
In this week's giveaway, you could WIN an Electro-Harmonx Modulator 11! Enter before March 14 for your chance to win.
Electro-Harmonix Mod 11 Modulator Machine Pedal
The EHX Mod 11 is packed with 11 different modulation effects that range from classic to exotic plus advanced functionality all in a compact pedal. It gives you access to powerful yet intuitive “hidden” parameters accessible through its Secondary Knob Mode which let you take even greater control over its effects.
The Mod 11’s modulation effects are:
1. TREM: Tremolo modulates your signal’s volume. Selectable modes allow your playing envelope to control modulation rate or depth.
2. HARM: Harmonic tremolo. The signal is split into high and low frequency bands and modulated between the two. Selectable modes allow your playing envelope to control modulation rate or depth.
3. VIBR: Vibrato modulates your instrument’s pitch. Selectable modes allow your playing envelope to control modulation rate or depth.
4. UNI: pays homage to the classic Univibe®. Includes “Chorus” and “Vibrato” modes plus added overdrive
5. CHORUS: Warbling, doubling, chorus effect like the EHX Small Clone. Extra modes include tri-chorus and bass chorus effects
6. ROTARY: Rotary speaker cabinet simulation. Extra functionality includes overdrive plus envelope control over rotation speed
7. FLANGE: Flanging with modes for both additive and subtractive flanger. Multiple LFO shapes, including envelope follower
8. TZF: Through Zero Flanger. A flanger effect that crosses through the “zero point” of the sweep where the modulated delayed signal meets back with the dry signal. Modes for both additive and subtractive flanger, plus barber-pole flanger
9. PHASE: Choose from 4, 6, or 8 stage phaser. Multiple LFO shapes including envelope follower
10. PITCH: Modulated pitch shifter. Select your main pitch shift and modulate around it. Extra functionality includes a dry blend and stepped pitch modes
11. FILT: Modulated filter effects like those on classic analog synths. Low Pass, High Pass and Band Pass. Multiple LFO shapes available including a Q-Tron style envelope follower
The Mod 11’s Momentary Mode lets you seamlessly switch in and out of effects mode for quick accents. It also features Tap Tempo controllable via the built-in footswitch or an external one. The Mod 11 is modulation with warp drive!
Gator Cases offers custom cases for Flying V and Explorer style guitars in their Traditional Deluxe Series.
Constructed from plywood with a black Tolex exterior, both cases offer protection against bumps and dings during transit.
Each case features a custom-molded interior tailored to fit the unique contours of its specific guitar. The inside is lined with thick plush padding to gently cushion the instrument, ensuring its angular body shape is supported at every point. The precise fit prevents movement during transport, reducing the risk of damage.
For added convenience, the cases include an internal storage compartment for accessories, keeping essential items stored alongside the instrument. Both cases feature chrome-plated hardware with three latches, including one that locks for added security.
In addition to the Traditional Deluxe Series cases, Gator offers a wide selection of guitar solutions, including gig bags, instrument and patch cables, molded cases, guitar stands, and pedalboards.
For more information, please visit gatorco.com.
The Hummingbird Studio EC features a mahogany body and sides with a Sitka spruce top, a Round SlimTaper profile mahogany neck, and L.R. Baggs electronics.
The Hummingbird has become more versatile and expressive than ever with the introduction of the Hummingbird Studio EC, Hummingbird Standard EC, and the Hummingbird Rosewood EC. Equipped with cutaway bodies that provide improved access to the upper frets of the Round SlimTaper profile mahogany necks, L.R. Baggs electronics, and shipped in hardshell cases, they’re ready for you to take them wherever the muse carries you.
Hummingbird Standard EC
- Mahogany body and sides with a Sitka spruce top
- Mahogany neck with a Round SlimTaper profile and 12” radius
- L.R. Baggs VTC electronics
- Gloss finish with full-color Hummingbird graphics on the pickguard
Hummingbird Standard Rosewood EC
- Rosewood body and sides with a Sitka spruce top gives more bass and harmonic complexity
- Mahogany neck with a Round SlimTaper profile and 12” radius
- L.R. Baggs VTC electronics
- Gloss finish with full-color Hummingbird graphics on the pickguard
Hummingbird Studio EC
- Mahogany body and sides with a Sitka spruce top
- Utile neck with a Round SlimTaper profile and 16” radius
- L.R. Baggs Element Bronze electronics
- Satin finish with one-color Hummingbird graphics on the pickguard
A forward-thinking, inventive, high-quality electro-acoustic design yields balance, playability, and performance flexibility.
High-quality construction. Flexible, responsive, and detailed-sounding pickup/mic system. Lots of bass resonance without feedback or mud.
Handsome, understated design may still estrange traditionalists.
$1,599
L.R. Baggs AEG-1
lrbaggs.com
Though acoustic amplification has improved by leaps, bounds, and light years, the challenges of making a flattop loud remain … challenging. L.R. Baggs has played no small part in improving the state of acoustic amplification, primarily via ultra-reliable pickups like the Anthem, Lyric, andHiFi Duet microphone and microphone/under-saddle systems, the overachieving, inexpensive Element Active System, and theM1 andM80 magnetic soundhole pickups—all of which have become industry standards to one degree or another.
