Lifestyle

More choices in instrument accessories is never a bad thing. Ernie Ball has just released four new colour options in their Axis Capo series. Now you can choose from Rose Gold Satin, Gold Satin, Pewter and Blue Steel. The standard fair of Silver, Black, Gold and Bronze are still available also. The single hand operated Axis capo works great for a variety of instruments and when not in use can be easily stored on the headstock of your instrument. I’ve used it on curved and flat fretboards with no issues and even nylon string and 12-string guitars. With the new choices finish options from Ernie Ball you can match your capo to your favourite guitars hardware finish now! Guitar straps are like socks they frequently turn up missing when I need them most. When I’m traveling to a gig, songwriter round or jam session I usually try to pack at least two of everything including guitar straps. The latest editions to Ernie’s Jacquard Guitar strap line are the Casino Couture, Red Bird Winter, Midnight Paisley and the Red Trellis. This is EB’s most popular guitar strap line thanks to the stylish designs and embroidered leather ends. The strap is crafted from polypropylene webbing which is tough stuff. I’m a fan of these straps because they will extend up 1.82 meters. One can never have enough instrument complimentary accessories and Ernie Ball makes it easy and fun! www.ernieball.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Eventide has done it again with two new powerful pedals, the MicroPitch Delay and Blackhole Pedal. Both are derived from Eventides popular H910 and H949 harmonizers. Breaking them down into individual units makes them more flexible for live performance. MicroPitch has a dual, pitch-shifted delay with increased ability to fine tune the de-tuning, providing a fat and warm tone! Five presets are contained in the pedal, but many more can be downloaded through Eventide’s EDM software. It also has the capability to double and triple your pitches, providing real time instrument harmonies. The Blackhole effect can take your reverb to the next level, especially with the addition of an expression pedal and you can load 127 presents and have five at your feet. Big win on the Blackhole is the Freeze function! Both of these Eventide offerings provide endless capabilities and pristine studio quality sound! www.eventideaudio.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Drums typically take up the most space on a stage and are not easy to transport. Toca’s Kickboxx Suitcase Drum set can fit anywhere a Cajon drummer can. The bass drum head is attached to the outside of the box while the snare and tom fit inside during transport. There is also a port for micing on the opposite side of the bass drum head. The Kickboxx secures with two latches, everything fits inside and there is a convenient carrying handle on top. The only hardware you will need to add is a kickdrum pedal, sticks and a high hat. It won’t replace your traditional drum kit, but it isn’t designed to. It will provide you the most percussion options of any portable kit on the market. I plan to add stickers to mine from the cities it visits with me like a well-worn suitcase! https://tocapercussion.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

L.R. Baggs new Voiceprint DI is a game changer in acoustic guitar technology and that is not an exaggeration! Guitar amplifier modelling and profiling has almost become common place in these modern times, but now Baggs has developed a pedal and App that allows you to capture your favourite acoustic guitars tonality. The Voiceprint DI comes with a physical, encased pedal and power supply. You will need to download the free AcousticLive iPhone App to connect your iPhone to the pedal via bluetooth (You can also pair it with your Apple Watch now). Through this App you are able to control the four independent modules: Level, Voiceprint (for fine tuning), Anti-FB (control feedback while playing live) and Master EQ (5 band virtual EQ). The microphone on your iPhone is utilized to capture the impulse responses from your acoustic guitar. Once these are ingested into the App you can store up to 99 of these guitar models into the hardware pedal. You can save more than this within the AcousticLive App and you can control the pedal via your Apple watch. It affords the capability to record the impulse of every guitar you own, and your friends own and then play those profiled tones at a live gig or in the studio. The pedal has a mute foot-switch, next foot-switch and knobs for anti-fb, voice, select, pad and volume. On the front of the Voiceprint DI there is a USB connector for computer access, send and return for effects, and XLR output and a ground lift switch to negate hum. The App gives you directions on how to