
Leslie For Guitar (G37)
Hammond is releasing their Leslie for Guitar amp in February 2009. Here are some spotlight comments about it:
This is a GENUINE LESLIE SPEAKER with the patented spinning horn on the top and rotor on the bottom. The G-37 is considerably smaller and much lighter in weight than our traditional keyboard Leslies, but packs a mighty sound due to the 100-watt guitar amp onboard. This footswitchable 2-channel amp features a real tube preamp, which gives the “clean” channel a warm and velvety tone, and the “overdrive” channel its crunch and power. A “contour” control lets you further tailor your overdrive tone to match your playing style. A 3-band master EQ rounds out the spec. The amp is connected to a specially voiced driver that feeds the top spinning horn, and a V30 vintage 12” speaker that fires in the lower rotor drum. You won’t need to bother with the cumbersome “floor preamp” and thick multi-connector cable of the old-school Leslies. You simply plug in your guitar with a regular 1/4” guitar cable, just like a regular amp. The channel switch and “Fast/Slow” switch are normal-style guitar amp footswitches.
...and get a load of the gas pedal...
There are three more innovations in the G-37 that are new to the LESLIE line. Most important is the optional “Gas Pedal”. For the first time, you are able to have continuous linear control of the Leslie spinning speed. The further you press down on the pedal, the faster the Leslie spins, and vice versa. This is great for special effects, or for finding a “sweet spot” between slow and fast that is the right for whatever it is you are playing.
...the "front stop" feature lets you use the leslie as a guitar amp when you don't want the effect...
Next is the “Front Stop” feature. There will be times that you might want to play your guitar without the Leslie spinning effect. In the past, when the Leslie horn and rotor stopped, they just stopped. In the G-37 the horn and rotor always stop in a position to sent your sound directly out the front of the cabinet, allowing the G-37 to perform like a regular guitar amp. This is very useful when “miking up” the G-37 in a sound reinforcement system.
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Are you looking for an entry level guitar for your kid this Christmas? We've put together a list of current eBay auction listings that will save you money during this tough economic time. Find the best deals in our guide to Christmas

For those who may not have known, Bob Sweet (founder of Sweet Sound Electronics, and creator of the most popular univibe clones) passed away on Friday, October 24th. Bob was a pioneer in golden age of boutique guitar pedals, a regular contributor on guitar message boards, a conscious adviser to his own customers, and an all-around good guy. May he rest in peace and our prayers be with his family.
I have received a lot of questions on how to make a Sole and how to ocean-farm. In this article I attempt to teach you in plain English how to do so. I can be reached here if you have any further questions.
Sea Minerals as Building Blocks
Minerals are the building blocks of life. The sea is the ‘primal soup’ from which all life on earth originates. There is no place on earth with a higher concentration of minerals than the sea. Sea water covers 70% of the planet’s surface. Animal and plant life thrive in an unpolluted sea environment, so much so that a double life span is easily reached compared to life on land, and in perfect health. This is because disease is the result of mineral shortages and acidification and this does not naturally occur in a sea environment. If it does occur, man is to blame, not nature.
Sea minerals as a plasma
All cellular life comes from the sea. Blood has been shown to be 98% identical to sea water. The only difference is that sea water needs an extra molecule of magnesium, whereas blood needs an extra molecule of iron (hence the red color of blood). When a sea water dilution comes in contact with blood, however, the magnesium is converted into iron, making the transition 100%. Thus sea water should be seen as a plasma.
Chlorophyll as a plasma
Photosynthesis is the interaction of sunlight and water. This forms the basis of all plant life. This too began in the sea. Chlorophyll is the product of photosynthesis and led to green, one-celled organisms. These washed onto land and led to plant life. People and animals not only share a genetic link with the sea but also with green plants, as chlorophyll is 98% identical to blood. Chlorophyll, too, has a magnesium core while iron forms the basis for blood. The conversion of magnesium in chlorophyll to iron is once again complete once this comes into contact with blood. Like sea water, chlorophyll is therefore a plasma and is sometimes referred to as the ‘blood of the plant’.
Sea minerals and chlorophyll as healers
Disease is caused by a shortage of minerals, which causes acidification. With the exception of a few, all minerals are alkalizing. In order to combat disease and acidification, alkalization and mineralization is key. Since sea water and green plants both have the very alkaline magnesium as a base, these are vital in fighting disease. Magnesium is the mineral of life.
Sea minerals and chlorophyll have the capacity to regenerate all cellular life. Sea minerals enrich the soil and plants with all necessary minerals and trace elements, the building blocks of life, in exactly the right proportions and composition. They provide the information and energy that cells need to regenerate by alkalizing and mineralizing the environment of the cells. This approach is therefore pro-life, not anti-disease. Sea minerals and chlorophyll help the organism maintain and regain its health. Ocean-grown plants can have the same effect on humans and animals who eat these plants.
