Cedric Burnside's new Fender Tone Master Twin Reverb has the same controls and features as a classic non-master-volume Twin, but, with its solid-state circuitry and light speakers, half the weight.
In a one-man battle for louder, a Fender Tone Master Twin and Ampeg Portaflex duplex rig triumphs.
I admit it. I was once part of the Arms Race. When I was in my '90s alt-rock band, Vision Thing, I bought a Marshall half-stack. Then the other guitarist got Fender's 100-watt The Twin, which he cranked. And the bassist got a Trace Elliot AH500X. And it was on. Volume and gear escalated until we were damn loud, and it was a constant battle to hear and be heard. Eventually I kinda won, but it was a pyrrhic victory. I was doomed to lug around two 4x12s: one with a 50-watt Marshall Super Lead and the other with a 100-watt Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Trem-O-Verb. Yes, it sounded fantastic, but … damn! My back!
Grammy-nominated blues artist Cedric Burnside recently fought his own Arms Race—with himself. And emerged a winner both tonally and physically. Take it away, Cedric: "I have an Orange Crush 35RT, and I like it. I don't use pedals, except for a booster for solos, so I like to play clean, but the Orange wasn't loud enough for big stages. So, I started looking at bigger Fenders, and I tried a Twin Reverb and a couple Deluxes, and then I found the Fender Tone Master Twin Reverb. At 200 watts, it's got balls and it's light as a feather. I figured, 'This is for me.'"
But the rub is that Burnside, who fronts a guitar-and-drums duo, splits his signal between a guitar amp and a bass amp, and his Peavey Basic 50 was suddenly a Roman candle to his Tone Master's ICBM. So, he upped his louder low-end ordnance: a 500-watt Ampeg PF-500 head with a 115HE Portaflex cabinet. Détente resulted. "I love having a solid-state rig for gigs," he says. No tube issues, and, with the Tone Master weighing in at 33 pounds and the bass rig at 45 and change, his schedule is the only thing that's heavy.
Cedric Burnside Wins the Arms Race | Love & Sockets
Clearly, this isn't the ideal for everybody, but Burnside plays rad 'n' trad Mississippi hill country blues, a subgenre that relies on spare, fat riffs, grinding hypnotic rhythms, and ringing single-note lines and slide, with every raw edge left dangerously rusty. He learned the trade expertly while playing drums for his grandfather, the great hill country singer and guitarist R.L. Burnside, and just a pocketful of years ago emerged as a potent 6-stringer and songwriter. In fact, there is no finer living proponent of the mesmeric style. For proof, listen to his 2018 Benton Country Relic, a fuzz-infused fusion of traditional and exploratory sounds. Since then, despite COVID, Burnside has been on a fast track. The album was nominated for a Grammy, he starred in a feature film (the racial-injustice period piece Texas Red), played a slew of festivals, opened for Great Van Fleet and other rockers, and cut a new long-player, I Be Trying. He was also named a National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellow.
Cedric on the Tone Master Deluxe Reverb: "At 200 watts, it's got balls and it's light as a feather. I figured, 'This is for me.'"
Although Cedric thanks "God and R.L. Burnside" for his success, he doesn't play exactly like either of them—even when playing songs by his legendary "Big Daddy." He has a more pointillistic soloing style, with a wickedly barbed tone, and flurries of notes that are more akin to Ali Farka Touré or the modern school of Tuareg guitarists, like Bombino and Mdou Moctar. He's heard none of them, although the central artery of both the desert and Mississippi hill country sounds is clearly African.
Rig Rundown - Cedric Burnside
As for those amps, Burnside sets his Fender's bass at 4, mids at 6, and his treble at 6 or 7. It has 12" Celestion Neo Creambacks. "I think a lot of the sharpness in my tone is in my fingers," he offers. Usually, he skips the reverb and will occasionally use a tad of tremolo for effect. For the bass head, he turns the treble off, sets mids between 3 and zero, and pumps the bass full up. It's a no-nonsense sound for beautifully direct and unironic music. And he plugs in a guitar built by Mike Aronson of Aronson Custom Guitars. The body is a single piece of ginger-colored shedua, and the neck is mahogany with a pau ferro fretboard. The pickups are Harmonic Design Z-90s. There's a 3-way toggle switch and a volume knob. "All I do is turn the volume up and down, so I told Mike tone knobs weren't necessary," says Burnside. (For a close look at this distinctive guitar, see our April 2020 Rig Rundown with Burnside, or check out the online video he made to demo his Tone Master, where you'll also get a full-fretboard view of his technique.)
