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I really liked April Wine Just between you and me, She's a roller, I like to rock... quite a few songs actually

I am a big fan of home recording. Here's some thoughts on my obsession. (Yes, I am obsessed, and probably need to seek help) I dig hard rocking tube amps. Nothing like a pants flappin' 4x12 loud Bogner or Marshall or Boogie. Really the only place you can do that these days is at home - haha. Smaller clubs hate you. That's probably why smaller, lunchbox 18watt amps are so popular. If you don't own something like a Friedman Runt - 18 watt type amp, yeah, they get plenty loud, more than enough to play with a drummer. (I'm talking classic rock, not metal of course). I still have a few tube amps because, there just something to that feeling we all love. Now, one of my things is home recording. I have bought and sold a lot of desktop/rack gear to try to capture great recording guitar tones. It's been quite a ride. My quest is to get both the best amp tone AND feel without an amp. I've been searching for best of the best amp sims you can get. I've owned a lot of the usual suspects, like AxeFx, Kemper and Synergy. I've owned a ton of older preamp/amp sim devices from way back. Digitech, Art Powerplant, Rocktron, Sansamp etc. And, a bunch of the latest, like Walrus, Quilter, DSM Simplifier and Dumble pedals. Universal Audio Lion/Ruby, ToneX (Another fav, some awesome Joe Satch captures), Strymon Iridium etc. I also did get a Neural Quad Cortex that is pretty amazing. Might be my favorite new guitar pedal. If I were gigging again, I think I would use the Quad Cortex, it’s that good. The captures they have are... outstanding. I've also tried some new Software sims like the ToneX desktop and Neural Archetype: John Mayer. Also, I have tried some nice Attenuator/direct boxes like the Universal Audio OX, TwoNotes Torpedo, Boss Waza Tube Expander, Palmer, RedSeven EVO and just got the new BadCat PurePath. OK, the Purepath is pretty freakin' good and really does an amazing job of capturing an amp, attenuating it (on or off, no middle) and outputting one of the best cab sims ever. Total Voodoo here, It was stunning. No frills, but the exact same tone coming out of the amp. I just got it and it's sweet. It was named the best product at this year's NAMM for good reason. All these boxes have their uses and can fit certain music better than others. I can understand why a lot of big name bands use AxeFx's on stage these days, that says a lot about the quality of their tone. I also understand reliability and setup ease does come into play. Quick Side Note. I was totally blown-away after watching the George Thorogood 'Rig Rundown' on Premier. No live amps, just a pedalboard into two, cheapo, Electro Harmonix '22 Caliper (22 watt) stompbox-size power amp pedals into two 2x12s. I've seen him a few times and damn, he sounded great. Whatever works, works! Back to my little rant. We all have a tone in our heads that we've heard over the years on great recordings or live. Or, have owned old vintage amps and remember how cool they were. I had a Marshall Plexi and a real '57 Gibson Goldtop in High school (All that stuff was just, old 'used' gear back in the 70s). Now, when recording, I get pretty critical as I listen on high-quality monitors (Dynaudio BM15/Sub18) in my home studio. An important thing besides tone, is feel. Does it feel like a cranked amp when playing? Most of the amp sims seem to lack a bit in this area. I big part of that is how the guitar resonates with a loud amp. It's almost like a drug when that the guitar is on the edge of feeding back, it almost plays itself. I am a big Synergy fan. All-analog, no modeling. I have a bunch of tube amp modules that sound great. Their system does have a Sag control that gets a bit of that feel back. I recorded my last album almost entirely with the Synergy modules. My latest new toy is the Tone King Royalist pedal. Tone King has just been killing it with cool amps and now pedals. They have the Imperial pedal which is a Fender Blackface/Marshall combo 3 tube pedal with a 0-watt power amp simulator inside. And now the Royalist which is a two-channel, all British pedal with different flavors of Marshall and the 0-watt and a bunch of cab IRs. OK, I love it. I mean really love it. It has tone that is strikingly real, more so than most of the other gear. And, it feels great. I close my eyes and I am playing a Marshall. So good (It only does classic Marshall to slightly hot-rodded tone, not metal level gain stuff) It also takes pedals well if you want to boost it even more. Check out the review below and hear how good it is. I hope you can check it out, you'll love it too.

I just saw Triumph with April Wine in Atlanta. Rik Emmett and Gil Moore are at every show playing the whole time. Brian Greenway is the old timers in April Wine with a history going back to 1976. He was part of the classic lineup. I like April Wine, and have three or four of their albums. I like, and recommend, Starz.

The guitar played great and sounded great, although I had a slight learning curve with the boomerangs lol. Correct fret position and all hahaha. It’s scratches on the electronics cover that might have appeared to be plastic.

My 5 string Chaparral Bass is that color. The flash brings out the green. I guess it's just faded.

Really sorry to see this. I contacted him a time or three to ask for his expert input on some weird thing or another and he always tried to help me out.

One of my favourite bands

Loved April Wine! Loved a lot of albums and songs, from Roller which was a real rocker, to I like to Rock... always loved the end where they played the Satisfaction riff, in a round with Daytripper and other parts of the song on the fade out (if memory serves me correctly!). I even liked them all the way to The Nature of the Beast album with their biggest success on the charts. I thought it was interesting to have Phil X playing with Rik and Triumph, another band I liked, but it made more sense to me when I found out just yesterday that Phil took Riks place in Triumph around 1992-93.

