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We are in desperate need of more reviews! I personally would like to see more instrument reviews, but we could use more reviews in general! Also, do not feel forced into this format. Though it makes things look more uniform, it is not mandatory. The Musician's Lounge Instrument/Eqipment Review Thread Reviews: By goons, for goons. A: Reviewing an Instrument Please use "N/A" with any section not applicable, just for uniformity. Title of Instrument Example: Gibson Les Paul Studio Price Paid / Price New: Example: $500/$900 Year Manufactured: Example: 2004 Specs: Instrument's Specifications - Pickups, Neck, etc. Use a list if possible. Sound: Example 5/5. Then below type a short review if you desire. Instrument Quality: Example 5/5. Type a short review if you want. Playbility: Example 5/5. Another short review if you want. Overall Value: Example 5/5. Was it worth the price you paid? Why or why not? Any other information you'd like to add, please feel free to do so. Overall Value: Example 5/5. Worth the price, all things considered? Would you have paid more for this instrument? B: Reviewing a Piece of Equipment Once again, if you would please put an N/A for uniformity. Title of Equipment Example: Fender Champion 30 Price Paid / Price New: Example: $500/$900 Year Manufactured: Example: 2004 Specs Equipment's Specifications. Power supply, what it does, etc. Use a list if possible Sound (or applicable): Example 5/5. Then below type a short review if you desire. Equipment Quality: Example 5/5. Type a short review if you want. Usefullness: Example 5/5. Another short review if you want. Overall Value: Example 5/5. Was it worth the price you paid? Why or why not? Any other information you'd like to add, please feel free to do so. du -hast fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Oct 11, 2004 |
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Jul 19, 2004 00:07
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Epiphone Les Paul Special II Price: $200 Year: 2003 Specs:
All things considered the sound is very marginal. On the bridge pickup, there is a slight hum and popping sound, and the tone seems to be consistently off. The neck pickup produces a slightly more rich sound. More muffled sounding, and much cleaner. There seems to be no real reason to ever use the bridge pickup as it is simply a quiter version of the neck pickup. The sound of both pickups is lacking, seeming to be much less full than equal guitars of it's same price range. Instrument Quality: 1/5 The quality of this instrument is where it really misses the mark. The guitar does not come set up, and the tone is consistently off especially on the G. The neck of my brother's - who has the same guitar - came actually cracked in the back. The electronics where you plugin falls out constantly; I've finally given up and superglued it on. Also, this guitar weighs about fifteen pounds, it's like carrying an instrument made of bricks. Playbility:3/5 The playbility of this guitar is marginal; there are dead spots on the neck and it seems as though the frets were spaced in a random order, causing much difficulty fingering. This has an odd feel to it. However, a guitar's a guitar, and the neck is a little wider than a Squier Strat, which is nice for my big hands. Overall Value: 2/5 Don't buy this guitar as your first, go for a Squier Strat instead. It's similarly priced, and sounds slightly better. And if you have the money to go higher, do so. You get less than what you pay for.
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Jul 19, 2004 00:34
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Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Trem-O-Verb Price Paid / Price New: $1145/$1600 Year Manufactured: 1994 Specs:
Sound:4/5 The Modern Hi-Gain channel provides that in your face metal distortion. The Vintage Hi-Gain channel produces a vintagy overdriven sound with less bite than the modern channel along with less gain; not a Marshall distortion but different. The Blues channel is pretty much unusable. The clean channel is a nice clean, the best you'll find among the rectifier series. Not a Fender clean but not enough midrange for a Marshall clean. Equipment Quality: 5/5 I turned it on without a load and it didn't break. Nice and clean wiring inside. Playbility: N/A Overall Value: 3/5 Its a very versatile amplifier. I don't use any of the extra features. Its good quality, I would've paid 1200 for the halfstack (The price I listed included a Mesa 4x12 Recto cabinet). I have it running JJ integrated quads in the power section and a Mullard 12AT7 in the V1 posistion with Chinese 9th generation 12AX7's in the other preamp posistions. Im also running JAN Philips 5U4GB in the retifier posistions. These tubes and it being one of the earliest Trem-O-Verb make this amp sound very good as opposed to other Trem-O-Verb's. Tall Midget fucked around with this message at 00:59 on Jul 19, 2004 |
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Jul 19, 2004 00:54
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Fender Champion 30 Price Paid / Price New:$249/$239 Year Manufactured: 2003 Specs:
[/b]Sound:[/b] 5/5 Loud, great sound, no tinniness in sight. As loud as a tube amp and better sounding. I've never seen a better sounding amp (or heard rather). Equipment Quality: 4/5 Wonderful quality. Sturdy, and won't break if you drop it. My only complaint is that the knobs are easy to pop off unknowingly when you brush by something. Usefullness: 5/5 My only amp, it's obviously useful. Overall Value: Example 5/5 Buy it.
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Jul 19, 2004 04:11
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Marshall TSL601 Price Paid / Price New: $935/$1199 Year Manufactured: 2000 Specs:
Sound: 5/5 Loud as hell. This amp has quite enough power to power an additional extension cab, as long as it's 16 ohms. There's more than enough gain in this amp to get a sound as brutal as you want. The clean channel is nice, thick, and punchy. The distorted channels create pleasant, musical feedback very easily if you want them to. I've read complaints about the FX loop being too quiet, but it seemed fine to me. My only complaints are that the lead channel is a bit noisy and there is a tiny gap in the sound when switching from clean to distorted or vice versa, but this is relatively easy to compensate for by hitting the switch a bit early. Equipment Quality: 5/5 No complaints at all. The thing is built like a drat tank. Usefullness: 5/5 This is now my main amp (I moved up from the Marshall AVT150 head I was using). Versatile enough to do all the styles of music that I like. Overall Value: Example 5/5 Definitely worth owning.
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Jul 19, 2004 14:48
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Quoting because it's the same piece of equip, but my review is different.quote:Jimferd came out of the closet to say: Sound: 3/5 Clean sound is very good. Distorted channel is hella bright. Painfully bright. Even with the treble dialed in at 1, it's still bright, as if the dial doesn't work, (but it does on the clean channel, so I know it aint broke.) Doesn't possess that full Fender tone, but it's mighty good in a pinch. Equipment Quality: 4/5 Wonderful quality. Sturdy, and won't break if you drop it. Cord unplugs from the amp for better transportation. Usefullness: 5/5 My backup amp, I've used it to record some songs, used it at a couple gigs. Overall Value: Example 5/5 Buy it.
