Got a Fender Blues Junior, Blues Deluxe, Hot Rod Deluxe or Deville? These cabs are the perfect match. The Bass Metaphors is a mini multi-effects unit for bass sporting a two-band EQ, distortion and compression. It can also be used simply as a preamp or as a DI unit with EQ. Six black plastic knobs sit […]
Vintage Amps
Elmwood Bonneville 50
Swedish valve outfit Elmwood made its name with the 60W and 90W Modena rock heads, but the Elmwood Bonneville 50 aims for max portability and any sound you want. Review: Huw Price What’s the Swedish for ‘brick shithouse’? This amp is built like one. It’s a hell of a lump to carry about, and I’d […]
AXL Standard 30B Bass Combo
You don’t want to haul a full bass rig when popping around the guitarist’s house for tea and a spot of songwriting. Even though lighter and more compact gigging bass rigs have become readily available in the last 10 years, you still don’t want to be chucking that much kit into the car for a […]
Victoria Electro King
Something about Gibson amps reminds us of the Tommy Cooper gag about the Stradivarius and the Rembrandt. Does Victoria Electro King know something we don’t? Huw Price makes a discovery. Considering the reverence for Gibson’s 1950s guitars, it seems inexplicable that values of Gibson amps from that era haven’t kept pace with contemporary Fender amps. […]
Hartke LH500 Head / HyDrive HX115 & HX410 Cabs
Hartke made its name with aluminium speakers, then offered paper ones, and now are back with both in the same package. Gareth Morgan finds out what’s going on. Hartke built its first cabinet specifically for the late, great Jaco Pastorius in 1984. But the company’s probably most famous for the later use of aluminium-coned speakers […]
Marshall Lead & Bass 50 PW
Paul Weller’s 50th birthday, Marshall Lead & Bass 50 PW amp, a limited edition of 50. You can’t fool us: there’s a theme developing here. Dave Petersen finds out if Marshall hits the target. Nobody would argue with Marshall’s choice of Paul Weller as a figurehead for their latest signature amp – for musical credibility. […]
65 Amps Stone Pony
Based in California, 65Amps founders Peter Stroud and Dan Boul set out to build the best valve amplifiers on the market. Huw Price finds out what the fuss is all about. Inspired largely by the great British amps of the ’60s – the Marshall 18W, JTM45 and plexi, the Vox AC15, AC30 and AC50 – […]
Aria AB-50 Combo
Plugging into a full bass rig at home can severely damage your loved ones will to live. Gareth Morgan looks at a cheeky little alternative that doesn’t cost the earth. In contrast to the heavy Hartke artillery of last month. We’re taking a look at an all-important piece of home-use gear that often gets neglected: […]
Torres British Boxer
If you’re chasing a great valve sound but money’s too tight to mention. Then Torres British Boxer offers both factory-assembled amps and build-your-own kits. Review by Huw Price Torres Engineering has been manufacturing guitar amp kits for many years. And Dan Torres’ book Inside Tube Amps probably kickstarted the careers of many of today’s small-scale […]
Torres British Invasion
If you’re chasing a great valve sound but money’s too tight to mention, then Torres British Invasion offers both factory-assembled amps and build-your-own kits. Review by Huw Price There are two versions of the two-channel British Invasion, a 20W and a 50W. This is the 20W, with a pair of EL84 power valves and an […]