16yes, 16screws that keep
this kitchen table of a pickguard
on! Once they were off, I saw
that the guitar was clean inside.
Theres shielding paint and its
fully grounded (Photo 2)nice
work. When I saw the Alpha mini
pots, I worried about whether
premierguitar.com
the full-size CTS pots would fit

in the existing body route, but
first things first. Although I wasnt
going to start with the electronics, I removed the bridge, desoldered and pulled the output jack
and ground wires, and clipped
the leads on the bridge pickup.
Voila clean slate to work from.
Photo 3. When I first placed the ashtray bridge and Bigsby, I worried that the
string width was too wide from the saddles to the vibrato, but it ended up fitting
just right.
Installing the Bigsby

I decided to start with the new
vibrato first, so I covered the
adjacent area on the guitars top
with blue painters tape both
to protect it from scratches
and to give me a place to write
notes with impunity. I put the
bridge back on and took some
measurements to start my layout. I needed a centerline and
some horizontal lines to keep
everything nice and square, and
the 3-saddle ashtray tailpiece
proved to be great for finding
center locations. It has a hole in
the center of the back, so I used

that as a reference and used a T
square positioned at the edge of
the body to mark a centerline to
work from.
To get an idea how the
strings would lay out as they
passed over the saddles, I
mocked up the Bigsby and
used a string to estimate where
the strings will fall when Im
done. Based on pictures Id
seen online of other Bigsbyfied Teles, I already knew they
wouldnt clear the back of the
ashtray, but at first glance I
also wondered whether the
overall spacing of the six
strings would be too wide to
fit the Bigsbys roller guide
(Photo 3). Fortunately, once
I put strings in both E positions, I could see that there
was just enough width in the
roller guide to facilitate straight
string pull from the saddles to
Enhance.
Express .
Impress.
www.bourns.com/proaudio
premierguitar.com
Photo 4. Stringing the new Bigsby and viewing the bridge from the side
revealed how much metal I needed to remove from the ashtray bridge.
Photo 7. Properly positioned compensated

brass saddles.
the Bigsbys axle pin (where the

ball ends will be anchored). I
could also clearly see where Id
need to cut away material from
the back of the ashtray bridge
to allow the strings to pass
through (Photo 4). At this
point, I took the bridge back
off and set it aside.
Going back to the taped-up
guitar body, I drew perpendicular lines to mark where
I wanted the Bigsbys roller
guide and forward screw to be
located. The exact locations are
a bit arbitrary, so I chose them
based on appearance and
more importantlythe spot
that gave me the greatest break
angle over the saddles with the
limited space available. I used
my centerline and perpendicular lines to get the Bigsby in
position, and then I drilled
mounting holes using a 3/32"
bit. (Photo 5)
Photo 5. Painters tape gave me a

canvas for measurements and guides.
Photo 8. The Bigsby initially causes string

spacing thats too narrow.
Next, I disassembled it so I
could mill string channels in the
back. To keep it absolutely still,
I mounted it in a vise and then
put the sanding-drum bit into
my Dremel, threw on some safety
goggles (a must when using any
power tools), and created six
gently arced pathways that are
approximately 1/16" from the
original top edge at their deepest
point (Photo 6). When the rough
cuts for all the channels were
done, I switched to a polishing bit
to make them both smooth to the
touch and attractive to the eye.
With that done, I installed
the new brass compensated
saddlesmaking sure I positioned them as shown (Photo
7) so that the guitar will intonate a little better than it would
with standard Tele saddles. To
test how the Bigsby and saddles
work together, I needed to reassemble the rest of the bridge.
Photo 6. Foam protected the bridge

from vise marks while I milled channels.
Photo 9. Notching the saddles prevents inward

string creep.
I mounted the Curtis Novak

bridge pickup in the ashtray, fed
its wires through their channels,
screwed the bridge and Bigsby
to the guitar, and then strung
it up.
When I played the guitar, I
noticed two things right away.
First, the strings were moving
the saddles around and producing an unpleasant chattering
sound. Second, the strings were
creeping toward the center of
the bridge, creating a narrower
spacing than I wanted (Photo
8). I realized then that I needed
to notch the saddles to make
the strings stay at their proper
spacing. So I slid the strings
around, measured to find the
proper location for each string,
and then gave each string a
good knock with a small mallet make an indentation where
I need to create some deeper
notches. I used gauged files to
cut grooves in the saddles to

keep the strings where I want
them and give them a smooth,
flat surface to slide over. I had
to remove the bridge again in
order to get at the saddles the
way I wanted to (Photo 9). I
cut the notches a little wide,
but the strings still chattered
when the Bigsby was wiggled to
the extreme so I applied a little
lip balm in the grooves. Plain
white lip balm is a fantastic,
nontoxic lubricant that helps
the strings slide like glass! You
can apply it with a toothpick or
just wipe it on the saddles (it
works great on the nut, too).
While I had my gauged files
out, I decided to cut the nut
slots to fit the heavier strings
Ill be installing. The Squier
shipped with a nut that accommodates .009.042 sets, so the
.011.052 set Shawn prefers
will definitely bind up in the
premierguitar.com
Photo 10. Fortunately, strategic twisting enables the new CTS pots to fit
where mini pots used to be.
Photo 11. Match string height to fretboard radius at the 12th fret.
narrower slots. At this point,

though, I only cut to get the
right width for the strings to
travel without binding up. Ill
cut them for depth later, when
Im ready to adjust the action.
the anodized-aluminum ToneGuard pickguard (Photo 10).

They fitbarelybut I had
to turn them all different ways
to make sure they didnt touch
anything and short out. I chose
250k CTS pots because theyre
dependable and sound good in
Teles and the solid shaft will
work great with the new Fender
Electronics Time
One of the fantastic things
about the Vintage Modified
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Tele is that everything is

mounted on one big pickguardall the parts are in
one spot. But it is kind of
cumbersome to work with. If
you recall, my first worry upon
peering inside the control cavity
was that the new, full-size CTS
pots wouldnt fit. To find out
for sure, I mounted them to
amp knobs, which have threaded bushings.

On to the pickups. The
handwound Curtis Novak JM-V
(neck) and TEL-V (bridge) pickups are fantastic, two-wire vintage
reproductions, so wiring them up
is pretty straightforward. I was
pleased that the JM-V dropped
right into the Teles humbucker
route, and I mounted it with

a set of P-bass pickup screws I
had handy. Although I wired
everything up to the same pot
terminals as the stock pickups,
I swapped the original tone-pot
capacitor with a .022 F polyester
cap. After I added the Switchcraft
output jack and mounted the
Electrosocket in the jack cavity, it was time to put it all back
together, string it up, test the
electronics, and adjust the pickup
heights. I start by setting the neck
pickup 1/16" and the bridge
3/32" from the strings, and then
balance their volume against each
other by playing the guitar and
switching back and forth between
the two. Some people like a little
boost on one pickup, so let your
ear be the judge.
Final Setup
No matter how good your
upgraded parts are, theyre not
going to sound their best if
your guitar isnt set up well, and
this was especially true because
the Squier had a new vibrato,
notched bridge saddles, and different string gauges. I started with
the neck, adjusting the truss rod
so that it was pretty straight, but
with a little relief. Next, I adjusted
the saddles. I love 3-saddle
bridges for setups: They make it
easy to match the fretboard radius
(9.5", in this case), and these
new saddles compensated design
enables you to get the intonation
spot-on for the D and G strings
(thank you, Danny Gatton!).
Having the Bigsby right
behind the ashtray does make it a
challenge to get to the intonationadjustment screws, though, so
an offset, Z-shaped screwdriver
is a big help there (flexible-shaft
screwdrivers also work). I set the
overall height of the strings first,
matching the fretboard radius by
measuring the string height at
the 12th fret across all the strings
(Photo 11, p. 71). That gave me
an even height to start from, and
I could then raise or lower each
saddle as needed to make sure

they were all the same height off
the fretboard.
To set the intonation, I started by using a tuner to make sure
both the 12th-fret harmonic and
the open string notes registered
the same note. Then I adjusted
the saddles to intonate the string
at the 4th and 16th frets. This
usually keeps the intonation
spot on across the whole neck. I
checked string height once more
after Id set intonation, and then
adjusted intonation again to be
extra sure notes were in tune
across the entire neck.
After that, I cut the nut slots
for depthwhich takes some
special tools (gauged nut files) and
a bit of finesse. I start this process
by pressing each string down at
the 3rd fret to check how high
the string is off the 1st fret (Photo
12). There are a lot of different
preferences for string height (aka
action)players who have a
light touch and want to play
speedy, fleet-fingered passages tend
to like action as low as possible
without getting string buzz, while
those who play with a very aggressive attack often need the action
higherbut as a general rule,
you should be able to barely slip
a business card between the 1st
fret and the string while holding
the string down at the 2nd fret.
When youre adjusting action via
nut-slot filing, remember that its
better to err on the cautious side
and do a little at a time, because
after you file away nut material,
its gone for good and youll have
to install a new nut. Since Im
starting with a nut thats already
slotted, I use a file thats the same
gauge as the string for that slot.
Im cutting for depthenough
to keep about a third of the string
thickness in the slotso I dont
need to take much off. I mark the
slots with a pencil in the bottom
so that, as I remove material, I can
see where Im cutting and keep
the same ramp angle. I want the
neck side of the nut to be the top
Photo 12. Press each string at the third fret to measure how much action
to adjust at the nut.
The New Parts

Bigsby B5 vibrato
Stewart-McDonald compensated
brass saddles (item no. 5167)
Curtis Novak JM-V and TEL-V pickups
Tone-Guard gold-anodized-aluminum pickguard
Switchcraft output jack
Electrosocket jack mount
CTS 250k solid-shaft potentiometers (4)
Fender amp knobs (4)
.022 F polyester tone capacitor
DAddario EXL 116 strings
The Tools
Sharpie marker
Phillips-head screwdriver
Small mallet
Gauged nut files
40-watt soldering iron
Blue painters tape
Hand drill
3/32" drill bit
T-square
Safety goggles
Dremel rotary tool with course
sanding-drum and polishing bits
Stick of lip balm
tip of the ramp, and I use long
steady strokes to keep the channel
nice and smooth. Cut a little, then
put the string back to check it. Go
slow and be precise, its easier to
cut than to fill.
Twang On!
There you have it folksweve
taken a few upgraded parts
and some simple tools, and we
turned a decent bedroom rocker
into a dependable, boutiquetoned instrument with a killer

look! Just remember that when
youre contemplating a project
like this, you want to start with
a guitar that feels right in your
hands. The fit and finish have to
be there for it to be worth any
hot-roddingand this Squier
Vintage Modified Telecaster
Custom certainly fit the bill in
that regard.
premierguitar.com
Real Twang Demands Real Vibrato.

Bigsby. True Vibrato.
Bigsby player Rick K. Kuebler told us For the last 10 years, Ive been
touring the Northeast with my band The Ultra Kings. I use Bigsby
products exclusively on my 4 Teles, two each of the B16 &the B5.
Rick took us up, and showed us HIS Bigsby...You gonna show us
YOURS?
www.bigsby.com/ShowUsPG
Check out the B50 and B70 kits ...

at your favorite guitar shop now!
Want a chance to be in a Bigsby ad? Send us an e-mail with a picture of you and YOUR Bigsby to
everythingyouneed@bigsby.com or send a picture to Bigsby, P.O. Box 2468, Savannah, GA 31402*
*Submitted photos will not be returned; submission constitutes permission to use photo in its entirety or edited form in print,
on the web, or in promotional materials. Bigsby is a registered trademark of Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd.
feature > yuri landman makeover
By Yuri Landman
m thrilled to do this project

for Premier GuitarIm always
happy to destroy a guitar for a
good cause! But first, I would
like to explain why youd want
to modify a guitar like this in the
first place. Ive played on prepared
guitars for more than 10 years,
and they work great in a studio
environment. But onstage its a
nightmare when you try to recreate the sounds you recorded
theyre never the same. In 2001,
I started building instruments of

my own design in order to solve
the inaccuracies of instant preparations. This has evolved over the
last 12 years, and at this point I
have created 40 or 50 different
types of stringed instruments. For
this project, Im using ideas from
some of my earlier designs, and
Im doing it in such a way that
anybody who is a bit handy with
tools can do the same thing with
a guitar of their choosing.
Note from the Editors

Here at Premier Guitar headquarters, we recently got the book Nice Noise, which details loads of interesting
instrument modifications and tools for prepared guitar (basically, ways of getting interesting sounds with stuff
from your junk drawer). With our makeover-themed issue in the works, we were intrigued when we flipped to the
more radical second half, where experimental instrument builders Yuri Landman (from the Netherlands) and Bart
Hopkin (San Francisco) highlight scores of modified guitars and custom instrumentsmany of them so unusual
that they hardly resemble a guitar.
While the look of these instruments, as well as the avant-garde music thats often associated with prepared
techniques, might lead you to believe theyre only for, well, weirdos, Landmans client roster proves otherwise.
Hes built instruments for Sonic Youths Lee Ranaldo, as well as members of radio-friendly bands such as the
Go! Team, Enon, and Micachu and the Shapes.
Inspired by the intriguing pictures, we invited Landman to walk us through one of the projects in Nice Noiseone thats a bit out-there but
one that we thought might still appeal to adventurous Premier Guitar readers. Here, Landman gives us a step-by-step guide to the transformation of an unsuspecting 6-string. Once youve read the tale, enter to win the guitar at premierguitar.com/landman-makeover.
premierguitar.com
The guinea piga $119,

budget-brand double-cutaway.
The Vision
This instrument has two main modifications, and each has its own 1/4" outputin addition to the original output. Youll notice in the photos that
the guitar has a rotated single-coil pickup. This allows you to route the 6th string to a separate ampone with ideal rhythm-guitar tonesto
fake the sound of a second guitarist playing power chords. It may even inspire you to kick the second guitarist out of your band. You think Im
joking, but here are some of the benefits of this artificial second guitarist:
She/he always plays perfectly in sync with your part.
She/he is always perfectly in tune with your guitar.
She/he isnt bored onstage when she/he has to skip a verse
to give the song breathing room or sit out for a song to yield a
more dynamic set.
She/he doesnt argue about being asked to play a simple part
(or other artistic differences).
She/he isnt always playing when you want

her/him to shut up and listen to your explanations
or requests during rehearsals.
She/he doesnt take a cut of profits from merch
sales and concert fees.
She/he doesnt steal your food, beer, bed, and
groupies while youre on tour.
The final product is a fittingly

scuffed-up experimental axe with a
rotated E-string pickup, a behindthe-bridge playing area with its own
pickup, and three 1/4" outputs.
premierguitar.com
The other mod youve no doubt

noticed is the relocation of the
bridge pickup to a new cavity
thats been routed behind the
Tune-o-matic-style bridge, as
well as the creation of a playable
area behind the bridgelike on
Fender Jaguars and Jazzmasters,
and a bunch of other 60s guitars that seemed to be searching
for the best tremolo system for
surf music. Many experimentally minded guitarists (including Sonic Youths Lee Ranaldo
and Thurston Moore) prefer
these guitars, and this playable
area behind the bridge is part of
the reason.
Our behind-the-bridge
playground will allow you
to play ethereal sounds reminiscent of a Turkish violin (or
other timbres in Eastern
music), and send them via an
independent output to their
own amp or effects processor.
I often strum this area with a
backhanded technique, alternating between picking in front
of and behind the bridge
tung-tung ting-ting tung-tung
ting-ting. You also get very
interesting and complex shared
overtones when you alternate
between playing behind-thebridge notes and the open
strings, as well as notes fingered
at the 5th, 7th, and 12th frets.
And you can expand the possibilities here with altered tunings that allow you to decide
which notes are on frets that
accentuate the rich overtones
and reverberant qualities.
With its neck pickup still in
the original location (and wired
to its own output), the guitar
can function as a normal electric guitar and as an experimental instrument.
The Guinea
Pig Guitar
To facilitate these two mods, I
bought a cheap, brand-new 89
(approximately $119) Ashton
guitar with dual humbuckers.
The reason I bought a Gibsonstyle guitar is that a Strat-style

guitar has a big cavity for the
tremolo system. Since I wanted
to route out the body to put
a pickup behind the bridge, I
didnt want to have to fill in a
cavity if it falls within the area
I might need to mount the
bridge. In my experience, this
guitar style is just easier to work
with on this mod.
Before you balk at the fact
that weve kept the cheap original pickups from this budget
brand, you should know that
I didnt even plug in and listen
to the guitar before buying it.
It sounds crazy, but basically
I dont care that much about
the quality of the wood and
materials with projects like this.
Rememberwere not trying
to create a guitar that sounds
perfect by traditional notions
of good guitar tone. Were
experimenting! Because of that,
we want a guitar that sounds
as unearthly as possibleand
any cheap guitar can do quite a
good job in that regard.
Other than having enough
wood to work with behind the
bridge, there was one other
important aspect I checked
before buying the guitar. I asked
for a ruler and measured how
much area was available behind
the bridgeI wanted enough
room to enable the new behindthe-bridge playing area to
sound notes two octaves above
each open string. It turned out
that the budget axe just barely
had enough space. Its 25" scale
put each open-strings octave
12.5" up the neck (at the 12th
fret), but because it only has 22
frets, the second octave isnt on
the fretboardits 6.25" north
of the bridge. That meant I
needed 6.25" of string length
behind the bridge, too. (Note:
If your guitar has a scale other
than 25", youll need to adjust
your behind-the-bridge measurements accordingly.)
Photo 1. Before doing any modifications, disassemble the guitar.
With regard to electronics, I

prefer to keep things as simple
as possible with my projects:
I never include tone knobs,
because most amps and effects
processors already have plenty
of equalization capability (and,
again, were experimenting
here). I also regard the volume
knob as useless, because these
instruments are intended to be
played loud or not at all. So
I use on/off switches instead
of potentiometers. Its zero or
onevery digital. You are,
of course, free to deviate and
experiment in whatever way
you wish.
This instrument has three
outputs and three on/off
switches. Whats thatyou
say you dont have three amps?
Well, you might someday! But
dont worry, while youre saving
up, Ive made it so that you can

use all the features with one or
two amps. How? Two of the
three switches are 3-way, on/
off/on switches, while the other
is an on/off. This enables you
to cluster the pickups to one or
two outputs instead of three.
Scuffing, Routing,
and Assembling
Now that youre convinced
these mods are a must, Ill guide
you through the process, step
by step:
1 Disassemble the guitar. And
I mean completely. (Photo 1).
2 Mess up the body. Okay,
this part is optional, but

think about itdo you really
want an experimental guitar
to look all shiny and stuffy?
premierguitar.com
Willie Adler
LAMB OF GOD
Wayne Lozinak
HATEBREED
Dan Auerbach
THE BLACK KEYS
Zach Myers
SHINEDOWN
Brian Marshall
ALTER BRIDGE / CREED
David
DavidEllefson
Ellefson
MEGADETH
MEGADETH
Jona Weinhofen
Richard Kruspe
RAMMSTEIN
Aaron Lewis
STAIND
PHOTO: PAUL BROWN
I KILLED THE PROM QUEEN
The only strings I will use on my

vinatge acoustic guitars are S.I.T.
Strings, and Ive tried them all.
- Aaron Lewis, Staind
Power, punch, and clarity are

the conerstones of my bass guitar
tone and these S.I.T. Signature
strings are designed to deliver
just that.
- David Ellefson, Megadeth
USA
The only strings that stay

absolutely true to their name.
I trust my S.I.T.s to stay in tune
in any setting
- Willie Adler, Lamb of God
THE STAY-IN-TUNE STRING COMPANY

GUITAR STRINGS BASS STRINGS ACCESSORIES
SITSTRINGS.COM
Im a strong proponent of
functionalism. Form follows
function. I dislike sunburst
finishes and any other kind of
useless decoration, considering it kitsch. It makes guitars
look like a jukebox! Therefore
I trash the polish with a band
polisher. After five minutes
weve got a messed-up body
(Photo 2).
3 Route (or drill) holes for
Photo 2. Five minutes with a band polisher yields a fitting look for the avant axe.
the new pickups. Out of

3/4" thick plywood (or medium-density fiberboard), cut
out a block thats a little less
than 1/2" wider on the treble
and bass side than the size of
the pickups youll be installing. Then, clamp your new
router template on the guitars body and trace around
it with your router. (Here,
Ive centered the behind-the
bridge cavity about 1 1/2"
from the bridge.) Then,

unclamp the template and
remove the remaining material in the center of the newly
created channel (Photo 3).
If you dont own a router,
you can create a guerillastyle route with a series of
drilled holes. It wont look
pretty, but then again, well,
yknow....
The size of your route, as well
as your guitars exact pickup
configuration, will affect the
size of the cavity for your rotated pickup. For our single-coil,
I routed a channel linking the
neck humbuckers cavity with
the original bridge-pickup cavity. Its approximately 1 3/16"
wide and the same depth as the
existing cavities.
Note: If you arent experienced with potentially dangerous power tools such as routers
premierguitar.com
and band polishers, have a qualified guitar tech or carpenter do

these jobs. Otherwise, be sure
to wear goggles and take other
prudent safety measures.
4 Connect the ground wire.
Every guitar has a ground

wire preventing undesired
noise when you touch the
strings. Originally, our guitars ground was connected
to the tailpiece that were no
longer using. Because were
adding a new tailpiece near
the edge of the guitars top
(close to the strap button),
the simplest solution is to
connect the ground to the
bridge. Drill a 1/8" hole from
the new pickup cavity to the
control cavity. Then strip one
end of a piece of wire that
can reach from the closest
Tune-o-matic bridge-post
hole and into the control
premierguitar.com
cavity. When you put the

bridge back in and string the
guitar, the wire will connect
to the metal and ground the
strings. Well worry about the
other end of the wire later,
when were working on the
rest of the electronics.
5 Reassemble the guitar. If
you opted not to mess up

your guitar (as directed in
step 2), the only thing youll
need to do here is relocate
the bridge pickup from its
original position to the new
cavity behind the bridge, and
then install your rotated pickup. Route their wires through
the appropriate holes to the
control cavity, and then screw
them into the body using
either a small pencil spring
or a rubber bushing (I used
small surgical tubing) around
the mounting screw to help
Photo 3. New cavities for the behind-the-bridge pickup and rotated single-coil.
raise and lower the pickup, as

well as keep it steady.
If you were truly avant
garde and messed up your
guitar, nows the time to
replace the tuning pegs, neck,
strap buttons, and everything
(except the bridge pickup)
to its original position. Pat
yourself on the back for your
bravery and adventurousness.
6 Mount your tailpiece.
Because we needed the previously mentioned 6.25" of

space for our behind-the-nut
playing area, our guitars
original tailpiece is no longer
of use to us with this guitar.
Its mounting studs are so
large that installing them
on the Ashton wouldnt
leave enough wood for a
secure mounting. If your
guitar leaves adequate space
(approximately an inch or
two of wood between the
studs and the guitars edge),
then you can use your
Tune-o-matics tailpiece.
Otherwise, like me, youll
need to make a new string
mounting. To do so, cut a
1/4" x 1/4" x 3 5/16" piece
of brass and drill three 1/8"
holes (one at each end, and
one in the middle) for the
top mounting screws, as well
as six 9/64" holes for the
strings. If your guitar also has
a 25" scale, be sure to screw
the piece of brass as close
as possible to the point that
will give you 6.25" of string
length behind the bridge
(Photo 4).
7 Install the new electronics.
Each of our three pickups

will be connected to one
switch. On our guitar, Ive
numbered the toggles and
jacks on the body (Photo
5). The numbers next to the
switches indicate which output the signal will go to (the
X next to the neck-pickups
red-tipped 2-way knob indicates the off position).

