TC Electronic RH750 Bass Amplifier Review

Howdy!

I have long been a fan of TC Electronic effect pedals, and I think their tuners are pretty top-notch too. But I have never had the chance to play one of their bass amplifiers until recently, and I have to say that I was impressed by their RH750 bass head.

In case you are not familiar with the company, T C Electronic has been around since 1976, and I have had great experience with their amplifiers and effect pedals. Their products are solid and reliable, and are a definitely a good value. The RH750 is no exception.

The RH750 is the beefier 750-watt version of their very good 450-watt RH450. And, when designing this unit they did not go with the currently chic hybrid tube/solid state architecture that many manufacturers are using, instead is class D power amplifier coupled with a solid-state preamplifier.

If you are familiar with the appearance of the RH750 will not surprise you, and its size is comparable with the offerings from other manufacturers. It measures a mere 12 x 11 x 3 inches, and it comes in around 8 ½ pounds (a bit heavier than its competitors). It carries over the visual and structural themes too, with an anodized aluminum front plate and a black steel chassis with a built-in carry handle. They thoughtfully built it with feet on the bottom and on one side so that it can be mounted horizontally or vertically.

For a modern-day amplifier, the RH750 is not terribly complicated to use, so after getting it out of the box it should only take a few minutes of set-up and then you are good to go. On the back is a single Speakon / ¼-inch speaker output (4 ohm minimum), and a socket for the IEC power cord. The power switch is also back there (boo), as well as the 5-pin DIN remote socket, stereo RCA AUX in jacks, a 1/8-inch headphone jack, a balanced XLR out, and effects loop and a pre-post pre-amplifier switch. There is also a digital out for running the signal straight into a recording workstation.

On the front there is a single active/passive instrument input, 3 user preset switches, a four-band EQ, gain and master volume controls, a mute switch, and a shift switch. There are also two knobs for Spectracomp and Tubetone. Oh yes, and a tuner display and a gazillion red LEDs.

This is all really neat stuff. It is handy to have the three different memory settings if you are planning on taking a few different basses to your gig. The memory positions will save all setting except for mute and master volume. The memory settings can be controlled and the built-in chromatic tuner can be viewed with the optional RC4 footswitch.

The Spectracomp is a variable compression feature and the Tubetone provides a synthetic tube emulator of both pre-amp and power tube sections.

I like the way all of this stuff works – I tried it out with two different TC Electronic cabinets: the RS 210 and the RS 212, as well as a 12-inch Genz Benz Shuttle cabin and my 410 Ampeg. I use the different set-ups with my passive P Bass, my Active Stingray and my 60 Jazz Bass re-issue to get as many different sounds as possible.

For starters (and probably most importantly), the RH750 is very loud. It is easily on par with the Genz Benz 900-watt amplifiers, and it seems louder than the Tonehammer. And it sounds really good, too. It has a great clean tone that really cuts through the mix if you need it to. I was able to twiddle with the EQ to get the tones I needed, and have no complaints with its range. This thing has great mids and a powerful bottom end if you use enough speaker.

The tuner is intuitive (heck, it is always ON), and the menu structure is not confusing if you take a minute to look at the manual. The memory presets are fabulous, and I like that they included the LEDs so you can see what the levels of each knob are. By the way, the LEDs are powerful enough that they show up well in more conditions that just dark stages.

The Spectracomp does a nice job of calming things down when popping. The Tubetone does an ok job of replicating the tube sound, but it was not close enough o the real thing for me, so I would probably not use it in the long run. You can get some overdrive with it, though…

This unit works nicely as a headphone practice amp. I hooked up my iPod through the RCA jacks, and it sounded great through a pair of quality headphones. By the way, it was nice that they included a note on the back of the unit that says it is ok to use this head without a speaker load.

This head feels like a solid unit, and the handle works well. TC Electronic backs this made in Thailand unit with a 2-year warranty, should troubles arrive. That is a nice piece of mind.

I did notice a few quirks, though. I think that having only one speaker output is kind of a big drawback, and I don’t know why it is necessary to mute the speaker out when plugging into the RCA jacks.

