Most underrated piece of gear?

[Hot _Grits]

I know, it's been done before, but it's fun.

For me, it's the Fender custom Vibrolux reverb amp. A partially handwired, custom shop (Bruce Zinky) designed screamer. A sort of a brownface/blackface hybrid clean that is nice and fat with single coils, and a fat, sweet cranked overdrive with nice presence. Nice tube reverb and trem, too. 40 pounds dripping wet, and killer into a 2x12. Most importantly, the midrange character of this amp is such that it can cut through a mix, something even some classic fenders can come up short on.

You can hunt them down in blonde tolex, too. I'm told they were made in the custom shop for the first three years.

What about you?

 

[Hellion]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

A couple of them.....1) Graph-Tech saddles; most amazing improvement to a guitar that can be made. 2) Roland Space Echoes RE101, 201, 301 and 501; Nothing's been made since that sounds quite like them. Just ask Brian Setzer. 3) Scholz R & D Power Soak; Made screaming Marshall Amps listenable again.

 

[brisk]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

My Yorkville Traynor Custom Valve 40W 1X12 amp. I got it new for little bit more than $400 while ago. Now that's the amp that found me the beauty of single coil sound and the joy of playing fender. It's my workhorse amp that I play daily.

 

[diggamark]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Graphtech Rocks!!!!!!

But most under-rated piece of gear.... a guitarists fingers...

 

[Hellion]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Graphtech Rocks!!!!!!

...

....Yes, they do!

 

[VaiHalen]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Graptechs saddles!

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

If it was Kirk Hammett, it'd be his Crybaby... oops

My Dean Chafin Del Sol. Great feeling, looking and sounding axe. It screams blues and rock and roll. It's my favorite just because it's different enough to keep around. A great semi-hollowbody isn't easy to find (Gretsch for instance, puts out 3 grand guitars that play worse and sound worse than a guitar that costs half as much as mine). Of all guitar makers, I chose a metal guitar company to buy a semi-hollowbody guitar from, but it rules. I have no desire to ever play a Gibson after this thing.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Many of the newer Korean made guitars. Some of the Washburns, Samicks, and others actually surprise me, when I pick them up. For the price of some of them, the sum of their parts would be as much as double the retail price, if sold individually.

 

[yes-fan]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

probebly compressors. if you have a good one it can make you clean tone sound amazing!

 

[beandip]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

a new properly cut nut. and new tuners. People under-estamate the importance these two play in staying in tune. A properly cut nut, even if its plastic, can stay in tune, even under the heaviest of trem use.

 

[59paul]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

A good ol reliable TS-808 !!!!

 

[Guitarist]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

A good ol reliable TS-808 !!!!

:laugh2: Yeah! No joke! :wink:

Personally, (second to the TS-808, of course...) I'd say the MT-2. People bash on that consistently, and it's tone really isn't that bad when you learn it's parameters!

 

[BluesNRock87]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

a guitar built by godin (same guys as seagul, and some others)

crate vintage club amps, 200-400 for a combo, pushing 500 for a head and matching cab. im under the impression its an ac30 clean channel and a plexi gain channel, circuit wise......either way, its def. got the ac30 clean chime, and its got some ballzy gain, not metal, but ballzy, gritty, saturated tube distortion. so what if isnt handwired, it can kick a peavey, hot rod, or marshall tube combo for versatility and tone, and even some higher end amps.

 

[Fatty]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Honestly... I'd have to say pickups. I think we pickup swappers are still in the minority as far as guitar players go. Good pickups can improve even the most basic of guitars.

 

[diggamark]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Honestly... I'd have to say pickups. I think we pickup swappers are still in the minority as far as guitar players go. Good pickups can improve even the most basic of guitars.

I'm amazed at the amount of guitarists that give me odd looks when mentioning aftermarket pickups..... which is really weird when most would probably put aftermarket parts in their cars, but not consider it for their guitars...

 

[NoMoreMKIV]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

i'd have to say that a decent (even if homemade) pedalboard is greatly underrated. i can't tell you how much time it saves to have things set up, wired correctly, and ready to go in 10 seconds flat.

in fact, i would argue strongly in favor of homemade, because you can build it to your specs, and probably do it for a small fraction of the cost of a commercially available board.

as for electronic devices, i agree that a compressor is a great effect for clean tones, and also for use on leads with a little bit of overdrive right after it.

 

[beandip]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

hey Jolly, yo nig nig, ya hoo hoo

 

[kmcguitars]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Okay .Ready for this ?? A Capo !! If you ever find yourself in a situatation
where you have to transpose keys on the spot. It will save your live.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

Learn to transpose by ear and you never have to worry about where you capo is...
my vote goes for...the guitar case, the rack holding my equipment, locking tuners, graphtech saddles (the bent metal ones tear up my palm), and my midi footcontroller- makes no sounds, but controls it all.

 

[xerxes]

Re: Most underrated piece of gear?

your hands are....