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.
At the tail-end of April, I picked up a new (to me) Les Paul. It’s a little bit different to a regular R8 Historic Reissue … and it just might be my new #1 guitar.
Read on for my First Impressions.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Gibson Les Paul ‘Cloud 9’ Chambered Reissue 1958”Regular readers will have noticed that this blog has been very quiet over the last few months. One of the main reasons for this? I’ve been dealing with problematic audio noise which started after we had a solar PV system installed at the house.
What was the problem? And what was the solution? That’s what I’m covering in today’s Studio Diary entry. Grab a drink … this is going to be a long post.
Continue reading “Studio Diary #38: Dealing With Noise And Solar Power”I recently picked up another tweed tone pedal: the Gee Willikers (Model G) overdrive pedal from Bearfoot FX.
What do I think of it? Read on for my First Impressions.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Bearfoot FX Gee Willikers (Model G) Overdrive Pedal”This month, I was able to tick off three items from my gear bucket list.
One of the things I’ve been (re)learning this year is this: the kind of gear I’m interested in trying is only getting rarer and rarer. If I see something, and don’t get it, there’s a very good chance that I’ll be waiting a very long time before I see another example.
And it’s always hard to tell whether or not an item was worth getting until you have it in your hands …
Continue reading “New Arrivals: April 2023”It was looking like a quiet run-up to Easter … then Marshall reissued those pedals …
Continue reading “(Overdue) New Arrivals: March 2023”Back in January 2023, I picked up something a bit different: a pedal that’s designed (amongst other things) for boosting tweed amps.
Read on for my (overdue!) First Impressions, with audio examples too!
Continue reading “(Overdue) First Impressions: Lazy J Cruiser Deuce Boost Pedal”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.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Marshall Vintage Reissue Drive Pedals”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.
Continue reading “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, 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.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Marshall DriveMaster 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.
Continue reading “First Impressions: Marshall ShredMaster Distortion Pedal”