By golly, he's cracked the code!

Once again, A.I. regurgitates bullshit. The “genius” tech isn’t able to discern betweeen the headstocks on the set neck versions and the bolt-on versions.

It was the 80s... everyone was a poser 😂

Hi everyone, wonderful guitar, but I'm not playing it, so I decided to sell it. It's listed here: https://www.kleinanzeigen.de/s-anzeige/1978-hamer-sunburst/3421441880-74-2091 It has had changed tuners, now back to original 70s Grovers but not original to this particular guitar. HFC deal for EUR 3.000,- excluding any fees, potential shipping etc. I'm not crazy about shipping this guitar so if anyone interested here has the chance to pick it up in person that would be great (Dusseldorf, Germany), but I can and will ship in the EU, have done it before, should be fine. Shipping to the US is impossible at the moment for me (wouldn't now how to insure it properly, super expensive etc), sorry! Medium neck, frets still great, no breaks/ repairs, original case with red plush, later 1978 already with the sustain block (which I love). Cheers C.

As a major recording songwriter and guitarist, Ernie’s post and recommendations resonate with me. Yet, like @veatch, I find there is no substitute for (most of the time) a tube amp to a quality mic and preamp/compressor. Just like the old days. That said if I am adding a small part, a DI guitar or a Tech21 Sansamp can get me more than acceptable results quick. But even those go into a quality studio preamp and compressor. If it sounds good it is good.

Atomic can take up to 30 days to post something in their inventory. They’re MASSIVE!

Good stuff. And I agree the proof is in your recordings. I'm still a ribbon and '57 off of the cabinet kind of guy. Double track and mix to taste. I get "meh" results, but that comes more from performance than engineering, I suspect...

It’s just the Dark Metallic Gray finish (Gunmetal) that has a yellowed clearcoat. It looks green over time, but isn’t. I’ve had a Phantom in that color before, and the color under the pick guard was the original gunmetal finish.

sick color!

I most certainly will, but there's already a line...

I also don't agree. I love my Chaparrals a couple have Floyd Rose, a couple have Hamer Schaller one a sustain bridge. None have issues with tuning an neck even with FL A/C pumping on them. They're great guitars.

Hamer stadium logos really show up nicely!

RIP JohnnyB. Condolences to his family and many friends. I was also a beneficiary of his kindness and willingness to share his knowledge. I had been missing him around these parts lately, like many of you. A big loss for the HFC, we already miss you JohnnyB.

When you restring and plugin your Vanguard for the first time since at least 12 years and realize how friggin great it plays and sounds…

Rest in Peace, Johnny B. I always enjoyed his fantastic audiophile postings and recommendations. I bet heaven is getting a hi-fi stereo upgrade.

RIP good man. The Silvertone amp I once bought from you now weighs a lot more. Thanks for your music expert advice on the forum that I always admired.

I live in Fredericksburg, so pretty much this area or hour or so away from most gigs. Friday I’m filling in with a band at Patriot Park in Spotsylvania. An outdoor evening kind of situation.

I’ve seen worse black bursts. Nice that they left most of the grain visible.

lets not forget Carondolet!! arniez

Gil Moore does not look 73, but he is.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I guess I was just hoping for the purchaser.

That price is the deal of the year for a 1978 Crowned and Bound Sunburst. Damn!!

Great review! The proof is in your recordings, thanks for posting.

Yup, exactly why I'm not a big boomerang fan myself 😒 They look awesome though... but it's dots, crowns, or blocks for me... unless it's the only guitar I play 😂

Nice job! Just one little cosmetic thing: When looking at my browsers tab, it is still showing the "W" for wordpress (as favicon). If you find the time, you may want to change it (>setting/>general). PNG is preferred here; I build one just in case. Thanks again and sorry for being a smart ass...

Martin - I’m positive that it’s a refin, but FBs aren’t very common at all!

That's a beautiful guitar. Love the fretboard and Yoga OM inlay. If you ever decide to part with it please reach out to me before posting. Thanks. H.R.

Congrats that's a beautiful, rarer Hamer. How did it play for you at the gig? Was there plastic film on the electronics cover? I don't think it's a refinish. If you have a black light, it should glow green for Nitrocellulose Lacquer. The Pearl Finishes are hard to reproduce. I really like that guitar. Enjoy.

Nice color ! 👏

Sure!

... or the fact he was diagnosed with AIDS in '87... Great movie, but clearly not historical record...

Want me to assist? Wouldn‘t be the first time 😁

That is one way to keep people from asking to play your guitar.

We never met in person, but I got so much good info from him over the years. Like so many others here. Some folks are just irreplaceable.

RIP, sir. Always one of my favorite guys here. Dementia/Alzheimer's just sucks. My 67 year old sister barely knows me. Smartest person I ever met. God bless his family.

Yea, but that one is cold blooded so it adjusts to temperatures.....

That's gotta look great on stage. Congrats!

this was on my playlist last week...1978-09-21 David Johansen Westport, CT @ Players Club