Tone. At Home.
We live in a golden age for guitars and gear, and I’m on a mission to explore as much as it as possible.
September has been another quiet month for new arrivals – but not quite as quiet as August was! A couple of interesting (to me) pieces came available at prices that suited me.
What did I get? Read on to find out …
Continue reading “New Arrivals: September 2021”For the first time (that I can remember) since I started this blog, there have been no new arrivals this month.
Last month, I got my bucket-list amp: the Fender 57 Custom Deluxe, and I’ve been enjoying it so much I just haven’t been bidding on any second-hand items that have come up for sale.
Along with that, I’m back working for myself once again. I need to get some invoices raised and paid before I can afford to pay myself any wages, and that’s not going to happen until September.
This month has been a very special month. A couple of purchases I’ve been working towards unexpectedly all came together at the same time. And then I learned that you really do need to be careful what you wish for!
The second-hand market remains pretty flat. I did miss out on one of my bucket-list pedals though. It’s going to take me a while before I stop kicking myself over that one. I managed to pickup another great BJFe-designed pedal instead, so it wasn’t all bad 🙂
Continue reading “New Arrivals: July 2021”I’m still recovering from surgery in April, which really limited how much time I could spend with my guitar this month. On top of that, the medical bills came due.
And then I ended up having a second (completely unrelated and unplanned) procedure this month too. I’m still recovering from that at the time of writing.
But I did get about a week in between all of this to try something new (to me).
Continue reading “New Arrivals: June 2021”Regular readers are probably bored with me talking about the state of the second hand market here, so I’ll keep that brief. Anecdotally, there still isn’t a lot of second hand gear turning up, and (again anecdotally) it’s becoming more and more common for sellers to list second-hand guitars at above-retail prices. eBay has really cut back on its offers this month too, which probably isn’t helping the situation.
This month, though, there has been a number of interesting (to me) items crop up. Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to even think about bidding on them because I’ve been into hospital for an operation, and it’ll be July before I’m fully recovered and able to lift amps and guitars again.
I was able to pick up a couple of pedals off my wish list, thankfully. And this month saw the release of a new guitar that’s completely blown me away. Read on to learn more!
Continue reading “New Arrivals: May 2021”The big news this month (here in the UK) is that non-essential retail has been allowed to re-open. We’re coming out of lockdown, and guitar shops can open their doors to visitors once again. It’s too soon to travel the length and breadth of the country to hunt for hidden gems gathering dust on a wall somewhere, but we’re getting closer to that day.
In the meantime … this month, I’ve managed to pick up a couple of curious pieces to try. They’re a bit left-field, and (he says, having not tried them at the time of writing) probably not for everyone.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: April 2021”It’s been a very quiet month for new arrivals. This time, it’s mostly down to me.
(The second hand market here is still a mess, but that’s a topic that probably deserves its own blog post …)
I’ve been enjoying both the Mad Professor Sweet Honey Custom and Sweet Honey Deluxe Overdrives so much, I’ve just not been very curious about the pedals that have been cropping up on the second-hand market this month.
But, you know me: I’m always on the lookout for tweed-tone pedals, and this month, I picked up a couple that are pretty rare in their own ways.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: March 2021”It’s been a quiet month.
The second hand market … is a bit weird right now. It’s become all-too common for asking prices to be close to (or even above!) the original retail price. It isn’t just rare or vintage gear that’s seeing high prices, either.
Instead, I’ve focused on trying to make the most of what I’ve already got – especially my Telecasters. I think it’s been a month well spent.
Continue reading “New Arrivals – February 2021”It feels weird to write ‘2021’. While it always takes a bit of time to get used to writing down the new year each time around, this year it just feels plain weird. 2020 was one of the hardest years many of us have had to face, and it seemed to go on forever. [So far, 2021 is shaping up to simply be Season 2 of 2020 – Ed]
This month, I’ve been focusing on things that will help me hit my 2021 New Year Resolutions. Oh, and I found another tweed-tone pedal too.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: January 2021”I had a plan for December: keep an eye out for outright bargains or ultra-rare pedals on the second-hand market, and spend more time enjoying what arrived last month.
Then, when writing up my Annual Review blog posts, that all changed. Looking back over the last 12 months made me realise that there was an obvious problem, and I needed to sort it out. So, I have.
I hope you had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year. We filled our house with music, and it’s what gets us through these historic times.
Continue reading “New Arrivals: December 2020”