nUX Fireman (NDS-5) - "Amp-Like Distortion with Dual Channels"
Some distortions are warm, others are fat, and still others are chewy. The Fireman Distortion was meant to sizzle and cut through the mix. The grain is fine to medium overall, but the two channels do…
Cort AERO-11 - "Don't let the good looks fool you - this is a nearly perfect rock and roll guitar"
I've been a semi-professional guitarist for over thirty years, playing a multitude of styles. I have the gray model. I acquired it in 2012. The distinctive cosmetics caught my eye, but I was skepti…
CKaudio Effects Fuzzy Pumpkin - "Clear and Cutting Fuzz with Distortion Qualities"
Tight and clear are two key words to describe this fuzz (bordering on distortion) pedal. Based on the Op Amp Big Muff circuit, made famous by Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins, the CK Audio Effec…
Hagerman Amplification Boost - "Broadband & Treble Boost with Overdrive Qualities"
This is no ordinary boost, and built in the USA by a sound engineer, Jim Hagerman. And as I tweaked the knobs I knew there was something unique about this boost pedal. Depending on where you place th…
Hagerman Amplification Phase - "A Phaser that Gently Swirls"
I was impressed with the Hagerman Tube Overdrive, and so how good are his Silicon pedals? Without missing a beat, this non-guitar-playing engineering certainly knows sound and quality. I’ll be review…
Valeton GP-100 - "Built Touch and Sounds Great... with a Ton of Options!"
Multi-effects and guitar processing units have come a long way. I recall an old rackmount Boss unit with early COSM technology that left a lot to be desired, making it difficult to create some clear-…
Tokai Love Rock - "Chines Tokai Love Rock, good, but not extremely good"
MY Tokai Love Rock had not been produced from mahogany, and has no maple cap I think, just a flame maple veneer, which looks great, but has no effect of the sound. Hoever, it's pickups are decent, en…
Brière Pedals Drive Factory - "Great Sound and Plenty of Options, from Clean Boost to Heavy Distortion"
Christian Briére hit a homerun with the Drive Factory, and in a number of ways. First, the most important aspect of a drive is its sound, and the Drive Factory sounds darn good. It has a medium grai…
Fender Hot Rodded American Fat Tele - "Hot Rodded Telecaster 2001"
I can confirm words from previous reviews. I found it and bought as my first Fender guitar. It plays with many tones and humbacker is really impressive. Only one small notice is that the volume and…
Hagerman Amplification Overdrive - "Warm and Dynamic only begins to describe the quality of this overdrive"
The term ‘organic’ may be overused in the music industry, and perhaps a bit of a peculiar nomenclature to describe circuits and electronics, but its applicable nonetheless when comparing sounds that …
Strobel Guitars Strobelcaster - "A Travel Guitar that is Gig Ready - plays well and sounds excellent"
Take a Fender Stratocaster, reduce its body mass to make it lighter, make it headless for better sustain, give it a detachable (interchangeable) neck for even more compact transport for travel/carry-…
Music Man Axis (1996) - "Beware - the Axis has been cheapened down over the years!"
I owned a 2013 standard USA Axis and a 2014 Axis Ball Family Reserve (a.k.a. "BFR" model) for a few years. It had been nearly 20 years since I had played an EVH Music Man signature, so I had little t…
Sonicake Fazy Cream - "From Classic Fuzz to Full Bore Modern Distortion-Fuzz"
It’s a great time to be a guitarist, with so many affordable effects coming to market. Sonicake certainly fills that niche with their line-up of effects, and the Fazy Cream muff-style fuzz pedal is n…
dpFX Pedals Eris Dual Distortion - "Two Distortion, Each with Unique Tone Characteristics (Classic & Modern)"
One issue that many people have with dual-distortion pedals is that often both ‘sides’ (the two channels) consist of the same voicing, whereas you change those voices by way of the EQ, how much Gain …
Behringer SNR201 Guitar Denoiser - "Behringer SNR201"
Behringer SNR201 Guitar Pream-Denoiser rack noise reduction gate (Vintage) Model: SNR-201 (Made in Germany) Audio Interactive Noise Reduction System mit Vorverstärker + Ton Dynamic Filter, zu 19 Zo…
