October has brought plenty of great new and used gear to the store, including a load of cool vintage guitars and new pedals, but in our humble estimation, this is the cream of the crop…
Josh Baldridge – Taylor 718E Fall Limited
The Maple Taylor Jumbo was my favorite until this 718E showed up a couple of weeks ago. Sassafras adds just the right amount of depth to this body size and still retains the clear top end. Another Fall Limited winner from Taylor.
Josh’s favorite this month, the Taylor 718E with Sassafras back and sides.
Jim Baggett – Collings 01 SB Acoustic
A really big guitar feel and sound in a small guitar body – this is the ultimate couch potato guitar.
Jim says this Collings 01SB is the ultimate ‘couch potato’ guitar, but I think you’d want to show this beauty off!
Eric Putnam – Tungsten Crema Wheat Combo Amp
Crema Wheat – Great sounding amp! Plenty of clean head room but breaks up nicely if you push it.
Another killer Tungsten Combo Amp, the Crema Wheat – Eric P’s pick for October.
Eric Mardis – Eastman El Rey Electric
I’ve had my El Rey for several years, and it’s my go-to for jazz. I use a set of flatwound 10s – it’s so light, slinky and responsive and gives that warm, fat tone I love.
Eric M. picked this Eastman El Rey – he’s owned one for years & sets his up with Flatwound 10s.
Ted Kritikos – Calton Mandolin Case, Brown
I’m thinking about buying a mandolin just to have a reason to buy this case. It’s so well constructed, tough as nails, and I really dig the workingman brown color.
The new Calton cases, in particular this brown mando case, caught Ted’s eye this month.
Mike Horan – Martin D-18 Acoustic
Straight-up, this newly re-vamped standard D-18 has more in common tonally with its more expensive cousin, the Golden Era, than not. The forward-shifted X-brace and scalloped bracing give the Sitka top more bass response and nuanced tone than was common on the previous D-18 model, and the aged-toner top also enhances the vintage look. All in all, this is a lot of guitar for the money.
Mike H. chose the newly revamped Martin D-18, which delivers at LOT of bang for the buck.
Susan Willits – 1933 Vintage National Triolian Squareneck Resonator
What a great sound and a nice piece of history. Just think of all the songs this guitar has played!
And it sits right outside my office!
Susan took a fancy to this 1933 National Triolian Squareneck – very cool resonator guitar!
Thomas Hamm – Gibson SG Standard
When I was writing and playing in my old metalcore band—yeah, seriously—I played an old black Epiphone SG 90% of the time. Loved it, but it’s gone now. This Gibson SG Standard is everything it was and a whole lot more, and it takes me back to all those shows I blasted through Pantera’s “Strength Beyond Strength.” Awesome guitar.
This used Gibson SG Standard brought back shredding memories for Thomas!
Anne Tangeman – Grosh Retro Classic
This guitar is a steal – made by Don Grosh who only crafts about 300 electrics per year and priced far below many custom guitars out there. It feels great and it truly sings – you can strum this unplugged and really tell it’s A+ all the way down the line. It has 3 Grosh Fat 60s single coil pickups too, plus a Blend knob in addition to Tone and Volume, so you can really dial in what you want. A modern classic in my book.
Anne says this used Grosh RC is not only a steal, but “a modern classic”.