Product Review: Planet Waves "O-Port"

This product review is on the company Planet Waves new product, the "O-Port." It is used to enhance the sound of an acoustic guitar and help with feedback when used through a p.a. system or acoustic amp. It is just a piece of plastic the is somewhat bell shaped that goes in the sound hole of your acoustic guitar. It is very easy to install. You just loosen up your guitar strings, bend it in half and install it with the big end of the bell facing the bottom of the guitar. There is a break in the top outside of it (the end that faces up, small end of the bell) that sits where the neck of your guitar goes. There are two sizes for the O-Port, big and small. I used the big one so that I could try it on two different acoustics that I have. I used it on one of the cheapest guitars on the market, an Epiphone DR-100 and I used it on a very expensive one, a Taylor 810. Lets get down to business.

The O-Port claims 4 main things right on the box. 1)fuller sound 2) better clarity 3)more volume and 4) suppressed feedback.

On the Epiphone DR100 i used it on I instantly noticed a huge increase in volume. I used it for 3 days in my lesson room with my students. With every single student i had to play softer. It made it a ton louder for sure. I also noticed it made when I soloed louder too. Every note was pumped up in volume and you could hear every note great! It was almost like it compressed the sound of the notes and made every single note on the guitar , open strings up to the highest register, equal. It made a cheap guitar sound a ton better. It definitely made it sound more high dollar than it really is! Without a dought it made every chord sound fuller too. So far every thing it said it did, it did in spades.

On my Taylor it did the same thing as it did on the Epiphone. One of the biggest complaints I have about my Taylor is when I solo it drops in volume hugely and the notes get lost in the jam. This little device helped for sure. It made the notes I played while soloing stand out and able to keep up with the guitar I was playing with. It did make the guitar sound louder when playing chords. It did a little bit to make it sound fuller when playing rythym. It really couldnt do too much in that respect with the Taylor though. This guitar is one of the best out there for sounding full and rich to begin with. It did its best work on the single notes.

The verdict on this product.........Great!!!!!!! Most players out there dont have a 2-3000 $ acoustic to be playing. It will do wonders for budget guitars and mid grade guitars. Hell, it made a $100 Epihpone sound tons better. These thing s go for around $25 and is worth it. Even on a $3000 Taylor it did some improvement. It also doesnt alter the look of your guitar either. Those other feedback sound hole thing a ma bobs clog up your playing hole and suppress the acoustic guitars natural sound. I didnt play it through a guitar plugged up to test the feedback stopping capabilities. The physics of the O-Port are solid enough to know it will help with it. It is worlds above the other sound hole feed back pluggers. It will help any guitar out there in some way shape or form. For the price its a no brainer. Stop down at Rock Bottom and get one. If you are an acoustic player it is a must have, so get it!!!!

Product Review: Boss PS-6 Harmonist

This product review is from a company I have believed in for many years....Boss. I have found over the years Boss makes some of the best sounding and reliable pedals. Up until T.C. Electronics started making kick butt pedals, the majority of the pedals I used were Boss. One pedal I have sworn by that is not Boss or a T.C. pedal is the Digitech Whammy pedal. The Whammy revolutionized the way pedals sounded. The pitch shifting capabilities and the note harmonization was never done as good or as amazing as the Whammy did. The only problem with the Whammy Pedal???? It cost a ton of money. Many a company has come along since the Whammy and tried to make pitch shifting and harmonizing pedals. To me they all sound like crap and were horrid reproductions of the great Whammy. Since the Whammy came around 15 or so years ago technology has advanced a ton. Now companies are making some better Whammy-esque pedals. The Boss PS-6 Harmonist is one of the new crop of pedals that does a great job of it. It does so at a fraction of the price and it also does so in a pedal that is the normal size of a pedal. Anyone that knows what a Whammy pedal is also knows how big it is. We are going to get into the Boss Harmonist right now.

