Self-described "Bass-Head" Owen O'Malley gives the David Eden WXT-260 the thrice-over in the Gearwire Studio. This amp weighs less than four pounds, yet still pumps out an amazing 260 watts, and according to Owen, "is one of the warmest solid-state heads" around. Like they say: it takes one to know one.  

Recreating the master crafted sampling abilities of MSTRKRFT, Bill Holland shows how hardware and software can get along and produce better results combined than separate. Mr. Holland uses Apple Logic and its EXS-24 sampler to bring in sounds from the TR-707 in many velocities and accent variations.  

How much difference can a four-dollar guitar pick make to your tone? J. Irving-Giles pits the V-Pick "Nightglow" Screamer plectrum-a-plectrum against a good old, mild-mannered Fender Standard Heavy. After watching the video, we think you'll agree: the V-Pick "Nightglow" Screamer is a bright idea, indeed! Mwah hah hah!  

Owen O'Malley gives his take on the Crate V50-112, and it's basically the same take Axe's marketing department would come up with. Crate V50-112: How Dirty Amps Get Clean!  

Nick Krill, of The Spinto Band, talks about his DiPinto Belvedere guitar. Made in Philadelphia, DiPinto combines the low cost of overseas production with the benefits of having the designer near at hand.  

Glenn Weyant's SonicAnta project required some creative MacGuyver-ing of consumer audio products. In order to amplify objects as various as barbed wire, discarded water cans and the border wall separating the U.S from Mexico, Glenn employed some Schaller Oyster piezo transducer pickups.  

Falling somewhere between Garageband and Logic in the complexity continuum, MuTools Mu.Lab is a DAW that's user-friendly without being condescending. Amongst other things, version 2 features a new selection of included virtual instruments and optimized VST support.  

You wouldn't think anyone would need more than one signature instrument, until you see how tall Billy Sheehan is: 7'6". He actually needs to rest one bass on top of the other in order to play it comfortably! "But doesn't he just use a shoulder strap and, also, aren't you completely fabricating his height?" you ask me, to which I respond, "shut up!"  

The digital craze -- and the 80s in general -- made all of us do some crazy things. Some people pawned off their analog synths. This only served to benefit Greg Curvey, who went on a ten year journey to find this used Arp Odyssey while his son Telemachus and wife Penelope dealt with a group of unruly suitors.  

Solid State Logic has a free Halloween themed plugin for download on their website. It's like trick-or-treating at those houses where nobody would be home, but there was still candy in a bowl on the stoop.  

With a look and a name that would have you believe otherwise, the U.S. Masters Magnus Performer 5-string bass is actually relatively affordable, considering its hand-crafted appointments and domestic production origin. You could even say it's a production bass that's wearing a custom-instrument costume. Happy Halloween!  

Watagwan, mon? G-Sonique released Dubmaster -- Liquid Delay. But this begs the question . . . what other states of matter does delay come in. Is regular delay solid or gas? Who knows?  

Hello, costumed revelers. Gibson would like to take this opportunity to remind you all that, even though we've got a few hours of October left, the Gibson Longhorn Double-Cutaway Guitar Of The Month for November 2008 is here today. Those porches with the take-a-penny bowls just became epic tests of will.  

Oh, baby
I dedicate this demo to all the pretty bass distortion pedals (to all the pretty bass distortion pedals)
And the ugly bass distortion pedals, too

 

Oftentimes in the shadow of the analog TR-909, the Roland TR-707 is coming back in such a big way, you might as well just imagine I'm typing this in all caps and ending each sentence with an excessive amount of exclamation points. Bill Holland reports live from 1985.  

Featuring 6-ins, 6-outs, MIDI-connectivity and more, the Infrasonic Windy6 Firewire interface is a real price-performance champ. Too bad it only operates in the Infrasonic audio range. . . better start penning music for dogs and bats.  

Big Fish Audio presents Bunker 8 102 Below, the follow up to 101 Below. How Below can they go? I imagine not much further, as I'm not much of a card at counting.  

OH GOD!!!! THE EIGHT-LEGGED CARL MARTIN CLASSIC OPTO-COMPRESSOR IS TERRIFYING NEW YORK!!! IT'S HIDEOUS!!!! IT'S HUGE!!! IT'S AN ABOMINATION OF NATURE!!!! LOOK, IT JUST THREW THAT CAR INTO A STOREFRONT AND THE WHOLE BUILDING JUST BURST INTO FL-

Oh wait, I'm thinking of the octo-compressor. This is a stompbox-style optical compressor.  

With the Johnson Guitars Adrenaline, you can brag to your friends that the total length of your Johnson is 40" long. The problem is that with such a beautiful finish and its 24-fret maple neck, everyone will want to play around with it.  

If you'd have decided to invest in a relatively affordable AXL Faultline Bass Head instead of some budget brand, people would have actually heard that sweet, Jaco-inspired lick you somehow fit into that Cars cover. Instead, you're spending your time explaining that no, you're not just the backup dancer for this bar band.  

Karma-Lab has just released KARMA M3 software, which is basically like steroids for your M3. If you think that the M3 XPanded operating system was strong, wait until you try out KARMA M3. Bullies will never kick sand in your face again.  

Who says House Music is dead? No one I've heard, actually, so the timing couldn't be better for Sample Magic Funky House Grooves 2, sequel to the wildly successful loop collection based on the wildly successful mainstreaming of the wildly successful underground Chicago House club scene.  

OH, NO! NOT THE BEES! NOT THE BEES! AAAAAHHHHH! OH, THEY'RE IN MY EYES! MY EYES! AAAAHHHHH! AAAAAGGHHH!  

Sugar Bytes releases CONSEQUENCE, a chord synquencer, but after the hallucinations I got from listening to Effectrix, I'm not sure I trust their software anymore. It'll make your mind play tricks on you.  

The new Yamaha Pocketrak CX helps cut down on battery waste with an ultra-efficient "Eneloop" rechargeable energy cell, which provides up to 20 hours of linear PCM recording, or 50 hours of MP3 recording. Another environmentally friendly feature: it only records %80 post-consumer recycled song ideas.  

Owen O'Malley lends his vocal talents to the Shure SM7B, a microphone that is very widely used by radio DJs and TV broadcasters. What's that mean for you? You're in the no spin zone! Welcome to the O'Reilly factor.  

Do you hear the wind a-howlin'? Why, that's not wind at all, but the concussive sonic might of the new Yamaha MSR250 Powered Speakers and their surprisingly powerful ten-inch woofers! Not to mention the titanium tweeter! Tweeters and woofers! It's an acoustical menagerie of might!  

Greg Curvey of the Luck of Eden Hall shows us the Casiotone MT-30. To some, this thing is easily written off as just a toy, but to others like Greg, it's a toy with some pretty interesting sounds in it, innit?  

Bill Holland shows off the very budget-friendly Lexicon Lambda USB and MIDI interface, showing off his features before plugging in. We hear both voice and eight-string bass through the Lambda, although with Bill's low register (reminiscent of a young Paul Robeson) and his mastery of cyclical breathing, you won't know which is which!  

Stetsbar announces the release of the Pro II, one of the only tremolo / vibrato systems I've seen without a hidden agenda to make you go absolutely nuts. It treats all your strings like individuals so that if one breaks, the others don't go out of tune in mourning.