Review: Boss JS-10 eBand
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The new Boss JS-10 eBand (current RRP in Finland: 422 €) is the perfect companion for all of a guitarist’s entertainment, practicing and teaching needs.
The Boss JS-10 combines a wave-/mp3-player with a high-quality multi-effects unit – chock full with amp models and effects taken from the GT-100 – two guitar inputs, special features for practicing, as well as a full-toned 2.1 loudspeaker system.
The front panel is the eBand’s command central with a very clear and concise layout.
The playback and recording functions are catered for by the usual transport buttons we all know so well. Backing tracks (the eBand calls them songs), effects and menus can be accessed via their own buttons, and then changed using the navigation buttons and the large data wheel.
The lowest row of buttons gives you quick access to the current amp model and effect chain, as well as the…
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Review: Boss FB-2 Feedbacker/Booster
The Boss FB-2 Feedbacker/Booster (current price in Finland: 105 €) is a specialised tool to help you achieve musical feedback at moderate volume levels. Additionally this pedal also functions as a powerful level booster. The FB-2 is a typical Boss-pedal, from the classic sturdy cast-metal casing to its four control knobs, which offer separate level controls for the booster and the feedback sections, as well as an overall tone control and the booster’s Character knob.
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The booster is turned on and off by stepping shortly onto the footswitch. For feedback you need to hold the switch down continuously.
I couldn’t find any precise specifications for the amount of gain on offer here, but my educated guess would be at at least 12 dB. Apart from the different options afforded by the FB-2’s tone and Character controls, the booster’s “sound” and the way it interacts with your rig is…
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Review: Boss BR-80 Micro BR
The Boss Micro BR BR-80 is a very interesting little device packed with three different basic operating modes: It can be a full-blown digital eight-track recorder, a stereo recorder with built-in mics or a Roland eBand-compatible one-stop solution for all your practicing needs. The Boss BR-80 uses SD-HC-cards as its recording medium.
This little box of tricks is aimed mainly at guitarists, but the Micro BR offers many features that make it very useful for bass players or vocalists, too.
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The Boss BR-80 (current price in Finland: 284 €) is only a little bit larger than most smartphones, but Boss have succeeded in keeping the device surprisingly easy to use, regardless of its feature-packed nature.
The Micro BR’s transport buttons have been placed at the bottom of the front panel, between the built-in stereo condenser microphones. Left of the display you’ll find access to the unit’s three operating modes –…
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Review: Boss BC-2 Combo Drive
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The legendary Vox AC30 was the first successful British guitar amplifier.
Originally the 2 x 12 -combo had been designed especially for The Shadows, aiming at a louder and cleaner tone than what their old AC15s could provide. It didn’t take long, though, for experimentally inclined guitarists to realise they could get nicely toasted drive sounds out of the amp, especially when using a distortion- or treble booster -pedal in front of the combo.
In addition to the Shadows, famous AC30-users are (or have been) The Beatles, The Kinks, Queen, Bryan Adams, Tom Petty and U2’s The Edge.
The famous combo’s greatest drawback – in its original guise – is the lack of a master volume control, meaning meaty, overdriven tones only could be had at great volume.
Luckily, these days we have the wonders of digital amp modelling at our disposal, which means classic tones without the need…
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Review: Bogner Goldfinger 45 1×12 combo
Over the last decade Bogner Amplification have achieved a legendary status among fans of boutique amps.
Bogner’s best-known design is probably the Uberschall-model, which is aimed squarely at the connoisseur of high-gain amps. But the company also build several vintage-inspired amps, one of which is the Bogner Goldfinger combo.
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Bogner’s Goldfinger 45 1×12 (current price in Finland: 2.946 €) is quite large for a 1×12”-combo. Its dimensions are in a similar league as the 2 x 12 Vox AC30. The reason behind the large and deep cabinet lies in the fatter tone it produces.
The Goldfinger’s preamp section has been designed around four 12X7- and one 12AT7-valve, with the main amplifier running a quartet of 6V6-types. The combo is rated at 45 Watts, but its power can be reigned in using the front panel’s Standby/Hi/Low-toggle, as well as the Full/Half-switch around the back.
