| PRICE: | $450, used. |
| KEY FEATURES: | Two channels with gain boost; 2x12 speaker layout; fender speakers; bass, mid, treble and presence controls; spring reverb; dual input |
| CUSTOMIZATION? | N/A |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | Produces high-quality clean and overdrive sounds, great response to playing dynamics, can produce almost any tone imaginable with the right effects. |
| LOWS: | Lacks any on-board high gain sounds, doesn't handle low frequencies well, can't produce "pristine clean" tones at high volumes. |
| SHORT TAKE | A professional-quality amp suitable for almost any style of music. |
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Fender Hot Rod Deville 2x12
AMPLIFIERS - ALL TUBE
Friday, March 9, 2007
Zoom 505II Effects Processor
EFFECTS - MULTI-EFFECTS
| PRICE: | FREE, used. |
| KEY FEATURES: | Equalizer, reverb, delay, preamp modeling, distortion, chorus, phaser, flanger, wah, auto-wah, harmonizer. |
| CUSTOMIZATION? | N/A |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | Versatile, very cheap (even when not acquired for free!); easy to work with for direct recording. |
| LOWS: | Difficult to produce quality tones with a mild overdrive; some effects sound "cheezy" or digitized; not made to be played through another preamp. |
| SHORT TAKE | Not terribly useful for jamming or live shows, but great for on-the-fly direct recording! |
Boss Super Phaser PH-2
EFFECTS - PHASER
| PRICE: | $30 Used |
| KEY FEATURES: | Knobs for rate, depth and res. Modes I and II. |
| CUSTOMIZATION? | N/A |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | Produces many phaser sounds (albeit poorly!) |
| LOWS: | Sounds sterile; many tones produced are mostly useless. |
| SHORT TAKE | A generally digitized-sounding, if reliable, phaser. |
2002 U.S. Fender Stratocaster
GUITARS - ELECTRIC
| PRICE: | $400, used |
| KEY FEATURES: | S-S-S pickup configuration; 1 volume and 2 tone knobs, alder body, maple neck, rosewood fingerboard |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | Classic "strat" tone. Great midrange and high response. Can be set up for many playing styles. |
| LOWS: | Fingerboard radius and fret layout may frustrate shredders and metal maniacs. |
| SHORT TAKE: | A classic American ton |
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Boss CE-5 Chorus Ensemble
EFFECTS - CHORUS
The Boss CE-5 is an example of a guitar effect that has great features but doesn't quite come together in the end. It has several cool knobs: The standard rate and depth, a master effect level, and a bass/treble filter. It also features two outputs, allowing for stereo chorus. This gives the CE-5 some interesting ancillary effects: It can serve as a signal splitter for any instrument or filter high and low frequencies. For example, I use the pedal with both outputs when I want to play through two amps simultaneously. I can also add treble via the filter knob and increase output for a boost during solos.
In spite of these cool uses for the CE-5, the chorus it produces could be much better. The effect sounds too digitally processed; I hear an annoying clicking sound each time the oscillation repeats. For many, this defeats the purpose of a chorus pedal, so most of you should try other stomp boxes instead.
| PRICE: | $70, new |
| KEY FEATURES: | E. LEVEL, output volume; RATE, oscillation speed; DEPTH, oscillation intensity; FILTER, parametric bass and treble equalization; stereo output |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | many chorus sounds possible, useful for EQ and boost effects as well |
| LOWS: | has a "processed sound" in general, no one sound is outstaning |
| SHORT TAKE: | This has many nice features, but most should look elsewhere for a chorus pedal. |
The Boss CE-5 is an example of a guitar effect that has great features but doesn't quite come together in the end. It has several cool knobs: The standard rate and depth, a master effect level, and a bass/treble filter. It also features two outputs, allowing for stereo chorus. This gives the CE-5 some interesting ancillary effects: It can serve as a signal splitter for any instrument or filter high and low frequencies. For example, I use the pedal with both outputs when I want to play through two amps simultaneously. I can also add treble via the filter knob and increase output for a boost during solos.
In spite of these cool uses for the CE-5, the chorus it produces could be much better. The effect sounds too digitally processed; I hear an annoying clicking sound each time the oscillation repeats. For many, this defeats the purpose of a chorus pedal, so most of you should try other stomp boxes instead.
Boss OS-2 Overdrive/Distortion
EFFECTS - DISTORTION
The most apparent feature of the Boss OS-2 is its versatility. The pedal handles mild overdrive and heavy metal distortion equally well, so all but the jazziest guitarists can make use of this pedal. The pedal's steel chassis helps it earn the trademark BOSS reliability, and there is no humming or tone muddying when in bypass mode.