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Jul 19, 2004 17:00
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Since I originally made this post, I've been employed by another microphone company for several years and my opinion has changed on this mic. I will leave this review as is, but will comment that I've learned a lot about mics since July 2004 and my opinion has changed. --------------------- Audix OM7 Vocal Microphone Price Paid / Price New: $229 Year Manufactured: Example: 1990-Present Specs:
Sound: 5/5. This mic sounds awesome, the extended frequency response of the highs and lows really adds to the presence and clarity, especially in the monitors. Equipment Quality: 5/5. This mic is solid. The wind screen is very tightly knit so that if you drop it it wont bend in nearly as much as other, cheaper mics. The connector is gold plated and is tight, when you connect a cable it's a firm and solid connection, excellent for running around on stage with. Usefullness: [5/5. This mic is now my main vocal mic, replacing my Beta 58. Overall Value: 5/5. I purchased this with my employee discount at guitar center, but having used the mic now for a couple of months, I would have paid the full retail price. It's worth every penny. Having used a lot of different vocal mics in my day, the OM7 wins hands down. This mic was designed in the 90s for grunge bands that had huge stage volumes yet still wanted to hear their vocals clearly, and has since become THE gain before feedback mic. If my band is playing at full blast and I'm not singing, the meters on my mixer only read at -30db, whereas when I'm singing they're at 0 or +6. This mic rejects everything you don't want, and makes everything you do want sound killer. I would almost even describe this mic as if it had a compressor/gate built into it, but really that's just because I can hear myself singing so clearly now that it's easier to know when to back off and when to get as close as I can to the mic. And the sonic quality of this mic is unsurpassed by any handheld mic i've tried. I would even compare it to the Neuman KMS105, it's that good. It deffinately beats a Beta58, no question. My vocals are clean, clear, crisp, yet warm and very present. They sound very real, and there's no artificial boomy low end that a lot of other mics add when you don't want it. At the same time, the mic gives you plenty to work with in terms of EQ and frequency response. If you want boomy, you have it available to you. Other artists who use this mic include Eddie Vedder, american hifi, Bad Religion, Blink 182, Jimmy Eat World, Mighty Mighty Boss Tones, New Found Glory, Offspring, Rancid, Red Hot Chili Pepers, Sivlerchair, Sonic Youth, The Donnas, and of course Maynard from Tool and APC. RivensBitch fucked around with this message at 18:02 on Apr 11, 2008 |
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Jul 21, 2004 01:32
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Boss MT-2 Metal Zone Distortion Pedal Price Paid / Price New: $80 Year Manufactured: unaware Specs: Uses a 9V battery, or AC adapter. Is a distortion pedal. Sound: 4/5 For what it's made for, this pedal is friggin awesome. Even running through a low-end guitar and amp, its very sweet EQ can deliver some kickass Metal tones ranging from Thrash to classic rock. The only reason I didn't give it a 5/5 is simply because of its weakness in tone trying to play anything but metal. Usefulness:: 5/5 No matter what setup I use, i make sure to include this in it. To me, it is essential to achieving that totally rad "I'm angry and since I can't punch you in the face legally I'll let my music do it" tone. Overall Value: 5/5 I absolutely love this pedal. After I learned how to set up the EQ, it has never failed to deliver the heavy metal tone that I love so much.
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Jul 22, 2004 19:21
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Electro-Harmonix Small Stone Phase Shifter Price Paid / Price New: $80/$85 Year Manufactured: 2004 Specs - rate knob and color switch - 9V Sound (or applicable): 5/5. Unbelievable sound, clean or with distortion. It's simply godly. Equipment Quality: 5/5. This guy ain't breaking anytime soon and the knob hasn't fallen off, so I'm happy. Usefullness: 3/5. For my purposes, yes, this pedal is insanely useful. If phase shifting ain't your thing, then it obviously won't be useful. It's still the best phaser I've ever heard. Overall Value: 5/5. Well worth the price.
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Jul 24, 2004 05:43
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Title of Instrument OLP Stingray 5-String Bass Price Paid / Price New: $139/$249 Year Manufactured: 2003 Specs: Instrument's Specifications - 5 String Bass made just like the Music Man Stingray, except it's a lot cheaper, in price and manufacturing. - Single humbucker pickup - two volume knobs and a tone knob - pretty black finish Sound: 3.5/5 It sounds very much like the real thing, to me. I don't own the real thing, so I'm comparing it to tone on records/radio where I know those folks are playing a REAL Stingray. It's got the Stingray tone. There IS the bad grounding issue, where, if you take your hands off the bass, there's some buzzing, but it's not too bad. Instrument Quality: 2/5 I'm starting to be bummed by the quality. I've had it for 6 months and recorded with it last week, and noticed that the neck is starting to warp/twist like a strand of DNA. Not REALLY bad yet, except the high string is way up off the neck now. I will try to mess with the truss rod, but I doubt it will help. Playbility: 5/5 new, 2/5 now. When I opened the box (mail order) I was very pleased with my wise purchase. The bass played great, had good action, and did what I wanted from a bass that might cost upwards of $600 to get. Whoever set the bass up did a decent enough job. HOWEVER, 6 months later, the neck is going bad. (which is why i'm writing this review). The bass still sounds great, if I could just get the neck to behave. Overall Value: 4/5. The bass was certainly worth the $139 I dropped on it. I wanted to get a 5-string Sting Ray and see if I liked it. Rather than blow the $800 for a used one that I may end up not liking, I saved the money and got this one. I might go try to replace the neck now, or what the hell go buy a real one. This is definitely a great starter bass, and hopefully not all necks get the herp like this one, (stored in a humid basement, just moved houses, so, who knows why the neck is freaked).
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Aug 2, 2004 19:29
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Taylor 214 Acoustic guitar Price Paid / Price New: $700/$1089 (includes case) Year Manufactured: 2004 Specs: - 6 string acoustic guitar; Taylor's lowest priced solid wood guitar - satin finish - Grand Auditorium body - Spruce top, Sapele sides Sound: 4.5/5 I can't believe how good this sounds for how little I paid. It's a very well balanced sound, has bass when you need it, but tends to lean more towards the treble in terms of what it accentuates. It's awesome for fingerpicking, has great ringing on single notes, but will start to muddy if you strum it too hard. I have a pretty full strum, so I just use thinner picks to combat this--it seems to help. Overall, it sounds better than some guitars I've played costing twice as much. Instrument Quality: 4.5/5 Taylor built this thing solid; it feels light, but it's got way above average fittings. Of course, the whole thing was cut by computer guided equipment. The finish is nice, not having a gloss top took a minute to get used to but when you're looking at it from the front you can't even tell. My only gripe so far is that the grain of the Mahogany neck feels a bit gritty. There's all kinds of natural divots in the wood that the finish doesn't cover over, but even this isn't that big of a deal and it doesn't affect my playing at all. Playbility: 5/5 This is the first guitar I've ever brought home that I haven't spent a single minute setting up. It played exactly the way I wanted it to straight out of the box and I've had no trouble with it thus far. I love the low action on Taylors, and this one is no different. The ebony fingerboard is smooth and the frets are well set, and it often appears when I'm playing that the guitar knows when I want to stop during a slide. It plays like every other full-bodied Taylor I've ever played. I compared this directly to the 414 and 714 and found few differences in the smoothness of the neck. Overall Value: 5/5 This is one of the best guitar values out there. I didn't need the hardshell case so I walked out of the store having paid $700 tax included for it. I could very easily have bought some crap Korean acoustic with all laminate body and have paid the same amount. Instead, I got a solid-wood American built guitar that looks and plays like anything else you'd expect from the company for hundreds less than the next model up. Amazing value.
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Aug 6, 2004 00:38
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Yamaha CLP-110 Clavinova Digital Piano In short, this is the best digital piano or keyboard I've ever played. The sound quality is excellent and the key action is amazing. List Price: $1495.00 Specifications: 88-Key Graded-Hammer Action Keyboard Woodgrain cabinet with rosewood finish AWM with Stereo Sampling 10 Voices 30 Sampling Banks 32-note Polyphony Dual Voice 20W x 2 Amplifier Metronome Damper Pedal Midi In/Out/Through Dual Headphone Jack 50 Demo Songs w/ Sheet Music Sliding Key Cover Sound: 10/10 It's not a real piano, but if you heard one and didn't see it, you'd think it was. The sound is crisp and clear, and the built-in speakers are impressive. Instrument Quality: 9/10 We're not talking about a grand piano here, but the keyboard is VERY well crafted and this product will last a long time if treated properly (i.e. don't let kids start screwing around with it -- that's how stuff gets ruined). Playability: 10/10 Simply amazing. It feels like a piano, it sounds like a piano, but brother, it ain't a piano. The graded hammer action of the keys is nothing short of amazing. The bass keys are heavier, whereas the higher keys are a lot lighter. Overall: 9.5/10 The only reason it doesn't get a 10/10 is because there are better, more expensive products on the market. However, if you want to get some serious sound and playability out of something, this is what you want. If you're looking for something that has 100s of voices, then get a keyboard, by all means. This product is mainly for people who use only a few voices (piano, elec. piano, pipe organ, jazz organ, strings, harpsichord, etc). Another bonus is that you can get the Yamaha YDP-113, which is an identical product, but it doesn't bear the Clavinova name, nor does it come with the same warranty (2 year instead of 5 year, I believe). The YDP-113 retails for $995.00 and you can find it at more stores. My mother was able to get a Clavinova CLP-110 for $1200 and every time I go over my parents' house I sit on it and play for hours. It's gotten to the point where I can't stand to play my Roland Keyboard that much anymore because it sucks compared to the digital piano (and we bought the Roland for almost $1000 when it was new -- about 10 years ago). I definitely recommend buying this product.
