Author: Stuart

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First Impressions: Marshall Vintage Reissue Drive Pedals

Now that I’ve spent a little bit of time with the new reissues of Marshall’s legendary drive pedals, I think it’s worth talking about them collectively.

You can read my individual First Impressions of each pedal here:

Read on for my First Impressions of the vintage reissue drive pedals.

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First Impressions: Marshall Bluesbreaker Vintage Reissue Overdrive Pedal

At the start of March 2023, I picked up all four of Marshall’s vintage reissue drive pedals. I’ve already posted my First Impressions on the ShredMaster and DriveMaster pedals.

Last, but not least, it’s time to explore the most legendary of them all: the Bluesbreaker. Here are my First Impressions.

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First Impressions: Marshall DriveMaster Distortion Pedal

At the start of March 2023, I picked up all four of Marshall’s vintage reissue drive pedals, and I’m gradually working my way through each of them.

The DriveMaster is (basically) Marshall’s legendary The Guv’nor pedal, just in the same housing that they used for the Bluesbreaker and ShredMaster pedals.

And if you love the sound of Marshall amps, you’re going to want one for yourself. It’s that good. That’s what I think, anyway. Read on for a bit more detail in my First Impressions.

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First Impressions: Marshall ShredMaster Distortion Pedal

At the start of March 2023, I picked up all four of Marshall’s vintage reissue drive pedals. The original pedals are all legendary pedals, much revered in the guitar pedal community. Alas, that means that the original pedals also come with second-hand prices to match.

These re-issues are bringing these classic circuits back within reach of regular guitarists (just about …).

Regular readers might be wondering why I bothered with the ShredMaster at all, and why I’m posting about this pedal first. There’s a good reason for that. Read on for my First Impressions.

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Studio Diary #37: Can I Use The Axe-FX 3 As A Power Amp For My Synergy Rig?

I’ve had a lot of success – and a lot of joy – using my Axe-FX 3 to record guitar pedal audio demos. Heck, it sounds so good, it’s my go-to pedal platform all the time now.

Can I do the same with my Synergy rig? Instead of running my Synergy modules through the SYN-5050 power amp + attenuator, can I run them straight into the Axe-FX 3 instead? Can the Axe-FX 3 add a bit of that power amp tonal magic?

I’m going to experiment, and find out.

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#CoffeeAndKlon 34: Is The PRS Horsemeat A Klon-Killer?

#CoffeeAndKlon is my (irregular!) Sunday morning magazine series, where I talk about whatever’s on my mind right now. There’s always coffee, and there’s normally chat about the Klon and its many competitors.

Back at the end of September, PRS announced that they were getting into the pedal business. There were three pedals launched, and amongst them was a drive pedal that they called ‘Horsemeat’ … because it’s a Klon-killer.

But is it really? Read on to find out what I think …

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