But, all-in-all, the TC Electronic RH750 is a great amp, and their engineers did a good job of putting together a compact amplifier that will work well for bassists that need something durable and good for their gigs. It does not have enough power to fill huge halls, but in those cases you will probably be going though the PA anyway. The only real reason to stay away would be if you just have to have real tube sound. With a list price of $1604 and a street price of $999, this thing is a real contender.

Mahalo!

2001 Gibson Les Paul Electric Guitar Review

Aloha!

Today we are looking at a real peach of a guitar that most any rock guitarist would love to have in the arsenal: a fine-playing 2001 Gibson Les Paul Standard.

I will be the first one to say that Gibson guitars of the past few years have slipped markedly in quality, and finding one that plays well right out of the box is not an easy task. This is especially galling when you consider how much they cost. I had a hard time finding out I liked, so I ended up getting a used one that played great and sounded just as good as it looks.

This one is finished in a tasteful black with cream binding and plastic bits and chrome hardware. I always liked the simpler looks of the Standard models when compared to the Custom models. It has a solid (not chambered) mahogany with a carved maple top, and it is a heavy beast, coming in at over 11 pounds (the limit of my digital postal scale).

The mahogany neck has the 1950s rounded profile, and it is capped with a rosewood fretboard with mother of pearl inlays. Did you know that Gibson is not using rosewood on these anymore? You get some sort of dyed maple substitute. Bah!

Twelve years later the frets are level and are still in great shape. I know they say that new Les Pauls are all Plek’d, but my god their necks are lumpy and the frets still need to be leveled when the box comes out of the box. The neck is capped off with the classic Gibson Logo and Les Paul script on the headstock.

The hardware is just what you would expect with Grover sealed-back tuners and a Tune-o-matic bridge with a stopbar tailpiece. The electronics include 490R and 498T pickups that are wired through normal potentiometers. No printed circuit boards or goofy push-pull pots on this one.

Over the years the hardware has tarnished and the finish has gotten a little cloudy and received some light dings and scratches, but most of this would buff out easily enough. I would certainly not trade the broken-in neck for anything, and polishing it out would be a huge mistake. This neck is easiest-playing of any Les Paul I have ever owned (I have it set up with 0.010 Slinkies, BTW).

The tone is marvelous, too. Over time the finish has hardened and the original pickups have aged to become ultra thick and juicy. It can be warm and mellow, or gloriously beefy and overdriven. The sustain, harmonics and dynamics of this guitar are second to none.

The only downside is its weight: this thing weighs in at over 12 pounds (the limit of my postal scale). Ouch.

But otherwise, this is the ultimate Les Paul, and I would be hard-pressed to find another as good. I hope your search will be as fruitful!

Mahalo!

Review of Jimmy Herring’s Subject to Change Without Notice

Aloha!

This CD review was originally published in the December 6, 2012 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at thebluesblast.com

Jimmy Herring – Subject to Change Without Notice

Abstract Logix Records

www.jimmyherring.net

www.abstractlogix.com

10 tracks / 59:54

Whenever I get a new album, I always try to figure out what genre the music fits into and often times find that iTunes does not agree with my gut feeling on the matter. Subject to Change Without Notice from Jimmy Herring defies my attempts to categorize it, as there are no two songs that fall into the same genre. And this is cool with me, because a CD with ten songs that all sound the same would be pretty darned dull. By the way, iTunes says this collection is “Dance & House” music, which is not even close in my book.

North Carolinian Jimmy Herring has led a wonderful life as a guitarist, having studied at the two best guitar schools in the United States: the Guitar Institute of Technology and the Berklee College of Music. Plus he has played all kinds of music with some of the best musicians around, including Phil Lesh, Derek Trucks, John Popper, the Allmann Brothers and members of the Grateful Dead. But most currently, he is the lead guitarist for Widespread Panic, which has to be the most underappreciated southern rock band on the planet. Flipping though his discography I found that he has appeared on over twenty albums for various bands and artists, and all of them are quality projects.

