lukesidewalker's Reviews

Just buy it!!! The DR-500MCE is an awesome acoustic guitar!!!

Epiphone created the Epiphone Masterbilt series acoustic guitars. The DR-500MCE is built great, the materials used to make this guitar are very solid. The playability and tone of this guitar will rival guitars up to $2000 or more. It's that friggin' good!

Doesn't matter if you're a guitar snob or just a person who loves playing a very good sounding guitar. This guitar is top notch. Its one of Epiphone's all-time best acoustic guitars.

I got friends and acquaintances who can afford the high dollar guitars any day. I've let them play this guitar without knowing what it is. Every person said things like "What is this?" This sounds so warm, loud and full"

I don't say this about many guitars that I own or have owned. But I don't see myself every selling this guitar. From the factory this was set up great and sounded amazing out of the box.

Do yourself a favor.. if you can find one of these, grab it! They are discontinued and will only go up in value. I pinch myself sometimes to know I'm alive and to realize I have an amazing acoustic for about 1/4 the price of other comparable sounding guitars.

Taylor, Martin and Gibson "Look sharp!" You got another guitar on the block and it's not a new kid. It's a highly worthy one and this guitar is here to hold its respectable place in acoustic guitar history.

I'll spare you with listing the specs. You can look that up for yourself. I will say the quality of wood, the great finish, fretboard inlays, the bone saddle and nut, the eSonic preamp and NanoMag & NanoFlex pickups reveal just a little bit of what you can expect with this awesome acoustic guitar!

Schecter Stiletto Studio-4 flies under the radar!

Schecter Stiletto Studio-4 flies under the radar! In some ways that makes me happy. Because then I can appreciate my purchase all the more while people say to me "Wow what bass are you playing. It always sounds great! Did you get a new bass?" Nope! It's the bass I've had for a bit, but damn if it doesn't play great and have sustain that seems to last forever with the neck through design.

Call me selfish, but there are times I'd just like to be discreet and tell as little about my gear as possible. Let people guess. Let them wonder and let them want the gear I'm playing with to get my elusive sounds. LOL

People.. DO NOT sleep on this one! It goes under the radar, but punches like a mule. This bass is a heavyweight (not in actual weight though - its just right) but the sound you will get is a K.O.(knock out) for sure!

I'm not going to list the specs as anyone can look that up here or elsewhere online. This bass plays amazingly well, looks fantastic and is a pleasure in almost every way so far as basses go. No, it's not a $3,000 - $4,000 dollar bass but that doesn't matter. This one makes me smile about as much as several of the higher dollar basses and I'll keep the remaining dollars in my pocket thank you very much.

Go get your hands on one. Play it. Put it through its paces and after you buy it, come thank me later!

Just shut up and buy it!

I almost hate reviewing this pedal. NGL, I would rather nobody knew about it and keep it all to myself!!!

This pedal is in a class by itself. You can get so many tones out of this and go from distortion to fuzz no problem at all.

GET ONE!

Damn good all around acoustic amplifier!

Highly underrated amp! It can produce some great sounds with the 2 independent channels each having graphic 7 band EQ and FX.

I find its been a solid amp, well built, reliable and has a very pleasing sound to it. You could probably gig with this. Just go out to the boards in bigger venues.

I really dig the clean channel on this amp. When you want more you do have the FX and FX loop as well. I love the sound I get playing my Epiphone Masterbuilt and other acoustic guitars through this amp.

For me, this has been a top notch acoustic guitar amp. Good bang-for-the-buck and hits well above its weight class.

If you can find one in decent condition for a fair price, snap it up!

Awesome acoustic guitar!

Epiphone created the Epiphone Masterbilt series acoustic guitars. The DR-500MCE is built great, the materials used to make this guitar are very solid. The playability and tone of this guitar will rival guitars up to $2000 or more. It's that friggin' good!

Doesn't matter if you're a guitar snob or just a person who loves playing a very good sounding guitar. This guitar is top notch. Its one of Epiphone's all-time best acoustic guitars.

I got friends and acquaintances who can afford the high dollar guitars any day. I've let them play this guitar without knowing what it is. Every person said things like "What is this?" This sounds so warm, loud and full"

I don't say this about many guitars that I own or have owned. But I don't see myself every selling this guitar. From the factory this was set up great and sounded amazing out of the box.

