The Gibson Les Paul junior Billie-Joe Armstrong model is the perfect guitar for the energetic punk player to the raw, heavy rocker and anywhere or anyone in between.
The beauty of this guitar is the simplicity, in that you know exactly what sound you can achieve before you even pick it up.
The Single P-90 pickup with corresponding volume and tone controls are trademarks of the Greenday front man’s raw, dry, no-nonsense sound, and the simplistic wraparound nickel bridge only serves to reinforce this. The guitar feels exactly like a Gibson should, right down to the chunky body and sturdy neck, and this can certainly justify the slightly higher price tag.
The guitar feels just as solid when you’re playing it, and the body sits comfortably for a Les Paul. A feature I particularly liked was the neck, which is fat and chunky, giving you plenty of confidence as to the guitar’s durability, yet the lacquered back and smooth profile means that playing and moving is still quick and easy.
I went straight for a moderately distorted, crunch tone, and the guitar did not fail to disappoint. A great feature of this guitar is the double-wound P-90 pickup, which gives more output and a warmer, thicker sound than the regular single coil version. With a crunch sound dialled in, the guitar delivered a warm, rich tone that was perfect for any punk or rock set up, and reflected the artist who’s signature model this is. Rolling back the volume, the clarity of individual notes on a cleaner sound was brilliant, thanks to the sharpness of the P-90 pickups. However, pushing the volume and tone right back up meant that the thick, rock texture returned straight away with no alterations to the amp controls.
To conclude, this is a fantastic guitar, and a must for any punk or rock player looking for that one solid, no-messing tone. Although this is a signature model, the only evidence of Billie-Joe’s presence is a signature on the back of the headstock, meaning that you don’t have to be, and won’t look like a Greenday fan if you use this guitar. All in all, the build quality, playability and sound of this guitar make the price tag easily justifiable, and it’s status as a signature model ensures that value will be retained.

The Les Paul Studio is an extremely good value for money ‘budget’ version of the classic Gibson Les Paul, designed for the studio musician.  The guitar is stripped of some of the cosmetics of a Les Paul Standard, but has the same features such as dual humbucker pickups and a fixed tune-o-matic bridge.

On first inspection the studio appears – for a ‘budget’ version – to do the full model justice. The headstock, neck and body all fill you with confidence as to the abilities of high end Gibson craftsmen, and the finer details such as the pearl trapezium fingerboard inlays and the chrome hardware only serve to support this. There are some who may be put off by the idea of a ‘budget’ Gibson Les Paul, but this definitely ticks all the right boxes as far as looks are concerned. I actually found some aspects of the studio model more appealing, such as the un-binded neck and minimalist finish. The inclusion of a Gibson hard-case makes this the perfect package for a gigging musician who may have to watch the pennies.

Plugged in, it was a pleasant surprise to find that the deep and raw tone of the famous standard model was still present. The pickups have a high, beefy output, and the tone and volume pots were highly versatile, making a wide range of tones accessible. On a clean amp setting, the tone is crystal clear and bright, whilst on crunch tones the guitar still breaks up in a ballsy way, like you’d expect.  On high gain settings, the famous sustain of the guitar is not lost, and be it punishing riffs or searing lead work that you wish to indulge in, the guitar can deliver.

To conclude, for 950 quid less than a standard or traditional model you certainly get the looks and the beefy tone is still delivered.  All in all this is a great guitar, tainted only by the extreme prowess of the legendary Les Paul Standard.

The Blackstar 45 series one is a medium sized, two channel all-valve guitar amplifier housing 2 speakers and running at 45 watts. The amplifier sounds great at low volume, yet there is plenty of volume to spare and would perform with ease at most medium sized gigs.

On first inspection, the front panel is clean and nicely arranged. There are a large amount of tone control options readily available, but it is not too daunting. A single row of dials makes sure that control knobs aren’t overwhelming. The amp looks great, feels sturdy and is well made and assembled.