Subject to Change Without Notice is Jimmy Herring’s second solo release, following up on 2008’s Lifeboat. He plays guitars on this album and is joined by musicians Neal Fountain and Etienne M’Bappe on bass, Jeff Sipe on drums and Matt Slocum on various keyboard instruments. Jimmy wrote seven of the ten tracks, and the remaining tunes are respectful covers of songs from The Beatles, Jimmy McGriff and John McLaughlin’s Mahavishnu Orchestra. Studio legend John Keane took care of the production chores, and contributed some sweet pedal steel as well.

Jimmy Herring is a guitarist, so it is no surprise that this is a guitar-centric album, and his fans will note that this disc strays further afield than his previous release, which was more of a jazz fusion effort. “Red Wing Special” starts things off with a bang as Nicky Sanders plays a mean gypsy fiddle while Herring shows off his nifty picking skills. The speedy bass and boppy drums complete this very complex 5-minute package, and prove once again that in the music world it is entirely possible to have the total equal more than the sum of the individual parts. This stuff just works thanks to the superlative musical skills of all of the participants. By the way, this tune is an instrumental (as is the rest of the album) so you will need to be inspired by the music, not the words.

The slow rock jam “Kaleidoscope Carousel” is up next and we get to hear Jimmy’s slide and rhythm talents, which are bundled together over the very pretty keyboard layers. Then on “Aberdeen” we get to hear Herring play truly smooth guitar solos in a waltz tempo. His guitar takes the place of the human voice in this song, and makes the mood while B3 master Ike Stubblefield lays down some serious gospel organ on this track. Ike also pitches in on Jimmy McGriff’s “Miss Poopie,” which has a marvelous groove.

Carter Herring (Jimmy’s son) lends his cello to the mix on a faithful re-do of George Harrison’s “Within You Without You” and John McLaughlin’s ethereal song “Hope.” His instrument is an unexpected voice that works well in conjunction with his dad’s guitar. Bill Evans provides a tasteful jazz tenor saxophone break on “Hope,” a song that has held up well since it was originally recorded back in the 1970s.

My favorite track on Subject to Change Without Notice is “Curfew,” which features the most popular banjo player on the planet, Bela Fleck. This song has really fancy country picking that would do Albert Lee or Chet Atkins proud. The drums and bass back off to more simple lines, allowing Jimmy and Bela the opportunity to shine as they play in perfect sync and then riff off of each other. The upbeat mood of this tune carries over into the finale, “Bilgewater Blues.” Matt Slocum brings the funk out on this one with his mighty keyboard skills, and Jimmy lets loose one last time with his mighty guitar chops.

With its wide range of genres there is a little something for everybody on Subject to Change Without Notice, and you do not have to be a guitar aficionado to appreciate the great collection of music on this disc. Be sure to check out this release and Jimmy Herring’s other work, as he is a real American treasure.

Mahalo!

Rest in Peace, Ray Mazarek: February 12, 1939 to May 20, 2013

TC Electronic Polytune Chromatic Tuner Review

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It seems like I write about a new electronic tuner every month, and it is no surprise as there are metric ton of these things out there nowadays, and you know what? They are all pretty good! It took a long time, but my trusty Boss tuner pedal was finally supplanted by the mighty Peterson Stomp Classic. Today we are looking at the latest challenger that was plugged into my board: the TC Electronic Polytune. This thing brings a lot to the table…

I have used plenty of TC Electronic equipment over the years, and it has been universally good stuff. They have been around since 1976, and I really like the tone of their amplifiers and effect pedals. Their products are solid and reliable, and are a definitely a good value. The Polytune is no exception.

The tuner is compact, measuring 3 by 5 by 1¾ inches, and it weighs in at a solid 10 ounces -- it is certainly a compact package. It seems sturdy, and I think it will survive drop test nicely. It runs on a 9-volt battery (that requires a screwdriver to access) or an AC adapter that is not included. It draws around 50mA. If you run it on the AC adapter there is a 9-volt out so you can use it to power other pedals. Do people use stuff like this? I don’t…

The Polytune has a ¼-inch input and output jack on either side and NO built-in microphone. Boo! On the back are the power jacks, and a small USB port that is apparently something they use at the factory. So it is not some kind of cool output or portal for installing new presets. Interesting.