Lloyd Baggs got his start building guitars for the likes of Jackson Brown, Ry Cooder, Janis Ian, and Graham Nash. So he can tell you that building a good guitar from the ground up is no mean feat. Enter the AEG-1, L.R. Baggs’ first flattop—a unique thin-hollowbody design that leverages the company’s copious experience with transducers of every kind to create a successful, holistically functional instrument. In some ways, it feels like an instrument built to match a great pickup system—a cool way to consider guitar design if you think about it.
Gentle Deconstruction
Admittedly, I’m a flattop design traditionalist—that jerk that thinks any acoustic sketched out after 1962 looks a bit yucky. So, the AEG-1’s looks were a bit jarring out of the case. That didn’t last. Though it’s very shallow and soft curves sometimes evoked a swimming pool outline, that of a nice Scandinavian coffee table, and Gibson’s L6-S (these are highly positive associations in my opinion), the lovely body contours and shallow cutaway have a slimming effect and give the guitar a sense of forward lean at the aft end—almost like a sprinkle of Fender Jaguar. The more you stare at it, the more it looks like a very artful deconstruction of a dreadnought shape, and a very natural one at that.
The construction itself is unique, too. The sides are CDC-machined poplar ply, oriented so you see the laminate in cross-section. The top is a very pretty torrefied Sitka spruce, which is braced in a traditional scalloped X pattern. The sides are also braced with arms that radiate toward the waist and heel at 120 degrees from each other, reinforcing the soundhole and the substantial neck heel. The back is critical to the AEG-1’s tone makeup, too. Rather than a merely ornamental bit of plywood, it’s a lovely Indian rosewood that vibrates freely, enhancing resonance and the many organic facets of the AEG-1’s tone spectrum.
The 25.625"-scale mahogany neck is mated to the body by way of four substantial bolts and an equally substantial contoured heel and heel block. Sturdy, perhaps, undersells the secure feel of the neck/body union. In hand, the slim-C neck is lovely, too. The bound rosewood fretboard is beautiful, and the playability is fantastic as well. The action is snappy and fast, the 1.7" nut width is comfy and spacious. And, in general, the build quality of the Korea-made AEG-1 is excellent.
Resonant With Room To Roam
With the exception of country blues players—and guitarists like Blake Mills andMadison Cunningham, who dabble in rubber bridges to prioritize focus over breadth—most 6-stringers want a lot of resonance from their instruments. The AEG-1 resonates beautifully, particularly for a thin-bodied guitar. And the HiFi Duet, made up of the HiFi bridge plate pickup and the company’s Silo microphone, is deep and detailed, so the output is easily reshaped by the flexible volume, tone, and mic/pickup blend controls. But the balance of the constituent parts, and the deft way with which the design sacrifices a little body resonance for string detail, is smart and satisfying to interact with.
This is especially true when you use blend settings that favor the microphone. If you get the tone control on the AEG-1, and your amp, dialed in right (I used a mid-scoop and slight bump in the treble and bass from a Taylor Circa74), the extra bass resonance is warm but without being overbearing, adding mass to tones without slathering them in mud. But you don’t have to get too precious and precise about such settings to make the guitar sound great. Working together, the HiFi Duet’s pickup/mic blend and tone controls provide the range and variation to shift bass emphasis or put sparkle to the fore. This range is helped in no small part by the guitar’s basic feedback resistance. I spent a fair bit of this evaluation playing loud, plugged into the Circa74, which was tilted toward my head at a 30-degree angle. Only when I bent down to turn the amp off, situating the guitar about a foot-and-a-half from the speaker, did the AEG-1 start to feed back.
The Verdict
Inventive, attractive in form and function, playable, and above all forgiving, full-sounding, and balanced when amplified, the AEG-1 is an unexpected treat. The HiFi Duet pickup-and-microphone system is a star. But rather than feeling like an afterthought, it feels like an integral part of the whole. And it’s the cohesiveness of this design—and the wholeness of the many sounds it creates—that makes the AEG-1 different from many stage-oriented electro-acoustic guitars
During routine quality checks, Blackstar has identified a problem with specific Debut 100 Series amps.
Statement from Blackstar:
"Nothing is more important to Blackstar than the safety of our customers.
During routine quality checks, we have identified a problem with Debut 100R 112 and 212 Combos with date codes from 2403 to 2411.
Due to cabinet production errors, a larger than intended gap between wooden parts of the cabinet can cause some electronic components to be accessible or partially exposed. As a result, in some circumstances a user could come into contact with safety critical internal chassis components. This poses a risk of serious electric shock.
Given the circumstances and our commitment to absolute safety, Blackstar has therefore decided to recall these affected products to resolve the issue. No other Blackstar products or Debut 100R date codes are affected.
Blackstar asks all customers with a Debut 100R 112 or 212 Combo to visit the following link to determine whether their product is affected: https://blackstaramps.com/product-recall/
We wish to thank you for your cooperation and to apologise for any inconvenience caused.
If you have any questions or concerns, or need any support regarding the details of this Product Safety Recall, please contact our team in the UK via https://blackstaramps.com/contact-us/"