Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2016 i Guitar Player

IF YOU’VE BEEN CONTEMPLATING A career as a professional guitar maker, or simply have a jones for building your own instruments, Phoenix, Arizona’s Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery has guided more than 2,000 DIY-obsessed students since 1975—which, by the way, makes it the longest running guitar-making school in the USA. “Since the beginning, we’ve offered a foundational course to get you a pretty thorough theoretical and hands-on knowledge of acoustic and electric guitar making,” says school director William Eaton. “We have 35 to 40 students a class, and even though the large guitar companies do a lot of work with computer-aided CNC equipment— which obviously didn’t exist in 1975— many of those companies still subscribe to the idea that design knowledge and skill starts with a vision, and that starts with…

FAB PHOTO BOMB Press Conference, Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Canada, September 7, 1964 WHEN THE BEATLES VISITED TORONTO AT THE HEIGHT OF Beatlemania, even a few usually staid journalists couldn’t help but sneak into a shot with the Fab Four during a press conference. Paul and John appear cheery enough, but George and Ringo seem grumpy—and who could blame them. Upon landing in Toronto, the band almost immediately started signing autographs for immigration officers, before checking into the King Edward Hotel and being transported by police wagon to the concert venue. There, they posed for tons of photographs and talked to the media before performing two shows for more than 35,000 fans. No wonder that only two of the boys can manage anything besides distracted and spacy scowls. In a…

NASHVILLE IS HOME TO MANY OF THE best musicians in the country, and, arguably, the whole world. That’s a pretty bold statement, but considering that “Music City” has grown exponentially over the past five years, it rings true that only the very best of the best move here to make their musical mark. Nashville offers many great opportunities for the career musician—from playing locally in the downtown and Lower Broadway honky tonks, to touring with artists on the road and working with them in the studio. Also known as Guitar Town, Nashville hosts a wide variety of talented players with musical styles not limited to chicken-picking’, but also rock, jazz, Americana, blues, and more. Although there are many outstanding guitarists in town, the following five are some of Nashville’s top…

BACK IN 2014 WE CHECKED OUT THE Retrospec model from Canadian luthier Tom Bartlett, a guitar that achieved a vintage-Les Paul-like feel and sound, but with stylishly redrawn looks. Bartlett’s Electric Parlor model stems likewise from inspirations with deep roots in the guitar’s past, but this time from a full century before, to deliver an electrification of the small-bodied acoustic “parlor” guitars of the late 1800s and early 1900s. While it’s an easy grab for travel, quick jams, or living room noodling, the maker is quick to point out that this is no mere “practice” or “travel guitar.” Its traditional Gibson scale length of 24 5/8" and full complement of electronics and hardware make it a fully functional performance tool for any situation where you’d need a standard solidbody electric.…

AS SOMEONE WHO HAS ALWAYS ADORED bona fide Gretsch guitars, but whose budget was firmly ensconced in the company’s lowerpriced Electromatic line, it was great news to discover at this year’s NAMM show that the seminal guitar maker had retooled its offerings, and most every model—whether priced like a Hyundai or a Jaguar—would proudly sport the “Gretsch” name. Of course, the top-drawer Gretsches are things of beauty to behold, but I’m surely not going to complain about bringing the G5422T onstage, and knowing that few fans and players in the audience will be able to tell if I’m wielding a $799 Electromatic or a $3,500 Country Gentleman. Gotta love parity—even if it’s forged by subterfuge. But the really cool thing about all of this is that the affordable Electromatic G5422T…

FEELINGS ABOUT IN-EAR MONITORS vary among guitarists, but with more touring bands relying on off-stage amps or digital amp substitutions like the Fractal Audio Effects Axe-FX or Kemper Profiler, professional players often find themselves hearing the onstage proceedings through a high-tech set of ear buds. The advantages are that in-ears are generally more accurate than wedges; you can take your personalized monitor mix anywhere on stage, and when you use a set specifically molded to your ear, they serve the secondary purpose of protecting your hearing against excessive stage volume (cough, drummers). A number of manufacturers make various in-ear models at assorted price points. Alclair, out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, offers everything from a budget Curve Universal Fit version to the mid-level Tour Triple Driver Custom In-Ear Monitors reviewed here ($499…