Plugging in to the amp and starting with the clean channel with the gain on 2, selecting the ‘bright clean’ mode gives you a bright and sparkling tone with each note ringing out clearly. Perhaps the biggest selling point of this amp, and the Blackstar range as a whole, is the ‘infinite shape frequency’ dial, which, turned to one direction brings out a British characteristic in the tone, whilst turning it to the other side gives an American feel. Whilst this may sound like a gimmick, the control does present some amazing results and is well worth incorporating in to your tonal set up. On the clean channel with low gain, turning this control all the way to the ‘British’ side presented a ballsy tone which threatened to break up when pushed hard, whilst turning it all the way to the ‘American’ side gave an extremely noticeable bright twang sound, reminiscent of classic fender and mesa amps.
With the gain at half way and the ISF set al the way to British, the neck pickup of my guitar gave me a deep, resonant, yet crystal-clear twang perfect for country music styles. Selecting the ‘warm clean’ channel and turning the ISF control to the American setting meant that the bright twang was retained, yet the switch to the ‘warm’ channel meant that a new dimension of bass and resonance was added.

Switching to the overdive channel, the same amount of warmth and clarity was retained with the gain control around 2, especially with the ISF control turned to the British setting. Keeping this ISF setting and turning the gain up to halfway rendered a hair-raising ballsy crunch, perfect for recreating any 70’s classic rock tone, whilst turning the ISF control to the American setting cleaned the tone up and improved the clarity and brightness. Cranking the gain served only to heat up this signal, adding more sustain, but the ISF control still made tone shaping infinitely possible.

Pressing the ‘super crunch’ button, I was amazed with the levels of gain that were possible even at low volume. Turning the ISF control to the American setting and scooping the mids, the tone was powerful yet fluid, with lead work sustaining and cutting through perfectly due to the impressive gain levels. Turning the ISF to the British setting, I was presented with the raw, ballsy sound of cranked Marshall heads, yet still surprisingly modern, given the ‘super crunch’ mode selected.

To conclude, it is clear that the Blackstar has been developed by valve tone purists; the benefits of this being that the ISF control makes it possible to re-create just about any classic amp sound, be it the bright sparkle of early fenders, the raw crunch of mid seventies marshals or the fluid sound of high gain American amps. High gain lovers may find that the Blackstar does not deliver the compressed distortion levels of big peavey amps or mesa rectifiers, but from a crystal clear clean sound to a raw and biting distortion and anything in between, the Blackstar is the perfect companion.

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A guitar as iconic as a Stratocaster needs little introduction.

The American Special HSS is one of the most versatile Strats that I have played in a long time. The high gloss finish is like the mirror of volcanic glass and the overall finishing is immaculate. Standout features of this model include incredibly comfortable jumbo frets, a rock solid synchronized tremolo and an atomic humbucker in the bridge position.

Needless to say the main draw of this guitar is going to be that humbucker. After going through all the bluesier , mellow neck selections it was quite a shock to hear exactly what the bridge humbucker is capable of. It handles high gain distortion very well and retains enough definition and tone to make it more than just a Rock/Metal Stratocaster. Combining the comfort of a Stratocaster and the gutsy gain you would expect from an Ibanez RG series guitar makes for a formidable combination.

In conclusion
The finest Fender Stratocaster playability and tone with the added flexability of a high output humbucker. It will satisfy the old and new-school alike. All this for an American made Fender for under £700.00.

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With the Les Paul Studio less is more. This is a stripped down no nonsense Les Paul. Originally designed for studio players, it was then adopted by a full range of players, amateurs and professionals alike. The Les Paul studio combines the full playability of the standard but built in a different way and stripped down of many of its key features. This brings the total of the guitar at just under a grand. This Gibson is steal!

Construction

The Les Paul studio has two Gibson humbucker pick ups, a 498T in the bridge and a 490R in the neck. These are two of Gibsons most popular pickups. The neck is crafted in the classic Gibson style which is glued into a mahogany body with a maple top. The neck is a 50s rounded profile which is made out of mahogany and topped with a rosewood fingerboard.

Playability/Tone

Out of all the guitars in the Gibson Les Paul range the studio is my personal favourite to pick up and play and in my opinion one of the easiest guitars to play. Tone wise this guitar ticks all the boxes from punk to classic rock to even reggae. Rounding in at £999 The Les Paul studio is a real steal for the money and is a guitar that should be found in every players collection.

