Braeden Carroll

My absolute favourite guitar I have ever owned or played. Bought it used in Toronto for $1200 CAD in 2019 after years of searching for the perfect Strat. The Olympic White nitrocellulose finish has aged beautifully, with vintage-seeming wear and checking. My version is a 2012 "1st 46" variant, a limited run with special neck plates. I've also heard the wood was Custom Shop-inspected, though not sure if anyone can second this.

Probably my favourite guitar purely based on looks. The Ice Blue Metallic colour is gorgeous, and the tortoiseshell pickguard adds some great contrast. Love an offset with a matching headstock as well. Great jangly clean tones in the lead circuit, and cool dark jazz tones in the rhythm circuit. Adding a drive or fuzz gives you classic indie rock tones, which I is great if you like shoe gaze and (Even looks like Kevin Shields' Jazzmaster) Downsides: The colour of pau ferro doesn't bother me like it does for some others, but there is definitely a difference in feeling and tone. Pau ferro feels lighter and softer than rosewood, which becomes apparent when switching back and forth between guitars. The brighter tone of pau ferro also makes the bridge pickup especially harsh, so dialling back the the tone knob in Pos. 1 is required. Overall, you get the classic Jazzmaster look and tone at a not-over-the-top price point. I may consider swapping the bridge pickup at some point for something a bit darker, but I do love basically all other configurations.

This was my first ever guitar, and was my only acoustic for a long time. The large dreadnought body size, while certainly loud, is massive, making it uncomfortable to play while sitting down. Otherwise, while not as resonant as others I have played, this is a solid acoustic-electric that should come at a very reasonable price point.

First tube amp I ever owned, and perfect size for both bedroom playing and small to medium sized venues. Classic Fender clean tone, but takes overdrive and fuzz extremely well. The Jensen speaker also gives the tone a nice sparkle, which I prefer to the darker tone of the Celestion in the standard Blues Juniors. If you're looking for a fairly inexpensive tube amp that sounds way above its price point, this is the amp for you. Downsides: Exterior hardware is very cheap. The 1/4 jack is plastic, and broke very quickly. I've seen that this is quite a common problem, so I'll have to upgrade to a metal jack.

As far as standard compressors that you can find commonly under $100, this will be the best bang for your buck. Nothing fancy, but has a nice dynamic range and is super durable,