| Hughes & Kettner Ships Switchblade Combo Amps
Switchblade guitar amps were introduced at this year's Winter NAMM Show and combine real tube tone with the sound flexibility of fully programmable amps. The new combos complete the Switchblade line-up with a 1x12 50W and a 2x12 100W model. Like the Switchblade head, the combos provide 4 fully programmable tube channels, on-board digital multi- FX and include a MIDI-board for instant access to 128 user presets. The combos' four channels are optimized to cover a wide range of tones from California clean to British crunch and classic rock to contemporary American nu metal. The FX-section provides considerable effects power and features three independent blocks that all work simultaneously (delay, modulation and reverb). The amps' front panels offer classic tube amp look & feel - but are fully programmable for a total of 128 different tube tones at the touch of a button.
Tailor-made music rises from basement
EATON RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) -- In the basement of an unassuming white house on the edge of Eaton Rapids works an electric guitar player's savior.
The ping and ting of a Fender would be wimpy and barely audible if not for the box he designs, builds and tunes. He's not a household name, but at 72, Max Butler has built a reputation on that box -- a custom tube amplifier he builds for guitar players lucky enough to find him.
"When I got a chance to use some of his equipment, it just blew me away," said Bill Malone, lead guitar and vocals for the Old Town Blues Band.
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Weekend Beat/ Axmen of air strike invisible chords
It happens all the time--adolescent boys get interested in guitars to attract girls. At 13, Tatsuya Kobayashi was no different. He bought an electric guitar and a small amp for 30,000 yen at a local music store in Fuji, Shizuoka Prefecture. Secretly dreaming of passionate glances from teen bunnies, he struggled to master the instrument, following directions in a how-to guitar manual. Alas, he soon discovered there was more to it than he'd imagined. Just randomly plucking at the six strings wasn't working. Kobayashi's fantasy collided with reality and lost. He gave up. The guitar became a dusty ornament in his room. Ten years passed. It was a weekday night in May. The rock club Shinjuku Loft Plus One was packed. Rage Against the Machine's "Guerrilla Radio" burst out of the club's sound system.
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