Musikmesse 2011: Orange Amps bring you the Dark Terror
April 6, 2011
Dark forces have been stirring at Orange Amps where mysterious alchemy has created the beast to be unleashed. Striding out of the shadows is the new Dark Terror, guitars amps will never be the same again!
Menacingly small, easily recognisable, this aggressive little amp comes with a mind blowing sound which combines the shape control of the Thunder series with the weight and size of the monster Terror family. This Frankenstein like amp has creepy amounts of gain on tap with disturbingly pleasurable responsiveness. It is uncompromisingly brutal, doubtless unhinged, even ferocious!
The Dark Terror rises from the ethereal depths to fulfill the every desire of the Heavy Metal and Rock guitar players. With its characteristic fearless Orange Amp looks, heavy duty construction and portability, guitar players everywhere will quickly become attuned to this scary dark force of nature.
The Dark Terror is highest gain Terror amp ever and comes with:-
New High Gain Preamp 3 x ECC83/12AX7
Valve Driven FX Loop
1 x ECC81/12AT7
Four Stages of Gain
15 Watts Class A, Switchable to 7 Watts
Weighs in at only 7kg/15lbs
A Gig Bag
The Dark Terror is available from the end on May 2011 and priced at £399 (inc. VAT). Hear its distinctive Orange Amp sound and you will feel this mysteriously attractive force pulling you into the shadow of the Dark Terror. It’s everything you want from a Black Orange Amp. Prepare to ride the Dark Terror storm.
Musikmesse 2011: New Yamaha Pacifica range video from gear4music
April 6, 2011
via gear4music.com
When Yamaha introduced the first Pacifica models in 1994 it brought high quality, high performance no-compromise instruments within reach of many thousands of discerning guitarists on a budget. These highly affordable instruments were characterised by high-quality hardware and a superb solid wood body.
Since that time Yamaha has gone on to introduce a wide range of Pacifica variations many of which have since received international awards and as a result of this relentless pursuit of quality the Pacifica is one of the world’s most popular guitar brands.
The Pacifica story continues to evolve and innovate with the introduction of four new models at this years’ Frankfurt Musikmesse – The Pacifica 611HFM, 510V, 311H and 120H.
All models started life in Yamaha’s famed LA custom shop and take the Pacifica concept to the next stage since they offer new configurations of hardware and pickup design to stay in tune with new market and music developments.
The new Pacifica 311H looks great and offers superb feel and versatility and exudes the innovations and quality that have made Yamaha’s LA custom shops instruments so revered.
The 311 features custom-wound pickups and the highest quality hardware complete with coil tap all matched with a solid tonewood construction that delivers great musical and tonal variation and uncompromising performance. This model is available in Black, Vintage White, Red Metallic and Yellow Natural Satin.
The no-frills, no-compromise Pacifica 510V really means business, it features professional hardware, an exclusive single Seymour Duncan TBPR-1b pickup, tinted maple neck and rosewood fingerboard. Available in Black, Candy Apple Red and old Violin Sunburst this model sounds as good as it looks.
The new 611HFM model is the embodiment of the Pacifica concept of versatility, performance and individuality and stays true to the LA custom-shop guitar vision. A superb flamed maple and Alder body with a vintage tinted maple neck with models boasts Seymour Duncan SP90 – 1n TB-14 pickups and coil tap tone pot.
The new range is completed with the Pacifica 120H which offers a Maple neck, rosewood fingerboard and Alder body. High performance Neck and Bridge Humbuckers complete this high performance yet highly affordable package.
Musikmesse 2011: Blackstar revamp their highly popular HT-5 Amp range
April 6, 2011
The Blackstar HT-5 flew off the shelves when it was launched a few years ago. I myself came close to buying one and I have recommended the amp to many students of mine. It offered a great sounding amp for very little money appealing to players of all levels.
Now Blackstar have relaunched the range with some enhancements, notable of which is the addition of digital reverb! :
When the original HT-5 was launched in 2008 it quickly became on of the most successful studio and practice amps ever designed.
Packing all the great tone and innovative features of the award-winning HT valve pedals in a two-channel, footswitchable valve amp format with a unique push-pull power amp design it was an instant classic.