In 2014, a twist of fate transformed Charlie Crowe from a guitarist touring with big acts to a guitar tech gig on Miranda Lambert’s Platinum Tour (see his previous chapters in the September and November issues). Happily, he’s now back playing hellacious guitar for Brooks and Dunn, but his 2014 tour diaries provide GP readers a rare behind-thescenes look into the professional country-music scene. THE OTHER BACKLINE GUYS AND I CAN’T REALLY GET started on our duties until after 10 am, so I have plenty of time to wake up, have coffee, and get a good breakfast before clocking in. A bunch of Miranda’s crew are 20- to 30-something ultra-nerds who are experts on modern gear, and so not the “roadies” archetype from the generation that got stoned and chased…

PEAVEY ROBERT RANDOLPH SIGNATURE POWERSLIDE Goodies Created in collaboration with the pedal-steel wizard, the Robert Randolph Signature is based on Peavey’s original PowerSlide, but features an adjustable belly rest, an additional single-coil pickup, upgraded hardware, and Robert Randolph signature DR nickel-wound strings. Ships with Peavey’s patented multi-point “Y” strap, a padded bag, and a steel slide. Price $499 retail More Info peavey.com TC ELECTRONIC MIMIQ DOUBLER Goodies The Mimiq uses a proprietary algorithm to simulate multiple tracks, letting you add studiostyle double- and tripletracking to your live rhythm and lead parts. Tightness, Effect, and Dry knobs give you control over your own signal and the doubled parts, and the mini-toggle lets you select up to three overdubs. Stereo I/O, true bypass. Price $29.95 retail More Info tcelectronic.com DEAN ZELINSKY GUITARS…

GuitarPlayer EDITORS’ PICK STEVE CARR CLEARLY DRAWS INSPIRAtion from different eras of classic amp design, and his product line always seems to reflect a desire to keep one foot in the past while simultaneously offering players a thoroughly modern amplifier that excels in tone, build quality, and style. All of these aspects are realized in the new Sportsman, which in Carr’s words, “fuses the instant purity of ’60s American 1x10 combo amps with the more aggressive dual-6V6 section of the late ’50s.” The Sportsman goes further toward celebrating the spirit of vintage Fender faves like the Princeton and Deluxe by being offered with either a 10" or 12" speaker bolted to a mid-’60s-style floating baffle in an open-back cabinet made from solid pine. A very classy looking amp with its…

TRAVEL GUITARS HAVE BECOME increasingly popular over the years, with more and more instruments appearing on the market that fall at least roughly into the category due either to their diminutive size or their ability to get small via features such as collapsible bodies or removable necks. Some of them are obviously intended as stand-ins for the players’ “real” guitar or guitars, and quickly get stowed away when the traveling is over, but others are real guitars in themselves and may also be played as such. The G-Sharp OF-1 and Traveler Guitar LTD EC-1 clearly fall into the latter category. I tested these guitars though a Magnatone Super ’59 2x12 combo and a Yamaha THR 100HD through a THR C212 speaker cabinet. G-SHARP OF-1 Designed by Norwegian luthier Øivin Fjeld…

ATOMIC AMPS MAKES REFERENCE monitors designed for, among other things, reproducing the complex sounds of amp modelers in a live setting. Software designer Marc Gallo’s no frills, great sounding Studio Devil amp modeling software has long been a mainstay in many DAWs. Gallo and Atomic have melded their talents to create Amplifire ($599 direct), an amp modeling and multi-effects pedal. Although it’s fairly deep, using Amplifire proved pretty intuitive. A Data Entry Encoder knob, combined with Back and Next buttons, let me deftly navigate presets and menus. Amplifire’s USB port and free editing software made it even easier by allowing me to modify presets on my iMac. Having chosen a preset, the pedal’s Gain, Master, Presence, Bass, Mids, and Treble knobs offered instant access to typical amp adjustments. (An additional…

