Will Bennett - Gear Demos

Which one are you reaching for first? I’ve always loved Hollow and Semi Hollow guitars. There’s just a little something extra to the tones. My first was an Epiphone Sheraton back in 2006, and since then there’s always been at least one semi hollow in the collection. Currently it’s my 1966 Gibson ES-355. Last year I was fortunate enough to add the Heritage and Gretsch Hollowbodys to the collection. And they’re both incredible guitars. There’s an insane range of sounds available across the three of these instruments. #guitarphotography #guitarphotos #gretschguitars #gibsonguitars #heritageguitars #es355 #electricguitar #fujifilm #xf18mmf14 #vintagegibson #hollowbody #semihollow

Swipe through to hear some of my favorite tones with the @bensonamps Bellringer. Let me know your favorites. It’s no shocker to anyone who follows the page that I’m a big fan of Benson Amps. I’ve been using my 15 watt Monarch since early 2020, and love the sounds I get out of it. The 35 watt Bellringer expands on those by adding separate Treble/Bass controls and Tube Driven Power Scaling to control that extra power. There’s more headroom available, and by utilizing the wattage control, you can dial in a lot more saturation. The bigger 2x12 cab gives it a little extra oomph in the room as well. All of the drive in the clips is from the amp alone. No extra boosts or drive pedals in the chain. The first three clips, are all in the full 35 watt mode, showing off how touch sensitive it can be and some of it’s breakup at higher volumes. That crunch tone with the Tele is where I love to have it set most of the time. The clip with the Jazzmaster gets a little help from the Benson Delay. The Gretsch & Yamaha clips are both recorded in the 15 watt mode. The Gretsch is set right where the amp is starting to break, and the Yamaha is pushed a little past halfway getting lots of saturation from the amp. The Frank Bros clip has the Bellringer fully cranked in the 1 watt mode, this is the most saturation you can get out of the amp and it borders right on that line between distortion/fuzz. All of the clips were recorded with the @royerlabs R10 Hot Rod Ribbon mic, with no extra eq processing. #bensonamps #bellringer #tubeamp #bensonbellringer #royermicrophones #r10 #fenderguitars #gretschguitars #yamahaguitars _official #frankbrothersguitarco #heritageguitars #handwired #masdistro

Which Sound is your favorite? Today we’re checking out the ZVEX Fuzz Factory. There is an unbelievable range of tones hiding in this little package and after spending some time with it it, it’s no surprise that it has cemented it’s status as a modern classic. The Fuzz Factory is a two transistor fuzz that incorporates extra controls to allow you to dial in anything from vintage style fuzz tones to spitty gated fuzz tones to all out oscillating madness. There are 5 controls on the Fuzz Factory are Volume, Gate, Comp, Drive, & Stab. Volume and Drive work as you’d expect them too controlling the level and gain. The Gate knob sets how quickly the fuzz gates your signal as it sustains. This can also tune the oscillation pitch depending on where the other knobs are set. The Comp knob controls the overall compression, and lets you dial in the attack of the fuzz. Like the Gate knob this is very interactive with Stab control. Lowering the stab control from its max setting introduces some squealing and oscillating to the circuit. This can be extremely musical…or extremely annoying depending on your tastes and style. I enjoyed letting the oscillation fight my signal on the solo on this track, it can definitely add some cool textures when used the right way. Thank you Zvex for sending this to be a part of the series. Signal Chain is: @dunable_guitars Cyclops DE @zvexeffects Fuzz Factory @bensonamps Monarch Reverb @uaudio Ox Box #zvex #zvexeffects #fuzzfactory #fuzzpedal #guitarpedals #pedaldemo #effectspedals #dunableguitars #bensonamps

What’s your favorite Nirvana Album? Today marks 30 years since Kurt Cobain’sdeath. I was just a kid at the time but discovering his songs later in my teens was a huge gateway into guitar and rock music for me. I was obsessed, I had to have a boss distortion pedal like his, and the first guitar I ever saved up for was his signature Jag-Stang Here’s a cover I recorded last year of the Smells Like Teen Spirit solo. I think I nailed that tone. #nirvana #nirvanacover #kurtcobain #smellsliketeenspirit #fender #fenderfeature #fenderjagstang #jagstang #bosspedals #distortion #guitarsolo