Because you may not have
three amps (or may not want to
always use them with your cool
new guitar), its handy to be
able to switch the new pickup
and the relocated pickup (which
I sometimes call the tail pickup) to the same output as the
neck pickup (which is wired to
the original jack). The rotated
pickup is connected to the middle on/off/on toggle, while the
relocated pickup is connected
to the jack closest to the new
output jacks. However, I highly
recommend you try using multiple amps and different types
of effects for each signal path.
You can get some pretty magical, wild, and beautiful sounds
by using different tones and
timbres, as well as by separating
them in your performance space
or mix. Its a whole new world
to discover!
Photo 6 shows the internal
wiring. Ive taken output jack
1 (at top) out of its slot so you
can see how I connected the
pickups to multiple outputs.
Our guitars two original pickups have only one combined
wire, with the positive lead
being the inner portion and the
negative being the sleeve. The
thick red wire is from the neck
pickup, and its core is wired to
the middle pole of toggle 1 (far
left). The thick black wire is
from the rotated pickup. Its core
is wired to the middle pole of
toggle 2 (middle). The ground
wires from all three pickups, as
well as the bridge ground wire
(the small gray lead that disappears behind the red wire and
into the hole we drilled in step
4) and the ground lugs (the
inner lug) from outputs 1 and 3
are grounded to the innermost
lug of output jack 2. The blue
wire is from the tail pickup, and
its core is soldered to the middle
pole of toggle 3 (right).
Photo 4. The new brass tailpiece.
Photo 5. The toggles and output jacks.
Photo 6. The wiring.
premierguitar.com
The Tools
Phillips-head screwdriver
Electric screwdriver
40-watt soldering iron
Linemans pliers
Wire stripper
Drill press or powered hand drill
Angle grinder OR hacksaw
Band polisher for scuffing the body to match
the experimental sonic vibe (optional)
The Parts
Spare pickup
Two on/off/on mini toggles
One on/off mini toggle
Two 1/4" jacks
4"6" length of insulated wire
1/4" x 1/4" x 3 5/16" piece of brass
Three 1"1 1/4" wood screws
Four pickup-mounting wood screws
Four pencil springs or rubber bushings (for
pickup mounting)
Moving back to toggle 1,

the topmost lug, along with
the bottom lugs of toggles 2
and 3, are wired to the positive outer lug of output jack 1.
Meanwhile, the topmost lug of
toggle 2 is wired to the positive
lug of output 2, and the topmost lug of toggle 3 is wired to
the positive lug of output 3.
8 String it up and go crazy!
Certain brands of strings

may be too short now that
youve got a larger playing
area, so you may have to
do some research once you
know which guitar youll
be working with. I used
DAddarios for this guitar,
but you may have to try a
few different brands.
EN GARDE!
Ive made more impressivelooking guitars in the past,
and so have many others
including the late, great Hans
Reichel, who made extraordinary guitars with remarkable
behind-the-bridge systems.
But these particular mods are
a relatively affordable and easy
(this project took me about
two hours) way to start down
the path of experimentalism
for adventurous guitarists.
Although they look weird,
they can add a new sonic
dimension to music of all
typesnot just avant-garde,
out-there stuff. I hope these
rude guitar modifications
inspire you to explore the wild
world of sound research!
Click here to visit premierguitar.com/mar2013

to hear audio samples of one of Yuri
Landmans relocated-pickup guitar mods.
premierguitar.com
guitar parts Manufacturers & dealers Index
Guitar parts Manufacturers & dealers index

Have our makeover stories whetted your appetite for modding? Below are just some of the many
parts builders and dealers who can help you make your tweaking visions a reality.
bodies and necks
All Parts
Guitar Mill/Mario Martin
Mighty Mite
USA Custom Guitars
Warmoth Guitar Products
allparts.com
guitarmill.com
mightymite.com
usacustomguitars.com
warmoth.com
ELECTRONICS
Awesome Guitars
Bourns
MEC/Music Electronic
Toneshaper
awesome-guitars.
bourns.com
mec-pickups.de
toneshapers.com
HARDWARE
Bigsby
Callaham Guitars
Earvana
EverTune
Floyd Rose Marketing
Floyd Upgrades
Gotoh
Graph Tech
Greasy Groove
Grover Musical Products
Hipshot Music Products
Kahler
P-Whammy
Picksguard Heaven
Schaller
Sperzel USA
Stetsbar
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Anything that looks and

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has to come from Jet City
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20 Watts of EL84 all Tube Vintage Tone

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www.jetcityamplification.com
Contact us for participating dealers
jetcity@starin.biz (800)846-5606 x260
premierguitar.com
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GREAT GEAR GIVEAWAY
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feature > Eric bibb & Habib Koit
bonded
by rhythm
Raised in two vastly different
cultures, Eric Bibb and Habib
Koit celebrate their harmonic
common ground, proving that
music has no borders.
Written By Jon DAuria
Photos by michel Debock
From the moment they first met,

acclaimed guitarists Eric Bibb and
Habib Koit knew that someday
theyd come together to merge
their culturally rooted styles of guitar playing and create an album
that explored the differences and
commonalities of their respective regions. The only thing stopping them was their hectic touring
schedules and the fact that they
live in entirely different parts of
the world. Showing that kindred
spirits care not of geography, Koit
from Mali, Africa, and Bibb from
Helsinki, Finland, decided to seize
the opportunity in 2012 and develop the album they had aspired to
createBrothers in Bamako.
premierguitar.com
Mississippi Delta blues player Eric Bibb (right) naturally picked up on the rhythms of Habib Koits (left) West African music, and vice versa.
Blending their collective

influences of blues, folk, gospel, and world music, the duo
reveals their admiration for
one another on the album,
and their compatibility is
illustrated through Bibbs
rhythmic fingerpicking, Koits
melodic nylon-string lines,
and the combined power of
their vocals.
Eric is truly a great guitar
player, says Koit. His playing is beautiful and really clear
and his voice is in perfect
harmony with it. His way of
playing a bass line and high
line at the same time is close to
rhythms played in some areas
of Mali.
Their independent flavors
make for an interesting duo,
and each player was able to
channel a heartfelt depth and
fresh energy into traditional
blues and folk-anchored material on Brothers in Bamako.
Habib uses different techniques that add a lot of color
to everything, says Bibb. He
plays a lot of lead lines and
does the soloing while I handle
the harmonies on the songs.
premierguitar.com
YOUTUBE IT
Bibb and Koit give thanks to

Fylde luthier Roger Bucknall for
making them custom guitars
before playing the track Brothers in Bamako on their new
instruments.
YouTube search term: New Guitars For Eric Bibb and Habib Koit
He also has a vast knowledge of

his countrys music and he has
absorbed styles that are from
different regions close to his
own. His palette is huge and
everything he plays is soulful.
It was a chance meeting that
brought the two players together in 1999 when they were both
invited to California to work on
Mali to Memphis, a cross-cultural project from the world-music
label Putumayo. This marked
the first time the two had ever
had the opportunity to play
together on one stage.
Witness the dynamic chemistry of acoustic players Eric Bibb and

Habib Koit in these live performances of tracks from their new album.
The duo performs a beautiful

rendition of Needed Time at
Mijkes Middag on a Radio 6
broadcast.
YouTube search term: Habib
Koit & Eric Bibb live at Radio
6 2 Nov 2012
Right away we directly

felt a connection, says Koit.
During the promo tour, we
made some short in-store performances where we played
some tracks together quite easily. Our playing is very similar
and it was natural for me to
play Erics blues of Mississippi
and Eric seemed really comfortable playing Mandingue
rhythms.
An opportunity presented
itself for the pair to travel to
Brussels, where they spent a
week in a hotel room writing
Mama Kon joins Eric and Habib

on percussion at the Blues
Garage to perform their grooving
tune We Dont Care.
YouTube search term: Eric
Bibb, Habib Koit We Dont
Care Blues Garage 18.11.12
songs, playing each others

music, and sharing stories from
their lives. The result of these
sessions turned into Brothers
in Bamako, a 13-song album
featuring new material, selections from their own solo work,
a cover of Bob Dylans Blowin
in the Wind, and the classic
blues Goin Down the Road
Feelin Bad.
This album wasnt really a
big ambitious musicology exercise, it was more of finding the
connection within our playing,
says Bibb. [Habib] is deep into
Habib Koit
(left) and Eric Bibb work out some arrangements on their custom Fylde acoustics, built by luther Roger Bucknall.
his cultures music and I am

into mine. He studied classical
guitar like I did earlier on, and
we have a lot of similar influences. We really just wanted to
show two guitarists who live far
apart from each other coming
together to make a record.
The tracks On My Way to
Bamako, Tomboucto, and
We Dont Care meld Koits
African-inspired soloing with
Bibbs blues-based chops in a way
that gives the illusion that theyve
been playing together for decades.
I like to use a technique
where my thumb plays the bass
notes and my other fingers do
the rest of the work in a Travis
picking sort of way, though Im
not a puritan at all, says Bibb.
Habib has this amazing pull-off
technique where hell take a line
and hell pull-off and do these
fast little runs that break up the
consecutive notes. I think the
two work perfectly together.
While the players grew up
thousands of miles away from
each other, their paths in music

are oddly in line. Bibb was born
in New York where his father
Leon was a popular singer in
the folk scene. After picking
up classical guitar at age 7 and
getting some sound advice from
a young Bob Dylan (Keep it
simple and forget all the fancy
stuff ), Bibb moved from Paris
to London to Stockholm to
Finland where he established
himself as a respected singer/
songwriter and sideman.
Everywhere Ive lived Ive
been fortunate to always find
great musicians to play with
and learn from, Bibb says.
The actual music of the place
Im living has a big influence
on me. There are wonderful
hybrids of folk music and jazz
that have inspired me from all
over the world.
Koit was also born to musical parents and spent his early
days playing at the Bamako
National Institute of Arts, where
he too studied classical music.
He began writing his own material, forming bands, teaching

the children of his community,
and has played in support of
musicians spanning the globe,
including such American performers as Bonnie Raitt. Mali is
a country with such a richness of
music and rhythms that I have a
strong desire to play with people
from all cultures to share it with
them, says Koit.
The duo enjoyed writing and
performing together so much that
theyve already planned a followup album and tour for the future.
In the meantime, there is no
shortage of projects or tours that
demand their attention as they
head back to their homelands.
Theres a certain thrill to
being in the zone and being
able to be on the receiving end
of a really inspiring song, says
Bibb. It has to do with your
own will, but also you have to
know that inspiration strikes
when it wants to. Well always
be ready.
Eric Bibbs
Gear
GUITARS
Fylde Signature acoustic,
Fylde Pink Ivory
custom baritone,
1930s Weymann
6-string banjo guitar
STRINGS
Elixir Nanoweb
Habib Koits
Gear
GUITARS
Godin Multiac Nylon SA,
Fylde acoustic
STRINGS
Savarez Blue
high-tension nylon
premierguitar.com
Rodney Crowell
and Collings Guitars
Rodney Crowell and his 1993 Collings C10 Deluxe
Serious Guitars | www.CollingsGuitars.com | (1) -
feature > j.d. simo
the bandstand and
the bible of classic rock
By Michael Ross
Photo by Sean Marshall Studios
Nashvilles JD Simo is a
graduate of the Don Kelley
school of honky-tonk, proving
ground for some of the worlds
best pickers. Other alumni
of Kelleys legendary Roberts
Western World band include
Johnny Hiland and Jerry
Douglas/Patty Loveless sideman Guthrie Trapp.
But hearing Simos self-titled

band, you would never guess
that the lad can still occasionally be heard tearing up Truck
Driving Man with Kelley &
Co. Simos music is way more
classic rock than classic country:
Fool for You sounds like a
Free outtake and Aoh recalls
the Yardbirds, while other tunes
flash back to Zeppelin, or Truthera Jeff Beck.
In fact, Simo insists he has no
idea how he got the Kelley gig.
But his predecessor knows. Don
loves the blues, says Trapp, and,
indeed, one listen to the Peter
Green soul of Whats On Your
Mind, on Simo (Sundazed),
clears up how the young Arizona
transplant got the job. I picked

up the country stuff on the bandstand, says Simo. When that
gig came along I had to immerse
myself in it, painfully learning
in front of audiences. I never felt
quite comfortable in the roleI
love country, but everyone has
their own preferences.
JD Simos preference for the
rock music of his parents generation formed when he was a child.
Around 1993, I taped a miniseries off the television, called the
History of Rock and Roll, and it
became my bible, he recalls. It
would tell me what to get at the
record store. I could also check
out Elvis movies and old Ed
Sullivan shows from the library.
premierguitar.com
feature > j.d. simo
JD Simos Gear
GUITARS
RS Guitars Slab 59
1962 Gibson ES-335
1967 Gibson J-50
AMPS
1967 Fender Deluxe
1967 Plexi Marshall
Super PA
Silvertone 1484
(on record only)
EFFECTS
The SIMO trio features Frank Swart on bass, JD Simo on vocals and guitar, and Adam Abrashoff on drums.
Photo by Sean Marshall Studios
To avoid starvation in
Nashville, Simo put his love
of classic rock on the back
burner and soloed up a storm
on Folsom Prison Blues at
Roberts on Broadway. On
a street full of players with
cookie-cutter pedalboards, he
became known as the kid with
no effects. I tried every pedal
there was, but, in the end, I
preferred the sound of the guitar
straight into the amp, he says.
At the time, the amp was a stock
Fender Deluxe Reverb, and
the guitar, an RS Guitarworks
Tele-inspired model. I wanted
something that looked like Mike
Bloomfieldsrosewood board
and white body, he explains.
SIMOthe bandcame
about through a chance to play
with his favorite Nashville rhythm
section. Frank Swart and Adam
Abrashoff had been playing
together for years, says Simo.
Frank emailed me out of the
blue and said, Want to jam? We
got together and improvised for
three hoursI had never done
that before. It felt like 10 minutes.
We changed keys and tempos,
went to noiseit was beautiful.
The bands classic rock is filtered through a modern sensibility that allows for some sophisticated harmonic ideas, and
premierguitar.com
for a wall of sound created by

Swarts pedals. Aside from a Joe
Bonamassa wah, however, Simo
himself still eschews effects. If
you are going with largely guitar
and amp, the choice of guitar
becomes extremely important.
Its a 1962 Gibson ES-335
with PAFs, says Simo. It is all
original, except I took the Bigsby
off. I got it by selling every possession I owned and using my
savings. Im glad I didI will
sleep under a bridge with it.
My goal in life was to find an
instrument that was part of me.
It is an appendage, it goes everywhere with me.
Of course, the guitar is only
half the equation. When you
shun pedals, the right amplifier is equally essential. I have
played through a plethora of
old Plexi-era Marshalls and I
really like 67s because of the
Drake transformers in them,
says Simo. They are cleaner by
nature. My favorite 67 is the
100-watt Super PA. The PAs are
no different from a Super Bass
or Super Leadit is the exact
same circuitry, they just have
four more inputs. They are the
poor mans Super Lead.
When it comes to amps,
its all about headroom for JD
Simo. I dont like a high-gain
sound. The old Marshalls I use

are not set up to be high gain,
he says. People think its funny
when I say thatthey see the
band play and its very distorted.
But it is a very stiff, uncompressed distortion. I like to fight
for the note, I like feeling my
hand do the work.
I keep the bright caps
[capacitors] in my old
Marshallsthe ones everyone
takes out. I need as many highmid frequencies as I can get in
order to cut through Franks
bass, because he is almost like
another guitar player.
It doesnt sound harsh
because the top cabinet is a 1969
basket-weave cabinet with bass
cone 25-watt Celestions. They
were meant to be bass speakersthey go down to 55 Hz, as
opposed to 75 Hz, but all the
guitar players liked them because
they were so warm. I prefer the
25-watt models to cut through
Frank. The 30s sound more pleasant by themselves, but in context
the 25s work best for me.
Simos sonic obsession
extends to the recording process.
Releasing a 7" single from the
CD meant recording old-school.
We recorded it in a way that
was intended for vinylrecorded, mixed, and mastered analog,
Dunlop Joe Bonamassa

Signature Cry Baby Wah
Maestro FZ-1 Fuzztone
(on record only)
STRINGS
AND PICKS
DAddario
.010.046 strings,
Dunlop Tortex
.73 mm picks
he says. We mastered it for
vinyl. Those sub-frequencies that
have become standard in modern
mixes arent cuttable to vinyl.
With their styling, musical references, and equipment
drawn from the 1960s, it would
be easy to dismiss Simo as some
sort of ironic retro lark. Nothing
could be further from the truth.
Like Jack White and The Black
Keys, JD Simo and his band
have taken what was great about
the rock music of another era
warm tone, direct emotions,
freedom to experimentand
adapted it to now.
Like the bands of the era
they honor, such as Cream or
the Grateful Dead, this band is
not afraid to go out on a ledge.
Some nights are better than
others, says Simo. There have
been a handful of nights where
it was really something else, but
every night has a moment
that is the nature of improvisational music.
builder profile > bob bradshaw
In the early 1980s,

Bob Bradshaw paired
his engineering skills with
his passion for music and
guitars. before long,
he was one of the most
talked-about and soughtafter builders of amp- and
effects-switching systems
on the planeta tech to
stars like eddie van
halen, steve vai, MIke
landau, steve lukather,
and countless others.
by Michael Ross
rofessional guitarists in the 80s

and 90s were as likely to recognize
the name Bob Bradshaw as Eddie Van
Halen. In that era of refrigerator-sized
rack systems, awash with glittering LEDs,
Bradshaw Boards reigned supreme.
Attending a concert featuring Dokken,
Aerosmith, Metallica, Megadeth, Journey,
Motley Cre, Def Leppard, Toto, Steve
Vai or the aforementioned EVH meant
seeing, or certainly hearing, the result of
Bradshaws work as a gear systems designer.
Nor were his customers restricted to the
hard rock/metal crowd. You were as likely
to experience a Bradshaw rig at shows by
Steve Miller, Lee Ritenour, Duran Duran,
Steely Dan, or even Gloria Estefan and
Madonna. Touring guitarists in all genres
came to Bob to have their pedals, rack
gear, and amps wired together in a reliable,
roadworthy, systema system that offered
instant access to any sound required.
With his company Custom Audio
Electronics, Bob Bradshaw is still constructing hand-built systems for the likes of
Billie Joe Armstrong, Dweezil Zappa, and
Trey Anastasio at his live/work space in the
Los Angeles Brewery Artist Lofts, a converted Pabst Blue Ribbon plant. We spoke
to him about the rise and fall of rack gear
and the bad rap that buffers suffer.
LEFT: Bob Bradshaw with the rig he designed
for Five Finger Death Punch guitarist Josh Hook.
Photo by Rebecca Dirks
premierguitar.com
Where did you grow up?

