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1983 Vigier Arpège, a very uncommon French guitar built by Patrice Vigier
Friday, 04 October 2019
This 1983 Vigier Arpège guitar is a real monument of French guitar building because of the high level of the lutherie and because of its very modern shape that we have not seen again afterwards. 1983 Vigier Arpège Until the next gear review or interview, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel.
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New test run for the Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box which is this time connected to a Marshall 6101 combo. For reference, for comparison a recording was also made with a Shure SM57 positioned in front of the speaker combo. OX Amp Top Box / Marshall 6101 Connection of the OX on the amp
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Gear Review – OX Amp Top Box Universal Audio / Kelt Sideman FX amp
Friday, 03 May 2019
Here's a new review for the Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box which is this time connected to a Sideman FX Kelt head and cab. For reference, for comparison a recording was also made with a Shure SM57 positioned in front of the 15 inch speaker cab. OX Amp Top Box / Sideman FX amp
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The brand Drybell based in Croatia offers pedals of excellent quality as the Vibe Machine which is the choice of Mike Landau to have a sound of Univibe on his pedalboard. The Unit67 is a multifunction pedal with boost, 3-band equalizer and compressor. Video Review - Drybell Unit67 Until the next gear review or interview, keep
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Pedal Review – Vemuram Jan Ray overdrive – Super dynamic and creamy drive pedal
Friday, 26 April 2019
The model Jan Ray overdrive pedal from the Japanese manufacturer Vemuram is the star of this video gear review. I found that this pedal sounded remarkably well with a great response to the playing dynamics. Judge for yourself via the video below. Vemuram Jan Ray overdrive video Until the next interview, keep on playing the
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The French pedal manufacturer Anasounds (anasounds.com) now offers a pedal named High Voltage. The promise of the manufacturer from Nice for this pedal is simple: get the sound of Malcom Young from AC/DC, just that! Promise kept? Let's hear it... Summary of the full review Full video Pros and cons of the pedal Conclusion: promise kept?
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Here's a video review of the Friedman DS40 plugin available in the Universal Audio Apollo interface. Friedman is well know for the quality of their tube amp. That's why I was very curious to test drive the plugin based on their DS40 model. Here's a screenshot of the plugin : Setup used for the review
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Pedal Review – Tone Bender Mk II: legendary pedal, legendary tones!
Friday, 22 March 2019
Thanks to a subscriber on The Guitar Channel (thanks Steven), I was able to record this video review of this legendary Fuzz pedal, the Tone Bender Mk II. Tone Bender Mk II video review Until the next gear review or interview, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel.
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We continue the exploration og the Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box which is this time connected to Marshall 6101 combo using a 2007 Gibson Ls Paul Faded modded by Larry Corsa. In case you are wondering, the OX is a piece of gear you connect between the output of a guitar amp and the
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Shootout – Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box versus Shure SM57 mic
Friday, 01 March 2019
Out of curiosity and having a certain taste of provocation, The Guitar Channel presents you an unusual shoutout between the Ox Amp Top Box from Universal Audio and a timeless Shure SM57 microphone. A kind of David against Goliath fight in the field of sound recording! The goal of the game is more to show
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Debrief after 2 months of use – Strandberg Boden Original 6
Thursday, 28 February 2019
After two months of use of Strandberg Boden Original 6, an ergonomic electric guitar, it is time to give a first feedback on this instrument which incorporates a lot of innovations. Summary of the full article The positive points The neutral points The negative points Conclusion Positive points
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In this new Gear Review, we present the high-end category at Vola Guitar, the Zenith model which is characterized by a beautiful top and a great hardware. It's another great example of the Made in Japan high quality of instrument building. Vola Guitar - Zenith model Until the next gear review or interview, keep on playing the
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Amp Review – Kelt Amplification Sideman – 100% tube powered!
