Annapolis pays tribute to Fullerton in a fantastically playable T-style that also deviates significantly from the form.
Versatile pickups. Effortless playability. A juicy twist on the T-style template.
Humbuckers are more inclined to overdrive than the typical Telecaster.
$2,899
If you never saw the new PRS NF 53 and heard Paul Reed Smith say it’s based on a beloved, 1953-model instrument from his collection, you’d probably imagine a goldtop Les Paul—at least if you consider PRS’s typical design leanings. One glance at this new offering, however, makes it clear that Smith had a very different ’53 guitar in mind. But while the NF 53’s Telecaster influence is clear, it’s hardly a conventional take on the type. PRS tweaked just about every bit of the classic T-style blueprint to arrive at a guitar with an extended vocabulary that retains many appealing facets of vintage Telecaster design. The results are likely to cause a stir among forward-thinking players and purists alike.
Single-Cut Above
While the NF 53’s 25 1/2" scale and bolt-on maple neck are very much in the vintage Telecaster spirit, there are significant differences. The neck is built using 3-piece construction. A scarf joint adds strength in the nut-to-headstock transition area and re-enforces the slightly angled headstock. The truss rod is accessed from just behind the nut, and the fretboard is a separate piece of maple that’s glued to the neck after installation of the truss rod. The neck feels great, too, with a rounded-C carve that seems more akin to a ’59 Les Paul than an early ’50s Telecaster, as well as a 10" fretboard radius and a nut width of 1-41/64". Both dimensions mark a kind of compromise between classic Fender and Gibson standards. But moving across the NF 53’s fretboard feels effortless, and I suspect most guitarists will take to the model easily and breezily.
True to vintage T-style form, the NF 53’s solid body is made from swamp ash, a wood that, today, is much harder to find in consistently high-quality and lightweight supplies. PRS works around this challenge, to some degree, by gluing three pieces of ash together. Vintage- and boutique-guitar aficionados romanticize 1-piece bodies and sometimes sniff at anything more than 2-piece. But I’d rather have a relatively light 3-piece ash body than a boat-anchor 1- or 2-piece—and the NF 53’s very comfortable weight, around 7 pounds, is most certainly on the lighter side. (Anecdotally, I have a ’66 Telecaster with a 3-piece body, and it’s one of the best-sounding guitars I’ve ever owned). The size and depth of the body are very traditionally T-style too. But here again, there are differences. The NF 53 has a shorter horn that’s also contoured for improved upper-fret access. Forearm and rib contours enhance playing comfort, and the body’s waist is ever so slightly offset.
“I suspect most guitarists will take to the NF 53 easily and breezily.”
Obviously, a huge part of the classic T-style formula is the single-coil pickups. On this front, the NF 53 deviates from tradition more significantly by using PRS’ Narrowfield DD (“Deep Dish”) pickups, which are single-coil-sized humbuckers. They’re made with deep bobbins for loading on extra coil windings as well as a mix of magnet pole pieces with steel poles in between. They are wired via master volume and tone controls and a 3-way selector switch.
The NF 53’s bridge adds another twist. It employs a steel-base with string-anchor notches rather than through-body stringing, as well as two brass, 3-string saddles with two adjustment bolts each. The vintage-style tuners sport a Kluson-like appearance but with unique ivory-colored plastic buttons.
Twanger or Banger?
Even before you hook up the NF 53 to an amplifier, it rings like a bell, with the bright yet balanced response, piano-like low-string clarity, and the impressive sustain I’d expect from a really good Telecaster. Amplified, you hear all those same qualities as well as a lively edge that is something all its own. The narrow-format humbuckers love overdrive and amps at the brink of distortion—generating snarly, gutsy voices that still offer clear note definition and tight bass tones.
In clean environments, the Narrowfield DDs are punchier and grittier than traditional single-coil T-style pickups with guitar volume at maximum. And when you reduce guitar volume, they sound smoother and tamer than an old-school Telecaster might. That’s no bad thing, though. I prefer the NF 53’s neck pickup sounds to all but a few vintage Telecasters I’ve played (including a long-gone ’63 that still haunts me). It has a full, rich, throaty tone that’s lovely for jazz or ballads and delectably dynamic for blues soloing—especially with a little drive in the mix. In general, the NF 53 offers more bang than twang. But within its appealingly chameleon-like personality, there are still tasty T-style sounds to be found.
The Verdict
Thoughtfully designed and very well put together, the NF 53 is a nifty spin on the world’s first mass-produced solidbody electric guitar, but one that takes the format in new directions. The relative simplicity of the instrument is no impediment to versatility. But the real joy in the NF 53 is that it plays beautifully and offers a wide swath of dynamic, smooth, and often trenchant voices that are all its own.