I was born and lived in Florida until I went
to electronics school in Atlanta, Georgia, in
the late 70s. I didnt have any electronics
knowledge, but I was the kid with the biggest stereoI just loved music.
Were you a guitar player?
No, I bought a guitar just so I could hold it
[laughs]. I bought a Tele Custom because I
loved Danny Kortchmar and he played one.
I bought an Acoustic 150 amplifier and
built a cabinet but I could barely play a lick.
I just wanted to be part of music somehow.
You say you built a cabinet. Were you
always handy in that way?
No, I bought a Dynaco Stereo 400 power amp
kit and it was too intimidatingI couldnt do
it. I had a friend at work put it together.
After high school, I wanted to get into
engineering but there werent many recording schools back then. I figured if I learned
what was going on behind the knobs; that
would give me a skill to help me get into
audio engineering, so I went to DeVry
Institute of Technology.
I did very well there. My math skills
werent great; luckily the pocket calculator came along around that time [laughs].
I graduated at the top of my class and got
recruited to come to California to work for
Hughes Aircraft. I figured the music industry was in California, so if I got out there
maybe I would find something I could do.
I worked for Hughes for a year, and then
saw an ad in a newspaper for Musical Service
Centera place that fixed instruments. I
went in with no experience, but they hired
me to be a bench technician. I got thrown
into the fire, getting the crap shocked out of
me working on Marshall amps. Fortunately
some guys there helped me.
Was this the early 80s?
It was around 79 or 80. It was all pedals in
those daysrackmounted pieces were just
starting to come along. I might occasionally
see an Eventide H910 Harmonizer, or an
early Roland rackmounted delay.
I hated seeing guys bending over to diddle with their pedalboards in performance.
The pedals were different sizes and different
shapes, some had lights some didnt; Im
thinking, You have to get that stuff off
the floor. Why not have a separate bank of
switches to control the pedals?
Custom Audio Electronics founder Bob Bradshaw (center) with Michael Landau (left), Steve
Lukather (right), and the racks he set up for them
in the 90s. INSET: This 1982 sketch details the
first rig Bradshaw designed for Landau. Photo
by Glen LaFerman
My main inspiration was Craig Anderton

and his technical articles in the back of Guitar
Player magazine. In a series of articles, he
mapped out an idea for an electronic switch,
sparking in me the idea for a switching loop.
I didnt have any idea about Pete Cornish and
what he had done in the 70sI just had this
concept of a remote control switcher that could
control all the pedals and rack stuff, so you
are not running audio to and from the amp.
Most of it would be back in a rack, neatly
wired together, up off the ground, so you could
adjust the pedals standing up. I wanted a patch
bay arrangement with individual loops. I didnt
want to modify the effects; I just wanted them
to work nicely together, so I developed various
types of audio-routing circuits.
How did you get started selling this concept?
I built some custom pieces for a few players around town. One of my favorites was
Buzzy Feiten. He had this crazy pedalboard,
and an Echoplex on a mic stand so he
could manipulate the delay time. He was
tap dancing on the pedals and bending over
to tweak themit was distracting for the
player, as well as the people watching. I presented to him the idea of building a floorboard with labeled switches for each effect.
I didnt know about professional racks or
trays at the time so we mounted everything
in a Technics home stereo rack. We cut slots

into a piece of aluminum and mounted the
pedals on the top: the Echoplex, a Boss EQ,
and an MXR Dyna Comp. The rack stuff,
like his Eventide H910 harmonizer, was
mounted below. On that rig, the jacks for
the loops were mounted on the top of the
interface box; it didnt occur to me to put
them on the back. The front of the box had
outputs for amplifiers, and a big, honkin
multi-pin connector for the control pedal.
Buzzy is a tinkerer, always looking for better sound. I would learn new stuff and apply it
to his rack. Through him I met Mike Landau,
through Landau, Steve Lukather, through
Lukather I met Eddie Van Halen, and
through Eddie, Steve Vai. Then I met Andy
Summers, Peter Frampton, and so many othersit was all through word of mouth.
How did you eventually connect with
John Suhr?
He came to me and wanted a switcher. He
is another one who is always looking for
the best way to do stuff. He was still working at Rudys [Music Stop] in New York. I
persuaded him to come out here, gave him
a car and found him a place to live.
Did he come out specifically to work
with you?
premierguitar.com
Rock is your religion

-and these are your altar boys
At Goby Labs, we believe guitars are much more

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soul. Shouldnt you return the favor?
Universal Guitar Stand

GBU-300
Finally, theres a stand that cradles your guitar

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A-Frame Guitar Stand

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The beauty of an A-frame guitar stand is its

simplicity. Our A-frame Guitar Stand consists of
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GBU-300
GBA-300
Guitar-hook Thingy
GBX-302
Wouldnt it be nice if you could hang your guitar

from your mic stand? Now you can! We designed
our Guitar-hook Thingy around a patent-pending
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stand for strength. Now you have room for that
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Some might say, of our plethora of innovations,
we thought of everything. Nope, we just listened
to the Gods of Rock.
GBX-302
Distributed exclusively by Hosa Technology, Inc.
For more information contact your local dealer or visit www.gobylabs.com
The story goes: I was working with Steve

Lukather, who wanted a switcher for his
multiple amp rig. We were using a Soldano
amp for the main solo sound, a Marshall for
crunch, and a Mesa/Boogie amp for clean.
It was really expensive to ship multiple amps
around, so I commissioned Mike Soldano to
build the first 3-channel preamp.
I gave Mike one of my switcher chassis and said, I want totally independent
channels with bass, middle, treble, gain and
master for each channel. I want the first
channel to be voiced like a Fender Twin, I

want a Marshall crunch channel, and I want
your SLO-100 preamp stage for the solo
sound. And, I want to be able to remote
control it from my switching system.
He built it and that became the Soldano
X88R preamp. It opened up a big new business for Soldano, who was charging $1,800
a pop for this preamp. But even though it
was my concept, he was selling them to me
for $1,700! And, there were things about the
Soldano I didnt like. There werent many
guitar-voiced power amps at that time,

so you would be shoving this preamp
into a flat-sounding, solid-state amp or a
sterile-sounding tube amp. I had to use
an extra EQ stage to give them more life.
I started talking to John Suhr, who
was doing Marshall mods by that time.
John and I came up with some ideas for
improving the three-stage preamps tone,
and we added a tube-powered active EQ
stage at the end of the chain that you
could switch in and out of the circuit.
John put the guitar thing away for a
while and we started doing preamps and
the OD-100 amplifier. I came up with
the concepts and John designed the circuitry. We formed a company: Custom
Audio Amplifier. When he left and went
to Fender we dissolved the company.
Do you still manufacture the CAA amps?
John Suhr does thatI sold the rights
to him. I dont make amps anymore.
I got into building hardware because
there wasnt the hardware out there
to do what I wanted it to do. I never
wanted to be a big hardware manufacturer, so I collaborate with other people.
I like building systems and working
with the end user.
So you are concentrating on
switching systems?
Absolutely, I have a new foot controller, the RS-T, which is an evolution of
my old RS system.
Take us through the evolution.
When I started, the switches were what
you call direct access, or instant access;
there werent any presets. Thats why my
boards were so big: you had an individual switch for each effect. The evolution from there was being able to hit
one switch and make multiple things
happen. I came up with a scheme for
having programmable preset combinations of these instant access switches.
There was no MIDI at the time, no
microprocessor involved, no codeit
was all static memory chips.
So you had one set of switches for
individual effects and a separate set
for presets?
Exactly, and it had switches to move up
and down banks. Rocktron came along
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and wanted to come out with a system

based on mine. They added a character
display so you could name the presets. We
worked together through the 80s and 90s.
In the meantime I wanted a simpler
system, so I developed the RS-10, with
10 direct access switches, four preset
switches and two switches for bank up
and bank down16 total. You could
expand that with an expander unit that
had six more direct access and two more
preset switches that would sit on the
floor right next to the RS-10. It had just
a three-digit display. The Rocktron thing
ended, but I continued building RS-10
systems for hundreds of name players.
A few years ago I developed the
RS-T. Based on the RS-10, it is MIDI,
has a beautiful vacuum-fluorescent
display for naming presets, inputs for
four controller pedals, and is expandable from an eight-switch version to a
40-switch version. It is now assignable:
You can decide what any one of those
eight to 40 switches do.
The rack stuff got a bad rap over time,

but that was just a format for the sounds. It
is harder putting together systems with pedalsyou have so many different voltages
and connectors. Also, think about it: You
are spending $300 for this pedal and then
you are stomping on it. That is another
reason I wanted to get the stuff up off of
the floor.
How are you dealing with this trend
towards pedalboards?
Thats the thing I am most excited about

pursuing these days: a pedalboard-based
switching system. Thats why the RS-T
controller is long and thin: so it can fit on a
pedalboard. I dont like pedalboard switchers
where the loops and controller is one unit,
where you are stomping on the audio router.
I prefer a controller that you step on,
with your pedals sitting in between that and
an audio loop router that you patch into
on the perimeter of the board, or what I
call the audience side. It is still a two-part
In other words, you can decide

whether they are direct access to one
effect or a preset switch?
Or boththey are all direct access in
direct mode. In preset mode you
decide how many are preset switches.
Say you have 16 switches, you can set
it up so eight are direct access and eight
are presets, but in direct mode they are
all direct access. When you are in direct
mode the LEDs are red, in preset mode
they are blue. If they are programmed to
be momentary switches, they are yellow.
There are seven or eight colors, depending on their function and 200 possible
presets. It is still evolving: We finally got
SysEx going so you can back up presets to
the computer, and we have USB ports on
them so we can develop editing software.
How have gear setups changed in
recent years?
It has gone more towards pedals. From
the beginning, for me, it has always
been about the interfacing of pedals
with rackmount pieces. It got very
rackmount heavy in the 80s, now it has
come back around to mostly pedals these
days. Pedals are compact, and you can
spend a couple hundred bucks and have
a new sound.
premierguitar.com
system, its just that the audio router and

pedals are no longer back at a rack.
Are you selling the pedalboard
controllers yet?
Oh yeah, there are dozens of them out
there. The controller is an off-the-shelf
piece, but the audio routers are custom
built. Everybodys rig is different, thats what
makes this still fun after 30-some years: One
guys system might be stereo, another mono;
one guy might need eight inputs, another
just four; one might want to use the effects
loop of an amp, and someone else might use
a preamp and a power amp.
My systems are based on a format of
switchable functions. These functions
might be a loop, or a switchable output
to send the signal to various amps. It might
be a control function: maybe an isolated
relay contact closer, for doing channel
switching. Then there are subsets like A/B
switches, A/B combiners, mixer circuits,
and summing amps.
If you want something custom built,
I am the guy who can do it. Sometimes
it might take a while because it is labor
intensive. I have an assistant or two, and an
assembly house that puts together the RS-T
units, but my hands are on everything
before it goes out of here.
Do you just supply the system or do you
wire up the whole thing?
It is all built and wired by my assistant or
me. There is a science to laying all these
things outits like a game of Tetris. Youve
got all these pedals in all these different
sizes, and everybody wants it small, and
light, and that aint easy. Thats the biggest
trend, smaller and lighter.
How do you deal with things like fuzz
pedals that have to have the guitar coming directly into the input?
They are in a loop but I dont buffer
before them. I rarely have any active circuitry in the first five to seven loops. I
only put a buffered circuit in the signal
path where it needs to bewhere you
would hear a difference if it wasnt there.
For example: if you are running multiple
amplifiers, you have to transformer isolate
them so you dont get a common ground
and a bunch of hum. A passive guitar signal
wont feed a transformer, so you have to add
some active circuitry at the end of the chain.
Practical Pedaling
Bob Bradshaws Advice
Pedals have come back from their initial popularity in the 80s, says effects systems
designer Bob Bradshaw. Theyre great because its a self-containing little thing,
he says. There are tons of people out there making all kinds of different things so
its wide open in terms of the choice you have in sounds. When he first started his
career in pedalboard engineering, there werent many rackmounted piecesthe
ones he worked with were studio pieces like Eventide Harmonizers, for example. I
remember the first time I saw a rackmounted Roland delay that Buzzy Feiten had
and I was like, Wow! Look at that, because it was like a space echo.
While rackmounted pedalboards are very common now with touring guitarists,
Bradshaws innovation with two-board systems uses a controller mounted on one
board and the pedals on another board rather than a rack tray, which Bradshaw
says is easier on pedals and allows for for better upkeep and transport than
rackmount trays.
Here he gives some general advice on what to consider when designing your
own pedal setup, from streamlining your board to your specific needs as a player.
First things first:

How do you play?
When a player approaches Bradshaw for
a custom-built product,
the first thing he asks
is, What do you need?
Rack or pedalboard?
That is the question.
Next hell ask you to
consider every effect
and element you want to
include, so that you can
consider order routings
of the effects. Order is
subjective, Bradshaw
says, so its up to the
player to figure out what
order they are most comfortable playing through.
Clean up
your signal.
Put your pedals into
some form of looping system, Bradshaw
advises. This is optimal
as long as the looping
system is well designed,
because not only is it
bypassing the pedal; it
is bypassing the cables
connecting the pedal.
Follow your
instincts.
Bradshaw has just
about seen it all in his
decades of switching
system routing, and
through this hes learned
that in the end, its all
about personal preference. Anything goes, it
doesnt matter, as long
as it works for you.
CAE custom switchers come in any size and

configuration that will fit a
players needs.
Or, in the rackmounted systems, there

might be three or four passive loops,
but then I have to send the signal
back to the floorto a wah or volume
pedal. At that point I would add a buffer but
not before.
I am building a lot of two-board systems.
The trend is to mount the controller on one
board and the pedals on another board rather
than a rack tray; those sliding rack trays dont
hold up. If you flyand more people do
these days the racks get creamed by the
monkeys loading them at the airport. So I
mount everything on boards in a suitcasetype enclosuresuitcases come through the
ramps better than a rack tumbling down.
With a two-board system, at your stage

position you have a board with your controller and maybe a couple of pedals like a
wah, or volume, and a tuner. The signal has
to be sent to a second pedalboard offstage
or back by the amps, where all the routing
is taking place, so on the first board I put a
little MC-401 boost/line driver I designed
for Dunlop.
On a two-board system, the buffer is essential. Lets say you have 10 feet of cable from
your guitar to the first board, plus the loading
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from your wah and tuner, then 30 feet of cable

connecting to your second board back by the
amps. Now you have 40 feet of cable, and
maybe some passive loops in the audio router.
You need some sort of buffer or your tone is
going to sound filtered. The buffer has a hardwire-bypass switch, so you can turn it off if you
are switching on a fuzz that needs the signal
to be completely passive. You will have some
loading (or filtering) at that point, but you
probably wont notice, because this raunchy
fuzz is onit is all a compromise somewhere.
Do you have any advice for players who
cant afford a custom system but want to
improve their rig?
The cleanest form of signal path you can
have is to put your stuff into some form
of looping systemas long as the looping
system is well designed, because not only
is it bypassing the pedal; it is bypassing the
cables connecting the pedal. And dont get
me started on true-bypass pedals. If you
have 10 true-bypass pedals in your chain,
even with all of them off, you are going to
hear a difference.
Dont be afraid of buffers. That term is so

misconstrued. People say, I dont want a buffer in my signal path. What does that mean?
Chances are you already have onea Boss
Tuner is a buffer, even when it is off. A buffer
is nothing more than an impedance converter.
Theoretically it should have no coloration of
its own, but driving the signal with it is going
to color the signal, if only by restoring it to
what it would be before being colored by
all the cables and pedals in the path. If you
were to plug a three-foot cord and nothing
else between your guitar and amp, that would
be the purest signal you could get. But who
wants to stand three feet from their amp?
What other products, besides the buffer,
are you marketing with Dunlop?
I do some pedals and a power supply and
a wah wah with them. The thing is, you
come up with concepts, then you have to
build multiples of themthat is the part
that gets old for me. Thats why it is good
to partner with people like Rocktron and
Dunlop. Let them build the stuffI am a
system designer.
Eddie Van Halen with his 5150-tour switching

systemthe first rig Bradshaw ever designed for
himin 1986.
Click here to visit premierguitar.com

to see our video tour of Bradshaws
workshop and a photo gallery of some of
Bradshaws most classic rigs.
The Power of Pure Intention.
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feature > bad religion
Bad Religion guitarist

and Epitaph Records
founder Brett Gurewitz
opens up about the long journey to
the punk heroes 16th album, True
North, and how shorter, simpler songs
and three-part harmonies reignited their
creativity and took them back
to their pummeling roots.
By Chris Kies
Brad Gurewitz plays with Bad

Religion at the Glass House in
Pomona, California, at the 2007
Warped Tour Pre-Party. Photo courtesy of Epitaph Records
premierguitar.com
ts like a rebirth or recharge, says Brett

Gurewitz, cofounding guitarist of Bad
Religion, about the bands new True North.
We just wanted to challenge ourselves to
make an album like we did years agoto
reconnect with our punk-rock roots.
After various lineups and major-label
releases, the melodic-hardcore vets have
launched their 16th album, one that finds
them more comfortable in their own skin
or at least the skin of their earliest years. In
that sense, its the most Bad Religion-like
record in nearly two decades. And Gurewitz
says it was one of the easiest to write, too.
Formed in 1979 by Gurewitz, Greg
Graffin (vocals), Jay Bentley (bass), and Jay
Ziskrout (drummer), the L.A.-based foursome was influenced by SoCal forebears like
the Germs and Black Flag, while Graffins
academic-anarchist lyrics were inspired by
heady writers like Carl Sagan and Noam
Chomsky. In 1982, the band released
its blistering debut, How Could Hell Be
Any Worse?, on Epitaph Records, which
Gurewitz founded and still operates.
The very next year, Bentley and Ziskrout
departed, and the next BR album was the
keyboard-heavy blunder Into the Unknown.
The band went on hiatus after the album
was panned by fans and critics. They reconvened in 85 and tacitly admitted their misstep with Into the Known, which featured
Circle Jerks guitarist Greg Hetson due to
Gurewitzs battle with substance abuse.
In 1986, Gurewitz and Bentley returned
to the fold and the rekindled songwriting
chemistry between Gurewitz and Graffin
propelled the band into its prosperous
prime. From 8890, Bad Religion virtually redefined modern punk with three
albums: the 90s-punk archetype Suffer, the
pummelingly melodic No Control, and the
poignantly fiery Against the Grain. Each
showcased the bands new musical foundationsuper-tight breakneck rhythms,
three-part harmonies (what they like to call
oozin aahs), and articulate, establishmentchallenging lyrics.
One of the things Bad Religion contributed to punk rock was three-part
melodies and detailed background vocals,
says Gurewitz. It was just something I
was really fond ofprobably because I
was a California kid who grew up on the
Beach Boysand felt it gave a musicality to our strong messages. We are a band
after all [laughs].
Gurewitz (far left) at one of Bad Religions first showsa University of Southern California frat
party held on November 20, 1980. Photo by Gary Leonard / Epitaph Records
In this pic from a March 5, 1981, gig at the Vex Club in East L.A., Gurewitz proselytizes with a
Les Paul plugged into a Music Man head. Photo by Gary Leonard / Epitaph Records
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Our company still

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When it comes to building a
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At Eastman Guitars, each
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to detail required to ensure that it
reaches its maximum potential.
Features such as hand-scalloped
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are just two examples of the way
we differentiate ourselves from
our competitors.
Considering the outward beauty
of an Eastman Guitar, its often
easy to overlook the skill and
artistry applied to the inside of
such a fine instrument. Then
again, one strum will change all
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After two more solid releases, the band

ran into major mayhem when they signed
to a major label. Shortly after their Atlantic
Records debut, Stranger Than Fiction, the
company re-released Recipe for Hatewhich
had already been released by Epitaph. As
it hit the streets, Gurewitz left to handle
the soaring popularity of Epitaph artists
the Offspring and Rancid. Many in the
punk-rock community suggested Gurewitz
disliked the big-label bounce, but his explanation is that, Bad Religion was well on
its way, and it was an important time at
Epitaph, so I needed to be there to aid in
the hectic day-to-day ventures.
Hardcore veteran Brian Baker of Minor
Threat filled in as the bands second guitarist alongside Hetson, but lukewarm sales of
the next three albums pushed Bad Religion
back to the welcoming arms of Epitaph and
Gurewitz, who rejoined and made the band
a sextet in 2002.
His return alleviated some of the songwriting burden previously shouldered by
Graffin, and it couldn't help but rekindle
the signature sound.
Bad Religion cofounders Greg Graffin and Brett Gurewitz at the 2007 Warped Tour Pre-Party.
Photo courtesy of Epitaph Records
I am proud of every piece of music

weve put out over the last 30+ years, but
it was just time to make an album like
this, Gurewitz says of True North. After
setting out to limit ourselves to write
fast, up-tempo songs around two minutes
[long], this was the most fun, enthusiastic,
and motivating project weve done in a

long time.
To get more details on the famous
humanists' fearless and perennial holy war
for peace and rationality through unimpeachable punk musicianship, we recently
spoke with Gurewitz about the new guitar
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Guitarists arent known for

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Gurewitz works the mixing console while co-producing True North at producer Joe Barresis House of Compression. Photo courtesy of Epitaph Records
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While recording True North, Bad

Religion not only went back to its roots
with faster, shorter songs, but you went
back to recording on actual tape. Tell us
about the process of straddling the analog and digital worlds this time around.
We tracked everything to tape and then
dumped it all into Pro Tools and mixed
the album digitally. We used the tape
machine as a bridge, but the interesting
thing about that is, unlike other things
you can put between yourself and the
ultimate recording medium, tape isnt
a plug-inits really a process. Its a
way of working, because its very linear
as opposed to being random access.
Recording to tape is a more musical way
of thinking and communicating, and it's
also a more efficient way of working.
How did that affect the process of
recording the guitar parts?
Our goal for every songwhich we
accomplishedwas to record all the
instrumentation in one continuous
take before dumping it into Pro Tools.
We wouldnt just cut a solid verse, fly
it into the computer, and then duplicate it throughout the rest of the song
with crossfades. The songs on True
North dont have any crossfades or edits
points. To me, that approach of splicing
and duplicating musicfor our band
and any type of guitar-driven music
in generalsterilizes the art form.
Another positive that we really enjoy
with recording to tape is getting the
best noise-to-signal ratio, so it gives the
recording just a little bit of that oldschool tape compression.
-Mark Lee
photo: storyboardlifemusic.com
that inspired him while recording True

North, and how record labels can still be
relevant and beneficial to artists in 2013
and beyond.
I am absolutely floored by how amazing the