The Specs-
1) it is the size of any normal Boss single pedal
2) the current draw is 45 mA, dc 9 volt (can be powered by an adaptor)
3) Blue colored pedal
4)has two 1/4 inch out for stereo outputs
5)has one 1/4 inch input
6)has one 1/4 inch input for an expression pedal (make it work like a whammy)
7) four control knobs
from left to right
knob 1- controls balance. lets you control the direct signal versus the effect sound. when you have the pedal in "s-bend" mode this knob controls the amount of time it is to take to transition to the set pitch
knob 2- when in the harmony mode of the pedal it sets the pitch of the harmonies. when in pitch shift/detune/s-bend it sets the amount of pitch shifting.
knob 3- key knob/fall time it sets the key to play in when using harmonies. when in s-bend mode it adjusts the amount of time it takes for the pitch to transition from the set pitch back to the original pitch (the fall time)
knob 4- mode knob used to switch among the harmony (major and minor), pitch shifter, detune and s-bend modes.
8)the light to tell you the pedal is on.
9) the pedal is turned on with a hit of the foot just like most normal Boss pedals

Now we are get into how a little of each setting sounds. I will break it down by function- Harmony,Pitch Shifter, Detune and the S-Bend effect. I am going to use the setting samples from the owners manual.

First up-Harmony Function.
I had the balance knob straight down the middle, I went through all the 2 part functions on the voice knob (3 part harmonies have an orange around them and are located with the knob all the way to the left, then again all the way to the right) had the key bounce between Eb and I bounced the mode knob between major and minor. The harmony knob takes you through (from left to right) an octave lower, next turn is a major 3rd an octave lower,turn again then a major 6th an octave lower, turn again then a major 3rd, next turn a perfect 5th, next turn a major 6th, last turn before 3 part mode is an octave up. These were all with the mode switch on major by the way. One thing I notice is how clean the pedal sounds. It most companies attempts on a harmony pedal the faster you play the more "soggy" the notes sound. In every harmony switch no matter how fast I played I could always understand the notes. I am more partial to the 5th and octave up harmonies. There is a great reproduction of the notes being harmonized and the original notes stands clear and clean as well. Keep note that the harmony goes with the key. So if you move through the notes of the scale with a say, 5th harmony it will be harmonizing through the scale and wont stay a perfect 5th away from all notes. As you hit the 7th degree of the scale it will naturally be a flat 5th because thats what happens in the scale. This function is cool, you just need to be aware of that.

Next is the Pitch Shifter Function.
I love the pitch shifter mode!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!This is where you can get your harmonies without worrying about the key. This function is awesome. The notes are clean. Has all the same characteristics of the harmony mode but without having to worry about what key you are in. Home run on this. Love it.You don't have to worry about if its major or minor key. You just go for it and rip it. This pedal would be worth it if it did only this.

Next is the Detune Function.
On the detune function stick the balance on 12 o clock, on the shift/harmony knob you can use the orange spots that are for 3 part harmonies to get different levels of detune. Detune is alot like a chorus effect. I love detune. I like it alot more than chorus. On this pedal the detune sounds rich and full. I love it. Sounds great. Another great feature on this pedal.

Next and last is the S-Bend Function.
On this your pedal works like a wah or a whammy. The effect is only engaged when your foot is on the pedal and is controlled by how much or how little you press down. This function has to many possibilities so I am just gonna tell you about some of the sounds I got. In one knob settings I was able to produce that guitar intro part to Black Sabbath's Iron Man. You know the part where you bend your string behind the nut the raise the pitch on the intro of the song. Another switch of the knobs and I hit a natural harmonic and hit the pedal and it makes the sounds of the space ship doors opening on the original Star Trek show. This function and make it sound like you are bending your string a whole step or a 100 steps! LOL! Your guitar can sound like a space ship or anything your imagination can think of. This function is far out.