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Aug 6, 2004 21:12
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DigiTech XMM Metal Master Heavy Metal Distortion Pedal Price Paid / Price New: $70 (Brand New, eBay) Year Manufactured: N/A Specs: - 9V Battery or A/C Adapater. - Pure metal. - Level, Hi, Low and Morph knobs Sound: 5/5 This pedal is pure metal. It won't play anything else but metal. You can go from an 80s thrash/speed metal sound to a modern death metal *crunch* which sounds like its coming straight from the pits of hell. The EQ controls (morph, hi, low) gives you nearly unlimited options for fine tuning your metal distortion. Usefulness:: 5/5 When it comes to playing metal, this pedal is a must. A twist of the morph knob and the distortion radically changes to suit your every need. Overall Value: 5/5 Just as the name of the pedal states. This is strictly a metal distortion pedal. Not very suitable for playing anything else. But, if you are looking for a killer metal distortion sound with tons of flexibility this is the way to go. Upcoming Reviews: I recently ordered a set of EMG SA for my strat and a Mighty Mite floyd rose tremelo. So, once I get those come in and I've got them on the strat I'll review those. Can't wait.
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Aug 9, 2004 19:51
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ESP LTD KH-202 Kirk Hammett Signature Price Paid / Price New: $449.99 Year Manufactuered: N/A Specs: - 25.5" scale - Basswood body - Maple neck with rosewood fretboard - Skull & Crossbones inlay - EMG-HZ H-4 passive pickup - Floyd Rose Licensed tremolo - 24 extra-jumbo frets Sound: 4.5/5 This guitar sounds awesome, especially if you're into playing heavy metal like Rammstein or Metallica. Clean and crispy. However, getting the best sound always requires a nice amp (or preamp) or a sound processor (effect pedal). And also, I had in mind a bit more distortion that it gave me (the H-4 passive pickup). Instrument Quality: 5/5 No competition on this one. Very, very nicely-built guitar. Skull & Crossbone inlay, with the Floyd Rose licensed tremolo that keeps your strings from going out of tune. Playability: 5/5 Definitely a must if you play rock/heavy metal songs. The only tricky thing about this guitar is the stringing process. Since ESP do not issue instruction manuals, you have to figure it out yourself. But after some practice, I think I got a grip of it. Overall Value: 5/5 This guitar rarely goes out of tune, always delivers the best sound (very rich Drop-D riffs) I could expect (even more if I tweak with the effects). The model above this is the KH-2. That costs $1,800. The only difference is that it's got the EMG 81 ACTIVE pickup set (requires battery). You can get 2 EMG 81 pickups yourself for $200, including instruction manual. I think it's well worth the price. This model is very close to a top-end guitar.
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Aug 21, 2004 08:25
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Digitech RP-200A Modelling Guitar Processor w/ Artist Presets Price Paid / Price New: $149.99 Year Manufactuered: N/A Specs: - 40 artists presets - 11 effects at once (wah, pickup modeling, compression, cabinet, amp modeling, noise gate, effects, delay, reverb, expression) - Drum machine - Jam-A-Long TM input, stereo output - Power supply included - Built-in Expression Pedal Sound: 4/5 So far, the only things that disappoint me if the distortion and the crybaby wah. It seems there's not enough distortion in any of the amp modeling section, and the crybaby wah sounds really artificial (it even gives you a weird sound without pressing down the pedal). But other than that, it's a pretty good pedal. You can store/customize your own settings, so you can have an instant Drop C sound or C# tuning without re-tuning your guitar, or you could have the guitar sound interchange between acoustic and distortion via the Expression Pedal. The Whammy effect is also really fun to play with (especially in the song Herzeleid, by Rammstein). There are a lot more effects, could be proven to be useful sometimes; such as the Auto Wah, Ya Ya effect, chorus, tremolo, pitch shifter..etc). The noise gate setting on this pedal is absolutely awesome. It filters out random noise made by your hand or the "static" you hear in your speakers. Equipment Quality: 4.5/5 A well-built effect pedal/sound processor. The only thing that sometimes bothers me that the Expression Pedal squeaks noise after a while. But all you have to do is to add some oil underneath, and the squeaking goes away. Usefulness: 5/5 The noise gate alone is SO useful. Drop C, C# tuning with tap of a button. However there is a learning curve. I'd say from 15 minutes to understand how it works, to an hour to know what everything are. For example, if you turn on the Crybaby Wah effect on the top section, you also have to turn on the Expression Pedal for it (on the bottom of the screen), or else it will not function right. Overall Value: 5/5 $150 for a multi-functional sound processor. A VERY bargaining price. A must for beginners or people tight on the money.
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Aug 21, 2004 08:44
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Marshall MG30DFX Price Paid / Price New: $249.99 Year Manufactured: N/A Specs: - Twin footswitchable channels - Clean & Overdrive - Independent tone controls for Bass & Treble on each channel - Contour Control for dramatic mid sweep and 'scooping' - Emulated Line Out jack and Headphone jack - CD input which allows you to play along to your favourite discs - Built-in Digital Effects - Reverb, Chorus, Flange and Delay - 10" custom-voiced speaker - FDD (Frequency Dependent Damping) Sound: 5/5 Top sound for a 30 watt amplifier. Tweaking with the gain, contour, treble level gives you all sorts of sound you could utilize. It also has a few effects, such as chorus, reverb, delay, and a level knob next to it. Equipment Quality: 5/5 This thing is pretty big. A little handle on the top. I always sit on top of it when I play (maybe it's not the best thing to do, but just to prove it's pretty strong). It's pretty heavy duty too. Usefulness: 5/5 Definitely useful if you plan to play guitar in your room, in a small party, or just to jam along with your friends. Or if you just plan to annoy the hell out of whoever, just beam up the volume and strum once. Overall Value: 5/5 Marshall makes very nice speakers. At an affordable price.
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Aug 21, 2004 08:54
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KORG Trinity Pro X Price Paid / Price New: About £2800 Year Manufactured: 1998 Specs: Full size weighted keyboard with touch screen. Sound: 3.5/5 The Trinity excels at pad, string, and choir sounds, but really lacks (in my opinion) in punchy/meaty drum sounds and orchestral brass. On the flip side, this is an instrument which tries to have a bit of absolutely everything, so on that score it's really pretty good. Traditional "keyboard" sounds (like piano, electric piano and rhodes) are okay, but nothing amazing. Instrument Quality: 5/5 Cannot fault it on this. I've carried this thing back and forth across the Atlantic 3 times as well as taking it out gigging and it's still in good shape. Plus it has a switching power supply for both 110v (US) and 240v (UK), can't beat that! Playbility: 4/5 The keyboard plays very well, the touchscreen interface works pretty well, the only problem with the thing is that the response time of the touchscreen is so drat slow! This is something they addressed slightly with a firmware patch, then addressed (as far as I know) more completely with the Triton. Overall Value: 5/5 Despite any failings I think the keyboard has, it's still a great keyboard and I wouldn't trade it for anything. In terms of a complete solution it's lacking, but for a general purpose keyboard which you can involve in literally any piece of work, it's almost unbeatable. BOSS GT-6 Guitar Pedal Price Paid / Price New: About £325 Year Manufactured: 2003 (I think?) Specs Multi FX guitar DSP pedal incorporating almost all of BOSS's single effect pedals in one unit Sound (or applicable): 5/5 The sound from this thing is amazing. It's not only crystal clear for studio work, it also packs a punch for live work and delivers a good tone which is optimizable depending on the type of speaker set you're using (ie 2x12, headphones, PA). Equipment Quality: 5/5 It's a trooper. I've only taken this one across the Atlantic once, but it came through without any problems. On a side note, my old GT-5 which I replaced with this was considerably less durable and sustained a fracture in the circuit board while travelling. By the time of the manufacture of the GT-6 they must have been aware of this problem since the jack sockets now have additional protection. Usefullness: 5/5 This is the only pedal I use for all my guitar work. Overall Value: 5/5 As I mentioned above, this is the only pedal I ever use anymore. The quality of the sound it produces versus the cost of the unit is amazing.
