Tone. At Home.
“The Hermit’s Cave” is my little home recording studio. This is a general catch-all tag for anything about me and my gear.
I recently picked up Tone City’s Bad Horse off the second-hand market.
Is this the budget-friendly Klon klone for the masses, or (like the EHX Soul Food) is it going to be a case of you really do get what you pay for. Read on to find out.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Tone City Bad Horse Overdrive Pedal”For the last couple of months, I’ve been dealing with a problem with my Fryette PS-100 Power Station: it emits an awful squeal.
I’ve figured out why: it was caused by a ground loop. Read on if you want to know the whole story.
Continue reading “Studio Diary #36: Why Does My Fryette Power Station Squeal?”#TeleTuesday is my occasional series where I share my own feelings and experiences with Fender’s original solid-body electric guitar … warts and all.
Last time, I ran a blind test: seven demos of bridge pickups, but only four were Telecasters. Now it’s time for the reveal, and to share my thoughts on each bridge pickup.
Continue reading “#TeleTuesday: Bridge Pickup Comparison – Part 2: The Reveal”#TeleTuesday is my occasional series where I share my own feelings and experiences with Fender’s original solid-body electric guitar … warts and all.
Do all Telecaster bridge pickups basically sound the same? Can you get the same sound (or close enough) from a non-Telecaster guitar? Let’s find out.
Continue reading “#TeleTuesday: Bridge Pickup Comparison – Part 1: Blind Test”August was shaping up to be a very quiet month, gear-wise. I had a plan: I was going to pick up just the one pedal – as long as I could find it nice and cheap.
But then something came along that I knew I’d regret if I didn’t get it …
Continue reading “New Arrivals: August 2022”
A couple of weeks ago, I finally found the Telecaster for me. I wasn’t even looking for it, either.
Continue reading “First Impressions / TeleTuesday: Fender Postmodern 63 Telecaster”#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.
Today, I want to talk klones, and specifically the most important klone pedal ever released: Electro-Harmonix’s Soul Food. Make yourself your favourite morning drink first. This one is going to be a #longread … with audio demos.
Continue reading “#CoffeeAndKlon 33: The EHX Soul Food”When I listen to any demos involving the Axe FX 3 on YouTube, there’s no noise to be heard. But here, at home, and in my own demos that I’ve posted, there’s a background hiss whenever I let notes sustain.
I thought it was because I’m using the Axe FX 3 with my pedalboard, and it is. But it’s not the pedals causing the noise. And, thankfully, it’s incredibly easy to sort out.
Continue reading “Studio Diary #35: Reducing Noise With The Axe-FX III And The 4 Cable Method”Making Music is where I share the process as I write, arrange, record and release my music. You’ll get to read it all: what went well, what really didn’t, the decisions I had to make along the way, and why I made them. I hope you find it useful!
When making music isn’t a habit, distractions are a real problem. For years, my distraction has mostly been playing with gear. But it’s not the only one that I need to recognise and avoid.
Continue reading “Making Music Interlude: Gravity Still Kills”Making Music is where I share the process as I write, arrange, record and release my music. You’ll get to read it all: what went well, what really didn’t, the decisions I had to make along the way, and why I made them. I hope you find it useful!
This week, conditions are against me, so I need to come up with a new plan.
Continue reading “Making Music #3: We’re In Another Heat Wave”