Like many distortion pedals, the OS-2 must be played through an all-tube amp for the best effect. Thanks to the pedal's simple Lo/Hi Tone knob, the Boss won't color your tone very much. Since the OS-2 still sounds "like you," solid state amps won't give you the saturated gain sound this pedal is capable of. Need some extra juice for your tube amp? Try out this pedal.
| PRICE: | $20, used |
| KEY FEATURES: | LEVEL, output volume; TONE, brightness of output; DRIVE, amount of gain; COLOR, compression and equalization |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | diverse range of distortions, reliable |
| has all the features you need | |
| LOWS: | sounds unacceptable when played through solid state amplifiers |
| SHORT TAKE: | A diverse effect for use with tube amps, suitable for anything from light gain to hard rock distortion |
The most apparent feature of the Boss OS-2 is its versatility. The pedal handles mild overdrive and heavy metal distortion equally well, so all but the jazziest guitarists can make use of this pedal. The pedal's steel chassis helps it earn the trademark BOSS reliability, and there is no humming or tone muddying when in bypass mode.
Like many distortion pedals, the OS-2 must be played through an all-tube amp for the best effect. Thanks to the pedal's simple Lo/Hi Tone knob, the Boss won't color your tone very much. Since the OS-2 still sounds "like you," solid state amps won't give you the saturated gain sound this pedal is capable of. Need some extra juice for your tube amp? Try out this pedal.
Washburn Idol WI-64
GUITARS - ELECTRIC
This guitar was not set up properly at the factory. At first, I noticed the guitar going out of tune after playing the it for more than 30 minutes (or more than five minutes if the strings were old). I set up the Idol's action, inonation and truss rod as well as possible, but tuning problems persisted. I first tried larger strings; I now play the guitar with .011 gauge instead of the default .009. Equally as important, I filed the guitar's nut slots, widening them for the bigger strings. The Washburn now holds tune effortlessly, and thanks to the Buzz Feiten tuning system it intonates well across the fretboard.
Guitars in the Idol series have VCC knobs - that's "Voice Contour Control" - instead of tone knobs. According to Washburn, VCC is a "coil tapping system that allows players to incrementally blend between a humbucking sound and a single coil sound without the hum normally associated with single coils." In other words, you turn the knob down, the pickup sounds more like a single coil; you turn the knob up, it sounds more like a humbucker.
All of this VCC business allows for great tonal range, but there is a side effect. For some reason, the guitar's signal sounds muffled when the volume knob (not necessarily the VCC knob) is at less than 10. Sometimes this effect is desirable, but in general, most will want the volume at full. This lack of dynamics limits some of said tonal range.
| PRICE: | $600 with hardshell case, new |
| KEY FEATURES: | mahogany body and neck, rosewood fretboard, |
| quilted maple top, Buzz Feiten tuning system, 2 humbuckers | |
| CUSTOMIZATION? | Seymour Duncan “Custom Custom” bridge pickup, Schaller strap locks, Ernie Ball .011 strings |
| SOUND SAMPLE: | N/A |
| HIGHS: | great playability, lots of sustain |
| clear, punchy tone | |
| LOWS: | some tuning problems, muddy pickups, |
| "Voice Contour Control" is frustrating | |
| SHORT TAKE | A joy to play if you're willing to put some time and money into it. |
The Washburn WI-64, part of the "Idol" series, is a true underdog. Having received this as a gift, this was the only guitar I could afford for several years. This forced me to get creative, slowly coaxing good tones from the instrument instead of just buying something that played better out of the box.
This guitar was not set up properly at the factory. At first, I noticed the guitar going out of tune after playing the it for more than 30 minutes (or more than five minutes if the strings were old). I set up the Idol's action, inonation and truss rod as well as possible, but tuning problems persisted. I first tried larger strings; I now play the guitar with .011 gauge instead of the default .009. Equally as important, I filed the guitar's nut slots, widening them for the bigger strings. The Washburn now holds tune effortlessly, and thanks to the Buzz Feiten tuning system it intonates well across the fretboard.
Guitars in the Idol series have VCC knobs - that's "Voice Contour Control" - instead of tone knobs. According to Washburn, VCC is a "coil tapping system that allows players to incrementally blend between a humbucking sound and a single coil sound without the hum normally associated with single coils." In other words, you turn the knob down, the pickup sounds more like a single coil; you turn the knob up, it sounds more like a humbucker.
All of this VCC business allows for great tonal range, but there is a side effect. For some reason, the guitar's signal sounds muffled when the volume knob (not necessarily the VCC knob) is at less than 10. Sometimes this effect is desirable, but in general, most will want the volume at full. This lack of dynamics limits some of said tonal range.
Most importantly, though, the Washburn Idol plays very well. The guitar has a 14" fingerboard radius; this is flatter than most Strats and Les Pauls but less so than Jacksons. This makes the Idol somewhat lead-oriented, though chords are no problem to play. I've used this guitar both in the rhythm section of a jazz band and for lead in many rock projects.
Anyone willing to spend another $50-$150 on new pickups and many hours setting up their instrument should consider the WI-64. Once the guitar is set up to tune properly and the muddy stock pickups have been replaced, the Idol is a bright (thanks, quilted maple top), punchy tone machine.
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