
Dig into the details of new gear from Martin, Godin, Friedman Amps, Reverend, Eastman, Victory Amps, Danelectro and more!
Taylor 314ce LTD
Taylor celebrated their 50th anniversary Wednesday night with an unveiling party in Anaheim for its new anniversary models, which include limited editions of the 814ce, 314ce, AD14ce-SB, PS14ce, PS24ce, and more. Check out the headstock and neck inlays on the PS24ce, joined here by an anniversary model of their popular 314ce.
Martin Inception Maple
Martin took a look at their recipe for making acoustic guitars and tweaked it a bit for their Inception Maple series. They come with a walnut neck and bridge, L.R. Baggs Anthem electronics, and an interesting new bracing system. They are available now for $3,999.
Blackstar ID:Core
Blackstar’s line of ID Core amps are feature packed with loads of sounds and unique recording and streaming capabilities, plus with the PB-1 power bank, you’ll have up to 10 hour of playing—or charging—time. Available now at $159, $199, and $229.
Vox V846 Wah
Vox is unleashing an array of vintage-inspired designs from the Real McCoy and V846 wahs (available March/April for $279 street) to a full line of handwired amps coming this summer.
Silvertone Baritone
Silvertone’s Rick Taylor showed us the company’s late spring entry in the nuevo-retro 6-string sweepstakes—a super comfortable lightweight (naturally) baritone with a 28" scale and the company’s classic lipstick pickups, built to be tuned B to B. Price tag: an attractive $399.
Radial Nuance Select
Radial, whose products for studio and stage include the famed Tonebone preamp, has just released the Nuance Select studio monitor controller—in time for NAMM 2024. The aptly named Nuance allows you to silently switch between two sets of monitors and a subwoofer, has dual stereo inputs with an aux out, two independent headphone amps, and ultra-low distortion of transparency. The tag? $699.
Spector Basses
Spector’s new line of production basses is on display as well as their deep well of custom shop offerings, including a couple NAMM special builds with special finishes and electronic options. Printing and availability on all models at spectorbass.com.
Revv Generator 120
Revv’s flagship amp, the Generator 120, gets a 10th anniversary update. Designer Dan Trudeau went back to his original prototype and revolved the high-gain channels to be more open and aggressive while still keeping all the modern functionality. They are available now for $3,299.
Celestion Pulse XI
Celestion’s got the big bottom covered with their new line of bass speakers, the Pulse Xl series in 15", 12", 10" and horn. Punchy, responsive, with rich full frequency sound and articulation, they boast long voice coils for a deeper bass sound and greater clarity, wound with round copper for the right taste of treble, formed on heat retardant polyimide. Hit celestion.com for more.
Aguilar AG Preamp
Aguilar’s AG preamp delivers the high fidelity tone of their AG series amps straight to pedalboards, with its bright and deep voicing. A great pairing with their SL 110 cabs. And their range of pedal offerings got a facelift to match. For pricing and availability, contact your Aguilar dealer.
Darkglass Combo 500
The new combos from Darkglass cover analog and digital tones. Both the Infinity and Microtubes 500 combo are chock full of sounds, plus they look great, and come in 2x10 and 1x12 arrangements. The line starts at $1,099 and will be available starting late March.
Huss & Dalton Electric Guitars
You know Huss & Dalton from their rich history as a boutique acoustic builder, but their electric offerings are on display here at NAMM. With singlecut and doublecut options, they start around $5,000. To customize your own build, you’ll want to reach out to your dealer or direct to the company about wait times.
Seymour Duncan Powerstage 100 Stereo
Seymour Duncan’s Powerstage 100 Stereo takes their portable—and lightweight!—line of power amps to the next level with more power, more EQ, and, of course, stereo capabilities! Priced at $599, they’re available now.
Positive Grid's Spark Live
Positive Grid’s Spark Live delivers the sounds you love from the company’s other offerings into a 4-channel PA that’s ready to take on any instrument you want to give it. Pre-orders are open now at a special price of $499.
NUX B-8
The NUX B-8 brings advanced wireless capabilities straight to your board with 160 foot range. Features include tuning and boost capabilities and loads of screen options. Available now for $319 street.
Cherub Products
We were treated to a host of new products from Cherub, best known for their clip-on tuners, whose line ranges from tuner/metronome/hydrometer hybrids to multi-use capos and guitar tools.
Mooer GE1000
Mooer’s new GE1000 multi-effects unit delivers a multitude of stomp box functionality in a touchscreen-equipped unit with mappable expression pedal and Bluetooth capability. Priced at $528/$599 (battery powered), they’re available now.
Eko Marco Polo MM
The Eko Marco Polo MM is a travel-sized mahogany acoustic with big, warm sound. It’s open pore finish is inviting, as is its unique soundhole inlay. At $873, they’re available now.
Eastman Henry James Signature Juliet
Over at Eastman, guitarist Henry James demoed his signature model. His version of the popular Juliet is a solidbody beast with Goldo vibrato, Seymour Duncan Vintage Mini-Humbockers, and a reverse headstock. They’re coming spring 2024 at $2,099.
Lag Sauvage DCE
Lag have set their sites on sustainabilty, using smoked raw eucalyptus—an invasive species that needs to be harvested—for the striking back and sides of the Sauvage DCE. These affordable solid-top BrankoWood acoustics—starting at $420–offer a sound as warm as they look, with onboard electronics. Available in Europe, they’ll be in the U.S. soon.
Red Panda Radius
Red Panda’s new Radius pedal has loads of deep tones to discover. Ostensibly a ring mod/frequency shifter, its unique controls will allow you to head to the outer limits with phase-shifting, tremolo sounds, and much, much more! Priced at $349, they’re available now.
Balaguer Select Custom Guitars
Balaguer Guitars just announced their Select Custom line of highly customized models based on their existing body shapes. Customers can choose scale length, wood, binding, finish, and electronics. All at fairly reasonable prices. You can head over to their website now to play with their online guitar designer.
Santa Cruz Vault Series
Santa Cruz’s Vault Series is built upon the idea of using very old reclaimed wood that master luthier Richard Hoover has been saving for decades. This D-style model uses Brazilian Rosewood from the Bryn Athena Cathedral for the back and sides and master grade Fort Ross Chapel redwood for the top. Nearly every part of this build is immaculate and the craftsmanship pushes the limits of modern lutherie. The price? $70,000.
Third Man Hardware and Donner Triple Threat
Donner and Third Man Hardware just released a new collaboration aimed at guitarists who need a simple and portable multi-effects solution. For $99 you get echo, phaser, and distortion.
Victory Amps MK Clean
Victory Amps brought two new models to the show. The MK Clean is a monster clean machine with loads of headroom, spring reverb, bright switch, and selectable EQ voicings. On the other side, the MK Overdrive is a 3-channel setup with independent gain controls, switchable volume levels, presence, and more. Production begins in March and they will go for around $5k.
Collings Guitars
Collings is offering NAMM visitors a glimpse into some models to come, from sleek solidbodies to an all-new dreadnought. These prototypes aren’t available yet, but they’re here for everyone to get a peek at their vision for the future.
Two Notes Genome
Two notes’ Genome offers deep functionality with loads of amp and pedal models on hand. It’s interface makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for and dial it in. Priced at $79.95, it’s free for any existing Two notes hardware or DynIR cab customers.
Reverend Billy Corgan Drop Z and the Chris Freeman Signature
That’s Reverend’s Ken Haas with the two new signature models the company debuted at NAMM 2024: the Billy Corgan Drop Z (right, in Billy’s favored satin pearl white finish) and the Chris Freeman model. The Drop Z is designed for drop tuning, with a 24-fret, 26.22" scale neck, an alder body and Railhammer Billy Corgan Z-One pickups. The Chris Freeman has a bridge Railhammer Nuevo 90 and a neck P-90, with rear-mounted volume, tone, and bass contour controls, a 3-way pickup switch, and double kill switches—a toggle and a kill button, It’s available in the turquoise sparkle finish on the 6-string Ken’s holding, or powder yellow. The Drop Z streets for $1,499 and the Freeman at $1,199.
L.R. Baggs HiFi Duet
The L.R. Baggs HiFi Duet is a brand new update to the company’s popular HiFi, now with a studio quality bridge-plate microphone that is blendable with the contact sensors. Pricing and availability coming soon.
Eventide Riptide
Eventide has introduced a new member of their dot9 line with the Riptide, an overdrive/vibe-style pedal with stereo capability. It’s out now for $299. They’re also showing off their new app capabilities for their H90 as well as some fresh algorithms.
Mackie Showbox
Mackie’s new Showbox is a battery-powered solution for solo and duo acts. The defining feature is a detachable mixer that gives you access to a 3-band EQ, looper, and recording options. They are available now for $799.
Chibson Protoypes
We were pleased to run into Jason and Marky from Chibson, who showed us prototypes of their puzzle-piece guitars and extendable-leaf guitar, built by Paoletti Guitars.
Iris/Circle Strings Guitars
The Iris/Circle Strings booth had lots to offer, from their acoustic line built for the discerning working musician’s taste and price range. Their DF slope-shouldered dreadnought is a standout at $2,350. They also brought a pair of Paul Languedoc builds that Trey Anastasio fans were busy bugging out about!
Gamechanger Audio Mod Series
Gamechanger Audio released an entire new line of pedals at NAMM. The Mod series combines their penchant for inventive, time-based effects with their love for modular synth-style controls. There are literally thousands of ways to control these effects including via pitch and dynamics. For example, you can set a target note and everything either above or below it can be affected by any parameter. Production will start in March and they will be $299 each.
Peterson StroboClip HDC Tuner
The Peterson StroboClip HDC brings the company’s popular sweetener offerings right to your headstock. This new rechargeable model works for 6 hours of continuous use on a single charge and the quick charge circuit delivers 90 more minutes of use on a two minute charge. Available now for $79.
Danelectro Fifty-Niner
Danelectro showed us a variety of new options, from their brightly colored lipstick-pickup-loses Fifty Niner guitars and Red Hot Longhorn bass ($599) to their black-crackle sitar ($899) and their vintage fuzz/distortion pedal the Nicholas 1966 ($199).
Danelectro Fifty-Niner - $599
Red Hot Longhorn - $599
Sitar - $899
Nicholas 1966 - $199
Lichtlaerm Audio Amps
Newcomers Lichtlaerm Audio gave us a tour of their custom-build Prometheus head and Fane-loaded 4x12 cab. Loaded with features, your own will be available within a month or two of order, plus shipping time from Germany, at a starting price of $2,700.
Godin Lerxst Limelight
One of the higher profile releases of the show was Godin's collaboration with Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson. The Lerxst Limelight is based on Lifeson's '80s-era model and is outfitted with either a Floyd Rose setup or the Vega-Trem VT1 shown here. The pickups were made by MojoTone and overall, the guitar feels and sounds incredible. Streets for $4,000.
Divided by 13 FTR 37
Divided by 13 relaunched after their acquisition by Two-Rock at the show with this FTR 37. It's a muscular 6V6 circuit with two discreet channels, reverb, push/pull gain boost, and a half-power switch. If you're a fan of Fullerton-style sounds, than this might be just the setup for you. It has a full-bodied clean tone and a rich breakup sound that's dynamic with plenty of sparkle.
Aeroband Guitars
The Aeroband guitar looks like a wild glimpse into the future—and also back into the ‘80s—but with its app capability, the company is touting the education possibilities it has to offer. Also, it’s fun. Priced at $500, it’s available now.
Supro Delegate Custom
Supro enters the boutique amp market with the mighty 1x12 Delegate Custom, inspired by the Aristocrat amp Muddy Waters used for the Live at Newport album … but supercharged. With a custom-colored wraparound cabinet, it’s all hand-built in Ohio with Mercury Magnetics transformers, period-correct Mallory caps, a custom 12” Celestion Greenback, 3-band EQ, and master volume. It’s got a 12AT7 driving the spring reverb, two 6V6 power tubes, and three 12AX7s. The tag: $3,299, and there’s a 2x12 big sibling, too. It’s Supro mastermind David Koltai’s (in photo) latest pride and joy.
KMA Machine Endgame
KMA Machine's Endgame Duality Calibrator might be one of the most feature-packed stomps at the show. It has an exhaustive amount of I/O options but the centerpieces are the automatic double tracker and the switchable IR loader. Other highlights include dual headphone outputs, XLR outputs, Bluetooth capability, stereo effects loop, ambience control, and loads more.
Strandberg Boden Essential
Strandberg's Boden Essential is the company's first sub-$1k guitar. It retains the same look and feel of the other models, but uses locally sourced Indonesian wood to help keep the price down. Ola told us that the pickups are the same as in the standard model, but the hardware is reengineered for durability and sustainability.
Godin Arena Pro
Godin is debuting a pair of all-black nylon-string guitars. The Arena Pro is a LTD Onyx Black is a single cut with a solid cedar top and Canadian wild cherry black and sides, plus top-mounted volume and tone controls. They’ve paired it with a new addition to their Multiac Mundial line in matching onyx black accoutrements. These guitars are available now and priced at $1,099 and $1,299 respectively.
Godin Fifth Ave
Godin’s stunning new hollowbodies will catch the eyes of rockers and jazz cats alike. These lightweight and comfortable thinline Fifth Avenue guitars are available with Godin P-90s for $1,299, and a sunburst model is equipped with Lollar gold-foils at $1,899.
Godin Session T-Pro Hangover
Godin debuted their “hangover” distressed finishes on a pair of solidbodies: their S-style Seymour Duncan-loaded Session T Pro and their Lollar/TV Jones-loaded T-Style Stadium T Pro. These one-of-a-kind models are available for $1,499.
Friedman Amplification Plexi Vintage Series
Not surprisingly, Dave Friedman created a vintage plexi-style amp that absolutely rips. It's based on an EL34 design, a familiar control setup, and plenty of juice.
Circle Strings Languedoc
Adam Buchwald's burgeoning Vermont guitar empire will take on a new collaboration in 2024. Famed luthier Paul Languedoc has agreed to have Buchwald steward the production of the G2 and G4 models made famous by Phish's Trey Anastasio. Paul will still be making the G2 models while the G4 line will be created in Buchwald's shop (although some elements of the G4 will continue to be handmade by Paul). The G2s will be extremely limited and run north of $60k, but the G4s, when available, will be $16,000.
T-Rex Binson Echorec
The Binson Echorec by T-Rex isn’t new this year, but it sure is cool. It sounds exactly like you think it should, and does all the tricks of the classic units.
- Martin to Unveil Remastered X Series at NAMM 2024 ›
- Martin to Debut New Models at 2024 NAMM Show ›
- Vox Real McCoy & V846 Wah Pedals, & Hand Wired Series Amps Demo | NAMM 2024 ›
- NAMM 2024 Editors' Picks ›
- NAMM 2024 Editors' Picks ›
- Finding Inspiration in the Pursuit of New Gear ›
- Are Mini-NAMM Conventions the Wave of the Future? ›
- Best Guitar Gear at NAMM 2024 Day 3 ›
- PG Editors Pick Favorite Guitars and Gear Day 1 of NAMM 2025 - Premier Guitar ›
- PG Editors Pick Their Gear Faves from Day 2 of NAMM 2025 - Premier Guitar ›
- Best Guitar Gear at NAMM 2025 Day 3 2025 - Premier Guitar ›
See and hear Taylor’s Legacy Collection guitars played by his successor, Andy Powers.
Last year, Taylor Guitars capped its 50th Anniversary by introducing a new guitar collection celebrating the contributions of co-founders Bob Taylor and Kurt Listug to the guitar world. The Legacy Collection revives five of Bob Taylor’s classic acoustic models, curated by the legendary luthier and innovator himself. “To imagine that we’re doing guitars that harken to our past, our present and our future all at the same time,” Bob says, “I really like that.”
In developing the collection, Bob preserved the essence of his originals while integrating performance and playability upgrades introduced during his tenure as designer-in-chief. “It’s an up-to-date version of what those guitars would be,” Bob explains, “but with the same sound.”
Visually, these guitars feel classic—clean, understated and unmistakably Taylor. While Bob’s original aesthetic preferences are showcased in his Legacy models, the nod to the past runs deeper than trade dress.
From his earliest builds, Bob favored slim-profile necks because he found them easier to play. That preference set a design precedent that established Taylor’s reputation for smooth-playing, comfortable necks. Legacy models feature slim mahogany necks built with Taylor's patented New Technology (NT) design. “My first neck was a bolted-on neck but not an NT neck,” Bob says. “These are NT necks because it’s a better neck.” Introduced in 1999, the NT neck allowed for unprecedented micro-adjustability while offering a consistent, hand-friendly Taylor playing experience.
What makes this collection unique within the Taylor line is Bob’s use of his X-bracing architecture, favoring his time-tested internal voicing framework over more recent Taylor bracing innovations to evoke a distinctive tone profile. Since Andy Powers—Taylor’s current Chief Guitar Designer, President and CEO—debuted his patented V-Class bracing in 2018, V-Class has become a staple in Taylor’s premium-performance guitars. Still, Bob’s X-bracing pattern produces a richly textured sound with pleasing volume, balance and clarity that long defined the Taylor voice. All Legacy models feature LR Baggs VTC Element electronics, which Bob says “harkens back to those days.”
The team at Taylor thought the best way to demonstrate the sound of the Legacy guitars was to ask Andy Powers, Bob’s successor, to play them. A world-class luthier and musician, Andy has spent the past 14 years leading Taylor’s guitar innovation. In addition to V-Class bracing, his contributions include the Grand Pacific body style, the ultra-refined Builder’s Edition Collection, and most recently, the stunning Gold Label Collection.
Below you’ll find a series of videos that feature Powers playing each Legacy model along with information about the guitars.
Legacy 800 Series Models
First launched in 1975, the 800 Series was Taylor’s first official guitar series. Today, it remains home to some of the brand’s most acclaimed instruments, including the flagship 814ce, Builder’s Edition 814ce and new Gold Label 814e.
The Legacy 800 Series features the 810e Dreadnought and two Jumbos: the 6-string 815e and 12-string 855e. Each model serves up a refined version of the Dreadnought and Jumbo body shapes Bob inherited from Sam Radding—the original owner of the American Dream music shop where Bob and Kurt first met. “I was making my guitars in the molds that Sam had made at American Dream,” Bob recalls. “There was a Jumbo and a Dreadnought. That’s all we had.”
All three Legacy 800 Series guitars feature one of Bob’s favorite tonewood combos. Solid Indian rosewood back and sides are paired with a Sitka spruce top, yielding warm lows, clear trebles and a scooped midrange.
Aesthetic appointments include a three-ring abalone rosette, mother-of-pearl Large Diamond inlays, white binding around the body and fretboard, and Bob’s “straight-ear” peghead design. Both Jumbo models also showcase a mustache-style ebony bridge—a nod to Bob’s early Jumbo builds.
Legacy 810e
The 810 Dreadnought holds a special place in Bob Taylor’s heart. “My first 810, the one I made for myself, was a thrilling guitar for me to make,” he says. “It’s the one and only guitar I played. It didn’t matter how many guitars we made at Taylor, that’s the one I took out and played.” The Legacy 810e brings back that bold, room-filling Dreadnought voice along with the easy playability expected from a Taylor.
Taylor Guitars | Legacy 810e | Playthrough Demo
Legacy 855e
Taylor’s first 12-strings found an audience in 1970s Los Angeles. “I was making guitars that would find their way to McCabe’s in Santa Monica and Westwood Music,” Bob says, “and these guitars were easy to play. Twelve-strings were a popular sound in that music. It was a modern country/folk/rock music genre that was accepting our guitars because they were easy to play. They also liked the sound of them because our guitars were easier to record.” The Legacy 855e, with its resonant Jumbo body, slim neck and gorgeous octave sparkle, carries that tradition forward.
Taylor Guitars | Legacy 855e | Playthrough Demo
Legacy 815e
The Legacy 815e revives Taylor’s original Jumbo 6-string, delivering a big, lush sound with beautifully blooming overtones.
Legacy Grand Auditoriums
In the early 1990s, Bob Taylor heard a consistent refrain from dealers: “Not everybody wants a dreadnought guitar anymore.” Players were asking for something with comparable volume but different proportions—something more comfortable, yet still powerful. This feedback inspired Bob to design a new body style with more elegant curves, more accommodating proportions and a balanced tonal response. The result was the Grand Auditorium, which Taylor introduced in 1994 to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
Thanks to its musical versatility and easy playability, Bob’s Grand Auditorium attracted a wide variety of players. “We came into our own with our Grand Auditorium,” he says. “People were describing it as ‘all around.’ It’s a good strummer and good for fingerstyle, but it’s not totally geared toward strumming or totally geared toward fingerstyle.” Also referred to as the “Swiss-Army Knife” of guitars or the “Goldilocks” guitar, the GA quickly became a favorite among guitarists across playing styles, musical genres and different playing applications including recording and live performance. “That guitar made studio work successful,” Bob says. It gained a wider fanbase with the debut of the “ce” version, which introduced a Venetian cutaway and onboard electronics. “That became one of our hallmarks,” says Bob. “If you want to plug in your guitar, buy a Taylor.”
Today, the Grand Auditorium is Taylor’s best-selling body shape.
The Legacy Collection features two cedar-top Grand Auditoriums inspired by past favorites: the mahogany/cedar 514ce and rosewood/cedar 714ce. Both models incorporate Bob’s original X-bracing pattern for a tonal character reminiscent of their 1990s and 2000s counterparts. Shared aesthetic details include a green abalone three-ring rosette, ebony bridge pins with green abalone dots, a faux-tortoiseshell pickguard and Taylor gold tuning machines.
Taylor Guitars | Legacy 815e | Playthrough Demo
Legacy 514ce
The Legacy 514ce features solid mahogany back and sides paired with a Western Red cedar top, yielding a punchy midrange and dry, woody sonic personality that pairs beautifully with cedar’s soft-touch sensitivity and warmth. It’s a standout choice for fingerstyle players and light strummers who crave nuance and depth. Distinct visual details include faux-tortoise body and fretboard binding, black-and-white top trim, and mother-of-pearl small diamond fretboard inlays.
Taylor Guitars | Legacy 514ce | Playthrough Demo
Legacy 714ce
The Legacy 714ce also features a cedar top, this time matched with solid Indian rosewood back and sides. The result is a richly textured sound with deep lows, clear trebles and a warm, mellow response. Inspiring as it is, this specific wood pairing isn’t currently offered in any other standard Taylor model. Additional aesthetic details include green abalone dot fretboard inlays, black body and fretboard binding, and black-and-white “pinstripe” body purfling.
While the Legacy Collection spotlights Taylor’s past, newer models from the Gold Label, Builder’s Edition and Somos Collections show the company’s legacy is always evolving. Explore the Legacy Collection at taylorguitars.com or visit your local authorized Taylor dealer.
Taylor Guitars | Legacy 714ce | Playthrough Demo
Detail of Ted’s 1997 National resonator tricone.
What instruments should you bring to an acoustic performance? These days, with sonic innovations and the shifting definition of just what an acoustic performance is, anything goes.
I believe it was Shakespeare who wrote: “To unplug, or not to unplug, that is the question. Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of acoustic purists, or to take thy electric guitar in hand to navigate the sea of solo performing.”
Four-hundred-and-twenty-four years later, many of us still sometimes face the dilemma of good William when it comes to playing solo gigs. In a stripped-down setting, where it’s just us and our songs, do we opt to play an acoustic instrument, which might seem more fitting—or at least more common, in the folksinger/troubadour tradition—or do we bring a comfy electric for accompaniment?
For me, and likely many of you, it depends. If I’m playing one or two songs in a coffeehouse-like atmosphere, I’m likely to bring an acoustic. But if I’m doing a quick solo pop up, say, as a buffer between bands in a rock room, I’m bringing my electric. And when I’m doing a solo concert, where I’ll be stretching out for at least an hour, it’s a hybrid rig. I’ll bring my battered old Guild D25C, a National tricone resonator, and my faithful Zuzu electric with coil-splitting, and likely my gig pedalboard, or at least a digital delay. And each guitar is in a different tuning. Be prepared, as the Boy Scouts motto states. (For the record, I never made it past Webelos.)
My point is, the definition of the “acoustic” or “coffeehouse” performance has changed. Sure, there are still a few Alan Lomax types out there who will complain that an electric guitar or band is too loud, but they are the last vestiges of the folk police. And, well, acoustic guitar amplification is so good these days that I’ve been at shows where each strum of a flattop box has threatened to take my head off. My band Coyote Motel even plays Nashville’s hallowed songwriter room the Bluebird Café as a fully electric five-piece. What’s key, besides a smart, flexible sound engineer, is controlling volume, and with a Cali76 compressor or an MXR Duke of Tone, I can get the drive and sustain I need at a low level.
“My point is, the definition of the ‘acoustic’ or ‘coffeehouse’ performance has changed.”
So, today I think the instruments that are right for “acoustic” gigs are whatever makes you happiest. Left to my own devices, I like my Guild for songs that have a strong basis in folk or country writing, my National for blues and slide, and my electric for whenever I feel like adding a little sonic sauce or showing off a bit, since I have a fluid fingerpicking hand that can add some flash to accompaniment and solos. It’s really a matter of what instrument or instruments make you most comfortable because we should all be happy and comfortable onstage—whether that stage is in an arena or theater, a club or coffeehouse, or a church basement.
At this point, with instruments like Fender’s Acoustasonic line, or piezo-equipped models from Godin, PRS, and others, and the innovative L.R. Baggs AEG-1, it’s worth considering just what exactly makes a guitar acoustic. Is it sound? In which case there’s a wide-open playing field. Or is it a variation on the classic open-bodied instrument that uses a soundhole to move air? And if we arrive at the same end, do the means matter? There is excellent craftsmanship available today throughout the entire guitar spectrum, including foreign-built models, so maybe we can finally put the concerns of Shakespeare to rest and accept that “acoustic” has simply come to mean “low volume.”
Another reason I’m thinking out loud about this is because this is our annual acoustic issue. And so we’re featuring Jason Isbell, on the heels of his solo acoustic album, a piece on how acoustic guitars do their work authored by none other than Lloyd Baggs, and Andy Fairweather Low, whose new solo album—and illustrious career—includes exceptional acoustic performances. If you’re not familiar with his work, and you are, even if you don’t know it, he was the gent sitting next to Clapton for the historic 1992 Unplugged concert—and lots more. There are also reviews of new instruments from Taylor, Martin, and Godin that fit the classic acoustic profile, so dig in, and to heck with the slings and arrows!Ernie Ball, the world’s leading manufacturer of premium guitar strings and accessories, proudly announces the launch of the all-new Earthwood Bell Bronze acoustic guitar strings. Developed in close collaboration with Grammy Award-winning guitarist JohnMayer, Bell Bronze strings are engineered to meet Mayer’s exacting performance standards, offering players a bold new voice for their acoustic guitars.Crafted using a proprietary alloy inspired by the metals traditionally found in bells and cymbals, Earthwood Bell Bronze strings deliver a uniquely rich, full-bodied tone with enhanced clarity, harmonic content, and projection—making them the most sonically complex acoustic strings in the Ernie Ball lineup to date.
“Earthwood Bell Bronze strings are a giant leap forward in tone, playability, and durability. They’re great in any musical setting but really shine when played solo. There’s an orchestral quality to them.” -John Mayer
Product Features:
- Developed in collaboration with John Mayer
- Big, bold sound
- Inspired by alloys used for bells and cymbals
- Increased resonance with improved projection and sustain
- Patent-pending alloy unique to Ernie Ball stringsHow is Bell Bronze different?
- Richer and fuller sound than 80/20 and Phosphor Bronze without sounding dark
- Similar top end to 80/20 Bronze with richer low end than Phosphor Bronze
Brent Mason is, of course, on of the most recorded guitarists in history, who helped define the sound of most ’90s country superstars. So, whether you know it or not, you’ve likely heard Mason’s playing.
Professional transcriber Levi Clay has done the deepest of dives into Brent Mason’s hotshot licks. At one point, he undertook the massive project of transcribing and sharing one of Mason’s solos every day for 85 or so days. Mason is, of course, on of the most recorded guitarists in history, who helped define the sound of most ’90s country superstars. So, whether you know it or not, you’ve likely heard Mason’s playing. Levi shares the insight he gleaned from digging deep, and he tells us what it was like when they shared a stage last year. Plus, Levi plays us some great examples of Mason’s playing.