New Arrivals For January

The turning of the year can be a great time to hunt for new (to you) guitar gear. The second hand market is normally flooded with folks who are moving on gear they no longer want – or sadly can no longer afford to keep. And there’s Winter NAMM, where brands large and small drop announce new products.

I’ve been lucky enough to pick up some stuff that I’m interested in, and I thought I’d share it with you. Some of it is new to me, and some of it is me taking a second look at things I’ve had before but didn’t gel with. And there’s a few very special items too.

I’m going to do full articles on each of them, once I’ve had a bit of time with them. For now, here’s the very first impressions for you.

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Jimi Hendrix Fender Custom Shop Guitars

Chappers and The Captain have taken a look at the new Hendrix Voodoo Child Stratocasters from Fender’s Custom Shop.

At £4000, they’re priced mainly for collectors of Hendrix memorabilia. They come with certificates, and some other official Hendrix-branded stuff … but at heart, they seem to be Journeyman Strats with reversed headstocks and a reversed bridge pickup.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Fender Parallel Universe Troublemaker

Peach Guitars have posted a demo of Fender’s new Troublemaker Telecaster. It’s part of the Parallel Universe limited run.

A dual-humbucker Tele with the Les Paul bridge and control layout? Yes please!!! Oh, and it also comes in a very Les Paul-like sunburst finish? Take my money now!

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve used Warmoth’s online custom guitar body and neck builders to spec up something just like this. In my opinion, the Les Paul bridge and control layout is perfection itself for dual-humbucking guitars.

What do you think? Leave a comment below.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Danelectro ‘84 Lipsticks vs Fender Mexican Strat Single Coils.

Shane’s had a lot of interest in his Danelectro ‘84 since introducing it on his YouTube channel. So he’s done a shootout against his Mexican Strat.

The two guitars sound quite different. The Danelectro has a lot more twang, without sounding like a Tele. It’s also a little thinner sounding, but not in a bad way. The overall result is a guitar which looks like a Strat but has its own thing going on. Very cool.

Watch the video to hear for yourself, and then please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Blindfold Challenge: Tele or Not?

Chappers and The Captain have done another of their blindfold challenges: can Rob tell if a guitar is a Fender Telecaster, or a T-style from another brand?

Every time someone on the forums insists that guitars don’t sound that different, or that the differences aren’t that great, I want to make them sit down and watch videos like this. It’s not always easy to tell them apart after YouTube has processed the audio, but in person – and importantly, through a great amp – the differences are real, both in tone and in feel.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed this video.

Fender Pugilist Distortion Pedal Demo

Shane is currently looking at the new-for-2018 Fender pedals, and today he’s looking at the Pugilist Distortion Pedal.

I’ve featured a number of Pugilist demos on the blog now, and one thing I’m struck by is just how different this pedal sounds when it’s running into a Hot Rod Deluxe mk 4 vs just about any other amp. The tones that Danish Pete got out of this pedal convinced me to go and get one for myself. None of the other demos had that impact on me.

Anyway, have a listen to Shane’s demo, and see what you think. And then, as always, please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Fender Santa Ana Overdrive Pedal Demo

Henning is working his way through the new Fender pedals, and today he’s published his look at the Santa Ana Overdrive pedal.

Henning makes a great point at the start of this video, and it’s one that hasn’t come up in any of the other demos that I’ve shared so far. The Santa Ana Overdrive needs 130 milliamps of power. That’s more than most power supplies normally offer.

Watch the video for all the other observations – and tones! – that Henning has on this pedal.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed his video.

Fender Marine Layer Reverb Pedal Demo

The first Fender pedal that Henning looked at was the new Marine Layer Reverb. And it’s fair to say that he really liked it.

I haven’t seen him have this much fun trying a pedal in ages. If that isn’t a ringing endorsement of this pedal, I don’t know what is.

For me, this is a pedal that goes in your effects loop. It’s a performance reverb pedal, if you like, rather than a studio tool – because it isn’t a stereo pedal. Which might be exactly what you are looking for, especially if your amp doesn’t have any kind of built-in reverb.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Henning’s video.

Fender Mirror Image Delay Pedal Demo

Henning has taken a look at Fender’s new Mirror Image Delay pedal. And, as Fender isn’t paying him to demo this pedal, we get his truly unfiltered opinion on this one.

https://youtu.be/_TJwGCjela4

If you’re thinking of ordering one of these, you’ll probably find this pedal very useful indeed. We’re seeing Henning’s initial impressions straight out of the box, and it’s likely that you’ll go through a similar experience when you get yours.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Henning’s video.

Fender Santa Ana Overdrive Demo

Over at In The Blues, Shane has posted his demo of Fender’s new Santa Ana Overdrive pedal.

This is a really good demo of this pedal, showing off what this pedal can do  for a Telecaster, Stratocaster and for a Les Paul. Shane also points how the Middle EQ tone control is the crucial one for shaping the tone with the pedal.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Shane’s video,