December 2009 \ Features \ Premier Gear Awards \ 2009 Premier Gear Awards

2009 Premier Gear Awards

Premier Guitar Editors

2009's award-winning gear - all in one place! Read our picks for awards in these categories: Small Package-Big Tone, Two-for-One, Tons O'Tones, Toe-to-Toe, The Kitchen Sink, Artisan, Fresh Approach, Redux Deluxe, Tone Enhancers and Nice Price.
Premier Guitar December 2009
(6 of 11)

The Kitchen Sink
If you’ve ever sat with a guitar, delay pedal, bass amp or wah and wished it had a particular feature, chances are, these pieces of gear have it. The winners of our new Kitchen Sink award are so packed with features that you might actually read the manual. For giving us all the options we ever wanted—and sounding stellar with each one—we salute you.

Ernie Ball/Music Man John Petrucci BFR 6Ernie Ball Music Man John Petrucci BFR 6

As striking as the bookmatched maple top of the John Petrucci BFR 6 (May 2009, Web Exclusive) is, the real beauty of this guitar is in its tonal palette—there’s as much variety here as in any guitar we reviewed this year. With two humbuckers—a Dimarzio Drop Sonic and HH-1 Custom in the bridge and neck, respectively—and a piezo system under the bridge, and the ability to use dual outputs or blend the two together, any tone you want is at your fingertips. And don’t worry, as Jordan Wagner wrote, “Ernie Ball performed a perfect job in the layout and design of this switching procedure, making the learning curve very small and enjoyable to use.”
MSRP $4199
music-man.com
Read the full review...



Empress Super DelayEmpress Super Delay

Eight modes of delay, five dials for tweaking, four three-way toggle switches, three footswitches … and a partridge in a pear tree: that’s what the aptly-named Super Delay (November 2009) gives you. With up to 13.6 seconds of looper time in addition to tap tempo, reverse, and tape simulation modes, there’s not much in the world of delays that this baby can’t do. “The Super Delay gives the Eventide Timefactor and Line 6 DL-4 a run for their money,” wrote Brian Barr. “And analog purists need not be afraid, because this pedal is transparent and will not color your tone.”
Street $449
Empresseffects.com
Read the review...


TC RH450TC Electronic RH450

Good things do come in small packages: the RH450 (April 2009) weighs in at under ten pounds and packs 450 watts, but it’s the ton of features that put it in this category. Included are four EQ bands, a compressor, a tube amp emulator, a tuner, a headphone amp (and RCA jacks for using an iPod), a direct out, and the ability to set three presets … plus a Shift button that gives each knob another control … plus a ring of dots around each control so you can see where your settings are in the dark. “TC Electronic bills this rig as ‘bass amp 2.0',” wrote Dan Berkowitz, “suggesting a new take on what a bass amp is all about. In a lot of ways, I’d have to agree.”
MSRP $999
tcelectronic.com
Read the full review...



WahzooVoodoo Lab Wahzoo

Vintage Mode, Auto Wah, and Step Wah—the Wahzoo (February 2009) gives you three different wahs in one package. Vintage Mode is a Clyde McCoy-inspired wah, the most traditional of the modes. Auto Wah lets you wander freely about the stage, using your pick velocity to control the sweep of the pedal. Step Wah is where things really take off: it jumps through different wah sounds, with the tempo based on the treadle position. If your wah use is limited by how fast you can move your foot, meet your new best friend. Gary Guzman wrote, “It’s as if they took my wish list of everything I’ve ever wanted in a wah pedal and more, and put it into one unit.”
MSRP $279
voodoolab.com
Read the full review...


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Comments

 (5 comments) display by
UsernameComment
Chris Tomlinson
on 03/14/2010 		These are great. However, everything from floyd upgrades is a rip. You can get it all for less in other places. Heck, even the big block is all over ebay from some other dude. It works just as good and a much better price (and his is the 42mm version). But yes, the stuff you can do to a floyd is great, just don't waste your money with "floydupgrades.com".
Garrison Vest
on 01/29/2010 		yep the Floyd rose "big Block" upgrade is worth the $. alot more sustain and clarity added
Garrison
www.daggerrocks.com
Vince L.
on 12/11/2009 		I ditto Dave V's comments about floydupgrades.com's products. I own a couple of late 80's Jackson's. The tone improvement and weight balance is almost immeasurable!
Dave Valliere
on 12/09/2009 		floydupgrades progresses my guitar tones to new dimensions! Superb resonance with Herculean sound! Sustainability reaches new levels, allowing me to hang on a few choice notes while enjoying my music! Dave Valliere (Val Year) www.davevalliere.com
Dan Marois
on 11/20/2009 		"Economic woes may have put a damper on the grand plans of buyers and sellers alike, but the gear … the gear that came our way this year was every bit as cool, innovative, beautiful, ingenious, exceptionally crafted and great sounding as it was the year before." There was still a lot more expensive new gear than I expected to see in these so-called hard times. I guess not everyone is feeling the pinch. Or maybe only consumers and workers got the memo - companies are still sifting through their hate mail. :-) Manufacturers and builders could have used the opportunity to reinvent themselves. One would have thought they could have used a bit of ingenuity to make their products more affordable. You know, to get them out there. The media must take a large portion of the blame - they didn't stop parading expensive equipment these past two years. Of course, we all know why they do that right? Magazine reviewers want to get their hands on the "best" stuff not for our benefit but for their own. :^)



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