"I'm not really a super-sophisticated player," says Burnside, "but I know what I like, and I know what I want to say, and with this guitar and these amps, I've got everything I need to say it."
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- First Look: Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb - Premier Guitar ›
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- Cedric Burnside and the North Mississippi Blues Tradition ›
Lutefish, the real-time music collaboration device and platform, is excited to announce a suite of new features designed to simplify setup, streamline collaboration, and offer more flexible subscription options for Lutefish Stream users. These latest updates, Audio Presets, Automatic Session Recall, Improved Scheduling with Contact Visibility, and a new Yearly Subscription Plan, are all about making it easier than ever for musicians to jam together, no matter where they’re based.
Save Time and Stay in the Flow with Audio Presets & Session Recall
Musicians can now save and reuse their exact audio settings, reducing setup time and ensuring every session sounds exactly as they want.
- Automatic Session Recall: When users leave a session, their current audio levels are automatically saved and restored when they rejoin.
- User-Defined Audio Presets: Each user can create and name up to five custom presets, like “Band Practice,” “Studio Mic Setup,” or “Quick Jam,” making it effortless to jump back in with the perfect sound.
“These tools are all about saving time and hassle,” said Patrick Finn, Business Manager at Lutefish. “Musicians want to make music, not spend time rebalancing levels every session. With presets and recall, we’re giving them time back and helping them sound their best, every time.”
Smarter Scheduling and Contact Visibility
The latest update to Lutefish also made it easier to find collaborators and book sessions. Users can now:- View all their contacts at a glance when scheduling a session.
- Instantly identify which contacts own a Lutefish Stream device—so they will always know who’s ready to jam.
Go Yearly and Save 20%
Lutefish now offers a Yearly Subscription Plan, providing users with the same great access as the monthly plan at a 20% discount.
This option is now available within the Lutefish app and web platform, and current monthly users are eligible for a discount with an upgrade to a yearly subscription.
Lutefish’s mission has always been to empower musicians to connect and collaborate without boundaries. With these new updates, Lutefish Stream continues to break down barriers—whether you’re jamming with a friend across town or collaborating with a bandmate 500 miles away.
For more information and to start jamming today, visitlutefish.com.
The veteran Florida-born metalcore outfit proves that you don’t need humbuckers to pull off high gain.
Last August, metalcore giants Poison the Well gave the world a gift: They announced they were working on their first studio album in 15 years. They unleashed the first taste, single “Trembling Level,” back in January, and set off on a spring North American tour during which they played their debut record, The Opposite of December… A Season of Separation, in full every night.
PG’s Perry Bean caught up with guitarists Ryan Primack and Vadim Taver, and bassist Noah Harmon, ahead of the band’s show at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl for this new Rig Rundown.
Brought to you by D’Addario.Not-So-Quiet As a Mouse
Primack started his playing career on Telecasters, then switched to Les Pauls, but when his prized LPs were stolen, he jumped back to Teles, and now owns nine of them.
His No. 1 is this white one (left). Seymour Duncan made him a JB Model pickup in a single-coil size for the bridge position, while the neck is a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound Staggered. He ripped out all the electronics, added a Gibson-style toggle switch, flipped the control plate orientation thanks to an obsession with Danny Gatton, and included just one steel knob to control tone. Primack also installed string trees with foam to control extra noise.
This one has Ernie Ball Papa Het’s Hardwired strings, .011–.050.
Here, Kitty, Kitty
Primack runs both a PRS Archon and a Bad Cat Lynx at the same time, covering both 6L6 and EL34 territories. The Lynx goes into a Friedman 4x12 cab that’s been rebadged in honor of its nickname, “Donkey,” while the Archon, which is like a “refined 5150,” runs through an Orange 4x12.
Ryan Primack’s Pedalboard
Primack’s board sports a Saturnworks True Bypass Multi Looper, plus two Saturnworks boost pedals. The rest includes a Boss TU-3w, DOD Bifet Boost 410, Caroline Electronics Hawaiian Pizza, Fortin ZUUL +, MXR Phase 100, JHS Series 3 Tremolo, Boss DM-2w, DOD Rubberneck, MXR Carbon Copy Deluxe, Walrus Slo, and SolidGoldFX Surf Rider III.