Sea minerals as fertilizer
When sea minerals serve as plant food, the plants and soil take up more minerals and trace elements than they would get from any other type of fertilizer, including organic fertilizer. All of the earth’s elements, both known and unknown, can be found in sea water. Scientists have so far been able to identify 92 elements in sea water and 84 in unrefined sea salt.
Thus it makes perfect sense to use diluted sea minerals on the 30% land mass on which we live. Contrary to a healthy sea environment, there is more disease, aging, shortening of life spans and cell degeneration on land. By working with dilutions which are so extreme you can hardly taste the salt, there will be no salinization of the plants and soil, so the minerals can be used to their full advantage to help crops develop, grow and build up resistance.
Disease is acidification. Sea minerals alkalize and mineralize the soil, which makes for a healthy soil and soil life. Insects, fungi and other pathogens only clean up weaker crops and will not touch ocean-grown crops or the crops will show remarkable resistance to these micro-organisms. Weeds often thrive on slightly acidic soils and they will also stay away. Insecticides, fungicides and herbicides are then no longer needed. These chemicals have a highly acidic effect and will only deprive the soil and soil life of vital nutrients because they don’t work with nature but against it. The same is true for artificial fertilizer and non-composted organic fertilizer. Sea minerals are a natural alternative which allows you to work with the building blocks of life and in perfect harmony with nature.
Sea minerals and grass
No other crop is more receptive to sea minerals than grass. Grass grows in all places and at all times, it grows on everything and nothing. It is the predominant species of green plant on the 30% land mass we live on and it is a true survivor. Give grass the pure life force of sea minerals and it will take up every single mineral. Other plants make their own selection from the ‘menu’ served up by sea minerals, but grass loves them all. It is often thought that many plants, most notably grass, cannot grow without nitrogen. Though nitrogen promotes rapid growth, an excess of nitrogen does not feed the plants nor does it promote real health.
Good food means good health, it is the fuel that keeps the engine running smoothly. Sea minerals act as nutrients because of their alkalizing and mineralizing nature, keeping disease and acidification at bay. The plant’s natural immune system is boosted in this way. Plants need minerals. They will get their nitrogen in other ways, just like they do their carbon and sulphur, as these naturally occur in the atmosphere (air, rainwater). These are life-giving substances and so are sea minerals.
Sea minerals not only promote fast growth, but above all healthy growth. In no other crop is this more visible than grass. Even if the difference between ocean-grown grass and grass fertilized in other ways is not immediately visible, any grazing animal will immediately select ocean-grown grass when given the choice, because the animal instinctively knows ocean-grown grass has more nutritional value. Ocean-grown grass contains a balanced complex of minerals and trace elements as well as large amounts of chlorophyll. This is good for the grass and the grazer. The milk and meat of these animals is good for us humans. Thus a cycle is established which literally starts at the root.
How to ocean farm
First, I make a Sole. Here is how I do it:
Take a glass container (a bottle or a jar) with a lid on it so you can screw the container tight and shake the contents without spilling. Cover the bottom with Celtic sea salt (the grey, unrefined kind) or Himalaya salt. Fill the container with good-quality water, either spring water, mineral water or filtered tap water. Shake the contents until the salt has completely dissolved. If you have coarse salt, this could take up to 24 hours and you may have to shake several times. Once the salt has dissolved repeat the process, adding more and more salt until the water is completely saturated and there are salt crystals at the bottom which will no longer dissolve. You now have concentrated sea salt water or Himalaya water, otherwise known as Sole, referring to water and sunlight, ‘liquid sunlight’.
The next thing you need to get is a TDS meter. These are available on the web. This gives you the ability to measure exactly the salt content of the solution you are working with in parts per million (ppm). To ocean-grow most plants you can use a solution of 2000 ppm. This comes to about 4 teaspoons of Sole per quart of water. Be sure to measure the TDS (total dissolved solids) content. You can use one type of Sole to get up to 2000 ppm, in which case I recommend Celtic Sea Salt. If you want to combine it with a good rock salt, I recommend Himalaya Salt.
I start out with soaking the seeds for 24 hours in a 2000 ppm solution as well as treating the soil with the same solution. This way both the seeds and the soil get a head start. When I plant the seeds I cover them with a thin top layer of soil, which I also spray with a 2000 ppm solution. This will give the seeds and soil a nice damp start, but not too damp.
The second thing you need to figure out is how often to apply a solution. My golden rule is to not overdo it. I reapply the solution by spraying when the soil is nearly dry, thus giving the seeds and soil minimal nutrition. This strengthens them because they have to make the most of what I give them, plus I create conditions which are not too moist, which feeds fungi. You can harvest at any stage in growth, but of course the plant will be at its most energetic and nutritious when it is young.