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The latest multi-effect from Wampler is a dreamy if sometimes difficult-to-master delay/reverb combo.
Great, instantly useable reverb and delay tones. Impressive breadth of sounds in one box. Solid construction. Good value.
Controls and operation can feel confusing.
$299
Wampler Catacombs
wamplerpedals.com
“Modeling versus tube” might be the gear world title fight of the 2020s, but “LED menu versus none on multieffects” is a pretty riveting undercard. I have sympathies in both corners. The ocean-deep onscreen interface of theMeris Mercury X, for instance, was a bear to navigate, but it also yielded some of the most exciting and tweakable reverb I’ve ever heard. At the same time, I’ll always be partial to having every control I need at my fingertips, and every parameter a knob twirl away from just-right.In theory, the digitalWampler Catacombs fits into the second category, the one I prefer. It’s a super-loaded reverb and delay combo pedal, with seven delay algorithms and five reverb options that sound great. Though in practice, Catacombs sometimes turned out to be a bit more complicated to navigate than I expected.
Lost in the Catacombs
The Catacombs is one of those pedals that begs a dedicated read of the manual before you dive in. Wampler says that the interface enables users to “navigate effortlessly” without the use of onboard screens and menus. I was excited by this: Like I said, I don’t love getting lost down tiny LED display rabbit holes and would much rather have all I need at hand. The Catacombs technically satisfies that desire, but it also demonstrates tradeoffs involved with that design ethic. I’m alright with certain controls pulling double-duty, but when every single knob shares two functions, things can get hairy, and doing your preparation up front pays big dividends.
You have to press and hold the left footswitch for a second to access the alt controls (labeled in blue), including reverb selection on the main rotary knob. Though this doesn’t complicate matters too much when using a reverb or delay exclusively, it can be tricky when using a reverb and delay simultaneously. A few times, I scrambled to switch control modes to tame a super-loud runaway reverb or a self-oscillating delay, and the feeling of frantically spinning knobs with no impact because you’re not in the right control mode isn’t a good one. Additionally, you might not know where a given parameter is set because each knob is shared between the delay and reverb effect. The eight onboard preset slots take some of this guesswork away. And Catacombs would be a cinch in the studio once the control navigation becomes second-nature, but I got nervous thinking of trying to navigate any of these quirks during a set.
Entombed in Ambience
Catacombs’ operational challenges don’t take too much away from the whole experience because it sounds so great. Each of the six delay programs, and each of the five reverbs, were instantly useable and familiar. Side by side with my Walrus Fathom and EarthQuaker Avalanche Run, the plate, hall, and spring reverb modes held their own, and something about the pedal’s wet/dry mix made my playing feel especially alive, present, and cinematic at most settings. I was especially fond of the spring reverb with the decay maxed out—it was juicy and metallic in all the right ways.
The delay modules were just as satisfying. They include three algorithms for tape-style delays, two analog-style delays, and a single digital echo, and each mode offers a distinct texture and experience. The ability to quickly switch the effects from series to parallel offers fun and useful experimentation, letting you apply the reverb algorithm to just your dry signal, or to the repeats, too. I especially enjoyed sticking the plate reverb on my dry signal and leaving it off the delay, creating warped senses of space and continuity.
The Verdict
Though it sounds excellent, immersive, and inviting, I was flustered more than once while trying to bend Catacombs to my will. In some respects, I was reminded of a menu where you’re given three desirable options and have to pick just two. In this case, the options are affordability, sound quality, and user-friendliness. Catacombs is certainly reasonably priced and sounds excellent. But because it navigates a difficult middle path between skipping a cost-bumping digital menu and being more complex than more-straightforward, what-you-see-is-what-you-get units, you should make sure you’re comfortable with that compromise.
Celestion introduces a low-sensitivity, dual voice coil, attenuating speaker.
The Peacekeeper offers guitarists and other amplified musicians a simple and effective way to dial in the coveted "sweet spot" on their amplifiers while still performing at modest volume levels. The Peacekeeper will be on display, alongside a range of Celestion’s key guitar and PA products at the company’s NAMM 2025 booth (Hall C, #6602).
The Peacekeeper is designed to work seamlessly with almost any amplifier, like a conventional guitar speaker, but it’s in-built attenuating technology will significantly reduce output sensitivity. This enables musicians to drive their amplifiers harder while maintaining manageable volume levels.
