How the 1950s and ’60s Shaped the Modern Drum Set
The 1950s and ’60s were legendary for music, and the beating heart of all the early rock ‘n’ roll, folk and pop songs from that era was the drums. Drum kits and hardware had evolved heavily before the 1950s with changes coming every few years to how artists played their sets. Still, it wasn’t until […]
Compressor Controls Explained
One of the most important and powerful tools in any recording studio arsenal is – without a doubt – the compressor. I recently wrote about studio compressors and which specific units were good for specific applications. However, I’ve been hearing a lot of budding engineers say that they don’t understand what all the different settings do […]
Gibson CEO James Curleigh on Running an Iconic Brand
This year at Summer NAMM, the zZounds Crew got the chance to speak with James “JC” Curleigh, the recently appointed CEO of Gibson Brands. In our video interview, above, you can hear Curleigh’s vision for the future of Gibson guitars, and his thoughts on running a globally recognized brand. Of course, JC has experience on […]
Greg Koch and Rick Vito on Their Signature Reverend Models
As the manufacturers of some of the most original and lively guitar designs out there, the Midwest’s Reverend Guitars teamed up with Greg Koch and Rick Vito to create their own signature guitars. Dripping with vintage style and modern high-performance features, these instruments were made to give your playing that extra edge. Both Greg and […]
How Does Drum Size Affect Tone?
Drummers, like all musicians, have certain preferences on what they play. Some drummers like bigger drums, some like smaller drums. Do you prefer deep or shallow shells? Maybe you don’t care at all, and that’s okay too. Below you’ll find the unbiased disclosure on how drum size might factor into your overall sonic signature. Diameter […]
Matthews Effects Pedal Video Demos
Matthews Effects makes some truly unique pedals with designs that cater to the player who craves versatility on stage. We put their current roster of five pedals to the test — check out our video demos below to hear what these Matthews Effects pedals can do! Shop All Matthews Effects → The Architect V3 Overdrive/Boost […]
Neon Vines’ Music Gear Picks
Multi-instrumentalist Neon Vines climbed into the electronic music production scene in early 2018, poised to outgrow her singer-songwriter roots. In just a few short months, she began to amass a dedicated fanbase on YouTube and Instagram — and an ever-expanding collection of high-tech music-making tools like the ROLI Seaboard, Ableton Push, and Akai MPC X. […]
The Shure SM58: From Flop to Top
It may have been your first mic, or it may be the one you’ll use at the gig tonight — either way, this mic set the standard for nearly every microphone built in the last 50 years. Shure’s SM58 leads the way in the live sound microphone world thanks to years of refinement and development […]
Fender Tone Master Amps: The Cutting Edge of Timeless Tone
If Fender’s new Tone Master Twin and Deluxe Reverb amps only sounded exactly like their tube counterparts, it wouldn’t be enough. That’s because Fender engineers designed these amps to behave exactly the same, too. Three years of hard work designing, programming and engineering has resulted in two amps with circuit topologies that replicate the same […]