Which tones are your favorites? (Toss on some headphones to hear the full stereo spread) Today we’re listening to what I think is the best Reverb on the market right now, The @meris.us Mercury X. Built around the same Modular UI as their LVX Delay, the Mercury X allows you to create an almost overwhelming amount of reverb sounds. Anything from classic Spring and Plate effects all the way to expansive ethereal soundscapes and everything in between. Every algo is high fidelity and I was instantly struck by how high quality the reverbs sound and feel. The Mercury X features 8 unique algorithms, The Ultraplate & Cathedra taken from their Mercury7 reverb. 78 Room, Plate, & Hall variations from their CXM collab with Chasebliss, as new Spring, Prism, & Gravity algos designed for this unit. Like the LVX these can be combined with a variety of other effects included in the units Dynamics, Preamp, Filter, Pitch, & Modulation blocks. Here’s a quick look at some presets I’ve put together to show off a small sample of what the Mercury X is capable of. There’s some simple classic reverb styles, some bigger pads that take advantage of the multi effect processing, and even a couple that show how you can use the Mercury X to fill some other holes you might have in your rig (Modulation or Delay Effects) #meris #mercuryx #reverb #reverbpedal #guitareffects #guitarpedal #effectspedals #guitartone #pedaldemo #gearybusey #tonefordays

What do I need to add to the collection? Had to snap an update of the guitar wall, not much has changed guitar wise since the last shot I posted, but the amp riser got a big overhaul with the arrival the Bad Cat Black Cat & the Benson Bellringer at the end of last year. And of course my Big Eagle Championship Belt really ties the whole thing together. #guitarcollections #musicroom #guitarstagram #guitarrack #fenderguitars #gibsonguitars #yamahaguitars #frankbrothers #heritageguitars #dunableguitars #bensonamps #mancave #guitarphotography #guitarphotos #guitarphoto #badcatamps

Which sound is your favorite? Today were checking out the Ross Distortion. Released as part of the new @jhspedals revival of the Ross lineup, the Distortion recreates two different revisions of the classic circuit. The Ross Distortion is a hard clipping Op-Amp based circuit similar to the likes of the DOD 250 & MXR Distortion, and does a great job of creating amp like drive tones. And does a great job of slamming the front end of your amp at higher drive tones. The layout is nice and simple, Level controls the output of the circuit, Distort controls the amount of Gain. There is a push button switch on the side that switches between a Germanium mode (Era 2 of the circuit) and Silicon (Era 3 of the circuit). The Silicon gives the tone a little extra bite and aggression. I’m using it on sounds 2 & 3 in this video. Thank you to Ross/JHS for sending this to be a part of the series. Signal Chain is: @fender AVII 75 Tele Deluxe @ross_electronics Distortion @bensonamps Monarch Reverb @uaudio Ox #rosselectronics #jhspedals #distortionpedal #distortion #guitareffects #effectspedals #effectspedal #pedaldemo #guitarfx #teletuesday #fendertelecaster #telecasterdeluxe #bensonamps

What’s the first riff you’re rocking on this one? Here’s a snap of my American Vintage II 75 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue. I’ve been playing this a bunch lately, really dig the wide range pickups, they’ve got a unique voice and can cover a ton of ground. It’ll be popping up next week in a new Three Sounds demo for the Ross Distortion. #fender #fenderfriday #fendertelecaster #telecaster #telecasterdeluxe #americanvintage #guitarphotography #guitarphoto #fujifilm #xf33mmf14 #fenderguitars

