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In the lives of some husbands, Christmas shopping time looms as a time of discomfort. I've noticed that around this time of year, forums begin to ring with the anxious cries as good men uproot generous chunks of what hair they have left while trying to figure out what to give their wives...

Okay, the humble bell took a shellacking via the infamous Saturday Night Live skit. However, there have been many great applications of cowbell over the years. Why don't we pull up some examples that were interesting or exciting? I'll go first: Who wasn't excited by the intro to "Mississippi...

Not today. Yesterday I saved another studio survivor from the compactor. Klark Teknik DN360 proportional stereo graphic equalizer in near-mint condition. We are talking the finest British electronics, here. The campaign goes on. Bob

In the lives of some husbands, Christmas shopping time looms as a time of discomfort. I've noticed that around this time of year, forums begin to ring with the anxious cries as good men uproot generous chunks of hair while considering the conundrum of what to give their lovely wives. In fact...

What do Rick Wakeman, Phil Collins, Chris Cross, David Foster, Rick Wright, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Pete Bardens, Jan Hammer, Herbie Hancock, David Gates, Manfred Mann, Patrick Moraz, Giorgio Moroder, Steve Morse, Gary Numan, Gerry Rafferty, Richard Tandy, Frank Zappa, and many more artists...

Last Thursday I took delivery of a Behringer Model D synth. Having studied electronic music and synthesis in college, I’d always wanted a MiniMoog Model D for chores and fun around the studio. A few years ago Behringer discovered that there was enthusiasm among musicians for the classic...

I've been stalking one of these on-and-off for years and years, and through the kindness and help of my lovely wife and a couple of new friends, my day finally came. The guitar is a Wartime (phase 2, 1940-1944) Rickenbacher Model B that has all of the characteristics I've wanted: 1.5" pickup...

I've sat on this article through Winter NAMM to see how things worked out but it is now ready to view! This is a fairly narrow review of Helix, now that it has become mature, asking whether it is worth it to update to it from the previous generation of modelers. I'm on my third generation of...

I've watched Steve Lukather's career for years. What a prolific player! Recently I've seen him clean up his life and simplify everything down, including his gear. After seeing Luke in concert with Toto I became interested in his signature guitars from Ernie Ball. But let's be honest: I'm...

I'm not into signature guitars for their own sake but sometimes a guitarist's sound intrigues me enough to try out his guitar. This is one of those situations. This is a MusicMan Sterling Steve Lukather Signature LK100D guitar. It is a nearly-identical Indonesian-built brother to the MusicMan...

This morning I am a little sore, a little scraped up, cut, and bruised, but I'm okay. Last night I was working in the guitar studio. I've had several gear transitions recently and things have become a bit, um, haphazard. I've got a few patch cords running hither and thither across the studio...

Last month I reviewed a fifty-three year-old tube amp on my site. This week I'm working with the Line 6 Helix. I'm not new to modeling - I'm on my third generation of modeler, having used them in the studio since about 2005. For several years I've been using a Line6 HD500X. So, I thought was...

I guess I'm a sucker for underdogs. I played a 1966 Gibson GA-55RVT Ranger when I was in college and people loved my sound. Yes, I know, that is the Gibson "whiteface" period so everyone who liked my tone must have been wrong. Well anyway, recently in a fit of nostalgia, I ran a search for that...

Capricorn Studios, Macon, GA, the complex where many of the Capricorn acts recorded, has been purchased out of foreclosure, stabilized, and is now being brought back to life by Mercer University. They will preserve the historic studio and control room, will add another, larger wings, and will...

Well, now. The first reviews started coming out in November and I decided to put the new Triangle Big Muff Pi reissue from ElectroHarmix on my Christmas list. My lovely wife obliged, so I've had the pedal for a while and have had a chance to run a pretty good chunk of guitars through it. Perhaps...

This from a humbucker lover. Bob

Happy Flametop Friday! You can find my new review of the 2018 LP Standard, right over HERE. Bob

This one has been coming for a while but it was still a surprise. It shouldn’t be: I’m on vacation and that is usually tough on the guitar fund. I’ve had an early '70s Les Paul for forty-one years. It is a great guitar and I’ve basically conformed to it – Gibson scale is my home and the body...

...I actually saw a cassette tape, stripped of its shell and strewn along a whole block of the road, just like days of old. "Out on the road today I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac A little voice inside my head said Don't look back, you can never look back" Don Henley, "The Boys of...

Keep watching, you'll see him. Bob

... Revival Drive? Lot's o' knobs and switches, lots o' geld, but, darn, it sounds fantastic. 7wtPl2DuXMM Now, note that he's playing it through a clean blackface Twin Reverb at a level he can speak over... The Revival (as in song one from the Allman Brothers album, Idlewild South) is a lot...

Here's your chance to dive in with a shade tree mechanic (me!) as I attempt to replace the drive belt in an Echoplex EP-3. Mosey on over HERE to enjoy the antics. Bob

The title says it all. How long do I have to go before it works out? Bob

...and guitar historian. I benefited from his work over my guitar life, both in the mags he edited and the books he wrote. In later days he taught at the University of Oregon. More, HERE. He'll be missed. Tom Wheeler, dead at 70. Bob

As if this bunch needs one. "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue." You've heard it used for weddings, but how about a modern version of a classic amp? More, HERE Bob