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The first thing that will strike you with the Epiphone Viola Bass will almost certainly be the iconic appearance. The bass retains its vintage looks, stretching back to the ‘British Invasion’ of the ‘60s. Used by musicians such as Paul McCartney and Andy Rourke of The Smiths. If the vintage look is something that’s always attracted you, then the aesthetics of this bass are pleasing in its own right.

The Epiphone Viola Bass is a short scale, hollow bodied bass, with a set maple neck. It comes in a vintage sunburst finish with a rosewood-dot fretboard inlay and chrome hardware, staying true to the ‘60s style. The hollow body and the two mini-humbucker pick-ups allow the bass produce a warmer tone than many of the other basses around.

The Viola Bass plays great too, especially suited for pick players but keeps a awesome sound regardless of style.

While keeping the vintage look, the Epiphone Viola Bass does not come with the expected vintage style price tag, for only £229 at Fuzz Boutique, the bass is both affordable and the same high quality you’d expect from Epiphone.

review by James Britton

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After playing the bass for just over a year I decided to choose a new bass for myself without stretching into my bank account. At just under £200 I chose the Epiphone Thunderbird, for a number of reasons. Firstly for the looks, The Thunderbird is an iconic bass guitar, with a curved shaped headstock and the Thunderbird Eagle on the pick guard it is instantly recognised. Secondly for the double humbuckers that also smoothed over for easy thumb rests. The two Thunderbird plus humbuckers give an unmistakeable hard rock tone and will easily cope with a number of styles ranging from metal to indie. Also another reason for buying this guitar is the reliability and durability. Just because of the sheer mass, it virtually indestructible! Ive dropped it about half a dozen times and theres not a single thing wrong with the guitar. There is only one downside with this guitar is the neck dive. Simply let go of the neck when standing up and the headstock will go straight to the floor. This is one downside to a simply outstanding bass guitar. For £199 this is a lot of guitar for the money and is perfect for a bassist looking to make there second purchase and will be a guitar that even in 5 years time will still look and sound awesome.

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Always fancied a Gibson? Unfortunately this desire often comes with a large price tag. For this reason I’ve always been put off, this was until I came across the Gibson Melody Maker. For the smaller fee of £349 I was able to get a quality Gibson guitar without my wallet taking any serious damage.

The Gibson Melody Maker is a guitar that can keep providing quality as well. With one single coil pick-up, mahogany body and neck, along with the rosewood fingerboard, the Melody Maker certainly looks as nice as any other guitar.

But how does it play? As good as you’d expect from a Gibson is the answer. Sure it’s a Gibson stripped back and may only have one pick-up, but that doesn’t take away any of the fun of this guitar. The single coil pick-up can provide a variety of sounds with the Melody Maker really shining with punkier styles.

For £349 and the ease of play the Gibson Melody Maker could easily be classes as a starter guitar and to be honest, you couldn’t really start from a better place.

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In 1951 Leo Fender developed the first ever mass-produced electric bass. Nicknamed the P-Bass the high quality instrument quickly became the industry standard.

Fast-forward fifty years to a twelve year-old version of me. After waiting 6 months I was finally able to get my first bass and I went straight to the P-Bass and it’s a choice that I’ll never regret and a model I’ve stuck with since.

Instantly recognisable from the shape and style, the double cut away body and the American Standard Precision Bass Alnico 5 Split Single-Coil pick ups, the P-bass remains arguably the most popular choice amongst bass players.

The American Standard Precision Bass comes in a variety of colours from 3-colour sunburst to Olympic White and is equipped with a high mass vintage bridge, slick Fender/Hipshot machine heads and chrome hardware, meaning the bass certainly looks the business. Add that to the high quality 5 split single-coil pick-ups and relatively low action, any bass player would struggle to go wrong by adding this instrument to their arsenal.

It’s these features that make the P-Bass popular amongst musicians such as Sting, James Jamerson and Steve Harris, as well as modern pop-punk bassists like Mark Hoppus, Mike Dirnt and Pete Wentz.

Overall, The Fender Precision Bass is a timeless instrument that just keeps getting better. The American Standard is no exception to this, retailing at £1,169, but only £895 at Fuzz, making it a bass that must not be missed by established and new players alike.

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