Mr. Black Announces a Wild New Pedal

Blake News

After teasing us with mysterious pics and hints for the last few weeks, Mr. Black Pedals has formally announced the Shepards End Infinite Flanger. According to Mr. Black, this is the first time this effect has ever been produced. By anyone. Ever   But what is an Infinite Flanger? I’m not even going to try to explain. Mr. Black lays …

Boss Metal Zone Revival

Blake Tone Talk

Alright. I fully understand the situation. In your younger gear purchasing years you somehow acquired a Boss Metal Zone. Yes, it truly is one of the worst sounding pedals of all time, but Boss still manages to sell them by the bucket load to budding, young axe slingers. They just don’t know any better yet… 😉 Well, don’t chuck that …

Play Music On The Porch Day

Blake News

There is something truly special about playing music outside. One of the coolest things in life is it to kick back with an acoustic guitar, and sing songs with your friends. There’s a camaraderie there unlike many other experiences. A bond is formed and memory is created. Oftentimes, it’s not until years later that you realize how special those moments …

Picking Your Tone

Blake Tone Talk

We have all done it. Obsessing endlessly over what guitars, pedals and amps make up our signal chain. Debating constantly over the tonal differences between a TS808 vs a TS9. Tungsol vs JJ tubes. The list is goes on. There’s no doubt that all of these things are important, but one crucial piece of gear is consistently over looked. In …

“Tone Guy”

Blake Tone Talk

I had a very interesting conversation yesterday. A concept was introduced to me that I’ve never noticed, even though it was right in front of my face. Really got my brain going, and I wondered if anyone else has had such an encounter. I’ll cut to the chase. I was taking a long stroll, thinking about cool gear, as per …

Caroline Guitar Co. Teases A New Reverb

Blake News

Phillipe Herndon from Caroline posted this pic to his Instagram page a couple days ago. Needless to say, a Caroline Lo-Fi Reverb to go with their delay would be a awesome combination. Not much was said about the functions and details of this piece. Instead we got a rather cryptic description…… “So. This is a thing. Maybe not THE thing. …

The Story Behind the Solo: Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”

Blake History, Tone Talk

Todays guest post comes to you from John Sagers. John is a professor of history who happens to have a passion for guitars, effects, and cranked amps. David Gilmour’s soaring solo in “Comfortably Numb” stands out as one of the greatest moments in guitar tone history. This model of harmony and focused energy is all the more amazing in light …

Open Back vs Closed Back Guitar Cabinets

Blake Tone Talk

Part 1 of our Cabinet Talk series It’s a classic conundrum. Many players over the years have debated the merits of guitar cabinet design. The question that is often at the top of the list…. “Should I buy an open back cab or a closed back cab?” The answer, as with most everything tone related, is “It depends.” Let’s dive …

A Word About Patch Cables

Blake Tone Talk

Most players know that it is generally best to keep cable lengths as short as possible. (And if you didn’t, you do now.) The difference is easy to see visually and equally easy to hear audibly. No matter how high quality the cable is, a long cable will always act as a low pass filter and kill much of the …