Maz 8 sounds. All of the huge, arena-ready tone
I have come to expect from Dr Z amps in a
portable package that is perfect for smaller venues.
Now I can break a leg at the show without
breaking my back lugging around a heavy amp!
Youve produced a lot of Bad Religions

catalog, as well as other Epitaph bands
over the last 30 years. How does your
approach change with your own band?
Well, producing Bad Religion is definitely
my favorite thing to produce, because it
was the first thing I started working on way
back in 81. Joe Barresi is part of the family now, toohes worked on the last three
albums nowso its just become friends
hanging out, doing what we love. The new
premierguitar.com
Left to right: Brooks Wackerman (drums), Gurewitz, Graffin, Jay Bentley (bass), and Brian Baker (guitars) at producer Joe Barresis House of Compression
studio on July 23, 2012. Photo courtesy of Epitaph Records
ingredient or wrinkle this time was that I sat

in with him when he mixed True North. On
the two previous albums, I left the mixing to
Joe, but for this one I went in there and said
to him, "Were looking for a particular oldschool sound. I mixed all those old records,
how about I take a shot at mixing this album
with you?" Joe typically works in the heavier
areas of rock, like Tool and the Jesus Lizard,
so with mixing True North we focused on not
overemphasizing or pushing anything too
much. When I work on Bad Religion, or anything for that matter, my goal is to make seem
as realistic and true-to-form as possible. I want
you to feel like you're in the studio when you
hear it back through your iPod [laughs].
What are the main guitars you used on
True North?
This 2004 performance from

the Bad Religion Live at
the Palladium DVD finds
Gurewitz, Baker, and Bentley
serving up a virtual clinic on
unrelenting attack and seamless background vocals.
YouTube search term:
Bad Religion: American
Jesus (Live)
A rare Bad Religion acoustic

set at L.A.s KROQ in 2008
showcases sparse, emotive
renditions of Infected, New
Dark Ages, and Dearly
Beloved.
Bad Religion live on KROQ
(Acoustic!)
This vintage clip of Suffer

taken from the bands first live
DVD package, Along the Way
shows Bad Religion in its
early prime. It also shows Gurewitz in one of his first recorded
performances with his beloved
Red Rocker Charvel.
Bad Religion Suffer (Along
The Way Video DVD)
premierguitar.com
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All three of us tend to favor Gibson Les Pauls

because they fill the mix a lot better and typically sound aggressive while still being articulate, at least for what we do in Bad Religion.
I prefer guitars with shorter scale lengths
because theyre easier for me to play.
Another guitar we used quite a bit was
a Nash Guitars Telecaster[-style]. I found it
to be really punchy, and it lacked a lot of
the shrill or brittleness that some Teles can
have. We were happily surprised at how
well it added to the Les Paul sounds.
In the past, you've often bought a new guitar leading into a new album cycle because
you view the instrument as a writing partner and motivational tool. What new gear
purchases did you make this time?
My new toy this year was a tobacco-burst
Fender Kurt Cobain Signature Jaguar. It
has a very full, complete sound like a Les
Paul, but it also has these crazy, ringing
overtones that are caused by the bridge
being much more springy than a standard
bridge thats entirely anchored to the body.
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Those type of overtones are richly harmonic and complemented the tones
from the Les Pauls.
One of the guitars youve had for a
long time is the red, sticker-covered
super-strat. Whats the story about
that guitar and did it see some time on
True North?
Oh yeah, I call that one "the Red
Rocker. Thats a single-pickup Charvel
I bought in 89 while on tour in Boston
because mine had gotten stolen the
night before. I went into the nearest
music store and bought it. Over the
years, Ive just swapped things off it
out of necessity. The neck now is an
unfinished ESP maple neck with a
maple fretboard that has jumbo frets
because the old neck played like crap.
It went out of tune a lot, so I replaced
the stock tuners with some high-quality
Schaller tuning machines. I had the
tone knob circuitry disconnected, so the
signal path is even more direct from the
pickup to the ampI normally leave
tone knobs wide open, so it just made
sense on this one-pickup monster. And,
I also put in a Seymour Duncan JB in
the bridge position, which all my Les
Pauls have, too. Everything Ive done
to it ended up making it sound like a
brighter Les Paul.
The Red Rocker gets on every
album. It wasnt featured that much this
time around, but its been with me for
over 20 years, so its paid its dues and
deserves some studio time [laughs].
What do you like so much about the
Duncan JB versus other humbuckers?
I prefer the JB because of the smooth
midrange within the overdriven Marshall
sound I like, particularly in the low
mids around the 500600 Hz range.
Sometimes other humbuckersespecially
newer oneshave such high outputs that
you cant hear the gain stages of the amp
as much.
What amplifiers did you record with?
We pretty much exclusively used the
Marshall JCM800. Aside from the new
guitars, we deliberately tried to keep
most of the gear simplistic and reminiscent to our early days, so we just stuck
with what we know when it came to
premierguitar.com
amps. We also worked with an older

70s Marshall JMP, and both heads ran
through a Mesa/Boogie 4x12 that has
Celestion Vintage 30s.
Why do you prefer Mesa cabs with the
Marshall heads?
They have a bigger box that creates a lot
more low-end presence and oomph.
In recent shows from the 30th-anniversary tour, you used a Diezel VH4
head. Did that or any other amps make
appearances on True North?
I still have the VH4, but I just dont
really like it that much. I know Adam
Jones from Tool gets some really
dynamic and thick sounds for what
they do, but every time Ive tried it,
it just sounds fizzy. It does give you
infinite sustain, but I just cant get the
Marshalls warm, creamy punch out of
it. The EVH 5150 III is an amp that I
really like and have been using liveas
well as on most of the tracks for The
Dissent of Manbut I didnt really use
it much on True North.
My new toy this year was a tobacco burst

Fender Kurt Cobain Signature Jaguar. It has
a very full, complete sound like a Les Paul, but
it also has these crazy, ringing overtones that
are caused by the bridge being much more
springy than a standard through-the-body bridge
thats entirely anchored to the body.
SHUBB
New for 2013...
Our most popular capo the standard C1 now sports
the design features of our deluxe models!
Besides the subtle phaser on the opening of The Past Is Dead, did you
use any effects this time around?
No, not really at allTrue North was
definitely a less-is-more record. The
only effects we used besides that small
phaser part were delay and reverb on the
background vocals.
When you're working in the studio,
is there anything you absolutely need
to have in terms of microphones, mic
preamps, or other gear?
I always use a Shure SM57 for guitars, and I put it right on the speaker,
pointed right at the [cone-paper's]
crease because I feel it gives a little more
woof that way. I always experiment, and
if I need something to ring out a little
more, Ill go off axis but still point it at
the cone. Ill also use another large-diaphragm condenser mic, like a Neumann
U87, on another speaker of the same
cabinet. Ill take my time to dial-in the
exact distances the mics are placed so
the phase coherence is as perfect as possible. But the majority of the guitars
you hear on Bad Religion records come
from the SM57. I just use a tiny bit of
premierguitar.com
Rounded corners are

softer to the touch.
Contoured lever
is easier to use.
Roller replaces delrin cap:

smoother action
superior geometry
reduced wear
info@shubb.com www.shubb.com
707-843-4068
the condenser mic to add a little more wellrounded body to the sound. I exclusively
use Neve channel strips when tracking guitars, because you cant find a better or more
dynamic preamp or EQ.
My favorite mic preamp on vocals is the
Martech MSS-10its an old-school, solidstate, 1-channel pre with a high-quality
VU meter. Ive never found anything to
beat it, in terms of realistic vocal reproduction, in recording. Im not a big fan of the
new fad of tube mics that are trying to be
retrothey have too much built-in gain for
me. Id rather use a lower-gain mic matched
with the Martech to get vocals peaking near
distortionthats what those old records
and real rock n roll sound like to me. And
I always use my original Focusrite Red 3
compressor with the detented potsnothing beats it.
What's your favorite song off of True
North and why?
Id have to actually say the title track,
because its classic Bad Religionstraightahead punk-rock guitars, beautiful vocal
harmonies, and thought-provoking lyrics
that offer an uplifting message.
Hello Cruel World is almost four minutes
long and has a more subdued pace similar
to Sanity off No Control and Digital
Boy from Against the Grain. How did
that come about, given that you guys were
focused on a more up-tempo and retro writing strategy?
Even our fastest, most punk-rock albums
have always had a slower, longer songlike
Drastic Actions off our first EP, Bad
Religion. We were influenced by the Germs
song called Shut Down (Annihilation
Man), which is super, super slow. But
other than that, all their songs were hyperfast. We always looked up to them, so we
took a page out of their book and have
been doing it ever since. I dont think itd
be a true Bad Religion album without a
slower song that broke up the pace. So even
though we broke our own rule [of having
all short songs on the album] we kind of
still followed one of our other ideals.
Dharma and the Bomb has some great
verse riffage that sounds like a psychobilly song from Deadbolt or the Misfits'
Hollywood Babylon, while the calland-response "oh yeah vocals in the
True North was definitely a less-is-more record. The

only effects that were used besides that small phaser
part were delay and reverb to the background vocals.
chorus sounds like old SoCal surf rock.
What was the inspiration for that song?
That was my attempt at writing a surf-punk
song [laughs] it almost didnt make the
record. Before meeting for pre-production, I
double-checked the song files on my home
computer. I clicked on the songwhich
was half finished and didn't have any
words because I didnt think it was going
anywherebut when I heard it playback I
thought, God, that sounds pretty good. So
I decided to bring that one along, just in case.
Even though it wasnt entirely finished, I had
the guys track it. I finished the lyrics and the
melody in the studio and, for whatever reason, Greg was having a tough time singing it
so I did a placeholder vocal to show him how
the lyrics should sound over top the music.
But he could never get it right.
So thats you singing lead, not Greg?
Yes, that was actually me singing all the
main parts. Greg helped out with the background harmonies. I really like this song,
toonot just because Im singing leads,
but because it almost didnt end up on the
album and I dont hate my voice [laughs]. I
normally hate my voice when its front and
center, but not so much with Dharma.
You're the head of one of the largest independent record labels today. What's your
take on how labels and the music industry
need to evolve to support artists?
Id suggest providing state-of-the-art,
cutting-edge, music-marketing strategies
in digital mp3s, physical music, and direct
artist-to-fan connections and relationships.
Thats how labels can still be useful and
relevant in the current music landscape.
Theres no doubt some artists can do it all
themselvesEpitaph got started because I
was an artist who could do it myselfbut
not all artists are that into marketing and
distribution. They would rather focus on
lyrics, music, and performing live. So thats
where they have to make a smart decision
and find a label that will work for them
instead of them working for the label. Im
a firm believer that anyone who gets to the
top has a team behind them.
Speaking of self-marketing, have you or

anyone in the band ever regretted the
name "Bad Religion" or the infamous
"crossbuster" logo?
No, I dont think so. When we first started
out I mightve regretted it, because it
caused us some hardship with promoters,
venues, and people with conflicting points
of view. But now I feel its been a really
powerful force for positive change. What
Ive come to believe is that social norms
arent generally changed through lecturing
and scholarship. Art, literature, comedians,
and musicians can have a more profound
effect on change than cultural zeitgeists or
pontificators like Richard Dawkins. You
have 30 years of kids wearing crossbuster
shirts to school and then going on to lead
successful lives as professionals, parents, and
citizens. You get some vindication showing that the band and its fans arent as bad,
misguided, or damned as they originally
believed [laughs].
GUITARS
Gibson Les Paul
Fender Kurt Cobain Signature Jaguar
Nash Guitars T-style
Late-80s Charvel with a maple ESP neck,
Seymour Duncan JB pickup,
and a Badass bridge
AMPS
Mid-80s Marshall JCM800 head
70s Marshall JMP head
Mesa Boogie 4x12 cabinet loaded
with Celestion Vintage 30s
EFFECTS
None
STRINGS, PICKS, AND

ACCESSORIES
Ernie Ball or Jim Dunlop .010.046
Jim Dunlop Tortex .60 mm picks
premierguitar.com
Pauls Guitar
Carrying on the Modern Eagle tradition,

Pauls Guitar is a production version of
the Private Stock guitar Paul has been
playing in his studio and on stage. With
exclusive brushstroke bird inlays, two
specially-wound narrow 408 pickups,
and a newly designed stoptail bridge,
this guitar is not only unique....its every
appointment has been specified by Paul
Reed Smith.
2013, PRS Guitars - photo by Marc Quigley
review > mesa/boogie
mesa/boogie
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips of the pedals at

premierguitar.com/mar2013
Tone-Burst,
Throttle Box,
Grid Slammer,
and Flux-Drive
BY Jordan Wagner
esa/Boogies unveiling of its new line

of overdrive and distortion pedals
marks a unique point in the companys
storied history. In terms of tone and construction, they are decidedly different from
Mesas previous forays into stompbox territorythe V-1 Bottle Rocket and the Dual
Rectifier-inspired V-Twin. Those pedals
had cool qualities, but the compact design,
solid-state circuitry, and versatile tonality of
these new pedals suggest Mesa has learned a
lot about pedal-based overdrive and distortion units since. Rather than trying to stuff
too much in a single unit, the company
has designed pedals that serve up specific
flavors of overdrive. But for all that focus,
they often excel at delivering tones beyond
the expected.
An Army of Four
Mesa built these pedals to withstand abuse.
Each one weighs in at nearly a pound and
is built around a 2 mm-thick aluminum

enclosure. Ive never been challenged to test
a pedals durability by dropping it off of a
building, but if I were, I would happily put
my money on any one of these stomps.
Each pedal sports bright status LEDs
and true-bypass switching, and they can
all be powered by either a 9V battery
or a Boss-style adapter. And theyre all
completely handbuilt in Mesas Petaluma,
California, factory.
premierguitar.com
Review > mesa/boogie
Tone-Burst
The Tone-Burst has the distinction of
being the most transparent-sounding
pedal in the bunch. Its remarkable just
how evenly it boosts clean tones whether
youre using single-coils or humbuckers.
The pedal puts an extra 20 dB of boost
at your toe tips, which yields plenty of
headroom for country fingerpicking,
arpeggiated chording, and aggressive
garage-rock rhythms. Most players will
immediately notice the pedals fidelity and relatively neutral color, and it
does little to mess with a guitars basic
voice save for some hot, borderingon-spiky overtones in the high end at
more extreme gain settings. Even then,
though, you can tune most of it out by
working with the pedals treble knob.
While the purpose of most boost
pedals is to add volume without adding much color, the Tone-Burst gives
you the ability to tailor the tone with
+12 dB of bass and trebleall without
the hiss or noise you tend to hear from
an EQ pedal you might use for the
same purpose. These controls come in
handy when youre tackling a potentially
unruly equation, like a Stratocaster
and a Twin Reverb. And though metal
players may think a boost/overdrive is
beneath them, if they give the ToneBurst a chance theyll find that its a
knockout for tightening up low end
to make fast riffing through high-gain
amps more taut and powerful. For
instance, when I set the Tone-Burst up
for neutral treble, a slight cut in the
bass, and moderately high volume, and
then ran it into a Mesa Dual Rectifier,
the Rec kicked out low-end that rivaled
Mesas Mark IV and V amps.
The Tone-Bursts gain control can
add a lot of warmth and fullness, too
it comes in handy when the boosted
tone is a little too raw. Twist it to 1
oclock and beyond, and itll add sustain without adding icepick-y overtones
to the pick attack. There isnt a ton of
overdrive on tapabout what youd find
in an Ibanez Tubescreamer or Boss SD-1
Super Overdrivebut theres more than
enough for gritty blues leads and classicrock riffing. Thankfully, its also very
responsive to picking dynamicscoaxing
a little more drive is as simple has hitting
the strings with more force.
premierguitar.com
RATINGS
Mesa/Boogie Tone-Burst, $179 street, mesaboogie.com
Pros:
Highly transparent boosting. EQ lends itself well to

country and rock single-note picking. Great for tightening up
higher gain tones.
Cons:
Takes tweaking to reduce glassiness.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
Throttle Box
For heavier tones that run the gamut from
razor-edged leads to brain-rattling rhythms,
theres no better choice in this lineup than the
Throttle Box. The pedal features switchable
low- and high-gain modes, along with controls for gain, tone, volume, and midrange
cutthe latter serving up the sort of scooped
tones that put Mesa on the metal head map.
Additionally, theres a tiny switch inside that
functions as an EQ boost. Its a great feature
that we really wish was accessible externally so
it could be engaged on the fly.
Tested with a Les Paul Standard and a
Marshall JCM800, the Throttle Box dished
out an impressive array of low- to mid-gain
rock and blues tones in its lower gain mode.
Single notes have a very even midrange presence, and raising the mid cut knob to the
2 oclock range results in a thick, raucous
punch that you can use for Santana-inspired,
smooth-but-heavy lead work. Pulling mid
cut to about 9 oclock and digging into the
neck position of a Strat conjures tasty blues
tones with a fierce edge. Bringing up the
gain control doesnt really change the tones
overall EQ shape, eitherwhich is wonderful for players who simply want to add more
saturation without mucking up their signal.
The pedal cleans up really nicely when rolling down the guitars volume pot, too.
As youd expect, the pedals hi-gain mode
serves up plenty of the liquid grind that
players have come to expect from the house
of Mesa. The amount of gain on tap borders
on menacing, but output stays very focused,
even when using hotter, fatter-sounding
humbuckers. Hi-gain mode also makes the
Throttle Boxs controls very sensitive, with
even small changes to the mid cut and tone
knobs effecting drastic tonal shiftsfrom
classic, scooped Metallica tones to modern,
mid-heavy Southern metal or the super-tight
industrial grind of Meshuggah.
While the Throttle Box delivers Mesas
signature high gain tones like few other
stompboxes can, its obviously not going to
make your Strat-and-Twin setup sound like
a Les Paul and a Triple Rectifier. Its transparent enough that your tones will retain the
natural color of your amp, no matter how
hot you run the pedaland thats a really
cool thing: Its sweet to hear Mesa-style
richness combined with a Twins glassiness,
a JCM800s midrange bump, or the trademark tones of any other great-sounding amp
you might throw into the equation.
RATINGS
Mesa/Boogie Throttle Box, $199 street, mesaboogie.com
Pros:
Signature Mesa grind in a box. Lo-gain mode serves up great

Tones
70s high-gain tones. Mid cut control is very useful and sensitive.
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Boost switch only accessible through battery
compartment. Can sound strident through amps with strong high end.
Value
Cons:
premierguitar.com
Grid Slammer
With its volume, tone, and gain knobs,
the Grid Slammer overdrive is easily the
most intuitive of the seriesits a layout
anyone with a Tube Screamer will feel right
at home with. Just like Ibanezs classic, the
Grid Slammer has a strong midrange bump
that makes it ideal for low-gain blues, classic rock, and any situation where you can
use a little more presence. Unlike the little
green classic, you get a lot more focus in the
upper midrangewhich can help you really
cut through a crowded live mix.
The dynamic responsiveness of the Grid
Slammer is pronounced when playing simple blues progressions through single-coils
and a clean Fender amp. The pedal has a
very natural response to picking dynamics,
and you can ease up on picking intensity
without losing any crispness or sustain.
Volume-knob jockeys will rejoice at its ability to go from snarling to a quiet purr by
simply backing off the volume and letting
up on string attack and vice versa.
Though it doesnt serve up heaps of
gain for, say, the heaviest late-70s and 80s
rock, the Grid Slammer does move from
the brash tones of classic AC/DC to biggerthan-Texas blues-lead tones with ease. And
though it doesnt have a ton of gain on tap,
fans of heavier music shouldnt dismiss Grid
Slammer too hastily, because its a very powerful tool for giving your tone a much more
focused punch and tightening up high-gain
amps that are a little flabby in the low end.
Strong upper-mid focus is another one
of the Grid Slammers defining traits. If you
want it to, it can even be a very Britishsounding voice that could initially throw
Mesa fanatics for a loop. The Brit emphasis
becomes stronger as you turn up the gain
control, and with a little high-end roll off,
it starts to take on the muscular characteristics of a JTM45. But with its trademark Mesa crispness and clarity, the Grid
Slammer delivers an articulate-but-edgy,
Brit-meets-American tone that will intrigue
any rock-oriented tone hound.
RATINGS
Flux-Drive
Mesa/Boogie Grid Slammer, $179 street, mesaboogie.com
The Flux-Drive picks up where the Grid

Slammer leaves offemphasizing focused
mids, but with considerably more gain
on tap. It also trades the Grid Slammers
single tone control for a pair of cut/boost
bass and treble controls. In many ways, the
Pros:
Smooth, open-sounding vintage overdrive. Strong upper

midrange. Killer dynamic response.
Cons:
Upper-mid focus might be too strong for some players.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
premierguitar.com
Review > mesa/boogie
Flux-Drives controls react more like an

amplifiers: Lower reaches of the gain control have a much clearer treble response, and
turning up the control rolls off the highs
while warming up the midrange and slightly
softening the lows. Setting the gain between
8:30 and 10 oclock highlights the snappier
qualities of a Stratocasters bridge pickup,
while taking the control up to 2 oclock
adds a warm, thick layer of gain on top of
plump midrange and darker tonalities reminiscent of Ritchie Blackmores leads.
The Flux-Drive excels with low- and
high-output humbuckers. Both a Les Paul
Standard with 57 Classics and a Les Paul
Custom with hot Tom Anderson humbuckers pushed the upper midrange to the
forefront, with Flux-Drives gain control
lending lots of aggression without sacrificing
detail. Taking the gain past 3 oclock wont
add much more to hard-rock rhythmsyou
can lose a lot of definition in the highs and
midsbut it will avail you of syrupy gain for
smooth, sustaining licks. That said, theres
plenty of gain on tap before you hit that
mark, and using the pedals extremely sensitive bass and treble controls more aggressively
gives you access to the harder rock tones of
early Guns N Roses, Mtley Cre, and Skid
Row. The key is to tailor the pedals gain and
EQ controls to your guitars output level and
give the tone room to breathe.
The Verdict
Rather than trying to be everything to everyone, Mesa/Boogies new overdrive and distortion pedals target very specific needs and
missions. Each pedal has its own strengths
and tonal limitations, but the design focus
behind them also makes each pedal easier to
controlno small consideration for professionals and anyone with very specific soundpalette needs. Smartly, each pedal inhabits
a very distinct piece of the overdrive and
distortion tonescapethe upper midrange
grind of the Grid Slammer and Flux-Drive,
in particular, are powerful voices that can
expand a players options in big ways. At
their core, however, each pedal has some
measure of that quintessentially Mesa voice
and at least a hint of the fast, glassy attack
and dark, complex drive that are the companys long-heralded sonic fingerprint. For
tone mixologists who like to experiment and
expand their horizons from a classic foundation, the Mesa pedals can serve as foundations for very intriguing new soundscapes.
premierguitar.com
RATINGS
Mesa/Boogie Flux-Drive, $179 street, mesaboogie.com
Pros:
Highly dynamic controls add more gain and EQ flexibility

to the basic Grid Slammer sound. Powerful upper midrange boost
works well for hot-rodded, British-voiced hard rock.
Cons:
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Higher gain settings can compromise rhythm-playing clarity.
Value
review > Teye guitars
teye guitars
r-series
la gitana
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips and watch a

video demo of the bass at
BY David Abdo
eyethe man who builds intricate

guitars and basses that bear his name
on their headstocksis like so many of us:
Hes a musician obsessed with finding the
perfect instrument. From ornately etched
aluminum plates to extravagant inlay work,
the striking looks of a Teye (pronounced
tie-ya) guitar or bass will please any musician who appreciates the combination of
art and lutherie. One such instrument, the
new R-Series La Gitana bass, is one of the
more visually subdued examples of his stillexquisite bass offerings.