If you want to experiment with the salt tolerance of certain crops, go by your intuition and listen to what the plants are telling you. For example, if they develop yellow or brown leaves, back down on the salt and give them water only to water down the solution you have applied. This will not kill or harm the plant permanently and you will be able to figure out the right dose.
I prefer to grow outdoors in indirect sunlight, even in winter time (growth will be slower then). You can also choose to grow without soil (hydroponics), indoors or outdoors. I have discovered I am a soil guy. In soil, fewer applications of ocean solution are necessary because the soil fixes the minerals and, because they are salts, the soil and plants will use water more economically.
When growing outdoors make sure you reapply an ocean solution after heavy rainfall, as rainfall causes the minerals to wash back out to sea. Do this on a dry day. A few drops of rain will not be so bad, in fact they will help to push the minerals deeper into the soil and closer to the roots. Once again, use your intuition.
What is really essential is the quality of the water in which you make the solution. Use living water, do not go for distilled or reverse-osmosis water as this is dead water. Use either filtered tap water or spring or mineral water, preferably at its natural temperature of 39 degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius). Don’t go over 48 Fahrenheit (9 degrees Celsius) as the water will lose its strength and vitality. This is according to the teachings of Viktor Schauberger.
Make sure you also farm with the right intention, one of love (do not farm if you are in a foul mood!). Check on the plants and soil every day, even if they do not yet need solution. Your loving attention alone will make the plants want to grow for you.
The great thing about all this is you are farming in harmony with nature because you are listening to what she has to tell you. There is no better and more energetic or spiritual therapy than that, in my view. By getting closer in contact with nature you are getting closer to your own nature.
Happy farming!
The time has finally come for fans of the Stampede SOV-1 overdrive pedal. A smaller, more compact & richer sounding SOV overdrive pedal has hit the market: the Providence Stampede-OD (SOV-2).
Under Review
- Brand: Providence
- Product Name: Stampede-OD
- Product ID: (SOV-2)
- Additional Notes: This is a pre-release "Free the Tone" version from Providence, which has some more expensive parts (these details are not fully known). The cost is $360+, and a normal SOV-2 will be around $300.
- Availability: The SOV-2 is available only at http://www.providence.jp/, and unfortunately will not be sold by dealers within the US. However, interested US buyers can contact Mr. Hiro Sase of Global Interlink Systems, who is handling Providence products in the U.S.A
When Yuki (short for Yukihiro Hayashi), builder of the Stampede overdrive pedals, first emailed me to review the new SOV-2 for him....well, I was ecstatic! Many know that I'm a very big fan of the original Stampede SOV-1 overdrive pedal due to it's warm, complex, mildly compressed overdrive tones.
However, the pedal takes up a lot of real estate on one's pedalboard, and I always thought the tone needed just a bit more midrange to cut through the mix in a live band setting. I would overcompensate on the high end by flipping on the Treble Boost & putting the Tone knob up 75% to about the 3:00 position. I still had a girthy tone that cut through better, but there was a slight edge that I had to deal with in order to tonally pierce through the mix as I like to say.
After weeks & weeks of anticipation, waiting for Yuki to finish up my pre-release SOV-2, I was delighted to first notice that [Read more]
Is the Marshall 18 watt circuit your kind of tonal bliss? Does the economy have you in a pinch? Well, The People's Amp is a handwired monster head in a handmade birch cabinet, providing boutique sound without the ridiculous price! For more information, visit www.peoplesamp.com.
Front & Rear Photos...

Boutique style Marshall 18 watt circuit for guitarists on a budget

A rear view of the People's Amp
***This Promotion has Ended***
Reunion Blues is giving away 4 merino wool guitar straps to Six String Soul readers free of charge, today only! This strap has been described as 'the world's most comfortable guitar/bass strap.'
The first 4 Six String Soul readers to leave a comment on the Reunion Blues blog posting will receive a free strap. Readers will just have to mention Six String Soul at the bottom of their comment.

Internal Combustion Guitar
Recently we learned of a new guitar design, called the Internal Combustion Guitar. Instead of forcing the resonate energy to the outside of your guitar, the Internal Combustion Guitar's proprietary driver system gently pumps it back inside. Then, the guitar's coupling mechanism redistributes the controlled energy to your strings. Your touch sends signal to a small amp (6 watts or less) or processor combo. The small amp sends the conditioned signal back to the Internal Combustion Guitar, and the Internal Combustion Guitar power driver reenergizes the now harmonically enriched and colored string tone.
This guitar is very unique! For more information, visit their website.
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