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25 May

Zoom A3 Acoustic Guitar Preamp & Effects

Dynamic Music | (02) 9939 1299 | www.dynamicmusic.com.au | RRP: $399

Zoom have been giving us great quality guitar effects for some time now. They have not missed out on releasing the demand for good quality modelling of amps and effects in their multi-effects pedals and have delivered an ever growing and developing range of pedals to meet the needs of all guitarists and bass players. And that is where Zoom stands out from any other effects pedal manufacturers; they don’t leave anyone out, including acoustic guitar players. The A3 from Zoom is the latest in their range of acoustic guitar modelling in a pedal. Just because you choose to play an acoustic shouldn’t mean you miss out on the variety in tone that electric guitar players are privy to.

25 May

9 May

Catalinbread Sabbra Cadabra

Gladesville Guitar Factory | (02) 9817 2173 | www.guitarfactory.net | RRP: $259

Following their recent tour here in Australia, there has been a lot of press surrounding Black Sabbath. There seems to be a lot of guitarists looking around again for some way to capture ‘that’ sound that Tony Iommi made so famous. You could go a long way with buying different guitars, a host of various pedals and even a Laney amp or two in order to achieve this, and still fall short of the mark. There are always so many uncertainties when trying to piece together a certain sound from a range of devices, so that is why it is best left to the experts. In this case, those experts are the team at Catalinbread who have come up with the Sabbra Cadabra pedal. It may be a bit of a mouthful to pronounce, but it certainly delivers the goods in Sabbath tone in just about any setup.

9 May

26 Apr

Klon KTR Overdrive

Gladesville Guitar Factory | (02) 9817 2173 | www.guitarfactory.net | RRP: $469

In this line of work, from time to time you come across an instrument that amuses you. Klon’s KTR Overdrive is the successor to their famed Centaur Professional Overdrive; a pedal that amassed such critical acclaim, that the good folk over at Klon felt it was necessary to reference it in the next incarnation of the unit. The topside of this unit doesn’t have any labels or instructions. It simply reads “Kindly remember: the ridiculous hype that offends so many is not of my making.” A clever nod to the dizzying heights, and inevitable lows that come with going through the hype cycle, but enough about the gags, there’s a pedal here to review!

26 Apr

13 Apr

Carl Martin Andy Timmons Signature Compressor Limiter

Innovative Music | (03) 9540 0658 | www.innovativemusic.com.au | RRP: $549

Carl Martin continues to give us some great pedal designs that are well thought out and offer tonal options and audio solutions that guitarists actually want. That’s why he was happy to seek suggestions from Andy Timmons in the newly designed format of the ever-popular Compressor/Limiter pedal.

13 Apr

24 Mar

TC Electronic Spectracomp

Amber Technology | 1800 251 367 | www.ambertech.com.au | RRP: $229

Compression is one of those effects that you don’t miss until you have to live without it. Or, to flip the equation a little bit, one of those effects that you don’t realise you need until you try it. On paper, the role of a compressor is clear: it lowers the volume of loud sounds and raises the volume of quiet ones. This keeps everything in a nice musical range, helping you to fill out a mix and making sure your quiet notes aren’t too quiet.

24 Mar

21 Mar

Mooer Mooergan Organ Simulator Pedal

Jade Australia | 1800 144 120 | www.musocity.com.au | RRP: $169.95

The first time I came across an organ simulator pedal, I was seriously taken aback by just how cool and how clever of a concept it was. Over the last couple of years, there have been a number of variations pop up from a couple of manufacturers. While they’ve been great, they’ve all been a little on the expensive side. Now those guys at Mooer have gone full steam ahead to create a pedal of such ilk that isn’t about to empty your back account. Introducing Mooer’s latest release, the Mooergan organ simulator pedal.

21 Mar

16 Mar

Maniac Music Factory Henretta Purple Haze Octave Fuzz

Maniac Music Factory | 0434 254 116 | www.maniacmusicfactory.com | RRP: $279

Henretta Engineering made quite a splash onto the guitar effects scene a few years back when they released a range of small box pedals (as in Post It Note size small) with just a switch on top and some internal trimmers. Designed to essentially sound good straight up and not occupy too much pedalboard real estate, they were an interesting concept that really got a lot of people thinking. Now teaming up with the people from Maniac Music Factory, they’ve combined two of their previous designs into one for an octave fuzz named after a classic Hendrix tune.

16 Mar

9 Mar

Taurus Amplification White Lines Zebu Reverb-Delay Pedal

Maniac Music Factory | 0434 254 116 | www.maniacmusicfactory.com | RRP: $299.00

I will admit, until this week I had not come across any pedals from Taurus Amplification, let alone the White Lines series of very cool effects. So, it was a treat to be able to have a look into the Zebu MK2 Reverb-Delay pedal that promised a range of clever features and a tone that was a worthy addition to any guitar rig. After all, it is hard to nd a good reverb pedal these days, and one that comes with a delay included is a real find. So, it looks like this could be a gem of a pedal when used in appropriate levels and not over saturated as can often end up happening.

9 Mar

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