Key features of the Peacekeeper include:
- Attenuation Technology: The Peacekeeper’s innovative design effectively attenuates the amplifier’s output, compared with conventional speakers, allowing players to achieve their desired sound at lower volumes.
- Uncompromising Tone: Attenuation is achieved “organically” through the natural operation of the loudspeaker, enabling the Peacekeeper to preserve the Celestion tone that musicians love: the attenuation process adds no colouration or compromise.
- Seamless Integration: With its 12” diameter, the Peacekeeper seamlessly integrates with any standard cabinet, offering a hassle-free solution for volume control.
- Widely Compatible: Offering 8Ω impedance and a maximum power rating of 50W, the Peacekeeper is suitable for pairing with a wide range of amplifiers.
- Precision Built in the UK: Peacekeeper drivers are assembled at Celestion’s UK-based loudspeaker research and manufacturing facility, and rigorously tested to meet exacting performance criteria.
For more information on the Peacekeeper, visit: https://celestion.com/product/peacekeeper/
Visit Celestion at The NAMM Show, January 23-25,2025 in Hall C, Booth #6602.
Across Frank Zappa’s monumental body of work, he injected rock-based music with compositional techniques straight out of the modern classical handbook, as well as groundbreaking studio trickery and a teenager’s wit. To match his untamable creativity, he famously demanded an unmatched level of musical dedication from his players, and his own guitar playing balanced that discipline with off-the-rails experimentation.
Across Frank Zappa’s monumental body of work, he injected rock-based music with compositional techniques straight out of the modern classical handbook, as well as groundbreaking studio trickery and a teenager’s wit. To match his untamable creativity, he famously demanded an unmatched level of musical dedication from his players, and his own guitar playing balanced that discipline with off-the-rails experimentation.
When considering Zappa’s legacy as a guitarist, we can’t separate it from his work as a composer, songwriter, producer, and all-around big personality. As a listener, you can love Zappa’s chamber music and simultaneously not be able to handle his lyrics; you can adore his guitar playing but prefer he keep his opinions to himself. Our list of favorite Zappa guitar-centric recordings covers a lot of musical ground but keeps it all about his playing.
Is Frank Zappa to blame for the sound of jam bands? When was Zappa’s best decade? And we’re looking at the connection between Zappa and Phish (who one of us calls “Zappa lite”). In a bonus segment, we’re playing “Did They Get It Right?” and examining the Grammys’ former category for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.
This episode is sponsored by Dunlop.
Learn more: https://www.jimdunlop.com/products/electronics/cry-baby/.
An all-new line of solid body electric guitars, rooted in Eastman’s D’Ambrosio Series.
The FullerTone SC '52 and DC '62 represent the fusion of Eastman’s old-world craftsmanship and modular versatility, featuring their FullerTone two-bolt, long-tenon neck design first pioneered in the highly acclaimed D'Ambrosio Series. This innovative neck-to-body construction delivers more tone, sustain, and stability.
Through collaboration with renowned pickup builders ToneRider, both models deliver pure, pristine tone while maintaining exceptional warmth and projection. The SC '52 single-cutaway and DC '62 double-cutaway models draw inspiration from California's natural beauty, coming in three distinctive colors—Moss Black, Desert Sand, and Ice Blue Metallic—each complemented by industrial anodized aluminum pickguards and Eatman’s signature Truetone Satin Gloss finish, delivering a gust of modern refinement and graceful mojo.
Key features of the Eastman FullerTone Series:
- Eastman’s highly coveted FullerTone two-bolt, long-tenon neck system with three times greater neck-to-body contact, delivering more tone, sustain, and stability
- Custom ToneRider soapbar humbuckers with gold-foil covers and noiseless stacked single coils
- Premium-grade electronics
- Roasted black limba bodies with custom-designed staggered tuners for optimal string pull
“My challenge for this design was simple: to create a modular bolt-on neck system that performed, looked, and felt better than what is commonly seen on the solid body bolt-on market. This led me to explore three-dimensional neck joints in solid-body guitars. The FullerTone neck system integrates a small structural heel and tenon hidden underneath the neck pickup. The matching geometry of the neck and body securely locks the two pieces into place and is mechanically fastened together. This design utilizes the best qualities of its main components,” said Otto D’Ambrosio, Eastman’s master luthier and designer.
"With these guitars we have managed to break through various barriers without cutting any corners. Again, everything is top notch, as we always offer nothing but the best. This one is for everyone, we feel," said Pepijn 't Hart, Eastman’s director of fretted instruments.
The FullerTone Series is available through Eastman Authorized Dealers worldwide, offering unlimited possibilities for players ready to take their creative expression to new levels.