This conversation was originally posted to my Twitter feed.
Good morning, pedal fans. Let’s do another #CoffeeAndKlon. I haven’t done one of these in ages.
Continue reading “#CoffeeAndKlon 28: Three Stores, Three Stories”New Arrivals: September 2020
I think this month is mostly going to be defined by what doesn’t arrive.
- I’ve cancelled the PRS S2 McCarty 594 SC that I ordered back in January. It’s probably not going to arrive until 2021 now, and I can’t be confident that I’ll have the money to pay for it when it does finally turn up.
- After months of insisting that it would ship on schedule, Neural DSP has finally admitted that the Quad Cortex is going to be delayed after all. Given the current state of the world, it’s not a surprise. Delivery dates have slipped twice in the last two weeks alone. If this arrives for Christmas, it’ll be quite an achievement.
It’s a good job really, because the car needs some repairs. Whether or not those parts arrive this month or not remains to be seen. [They did not – Ed.] Right now, it’s a really bad time to be repairing or replacing pretty much anything.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: September 2020”First Impressions: Squier Esquire in Butterscotch Blonde
Last week of August 2020, I bought myself one of Squier’s limited-run Esquire guitars (think single-pickup Telecaster), and I’ve been having a right blast with it.
It might be a cheap and cheerful guitar, but it’ll comfortably hang with anything out of the Fender USA factory line-up.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Squier Esquire in Butterscotch Blonde”New Arrivals: August 2020
Going into August, it was shaping up to be another quiet month for new (to me) gear.
While the second hand market on eBay UK has picked up (a bit) in the last couple of weeks, I’m just not willing to pay what’s being asked. There’s a growing trend of sellers listing second hand gear for more than it originally sold for brand new. I’m still seeing buyers piling onto the same items that I’m interested in, too.
Did I get anything at all? Read on to find out.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: August 2020”The Green Strat Is Back
My green Strat is back from the shop. It’s been in for some more mods. What have I had done to it this time, and am I happy with the results of the upgrades I asked for?
Continue reading “The Green Strat Is Back”Followup: D’Addario XT Strings
At the start of the month, I tried D’Addario XT strings for the first time. With the end of the month almost here, I thought I’d write a quick follow-up about how I’m getting on with them.
They’re coming off both guitars, just as soon as I’ve got replacement strings.
Continue reading “Followup: D’Addario XT Strings”Choosing A Gibson Les Paul
Yes, Gibson the company has a knack for bringing bad publicity on itself (to put it mildly). If you want to boycott them, it doesn’t mean you can’t have a Les Paul. There’s still plenty of great second hand Les Pauls out there to choose from.
Either way, there’s a lot more to buying a Les Paul than simply clicking ‘Buy Now’ on an online store, or buying one from your friendly local guitar store. And, in my experience, the same advice applies to Les Paul-like guitars made by other companies too.
Continue reading “Choosing A Gibson Les Paul”First Impressions: Kinman Impersonator 54 Noiseless Pickups For Stratocaster
Back in November 2019, I picked up a set of Kinman pickups from Knighton Music Centre. I’d taken my wife there so that she could look at their impressive range of acoustic guitars, and while I was there, I spotted a promo poster for Kinman pickups.
I didn’t even know you could get these in the UK.
I bought a set, brought them home with me … and then they sat on the shelf here for several months. I’ve finally had them put into my Strat. What do I think of them? Read on to find out.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Kinman Impersonator 54 Noiseless Pickups For Stratocaster”#HomeTone Thoughts Before Winter NAMM 2020
Winter NAMM is almost here. It’s one of the most high-profile guitars & gear trade shows in the world, and traditionally, many manufacturers use it to announce or launch their major new products of the year.
YouTube is going to be dominated by NAMM show floor coverage for the next few weeks. If you want to see everything that will be displayed at the show, subscribe to one of the YouTube channels I recently recommended.
From a #HomeTone perspective, what are the gaps in the market that I’m hoping to see filled by new products?
Continue reading “#HomeTone Thoughts Before Winter NAMM 2020”2019 Review: Brexit And Buying Gear
With the UK about to leave the European Union, we need to talk about Brexit: the impact it has already had on guitars and gear, and what impact it might have going forward.
This post is all about us here in Britain, and the British guitar gear market.
Continue reading “2019 Review: Brexit And Buying Gear”