The Boss PS-6 Harmonist is a great pedal. Better than most the pedals of its kind out there. You can also get an expression pedal (sold separately) that can make it like a Whammy pedal. I loved this pedal. At only $159.99 at Rock Bottom Music it is a far cry from the price of a Whammy pedal but with most all of the awesomeness of a Whammy. If you are looking for something different with endless possibilities then this is your pedal. Get on down to Rock Bottom and check it out. Imagine hooking up a violin or some other instrument than guitar to this. It will blow your mind. Awesome pedal, great price and Boss quality!

here is the boss demo of it on youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mu1k2CFcojU

Product Review: Guild GAD-M20 Acoustic/Electric

This product review is going to be on a guitar company I never gave a second thought to, Guild. I never thought bad or good of them until the Guild rep was in Rock Bottom a couple months a go. He pulled out one of the newer revamped models. I played it and was floored. Last week I walked into the store and saw this beauty staring right at me....the GAD-M20. It was small and stunning. I picked it up and was in love. I had to have it. I have been playing on it and decided to write a review on it and the new company I "discovered" as of late.

First let's get the specs out.

The body style is concert.
The top is made of solid mahogany.
The bracing is scalloped spruce.
The back and sides are solid mahogany.
The scale is 24.75"
The neck is one piece mahogany.
The fretboard is rosewood.
The finger radius is 16"
It is a 20 fret guitar.
It has mother of pearl dot inlays.
The nut and saddle is bone.
The bridge is rosewood.
It has Grover Tuners.
It is designed for optimal sound with gauge .12-.53 strings.
It has Fishmen pick ups/electronics.

With the specs out of the way lets get to how it sounds, you can see how it looks from the picture.It has a full, rich sound. It is very "natural sounding. A lot of newer acoustics just don't sound real to me. This one does. By real I mean like a live sounding acoustic, not something with cheap wood or plastic. It puts out way more non amplified volume than it looks like it should,When you play the guitar softly and lightly it sounds just as crisp and even as it does when you are jamming hard and loud, the same as it does when you are playing just normal too. When you are playing open chords you can hear each individual note shimmer and sing.When playing lead up high on the neck the sound is also clean AND it can be heard. On a lot of acoustics when you play single note lead lines the volume drops and the notes get lost really easy. This one did not. When playing with other acoustic instruments it was heard easily. The overall sound of it reminded me of the great old 70's era folk/country rock music. Think of "Can't You See" by Marshall Tucker. For a guitar made in China it will blow your mind. It can keep up and surpasses alot of American guitars I have played as of late. I played it through a Fender acoustic amp and it sounded just as good as it did unplugged. Same with running it through a P.A. system. It sounds great no matter how you stack it. When you put a strap on it and put it on it sits as perfectly as you would want a guitar to sit. My hands and arms were in a very natural position to be playing. Sitting with it was just as comfortable. Even taking a slide and hitting some old delta blues sounded awesome. It still had volume and the notes still sang, even though in my opinion the thick glass slide sounded best. The glass slide sounded nice and warm on it. The guitar sustains really well too. No matter how hard you get into playing this guitar, you will hear no rattles or buzzes. You just hear the guitar. I know that sounds like something you should expect on a new guitar, that is not always the case. Even in a lot of new acoustic guitars you can hear the tuning keys buzz, some bracing buzz or a battery compartment rattle. This one is clean. In fact the battery is housed in a little "pouch" that Velcros inside the guitar, up at the neck, thus removing any possibility of it rattling. The volume and tone control are inside the sound hole at the top. Invisible to the eye but easy to get to. The input jack is on the bottom strap peg. The guitar is classy and timeless looking.Just the way I like it.

Guild has come a long way in it's 57 year history. This guitar and every model that has come into Rock Bottom Music is top quality at VERY REASONABLE prices. We have got a bunch of them in the past week. Get down and check them out. They will compete with any of your time tested legends like Martin or Taylor, hell it might surpass them. Guild did for me. I got a very top quality Taylor and the guild kills it. Get down to Rock Bottom and play one for yourself. Take my word, you will fall in love just like I did!

