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Viva Belov!
Viva Belov! Or in English: “Living Belov!”
The above photo shows this slogan printed on the amp chassis of a Blackheart Engineering Little Giant (BH5H), and it sure is true, those things are alive!
The ‘Rock Out Certified’ Little Giant was one of Pyotr Belov’s many creations, this one being with Blackheart Engineering, but he’s also worked on the Epiophone Valve Series (including the Valve Junior), his own custom boutique amps (Called Belov Amps) and the more recent rereleased Ampeg guitar amps. They’re all examples of Viva Belov!
Now Belov’s going in a new direction, and had setup a new company with the sole intention of helping other companies maximise their potential through all plases of releasing a new music product to the market. Here’s the info from the almightly Belov himself:
“After 25 years in the Music Instrument Industry I decided to offer my knowledge to all of those who want to take their product to the next level. This week I formed Belov Group LLC. To learn more, please visit www.belovgroup.com. Belov Group LLC offers a range of consulting services all designed to help your company reach its potential and react to new opportunities quickly with less risk.
There will be no major launches, no flashy web sites and no Facebook to suck up valuable time. The focus is on the customer and their product. I will be at NAMM so perhaps I will see you there and be glad to answer your questions in person.”
Gibson SG Deluxe Announced
Except for the Bigsby and the outrageous £2600+ price tag, the red version of this SG Deluxe is possibly my perfect SG… It would be my third 3 humbucker guitar, as I am partial to 3 pup Les Pauls.
Get more info on these new SG’s over at music radar.
Gibson Les Paul Slash AFD Signature Red
There have been some sightings of Slash’s new red AFD signature Les Paul prototypes. Here’s a photo for you to drool over, courtesy of Premier Guitar’s Facebook page.
Musikmesse 2012 – What Should We Expect This Year?
It’s the eve of Musikmesse 2012, and despite the fact that I’m not going this year, I am totally excited about a few products that we’ve seen info or rumours about so far.
Blackstar have hinted about some important new products they’re releasing. My guess is either a solidstate amp including built in FX (see the tempo light flashing in the video below), or if it’s not solidstate, then a hybrid amp with digital preamp and tube power amp. At a push you could say it might be a full tube amp with built in FX, afterall that’s nothing new that Marshall haven’t already done (Marshall Vintage Modern has digital reverb).
Obviously if it’s solidstate or hybrid, they’ll have to put in some effort to win market share from Line 6 with their Spider IV solidstate amps and Spider Valve MKII hybrid amps which have sold in excess of a million units, and are the best selling amps in the US. The same could also be said for the DT25/DT50 amps which standalone include some very sought after HD amp models and built in digital reverb, but with the potential when connected to a POD HD via Line 6 Link to have access to a whole host of HD amp models, which then also control the true analog tube power amp in the DT amp for the best tone and best flexibility… I think it’s time for Line 6 and Blackstar to drop trousers, and see who has the biggest! That’s of course assuming Blackstar does release a product that’s in direct competition with Line 6….. You’ll have to wait and see 
Here’s the teaser Blackstar video:
If you’ve been living in a cave in the Misty Mountains for the past 18 months, you may have missed that Joe Satriani is working with Marshall to create his new signature JVM. This we know is being released at Messe, and you can see more info HERE.
Propellerhead are also due to announce something this evening, at an invitation only VIP event. It would seem that the announcement will be something for the new iPad, because the invitations for this VIP event went out only 1 day after Apple announced its new iPad. A coincidence perhaps… I doubt it!
That’s all for now…
Don’t Put Your Neck On The Line
Following on from my previous blog, guitar security and theft prevention is worth thinking about. Here we have the Kensington Lock of the guitar world: The Rock Lock.
It’s a simple idea, that you lock your guitar to something larger to prevent your guitar being stolen. Perhaps it’s the handle of your 4×12, or part of the drum kit. Either way, it makes it harder for a thief to put your guitar under a long coat and walk off with it.
Check it out over at www.therocklockcompany.com
Take Photos of Your Gear Serial Numbers – You May Need Them
Here’s a lucky chap, who had recorded his guitars serial number before his beloved Telecaster was stolen. Meaning when he happened upon it being for sale on eBay 6 years later, he could contact the police and get it back. I would assume you’d need photographic proof and perhaps have registered it before it was stolen, and likewise informed the police of the theft already… BUT it was worth it in the end!
Check out the full story over at Star Tribune.
Duoplec – For Those Clean and Dirty Moments
Oh boy was this a good find. I often use a very thick plectrum when playing fat riffs, but if there’s a clean passage in the middle of a song, it’s hard to do it justice with the brutal attack that a non flexing thick guitar pick gives you… Well here’s the answer! A pick/plectrum that is really a pair of different thickness plectrums in one.
It’s called the Duoplec, and you can buy them online for very little money. For example they’re shipped from Australia, and it’s still less than £10 including delivery for a pack of 5. Obviously the more you buy the cheaper it becomes per pick.
Check them out at http://duoplecguitarpicks.com.au/
A Real Coffin for a Fender Telecaster…
There really are some sick people in this world… A man dies, and in his coffin is placed his beloved Fender Telecaster, only to have some grave digger decide that it’s worth too much to be left in his coffin, and so swipes it! For The Love of God, what was he thinking?
Read the full article at Mail Online
Guitar Wireless – Getting The Best From Your Batteries
Rechargeable batteries are all well and good, and for some applications they are the best option: For me though, I’m not willing to trust rechargeable batteries in my guitar wireless because they don’t output 1.5volts (they usually output 1.2volts) and when rechargeables start to run down, they can sudenly drop all power, which would be bad if I’m in the middle of a gig. So regardless of the green issue, or spending money on batteries, I will be sticking to AA Alkaline (non-rechargeable) batteries.
Top 10 Lead Guitarist Clichés
There are so many clichés for musicians, but here’s a top 10 just for Lead Guitarists put together by Musicradar.com