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Aug 30, 2004 23:37
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Ibanez GSR200 Price: $200 Year: 2003 Specs: Agathis body One-piece maple neck Rosewood fretboard Pearl dot inlay Split-coil and single-coil pickup combination Active EQ with Phat Bass Boost Chrome hardware Fully adjustable bridge Medium frets Adjustable bridge Sound: 4/5 The sound on this thing is pretty good, especially considering it is a pretty low priced guitar. Some have argued with me that it isn't that great sounding of an instrument, but I like it. Instrument Quality: 3.5/5 It is a sturdy bass, not to heavy and not to light, however small things suck as buzzing on the G & D strings knocks it down on the scale. (However this may be to my complete lack of knowledge of setting the thing up, your mileage may vary.) Playbility:4/5 The GSR200 plays very well, the neck isn't all jumbo sized which I like because it easier for me to move my finters around the fret. However if you like giagantor sized frets, then this might not be the guitar for you. Overall Value: 4/5 This is a great beginner guitar, and has good features. If you really wanted to scimp I guess you could go for the GSR100, but I think for the little ammount of money more you spend on the GSR200 is well worth it. Overall this is a great beginner guitar, and has everything you need to be well on your way to bassville USA.
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Aug 31, 2004 04:45
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OLP MM-2 Stingray 4 string Price: $200 Year: 2003 Sound: 5/5 This is actually the best sounding bass I've played, I have no problem getting usable tones for funk, rock, blues, most any genre. Instrument Quality: 4/5 Very sturdy, very heavy, doesnt scratch easily. I've dropped it a few times and its still fine. After 8 months or so the neck is bending a little but some truss rod adjustment fixes it, for a while at least. I'm also beginning to notice the DNA-like twisting reported above on the 5 string. Playbility:5/5 This is also the best playing bass I've played, and I've played a few very expensive and reputable basses. Overall Value: 5/5 This is just a drat good bass, cheap, reliable, great sounding. The only complaint I have about this bass is the neck bending which seems to kick in after about 9 months on most of the OLPs and you have to tighten the input jack after about 20 cable removals/insertions.
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Sep 8, 2004 02:06
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Boss CS-3 Compression/Sustainer Price Paid / Price New: $75/$80 Year Manufactured: 2003/2004 Description from Boss's site (https://www.bossus.com): The CS-3 compresses high-input signals while boosting low-input signals, giving you smooth sustain without degrading the quality of the original sound.
Sound: 4/5 The pedal makes your tone very smooth and gives it a little more chunk when eq'd correctly. Clean guitar sounds amazing: very crisp and very full. Distortion varies. With most distortions it is a little thicker. However, some you cannot tell at all. I use this in combo with a Boss MT-2 MetalZone. Equipment Quality: 5/5 It is like any Boss pedal. Very sturdy medal and hard plastic knobs. Is covered on the bottom with rubber to prevent from slipping. 5 year warranty on parts, 90 days on labor. Usefullness: 5/5 Any electric guitarist of any style can benefit from a compression/sustainer. Can also be used as a limiter by turning the sustain control down. Overall Value: 4/5 Definitely worth the money. Will noticebly improve your tone and give you some flexibility.
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Sep 14, 2004 00:14
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Fender Jaguar CIJ Price: $560 us Year: 1991 Sound: 4/5 There are two different settings available for the guitar, which lead to, (A) When switched up, the rhythm curcuit, with two seperate roller knobs for volume and tone respectively and, (B) When switched down, the lead curcuit, which has two knobs for volume and tone respectively AND 3 switches to control up to 7 different tone configurations from mids to treble. The rhythm curcuit controls basically the low end of the sound. As for the sound itself, It's very twangy - like the surfer's era (and it's supposed to be). I like this sound, but the Japanese pickups didn't do it for me, so I've ordered a SD Antiquity II for the neck. Instrument Quality: 4/5 Everything is tip top except for the pickguard. The bevelled edges seem to stray from the chrome hardware in strange places. The strings will pop out of the saddles if plucked too hard, especially low E. (This can be easily fixed by straight swapping out with a Fender Mustang bridge - of which genuine ones are hard to come by...) Playbility: 4.5/5 The short scale neck makes it harder to play and sustain the notes above the 12th fret, but it is achievable. Overall Value: 5/5 Not everyone's cup of tea, but I love this thing. 
XYZAB fucked around with this message at 01:06 on Sep 18, 2004 |
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Sep 18, 2004 01:03
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Disclaimer: It is really hard to do a review of drums, because so many different variables affect their sound. For reference, I use Vic Firth hickory sticks, an Iron Cobra double pedal, and Sabian cymbals. I record with pretty lovely equipment, but it still sounds good - I can only imagine that it would sound great if the equipment were of higher quality. My preferred snare head is Evan's PowerHit for a tight, sharp sound. Tama Rockstar DX 8-piece - 10",12",13",14" rack toms; 16", 18" floor toms; 22" bass, and of course the snare (formerly 9, dropped a bass and got a double pedal for sound consistancy and more importantly portability) Price: 525$ off of ebay, originally listed at a hellaciously higher amount.) Year: 1987 Sound 8/10 Well, it's hard to describe the sound of just the drums themselves; I've got Aquarian heads on them, and before that I had Evans hydraulics. The Aquarians mic better, but the Evans definitely had a more "powerful" sound. Bass drum is an Aquarian batter head and an Evans resonant. However, one thing that has been very consistant between both sets is a deep resonance and power - without being "twangy." These are definitely rock hulls; they've got a heavy, wet sound. But, unlike some cheaper drum sets I've owned, they don't have an unpleasant ring to go with them. To sum it up, it is a powerful, but balanced sound. The bass sounds especially nice, heavy, wet, and powerful. Instrument Quality 10/10 All of the components to this set are of the highest quality. Sturdy construction, solid mounting equipment, all-in-all just outstandingly well put-together. The finish is a beautiful candy-apple red, and has withstood the years remarkably unblemished. The hardware did need replacing when it was purchased due to the previous owner applying twice as much force as necessary to secure the toms, but that was a blessing in disguise as it offered a chance to upgrade to the newer style of mounting hardware which is of a much better design. This doesn't detract from the quality score because I hate to blame the equipment for the owner's mistreatment. Playability N/A Your ability to play the drums is not usually restricted by the drums. This is the case with this set as well. The better you are, the easier it is to play them. Value 10/10 500 bucks for this set complete with hardware, three cymbals, and a 14" hi-hat? Count me in! loving steal. Overall Value 10/10 As you can probably tell, I am extremely pleased with these drums, and if I had the decision to make when they were new I would be glad to purchase them. Worth every penny. Edit: Mini-plug for the review below. I also use Wuhan chinas, and they are absolutely fantastic for the price. Agreed fucked around with this message at 16:37 on Sep 18, 2004 |
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Sep 18, 2004 06:39