John Berret

Product Review: Guitar Stands

This is a little bit of product review and a little bit of YOU NEED TO HAVE A STAND!! I was in a band previously where the player with me for 7 yrs. never got a guitar stand. Basically any stand is a good stand. I have yet to see a stand where i would say " I will never use this stand!" Down at Rock Bottom Music we carry three types of guitar stands. The first is a Stagg stand. Its a fold able stand that you just set your guitar on. It comes in a style for acoustic guitars and a style for electric guitars\basses. It's a reasonable $19.99. They are great for when you have an out of town gig. They fold up small and get the job done. The next stand is the On Stage Stand. Its a tripod stand with adjustable height with a neck fork.These stands are everywhere. They to get the job done. I could not tell you how many have been left behind at gigs. I have seen near a hundred left over the years while i am packing up mics and speakers on sound gigs. They are at the cheapest price anywhere at $14.99 at Rock Bottom. The last stand we carry is the $39.99 Hercules stand. These stands are the Cadillac of guitar stands in my opinion. I got one that someone left on stage (at a sound gig i was doing) and have been very impressed with it. It doesn't really support the guitar any better than the other stands, its just better built and has more adjustments for guitar height and fits any guitar or bass. Now that you know how cheap the prices are on stands you need to get one. Nothing is worse for your instrument than laying it on the floor at a gig.It looks unprofessional too. Your guitar deserves the protection of a stand. Leaning your guitar on a wall is no good for your neck. So do yourself and your instrument a favor and get down to Rock Bottom Music and get a stand!!! p.s........i hold guitar stands for many months when i find them at sound gigs, i also put out the word that i have found them.NOONE ever claims them!!!

Product Review: Orange Combo Amps

This product review is on a legendary British amp maker: Orange Amps. There a a few amps you can think of that have been around since the dawn of rock music, Marshall, Fender, Vox, etc.Orange is one of those amps too. If you have ever seen the "Paranoid" video from Black Sabbath you see Orange Amps. Jim Root of Slipknot\Stone Sour uses them. Geddy Lee from Rush endorses their bass amps. Ike and Tina Turner Band,James Brown Band,U2...the list of past and present users can go on and on. Locally in the CSRA Will Duckworth from Radar Cinema uses Orange.The Orange Amps I am going to be going over are the smaller combos, The Crush 20L, Crush 20LDX and the Crush 12L. They are solid state amps. Lets start with the Crush 20L. It retails at the store for $115, has a 6 inch speaker and is 20 watts. Its got clean and gain channels with a 1\8 inch aux in for mp3 or any other device you want to plug in and play with. For a low end little combo it gets decent gain and is perfect for the bedroom. The clean channel is really the best sounding on this amp(to me for sure). It is OK for distortion and is good enough for jammin to your favorite songs or coming up with good riffs. It is a good amp for the beginner. The tone isn't bad. It is better than a comparable Line 6. The next amp is the Crush 20 Ldx. It is suppose to be the same as the 20L but with the digital effects. To me the sound was way better on this amp. Even with the eq and every other knob set the same , this one just sounded better. The amp includes everything on the 20L plus reverb(room,hall,spring and chapel)reverb + delay, delay ( 100,175,300 and 650 m.s.) slow and fast settings for chorus, flanger and tremalo and a vibrato effect. It adds a fx mode and fx level knob. The effects are really easy to use and are very user friendly for this amp. It got alot more of the modern rock sound and the delays are great. Anyone who has played with the Line 6 combo's know when you change channels the volume can go way up and blow your ears out. That doesn't happen with this amp. I was teaching one day and heard a guy getting some very nice vintage John Fogerty tones out of this amp as well. Its a good sounding little amp. It retails for $159. Good price for this amp. The amp also has a built in tuner that is fairly easy to use too. The little brother to both these amps is the Crush 12 L. Its a little 12 watt version of the 20L. I like the sound of it better than the 20L. It retails for $99. While these little combos are just a small taste of the bigger high end amps they are at the top, to me, for beginner\practice amps in this price range. I can admit I have never been an Orange Amp player, I can admit that these are a bang for your buck and great for any up and comer to have to jam on. You can tell these amps are Orange's way of going after the Line 6 Spider series.They do a good job of taking them on. They will also satisfy an Orange Amp junkie who needs to have an Orange Amp that is portable. Get down to Big City Music and check them out. We also have the Orange Tiny Terror tube amps coming in soon. You might end up and Orange lover....