capture the acoustic guitar sound impulses for best accuracy. So, to break it down further L.R. Baggs Voiceprint DI (Acoustic Guitar Impulse Response Pedal) allows you to pack one guitar to a live show and have 99 different guitar sound tonalities in the pedal. My favourite features are the Bluetooth sync with the pedal and the iPhone control capabilities. It is an incredible DI box even if you didn’t have the capture potential of the guitar sounds. The only feature I wish they had added is a built-in tuner, although the effects send, and return does allow you to easily patch in a pedal tuner, chorus, delay and reverb. There is truly nothing else on the market like it. I was wowed with the L.R. Baggs Voiceprint DI, and you will be too! https://www.lrbaggs.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

As the world gradually rebounds from a Pandemic, germs and cleanliness remain a major concern for all musicians and performers. Some Songwriter Rounds have moved to placing disposable mic covers over the microphones to protect the performers from potential germs and Covid transmission. VocoPro has just released a much more effective device the Germinator UV Microphone Sanitiser. This unit utilises UV Rays to kill all of the germs and smells that are frequently left upon microphones from multiple performers usage. The filter screen within the microphone capsule can’t catch all of the germs and metal mesh mic heads are tough to clean. This sturdy plastic cradle can accommodate two standard or wireless mics at once. The Germinator automatically turns on when microphones are placed in side of it and kills all of the germs in two minutes time. It is rechargeable, thanks to its USB power supply, and can clean 300 microphones on just one charge. If it is not being put to use the Germinator can retain a charge for up to 35 hours total. The device is ideal for karaoke sing along venues, songwriter rounds and any venue where singers are sharing microphones. It only makes sense to keep everything, including your mics, as clean as possible to protect the artists from potential germs. The Germinator has just been released, and we were fortunate at Maverick to receive one for review. One of my favourite features on this device is the large screen readout on top that tells you when the microphones are 100% fully sanitised and how much power reserve you have left. Fast, simple and effective microphone cleansing in a portable and chargeable device. The Germinator has your mics and artists covered! I believe you will see a number of venues with sanitising stations for microphones in the coming year! www.vocopro.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Fender Mustang Micro Amp is a must have for 2021. Maverick achieved an early demo and attended the Fender media presentation. An amplifier small enough to fit in your pocket the Mustang Micro contains 25 amps and effects from Fender’s most popular amplifiers. Bluetooth connectivity allows you to jam to your favourite tracks and the built in ¼ inch plug accommodates any instrument you have that has built in electronics. You can also record your tracks from the Mustang Micro directly to your Mac or PC with the included USB cable. Besides all of the amazing built in features my favourite one is the large volume control on the top! Amp, EQ, Effects and Modify are all on the side. This is ideal for silent practicing late at night or when your family or neighbours are asleep. Mustang Micro sound quality is spot on too! To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Could Fender’s newest release in their Acoustasonic guitar line be the best yet? The forward-thinking series, launched with the Telecaster and was followed by the Stratocaster. Each instrument providing their own takes on electric and acoustic sound options from one guitar. The Jazzmaster guitar, although originally designed by Leo Fender for Jazz musicians, was instead embraced by Surf guitarists and other musicians seeking to differentiate themselves. Fender continues to embrace that rebellious theme with the Acoustasonic Jazzmaster. Maverick Country received our review model in a traditional Tobacco Sunburst finish, although it is also available in Arctic White, Natural, Ocean Turquoise and Tungsten. The first thing I noticed was how comfortably the Jazzmaster shape sits on your lap. The neck and body are made of mahogany and the neck has an ebony cap on it, along with ebony knobs and bridge. The top is solid Sitka Spruce wood. But the real magic with the Acoustasonic Jazzmaster is under the hood. Thanks to the Tom Shaw designed acoustic humbucker pickup, Fishman Matrix under saddle electronics and a body sensor acoustic pickup, the guitar provides ten blendable voicings in one guitar. The 5-way selector on the lower