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Wuhan Mini-China/China Equipment: Wuhan mini-china (goes from 12" to 22", although the 22" isn't exactly a mini china) Price New: Example: $10/$40 Year Manufactured: whenever! Specs: a cymbal's a cymbal. I suggest hitting it in the shoulder, since the Wuhan china's shoulders are pretty pronounced (like the shoulder of a drumstick almost, as opposed to the flatter shape most other chinas have). But then again you can also turn it upside down and get an AWESOME bell sound, like Frankenstein's ride cymbal. Sound: These cymbals need a good stand if you're going to use it as much as I do. I dedicate a separate boom stand to it and keep it above my hihats for quick accenting. They sound a lot like dark Ks (Zildjian), but they don't feel as "creamy." I guess by "creamy" I'm talking about that pliant feel that Paiste Sound Formulas and Zildjian Ks and Sabian HHs have, where you feel like you're actually cutting into the middle of the cymbal. These cymbals are thick and strong, and sound really dark. They're trashy as hell too, with quick decay. But the super-rapid decay might come from the fact that I have them tightly clamped down. Here's an example MP3 of how I use it and how it sounds (listen for the chorus; also, it's part of a bigger song, which is why the starting is so weird): http://thewatsonbrothers.com/secretalbumdirectory/08-Oshanti%203.mp3 Instrument Quality: FIVE! Honestly, these things are sturdy as hell, offer AWESOME sound for the price, and it's a much better deal than shelling out a hundred dollars for an effects cymbal you might end up not using. And 40 bucks for a 22" china??? AWESOME. They also have a pretty generic sound as opposed to the more specialized Zil-Bel or China Trash or whatever the big-name companies have. And remember that Carmine Appice's china is Wuhan, though all his other cymbals are Sabian. Playbility: 5/5 Overall Value: Honestly, this is the best value you could possibly get when cymbal-shopping. If Wuhan made hihats and crashes I'd play them, because I crave Ks but can't afford them.  Overall Value: 5/5, if you're in the market for an effects cymbal (and you should be!) Some dude on musiciansfriend had this to say: quote:Max from Musiciansfriend.com came out of the closet to say: Last Words: Everybody plays Zildjian, Sabian or Paiste cymbals, and that's all well and good: they're fantastic and really the only three choices (lol Bosphorus  ). What most drummers underestimate though are effects cymbals. A good china can completely change your playing style, as can the simple addition of a cheap splash cymbal. But cymbals are expensive, and most people don't want to make the investment only to find out that it doesn't agree with their setup (although I guess you can get a splash holder for pretty cheap). Enter Wuhan. I bought their mini-china and splash in 2002 because they were only forty bucks, and while the splash is like any other cheap splash (think Sabian B8s, Paiste 402s etc) the mini-china completely changed my drumming experience. I wouldn't be able to live without it now.
futhman fucked around with this message at 09:14 on Sep 18, 2004 |
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Sep 18, 2004 09:12
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Mesa/Boogie Dual Caliber DC-5 *discontinued* Price Paid/New $500/$1200 USD Year Manufactured not sure. mid/late 90s Specs
Equipment Quality 5/5 VERY nice piece of equipment. Very heavy, durable construction. I don't know what they put in it, but it's built like an unusually dense brick. Alas, there are tubes, so you can't just toss it out the window to your buddy downstairs when you're packing up. Usefullness 4.5/5 This amp is incredibly versatile. It even has a mute switch so you bedroom shredders can do silent recording at night. There are gain, bass/mid/treb, presence and volume knobs for both channels (plus a pull out gain boost for the clean channel) and a switchable EQ for one or both channels (you can switch that, too), so the possibilities of application are nearly endless. With my settings I can do jazz, blues, metal, rock and only switch between clean, dirty and EQ on/off. The style is all in your wrist with such versatile tone. This amp loses a point, however, because it's just a 1x12 and you'll probably have to get a cab for it if you want to do large, un-mic'd gigs and don't want to dish out for another Celestion. But it gains half a point back because it can drive virtually any cab, despite mismatched impedence ratings. Overall Value 5/5. For the price I paid, this is an awesome amp. It was even better because I had just sold my Crate half stack for $400 to Guitar Center (suckers!) and really only lost $100 on the whole transaction. Needless to say, only losing $100 on any Mesa/Boogie is practically a dream come true. I also bought it from my guitar teacher, so I have virtually free expert repair anytime I need. I should add that this is a LOUD 1x12. About as loud as any Fender amp. I've never turned the thing above 3channel vol 3master vol, and that was painful. It could easily handle a club or basement gig with no mic, but you'd probably want at least a 2x12 cab to spread the sound and tighten up the bass response. For you daring, I'd suggest trying out the gain boost, you'll have to stand a long way back from it, but it sounds like some good old vintage tube overdrive like you'd hear on Zepplin I. Also, there are some nifty features and stuff that I don't really use and didn't explain here, so if anyone's interested, here's a link to a .pdf of the manual. very well written, I might add. http://www.mesaboogie.com/manuals/user_manuals.htm CalvinDooglas fucked around with this message at 03:03 on Sep 19, 2004 |
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Sep 19, 2004 02:57
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Title of Instrument: ROLAND RE-201 SPACE ECHO Price Paid / Price New: $475/? Year Manufactured: 1973 Specs: The Roland Space Echo has ten knobs. Three knobs control the volume of their corresponding 1/4" input (1 guitar, 2 vocals). Two knobs serve as a simple bass and treble EQ for the echo's tone. One knob is a volume for the reverb feature. The biggest knob lets you select the type of delay (delay-type is related to which of the tape-heads are turned on for recording) . The final three knobs are tape speed, feedback, and echo volume. There is also a three-position switch that lets you select a high, medium, or low output and a bypass switch (which you won't need if you use the footswitch) Sound: 10/5 This thing is AMAAAAAZING!!!! Even when bypassed it adds a beautifully warm element to your sound. I could not ask for a more perfect tape delay. All the settings are wonderful, from the quirky to astral travel, You can find almost any sound (except sterile). Instrument Quality: 4/5 I bought mine used, so there was some minor wear in the tolex. However, the protective plastic was still on the knobs. The quality of the insides are great. I will expect change the tape occasionally and clean the heads on a regular basis. Overall, very sturdy. Playbility: 10/5 The most musical effect I have ever used! Not a bad sound in the box. Overall Value: I would have paid more for it.
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Sep 30, 2004 17:58
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Title of Equipment Digitech GNX3 Price Paid / Price New: $400/$400 Year Manufactured: 2003-2004 Specs
2-track simultaneous recording Footswitches mappable to recorder shuttle controls JamMan2 full-featured loop recorder Drum machine GeNetX amp and cab modeling with Warp function Stompbox modeling with expression pedal Guitar and mic ins 1/4" stereo and S/PDIF outs Sound (or applicable): 5/5. This guitar pedal is, as you would expect from Digitech, well worth the money. You can sound like basically ANY sound that you want. The pedal is a beauty. Equipment Quality: 5/5. Built like a tank. Almost completely metal, with the exception of the plastic stop-box-like pedals, expression pedal, and 8-track recorder. Usefullness: 5/5. You can use this while practicing on your own to learn a new song. You can use this to record a demo with your band. You can even use this live (I have). This pedal is so much fun. I never find a way to get bored with it. Overall Value: 5/5. The most versitile, and best guitar multi-effects pedal you can own.