"Product Review: VHT Classic 6"

Welcome to the latest installment of "Product Review." This one is gonna be on a guitar amp. The amp is the VHT Classic 6. Amps are important to guitar players. Tone freaks are always shopping to find the perfect amp with the perfect tone. Most of the times finding that amp will cost you a ton of money and almost always means your looking for a tube amp. The VHT Classic 6 is an all tube amp with 1 6v6 and 1 12ax7 in it. Its a one channel amp that is 6 watts(at 8 ohms). Don't let the 6 watts fool you. It is plenty powerful to play any club and powerful enough to keep up, even in metal music. Its just one channel with no eq, just a volume and tone knob. The volume and tone knob are all you really need with this amp.The combo comes with one 12 inch speaker and has a high input and a low input. The amp is very clean sounding.The tone knob dictates alot of your sound. With the tone knob all the way down and mid volume its got an old school jazz sound. Tone knob all the way up and mid volume gives you that country music chicken pickin sound, that tone setting and 3\4 volume gives you a creamy\ breaks up real bluesy sound that is awesome. the louder the volume the better it breaks up. Think "Red House" by Jimi Hendrix or early stones or zepplin.You run it clean and stick a good distortion pedal, like the Boss Hyper Metal, and it is very modern metal sounding. This amp is very versatile and sounds fantastic. I tested the amp with my "JOHN JOHN" model Berkshire and a Schector "Damien" guitar. I have played on the amp a good 4-5 hours to test it. I am going to end up getting one. The cost? It retails for $500 and is on sale at Big City Music right now for $299. Get down to the store and check one out as soon as you can. They are selling quick and I am gonna end up buying one, so get there while we got them. The price of this amp is astounding for the sound you get. It packs the punch and has the great tone of the WAY higher end $1000 and up VHT amps. VHT amps are known for sounding great and to get one at this price is a no brainer.

Product Review: Intellitouch PT 10

This is the first "product review" I have done for this blog. Being the 1st I figured it needed to be something kinda cool. So here is the product- The Intellitouch PT10. I have always hated hand held tuners and especially clip on tuners, I have always been a rack tuner guy. That has held true to me until Aaronn Bradshaw , from Big City Music, convinced me to try the intellitouch. It is a clip on tuner that reads vibration and not sound. That is something I liked because there is nothing worse than picking up outside noises while trying to tune.He sold me on it when he told me the accuracy of it.The accuracy is comparable to my Korg rack tuner. This tuner also works well clipping on and tuning anything from a violin to guitar to banjo to anything you want. That was a plus for me. It made tuning up for all the different instruments I teach a breeze.I have even just clipped it to my amp and it read the vibration on it and I tuned that way. The intellitouch is a chromatic tuner ( it tunes sharps and flats) that lights up green when in tune. It has a huge lcd screen to see this with. It swivels and turns all kinds of directions to get you the best possible view too. It runs on a simple watch battery that lasts forever. It is , in my opinion, the best of all clip on or hand held tuners i have used.It has replaced my rack tuner when i play live and is even easier than a Boss floor tuner. It is on sale at Big City Music right now for $29.99,of course students get their discount. They go out of stock as soon as we get them in. So if your looking to get a new tuner get down to Big City before they sell out(they always do, very quickly).