Sound Advice

A marriage of high tech and traditional values inspires today’s blues and rock players. Using a quality clean tone as a platform for various drives and other effects is especially hot right now. Some players even ‘stack’ different types of overdrive, clean boost and distortion pedals to get the best of all possible worlds. Of course, boutique amps and huge pedal-boards come with high price tags, so, unless you have deep pockets, a digital modelling amp is a modernist solution. Purists may sneer, but Line 6, Blackstar, Vox and Marshall all offer great affordable gear that’ll get you close to many classic tones.