GW’s Paul Riario and Alan Chaput dive into Martin’s 00L Earth acoustic, Baldacci’s Bighorn Standard electric and TASCAM’s DP-008EX Pocketstudio
Looking for the best new gear to make sure this summer is the hottest yet? Look no further than Guitar World’s Summer Ultimate Gear Guide.
In the first installment, Guitar World’s Paul Riario and Alan Chaput select acoustics, electrics and more that are guaranteed to keep your music and creativity sizzling.
(Image credit: Martin)
First up is Martin’s 00L Earth acoustic guitar, which, Paul explains, features a top painted by longtime Martin collaborator and artist Robert Goetzl, who was inspired by climate activist Greta Thunberg's School Strike for Climate movement to create the awesome Earth, sun and stars illustration.
The 00L Earth is the first acoustic guitar that is both 100% FSC-certified and 100% plastic-free, and features a comfortable 00-14 Fret Slope Shoulder body, a dynamic Sitka spruce top matched to warm-sounding sapele back and sides, a dovetailed modified low oval mahogany neck with high-performance taper topped with a smooth ebony fretboard and much, much more.
(Image credit: Baldacci Guitars)
Moving on to electrics, Paul and Alan turn to Baldacci’s Bighorn Standard, which, they point out, is “built on the crossroads of vintage and modern,” with a double-cut shape centered around the tried-and-true combination of a mahogany body and a curly maple top.
From there, Baldacci adds in a mahogany neck that is built three weeks out, giving the wood time to rest between each stage to release any movement, a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard highlighted by a mountain inlay at the 12th fret and a pair of the company’s Mountain humbuckers, which are based on the sounds that created rock ‘n’ roll and designed to provide a ton of punch and swagger.
Now that Paul and Alan have provided you with your new favorite acoustic and electric guitars, you’ll need something to record them on. And for that, we take a look at TASCAM’s DP-008EX Pocketstudio, “a small, powerful and extremely affordable writing and recording companion,” Alan says.
(Image credit: TASCAM)
The eight-channel unit features built-in input and master effects, as well as two XLR mic inputs with +48V phantom power and built-in high-quality stereo condenser microphones – and that’s just for starters.
To find out more about the Tascam and all this amazing gear, check out the video above.
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