Due to popular demand 2011 sees this groundbreaking amp relaunched and improved with a whole host of new features:
* Digital stereo reverb as found on the HT Venue Series and HT-1 adding a rich depth to any playing style (only on ‘R’ models)
* Dedicated Tone control on the Clean Channel providing even greater tonal flexibility over the HT-5′s shimmering cleans
* 12″ Blackbird 50 Watt speaker, custom designed by Blackstar
* State-of-the-art enhanced speaker emulated output for perfectly capturing valve tone to tape or disk
* Speaker emulated output can now be used at the same time as the internal speaker/extension cab, providing headphone-free monitoring or the choice to blend a mic’d speaker and emulated signal together for unrivalled usability when recording at home or in the studio
* Stero MP3/Line input perfect for practice
* Please note that the HT-112 will be fitted with the new Blackbird 50 speaker from April production to match the new HT-5R
HT-5C Combo
* Innovative 5 Watt valve combo
* 1xECC83 and 1x12BH7
* Unique push-pull power amp design
* Award-winning HT Pedal preamp
* Two footswitchable channels
* 12″ Blackbird 50 custom speaker
* Enhanced tone controls
* Patent-applied-for Infinite Shape Feature (ISF)
* Fully equipped for studio or practice
* Speaker emulated output with 1×12 or 4×12 voicing
* Effects loop with effects level switch
* Footswitch included
* Cool vintage styling
HT-5R Combo
* Innovative 5 Watt valve combo
* 1xECC83 and 1x12BH7
* Unique push-pull power amp design
* Award-winning HT Pedal preamp
* Two footswitchable channels
* 12″ Blackbird 50 custom speaker
* Enhanced tone controls
* Patent-applied-for Infinite Shape Feature (ISF)
* Digital stereo reverb
* Fully equipped for studio or practice
* Speaker emulated output with 1×12 or 4×12 voicing
* Effects loop with effects level switch
* Footswitch included
* Cool vintage styling
HT-5RH Head
* Innovative 5 Watt valve combo
* 1xECC83 and 1x12BH7
* Unique push-pull power amp design
* Award-winning HT Pedal preamp
* Two footswitchable channels
* Enhanced tone controls
* Patent-applied-for Infinite Shape Feature (ISF)
* Digital stereo reverb
* Fully equipped for studio or practice
* Speaker emulated output with 1×12 or 4×12 voicing
* Effects loop with effects level switch
* Footswitch included
* Cool vintage styling
GEAR: Tired of conventional guitar design? check out KOZM Guitars
February 28, 2011
The electric guitar design hasn’t changed too much over the decades, we guitarists can be a conservative bunch 
But if you’re tired of the usual ‘flat’ design of the electric guitar then check out these modern designs from KOZM Guitars
Designed and built by Jeff Kosmoski, KOZM Guitars are built using Digital lutherie which uses CAD/CAM technology to design and fabricate a more modern-looking, organic guitar.
Three models are currently available, the Arched Wave AW-5, Back Bender BB-2 and Mutated Tele MT-2:
GEAR: Another Guthrie Govan signature Suhr!
February 22, 2011
Spotted this on the Suhr forum:
The story behind this new and latest Guthrie Signature is that during our clinic tours when Guthrie gets to try out and demo lots of different Suhr guitars, he would always comment about how nice certain guitars are and I noticed a pattern. He always seemed to like either Custom guitars with Basswood/Maple body with Maple neck or the Pro Series S4. He wouldn’t know what woods these guitars had as he’d just pick ‘em up and play ‘em but I noticed that this combination would always float his boat. Of course, this wood combination is also what John refers to as the “Holy Grail”.
He also loved virtually every Antique guitar he’d get his hands on and commented about how they really felt and sounded like good old vintage guitars but with much better playability. This is all something I’ve noticed over the past couple of years doing clinics with him. Another comment he had made about his two Mahogany Signature guitars (as well as the Mahogany body/neck Standard he got back in ’05) is that the necks weren’t quite as stable as the Maple neck guitars he had. He understood that Mahogany is just not as dense and stable as Maple and just accepted that he’d have to make truss rod adjustments whenever he ended up in a new city with a sudden change in climate conditions.
So with these things in mind, I proposed the specs of this guitar to him and he was immediately intrigued. This guitar just sounds HUGE with this wood combination, the thin and aged nitro-cellulose lacquer finish by J Black, the Roasted Maple neck, and the 510 bridge 2-post with the vintage-style bent saddles. Everyone here was struck by how great it sounded acoustically. Again, it’s another example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. Amazing guitar. Guthrie is going to love this one and it will be the perfect complement to his other Mahogany Signature guitars.
And here it is!
NAMM: Guthrie Govan and Ron Thal Jam!
January 19, 2011
I absolutely love this video.
Not for the fact you have unbelievable playing but because both of these true modern day virtuosos are having so much fun!
NAMM: Guthrie Govan, Bryan Beller and Marco Minnemann Anaheim Bass Bash (UPDATED)
January 18, 2011
Yay!
Finally some footage is emerging from the reportedly amazing gig by Guthrie Govan, Bryan Beller and Macro Minnemann at the Anaheim Bass Bash:
