The legendary distortion is revived after being shelved for 30 years with a buffered circuit, noise-floor reduction, and expanding the maximum level by 3 dB.
BOSS announces the HM-2W Heavy Metal, the latest in the growing lineup of Waza Craft pedals that recreate classic BOSS designs with detailed craftsmanship, premium components, and extended features. Based on the HM-2 Heavy Metal pedal from the 1980s, the HM-2W delivers the true analog sound of the original in all its glory, coupled with numerous modern refinements for enhanced performance.
Produced from 1983 to 1991, the BOSS HM-2 Heavy Metal is a legend in the history of distortion pedals. Its signature "chainsaw tone" with all knobs maxed is the defining voice of Swedish death metal music, and the slightly milder sides of its personality can be heard on tracks from mainstream to shoegaze. Over time, the pedal's uniquely aggressive sound and focused midrange have become highly sought after by players around the world. After years of requests from hardcore HM-2 fans, BOSS is pleased to reintroduce the iconic stomp three decades later in a special Waza Craft edition.
Like all Waza Craft models, the HM-2W features selectable modes for different sounds. BOSS engineers have also added audio performance improvements without affecting the original tone, including reducing the noise floor and expanding the maximum level by 3 dB. The HM-2W features a premium Waza Craft buffer as well, providing improved sound when the pedal is bypassed.
When the HM-2W is in Standard mode, the tone and response of the original HM-2 pedal are reproduced with 100-percent authenticity. Cranking every knob all the way up delivers the genuine sound of Swedish death metal, and users can conjure a wide range of tones for other styles with the sensitive distortion and color controls.
The HM-2W's Custom mode offers a similar sound character to Standard mode, but with just a little more of everything. The drive stage has more gain and includes more of the fundamental guitar sound for extra attack and sharpness. In addition, the low and high-mid characteristics have been tweaked for increased fullness and definition.
Along with the vintage HM-2 sound, BOSS has captured the original pedal's distinctive orange and black appearance, right down to the size and position of lettering on the panel. And while the mode switch on most Waza Craft pedals is positioned on the face, it's been moved to the top on the HM-2W to preserve the control layout from the HM-2.
BOSS HM 2W Heavy Metal - INTRO
A Metal Legend ReturnsProduced from 1983 to 1991, the BOSS HM-2 Heavy Metal is a true legend in the history of distortion pedals. Its signature “chainsaw ton...The BOSS HM-2W Heavy Metal will be available in the U.S. in August 2021 for $179.99.* To learn more about the HM-2W Heavy Metal and other pedals in the Waza Craft series, visit www.boss.info.
- Boss Waza Craft TB-2W Tone Bender: The Premier Guitar Review ... ›
- Boss OC-5 Octave: The Premier Guitar Review - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss WAZA Tube Amp Expander Amplifier Attenuator Review ... ›
- Boss GT-1000CORE: The Premier Guitar Review - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss Launches the EURUS GS-1 Guitar - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss GT-1000CORE Review - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss OC-5 Octave Review - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss Waza Craft TB-2W Tone Bender Review - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss GT-1000CORE Review - Premier Guitar ›
- BOSS Announces the GX-100 Guitar Effects Processor - Premier Guitar ›
- Boss DM-101 Delay Machine Review - 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
Rick Derringer plays the Coliseum in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1973—the year of “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo.”
The guitarist and high-profile producer, whose career began with the ’60s garage-rock band the McCoys and included a historic run with Johnny and Edgar Winter, and, more recently, Ringo Starr, leaves behind a deep catalog.
Prolific American guitarist and producer Rick Derringer passed away on Monday, May 26, in Ormond Beach, Florida, at the age of 77. In the 1970s, with Edgar and Johnny Winter, and as a hit-making solo artist, he was a flamboyant stage presence whose biting tone and fluent classic-rock soloing made him a guitar-culture icon. An official cause of death has not been announced, but he suffered from heart ailments and had recently undergone a triple bypass.
Derringer, born Richard Dean Zehringer on August 5, 1947, was raised in Ohio and, before he was 10 years old, received his first electric guitar. He and his brother Randy began playing music together. By high school, he had his own band: Rick Z Combo, then Rick and the Raiders, before finally settling on the McCoys.
It was in his late teens, as singer and guitarist of the McCoys, that Derringer cut his first and perhaps most enduring hit, a cover of Wes Farrell and Bert Berns’ “Hang on Sloopy.” In fact, the band you hear on the McCoys’ iconic release is the Strangeloves; Derringer’s vocals and guitar were recorded and added, and the song was released by the McCoys. This became the definitive rendition of the song, which today remains an unofficial anthem for the state of Ohio, finding airtime at Ohio State Buckeyes, Cleveland Guardians, Cleveland Browns, and Cleveland Cavaliers games.
“It’s heavy rock ’n’ roll boogie and hyper, bluesy riffing also gained it a spot in the popular video game Guitar Hero II, where Derringer’s music was introduced to a new, young generation of aspiring guitarists.”
In the 1970s, Derringer and the McCoys began a fruitful and long-lasting relationship with brothers Edgar and Johnny Winter, first as part of Johnny Winter’s Johnny Winter And group, and then Edgar Winter’s White Trash and Edgar Winter Group. Off the back of those collaborations, Derringer launched his debut solo LP, All American Boy, in 1973. It carried another of his signature songs, the rollicking, groovy-as-hell “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo,” which had by then already been released twice on records by both Johnny and Edgar Winter. Derringer’s take reached No. 23 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart and saturated FM radio. Its heavy rock ’n’ roll boogie and hyper, bluesy riffing also gained it a spot in the popular video game Guitar Hero II, where Derringer’s music was introduced to a new, young generation of aspiring guitarists.