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Oct 6, 2004 12:09
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Mesa/Boogie Triple Rectifier Price Paid / Price New: $1499/$1499 Year Manufactured: 2001 Specs: (Taken from Mesa/Boogie's Website) http://www.mesaboogie.com/Product_Info/Rectifier_Series/Triple_Rectifier/triple_rectifier.html
Sound: 5/5 Chances are, if you've heard a guitar on the radio, you've probably heard the Mesa/Boogie sound. This amp is one mean SOB. If you like gain, this is definitely your piece of equipment. Even the clean channel has that mean sound to it. Very crunchy, bass is thick, and it's got plenty of midrange to go around. Equipment Quality: 5/5 For a tube amp, this thing is built like a tank. Bonus points for the diamond plating on the front. My cabinet tipped over during a gig one time and it fell to the ground. I picked it up, dusted it off, and looked in the back to see the damage. Not even a tube was broken. I made sure they were all seated firmly and it's still playing great 3 years later. Usefulness: 4/5 Between the 3 channels I can pretty much get any sound I want; from crystal-bell clean to telephone mids to pure chunk. It's so loud that most club gigs don't even need to mic it, and that's with it turned up to about 30%. Any more than that and it's just too much! Overall Value: 4/5 I think if you're playing hard rock, this will be a great amp for you. Combine it with your effects and a really good guitar (I use a Gibson Les Paul Custom '57 Reissue) and you have many years of rocking out ahead of you.
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Oct 10, 2004 16:09
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Bolin NS Model Guitar Price Paid: US $1,495 used Purchased direct from manufacturer. Features: 10 From what I was told, this guitar is almost 2 years old. It was a guitar shown at trade shows. So I am guessing it is a 2001. 22 frets, medium, on an ebony fret board. Locking tuners and one of the most inventive neck joints I have ever seen. Maple neck, medium profile. Uniformly thin flamed maple top on an arched alder body. Deep single cutaway with an offset waist. Satin violin brown finish. Comfortable bouts on the back of the guitar. It just hugs the body and very comfortable in multiple playing positions. Active EMG 85 pickups in hum-hum configuration. A volume, tone and mini-3-way switch. At first, I didn't like the mini-switch, but have grown to love it. Its non-obtrusive and solid feeling. Non-tremelo bridge is fully adjustable. Height, intonation and side-to-side. Very solid and easy to adjust and change strings. Came with a custom, from-fitted case. Sound: 10 Acoustically: At first, its quieter than I'm used to qualities threw me off, but I noticed the perfect balance between the strings immediately. I do get fret buzz on the low E string and its from the nut being too deep on that string. Amplified: The pickups are HOT. On my Fender amp, it really pushes it and distorts much quicker. Again, the balance between the strings is perfect. Each note rings true and vibrantly even under a ton of distortion. With my Sunn Beta amps, I get a good solid crunch, very controllable feedback, great pinch harmonics and a monster sound. Full, round, easy to control. Clean, the guitar sounds incredible. With both pickups on or just the neck pickups, the tone is very warm, much more than i would have expected from my experience with EMG pickups. From clean jazz lines to overdriven rock to bluesy twang to metal crunch, this guitar is capable of more styles than I can even play. Action, Fit, & Finish: 9 Action was low and even, except for the too-deep nut on the low E. Other than that, set up was great. Pickups and strings were aligned perfectly. Neck joint is rock solid. The satin finish showed off the flamed top perfectly. For the bridge, there is a small spot where they flattened out the arched top for a perfect, flush fit between the bridge and body. The pickup cavity was spotless and wires tucked away. Reliability/Durability: 10 I have no doubt in my mind that this guitar will last me many years. The wood and hardware are rock solid. I feel no need for strap-lock buttons. The satin finish is prone to "polishing" from use. That is, pick marks and where my arm rests on the upper bout are starting to get shiny. I was fully aware of this when I bought the guitar. Someone that wished to retain the satin finish can do so with a light un-polishing with fine grade steel wool. Customer Support: 10 I talked to the Bolin people a LOT before purchasing this guitar. Friendly, honest, easy to talk to. I bought this guitar "blind', having never played it before. I was given a 10 day trial period for my guaranteed satsifaction. I have had no reason to contact them since I got the guitar, except only to thank them for it. Overall Rating: 10 This guitar replaced my PRS McCarty standard. At the time, my PRS's (I've had 3) seemed to be the greatest guitars I have ever played. Well, along came the Bolin and it blew them out of the water. Even balanced tone, incredible construction, a nice balance in the body, a comfortable next carve... I could go one and on. For a guitar that I initially pursued for cosmetic reasons, I was shocked at how well it played and sounded. After playing guitar for 20 years, I never thought I would find another guitar that would just take my breath away like this. A great guitar from great people. This is a review I submitted to Harmony Central after I first purchased this guitar. I happen to run into this review on another site, and figured it may be useful here. A couple of pics:  
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Oct 13, 2004 16:53
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Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Price Paid: $800 Canadian (~$560 US) Year Manufactured: 2004 Specs Taken from http://www.fender.com/products/show.php?partno=0213202
Sound (or applicable): 5/5 The amp produces some of the most beautiful tones I've ever heard. The clean channel is about as "bluesy" as they come, and if you're willing to really drive it you can get it to distort naturally in the way that only tubes can. The drive channel, though, is what I love so much about this amp. I mostly play blues and classic rock, and this amp is absolutely perfect for those styles. It's possible to get a meaner metal sound out of the "more drive" channel, but if metal is your primary interest, then this amp probably wouldn't be the best choice. Equipment Quality: 5/5 This amp is very well built, looks great, and it can really take a beating. Usefullness: 5/5 I can always get the sound that I'm looking for. The reverb is nice to have but it could be a little better. I've not personally played any gigs with this amp, but it is more than adequate for jam sessions (and in my own experience, this is an understatement--I've never had to put the volume any higher than 2 or 3 to be heard over drums and bass). I do know one Deluxe owner who regularly played gigs with this model, and when he finally decided that it needed a little more punch he added an extra speaker and closed the back of the case. Overall Value: 5/5 I love this amp. The vast majority of amps that I've seen in this price range are solid state, and quite honestly I don't think there's any comparison between solid state and tubes.
