Finding the Right DJ Setup for You
Choosing gear that works best for your goals is just as important as learning the basic techniques of DJing. To help get you started, I’ve provided some of my top picks for four different levels and types of DJ. Each pick includes important features that will make the transition between each of these categories seamless. […]
Perfect Pairings: Kemper Profiler and ValveTrain PowerTrain Stage 50
Sometimes you gotta pair up two pieces of gear to get the most out of each. In this edition of zZounds’ Perfect Pairings, we’re partnering up a Kemper Profiler Guitar Amplifier Modeler with the ValveTrain PowerTrain Stage 50 to create a beastly amp stack overflowing with both versatility and muscular tube tone. Kemper Profiler Guitar […]
How To Back Up Your Vinyl Collection
Welcome to Beat Connection, a series dedicated to promoting modern and vintage dance styles the only way we know how…by providing you a musical starting point to help you create that beat. In the majority of our recent posts, we’ve been taking you on a journey to what I’d dub “foundational beats.” These are standard […]
The Devil Went Down To Georgia (Or Maybe Nashville)
What the heck is a fiddle? Recording violin (aka the fiddle) is something that I feel was a lot more prevalent throughout mainstream music history than it is now. While “fiddle” can mean a few different instruments – the lyre, hardanger, viola/kontra, the cello (aka the “big fiddle”) — it’s most commonly associated in modern […]
Joe Perry Reveals New Signature Les Paul on Twitter
Yesterday, Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry tweeted a first look at his new signature Gibson Les Paul. Sporting a tastefully relic’d gold top and single bridge humbucker, it also offers a few out-of-the-ordinary features. There are two knobs — a master volume and a Chandler Tone X control. This unique pot sweeps your midrange for a […]
Cymbal Anatomy Part 5: Cymbal Cracks
The dreaded cymbal crack is an issue that plagues drummers of all sects, and also plagues their bank accounts. This article will cover some basic dos and don’ts as general guidelines (and not a rule book). Cymbal Stand Height and Angle One of the best things I ever did for my drumming was lowering my […]
JHS Overdrive Shootout
We here at zZounds were fortunate enough to receive a small bounty (no pun intended) of old and new JHS drive pedals for a shootout. Since JHS offers a wealth of drive options for players, I figured a demonstration of the tone of each would be a worthwhile pursuit. As an added bonus, the JHS […]
UAD-2 Preamp Bass Overdrive Shootout
Ever since I picked up my first electric guitar, I’ve always loved the sound of overdrive. Now, of course, when I first started playing, I thought that distortion was an effect or a sound only reserved for guitars, and preferably generated from a monstrous tube amp. As I grew older, I started aligning myself more […]
Dynamic vs. Condenser Microphones: Which to Use?
The argument between which is better, condenser or dynamic microphones has been raging on for ages. Though the differences are immense, it’s important to figure out exactly what you need for the project at hand. So with the vast dynamic and condenser microphone options available today, what should you use? Dynamic Microphones Dynamic microphones are […]