Wednesday, 30 January 2019
Thierry Labrouze manufactures in France in Brittany 100% tube amps that are found more and more in the hands of musicians who love beautiful tones. Some time ago a subscriber of La Chaîne Guitare ordered a Sideman Kelt but could not take delivery when Thierry brought him at the Puteaux show. So until further notice,
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Pedal Review – Overdrive Nobels ODR-1 – Cool natural sounding drive tones
Monday, 14 January 2019
It was during a conversation with Pete Thorn in Germany during the 2018 Guitar Summit that I heard about the Nobels ODR-1 overdrive pedal. It seems that this pedal has been used for a long time by studio guitarists in Nashville, as it costs around €90 online, I thought it was mandatory to try it
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Pedal Review – The Grunger – Tube powered booster from Sabelya
Monday, 31 December 2018
The Grunger is a tupe powered boost pedal from French boutique manufacturer Sabelya. This is a pedal that will serve to amplify the signal of your guitar by coloring it. We are not in the category of transparent boosts. On the contrary! The Grunger is made to bring color to your sound. The very neat
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In a previous article La Chaîne Guitare presented you an interview in French with Bruno Durand of the brand BD Custom Amplification. Here in this article you will find a review of his BF/Brownie model amp head that offers two completely separate channels. The first clean channel offers a Blackface type Fender sound, the second
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Here's the full video review of the fascinating Strandberg Boden Original 6 guitar, a great ergonomic guitar designed in Sweden and built in Indonesia. If you want to get some perspective about the Strandberg brand, check out the interview done with its founder Ola Strandberg back in 2013 during the Musikmesse. Video - Strandberg Boden
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Here is the first article in a series dedicated to the Strandberg Boden Original 6. Intrigued for a while by the work of this brand which you can find an interview with the founder Ola Strandberg made in 2013 at Musikmesse, The Guitar Channel has acquired a model in order to do an independently review,
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Sabelya is a French brand of boutique pedal shop Made in France. From the name of its designer and manufacturer Elyas Sabelya who is building interesting products including this reverb, the Ô Finest Reverb which has more than one trick in its bag. Ô Finest Reverb - Sabelya Until the next gear review or interview, keep
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The Puteaux Guitar Festival 2018 included in its program demo concerts that allowed to discover the instruments exhibited by luthiers throughout the festival in the magnificent Jean-Baptiste Lully Music Academy. Here are the Christian Stoll guitars presented on video. Stoll Guitars - Demo concert Luthier: Christian Stoll - www.stollguitars.de Musician: Arnaud Leprêtre - www.arnaudlepretre.com Video and sound: Philippe
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The Puteaux Guitar Festival 2018 included in its program demo concerts that allowed to discover the instruments exhibited by luthiers throughout the festival in the magnificent Jean-Baptiste Lully Music Academy. Here are the Julien Gendre guitars presented on video. Gendre Guitars - Demo concert Luthier: Julien Gendre (www.juliengendre.com) Musician: Shaï Sebbag Video and sound: Philippe Camus
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Pedal Review – Overdrive and clean boost King of Tone from Analog.Man
Monday, 15 October 2018
Analog Man's overdrive and clean boost pedal King of Tone has an excellent reputation among pedal fanatics. You will be able to see and especially hear what this gives in this recorded video thanks to Steven, a member of The Guitar Channel who owns this pedal. King of Tone from Analog.Man Until the next gear
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Guitar Review – Bluesmaster Custom 59 – Johan Gustavsson luthier
Friday, 12 October 2018
With the Bluesmaster Custom 59 built by luthier Johan Gustavsson (www.jgguitars.com) we are clearly in the category of exceptional guitars! This guitar made in Sweden in 2005 is the top of the crop. The marriage of Les Paul and Telecaster shapes will probably not please everyone but we at The Guitar Channel are loving it. Test
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Guitar Review – 2007 Gibson Les Paul Faded “Peter Green” modded by Larry Corsa
Thursday, 04 October 2018
In search of a Les Paul to equip the showroom to have this reference sound in the arsenal available to visitors and for testing gear, The Guitar Channel had the opportunity to test this 2007 Gibson Les Paul Faded at length kindly lent by a member of the network (thank you Sebastien!). This guitar has
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It's a pleasure to discover the artisanal production of a young French luthier. The Raccoon is designed and manufactured entirely by Camille Jacob who also makes the excellent AMI Effects pedals. This instrument literally impressed me by the quality of the lutherie, this is top quality stuff. www.cjguitars.com Specifications Finish: shiny nitro-cellulo Body: one piece
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Pedal Review – Vanflet Distortion1: huge sounds from your pedalboard!
Tuesday, 18 September 2018
Vanflet is a new French manufacturer of boutique tube amp, they are now launching a range of pedals. Here is the Distortion1, a pedal that inaugurates the series with the Driver1. Vanflet Distortion1 video review Specs Settings: Volume, Gain, Tone Soft switch 9V Price: 149 € What I enjoyed the most A huge reserve of gain
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Guitar Review – Nik Huber Krautster II – Awesome instrument
Wednesday, 05 September 2018
The Krautster II model from Nik Huber is a clearly inspired from the Les Paul. Made in Germany in the workshop of luthier Nik Huber (often interviewed on The Guitar Channel), the guitar reviewed below was lent to me by Gilles, a member of The Guitar Channel network (1000 thanks!). Setup configuration Amp: Kelt V-Twin
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iRig Pre HD IK Multimedia review: how to have a good electric guitar sound in a smartphone video
Tuesday, 10 April 2018
To follow up on the article entitled "Stop posting guitar demos filmed with a smartphone and how to do better!" here is a comparative review to show the results obtained on a smartphone video, an iPhone 6 in this case, using the iRig Pre HD from IK Multimedia. Three sound sources are compared: the internal
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Stop posting guitar demos filmed with a smartphone and how to do better!
Tuesday, 03 April 2018
Preamble I am regularly dismayed by the poor quality of videos of guitarists who make a demo and are posted, for example, at the end of the guitar shows where luthiers and amp manufacturers post videos made with a smartphone with a mediocre sound which is not showcasing properly the product presented (guitar, amp or
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Simon Ghnassia is a musician who is often featured on The Guitar Channel, here he is at the showroom just before an online masterclass trying a guitar built by luthier Mikaël Springer, the Halfbreed model (a guitar reviewed in this article). The cameras were rolling, here's the result. www.springerguitars.com Halfbreed demo Test configuration Amp: V-Twin
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