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Oct 24, 2004 18:03
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Behringer BX-300T Price Paid / Price New: $229 sale, $299 reg Year Manufactured: 2004 Specs Equipment's Specifications: 300 Watts into a 4-ohm load, shape, brightness, deep and ultrabass settings. DI, line-out and effects loops on the front.2 1/4 inch jacks and one Speakon connector in the back. 3-band EQ with adjustable crossover points. Footpedal with Shape and Ultrabass toggles. Sound: 5/5. I'm implying that as an amp, it doesn't get in the way. The Ultrabass feature is fairly worthless unless you use a 15" sub or similar. Even then it's a little muddy. Bright and deep are both settings that can be achieved thru eq settings, but provide a shortcut if you're not much of a tweaker. I paired it with a GK Backline 4x10 cab and the combo is cheap and quite powerful. Equipment Quality: 5/5. Until I see an example of poor workmanship or parts, I'll call it excellent. Knobs are solid and give a positive feel. It comes in a carpeted case with a nice handle on the side. Power switch is in the back Usefullness: Example 4/5. It does what it's supposed to. Ultrabass is worthless and bright can be dialed in on the guitar itself. Special points to a VU meter in the front Overall Value: Example 5/5. Definitely a huge bang for the buck deal. I don't understand all the hate for Behringer. Frankly I'm tired of ridiculous prices for gear and it's nice to see someone put out a solid product that will cause the big boys to compete for people that would have had to buy crappy, abused used gear at a pawn shop, or worse. ONE YEAR LATER: Everything still works great. No problems whatsoever. Now that I've had it for a while I finally have it dialed in just right. Sounds better than ever. Kynetx fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Dec 6, 2005 |
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Oct 25, 2004 04:32
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Behringer Truth Active 2-Way Reference Studio Monitors Price Paid / Price New: $400 + S/H (About a year ago) / >$300 now Year Manufactured:2003 Specs: -8 3 /4 " polycarbonate woofer -extremely high resolution 25mm tweeter -Adjustable low-frequency roll-off, high-frequency adaptation and a four-way room compensation -Selectable power mode, high- and low-frequency mute functions -balanced XLR and 1 /4 " connectors -full electromagnetic shielding -auto-off after 5 min of inactivity Sound: 4.5/5 Really, really clean sound. Super clear highs, amazing lows; just all around great. The only complaint is a slight coloration towards the low end, but once I used them for a couple of months I figured out how to compensate my levels. Equipment Quality: 4/5 The auto-off function is really handy, and the cabs are really nice looking. After about a year the left woofer has developed a tiny buzz that occurs during moments of alot of bass. (Probably due to fuckers leaving them bumping really loud while they write verses...) Other than that they have served me WELL. I've mixed/mastered several albums on them already with pretty good results. Overall Value: 5/5. Goddamn inflation. They are WAY cheaper now than when I bought them, but I still think they were worth it. For anyone that is considering some monitors, I wouldn't hesitate to suggest these. THNDRTHF THNDRTHF fucked around with this message at 06:15 on Oct 25, 2004 |
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Oct 25, 2004 06:12
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Not sure this even needs a review but bought a new one recently, so I thought I'd contribute. Title of Equipment: Shure SM57 Price Paid / Price New: AUD$130.00 (Student Discount) Year Manufactured: Forever and ever... Specs Equipment's Specifications: - Dynamic Cardioid Microphone - Frequency response: 40 to 15,000 Hz Sound (or applicable): 4/5. The SM57 has always been a classic for miking snares and guitar cabinets, especially close miking. I mostly use mine as the go to mic for high SPL close miking and recently a lot of vocals (with a pop shield). The sound is quite clear, loud and bright. Like many dynamic mic's there is a bump in the presence range. I have always been a fan of this microphone's sound. Equipment Quality: 4/5. This mic has been damaged once. The wires inside were twisted until they ripped from their solder, probably due to people fiddling with opening up the mic too much. This was easily repaired at home in very little time. Apart from that incident, this mic can be dropped, hit with drum sticks and survive all the usual wear and tear with no trouble. It is extremely rugged. I recently heard that SM57's used to be used in tanks for communication. Not sure if this is true. Usefullness: 5/5. If you just want to record vocals, you could do better by getting a studio condensor, but still, there is always a use for this mic. Overall Value: 4/5. The price I paid was below the average price for sure. Also the amount of use this mic gets makes it one of my most satisfying purchases. I'd be suprised if people here hadn't heard of this microphone. If you haven't, it is worth checking one out right away. Killer Lobster fucked around with this message at 16:48 on Oct 25, 2004 |
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Oct 25, 2004 16:45
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Title of Instrument Example: Gibson SG Standard Price Paid / Price New: $1100/$1100 Year Manufactured:2004 Specs: Mahogany neck and body, rosweood fretboard, 490R and 498T alnico Gibson pickups. More specs at https://www.gibson.com Sound:5/5 This guitar gives great sounds whether clean or distorted, and with whatever type of music you like to play. Instrument Quality: 4.9/5 All the natural quality of a Gibson. It drops a point because you can still see some minor sanding marks on the neck binding, but this is just because it's all handmade, so they don't really detract from the look or the build quality of the instrument. Playbility: 4.5/5 This has a very fast neck, nicely lacquered so it's smooth to slide up and down. The standard set up action is good. It only loses any points here because a couple of the Les Pauls I've played feel slightly nicer to play, but all around this if very, very good. Overall Value: 5/5 Over here in the UK they seem to be going for around £1400 at the moment, which is about $2500! I ordered mine over from the US and paid about £850 total, which is quite a lot, but for the overall quality of the instrument I'd say it's worth every penny. I won't need another electric guitar ever again.
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Nov 6, 2004 17:20
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Title of Equipment: Ampeg SVT-III PRO Price Paid / Price New: ~$500/$900 Year Manufactured: Either 2002 or 2003 Specs: Full spec list
Sound: 5/5 I bought this amp sight unseen from a fellow over at the fine forums at Harmony Central. I've been blown away by the results. Paired with my Avatar 2x10 (review to come), this little rig cost me under a grand and sounds awesome. The Ampeg responds very well to the active electronics of my bass (Schecter Stiletto 5-string). My usual tone is a fairly full and deep rock tone, but it's very easy to roll off some highs (or flip on the EQ) and go to nasal-slap-o-rama Equipment Quality: 5/5 Had it racked since I got it and been very gentle to it, but it's not given me a lick of trouble yet. Have not replaced tubes since I got it (used) over a year ago. Usefullness: 5/5 I love this amp and if it were stolen, I would either replace it straight up or look at upgrading to one of Ampeg's all-tube monsters. Honestly, I don't know that I'll ever need a different amp - if anything, I may add another cabinet to get it driving @ 4 ohms, but that's a wase down the road. Overall Value: 5/5 I think this amp was an absolute steal for $500. Compared to some of SWR's stuff, I think it stacks up very very well. For $900, I'm not sure that it's the greatest value, but if you are looking for a new bass head, I would definitely recommend looking around for a used SVT-3. If you have any questions on this monster, just send me a PM 
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Nov 6, 2004 21:16
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Title of Equipment: Parker Fly Deluxe w/ Tremolo Price Paid / Price New: $1,500/$2,000 Year Manufactured: 2001 Specs: 24-fret carbon fingerboard, Sperzel locking tuners, dual humbucker pickups, adjustable tremolo (floating/down-only/set), piezo pickups integrated in bridge, lots of knobs, and ability to split humbucker signals and piezo signals into two different amps. Guitar is extremely light, weighing about 4 pounds. Ability to split the humbuckers into two single-coil pickups. Sound: 4.5/5 The piezos especially sound great, real crisp sounds, especially for a solid-body electric. The humbuckers are kind of blah, but apparentally there are ways you can get them swapped out for Seymour Duncan Black Backs at Ed Roman (?) Guitars. I get some mild fret buzz on my B string, which causes much annoyance. Equipment quality: 4.5/5 Again, the fret buzz indicates some lack of fine-tuned construction. Other than that, the thing is rock solid and perfect. Gotta be a little careful with ramming the guitar into stuff (dude, you just paid $2,000 for a guitar, dumbass. Don't run it in to stuff.) as the paint chips. The paint job itself looks awesome. I got the Emerald Green, and it actually is more harlequin than anything else. Colors range from green to purple, depending on lighting. Playability: 5/5 The piezos, humbuckers, and pickup-splitting give this guitar a ton of versatility. You can easily drop-tune it, if you're into that kind of thing, as its neck length is the same as Ibanez metal-type guitars so you won't get floppy-dick string syndrome. The neck on this guitar will give you an orgasm in your pants. It is the smoothest, fastest neck you'll ever play in your life. Kinda hard to get used to no fretboard markings (the whole fretboard is solid black) but if you buy a guitar like this, I hope to loving god you already can play without those. Overall Value: 4.9/5 If it wasn't for the half-rear end pickups and the fret buzz (which was almost totally eliminated with a piece of sandpaper on the nut) this thing would be the pinnacle of guitars.