What’s your go to guitar microphone? Today we’re checking out the R-10 Hot Rod Edition Ribbon Mic from Royer Labs. The Hot Rod Version takes the standard R-10 and adds a new custom transformer that adds 5DB of output and increases the low-midrange focus. This mic sounds fantastic on a variety of sources. I used it on everything in this video, Electrics, Acoustic, Bass, and even the Voiceover. I’ve been using the R-10 Hot Rod for a couple of weeks now and it’s been a noticeable step up from my previous ribbon mic. I’ve been really impressed with how naturally it captures the sounds I’m hearing in the room, and how good it sounds without any extra processing. There’s no extra eq on any of these tracks, these are all just the mic plugged right into the Apollo pres on my X4. It’s a great option if you’re looking for something high quality that will get you great tones without a lot of messing around to get them. It excels close up on a guitar amp, which is obviously going to be my main use case, but I also really enjoyed how it captured my acoustic guitar. I’m looking forward to experimenting some more with it on different sources. It’s pretty safe to say you’ll be hearing a lot more with this one going forward. Thank you to the fine folks at Royer for sending this out for me to work with. #royermicrophones #royer #royerr10 #ribbonmic #homerecording #guitaramp #bensonamps #badcatamps #homestudio #gibsonguitar #microphone #bassguitar #tubeamp

Which sound is your favorite? Today we’re looking at the Pulse from Dawner Prince Electronics. The Pulse is a Rotary Speaker Emulator that is inspired by the classic Pulse-Era Pink Floyd/Gilmour tones. It does a fantastic job of emulating the three dimensional sounds of a rotary setup both in mono or in full stereo. There are plenty of controls to dial in your sound on the Pulse. First up are separate knobs to set the Slow and Fast speeds. These are switchable by the footswitch, or can be controlled by a remote switch or expression pedal plugged into the exp input. The Inertia knob sets the time it takes to ramp between the two speeds. The distance knob controls the proximity of the virtual microphones to the rotary speakers. Minimum settings are the farthest distance, which result in a more subtle tone, or at max settings the speakers are closer and this results in a more dramatic pulse. The mix knob controls the amount of dry signal blended with the rotary signal. The input accepts a TRS input for stereo applications, and there are separate left and right output jacks each with an adjustable volume trimpot to help balance the output to your amps. Thank you to Dawner Prince for sending this to be a part of the series. Signal Chain is: @fendercustomshop 63 Landau Strat @browneamplification Carbon X @dawnerprince Pulse @bensonamps Monarch Reverb @uaudio Ox Box #dawnerprince #pulse #pinkfloyd #davidgilmour #rotaryspeaker #guitarpedals #guitareffects #guitarfx #effectspedals #fenderstrat #fendercustomshop #bensonamps #pedaldemo

Little #gibsunday throwback to my 1966 ES-355 basking in the natural light. These will always be one of the best looking guitars ever made in my eyes. #gibsonguitars #gibsonguitar #vintagegibson #es355 #semihollow #guitarphotography #guitarphotos #fujifilm

Which tones are your favorite? Today we’re checking out some of my favorite tones from the Bad Cat Black Cat. I’ve had this amp for a few months now and I’ve been having a great time cranking it up and exploring the tones it has to offer. I’m trying something a little new today with this format. No backing tracks, just raw guitar tones captured with my Royer R-10 Hot Rod just off the grille. I wanted to show off the variety of sounds and how it reacts to different guitars. Spec wise it’s a 20W EL-84 based 1x12” combo that has two channels, each with independent Volume and Master controls and they share the EQ section. There’s a built in Trem and Reverb, as well as a buffered effects loop and a line out. First up is the Strat, it’s running into Channel One for a nice fat glassy Clean-ish sound with a splash of reverb. Second is Heritage H-530, running into Channel One, set to a nice crunch, with a healthy dose of trem & reverb. Third is the Jazzmaster, running into Channel Two, set on the lower end of the gain range for a nice drive with a lot of clarity. Fourth is the Les Paul, Channel Two, with the gain dialed up considerably for an aggressive tone that’s great for rhythm or leads And lastly, is the Gretsch Falcon into Channel Two with the trem and reverb cranked up for a loud brash spacey vibe. Signal chain for all the clips is the same: Guitar plugged straight into the @badcatamps Black Cat, recorded with the @royerlabs R-10 Hot Rod into the @uaudio Apollo X4 #badcatamps #blackcat #guitaramp #tubeamp #fenderguitars #gibsonguitar #gretschguitars #heritageguitars #geardemo #guitarra