The only control is the bypass stomp switch, and this unit is equipped with true bypass, which is a godsend. I would not consider a tuner pedal without this feature. The display has oodles of tiny mutli-colored LEDs with the standard configuration of red for out of tune and green for in tune. It is super easy to see in all light conditions because TC Electronic included an ambient light sensor so it can adjust to how much light is available. This is nice as it is not too blinding on dark stages, and you can still see it in daylight. Of course, the glare direct sunlight is still kind of a pain.

The specs of this unit look ok on paper, with accuracy of about 0.5 cent, and A 440Hz is adjustable from 335Hz to 4550Hz. As far as I can tell, the Polytune delivers on these promises.

So far, none of this stuff is terribly unusual, but TC Electronic has provided a neat twist. The Polytune has a logic called “MonoPoly” that allows the tuner to discern if you played one string or all of them. If you played one string it will go into the usual chromatic mode, but if you play all of the strings it will go into polyphonic mode and you check the intonation of all of your strings at the same time. Really – it will display all six and tell you which ones are in tune, flat, or sharp.

Initially this might seem like a gimmick, but it is truly awesome and a huge time saver, particularly if you are on stage getting ready for the next song in your acoustic coffee house set.

Does this polyphonic feature work on all guitars and basses? I do not know, but it works on all of mine. Electric guitars (Stratocaster, Telecaster, Les Paul, Explorer), active basses (Sadowsky, Marcus Miller, Stingray), passive basses (Precision and Jazz), and my acoustics with pickups (Takemine and Martin). All of them worked fine, though I must add in the disclaimer that I use normal tunings. If you use alternate or drop tunings (from E-flat down to B) the Polytune is supposed to work, but I cannot personally vouch for it. The same goes for 5-string basses – I just do not have one lying around right now.

By the way, the polyphonic mode seems to work better when using a pick on both guitars and basses. See what you think…

So, the polyphonic modes is a great tool for quickly checking to see where the guitar is, tuning wise, but I still prefer to fine tune each string individually in the regular chromatic mode. Since it automatically switches modes based on what the user is doing, this is not a big deal.

There are two different display options, too. There is a conventional needle style, or a streaming mode which kind of replicates a strobotuner effect. I have tried both and each works fine, and both will hold notes for a good length of time. I have no preference for one display mode over the other, strangely enough.

By the way, when you select different modes or reference tones, this unit will memorize you settings after it powers off, so you do not have to set it up again every time you use it.

In actual day-today usage, the tuner works just fine, and It did not add noise to my signal chain when put in my effects loop. The Polytone will run for about 6 to 8 hours of continuous use on a good quality battery, which is in line with other tuner pedals I have tested.

The Polytune is very good, and if I needed a new tuner pedal in its price range, it would be one of my first choices, if only it had an internal microphone. But this is a moot point as I like the operation and features of my Peterson strobotuner better, so it is not going anywhere in the near future.

The TC Electronic Polytune pedal is priced competitively with the rest of the chromatic tuner market, carrying an MSRP of $149, and a street price of $99. This includes the tuner, a 9V battery and some 3M Velcro so you can attach it to your pedal board (a nice touch).

By the way, TC Electronic also has a Polytune app for the iPhone. I will have to give it a try and report back to you…

Mahalo!

2012 Martin D-28 Acoustic Dreadnought Guitar Review

Aloha!

Today we are looking at a guitar that never stood a chance in my collection, a 2012 Martin D-28 acoustic. This is no fault of the guitar, but is it an innocent bystander of my fickle nature. It is still a beautiful dreadnought that anyone in their right mind would be glad to possess.

The D-28 is a classic in the Martin line, and it was put into production shortly after the D- series was introduced in 1931. This guitar hit the market at exactly the right time, and its full range and sweet tone were just what the performers of the day were looking for. As time went on, this became the signature model in the company’s line-up and it became the guitar of choice of for musicians from all genres, including legends such as George Jones, Hank Williams and Elvis Presley.

There were a few cosmetic changes to this model over the years, and some structural and functional changes including a slimmer neck and better internal bracing. The 2012 Martin D-28 we are looking at today represents the zenith of this guitar’s development, and it is a solid piece of work.