Do yourself a favor.. if you can find one of these, grab it! They are discontinued and will only go up in value. I pinch myself sometimes to know I'm alive and to realize I have an amazing acoustic for about 1/4 the price of other comparable sounding guitars.

Taylor, Martin and Gibson "Look sharp!" You got another guitar on the block and it's not a new kid. It's a highly worthy one and this guitar is here to hold its respectable place in acoustic guitar history.

I'll spare you with listing the specs. You can look that up for yourself. I will say the quality of wood, the great finish, fretboard inlays, the bone saddle and nut, the eSonic preamp and NanoMag & NanoFlex pickups reveal just a little bit of what you can expect with this awesome acoustic guitar!

A great little acoustic amp at a reasonable price!

Are you looking for an acoustic amp that sounds nice, has enough options and provides good volume for smaller venues? Look no further - here's that amp!

This is a 2 channel amp that features Volume, 3 band EQ Bass, Middle, Treble and added Reverb controls.

40 watts. 2.65 inch speakers - Special Design full-range Whizzer cone speakers. This amp is plenty loud in most smaller acoustic and vocal settings provided you're not performing in a larger venue like an auditorium etc.

Accommodates an acoustic-electric guitar and dynamic microphone

Create depth and dimension with digital hall reverb

Auxiliary input, XLR line output, and headphone output

Attractive vintage-style brown textured vinyl covering

I like using this Fender Acoustasonic 40 acoustic guitar amplifier. It is just right for my needs. Its loud enough has good tone and I can adjust how I want it to sound with the 3 band EQ and the reverb is a good touch.

I can use both my acoustic guitar and a dynamic microphone together and get the sounds I'm looking for quickly.

This would make for a perfect practice amp, at home amp, church functions or smaller club venues.

This amp is a pleasure to carry. No breaking your back. Grab your guitar, microphone, cables and this amp and GO.

Height: 11" Width: 15" Weight: 16.5 lbs.

If you're on the fence about this amp -- DON'T BE! Pull the trigger! But do take some time and play around with the settings. I've heard criticisms of this amp and come to find out that the people complaining tried it for 10 minutes or less and never got to know the amp at all.

Underrated!

So underrated. This is fun to play, sounds good and has so much going for it! People dismiss it for any number of reasons. I've heard numerous artists that play this and it sounds incredible each time.

Another favorite bang-for-the-buck synth. Hits well above its price point. Good for beginners and seasoned pros.

Can't go wrong with this one. I know people who had it and sold it. Several bought it again. Don't dismiss it. It's a good synth. Period.

Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Strat well worth every penny

If you're wondering, this strat looks and plays awesome! The Tex-Mex pups really nail that Texas Blues tone. It can create some serious tones fresh out of the box.

I do like the soft V shaped neck. It plays like butter.

My guitar was purchased new from a Luthier that performed what they refer to as a Master Gold Set-up on the guitar. This means it was gone through with a fine tooth comb. The neck, nut and and frets were all checked, adjusted and the intonation is spot on. Each fret was polished, filed and crowned.

I can say that this guitar is a joy to play and the sound is incredible. The work that was done during the luthier setup before I got it made a huge difference. I would choose this guitar over some that cost 2 to 3 times as much. It's that good.

A highly versatile synth!

KORG knocked it out of the park with the Minilogue XD - Polyphonic Analog synthesizer. Big sounds in a somewhat smaller package!

Let me say that if you're looking for a great, versatile option in a synth that wont break the bank and will work for live shows as well as in the studio, look no farther than the Korg Minilogue XD.

This is an impressive 4 voice polyphonic analog/digital synthesizer. This synth incorporates some of the best features of their Monologue, Prologue and Minilogue synths all into one.

KORG is expanding their original design with a digital, multi-engine, onboard digital effects, improved sequencer and micro tuning. The improvements over the original Minilogue make this synth well worth considering.

You can find one in mint condition for around $475 USD or there have been sales at retailers for $600 USD new. The build quality is decent, the minikeys of the keyboard feels adequate and not overly cheap. Keep in mind they are synth keys on a sub $750 dollar synth.

I'm a fan of synths that offer a good bang-for-the-buck. This one definitely does just that. So many things to like and not a lot of dislikes with this synthesizer.

Korg Wavestate - worth every penny!