Practical Elegance
With a body carved in a familiar style, one
can easily see the influences in Teyes La
Gitana bass. The mildly figured mahogany
body is topped with a padauk top that beautifully frames the ornamentation, hardware,
and pickups. More than a third of the back
of the La Gitana is covered by an aluminum
plate in a shape that could be described as a

mix between a psychedelic f-hole and a scimitar blade. With the exception of the tuners,
the La Gitanas hardware is proprietary and
melds function and form, furthering Teyes
aesthetic vision and providing a durable
alternative to aftermarket parts.
The Nordstrand Music Man-style humbuckers unsurprisingly provide tones that
veer toward StingRay territory. The functions of the La Gitanas control knobs seem
Nordstrand Music
Man-style pickups
Mood knob
premierguitar.com
Review > teye guitars
conventional at first glance, with the first

two dials being volumes, and the back knob
being a master tone. But the third knob
flips the traditional formula with what
Teye calls the mood knob. It shapes the
frequencies to emulate the characteristics
of popular bass tones. According to Teye,
dialing mood fully clockwise delivers the
punch of a StingRay, rolling it all the way
back achieves the smoothness of a Jazz bass,
and settings closer to the center position
enhance either sound with extra lows.
The La Gitanas neck has a few surprises
for the eyes and the hands. With a 1 3/4"
nut, its one of the widest-feeling 4-string
necks on the market. Its constructed of
walnut, a wood used most often for stringers
The unorthodox back-to-back

positioning of the Nordstrand
pickupscombined with Teyes
unique, passive circuitry
produces a wide variety of
tones that are practical for
many styles of music.
or neck laminates, but rarely for the entire
neck. A bound ebony fretboard acts as a
backdrop for the mother-of-pearl inlays. And
wed be remiss to not mention the headstock,
which boasts a deftly designed aluminum
top and a sexy, leaf-like truss-rod cover.
The La Gitanas nearly 10-pound body
isnt surprisingmahogany and walnut
generally yield a heavier instrument. But
its nicely balanced. It held its position at
multiple playing angles, whether I was sitting or standing. The beefy strap buttons
work extremely well, providing nearly straplock-quality support and security. And the
proprietary hardware is both beautiful and
Ebony fretboard with

mother-of-pearl inlay
premierguitar.com
RATINGS
Teye Electric Gypsy R-Series La Gitana, $4,400 street (as tested), teye-guitars.com
Pros:
Elegantly unique aesthetics. Impressive array of

tonesfrom powerfully punchy to warm and expressive.
Cons:
Tones
Playability
Expensive. Somewhat heavy. Not as ergonomic or

comfortable as some might hope.
functionalfrom the thick, smooth knobs

to the decorative bridge and tailpiece. While
my personal preference leans towards individual saddle-height adjusters, those who
prefer Gibson-esque bridges will appreciate
Teyes improvements on the design. With all
of this customized hardware, its interesting
that Teye opted for Hipshot tuners that did
not perform very smoothly on our review
bass. In fact, two of the tuners felt too tight,
almost to the point of immobility.

Jugando La Gitana
The La Gitanas body has very little contour in the area near your picking hands
forearm, so players who prefer wearing the
bass higher may find it somewhat uncomfortable. Further, as a bassist who normally
gravitates to tapered Jazz-style necks, I
found the La Gitanas wide neck required
slight adjustments to hand positioning. A
bassist with a foundation in double-bass
technique or an electric player with a proficient left hand will most likely find the La
Gitanas neck a nice fit. After getting used
to the size, it felt quite comfortable, and the
satin finish facilitated smooth transitions up
and down the neck.
The Teye Guitars website lists some of
the builders bitchings prevalent guitar designs he deems less than favorable.
Towards the top of the list is a gripe about
difficult-to-reach upper frets. Ironically, this
Build/Design
Value
was actually a concern I had with the La

Gitana: The conservative cutaway required
significant stretching and hand repositioning for access.
Acoustically, the La Gitanas voice has a
resonant, warm timbre that highlights the
astutely selected woods and hardware. The
unorthodox back-to-back positioning of the
Nordstrand pickupscombined with Teyes
unique, passive circuitryproduces a wide
variety of tones that are practical for many
styles of music. Plugged into a Phil Jones
D-600 head and a Glockenklang 112 cab,
the La Gitana delivered woody walking bass
lines when soloing the neck pickup and rolling the mood knob almost all the way back.
Though it didnt necessarily replace the sound
of an upright bass, this setting worked very
nicely with a jazz quartet. For Latin tunes, a
roll of the mood knob to its noon position
pumped enough lows to create a deep, beefy
tone that was perfect for samba, Son, or bossa
nova. Soloing the bridge pickup and rolling
mood knob fully clockwise transformed the
bass into a punchy, crunchy monster. Though
its looks probably wont call out to many slap
traditionalists, the La Gitana has plenty of
space available near the fretboard for complicated thumping and popping. And while
it may not quite capture a genuine Jazz-bass
vibe, if your preferred bass tone is on the
warmer end of the spectrum, Teyes La Gitana
may really work for you.
The Verdict
At $4,400, the Teye R-Series La Gitana
commands a hefty sum and puts itself in
some stiff competition in the high-end bass
arena. Its wide neck and contour-less body
wont appeal to some players, but its warm
tonal palette and beautiful looks will likely
please a number of othersfrom professionals to weekend warriors. After decades
of performing, building, and absolute
dedication to stringed instruments, Teye
has discovered the formula that works for
himperhaps it will work for you, too.
red,
white
and blue
savings.
PROU
DLY
The all-American strings that sound better, last longer, and come in your
favorite colors, now cost less. Because when it comes to American
values, nothing beats Aurora String quality at an even greater sounding
price. In red, white, blue, or any other righteous hue.
stringsbyaurora.com
premierguitar.com
Review > TC Electronic
TC Electronic
Flashback X4
BY Matthew Holliman
few years ago TC Electronic debuted

the Flashback Delay/Looper, a compact
digital delay that not only packed a ton of
delay flavors in a petite package but also
incorporated the companys now famous
TonePrint technology. The impressive collection of delay types ranging from tape echo
style to reverse delay was enough to sell a
lot of gigging players on the unit. But as the
TonePrint library (which offers free delays
created by professional artists) has continued
to grow, the Flashback continues to become
an ever more functional and versatile unit.
Never a company to sit still, TC
Electronic heeded the clamor from its sizable online community of users and created
a more expansive Flashback. The resulting

Flashback X4 Delay/Looper turns the little
Flashback into a relative behemoth four
times the size of the original. The payoff?
A dedicated tap tempo, three presets, additional delay voices and TonePrint slots, and
an enhancedand much more capable
loop function for building your own walls
of sound.
Simple But Serious
Sound Selection
The Flashback X4 gives players a lot more
sound options and control than the original, but it remains simple enough for plugand-play use and TC seems to have placed
Stereo outputs
Four dedicated
TonePrint slots
New tube and

space delays
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips of the pedal at

that aspect of the X4s performance at a premium. The upper leftmost knob switches
between twelve delay types (including 2290
with modulation, tube, and space settings),
plus an additional four TonePrint presets.
TonePrints can either be uploaded from the
TC Electronic website via USB, or via your
smart phone through your guitars pickups.
Yes, you can literally beam a TonePrint
to the Flashback X4 by placing the phone
speaker output to your pickup and transmitting the TonePrint data (assuming
Dedicated
40-second
looper
TC 2290
rack model
premierguitar.com
review > tc Electronic
your phone supports the app). Its a useful

innovation if you need some fresh presets at
rehearsal or for a last-minute cover tune.
Delay time, feedback, and delay level
work just as they do on any conventional
delaychanging the distance between
repeats, total repeat length, and repeat
intensity, respectively. The subdivision
switch alters the intervals for note repetition
with quarter-note, eighth-note, or quarterplus-eighth-note counts.
The rightmost knob, looper level, is
only activated when the corresponding
looper switch, located at the lower right,
is engaged. And the looper enables you to
record up to 40 seconds and add almost
limitless layers to your foundation. Unlike
the original Flashback, the looper on the
X4 can be used in conjunction with the
delay. Though once in looper mode, the
footswitches change from your delay presets
to a mini-editing station that can pause,
playback, playback once, and undo the last
layer of your loop.
Additional features include stereo input/
output, MIDI jacks to clock sync delay, an
expression pedal input (which can control
delay time, feedback, or delay level), and an
interior DIP switch to choose between true
bypass or buffered bypass. All of this comes
in a tough metal chassis and enclosure
sporting the same cobalt sparkle finish as
the original Flashback.
At nearly four times the size of the original, making space for the X4 may be hard
to justify for those who use delay only occasionally. But echo freaks will doubtless be
tempted to ditch more limited units for the
bounty of excellent delay sounds that lurk
in the X4s circuitry.
Echoes of the Past,
Contemporary Tech
One of the new delay options on the
Flashback X4 is the 2290 w/Mod, which
takes the performance characteristics of the
classic TC 2290 delay adds some very chorus-like modulations on the repeats. Using
a Les Paul plugged into a Carr Bloke, I was
able to coax the X4 into producing dancing delay embellishments that would make
The Edge proud. And the setting is a perfect
match for the quarter-plus-dotted-eighthnote subdivision. This combination might
be about as close as youll get to U2-in-a-box
without splurging on countless rack effects
and a couple of techs for maintenance. The
dedicated tap tempo also helps you add a

touch of precision to keep your echoes surgically succinct with a rhythm section.
Using the USB interface, I downloaded
the Omar Rodriguez-Lopez TonePrint
entitled David, the Dogs! from the TC
Electronic website. This TonePrint mates a
tape delay-style voice with dirty repeats that
are louder than the original input, which
creates a kind of sputtering, hacking cough
... echo freaks

will doubtless be
tempted to ditch more
limited units for the
bounty of excellent
delay sounds ...
of a delay that works great in chaotically
rocking situations. But though the David,
the Dogs! setting is a little bonkers, all the
adjustability you get from one of the X4s
standard delays applies to the TonePrint, and
you can quell the repeat intensity by rolling
down on the delay level. That said, as with
many of the TonePrints, the extreme nature
of the sounds is their strengthand having
these unique and often radical effects alongside more traditional delays makes the X4 an
even more valuable gigging and studio asset.
Plugging into the stereo output, I flipped
the rotary switch over to ping-pong delay,
and sent one output to a silverface Bassman
and the other to a Nace M1-18R. With
a Telecaster in hand and a little distance
between the amps, I created a rather massive sounding post-rock setup, creating
a frenzied delay pattern of chirping crisp
triads in stereo. At times, I found the pingpong a tad sterile for my taste, and a tone
parameter would have been a nice addition
to shape repeats on all settings. However,
RATINGS
rolling off the Teles tone rounded the

output considerably, and the minute differences in sterility that provoked my aural
nitpicking would likely go unnoticed in a
live situation with a full band.
The looper feature on the X4 is a vast
improvement over the original Flashback
looper simply due to increased control. TC
set up the four footswitches to maximize use
of the 40 seconds of looping time, which
enabled me to lay a foundation, play a
harmonyinevitably screw up the last few
notesand then use the undo function to
peel off the flubbed layer and make another
pass. The once footswitch is also a smart feature that will play your previously recorded
loop and cut off before repeating the cycle.
This is especially useful for a precise ending
for a tune, or summoning a recurring harmony if youre the sole axe slinger in a band.
You can also use the onboard delay when
creating a loop, a much appreciated feature
oddly missing in some delay/looper combos
including the original Flashback.
The Verdict
The Flashback X4 is an excellent sounding delay by any measure. And its home to
an absolute wealth of featuresincluding
more delay voices than can be covered in
the space of this review. The inclusion of a
more capable looper means the X4 claims
quite a bit of pedalboard real estate, but its
not that different from a lot of other industry-standard delays and loopers that take
pride of place on a lot of pro boards.
A few of the delays will inevitably sound
a bit antiseptic to analog heads, though
players who savor the crystalline sounds
of digital will savor how clean it sounds.
Overall, though, the X4 has a warmer character than a lot of digital delays out there.
The Flashback X4 is a total workhorse.
At $249 its priced right, and with a free
TonePrint database that grows constantly,
youll have ever-expanding acreage of new
territory to explore without spending
another dime.
TC Electronic Flashback X4, $249 street, tcelectronic.com
Pros: An abundance of delays to keep you busy.

TonePrint enabled.
Cons:
Takes up a lot of room. Cant store loops or create

your own TonePrint.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
premierguitar.com
premierguitar.com
review > Epiphone
epiphone
1962 sheraton
E212T
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips of the guitar at

BY Charles Saufley
or most of planet Earth, double-cutaway, semi-hollow Epiphones will forever be synonymous with the Beatles. The
Fab Fours embrace of the P-90-equipped
Casino, which John and George conspicuously used on the bands 1966 tour (and
Lennon also used it in the Let It Be film),
cemented Epiphones semi-hollow legend
forever. But while the Casino may have
ridden Beatlemania to become the most
famous Epiphone, it was the offspring of
an even earlier semi-hollow, the Sheraton
conceived by Gibson in 1958 as an alternative to the companys new ES-335.
When you first lay eyes on the new
1962 Sheraton E212T, a 50th-anniversary
Frequensator
tailpiece
instrument limited to just 1,962 units,

Gibsons rationale behind the original
Sheraton becomes a little curious. Gibson
had purchased Epiphone in 1957 to be a
more affordable alternative to the flagship
Gibsons. And while no one would ever
argue the design perfection of a 335, its
not a stretch to say that the Sheraton was
the more elegant of the two cousins that
debuted in 1958. Its not entirely clear why
Epiphone is celebrating this particular golden anniversary with a Sheraton either, after
all, the Riviera was the newest semi-hollow
by that time. But given the way this particular Sheraton plays, sounds, and looks,
were glad they did. Its one of the coolest
convergences of vintage feel, playability, and

value weve seen in a long time.
Perfect Gentleman
Befitting a golden anniversary, the Sheraton
is impeccably dressed. Epiphone clearly
spent a lot of time sweating the details,
and the result is a guitar that stands up to
close scrutiny and looks genuinely luxurious. In classic style reminiscent of both
Sheratons and Gibson ES-335s of yore, the
1962 Sheraton is crafted from laminatedmaple top, back, and sides, and the body
is reinforced with a center block that gives
the instrument a little extra heft, serves as
a pickup and hardware mount, improves
Laminated maple body
Mahogany neck
Gibson USA mini

humbuckers
premierguitar.com
Review > Epiphone
sustain, and helps fight the feedback that

often plagues lighter Casinos or 330s.
Wallflower types may find the gold hardware a little ostentatiousperhaps more so
on the cherry red modelbut on this vintage sunburst version, which fades from a
deep cocoa at the binding to a warm honey
amber at the center, the gold hardware is
tastefully complementary, lending a formal
downtown air that suits the guitars jazzier,
Cadillac-and-cocktails personality.
Craftsmanship on this Chinese-made
instrument is excellent. Apart from some
finish buildup around the neck joint and a
few finish irregularities around the f-holes
(which, for reasons unknown, seems to
plague even expensive guitars with regularity), its a nearly flawless instrument.
Fretwork is more or less perfect, and each
medium-jumbo fret end is seated seamlessly in the neck binding. The unique
pearloid-and-abalone inlays in the rosewood
fretboard are also beautiful and without
flaw. The nut seat is less immaculately
executedtheres a very small but still
perceptible gap between the nut and the
neck on the bass side, as well as a superficial imperfection in the binding at the
same spot. Neither issue affects playability. In fact, the guitar is otherwise free of
manufacturing irregularities. With regard
to more impactful details, the mahogany
neck, which Epiphone calls a 60s slim
taper shape, feels fantastic. It feels a little
flatter than some genuine 60s Epiphones
and 335s, and the fretboard seems just a
touch less contoured at the binding. On the
whole, though, its exceptionally playable
and inviting, and the medium-jumbo frets
and flattish radius make big, hanging blues
bends a blast.
The hardware is pretty top-flight stuff.
Epiphone wasnt about to skimp on sound
with such a lovely guitar, so they included
U.S.-made Gibson mini humbuckers with

alnico 2 bar magnets. The CTS pots are
responsive and have a nice, workable range
for volume swells and dynamic volume and
tone manipulation. The Grover 14:1 ratio
tuners feel super solid and stable. Best of
all, the Sheraton features the cool, art-deco
Frequensator tailpiece, which dates back to
Epiphone archtops from the early 50s and
gives the lower three strings an extra three
inches of string length behind the bridge.
Swings Low, Shines Bright
The sonic sum of Sheratons very lovely
parts is a semi-hollow that is both wide
ranging and full of character. It absolutely loves old blackface Fender amps
and will even bring a little, solid-state Vox
Pathfinder alive with chiming Revolver-style
Beatles tones.
With a 64 Fender Tremolux at the end
of a Vox coiled lead, the Sheraton looked
blindingly hip and felt lively. The bridge
pickup is detailed, multi-hued, and responsive. Note-to-note output is remarkably
even, making the Sheraton equally well suited for leads and complex chords. And the
mini-humbuckers output seems perfectly
suited for a semi-hollow: Its not so hot or
bass-y that it induces unwelcome feedback
the way a PAF can, but its sensitive and full
enough to take advantage of the resonance
that makes good hollowbodies such expressive guitars. The Sheraton rarely screams
with uncontrollable feedback, but it will
absolutely sing with overtones and musical feedback that you can manage through
crafty volume control and amp proximity.
Even with a buzzing Tone Bender Mk II
clone in the line, the Sheraton remained
civilized and well behaved as it dished searing and infinitely sustaining lead tones. If
you dont often interact with semi-hollows,
its east to forget how alive, organic, and
interactive a good one can feel in comparison to a solidbody. And if you savor playing
electric guitar in that magical zone where
control and chaos play tug of war, it doesnt

get much more fun than this Sheraton.
While the Sheraton will happily run
wild and indulge your inner Alvin Lee, its
equally capable of buttoned-down civility.
The neck humbucker has a round, bell-like
voice thats not at all woolyeven with
the tone rolled back significantly. It also
exhibits the same capacity for harmonic
detail that the bridge humbucker displays
in spades, and feels alive and of a piece with
the semi-hollow construction at lounge-jazz
volumesdelivering silky-but-spectral, Wes
Montgomery-style octave tones and mournful, mellow blues colors.
The Verdict
At well under a grand, the Epiphone 1962
Sheraton E212T is a fantastic value. The
craftsmanship is excellent, and the combination of well-executed overseas construction and top-quality, American-made
Gibson pickups is an interesting lesson in
how a company can deliver a guitar that,
in sonic terms, rivals much more expensive
instruments in a instrument that working mortals can fit into their budgets and
aspirations. Epiphone is clearly running
a tight ship at the factory thats building
these guitars, and it will be interesting
to see whether this type of design-andexecution approach will continue to yield
such remarkable results with models yet to
come. If this Sheraton is any indication, its
a strategy that could benefit players on a
budget in a very big way.
The Sheraton isnt perfect. Issues with
tuning stability did arise with some frequency over the course of a few long rehearsals,
and minor quality missteps like the tiny gap
at the nut are a bummer when a guitar gets
this close to being flawless. On the whole,
however, playing this Sheraton is incredibly fun and deeply rewarding. And if your
same-old solidbody is giving you the blandtone blues, this guitar could profoundly
transform your playing and perspective.
RATINGS
Epiphone 1962 Sheraton E212T, $799 street, epiphone.com
Pros:
Extraordinary value. Great pickups with wide range of

tones. Excellent quality for the price. Looks sharp as hell.
Grover 14:1
tuners
premierguitar.com
Cons:
Some tuning instability.
Tones
Playability
Build/Design
Value
review > strymon
Strymon
mobius
BY Charles Saufley
ts getting harder to surprise folks with

how good Strymon pedals sound. These
days, even hardcore luddites for whom a
Tube Screamer is the zenith of frivolity,
ask curiously about the wares from these
DSP wizards, which can dish dazzlingly
good emulations of hard-to-replicate,
vintage-style effectssuch as tape echo and
harmonic tremoloas readily as bizarre,
only-in-the-digital-domain sounds. With
stompboxes like the new Mobius modulation machine, were coming to appreciate
Strymons wider product development sense
too, one that reveals an impressive knack
for uniting sound and function.
Like its delay-centric, large-form cousin
the Timeline, the Mobius modulation
machine takes ideas and algorithms from

smaller, more-streamlined pedals from the
Strymon familyin this case, the Orbit
flanger, Ola chorus and vibrato, Lex rotary
simulator, and Flint tremolo/reverb
and consolidates them in a package that
facilitates deeper, and often more radical
tweaks. And if it isnt as intuitive to operate as those four smaller pedals strung in
a line, the Mobius is a pedal of very deep
capabilities that exponentially widens the
sound potential of a pedalboard, opens up
studio and production possibilities, and
can inspire whole tunes. And if it can be a
little tricky to get around at first, its ultimately a design that invites and rewards
experimentation as readily as it delivers
CLICKHere

video demo of the pedal at
beautifully rich, authentic, classic modulation sounds.

Deep Blue
One of the nicest things about Mobius
is its approachability. If your stompbox
experience and preferences dont go much
beyond a Fuzz Face, Mobius might look
like a supercomputer. But most openminded players or those who have spent a
few minutes with a modern digital delay
can get great sounds out of the Mobius the
moment they plug it in.
The focal point of the control layout is
the type knob, a hybrid rotary/push-button
control, which lets you dial up any of the 12
modulation types (or machines, as Strymon
Assignable parameters
12 modulation
types
Tap temposwitch
200-preset
capability
premierguitar.com
Review > strymon
calls them), as well as assign and save presets.