The top-drawer valve amplification…
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Review: Blackstar HT Club 50 and HTV-412A
Blackstar is one of the hottest guitar amp companies around at the moment. Their first Series One -heads have found their way into many a professional’s back line, due to their muscular tone and extreme versatility. Their more recent sweet little HT-5 and HT-1 combos can already be found in many studios and living-rooms around the globe.
New from Blackstar comes the HT-Venue-range. This series promises to offer more affordable amps that still aim to give you the full “Blackstar Experience”.
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Kitarablogi.com got the 50 Watts HT Club 50 head (current price in Finland: 591 €), as well as the Celestion-equipped HTV-412A cabinet (current price in Finland: 435 €) for reviewing.
The whole Blackstar range is engineered in the UK, but built in South Korea. The Venue-half-stack looks very stylish, with somewhat more of a vintage-type charm compared to Series One models.
Workmanship is top-notch…
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Review: Blackstar HT Club 40
British company Blackstar Amplification have earned a reputation for producing versatile, reliable, no-nonsense valve amplifiers for the modern player. Their ever-growing roster of endorsers from a wide variety of different musical styles is an irrefutable testament to this.
This time Kitarablogi will take a closer look at the Blackstar HT Club 40 combo (current price in Finland 694 €), which looks like the perfect workhorse for the gigging guitarist.
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As indicated by its name, the Blackstar HT Club 40 is a 40-Watt valve combo. The preamp is designed around two ECC83-valves, while the power amp uses a pair of EL34s.
This made-in-China combo is a two-channel affair and comes equipped with a single 12-inch speaker.
One of Blackstar’s trademarks is the clean and crisp, unfussy look – the HT Club 40 means business, and it’s ready to go.
This mid-sized combo weighs in at about 24 kilos…
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Review: Ampeg Micro-CL -stack
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At NAMM 2012 Ampeg introduced their second micro stack to the public – the Ampeg Micro-CL.
The company’s first foray into this market segment came in the guise of the very successful Micro-VR (currently still available), which is a 200 Watt miniature version of Ampeg’s classic 1970s SVT. The brand-new Micro-CL takes its starting point from the Eighties version of the venerable Ampeg bass stack (the SVT-CL), offering 100 Watts of bass tone.
Ampeg’s Micro-CL -stack (current RRP in Finland: 505 €) brings the company’s classic look down to an easily manageable size.
The solid-state head weighs in at only about six kilos, with the cabinet clocking in at a very moderate 15 kg. The whole miniature stack is only about 80 cm tall – making it a very easy fit with almost any car boot.
The Micro-CL-head comes equipped with two inputs…
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Review: Ampeg GVT15-112
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Digital amp-modelling has come to stay, no doubt about it. But while some form of amp-modelling is used almost daily by many guitarists, the good old valve amp isn’t really fading away. On the contrary – it seems that these days especially low-powered valve amps are experiencing something of a renaissance.
A good example of this type of all-valve amp is Ampeg’s new GVT15-112.
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The Ampeg GVT15-112 (current street price in Finland: 620 €) is a relatively compact 15-Watt valve amp, which can also be used at home, thanks to its half-power power amp mode.
Made in South Korea, the combo’s cabinet seems very well made, and the amp’s looks have a stylish retro touch. Our test sample receives a small cosmetic mark-down, because the decorative metal rail below the control panel sits slightly askew.
The clean and understated look carries over onto the Ampeg’s back…
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Review: Akai Drive3 Fuzz – Blues Overdrive – Deluxe Distortion
To a guitarist overdrive- and distortion-pedals are like handbags to women – you can never have too many!
No wonder, as distortions and overdrives vary widely in character and sound, while being the most important ingredients in most players’ tone.
The Akai Analog Custom Shop’s new range of effect pedals has recently arrived in Finland, which provided a handy opportunity for test-driving three of their shiny boxes.
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The Akai Drive3 Fuzz (current street price in Finland: 69 €) is Akai’s stylish solution to all your fuzzy needs.
The Drive3 monicker alludes to one special treat, called up by the mini-switch on the face of the pedal: the Fuzz-pedal is equipped with two different fuzz circuits – in Warm-mode the signal is run through a diode-based circuit, while Muffy (named in honour of a certain Electro-Harmonix classic) uses an LED to break up the sound. The centre position…
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Gear Review Finland 