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Nov 10, 2004 15:50
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DR-1500 VHF Guitar Wireless System Price paid/new: $79.99/99.99 Year manufactured:2004 Specifications: * Overall System * Operating frequencies VHF band: 169.505, 170.245, 171.905 MHz * Frequency stability: ±0.005% * Modulation mode: FM * Maximum Deviation ±15 kHz * Operating range: 200' minimum * Operating temperature range: 40 degrees F (4 degrees C) to 110 degrees F (43 degrees C) * Frequency response: 80 Hz to 13 kHz Receiver * Receiving system: non-diversity, single-channel dual antenna system * Image rejection: 50dB minimum * Signal-to-noise ratio: 80dB at 10kHz deviation, maximum modulation 15 kHz * Total harmonic distortion: <=1% (10kHz deviation at 1kHz) * Sensitivity: 20dBuV for 60dB S/N (IEC-weighted) * Audio output: 350mV (at 1kHz, ±10kHz deviation, 100k-ohm load) * Output connector: 1/4" phone jack * Power supply: 120VAC 60 Hz, 6 VA; or 12V DC, 200mA, center positive, with external DC supply * Accessories included: AD1202A 120V docking AC adapter; 120V AC IEC cord set * Dimensions: 8-1/4"W x 1-3/4"H x 4-3/4"D * Net weight: 19 oz; without AC adapter, 12 oz UniPak Transmitter * RF power output: 10mW (high) and 2mW (low) typical * Spurious emissions: under federal regulations * Dynamic range: >=90dB, A-weighted * Input connections: Hi-Z, Low-Z, bias * Battery (not included): 9V (NEDA type 1604) alkaline * Current consumption: 30mA typical * Battery life: approximately 15 hours (high) and 20 hours (low) * Dimensions: 2-5/8"W x 4-3/8"H x 1" * Net weight (without battery): 2-3/4 oz I picked it up on a whim because cords were driving me insane(er). I stopped in to my friendly neighborhood Guitar Center and said I wanted a cheap wireless, one that would be ok 10 feet away. I never go far from my bass rig, so range is practically a non-issue. I took it to the studio and put it together. It worked on the first try. It just... worked. The guys at the store were all like wireless.... but it's a friggin bass. These dudes are all worried about clarity and fidelity, but then they go and shred the everloving gently caress out of it anyway. Whatever.Sound: 5/5. I can't hear a difference between this and a cord. Quality: 4/5 a little cheap and plasticky. Strange connector between the instrument cord and the transmitter. Playability: N/A Overall Value: 4.5/5 It's cheap, it works, I needed one. Not much more to say here. Like I said before, it's a little flimsy but what do you expect for less than a c-note? Kinda reminds me of people that give me poo poo over my Kia 'cause it's a little cheap and plasticky. Hey, dipshits.. it's a $9,000 car. It's unwise to compare it to a Mercedes. 1-YEAR UPDATE: Holy poo poo, I've had this thing for over a year. At last weekend's practice I stepped on the cord coming out of the xmitter while standing up with it on my back pocket and no workee. I went to Guitar Center and miracle or miracles, they had a replacement. 16 bucks after tax. I'll likely rebuild the cable with something stronger. This is related to my only complaint, the lack of a tip-ring 1/4" style jack on the xmitter. The goofy 4-pin can't accidentally be pulled out, but you can't find it anywhere either. It's been through a few gigs and countless practices without a whit of trouble. Battery life is less than stellar, maybe 20 hours at most. I'm only complaining because 9-volts are kinda spendy. I still like it and my review still stands unchanged really. Kynetx fucked around with this message at 21:19 on Dec 6, 2005 |
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Nov 19, 2004 18:49
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Title of Equipment Example: Drive 20 watt amp Price Paid / Price New: Example: 50$ Year Manufactured: Example: 2004 Specs Equipment's Specifications: Power cable, headphone jack, 3 EQ knobs, clean and distortion setting. Sound (or applicable): 2/5. Very poor distortion. Very "tinny" sound I suppose is how I'd say it. Just not up to what I like. I like a lot of fuzz and really couldn't achieve that sound. Very good clean channel though. Equipment Quality: 5/5. I haven't had any problems with it falling apart. Usefullness: 3/5. I use it when I play with my friend. I don't really enjoy using it. When at my house, if I want distortion, I just use my 1 watt little travel Marshal. Overall Value: 2/5. It was worth the price, being only 50 bucks. But it is definetly not the best practice amp you can get.
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Nov 24, 2004 19:30
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Title of Equipment: VOX Pathfinder 15 Watt Practice Amp Price Paid / Price New: $70 / $110 Year Manufactured: not sure... probably 2000ish Specs Equipment's Specifications: 15 Watt Solid State practice Amp. Built in Tremolo. Mine has no reverb, but the current models come with built in reverb. Sound (or applicable): 4/5. Sounds absolutely wonderful compared to my Ibanez practice amp. Best suited for clean sounds. There is no distortion channel on the amp, but playing with the gain settings can get a distorted sound. The distorted sound is just fine coming from my Ibanez Fuzz pedal, so I never have to bother with that. The distorted sound the amp itself can make is so-so. Equipment Quality: 5/5. Bought at Daddy's Junky Music warehouse sale because my Ibanez amp was a piece of junk and worked when it felt like it. This has never been problematic, and it's a floor model amp. Usefullness: 4/5. It's a great little practice amp that gets plenty loud. Loud enough to bother my parents at least. I usually play in the middle of the night, so I either don't plug it in or use my v-amp2 for practicing. Overall Value: 4/5. Very happy with the purchase. When it comes time for me to buy another amplifier, I'll be looking at VOX first because this amp pleases me.
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Nov 25, 2004 05:06
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Title of Instrument: Godin LG Price Paid / Price New: $350/$500 Year Manufactured: Example: 2003 Specs: Solid Mahogany body Solid Mahogany bolt-on Neck with Rosewood fingerboard Godin Tuners String through body design Tune-o-matic bridge 24-frets Seymour Duncan P-90 pickups High gloss gold paint job Sound: 4.5/5 It has an incredibly versitile sound. I can play everything from classic rock to jazz (This requires changes of string gauge of course). The P-90 pickups provide crisp clean tones and if distortion is applied, is best used in small quantities. It does not fit the bill very well as far as heavy distortion goes. Instrument Quality: 4.5/5 I'm being pretty darn nit-picky on this one. My only complaint about this very solid instrument is in the restringing process. Trying to stick a '9 through the back is tricky as hell. Don't be in a hurry and you're okay though. Other than that, this is a very solid, stable instrument that can take a beating. Playbility: 4/5 It has the "sticky" mahogany neck which takes a little getting used to if you've never played on one before. The frets are nicely shaped though and the low setup of the bridge and pickups makes for a very comfortable right hand position. Fingerpicking feels very natural. Overall Value: 5/5 I picked this up used without a scratch on it and it had already been setup. Godin retains their reputation for making some of the "best in class" guitars and this one is no exception. I would definetly have paid full price for it and doubt that I will purchase another solid body electric anytime in the near future.
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Dec 5, 2004 03:43
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Presonus TubePre Preamp Price Paid / Price New: $99 Year Manufactured: 2004 Specs This is a small single channel preamp with a VU meter. It can be used with a microphone or an instrument. It has one XLR input, one 1/4" input, one XLR output, and one unballanced 1/4" output. On the front pannel it has: Phantom Power Switch (+48v) (For powering condensor mics) Phase Reverse Switch (Inverting the polarity of the XLR connector) Drive Control (0 to 20 db) -20db Pad Gain Control (0 to 40db) 80khz filter and the VU Meter Sound (or applicable): 4/5. - I bought this preamp in order to record only acoustic tracks, bass, and vocals (if needed). I have used it on acoustic and bass, and it has made it sound amazing. When I turn the drive and gain up, I do get some hissing, but I think that's from my cheap SBLive! card. I will come edit this once I get a new card. This has helped my acoustic recording, and I love it. I highly suggest it to anyone. Equipment Quality: 5/5 - Highly durable. Possible to put into a rack, strong, solid, and I'm sure it can withstand a little beating. Usefullness: 5/5 - If you want to record, you must have a preamp! It's as simple as that. Overall Value: 4/5 - The most bang for your buck, right here. It's super cheap and does the job. It does the job well, in fact. I can't really add anything except for the fact that I love it.
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Dec 5, 2004 16:41
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