The knob turns with a satisfying click, illuminating a small LED adjacent to the name
of each modulation type. The small type
isnt always easy to read and in some settings,
its hard to tell exactly which LED belongs
to which setting. On the other hand, the
sounds are typically pretty different and
audibly distinctive from position to position,
and in instances where you could mistake
one modulation type for anotherflanger
and phaser for instancethe two are placed
a comfortable distance from each other.
Just above the type knob, theres a LCD
readout that displays modulation rate in
beats-per-minute as a default, but also helps
you navigate each modulation machines
assignable parameters, which are accessed
by depressing the rotary/push-button value
knob. Pressing and holding the same knob
provides access to global settings, including
buffered or true bypass operation, and a tap
function that retains the last tap tempo rate
you used, regardless of preset.
The speed, depth, and level knobs
in the upper right section are the most
familiar, though the function of the
depth control in particular can vary from
machine to machinechanging virtual
microphone distance on the rotary speaker setting, for instance.
Param 1 and 2 knobs control the assignable parameters for each modulation
machine, and the additional tone-shaping
potential you can extract from many of
these control parameters is considerable.
On the chorus setting , for example, you
can access vibrato and detune chorus modes
that can entirely transform the effect and
nature of the three basic parameter controls.
Wobble On
If you never get to the deepest functions of
the Mobiusand there are a lot of those
the most basic variations of the twelve
modulation machines still give you a formidable effects arsenal. Individual players will
doubtless have their preferences, and there
isnt an effect among the most common
typesphaser, flanger, the Uni-Vibe-styled
vibe, chorusthat is overtly lacking compared to its classic counterpart.
For many players, though, the most
appealing and wow-inducing modulation
machine will be the rotary speaker simulator. Even through a cheap, solid-state
amplifier with an 8" speaker, the Mobius
premierguitar.com
has an amazing ability to simulate the

very organic sound of a mechanically spun
speaker array. The sonic undulations are
deep and complex, and at times sound
impossibly realto the point of being confounding. Just how is a 4' tall Leslie with
wildly spinning drum and horn speakers
hiding behind that practice amp?
The rotary simulator also reveals much
about the thoughtful approach and execution of the assignable parameters. In the
case of the rotary, the assignable parameters
include horn level, which increases the relative level of the virtual horn speaker and
therefore the treble content; preamp drive,
which simulates the tube preamp overdrive
you hear from a cranked Leslie; and an
acceleration parameter, which controls the
rate at which the virtual speaker will spool
up from a slow setting to a faster one. Each
lends considerable tone color and performance flexibility, and the horn level in
particular can help get the modulated signal
out over a dense, bass-heavy mix.
The vintage tremolo setting borrows the
three tremolo flavors from the Strymon
Flint (see PG November 2012), making the
delicious harmonic, tube, and photoresistor
trem simulations available via the assignable
presets. The pattern trem, however, will be
a cause for celebration for any dream-pop
player who misses their old Boss PN-2
Tremolo/Pan. Spacing two amplifiers about
four feet apart, setting the pan parameter to
on, selecting a pulse or ramp waveform from
the wave shape parameter, and dialing up a
slow and deep wave creates a shimmering,
psychedelic wash thats the aural equivalent
of watching sun stream through an undersea
kelp forest. Crank this setting up loud, pick
a slow, arpeggiated minor-key chord progression, add a long decay reverb, and youll lull
your audience into a state of lysergic bliss.
The awesome auto-swell setting can be
similarly transportiveespecially when run in
a stereo configuration with loads of reverb
and has a wealth of parameter options that
RATINGS
help you shape the waveform and dictate the

rise time of the swell. Slow leads and languidly
picked chords sound otherworldly in this
configuration. And while simulations of 70s
stalwarts like phase and vibe can be dialed
up to deliver the thickest, most classic variants of those sounds, they too benefit from
the extra malleability that comes with the
well-considered extra control parameters. The
phaser can be set up for various degrees of
spread in a stereo image and has a very useful
staging parameter that can be combined with
a wave-shape parameter to tailor waves of very
specific shape and intensity, and with a little
practice you can craft waves perfectly suited to
a specific drum beateven without the help
of the onboard MIDI capabilities.
The Verdict
Like so much Strymon stuff, theres way
more going on than you can cover in a
review of this size. And the features weve
covered here are just a small taste of what
this thing can do. Other thoughtful touches
like the pre/post switch enable you to put
dirt boxes and other effects in front or
behind the Mobius without rewiring your
pedalboard. And the expression pedal opens
up yet another frontier of cool assignable capabilities. Setting up presets is easy,
though you also can create more than most
mortals could ever keep track of.
The quality of the Mobius is superb.
Its dead silentquiet enough to use for
outboard mix buss duties. And its difficult
to imagine a modulation unit doing much
more as capably as the Mobius does. For a
lot of players it will be total overkill. And
though its simple to operate relative to its
capabilities, players that like things simple
may find anything beyond the most basic
functions (which are really anything but)
impenetrable. If youre an incurable studio
tinkerer, session expert, or a gigging guitarist
who plays in a classic rock cover band one
night and a post-rock project the next, the
Mobius gives you just about every modulation weapon you could ever need.
Strymon Mobius, $449 street, strymon.net
Pros:
A virtual encyclopedia of modulation sounds.

Shockingly accurate DSP emulations. Easy basic functionality,
with lots of deeper tweaking power.
Cons:
Fairly expensive. Can be a handful onstage. Small

print tough to read in low stage light.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
Review > roland
roland
GA-112
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips of the amp at

By Joe Charupakorn
ince the introduction of their Composite

Object Sound Modeling [COSM] in
1995, Roland has been active with, and
often on the vanguard of modeling technology. Their excellent Cube- and VGA-series
amps are among the best examples of how
modeling can work convincingly, be practical, and stay accessibly priced. Still, modeling amps are not for everyone. A lot of
old-school players remain steadfast in their
skepticism, while others associate modeling
amps with operational complexity.
Rolands new flagship GA-series amp,
the 100-watt GA-112, may not change
the minds of analog devotees. But it certainly simplifies and streamlines things by
Drive and boost controls
eschewing effects and relying on a single,

but much more flexible and manageable
COSM model. Dubbed Progressive Amp,
it doesnt model a particular amp, per se.
Instead, it gives you a blank slate for sculpting sounds from pristine clean to metal
mayhem via a super-simple control set.
Taking It to the Streets
Other than reverb, the GA-112 has no
effects. In fact, Rolands Jazz Chorus (introduced in 1975), with its trademark chorus/
vibrato, has more effects than this COSM
maverick. That said, the GA-112 has two
effects loops that offer series or parallel signal
paths, suggesting an acknowledgement that
most players would prefer to work with their

own effects and pedalboards, thank you.
Rather than control tones via a virtual
zoo of EQ and other amp-parameter controls, the Progressive Amp technology works
on the very sensible notion that you can
create a vast array of soundsfrom clean
to filthywith the combination of just a
volume and drive control. The end result is
an amp thats barely more complicated than
an old Marshall, but very wide-ranging.
Apart from the volume and boost controls
(grouped with the push buttons for voice
and boost in the Progressive Amp section),
theres a bass/middle/treble EQ section,
push buttons for mid boost and selecting
Four presets
Master volume
premierguitar.com
review > roland
the A or B effects loop, presence and reverb

controls, a master volume, and five push
buttons that enable the selection of four
presets or manual control. It may feel a
little different in practice than a similarly
configured tube amp, but the streamlined
control set makes navigating the differences
a lot easier.
Rollin the Range
With the drive almost all the way off,
the GA-112s clean sounds are pristine
and more than a little reminiscent of my
Roland JC-120. I wouldnt say the clean
tone is the fattest or warmest around, but
it is an iconic sound that works for everything from jazz and rapid-fire fusion to
dream pop and shoegaze when you goose
the reverb. And there is a seemingly endless
amount of headroom.
The amp has a small light that changes
colors to indicate the drive level, and it went
from green to amber when I moved the
drive from a clean setting to the midway
point, visually indicating my move into lowgain terrain. Maxing the drive at moderate
volume levels is the ticket to mid-gain classic rock or blues territory. And at this point,
I pressed the voice button, half expecting
an entirely different amp model. Instead, it
re-voices the EQ section, boosting the highs
and lows for a much bolder tone.
Engaging the boost button changes the
amps character more significantlytransforming the nature of the drive control in
a big way. With the boost on and the drive
around 9 oclock, I got just about the same
amount of gain as I did with the drive
maxed and the boost disengaged. Turning
the drive just slightly past the halfway
mark yielded a tight, controlled, high-gain
sound thats ideal for classic metal. And
when I cranked the drive, I got into hotrodded Marshall/Soldano SLO territory,
a setting that invited thrash chords and
blazing licks, and which truly surprised.
Ive never heard or felt a solid-state amp
that could pack quite this much punch on
its own.
Even with the amp raging, there was
still plenty of clarity. Playing complex and
harmonically detailed chord voicings found
individual notes ringing with impressive

crispness. Engaging the mid boost drives
beautiful, singing lead tones that are a great
companion to the non-mid-boosted rhythm
toneand you could save these two sounds
as presets or use the optional footswitch
(which unfortunately comes in at a rather
steep $119) to activate and deactivate the
mid boost.
Save Me
One of my favorite GA-112 features is the
default auto-save function, which automatically saves settings (theres also a manualsave option) to the active channel. For
many programmable amps and effects, having to press multiple buttons to simply save
a preset is complex enough to be a deterrent. And Ive had many units where I had
to refer to the manual to learn that I needed
to press one specific button, while holding
down another, just to save a minor tweak.
In addition to being annoying at home, this
can be downright impractical at a gig. Lets
say youve realized during a soundcheck that
you actually need a little more treble for a
premierguitar.com
Review > Roland
verse, so you move the treble knob quickly

as you held a chord down. Well, on a gig,
you probably wouldnt have time to save
that adjustmentat least if it involved a
three-step, two-button procedure. Another
common beef with programmable amps is
that the knob indicators generally do not
move when changing from preset to preset.
As a consequence, the settings you see do
not necessarily reflect the setting you hear.
This disconnect has long been a problem,
and while some companies have employed
robotically moving knobs or numerical
LED displays, the GA-112 has red LED
arrows embedded into each knob of the
shared control paneldrive, volume, bass,
middle, treble, presence, and reverbwhich
change positions depending on the preset.
Its clever, its simple, and it really helps you
keep your bearings as you get deeper into
the potential of presets.
The Verdict
Theres a ton of processing power under the
hood of the surprisingly heavy (54 pounds)
GA-112. But Roland went to great lengths to
keep things as traditionally amp-like as possible. As a result, the amp feels familiar, highly
usable, and very navigable. Considering all the
self-contained-rig-type functionality, it's a bit
of a surprise that there's no built-in tuner. In
that small instance, at least, Roland may have
played it too safe.
Trying to walk the line between tradition and modeling flexibility does leave
the GA-112 with something of an identity
crisis at times. Its not a full-blown modeling amp as weve come to know them,
but it is much more than just a solid-state
amp. Once you really sit down and play
the GA-112, however, a lot of those questions go out the window. Most of the time,
RATINGS
it sounded good enough that I didnt care

whether it was a tube or a digital amp. And
I often got delightfully lost for hours in the
music and remarkable range of tones that
are available via a very traditional-feeling
and simple set of controls. The lack of an
included footswitchand the almost 120
bucks that you have to pay to get oneis a
bummer, considering that its almost essential to getting the most out of the GA-112
onstage, and that Roland makes much of
the amps suitability for that role. But in
delivering this much sound, so simply,
the GA-112 gets most of the way to being
a great-sounding, jack-of-all-trades amp
solution for under a grandno mean feat
under any circumstances.
Roland GA-112, $999 street, rolandus.com
Pros:
Wide range of great sounds. Auto-save and LEDequipped knobs make the amp very practical for live use.
Cons:
Heavy. A little expensive. No included footswitch.
Tones
Versatility
Build/Design
Value
Singleman
premierguitar.com
review > pigtronix
pigtronix
infinity looper
by Charles Saufley
n the first page of the Infinity Looper

users guide, Pigtronix founder David
Koltai dedicates the pedal to Les Paul. The
shout-out isnt for Pauls formidable guitar
chops but for his role as a multitrackrecording pioneer. Given how liberally most
stompbox companies borrow from the classicsand each otherthe nod to a true
maverick and visionary is a classy move. But
the dedication also says something about the
mindset behind the new Infinity Looper.
Obviously, the Infinity isnt the only
looper with guitar-centric intent. But,
like Les Pauls early experiments in
MIDI input
multitracking, it helps a player create the

illusion of a whole lot more guitar, using
some pretty basic tools. And though it
doesnt skimp on state-of-the-art features
most importantly, totally transparent analog bypass, zero latency, nine preset slots
(which save both the audio and the Infinity
Looper settings used when that audio was
captured), and time-sync featuresits so
responsive and easy to use at basic levels
that it inspires both stream-of-consciousness
composition and basic verse-chorus-verse
song structures that can widen your performance vocabulary considerably.
Series mode for versechorus-style looping
CLICKHere

Arranged for Action

If youre new to this type of device, just
about any looper can, well, throw you for
a loop. Typically, even the most essential
functionsuch as seamlessly creating a
simple four-bar looptakes practice and
getting a feel for the way the start and stop
controls work. Pigtronix did a nice job of
distancing the Infinitys three footswitches
from each other to prevent errant activation. The loop 1 footswitch starts and stops
Sync multi mode enables

loops at specified intervals
Nine presets
Loop 1 and loop

2 footswitches
USB jack for external loops
1/4" inputs and outputs for dualinstrument or stereo looping

DR1 PREMIERGUITAR MARCH 2013
premierguitar.com
review > pigtronix
loops, and its situated about as sensibly

as it could be on the lower far right of
the pedalwhere you wont be able to
mistake it for anything else. As its label
implies, loop 2 (the next footswitch over)
is for a second set of loops. If you set the
pedal up for series looping using the series
loop switch, hitting this footswitch seamlessly switches from the first loop to the
second. If you have the Infinity set up in
sync mode, the loop 2 footswitch cycles in
a ratio with the first loop that you select.
The leftmost footswitch is for stopping and
clearing your loops.
Elsewhere, the control set is pretty
streamlined. The top-left knob is a master
volume thats easy to adjust with your foot,
and when you crank it all the way clockwise you get an extra 3 dB of clean boost
for your pass-through and looped signal.
The next control over lets you select presets from one of nine banks. To store your
presets, press the knob. The two right-most
knobs set your loop volume relative to the
pass-through volume, and theres one for
each input, so you can run anything from
a keyboard or bass to a drum machine into
input 2 for your second loop and control its
volume independently.
The four buttons in the center of the
Infinity are key to its deeper functions. The
stop mode button is perhaps the trickiest to
manage at first. Holding it down lets you
toggle through the three stop modes: full
(which interrupts a loop at whatever point
you press stop), trail (which stops your loop
at the end of a loop cycle, regardless of when
you hit stop), and fade (which does the same
thing as trail but adds a volume taper to the
end of the loop). Conversely, a quick click
of the stop mode button selects the arm and
all modes. In arm mode, the stop switch
interrupts only the loop that is armed. In all
mode, the stop switch interrupts all loops.
Pigtronix is not shy in its assertions that
the Infinity Looper does not suck tone, and
its hard to argue against that claim. Theres
no audible difference between pass-through
tone and a direct guitar-to-amp signal, and
that precious headroom is no doubt a product of the 18V DC power. Better yet, the
loops sound every bit as transparent, and
thats a big deal given how easy and fun it
is to record and stack loops using just the
most basic loop function. To do so, (or to
overdub loops) just hit the loop 1 or loop
2 footswitch at the entry and exit point of
premierguitar.com
your loop. Theres no perceptible noise from

multiple loops, either, which is great if you
like to stack a lot of dubs on top of each
other. The switch is fast and responsive,
making it easy to nail a loop start and stop
on the one beat. And the pedal is intuitive
enough (provided you give the quick-start
guide a cursory glance) that the time from
plugging in to creating a symphony of
stacked lead lines over a chord progression
can be as fast as minutes, if not seconds.
Series modewhich is perfect for versechorus-verse-type tunes and drastic tempo
and texture shiftsis not much more complicated. Just hit the series button, record
your first loop and any overdubs, and then
loop your second part via the same process.
Switching between loops is seamless and
instantaneous, provided the loops themselves start on time and on the one. In my
own experiments, I used loop 1 to record
the simple, two-bar Em7-to-A major verse
of Neil Young and Crazy Horses Down by
the River, then played the chorus section
into the second loop, and finally proceeded
to drive my neighbors batty playing Neil
Young solos to my own looped Danny
Whitten for the next hour. Its addictive
stuffand all the more so for how simple
it is. And it doesnt take much imagination
to see the potential of using other effects
devices in front the Infinity Looper. For
example, in either dense applications of
multiple loops or simple chord-vamp loops,
just a dot of vicious fuzz and vibrato can
add dramatic punctuation. And a combination of delay and fuzz can create a raging
maelstrom over which you can freestyle solo
for a huger-than-huge outro.
The multi sync function opens up a lot
of compositional possibilities, too, particularly if youre a solo improviser. Putting the
function into practice isnt super easy, especially if youre more of an intuitive player
than a mathematical timekeeper, but it adds
versatility to the looping process that can
make a stack of loops feel and sound more
RATINGS
organic and composed, lend space and

texture, and break up the regularity that
renders a lot of live looping monotonous.
To use it, you press the multi sync button
and select one of the six time divisions.
X2, for instance, causes loop 2 to be twice
as long as loop 1. Along those lines, X6
obviously gives you the most space to work
with. I used it to bring in a more horn-linelike pattern based on a pretty abrasive fuzz
tonenot a texture youd want through
a whole song, perhaps, but very effective
when it pops up every several measures. If
you dont have a great sense for counting
out bars on the fly, the sync feature can be
tricky to use, but practice yields a bounty of
soundscaping possibilities.
The Verdict
If you havent had much experience with
loopers, using the Infinitys most fundamental looping functions is intuitive, very
easy, and rather addictive. Using the series
function is simple, too. And whether you
use the Infinity as a more traditional versechorus-verse tool or as a route to more
unorthodox textures and dramatic shifts,
its musical and as seamless as can be, and it
opens up a lot of possibilities onstage.
Looping fans who rely on dozens of presets may be a little let down by the Infinitys
mere nine loops (and one blank canvas),
but you get a lot of flexibility. The USB
port enables you to loop almost any outside
audio source, and you can add about 250
overdubs per loop. Those two features alone
can facilitate extremely rich and complex
pieces. Of course, all that symphony-ina-box potential may heighten the desire
for more presets, too, but if this limitation
compels users to actually commit these
masterworks to hard disk, maybe users
and listeners alike will reap the benefits.
Regardless, the Infinity Loopers power and
player-oriented interface make it destined
to be the source of some very creative,
unorthodox, and unexpectedly beautiful
and exciting music.
Pigtronix Infinity Looper, $449 street, pigtronix.com
Pros:
Superb headroom and fidelity. Zero latency. Intuitive

to use. Series function for verse/chorus loops. Smart interface.
Quality construction.
Cons:
Limited presets. Expensive.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
PREMIERGUITAR MARCH 2013 DR2
review > carvin
carvin
HH2 allan
holdsworth
BY Adam Perlmutter
ustom shop and boutique guitars are

now a multi-faceted businessthe
domain of collectors, pro players, wellheeled amateurs and aspirational pickers
alike. But for a long time, bespoke and
small-batch guitar making (to borrow a
more contemporary brewing term) was byand-large a fringe business, walking a line
between old-American tailored craft and
the emerging thought of electric guitars as a
fashion accessory.
Carvin was among the first, most
interesting, and remains one of the most
enduring of these builders. The company,

which started in 1946 as a mail-order
pickup business, was building mail-order
solidbodies by the late 50s. And in the
years since, theyve offered a wildly varied,
unique, and evolving line of electric guitars from their San Diego custom shop,
all available with myriad tonewood and
hardware options. Carvin still uses the
direct sales model as a way to make excellent, accessibly priced guitars available
to players. Some of their models start at
less than $1,000 and ship within four to
CLICKHere
to hear audio clips of the guitar at

seven weeks. Thats quite a contrast to the

amount of money and patience typically
required when special-ordering a guitar.
These days, Carvins are known for
being high-performance machines, so its
no surprise that the companys endorsers include hot fusion players like Frank
Gambale and Allan Holdsworth. The
latter guitarist has a complex and idiosyncratic voice, and not surprisingly, Carvins
JCustom Headless Research

hardtail bridge
Chambered alder body
7.3k neck
humbucker and
the 8.6k bridge
humbucker
premierguitar.com
Review > carvin
Allan Holdsworth models are some of

the most unusual in their catalog. The
HH2 is the latest product of the Carvin/
Holdsworth partnership.
Sleepy Hollow Shredder
With its headstock-free design, all-in-one
bridge, tailpiece, and tuner assembly affixed
to its tail end, the HH2 will evoke thoughts
of Steinberger for many. But where
Steinberger guitars were made from graphite-reinforced epoxy, the base HH2 model
is built entirely from wooda chambered
alder body with a white birch top, along
with an Eastern hard rock maple neck and
an ebony fretboard. Tonewood connoisseurs
will be glad to hear that the neck, body, and
top are also available in various combinations of figured maple, koa, walnut, and
mahogany. The fretboard is also available in
varieties of maple or rosewood.
The standard bridge on the HH2, a
JCustom Headless Research hardtail with
knurled-knob tuners, closely resembles that
originally made by Steinberg. (A tremolo
version is also available, and it includes a
locking lever for conversion to a hardtail.)
The cleverly designed headpiece will accommodate strings with either double or single
ball ends, which is nice if foul circumstances find you without spares or a fellow
headless player on the bill. It is not difficult
to grow accustomed to this configuration, although tuning with conventionally
located machine heads is a quicker and
smoother process.
The HH2 is equipped with a pair of
humbuckers designed specifically for the
guitar. The neck reads 7.3k and the
bridge 8.6k , and each pickup has a
whopping 11 adjustable pole piecesa cool
feature for the obsessive tone tinkerer. The
guitar comes with black coils and bezels,
but any combination of black and crme
RATINGS
Carvin HH2 Allan Holdsworth, $1,199 direct, carvinguitars.com
Pros: Great craftsmanship, killer sounds, and ultra-fast

playability in an idiosyncratic and unique guitar.
Cons:
More than a few will be deterred by the headless design. Build/Design