On initial inspection the D028 does not look super fancy, but it is still a very handsome instrument. The solid sitka spruce top has a nice grain, and fortunately it is not as blindingly white as some new Martin guitars I have seen. The sides and back are made from pretty solid East Indian rosewood. The body has multi-layer black and white binding, which looks very nice. It carries over to the purfling on the back. The black pickguard and the rosette are not my favorite look, but it they are well accomplished.

The neck is a fine piece of workmanship. It is made of satin-finished hand-shaped mahogany with an ebony fretboard (the bridge base is ebony too). The neck is not bound, and 14 of its 20 frets are clear of the body, which is a change that Martin made in 1934. The neck has an easy and shallow profile, with a 16-inch radius and a 1 11/16-inch wide nut. The nut and compensated bridge are both made of bone.

Grover tuners are installed at the factory, and they hold well but I am not sure that they really fit into the look and character of the instrument. There is no electronics on this one, but supposedly there is one available. The $95 K&K Pure Mini is a nice choice for these, if you want to plug in.

And the craftsmanship is first-rate. I came out of the box perfectly set up, and the nut and fretwork is unparalleled. It plays very smoothly, and it feels very comfortable even without any break-in period. It can be a very loud guitar, and the more you lean into it, the more you realize how well balanced it is from string to string. I go back and forth on whether I like the sound of mahogany or rosewood better, but the tone of this one is great, so rosewood it is…

These guitars are fantastic, but not terribly cheap. A brand new Martin D-28 has a list price of $2799 and a street price of $2399, which includes a nice molded hard case and a limited lifetime warranty for the original purchaser. Think of it as an investment in your future, as these guitars will last a lifetime if kept in a loving environment.

By the way, a while back I went on the Martin factory tour and got to see first-hand the care that goes into building these guitars, and it made me proud to own one. If you are ever in Eastern Pennsylvania, I highly recommend that you stop by their factory for a tour.

Unfortunately for this D-28, the week after I picked this one up I stumbled across a D-18 Golden Era, and the its Adirondack top distracted me so much that I had to off this one in a big hurry. So, this guitar moved on to a fellow in San Diego, and he loves it to death.

Mahalo!

Yamaha MG82CX Mixing Board Review

Aloha!

I have tried plenty of mixing boards in the past, but only use Yamaha boards these days as they reliable, easy to use and relatively cheap. I have a few different ones, depending on what job I am doing, and the MG82CX is the smallest of the bunch. It is a really neat piece of equipment, too!

This mixer is useful in situations where I need just a few microphone inputs and/or want to run my iPad through the PA. It also works wonders for karaoke parties. All of the basics are there, such as EQ functions, an effects loop and a headphone out, as well as a neat array of DSP effects. Besides the regular stereo outs there is also a pair of monitor outs. By the way, all of these outputs are ¼-inch, not XLR.

Like all Yamaha mixers, they play a little trickery with their specs. They call this an 8-channel unit, but is you look at it 6 of the channels are the 3 stereo inputs that are only controlled in pairs. Sounds like 5 channels to me, but since I have owned other Yamaha mixers, I knew this before I bought it.

I have used it for a few parties and small gigs and have been happy with the sound. If you do not go overboard with the effects they can be a nice addition, and the compression controls for channel 1 and channel 2 work reasonably well. With only 2 buses there are not a lot of options for monitor output, but if you need that much flexibility you are probably going to buy a bigger mixer anyway. Sliding faders and mutes switches would have been nice, but at this price point I am happy enough with the knobs that they provided.

By the way, this is one of the few mixers out there that can be mounted to a microphone stand (if you purchase the optional adapter kit). The MG82CX is made of plastic, so you have to be gentle with it, and if you need something to use on the road everyday you might want to consider a sturdier product. But, if you do not need a powered mixer or a bazillion input channels, this would be a great mixer for the money.

The Yamaha MG82CX has a list price of $209 and a street price of $159.99. This is a bit more than the slightly larger MG102C that I also use, but having the effects makes it worth price differential, especially for karaoke. If you are doing small shows, it is definitely the pick of the litter.

Mahalo!