bout of the guitar provides electric to acoustic choices. What would be a tone control on most guitars is in fact a Blend control from ‘A’ voicing in the back, to ‘B’ voicing in the front. So, you essentially have three different pickups that can be combined or isolated for the particular sound you are seeking. Fenders SIRS (Stringed Instrument Resonance System) is tuned to provide a louder authentic acoustic sound also from the soundhole. I was surprised at the robust sound level of the Acoustasonic Jazzmaster unplugged. You can’t fully appreciate the complexity and sound opportunities of this guitar until you do connect it to an amplifier. The Shawbucker pickup really shines on this guitar and you can achieve authentic electric guitar tonality with it. The P3 Body Sensor pickup is for artists that like to hit, thump and pop the tops and sides of their guitars for additional rhythm sounds and for looping. Like a traditional acoustic with the appropriate mutli-pickups, you can achieve different percussive sounds depending on how far to the edge of the guitar top you tap it. The Fishman under saddle piezo delivers your standard acoustic amplification. The satin finish on the neck and body make it feel more organic and less sticky than a gloss finish. Having this many sound choices in one guitar that projects so well is a bit overwhelming. However, I did find certain ones that were my favourites fairly quickly, as I’m certain you will also. The internal battery is recharged with a USB cable near the standard input jack and it will last for 20 hours of playing. It comes with a deluxe Fender gig bag as well. The offset Jazzmaster body truly works well for in setting. It makes the guitar seem bigger like a standard acoustic guitar is, but the Acoustasonic Jazzmaster isn’t cumbersome as some guitars can be. It is one of those guitars that if you were doing fly dates again, touring and hopping around to different songwriter rounds you could utilise this guitar for all those shows. I was also a fan of the semi-hollow body guitar sounds I could coax out of it with just a turn of a knob. If you haven’t played one of Fender’s Acoustasonic guitars yet I would highly recommend you give the Jazzmaster model a try. It’s a swiss army knife of tonal options. www.fender.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Paul Reed Smith Guitars continues their rollout of great playing affordable instruments with the release of PRS SE Zach Myers and Limited Edition Antique White SE Parlor Acoustic. Myers started playing PRS guitars at just fifteen years of age and has continued to do so with the band Shinedown and The Fairwell. When Zach’s new SE signature model arrived at the Maverick Country offices for review it looked and played more like a custom shop PRS than an SE. The maple wood top is stunning with a flamed veneer and finished in “Myers Blue.” It is a double humbucker, single cutaway guitar with volume and tone controls for each pickup and a pickup toggle switch at the top of the body. Features that set this guitar apart from others are the semi-hollow body with single f-hole on the upper bout of the body, vintage style tuners and a satin finish neck. It feels, plays and sounds like a much more expensive guitar, which I believe is incredible so that more musicians can afford to purchase one. The versatility of the guitar allows you to play all styles of music on it, which I did from classical, jazz to rock and country. The rosewood fingerboard on a wide-fat neck is smooth to navigate and the bird inlays really look great as well. We reviewed the PRS SE Parlor Acoustic/Electric guitar when it was first released last year. The model has been so popular with players that the Paul Reed Smith team decided to release a Limited-Edition version in Antique White. The new PRS SE P20E has a solid mahogany top, back and sides. The new finish really sets this acoustic guitar apart from others and the electronics make it ideal for songwriters or porch players. I have found myself playing this limited edition frequently and it takes capos with no buzzing which is great for multiple key changes. Only 3,500 of the PRS SE P20E will be offered in Limited Edition Antique White finish so you should probably put in your request for one now. The button tuners, bird inlays and white finish really tie it all together and the parlor size, sits easily in your lap. Both the PRS SE Zach Myers electric guitar and the Limited-Edition SE Parlor come with a PRS SE embroidered gig bag to protect the guitar and keep you on the go for the next gig! https://prsguitars.com To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here. Media contact Eric Dahl, Editor, Maverick Magazine Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920 Email: editor@maverick-country.com