Value
can be ordered. Perhaps due to the diminutive size of the guitar, the pickups share a
master volume and master tone control and
a metal 3-way mini selector switch specifically requested by Holdsworth. This switch
seems a bit fragile, and Id prefer to see a
full-sized component here.
I must confess that when I first removed
the HH2, just 31" long, from its undersized
hardshell case it felt like something was
missing. Even though headless designs have
been around forever, it can still strike you as
unusual. It also looks small, and the vintage
yellow metallic finish tends to highlight
some of the more unconventional aspects
of the design. The matte black hardware
may appeal to some but not others, and I
couldnt help but think how some chrome
touches might better complement the futuristic aesthetics. Luckily, at least for my tastes,
the guitar is available in translucent finishes
like honeyburst and cherry sunburst, which
would give the guitar a more respectable
look. Unfortunately, at this time, black is
the only option for the hardware.
While our review model of the HH2
looks anything but traditional, it boasts tiptop craftsmanship, which is the norm for
Carvin. The 24 frets are meticulously done,
cleanly seated and polished, and the ebony
fretboard has been sanded to silky smoothness. The finish is rubbed to a faultlessly
even gloss, and its entirely devoid of any
orange-peel effect, even in tricky areas like
the neck-to-body joint.
Fleet Machine
A player as seasoned and skilled as Allan
Holdsworth is probably pretty in tune with
what he wants from an instrument. And
indeed, the HH2 plays as well as its built,
and it feels built for playing above alla
real exercise in function over form. At just a
little over five pounds, its very comfortable
to play in standing position and feels wellbalanced despiteor perhaps because of
its lack of a headstock. Its very comfortable
premierguitar.com
Tones
Playability
to play seated as well (unusual for a headless), thanks to the Telecasterinspired silhouette. And no matter how you play, over
time the lack of headstock becomes a lot
less disorienting.
The neck on the HH2 feels full in hand,
and is capped by a flattish 20"-radius fretboard and 24 jumbo frets (different radii
and fretwire are available). Action is predictably low and feels zippy in all registers. This
is especially noticeable at the highest frets,
which are made considerably more negotiable by a low-profile neck heel. Altogether
the neck feels very fast, and its especially
accommodating of the legato phrasing for
which Holdsworth is celebrated.
Through a Fender Deluxe, the
Holdsworth displays a range of satisfying
tones. The warm neck pickup works particularly well for fingerpicking the complex
chord progressions Holdsworth favors, and
rolling the tone back summons a dark, but
clear timbre that makes this an excellent
jazz solidbody.
The bridge pickup is more aggressive,
but hardly without refinement, and it works
equally well for rootsy rhythm and singing
and cutting leads. It doesnt get strident at
higher volumes and sustains beautifully,
even at lower output levels. The pickups
are nicely balanced in relation to each other
too, which invites a lot more tone crafting
with the guitars controls.
The Verdict
Carvins HH2 Allan Holdsworth signature
model will doubtless prove ber-appealing
to Allan Holdsworth fans and players
without a bias against headless designs. But
with its tip-top build, smooth playability,
and wide tone profilenot to mention its
modest pricethe HH2 is good enough to
tempt those on the fence. Regardless of how
it looks, the HH2 does much to recommend this California company that, decades
on, is still quietly making killer boutique
guitars to order.
infinitely
ORGANIC.
We spent months in our labs

forging a collection of the most
luscious modulation effects we
could conjure up. We captured the
warmth of iconic effects from the
last five decades, and pushed their
boundaries with new sonic
possibilities
never before heard.
po
Mobius. Rewriting the history
books of modulation.
strymon.net/mobius
premierguitar.com
Review > van amps
van amps
CLICKHere

sole-mate jr.
BY Alex Maiolo
y three go-to amps are a 70s SimmsWatts, a Matchless HC-30, and an

Orange Tiny Terror, depending on my needs
(and the quality of available hearing protection on hand, particularly where the SimmsWatts is concerned). These amps have very
little in common sonically, but they do
share a common fault: None of them have
reverb. This was a common problem in the
past, and the solution was either getting one
of those giant, amp-head-sized tank units,
or investing in an entirely different amp.
Typically compact and rugged, digital reverb
was a good fix when it came around. But
until companies like Electro-Harmonix and
Malekko dedicated themselves to making
good spring replicators and DSP modeling
evolved to its present, refined state, digital
reverb tended to sound pretty cold.
In 2006, Van Amps released the SoleMate spring reverb pedal, which offered a
true solution by packing a real reverb tank
and solid-state circuitry into a relatively compact stompbox. The new Sole-Mate Jr., however, reduces the footprint even further by
removing the tank from the switching unit.
Where did the tank go? Its now connected
to the switching unit via an RCA cable, so it
can go anywhere youd like (within a reasonable distance). It can be mounted under your
pedalboard, or just sit on the floor next to it.
And the design opens up a lot of possibilities
for fans of spring reverb that havebecause
of practicality and space constraintshad to
settle for lackluster substitutes.
Split Infinitives
Before I played a single note through the
Sole-Mate Jr., I examined the logistics
of various tank-mounting options. The
underside of the pedalboard is a pretty good
place for it. Its a short cable run, and the
underside is usually dedicated to power supplies anyway. With Emma AmARHyll and
Pedaltrain PT-1 units, there was enough
room to mount the tank and place it conveniently next to the power brick (youll
premierguitar.com
Mix and
dwell controls
Separate,
mountable spring
reverb tank
need to be mindful not to ground the

reverb tank to a metal pedalboard, however,
and use rubber spacers to avoid hum). My
concern with underside mounting, though,
is that pedalboards can get banged around
a lot in live situationsloading a board on
and off a stage could leave the underside
vulnerable. Alternatively, mounting the
Sole-Mate Jr. upside down under a pedalboard could effectively make the tank a collection cup for dust and stage crud.
Placing the tank on the floor comes with
its own dangers. The vibrations in a live,
loud setting can mean audible problems,
and the set it on a t-shirt solution isnt
very elegant for such a beautifully made
unit. Mounting the unit to the topside at
the backside of the pedalboard is the most
logical solution, but then most of the advantages over an all-in-one unit like the original
Sole-Mate are negated. Still, while placement can be a puzzle, the flexibility remains
attractive, and the Sole-Mate Jr. will enable
players to find what works best for them.
The tank itself is an off-the-shelf MOD
8EB2C1B. Its not rebranded, nor is it hidden in a protective box. Its just a stock,
drop-in unit, with the springs exposed on
the underside. What this means to you is
what youre really buying is the switching/

amplifier unit. Nobody makes a better,
sturdier reverb tank than MOD these days,
so does the switching unit match in quality? Definitely. A peek inside exposes a
beautifully wired circuit board made from
high-quality components. And while the
Sole-Mate Jr. is aimed towards fans of vintage equipment, the modern op-amp design
keeps things compact.
High Lonesome Sound
No matter how you mount the Sole-Mate
Jr., it sounds fantastic. The box only has
two controls, so dialing in a great tone is
easy. Output level mixes wet and dry, and
the dwell knob adjusts decay. Want longer,
more intense reverb? Or how about something tighter and less washy? Thankfully,
you dont really need an owners manual to
figure any of that outits simply a matter
of twisting the two knobs to taste. When
switched off, the true-bypass Sole-Mate Jr.
disappears completely from your chain, and
when its on, its nice and quiet. Even sitting
in a room full of transformers, I didnt pick
up any interference.
When both controls are wide open,
the reverb is lush and full, with a little
review > van amps
shimmer, a trail that sounds very natural,

and an absence of the boing-boing tones
that are the downside of spring reverb to
some ears. Interestingly, the Sole-Mate Jr.
is better suited to spatial, more ambient
reverb than surf tones, which is probably
attributable, in part, to the 3-spring tank.
The surprising absence of really strong
surf-style tones did prompt a thought about
the Sole-Mate Jr.s potential for customization. After all, reverb tanks are cheap, and
theoretically, you could easily experiment
with other ones. As long as youre mindful
of impedance matching, you could easily adopt a more surf-ready 2-spring tank
or try different tank lengths and spring
countseffectively making the Sole-Mate
Jr. a customizable reverb system. And while
its unlikely this modularity was the primary
motivation behind Van Amps decision to
decouple the tank from the switching and
circuitry, its a strength that could create a
lot of options, especially in the studio.
Its worth noting that by running the
Sole-Mate Jr. before your amp, youre placing the reverb before the preamp, just like
the old surf-music players that stacked a

Fender reverb tank on top of their Showman
head. And I really enjoyed the sound of grit
added to the reverb, rather than vice versa.
If your amp has an effects loop, you could
set up a more contemporary and conventional chain that places the reverb after the
preamp. But the only time I thought the
arrangement sounded less than stellar was
when I hit it with a lot of overdrive or fuzz.
In these setups, a lot of harmonic definition
was lost in a wash of sound.
With clean tonesor with a little drive
to excite itthe reverb sounds better
than almost anything I hear from stock
in-amp reverbs. With a renewed interest
in small vintage amps, like Champs, the
RATINGS
Musicmaster Bass, and Broncos, its great to

have a reverb option that matches an amp
in spirit. It really feels like what Fender or
Ampeg probably would have put in their
amplifiers, were they reverb equipped.
The Verdict
The Sole-Mate Jr. can breathe new life into
old or stale-sounding amps, or it can add a
second spring-reverb option to your chain
instead of a digital replication. Despite the
emphasis on downsizing, Im not so sure the
Sole-Mate Jr. will find favor with users of
large pedalboards, because the features-tosize ratio is pretty small. But those who prize
high quality, simplicity, and vintage reverb
tones will will doubtlessly love what the
Sole-Mate Jr. has to offer.
Van Amps Sole-Mate Jr., $250 street, vanamps.com
Pros:
An easy way to add real, high-quality spring reverb to

your amp. Fantastic tones, especially for clean sounds.
Cons:
High price tag. Still requires a lot of space for a

basic effect. Spring unit could be better protected.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
premierguitar.com
review > Takamine
takamine
P3mc
BY Charles Saufley
n the four-plus decades that Takamine

has sold guitars in the United States, the
company has won scores of professional devoteesparticularly among performers who
face the challenge of amplifying acoustics on
big stages. Bruce Springsteen and Oasis Noel
Gallagherboth of whom have, in their
respective seasons, vied for biggest-band-inthe-world honorsused Takamines to solve
the problem of making acoustics sound great
in stadiums. And while the art of acoustic
amplification has opened up a lot of new
and different avenues to great acoustic guitar
sound in the last decade or so, there is little
arguing or challenging Takamines knack for
building great-sounding acoustic-electrics
that are virtually bulletproof and, at times,
exquisitely and masterfully built.
With its tapered headstock, venetian
cutaway, and rather substantial preamp
interface, the very reasonably priced new
PM3C is an unmistakable sprout from the
Takamine family treeits stage-ready and
built for reliable plug-and-play service.
Crafted in Japan, this cedar-and-sapele
flattop is a reminder how well built and
playable Takamines are by any standard. Its
also a fine example of how a stage-centric,
amplification-oriented acoustic can be
forward looking while retaining a lot of vintage-style sound and construction virtues.
Mellow and Modern
Depending on which side of the vintage
is king divide youre on, youll either find
the P3MCs design refreshing or a little too
new-world. What isnt up for debate is how
well its put together. The only irregularities
I could find anywhere were some very small
spots of excess glue around the kerfing and
neck block, and pearloid plastic plugs just
adjacent to the saddle that failed to sit flush
and were cut a bit rough.
Though cedars sonic qualities are the best
reason to use it for top wood on an acoustic, few woods are as subtly handsome. The
CLICKHere

video demo of the guitar at
P3MCs satin finish reveals a lovely,

straight grain, feels silky smooth,
and gives the guitar the modest-butsolid aura of rural high craft. Its one
of those guitars where a pickguard
would upset the visual balance, and
you won't find one here. However,
that might be a practical addition
here, given how the finish showed
pick scratches below the soundhole
after a few days of use. The only real
adornments are a dark hardwood
marquetry rosette and very pretty
black, white, and wood binding.
The bridge is classically
Takaminea fine piece of wood
design that functionally deviates from
tradition while imparting a modern
woodwork sensibility. Its also home
to Takamines split-bone saddle,
which improves intonation and facilitates more accurate and specific intonation and action adjustments over
the life of the guitar.
Players Playground
A lot of guitarists came through
the house while our test P3MC
was around, and few failed to be struck by
how good the Takamine felt in hand. The
mahogany neck has a fairly substantial C
profile that seems to reduce hand fatigue
over the course of a long rehearsal. More
notably, the action is low and fast. Its rare
to encounter an acoustic with action this
low that isnt plagued by fret buzz. And
it adds up to a flattop thats conducive
to fleet-fingered pull-offs, hammer-ons,
and legato workeven if its 1 5/8" nut is
slightly less than ideal for fingerstyleand
it makes complex chords virtually effortless.
If theres any drawback to the low action,
its that it makes digging in for big blues
bends a little more challengingespecially
for those with bigger, fatter fingers. Thats
remedied easily enough with a little neck
Mahogany back
and sides
Cedar top
Split-saddle bridge
with Palathetic pickup
relief, however, and finding an acoustic

that leaves you more concerned with action
thats too low rather than the opposite is a
not a bad problem to have.
Cedar might be one of the most unsung
tonewoods, and its virtues shine bright
here. In delicate fingerstyle settings, its
simultaneously warm and responsive to a
light touch, and it exhibits a cool combination of snappy, concise decay and warm
afterglow thats a perfect middle ground
between mahogany and spruce.
Aggressive strumming of the P3MC highlights the strong midrange presence derived
from the marriage of cedar and the compact
premierguitar.com
Review > takamine
orchestra-sized body. Those same attributes,

however, mean a certain lack of low-end
thump and sustain that might put off players
accustomed to the low-end potential of, say,
a spruce-and-rosewood dreadnought.
The upside of this tone equation is that
it can be ideal for strummers who tend
to operate in a rock-oriented band where
a bassist and drummer provide most of
the low-frequency punch. And its a great
match for the CT4B II preamp and proprietary Palathetic pickup system (which
uses individual piezo transducers for each
string). Running through a Fishman
Loudbox amp and a Mackie PA, the P3MC
had a sweet, jangly midrange that was
rarely colored by any nasty piezo artifacts
even at high volume and under heavy pick
attack. The preamp is not only forgiving,
its highly tunable. And the 3-band EQ is
both responsive and flexible, with a cut/
boost capacity of 5 dB in either directionwhich makes it a lot easier to tailor
for varied performance environments. The
very cool tuner is great for a couple of reasonsyou can change your reference pitch
premierguitar.com
from A440 to dial up alternate tunings or

to, say, play in tune with an eccentrically
tuned piano or pitch-shifted backing track.
More streamlined preamps are out there,
but few can leave you feeling quite as well
equipped for any performance environment
as the CT4B II.
The Verdict
Takamine has always appealed to players
with more modern performance concerns.
Its smart, well-executed designs have made
it one of the vanguards of amplified acoustic guitars, always keeping the company a
relevant presence in a fast-changing and
competitive amplified acoustic market. And
RATINGS
the P3MC excels at all the things that have

made Takamine popular in that corner of
the guitar cosmos. But its also a reminder
of how thoughtfully and well built the
companys guitars can be.
Workmanship on our P3MC was exceptional, and even the very minor imperfections seemed more like the product of a
human touch rather than a CNC rig gone
awry. The playability, meanwhile, is something no machine can deliver on its own,
and this guitar is among the sweetest-feeling
flattops weve seen over the last year. At
less than $1,200 bucks, it inhabits a pretty
crowded field of very good flattops. But with
tones this distinct and playability this good,
the P3MC stands apart from the pack.
Takamine P3MC, $1,149 street, takamine.com
Pros:
Warm, concise tones. Fast action and exceptional

playability. Quality design and construction. Versatile preamp.
Cons:
Preamp control panel is quite large.
Tones
Playability
Build/Design
Value
review > FUZZHUGGER(fx)
FUZZHUGGER(fx)
POCKET ARCADE
by Matthew Holliman
CLICKHere
uzzHugger(fx) is a one-man operation

based in Mansfield, Pennsylvania, that,
true to name, has a freakish passion for
all things fuzz. Head honcho Tom Dalton
designs and wires all his creations, starting with a fuzzy foundation, adding a little
oscillation here, sprinkling a bit of octave
there, and then maybe some modulation for
good measure to cook up a line of varied
fuzz flavors. One of his wildest concoctionsthe Phantom Arcadecaptures
all of the above in a single unit. Now the
Phantom has a baby brother, the Pocket
Arcade, which drops a footswitch and adds
a few toggles to serve up much of the same
bedlam on a smaller plate.

Turbo mode
Twist Your Way to Chaos

The Pocket Arcade is housed in an unfinished, MXR-sized enclosure that can only
take power from a 9V barrel adapter. On
the face of the effect, youll find the three
knobs and three switches situated atop an
8-bit-style graphic that exudes Nintendo
charm. To select the Arcades individual
modes, engage the toggle that corresponds
to each function. Lo-glitch is the fuzzier of
the two voice options, generating a lower
octave with some ring modulation-like
curve balls. The hi-ring toggle runs in the
opposite direction: one octave up, with
considerably less fuzz, and a hint of ring
mod. With this switch engaged, you can
tailor the high end of the output with the
hi-score knob.
The level knob and turbo switch only
work in lo-glitch mode. Once its on, you
can use the center knob to adjust oscillation
and curtail or increase the turbo treble. By
turning on all three modes (lo-glitch, hiring, and turbo) you can access positively
paint-peeling soundshigh and low octaves
with fragmented fuzz and all sorts of beeps
and boops.
You do sacrifice some functionality for
the convenience of the smaller package.
The toggles are obviously harder to use in
performance than the footswitches on the
DR3 PREMIERGUITAR MARCH 2013
Lo-glitch
octave down
Phantom. And in a performance, that can

translate to a less-fluid, less-intuitive playing experience.
Button Mashers Delight
Starting in lo-glitch mode, I matched the
Pocket Arcade up with a Stratocaster and a
silverface Fender Bassman. Banging out a
few chunky power chords yielded chaotic,
Fuzzrite-style tones along the lines of Ron
Hi-ring odd-octaveup toggle
Ashetons I Wanna Be Your Dog intro.

The fuzz is bright but still heavy, with
a touch of lower octave. Rolling off the
guitars tone control will shave off some
of the harshness, if youre not a complete
60s-fuzz devotee. Engaging the turbo
switch in lo-glitch mode kills some of the
singing sustain and introduces a dose of
frazzled electronics. With the turbo knob
around 10 oclock, hard pick attack induces
premierguitar.com
review > FUZZHUGGER(fx)
choppy oscillation thats more pronounced

amid higher-pitched tones. Turning turbo
up to 3 oclock increases sustain and adds
a synth-like tone akin to the nasally burst
of the Moog used on the White Stripes
Icky Thump. An extreme setting like this
mostly masks your guitars true voice, but
you can more easily strike a balance if you
use a single-coil-equipped instrument and
stick to the B and high E strings. Using
humbuckers or the second and fourth
switch positions on a Stratocaster reduces
the transparency even more, though both
result in a little more sustain.
Driving the Pocket Arcade into an overdriven amp usually results in accentuated
modulation. You can also isolate the hi-ring
mode for an octave-up, Hendrix-esque
Octavia-type effect. However, since the volume output for hi-ring is fixed, there is limited use for a boosted lead toneit might
be better suited to a nasty rhythm texture.
Unleashing lo-, hi-, and turbo modes
together is a blindfolded bronco ride
practice is definitely required if you want to
master a fuzz tone this hectic. Using either
single-coils or humbuckers (Eastwood

Alnico Hot-10s, in this case) yields an allout fuzz battle, with stretched octaves, pitch
modulations, and oscillating ghost notes.
Blending two pickups usually produces a
buzz-saw texture that sails over the notes,
and pushing turbo past 1 oclock generates white noise when youre not playing.
Extreme turbo settings can also introduce
a lot of high-end spikiness, so be vigilant
about dialing it back when you hear errant
treble content.
The Verdict
Given how packed-out pedalboards are getting these days, its becoming increasingly
RATINGS
important for stompbox manufacturers to

give their offerings a lot of bang in a small
footprint. Even so, its pretty tough to
make space-saving pedals this quirky. The
Pocket Arcade offers up a myriad of weird
tones without giving up too much space.
While its well suited to humbuckers, if
youre into really shaking up a tune, its
more searing with a set of single-coils. The
basic fuzz settings sound fantastic, provided you like things on the Tone Bender/
Fuzzrite side of the spectrum. If youre
just into the most basic fuzz tones, 175
bucks may be a bit rich. But if you love
the capacity to startle a listener, the shock
potential that the Pocket Arcade serves up
makes it worth every penny.
FuzzHugger(fx) Pocket Arcade, $175 street, fuzzhugger.com
Pros:
Lots of modulation and tone bending in a small pedal.
Cons:
Trickier to use live than the Phantom Arcade.

