Independent music gear coverage
This one is a little different for Quest for Gear. As a side project, I do some ghost hunting. That means that alongside the guitars, pedals, microphones and recording equipment around here, there is also a mysterious old black bag filled with the equipment…
Read full postSteve Stevens is best known for making electric guitars sound enormous next to Billy Idol. So naturally his new signature guitar is a nylon-string Godin. The Godin ACS Nylon Steve Stevens Signature 25th Anniversary celebrates more than 25 years of…
Read full postIbanez has built an extremely serious seven-string Iceman for guitarist Wes Hauch. It is also priced at essentially ten thousand US dollars. The new Ibanez ICWH727 Wes Hauch Signature Iceman is a Japanese Custom Shop instrument with a 27-inch scale, seven…
Read full postThe affordable guitar market continues to become an increasingly uncomfortable place for companies selling fairly ordinary guitars for considerably more money. Washburn's new Sonamaster Elite models arrive at $399 US with roasted maple necks, figured tops…
Read full postExpression pedals are usually among the least exciting things on a pedalboard. You rock your foot forward. Something changes. Everybody goes home. Walrus Audio has apparently decided that is no longer complicated enough. The new Canvas Expression is a $299.99…
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Quest for Gear just crossed 3,500 YouTube subscribers. Actually, as of this morning, the number sitting in the dashboard is 3,501. That means more than 3,500 people have voluntarily decided that what they need in their lives is more guitar gear, questionable…
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Kemper has released PROFILER OS 14.2.1, and although the version number sounds like routine maintenance, there are several useful additions hiding inside it. The update adds compressor sidechain support, new stereo controls for several modulation effects…
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Line 6 has quietly made one of the most important parts of the new Helix Stadium ecosystem available to anybody with a DAW. Helix Stadium Native is now available as a software plugin for macOS and Windows, and unlike many flagship modeling packages, there is…
Read full postDOD has released an analog delay that seems slightly unhappy about being used as a normal analog delay. The new DOD DRAG starts with a genuine bucket-brigade delay engine offering up to 750 milliseconds of delay, then adds performance controls designed to…
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There is inexpensive, and then there is the point where the specification sheet makes you wonder how the numbers work. Harley Benton has introduced the SC-Special Hybrid, a new single-cut guitar combining a P-90 neck pickup, humbucker bridge pickup, coil…
Read full postThe line separating “budget modeler” from “serious professional modeler” is becoming increasingly difficult to locate. The NUX MG-50Li is now appearing at major US retailers at $549, and the feature list reads like NUX has been studying the much more…
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Practice amps are getting dangerously close to becoming complete guitar rigs. Hotone has officially released the Pulze Jr., a compact $299.99 US modeling amplifier that looks less like a stripped-down beginner amp and more like somebody tried to squeeze an…
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