NEW GEAR 5/25: Mesa Cabinets, Jackson Lee Malia, TCE Ditto 2 and Cort Basses
Fender has added a replica of Mike Campbell's 1972 "Red Dog" Telecaster to its product catalogue, Jackson has begun offering the Lee Malia LM-87 signature Surfcaster Pro and British Rotosound is returning to a rare fuzz from the 1960s, Mesa Boogie has restarted production of its Split Back 2x12 and 4x12 cabinets after a long hiatus, TC Electronic is tempting buyers with the second generation of its compact Ditto looper and EVH is introducing a kilowatt active guitar cabinet. Following the headless bass guitars Cort Artisan Space 5, four-string versions are now available. Bassist Nathan East and Laney were behind the development of the Digbeth BCC DB-EAST amplifier, the DW 2000 Accelerator drum pedals have been innovated and keyboardists who prefer analogue will soon be able to try out the new Behringer SPICE synth. Welcome to our regular review of new gear and interesting facts from the world of music.
Signed Fender Mike Campbell Red Dog Telecaster
This guitar pays tribute to Campbell's modified 1972 Telecaster, whose sound can be heard on recordings by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Like its predecessor, it features an alder body and neck, as well as a one-piece maple fretboard with a ''70s-C profile and a 7.25-inch radius. The hardware consists of a Fender/Bigsby B5 vibrato and Vintage "F" tuners, an integrated "Destruct" boost circuit with +34 dB lift activated by a push/push button and three special pickups consisting of a neck and middle humbucker and a bridge single coil. The price, including a stylish hard case, strap, picks, and certification, is around 3,300 euros.
Jackson Pro Lee Malia LM-87: when retro meets high gain
Based on Malia's custom Jackson built by luthier Mike Shannon, the Pro Series Signature Lee Malia LM-87 features an offset Surfcaster-style okoume body, and the same material is used for the glued D-shaped neck. The thin Open Core Black finish contributes to the natural resonance of the wood, while the amaranth fretboard, decorated with ivory-coloured binding and inlays, features 22 jumbo frets. A tune-o-matic bridge is complemented by a tailpiece with tuning mechanism (similar to the Gibson TP-6 stop bar) and lockable tuners and the sound is transmitted by the company's custom LM-87 humbucker combined with an LM-87 P-90 neck pickup. Price approx. 1000 euros.
Replica of the rare fuzz Rotosound RFB1
This reissue of the 1967 Rotosound fuzz pedal is a faithful reproduction of the original model, which was manufactured in the past together with the Solasound Tonebender fuzz and never made it into regular production – only a limited number of pieces were available at the Rotosound showroom on Denmark Street in London. Like its predecessor, the RFB1 uses a distortion circuit fitted with vintage NOS germanium transistors and other select components and is hand-assembled in British workshops. It features Volume and Fuzz controls, as well as a Treble control that acts as a combined tone control with a relatively neutral response in the centre position.
Mesa Boogie Split Back 2x12 a 4x12 cabinets are back
The respected brand has decided to look back more than thirty years and has begun offering Split Back guitar cabinets again in 2x12 and 4x12 variants, featuring a closed rear soundboard for the lower speaker section and an open design for the upper speakers. The smaller, vertically designed version uses two proprietary Celestion C90 Black Shadow 90W speakers, while the 4x12 version combines the C90 with modified Celestion Vintage V30 speakers mounted in the closed section. The cabinets are made of Baltic birch plywood and feature removable Track-Loc casters, Black Bronco Tolex covering, leather-protected corners and a solid front grille. Prices: 2x12 approx. 1,500 euros, 4x12 approx. 2,000 euros.
TC Electronic Ditto 2: second generation of the small looper
The successor to the first version of the Ditto looper with up to ten minutes of recording time has been equipped with a Bluetooth 5.1 module with a range of approx. 10 m for a mobile editing app, two user modes (Ditto/User), a new type of footswitch with a magnetic mechanism, a larger LED and the option to simplify operation via SingleTap Looping mode, which reduces the recording process to Record, Play and Clear steps. You can now also use the LoopSnap feature, which intelligently corrects minor timing errors and ensures that your loops are perfectly synchronised.
Active guitar cabinet EVH 5150III Hypersonic FR-12 with 1000W output
The compact active cabinet EVH 5150III Hypersonic FR-12 with full-range characteristics, designed for users of digital modellers, should appear on the market at the beginning of June. The cabinet, available in Ivory or Black, made of lightweight birch plywood, features a 12-inch speaker and is powered by a Class-D power amplifier with an output of one kilowatt. The controls consist of a master, three-band active EQ, plus a Cut parameter that affects the prominence of the upper midrange frequencies, and there is a combo input (jack/XLR) and line XLR output. Price: approx. 750 dollars.
Cort Artisan Space 4: headless basses with Bartolini electronics inspired by the 1980s
Following the Space 5 model, Cort has expanded its range of headless bass guitars with the four-string Space 4 model in exclusive Star Dust Black and Star Dust Green finishes. The C-shaped neck, glued from maple, purpleheart and walnut, is attached via an ergonomic joint to a maple body covered with a 6 mm thick poplar root top. The roasted maple fretboard has 24 jumbo frets and abalone inlays, and the sound is transmitted by two Bartolini MK-1 pickups with an active preamp and three-band EQ. Price including gig bag: approx. 750 dollars.
Laney Digbeth Nathan East bass head
Laney, or rather its Black Country Customs division, has teamed up with bass legend Nathan East to create the new Digbeth BCC DB-EAST, a flexible amp equipped with a dual power amp with 2x 500 W RMS (4 ohms) and a preamp with two instrument inputs. There are two switchable FET and Tube channels that can be mixed together, a three-band EQ with semi-parametric mids complemented by a Tilt function and an integrated LA-IR section with a pair of East's cabinet IR impulses (2x12 / 4x10) that can be adjusted or replaced using the app. Price: approx. 1,500 dollars.
DW 2000 ze série Accelerator Innovative pedals
DW (Drum Workshop) has upgraded its Accelerator series of bass pedals, including a new generation of the DW 2000A single model and the DW 2002A dual version with chain drive. Both versions now offer features taken from more expensive editions, such as the DW101 two-way beater with memory lock or Accelerator cam, adjustable footboard angle, Delta stroke with ball bearing and removable spring system, steel base plate with non-slip rubber pad, etc. European prices: DW 2000A approx. 120 euros, DW 2002A approx. 270 euros.
Analogue Behringer SPICE with Moog sound
In mid-June, we will see the launch of the affordable, semi-modular polyrhythmic synthesiser Behringer SPICE, inspired by the Moog Subharmonic, with which it shares, among other things, its analogue concept. It features two VCO oscillators with sawtooth and square waves, each complemented by two sub-oscillators, VCA and VCF Envelope units and a ladder filter (24 dB/oct). You can also use two four-step sequencers with assignable clock, a patch panel with a total of 32 inputs/outputs, a micro-USB port, a headphone jack and DIN MIDI In/Out connectors.
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