No battery option.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
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Review > Vox
vox
stomplab IIB
BY Jordan Wagner
uring the all-in-one floorboards and

digital-processing dark ages of the
early 90s, it was next to impossible to
find an affordable unit that could actually
produce the deity-like tones that were promised. Voxs new StompLab IIB for bass is
one example that really shows just how far
multi-effect units have evolved in the last
couple of decades. With the StompLab IIB,
Vox has achieved an admirable balance of
great tones on tap, extreme portability, and
pricing that wont send many bassists running. And while there are instances where
its small size can work against it, the tonal
capabilities that live within the StompLabs
tiny enclosure are well worth exploring.
Tiny Dancer
At only 8 1/2" wide and a hair shy of 5"
deep, the StompLab IIB takes up very little
real estate on the floor. At first glance, its
diminutive stature and fire-truck-red paint
give it the look of a small toy, but the metal
chassis, smooth pot movement, and solid,
weighty feel in the hands quickly alleviate any possible concerns about durability.
Powered by either a 9V power supply or four
AA batteries, the StompLab IIB is ready for
the studio or travel, though it is somewhat
limited with just a single 1/4" jack to handle
both mono and stereo headphones outputs.
Despite the limited output options,
the StompLabs tonal capabilities are quite
extensive. There are a total of 61 effect,
amplifier, and cabinet models to choose
from, each of which can be stored in one
of 20 user programs in any configuration
you can dream up (provided that your
dreams allow for a maximum of eight
effects at one time). Vox also includes 100
pre-programmed patches, which helps in
getting started with the pedal right out of
the box. Since the StompLabs LED readout
is only able to display two numbers or letters at a time, youll most likely be spending
some time referring to the manual until you
memorize the readouts that correspond to
each model.
premierguitar.com
CLICKHere

Category dial for

genre selection
Built-in
chromatic tuner
Onboard
expression
pedal
Dual footswitches for

program-bank scrolling
That said, creating and altering programs

is a cinch. The StompLabs default mode
(dubbed program) allows you to you start
off by selecting the desired musical genre
from the category control knob, which
will then pipe in an amp that reflects that
musics tonal character. Two conjoining
knobs adjust the amps gain and volume
levels, and stomping on the pedals two
footswitches allows scrolling up and down
through the program banks. Pressing the
edit button engages the, yes, edit mode,
which reassigns most of the pedals controls
for secondary functionssuch as calling up
effects, editing their parameters, and telling
the LED screen what values to display. You
can also assign the tiny onboard expression
pedal to control any parameter of the amps
and effects you wish.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse
When taking into consideration the surprisingly great tones that live within its dainty
enclosure, the StompLab IIB provides a

lot of bang for the buck. With a Fender
American Jazz bass at the helm, Voxs little
red devil dished out excellent clean tones
with plenty of definition and character. The
amplifier models assigned to each genre
selection lined up perfectly with what one
would expect, be it for warm and smooth
jazz tones, meaty and aggressive hard-rock
swagger, or even some really wild and
strange sounds for modern dance music.
What was even more impressive was how
nicely they tracked into my DAW, demonstrating how well Vox understands that half
of a great, modeled tone is dependent on
good micing emulation.
Even though each of the effects has just
two controllable parameters, theyre surprisingly malleable. The envelope filters in
particular have a massive range from subtle
to extreme, and they respond to picking
dynamics with excellent sensitivity. Phasing
and flanging actually sound like theyre
review > vox
performing their duties from within the

effect, instead of just careening through the
high frequencies with a digital edge thats
common in other modelers in this price
range. And the onboard expression pedal
is not only handy for volume swelling and
wah effects, but also for ramping up modulation rates and filter-frequency ranges for
some truly spectacular and bizarre tones. It
should be noted that I ran into some issues
positioning my foot to fully control its
sweep, simply because the expression pedal
is so small. With the limited space, I also
had to be careful not to accidently hit the
volume control knob with the end of my
foot, which I ended up doing several times.
The overdrive and fuzz boxes delivered
the only real questionable tones during my
time with the StompLab. Mild overdrives
were generally rich-sounding and added
burlier elements to the midrangeespecially with the UK Major and LA Studio models. But as I turned up the gain into heavier
territory, the highs had a tendency to get
raspier and overbearing. Switching over to
distortion models like the Orange Dist or
Shred Distor the four fuzz modelsonly

compounded this issue. Still, I was pretty
impressed at how well the higher-gain
models could transform the tone into an
industrial-tinged wall of sound. The Techno
Fuzz and Crusher models in particular were
very effective in achieving wooly industrialsynth-fuzz tones in the vein of Nine Inch
Nails and Ministry, but those with a penchant for classic-sounding bass overdrive
will probably want to steer clear of the
StompLabs gnarlier distortions.
StompLab IIB is hard to topple. Theres

a ton of great sounds living in this little
box, and theyre worth exploring even if
it takes some time to manage the learning
curve. Bassists with larger feet will face a
little frustration with the small expression
pedal (though Vox does offer an expression pedal-less version with the StompLab
IB for $69). And with just one 1/4" out,
the StompLab could have benefited from
having an XLR direct out or even a USB
output for direct recording. Aside from
those concerns, its versatility, tone, and
The Verdict
portability make it a very solid choice for
For a portable, tone workstation thats
the bassist who is looking for a compact
kind to both the back and the wallet, Voxs modeling unit thats ideal for travel and
on-the-fly jam sessions.
RATINGS
Vox StompLab IIB, $89 street, voxamps.com
Pros:
Solid build. Surprisingly great tone for the price. Plenty

of models to work with. Great direct sounds.
Cons:
Small expression pedal is hard to use. Only one 1/4"

output. Overdrives, distortions, and fuzzes can be shrill. Tricky
LED interface.
Tones
Ease of Use
Build/Design
Value
premierguitar.com
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GEAR
New Products
Amptweaker Bass TightFuzz
Inspired by the TightFuzz, the Bass TightFuzz
offers extended lower range of the tight and tone
controls, and special input circuitry allowing active effects and pickups to be used in front.
Street $180
amptweaker.com
CAD Audio Sessions MH510

Professional Headphones
The new MH510 headphones produce a wide-frequency response
(10Hz24kHz) with extended lows, smooth mids and articulate highs
ideal for recording, live performance, or casual listening.
MSRP $159
cadaudio.com
John Lennon Series

Limited Edition Amp
by Fargen Amps
Walden Guitars
B-1E Baritone
Acoustic Guitar
The EL84 combo covers tones

from early Liverpool to Plastic Ono
Band with its decade switch, vintage
60s-style mustard caps and carbon
comp resistors, and a custom-built,
proprietary JL-15 alnico speaker.
MSRP $4,999
fargenamps.com
The B-1 and B-1E (electroacoustic) features a Grand

Auditorium body, a Sitka
spruce top, rosewood
back and sides, a 26.75"
scale length, and the B-1E
comes with the Fishman
Prefix Pro.
Street $999
waldenguitars.com
DiMarzio Steve Lukather

Transition Humbuckers
The Transition bridge pickup creates strong
fundamental tones, with sustained notes that
resolve easily to first- and second-order harmonics, while the neck balances between solid
bass and glassy treble.
MSRP $115 (per pickup)
dimarzio.com
premierguitar.com
new products
New Products
(Contd)
Orange Amplification
OR100 Head
Drawing on the Pics Only amp
launched in 1972, this new 2-channel
OR100H features four-ECC83/12AX7,
one-ECC81/12AT7, four-EL34 tubes,
plus output power that can be scaled
between 100, 70, 50, and 30 watts.
MSRP $2,199
orangeamps.com
MOD Kits
DIY Verb Deluxe
Using the Belton Digi-Log
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ranges from a hint of reverb to
cavernous echoes complete
with step-by-step instructions
(requires point-to-point wiring).
Direct $79.95
modkitsdiy.com
JHS Pedals
SuperBolt Overdrive
This true-bypass analog overdrive
is heavily inspired by the Valco/Supro amplifiers produced between
the 30s60s with three simple
controlsvolume, tone, and drive.
MSRP $199
jhspedals.com
Gretsch G7593T
Billy Duffy Falcon
Gretschs latest signature model has a 17"
wide, 2.75" deep single-cutaway, threeply maple body with a three-ply maple
arched top, a three-piece maple neck with
ebony fretboard, and custom Black Top
FilterTron pickups.
MSRP $5,050
gretschguitars.com
Quilter Labs MicroPro200 Head

The 7-pound head is equipped with 200-watt class
D switchmode amplifier technology, innovative
FULLQ analog tone circuit for increased harmonics, lush reverb, and hi and lo inputs.
MSRP $699
quilterlabs.com
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Blend fuzz, overdrive and distortion to taste. Wired

in parallel and mixed together in the output stage,
creating the sound of blending amps rather than
running pedals in series. Truly better than the sum
of its parts!
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modern builder vault
Zeal Guitars
W
hile growing up in Kaiserslautern,

Germany, at age 13, the idea
occurred to Bastian Kanbach that making
guitars for a living must be one of the greatest professions ever. But as a high school student destined to attend university, the idea
of becoming a luthier also seemed irrational
and unimaginable to him since, at the time,
he thought there was no money in making
guitars and that being a luthier was a job for
passionate idealists. However, as graduation
approached, his interest in guitars and music
grew, and he started acquiring books, wood,
and tools to build his first electric guitar in
his parents basement. It was then he realized

that even if there wasnt a lot of money in
making guitars, he was an idealist and this
was his passion.
In 2003, Kanbach moved to Klingenthal
where he spent three years in instrumentmaking school and as an apprentice before
going to work for respected builder Siggi
Braun. Kanbach built more than 100 custom guitars in two years under the guidance
of Braun then returned to his hometown
where he started to build on his own.
Shortly thereafter, he met another passionate guitarist and gifted craftsman, Oliver
Reich, who became his business partner in

launching Zeal Guitars.
Working under the credo, every instrument has to be the best weve ever built,
the young luthiers operate their two-man
shop with a passion to create original ideas
by incorporating unconventional thinking
and a why not? attitude. The electric
guitar is still a young instrument and
has so much potential to be evolved and
designed, says Kanbach. I get the feeling
sometimes that our imagination of how an
electric guitar should look somehow got
stuck in the 50s. Dont get me wrong
those are beautiful instruments, and were
not reinventing the guitarbut we are
always looking for new ways to design
our instruments and turn them into small
works of art.
Concrete II
Cupido
Hydra
Featuring the aforementioned silicate finish,

which gives it the look of concrete, the Concrete
II is certain to turn heads. Utilizing maple for
the body and neck, Kanbach and Reich chose
nicely figured Makassar ebony for the fretboard.
Hardware appointments include the Schaller
Hannes bridge, Schaller M6 tuners, and Schaller
strap locks. For electronics, the Concrete II is
loaded up with a Hussel Tozz B in the bridge
and Hussel BigMags in the neck and middle
positions.
Though it gives a nod to classic guitar design,

the polished gold-brass coating on the Cupido
is anything but ordinary. With maple topping the
mahogany body, a cocobolo fretboard tops the
mahogany neck, which has stripes of walnut and
maple. The Cupido is equipped with Schaller
M6 tuners, a Schaller GTM Tune-o-matic-style
bridge, and Schaller strap locks. And resting in
the chrome frames are the Hussel VIN N A2 and
VIN B A2 pickups.
The understated Hydra is sure to please guitarists who also have an appreciation for minimalist
design. The Hydras Honduras mahogany body
is topped with maple and finished in eggshell
white, while the bubinga neck is capped with
an ebony fretboard. Ebony is also utilized for
the frame surrounding the Hydras RVH Big
Humbucker pickup. For hardware, the Hydra
is equipped with Schaller M6 tuners, six ABM
single bridges, and Schaller strap locks.
By Rich Osweiler
premierguitar.com
modern builder vault
Pricing and Availability

Currently, instruments can only be ordered
direct from Zeal, though they plan to enlist a
few dealers worldwide for their spec models.
Kanbach and Reich always have some of
their spec models available at their workshop,
but most all of their instruments are made
to order or are completely custom. The wait
time for an instrument is 10-12 weeks, and
they are currently building 20-30 guitars
annually. While Kanbach and Reich want
Zeal to remain a small company, their plan
is to eventually take on another employee or
two in order to build 100 instruments a year.
Pricing ranges from $2,300 for a junior-style
spec model to more than $5,000 for certain
custom instruments, with most of their guitars falling between $3,500 and $4,000.
One such way Kanbach and Reich

push the boundaries of guitar design is
with their unique finishes. For example,
they were inspired by an interior design
where walls and furniture were treated to
look like solid concrete, and they wondered if it could be done on a guitar. After
some trial and error, they discovered a
silicate compound that they apply with a
pallet knife, giving them the result they
were aiming fora very robust surface
that bonds well with wood, looks like
concrete, and delivers killer sound. Not
stopping there, Kanbach and Reich also
like to work with different metal coatings
for their instruments, from steel to gold
brass to iron. We experiment a lot,
says Kanbach. The possibilities are
almost infinite.
But pushing boundaries in guitar design

doesnt come without challenges. It is
not easy as a total newcomer to get into
this market with rather unconventional
guitar designs, even if theyre of outstanding quality, says Kanbach. It takes a lot
of time, effort, and patience to establish
a brand with new body shapes and crazy
surfaces. Translating the communication
with a customer into an instrument also
takes great dedication, since they often
build guitars for customers they dont
meet personally. Building a good guitar
is one thing, but building a guitar thats
perfectly tailored to the musician is always
a challenge, shares Kanbach. As evidenced
by the care with which the two luthiers
approach their craft, its an adventure they
happily take on.
zeal-guitars.com
The Nameless Beauty
Mercury
Killerbass
The Nameless Beauty is a gorgeous example of

quality woods and details coming together into a
classically designed instrument. With highly figured, AAAAA-grade quilted maple gracing both
the top and back of the mahogany body, Kanbach and Reich went with Santos rosewood for
the neck and flamed katalox for the fretboard.
Outfitted with a package of Schaller hardware
including a GTM Tune-o-matic-style bridge
and M6 locking tuners, the Nameless Beauty is
equipped with a pair of Hussel Classic pickups
set in rosewood frames.
The Mercurys liquid-metallic finish is achieved

by combining very fine steel powder with a
special lacquer thats applied to the base coat
with a spray gun. The surface then goes through
several sanding steps before its polished to
a high gloss. Outfitted with a Floyd Rose trem
and a Schaller hardware package, the Mercury
is equipped with a Hussel Tozz B in the bridge
and a Hussel VIN+ N in the neck.
A product of their custom shop, the Killerbass shows

Zeals acumen for building basses as well. The
rusty oxidized-iron finish of the Killerbass suggests
a road-worn axe thats seen a few storms, but its
just another example of the experimental finish work
from Kanbach and Reich. Boasting a swamp-ash
body, and a maple neck and fretboard, this Killerbass
is equipped with an ETS Tuning Fork bridge system
and Gotoh tuners. Opting for a P/J-style configuration for its output, this Killerbass Dioramic Signature
is loaded up with a Delano JVMC 4 FE/M2 in the
bridge and a Delano PVMC 4 FE/M2 in the neck.
premierguitar.com
gEAr of the month

Got some gear that would make a great
Gear of the Month? Then email pics and its
story to us at gotm@premierguitar.com.
1968 Marshall
50-Watt JMP and 4x12
By Chris Kies
t all started when a drum shop owner

couldnt get rid of three pesky guitarists.
If it werent for those meddling kids and
their gosh-darned guitars, Jim Marshall
might have made a name for himself selling
drums. The pesky guitarists in question
Ritchie Blackmore, Big Jim Sullivan [the
subject of PGs February 2013 Forgotten
Heroes feature], and Pete Townshend
were dissatisfied with their rigs. They
yearned for more volume, more distortion,
and the right sound. Marshalls success in
addressing those needs sealed the Lord
of Louds legacy and forever changed the
world of guitars and music.
In the early 1960s, after deciding to
build handwired amps that rivaled Fenders
current stock, Marshall and his two closest cohortsKen Bran, a shop repairman, and Dudley Craven, an 18-year-old
apprenticebegan building Fender amp
clones that used 5881 power tubes. Other
small changes included Celestion 15-watt
speakers compared to Fenders preference
for Jensen 15-watt models. After working
with higher-gain preamp tubeslike the
ECC83and learning how different filters
and capacitors had a transformative impact
on the tone, Marshall heard a sound he
knew guitarists would crave. Thus was born
the iconic JTM45which got its initials
from Marshalls son Jim Terry Marshall. A
few years later, Marshall switched to KT66
tubes to create the even louder 100-watt
Super Lead 1959. In 1968, the company
dialed back the decibels with the unveiling
of a 50-watt, small-box head that would
be called the JMPan acronym for Jim
Marshall Products.
What really makes this 68 JMP unique
among its brethren is that it was built in
early 1968 and was one of two early prototypes that the company used to tweak
things making the amp more efficient
to build and still keeping it handwired,
says Gene Sinigalliano, owner of Ultra
Sound Studios and Amp Sales. Since the
amplifier was a prototype, it is very likely
that Jim Marshall or one of his top guys
Click here to go to premierguitar.com to watch a video demo

of this rig in action at Ultra Sound Studios and Amp Sales.
actually labored and constructed this specific plexi. According to Sinigalliano, this
particular Marshall model was an original
designa departure from the companys
first Fender Bassman-based amplifiers.
Some of the long-lasting design shifts away
from Marshalls original recipe were the use
of EL34 power tubes, a solid-state rectifier
tube for more gain, and two separate channelsbright and normal. Guitarists such
as Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, and countless others would eventually blend the two
channels to get some of the most iconic
guitar tones of all time.
This particular plexi has Mullard
EL34s, Mullard 12AX7s in the input,
Amperex Bugle Boy and Mini Watt
ECC83s, says Sinigalliano. All these tubes
are similar to what was originally installed

in this amp. The 1968 straight-front 4x12
has Celestion pre-Rola G12-30 speakers with 041 cones, as well as its original
basket-weave grille.
Aesthetically, 1968 marked the first year
Marshall switched to using white-script
logos instead of gold lettering. That year
also marked the first time front panels bore
the JMP (rather than JTM) designation.
Further, 68 saw one more Marshall evolutionthe complete switchover from fret
cloth to the basket-weave cab covering that
had been partially instituted in late 1967.
A special thanks to Gene Sinigalliano and
Ultra Sound Studios and Amp Sales for the
opportunity to feature these fine pieces of gear
and the story.
premierguitar.com
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February 6-12
Mad Professor
Photo by Christie Goodwin
Joe Bonamassa
Yep, the man has another band actually a couple of
them. One is the jazz-funk outfit Rock Candy Funk Party,
which just released an instrumental effort called We Want
Groove. But Joe discusses a bigger projectgoing somewhere hes never gone beforewith the unveiling of An
Acoustic Evening at the Vienna Opera House, an DVD/CD
filmed during a two-week acoustic tour in Europe where
he performed with a group of eclectic virtuosos.
Dave Kilminster
Sideman to the stars Dave Kilminster tells us about his
raucous new album, ScarletThe Directors Cut, his
thoughts on stepping out on his own, and what it takes to
cop Gilmours tones when Roger Waters comes knocking.
Electric Blues Chorus

February 13-19
Builder Profile: Billy Zoom

The legendary guitarist from punk rocks X dishes about
the trials of balancing a busy touring schedule with his
veteran amp-building business.
Caroline Guitar Company
Gear Reviews
Our April reviews offer something for every type of player.
Were checking out the Anderson MadCat and an Island
Instruments solidbody, as well as a fretless Waterstone
Meaden bass. Well experiment with an array of effects,
including (but not limited to) the Sonuus Wahoo, Loud
Button WTF, and the Reuss Rowland S. Howard.
Icarus Boost
February 20-26
Guitar Riot / Earthquaker Devices

Hoof Fuzz
February 27-March 5
All 2013 giveaway winner names can be found at
premierguitar.com/winners
Be sure to read our

completely FREE digital edition at:
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Premier Guitar ISSN 1945-077x (print) and ISSN 1945-0788 (online) is published monthly by Gearhead Communications, LLC. Principal office: 3 Research Center, Marion, IA 52302. Periodicals
postage paid at Marion, IA 52302 and at Additional Mailing Offices. 2013 Gearhead Communications, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is
prohibited. Premier Guitar are registered trademarks of Gearhead Communications, LLC. Subscribers: If the Postal Service alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation
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NOT QUITE AS TRANSPARENT AS THE KLON, BUT ITS
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Last Call
Whats the Rush? BY john bohlinger
ust before Thanksgiving, I lead the band

for The Scotty McCreery and Friends
Christmas Special on the GAC Network. We
played songs from Scottys recent Christmas
album, including a jazzy version of Let It
Snow that featured a mind-blowing, fingercrippling solo originally recorded by Brent
Mason. The opening two bars of the solo
consisted of an almost impossibly fast lick. I
woodshedded like mad trying to play it up
to speed, increasing my metronome one click
every five passes or so, but I always felt like I
was behind the beat. Throw in the pressure of
a room full of cameras, crew, and a live studio
audiencethis riff had me as nervous as a
hooker in church. I felt relieved to get through
the taping but had some anxiety about my
not-quite-fast-enough performance. I feared
that everyone would hear my fat fingers struggling to keep up with Brents epic riff.
At Christmas, I finally watched the show.
I was on the edge of my seat, holding my
breath as the killer solo approached. The
playback astonished me: Turns out, I actually
rushed the fast riff. It sounded goodish, but
would have been way better if I had set it
back in the pocket like Brent did in his studio take. It didnt even seem possible that:
My sluggish fingers actually moved
that damn fast?
I perceived time so inaccurately?
When you think about it, the concept of time
can seem abstract. Our perception of time
changes with context. I know, I know, 60 seconds equals a minute and all that, but honestly,
the first three minutes on a StairMaster in a
dank Best Western hotel gym feels longer
than three hours spent eating Ben and Jerrys
while watching Breaking Bad on my couch.
Sure, time flies while were having fun and drags
during mild torture, but that does not explain
my time-expanding TV recording session.
My somewhat annoying, know-it-all
friend Wikipedia told me that stimulants
can lead to humans and rats overestimating
time intervals, while depressants have the
opposite effect. That seems wrong: Speed
should speed up time, depressants should
slow time down, and how do the Wikipedia
scientists know what rats are thinking?
As it turns out, stimulants (both natural and
synthetic) awaken our brains so we notice more
details. Because our excited brains process an
abundance of data, this gives us the impression
Has anyone tracked more mind-blowing, finger-crippling solos than Brent Mason? Photo by Ariel Ellis
that lots of time has passed. A natural adrenaline rush caused by a nerve-racking riff played
under pressure has the same time-stretching
effect. It almost sounds like a physics puzzle or
the equivalent of traveling through a wormhole, but the rush to my system slowed down
time, which actually gave me enough room
to rush the fast lick. When I practiced the riff
under calming circumstances, time moved at its
normal rate and I could not fit it all in. Crazy,
right? So if nerves negatively influence time
perception and performance, whats a musician
all jacked up on adrenaline to do?
I recently read two different articles about
classical musicians taking beta-blockers to
battle performance anxiety. Doctors usually
prescribe beta-blockers to treat high blood
pressure, but they work equally well for highstrung musicians because they block receptors
that tell your body to kick into fight-or-flight
mode while under pressure. Less highfalutin
musicians playing popular music often try to
achieve the same affect by self-medicating with
a pre-gig shot of Jack Daniels.
Ive found a semi-effective alternative. Im
not one to fall for any new-agey nonsense. I
dont keep my bread under a pyramid, I dont
put magnets in my shoes, I dont attempt to
unleash the power of crystals, but I have taken
a few yoga classes to decelerate my bodys
decline. I started yoga for the cardio workout,
but unexpectedly gleaned something thats
helped my playing a bit. Now when I feel
overwhelmed at a gig, I stop and take four or

five deep, six-count breaths through my nose,
filling up my belly like a happy Buddha, then
slowly releasing through my nose. I try to do
this as covertly as possible because Im sure I
look like I should be wearing a tinfoil hat, but
its worth the embarrassment because it actually
helps. Its not a dramatic difference, but after
this breathing exercise I feel my mind clear and
heart rate drop. I dont care if I look like an
idiot if I play a bit better.
The word rhythm originates from the
Greek word meaning flow. That makes
sense. Playing with a good band is like riding
down a river on a raft, the groove carries the
players and the listeners on a journey. Next
time you feel stressed about a performance,
take three deep, Buddha belly breaths
through your nose and go with the flow.
And while Im irritating you with hippie/
folksy advice, heres one more thought: Do
things that give you a little adrenaline rush.
Getting excited about life will slow down
our slow death march to dust. Years race by
unnoticed if nothing happens to stimulate
our brains. If we dont wake up and live,
well be dead before we know it.
John Bohlinger
John Bohlinger is a Nashville multi-instrumentalist best known for his work in television. He led the band for all six seasons of
NBCs hit program Nashville Star, the 2012,
2011, 2010, and 2009 CMT Music Awards,
as well as many specials for GAC, PBS,
CMT, USA, and HDTV.
premierguitar.com

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TABLE OF CONTENTS > FEATURES & REVIEWS

Volume 18 Issue 3 March 2013

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