Through the 1970s and ’80s, Derringer continued his streak of collaborations with artists like Steely Dan, Todd Rundgren, Meat Loaf, Cyndi Lauper, Barbra Streisand, and more. Most notable, perhaps, was his work with “Weird Al” Yankovic. He produced six albums for the song satirist, which included Yankovic’s Grammy-winning hits “Eat It” (1984) and “Fat” (1988). By then, Derringer had already racked up a string of formidable production credits: his own All American Boy, Edgar Winter’s Shock Treatment and They Only Come Out at Night, Live Johnny Winter And, plus Johnny Winter’s Saints & Sinners, among others.
Derringer also played guitar on Bonnie Tyler’s perennial karaoke-night staple “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” and in 1985, Derringer struck gold again with “Real American,” Hulk Hogan’s theme song from the WWE soundtrack record, The Wrestling Album. With its striking title and pumped-up lyrics (“I am a real American/Fight for the rights of every man!”), the song went on to find popularity with politicians of all stripes, from Barack Obama to Hillary Clinton to Donald Trump.
The latter found favor with Rick Derringer, who appeared multiple times on Alex Jones’ far-right, conspiracy-theory-based website Infowars in conversation with Roger Stone to express support for Trump, beginning in 2016. Derringer revamped the lyrics of “Real American” for a rerelease in 2017, which he promoted with an appearance on Infowars.
Derringer continued playing with high-profile musicians through the 2000s, including Ringo Starr, Peter Frampton, Yes’ Jon Anderson, Joe Bonamassa, and the Winter brothers. Throughout his life, Derringer mostly used humbucking-outfitted guitars for his big tone, including Gibson Explorers, SGs, ES-335s, and Les Pauls, as well as B.C. Rich Mockingbirds and a signature model Warrior guitar.Cort Guitars announces a new multi-scale, seven string guitar in the KX507 series – the KX507MS Pale Moon. The addition to the beloved series shows Cort’s efforts to continue elevating their position in the marketplace. The guitar is now available online and in local retail stores.
The double cut, mahogany body is topped with a pale moon ebony to help support the strong mid-range and low response needed on a multi scale seven string. A 5-piece maple and purple heart bolt on neck supports a 25.5” – 27” scale, macassar ebony fingerboard with a neutral fret at the 8th position for improved playability. 24 jumbo, stainless-steel frets offer maximum range with teardrop inlays and side dots for easy navigation. Measuring 2.059” (52.3mm) at the nut, this guitar is built for performance and comfort. And with the two-way adjustable truss rod and spoke nut, this guitar delivers ultimate stability in any tuning in any environment. Performance is further enhanced with a D shape neck and 16” radius.
At the core of the KX507MS Pale Moon is the Fishman® Fluence Modern humbucker set. With a ceramic magnet in the bridge, and an alnico magnet in the neck, these pickups deliver all the musicality of traditional pickups but have three unique voices. Voice 1 is a modern active, high output. Voice 2 delivers crisp, clean tones. And Voice 3 is a single coil with glassy, clear performance. To unleash the potential of these pickups, Cort uses a simple single volume, single tone, each as a push/pull control and three-way selector switch. The volume push/pull put selects between Voice 1 and Voice 2 while the tone push/pull pot selects between humbucker and single coil mode.
Finally, to provide exact intonation and tuning stability, the KX507MS is loaded with seven individual string bridges and Cort’s very own locking tuners. The bridges allow for thru body string installation to maximize sustain and vibration transfer at each string saddle. All guitars are shipped from the factory with D’Addario EXL110-7 strings.
For more information, please visit www.CortGuitars.com
MAP: $949.99 USD
Grover has introduced Grover Guitar Polish, a premium, all-natural guitar care solution designed to clean, shine, and protect your guitar’s finish. Whether you're polishing your prized axe or simply maintaining your gear, Grover Guitar Polish offers a safe, effective choice for making your guitar’s finish look its best.
Grover Guitar Polish is specially formulated to remove dirt, fingerprints, and grime while enhancing the natural luster of your guitar. The versatile polish is safe for virtually all guitars: it works on gloss, matte, and satin surfaces without causing damage or altering the finish.
Key features include:
- Non-Abrasive & Streak-Free: Grover’s formula cleans without leaving streaks, ensuring a smooth, even shine every time.
- Effortless Cleaning & Restoring Shine: The easy-to-use formula requires minimal effort, so you can keep your guitar looking its best in no time.
- Protective Layer: Leaves a thin, smooth protective layer that guards your guitar from dust, dirt, and environmental factors.
- Pleasant, Non-Toxic Scent: Enjoy the fresh, non-toxic scent while you care for your instrument, knowing you're using a safe product for both you and your guitar.
"Grover Guitar Polish combines the best of both worlds – a powerful, all-natural cleaning solution with a formula that’s gentle enough for every finish," said Cory Berger, President at Grover. "We wanted to create a product that not only restores the shine and beauty of your guitar, but also provides a layer of protection that helps maintain its finish for years to come."
Grover Guitar Polish carries a $14.95 suggested retail price. For more information visit the Grover website at grotro.com.