This isn't going to be one of the in depth reviews. There are lots of those out there that are worth checking out.

This is a very deep synth. Has so much potential but take time to learn the intricate details. If you liked the wave tables that were available in the Korg Wavestation, this is as close as you'll get.

This synth is a sound designers delight. There is some menu diving and again, everything can be quite deep and will require some time to learn how to make this synth shine, but there is also plenty of immediacy with the twist of the Performance dial.

Korg has packed in an immense number of presets, described in Korg’s language as “programs” and “performances”. The programs at the fundamental level are deployed within performances to create larger textures. When first released, the Wavestate offers 740 programs and 240 performances, although users may also save tens-of-thousands of their own.

This is a nicely sized synth and wont take up a ton of space, can be carried in a gig bag easily without breaking your back like the older synths from years ago and it will perform far above its price point. A very good bang-for-the-buck synthesizer. Well worth checking into.

Be sure to update the firmware to Version 2.0 if you haven't already. It opens up a number of much needed improvements over the factory installed Version 1.01

Word on the streets is that the Korg Wavestate has been discontinued. Now would be the time to snap one up before the prices skyrocket on the secondary market.

Plenty LOUD and has good tone - tweak the EQ

For some people it seems there is a love/hate relationship with the Fender Rumble 350.

I happen to really like it. A lot! It's a good amp for small and medium venues. All it takes is some time to mess around with the EQ settings and adjust the lows down and adding some mids improves the sound.

Another trick is to get this amp off the floor. Elevate it to at least knee level or even chest level to get the sound dispersed throughout the room. It all depends on your set-up with your band and the acoustics of the room.

Placement with a bass amp is key. Also where your standing. If you can't hear yourself - your sound guy should be able to help you by giving you more bass in your monitor. All things you probably already know, but some don't.

The 2x10 speakers have been more than adequate for me and I've never had to turn it up beyond 4 or 5. Not once. It will shake the windows and rattle your dental fillings. Lol

Don't knock it or even consider dismissing it until you've given it a chance. I mean really play with it in different settings and try the suggestions I've provided. It's worked well for me. I have to laugh when I hear people dogging on this amp who have never once played through it. They go by what someone else has said.

At 65 pounds its no light-weight, but it is manageable and has removable castor wheels and spring-loaded handles.

Excellent bass!

There's a reason so many people love their Squire Precision Basses. This Matt Freeman bass is no exception.

The sound I get out of the MF P Bass is amazing! I've had a number of basses before but this one is hands down my favorite. Great build quality, awesome playability and the look/feel of the finished maple neck is damn good too.

Bang-for-the-buck factor is high on the scale too. There's nothing that can touch this for the money IMO. Basses costing two and three times as much have nothing on this one.

I don't see myself ever getting rid of this one. I have a kickass set of flatwounds on it and it gives me the thump I want and need for a number of genres. Anyone who says that you can't do good slap technique with flatwounds doesn't know what they are talking about.

If you can get one in good shape for the right price, snap it up before its gone. These are discontinued and the price on the secondary market will continue to go up.

Great synth with amazing sounds!

What to say that probably hasn't already been said. This is a great synth with some really amazing sounds!

The Wavestation EX has 150 more waveforms than the standard Wavestation. The EX model also adds 8 multi-effects which include: Distortion, Overdrive, Vocoder, Mod Pitch Shift-Delay, Stereo Compressor-Limiter/Gate.

Movies and television shows throughout the 1990s are full of music and sounds created and performed on the Wavestation EX. Countless musicians have used the EX. Think of - Toto, Vangelis, Jan Hammer, Orbital, Depeche Mode, Genesis and others.

TBH this is not so easy to program. At least not for me. Others with more experience programming these might find it easier, but its still a chore.

I will say that I'm in love with the sounds and immediate feedback I get while playing the Wavestation EX. IMO the EX beats out the Korg M1 every time. Some may prefer the M1 and that's okay. Can't really go wrong with either one, but the Wavestation EX has been a synth I fell in love with and hope to never sell.

I did pick up one in mint condition and had a 40 year synth tech go through it. Updated the EPROMs and OS. Did a battery swap and a few other little things while he was inside of it. It just sings. The pads are heavenly.

They didn't call the Korg Wavestation one of the defining instruments of the 1990s for nothing.