Taver’s Teles
Vadim Taver’s go-to is this cherryburst Fender Telecaster, which he scored in the early 2000s and has been upgraded to Seymour Duncan pickups on Primack’s recommendation. His white Balaguer T-style has been treated to the same upgrade. The Balaguer is tuned to drop C, and the Fender stays in D standard. Both have D’Addario strings, with a slightly heavier gauge on the Balaguer.
Dual-Channel Chugger
Taver loves his 2-channel Orange Rockerverb 100s, one of which lives in a case made right in Nashville.
Vadim Taver’s Pedalboard
Taver’s board includes an MXR Joshua, MXR Carbon Copy Deluxe, Empress Tremolo, Walrus ARP-87, Old Blood Noise Endeavors Reflector, MXR Phase 90, Boss CE-2w, and Sonic Research Turbo Tuner ST-200, all powered by a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 Plus.
Big Duff
Harmon’s favorite these days is this Fender Duff McKagan Deluxe Precision Bass, which he’s outfitted with a Leo Quan Badass bridge. His backup is a Mexico-made Fender Classic Series ’70s Jazz Bass. This one also sports Primack-picked pickups.
Rental Rockers
Harmon rented this Orange AD200B MK III head, which runs through a 1x15 cab on top and a 4x10 on the bottom.
Noah Harmon’s Pedalboard
Harmon’s board carries a Boss TU-2, Boss ODB-3, MXR Dyna Comp, Darkglass Electronics Vintage Ultra, and a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 Plus. His signal from the Vintage Ultra runs right to the front-of-house, and Harmon estimates that that signal accounts for about half of what people hear on any given night.
Kiesel Guitars has introduced their newest solid body electric guitar: the Kyber.
With its modern performance specs and competitive pricing, the Kyber is Kiesel's most forward-thinking design yet, engineered for comfort, quick playing, and precision with every note.
Introducing the Kiesel Kyber Guitar
- Engineered with a lightweight body to reduce fatigue during long performances without sacrificing tone. Six-string Kybers, configured with the standard woods and a fixed bridge, weigh in at 6 pounds or under on average
- Unique shape made for ergonomic comfort in any playing position and enhanced classical position
- The Kyber features Kiesel's most extreme arm contour and a uniquely shaped body that enhances classical position support while still excelling in standard position.
- The new minimalist yet aggressive headstock pairs perfectly with the body's sleek lines, giving the Kyber a balanced, modern silhouette.
- Hidden strap buttons mounted on rear for excellent balance while giving a clean, ultra-modern look to the front
- Lower horn cutaway design for maximum access to the upper frets
- Sculpted neck heel for seamless playing
- Available in 6 or 7 strings, fixed or tremolo in both standard and multiscale configurations Choose between fixed bridges, tremolos, or multiscale configurations for your perfect setup.
Pricing for the Kyber starts at $1599 and will vary depending on options and features. Learn more about Kiesel’s new Kyber model at kieselguitars.com
The Sunset is a fully analog, zero latency bass amplifier simulator. It features a ¼” input, XLR and ¼” outputs, gain and volume controls and extensive equalization. It’s intended to replace your bass amp both live and in the studio.
If you need a full sounding amp simulator with a lot of EQ, the Sunset is for you. It features a five band equalizer with Treble, Bass, Parametric Midrange (with frequency and level controls), Resonance (for ultra lows), and Presence (for ultra highs). All are carefully tuned for bass guitar. But don’t let that hold you back if you’re a keyboard player. Pianos and synthesizers sound great with the Sunset!
The Sunset includes Gain and master Volume controls which allow you to add compression and classic tube amp growl. It has both ¼” phone and balanced XLR outputs - which lets you use it as a high quality active direct box. Finally, the Sunset features zero latency all analog circuitry – important for the instrument most responsible for the band’s groove.
Introducing the Sunset Bass Amp Simulator
- Zero Latency bass amp simulator.
- Go direct into the PA or DAW.
- Five Band EQ:
- Treble and Bass controls.
- Parametric midrange with level and frequency controls.
- Presence control for extreme highs.
- Resonance control for extreme lows.
- Gain control to add compression and harmonics.
- Master Volume.
- XLR and 1/4" outputs.
- Full bypass.
- 9VDC, 200mA.
Artwork by Aaron Cheney
MAP price: $210 USD ($299 CAD).