The new Orion Series guitar from the Aluminati combines lightweight aerospace grade aluminum neck with Lucite body for an instrument that offers more sustain and far less maintenance than any other guitar on the market. The ergonomically designed Orion guitars are produced with sustainable manufacturing techniques and contain high post consumer content materials.
Aluminati's hollowcore aluminum neck paired with their 3D milled Lucite body brings all of the sustain and tone associated with aluminum and acrylic, in a lightweight design.
Truss rods are unnecessary in aluminum necks, so along with the use of Jescar stainless fretwire the Orion Series guitars require no yearly adjustments/maintenance.
Features
● 25.5" scale aerospace grade 6061 T6 hollowcore aluminum neck
● 22 stainless steel Jescar frets at a 12" radius
● 3D milled black Lucite bady, chambered for increased resonance
● Lollar Imperial humbuckers with 3 way toggle
● Locking tuners
● Alumicrown bridge featuring Grapghtech saddles
● Bolt on brass nut for fast string guage changes
● Hardshell water resistant Gator case
● Made in the USA
● Lifetime warranty
Aluminati Guitar Co. Orion Series guitars are available for MSRP $2,899 Street Price $2,699. Available factory direct online at www.aluminatiguitars.com
An understated, utilitarian buffer/boost/preamp that can profoundly reshape your tones.
RatingsPros:Intuitive and transformative impedance control. Excellent transparent boost. Includes AmpliTube 4. Cons: Feature set might be overkill for some. Street: $149 IK Multimedia Z-Tone Buffer Boost ikmultimedia.com | Tones:  Ease of Use: Build/Design: Value:  |
In its relatively nondescript matte-black aluminum enclosure, the Italy-made Z-Tone Buffer Boost isn’t likely to stoke longing at a glance. But plug one in and you may find its pure utility hard to live without.
But calling the Z-Tone Buffer Boost merely a buffer/boost sells it short. Yes, it offers up to 10 dB of relatively transparent boost and +/- 8 dB of output gain. But it also offers the flexible impedance control from IK’s AXE I/O interface, a feature that can dramatically change the way pickups interact with the rest of your rig. Engineers can write volumes on these esoteric electronic relationships, but the impedance control makes it easy to feel your way to the best match between your guitar and pedalboard—or for that matter, a less ideal match that coaxes unusual but useful tones.
There are switches for accommodating active or passive pickups, as well as for moving between transparent “pure” boost and a more colorful and midrange-y JFET boost. And useful routing options include a balanced XLR output and a link output that mirrors the input so you can route to multiple sources. Add in a full, downloadable version of the AmpliTube 4 modeling application, and the Z-Tone Buffer Boost might be the most flexible pedal value you didn’t know you needed.
Test Gear: Fender Telecaster Deluxe, black-panel Fender Vibrolux