WELL, YOU CAN’T ACCUSE ERNIE BALL of debuting their new effects pedals with a “subtle” launch. This is like red-carpet wow, or revealing a new Tesla or iPhone. First off, the extraordinary packaging alludes to something important and wonderful, because the pedals are displayed in what can only be called a trophy case. Then, there’s the striking industrial design of the pedals themselves—the metallic bronze sheen of the Ambient Delay, and the dazzling gold of the Expression Overdrive. I mean, you’d kind of want these gorgeous things even if you had no idea of what they actually did. Finally, you have to love that the designers did something unique by adding an expression function to a single, self-contained pedal. As lovely as these pedals look, there’s also a bit of…

IF YOU WANTED TO GET A BAROMETER READING ON THE state of guitar-driven rock music in the ’90s, you needed to look no further than the annual lineup of Lollapalooza—the multi-act summer-long touring festival originally conceived and curated by Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell. From 1991 to 1997, the traveling circus-styled fiesta brought together a wide-ranging assortment of the era’s leading alternative and underground acts and exposed them to audiences of 30,000 or more on a daily basis. Aside from keeping its finger on the pulse of the latest and greatest, the festival seemed to have a knack for sussing out the next big thing as well—Tool, Stone Temple Pilots, Rage Against the Machine, Beck, and the Roots were all second-stage undercard performers at one point or another. After its…

RELEASED IN 1974 IN THREE DIFFERent versions (full-length on the Diamond Dogs album, plus edited US and UK singles), all of which feature the same guitar track, David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel” stands as one of the late, great icon’s most revered compositions, largely due to the contagiousness of its inescapably irresistible main guitar riff. Though it’s been rumored that Bowie played the song’s classic Mobius strip of a riff, documentation included with 2004’s Diamond Dogs 30th Anniversary Edition reveals that it was actually performed by a formerly uncredited Alan Parker, who electrified Bowie’s original acoustic riff and embellished it by adding the last three notes (B, G#, and E) before tracking his parts with a Les Paul and cranked Fender amp (possibly a Deluxe Reverb or a Twin Reverb) beautifully…

ALLEN EDEN GUITARS STARTED OUT as a guitar parts manufacturer in 1993, and in January of 2014 opened its first retail/wholesale warehouse in North America. The company recently added guitar and bass production to its roster, and what we have on deck for review this month is the 1987 Burl Maple Neck Hardtail, which is their first 6-string offering. Built in China and set up in El Monte, California, the 1987 Burl Maple Neck Hardtail (from here on we’ll call it the “1987”) is an interesting mix of earthy maple with incredible burl figuring and the sleek lines of a classic ’80s shred machine. To wit, the 24-fret neck has a thin profile and flat fingerboard, and the low-action setup definitely facilitates a fast–as-hell approach. Underslung tuners always challenge me…

ROLAND’S WORLDWIDE #909DAY celebration this past September 9, simultaneously unveiled more than 30 new products. With a slogan “The Future. Redefined.” and a 24-hour span of music and gear parties in Tokyo, Berlin, Brussels, Paris, New York, Toronto, and the bash I attended in Burbank, California, the company pretty much delivered something for every musician. On the guitar side, Boss premiered its new line of Tube Logic digital amps—the Katana Series—and the GT-1 Guitar Effects Processor ($199 street) tested here. While the GT-1 rocks a compelling industrial design, it’s also a darling little thing—but don’t mistake it for a toy just because it’s cute and costs under $200. The GT-1 shares much the same sound-design engine as Boss’ pro line multi-effects units, all surrounded by a tough “fly gig” chassis…

FENDER’S SEMINAL T-BUCKET IS revamped with a shiny modern style in the form of the visually striking and highly economical 400CE. The silky ripples in the laminated flame maple top on this particular guitar grew tighter towards the edges where they met a tortoise-color binding that looked like a classic Fender plectrum. Its laminated lacewood back and sides have an eye-catching mosaic pattern, and a rich, reddish-brown color similar to snakewood. The rosewood rosette’s white outline made it appear to pop out from the top, the “Viking” bridge indeed looked like a Viking ship, and the 12th fret inlay—the letter “F” inside what looked like a pyramid with wings—added a fine bit of flair. The new T-Bucket is cut from a different cloth compared to many cumbersome dreadnoughts of yore,…