Line 6 X2 XDS95 Wireless Guitar System Review

The Line 6 X2 XSS95 has fantastic sound quality, good reliability and is very inexpensive. Here’s the review.

Line 6 X2 XDS95 Wireless Instrument System
Line 6 X2 XDS95 Wireless Guitar System

   I’ve recently been playing in a live band with my Son’s called Bonne Nuit and they were quite envious of my Shure wireless guitar system. I decided to get them their own wireless guitar systems and decided on the Line 6 X2 XDS95 Wireless Guitar System. I got two XDS95’s, one for my bass player and one for my rhythm guitar player. My choice was based mainly on the low price and the fact that this is a full digital wireless guitar system. I have been extremely pleased with this wireless guitar system in terms of reliability and especially in terms of sound quality. It’s one purchase I have never regretted. The following review was written by my son Erik Rushton.   Continue reading “Line 6 X2 XDS95 Wireless Guitar System Review”

Fishman FT-1 Digital Clip-On Guitar Tuner Review

The Fishman FT-1 clip-on digital guitar tuner makes tuning your guitar fast, easy and convenient.

Fisman FT-1 Digital Guitar Tuner
Fishman FT-1 Digital Clip-On Guitar Tuner

          One thing I’m always looking for is a way to make things more convenient in my live band. The Fishman FT-1 Digital tuner is a great tuner to use if you want a quick, easy and fast tune. While not as accurate as some other tuners such as my Peterson 490-ST Strobe Tuner, the FT-1 is a great tuner to use if you need a quick tune on the fly. It’s great for tuning before practice or mid-song at a gig and is easily clipped on and off the guitar. You can also use this tuner on both your acoustic guitar and your electric guitar.    Continue reading “Fishman FT-1 Digital Clip-On Guitar Tuner Review”

Turn Your iPhone, iPod Or iPad Into A Guitar Amplifier

You can easily turn your iPad, iPod or iPhone into a guitar amplifier using the iRig interface from IK Multimedia and the Amplitube App.

iRig for iPhone, iPod and iPad
iRig for iPhone, iPod and iPad

   I’m always looking out for tools to help me practice or to help me out in my live band.  One of the coolest things I’ve seen lately is the new Amplitube offering from IK Multimedia for the Apple iPhone, iPod and iPad. In a nutshell it will give you the ablility to plug your guitar into your iPhone, iPod or iPad and use it as a guitar amplifier. You’ll be able to make your guitar sound like a multitude of famous guitar amplifiers.

   If you’re unfamiliar with Amplitube it’s basically a software based guitar amplifier simulation that takes your guitar signal and processes it to sound like one of many different famous guitar amplifiers. Your guitar will sound like it’s being played through a Fender blackface amplifier and with the press of a button your guitar can sound like it’s being played through a full Marshall stack. You’ll get bluesy tones, metal tones, country tones and jazz tones using Amplitube’s guitar processing.    Continue reading “Turn Your iPhone, iPod Or iPad Into A Guitar Amplifier”

My Favorite Electric Bass Guitar Strings

Dean Markley Blue Steel bass guitar strings have the perfect combination of excellent tone and high durability.

Electric Bass Guitar Strings
Dean Markley Blue Steel Bass Strings

   Over the years I’ve played several different instruments in various live bands. In fact, the first bar band I played in, I was playing the bass guitar. I really love to play the bass guitar and it’s one instrument that truly came naturally to me. Today I’m going to tell you about the strings I use on my bass guitar. 

   If you’ve read my post about Dean Markley Blue Steel Strings for electric guitar then I’m sure you won’t be surprised at all when I tell you that I prefer Dean Markley Blue Steel Strings for my bass guitar as well. In case you didn’t know, Dean Markley Blue Steel strings are cryogenically treated by dipping them in -320 degree liquid nitrogen. They are then packaged and sealed in their box ready for you to purchase.    Continue reading “My Favorite Electric Bass Guitar Strings”

Musician’s Friend Earth Day Celebration Green Manufactured Music Equipment

Celebrate Earth Day with green products from major music equipment manufacturers such as Martin Guitars, JBL, Warwick and DW Drums.


Eco-Friendly Manufacturers at MusiciansFriend.com

   In celebration of Earth Day 2009, (yes I know it was April 22nd) Musician’s Friend is featuring manufacturers who exemplify eco-friendly manufacturing practices. They’re also highlighting manufacturers that show and extraordinary commitment to humanitarian issues. What does this mean to those of us who play in a live band? The chance to score some very unique music equipment and do our part to help save the planet.

Martin SWDGT Drednought Acoustic Guitar
Martin SWDGT Drednought Acoustic Guitar

    Some of the top music equipment manufacturers feature very creative ways to help keep their manufacturing footprint to a minimum. Martin Guitar company uses wood from well-managed forests as well as using earth-friendly woods such as birch and cherry wood. I’ve seen some truly beautiful instruments made from Cherry wood such as the Martin SWDGT Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar which has solid cherry wood back and sides.

   Make sure you check out the full list of enviromentally conscious products from top manufacturers such as DW Drums, JBL, Laguna and QSC. Just click on the green banners in this post to see the excellent products presented by Musician’s Friend.

Eco-Friendly Manufacturers at MusiciansFriend.com

Beat The Fender Price Increase On Bass Guitars With Deals On eBay

Beat the Fender price increase by checking these listings for bass guitars on eBay.

Fender Standard Jazz Bass - Midnight Wine
Click To Search Deals On Fender Basses

   With the recent 30% price increase across the entire Fender product line many Fender products are now further out of reach of the average working musician. Many people are questioning why Fender would increase prices at a time when the economy is so down. There’s one sure way to fight the price increase and that’s to buy used gear. The biggest used gear market on the internet is eBay and today on Live Musician Central we’re going to feature Fender Bass Guitars! Just take a look at the listings below and if you see something you like, click the link and bid on it. You could score the bass guitar of your dreams and save a bundle of money by buying used.


[phpbay]Fender Bass, 10[/phpbay]

Levy’s Boot Leather Guitar Strap Review

Levy’s Boot Leather Guitar Strap is the most comfortable strap I’ve ever used. It’s also the only strap I take to every gig I play.

Levy's Boot Leather Guitar Strap
Levy's Boot Leather Guitar Strap

   I have quite a few guitar straps kicking around my practice room. My friends and family know I’m a guitar playing live musician so I get a lot of guitar accessories as gifts including guitar straps. I also get a free guitar strap every time I buy a guitar. It’s nice to have extra guitar straps because I keep several guitars out within easy reach so I can practice. That being said, I only use one guitar strap live and it’s the most comfortable strap I’ve ever used. That guitar strap is the Levy’s Boot Leather Guitar Strap.

  Continue reading “Levy’s Boot Leather Guitar Strap Review”

Build Finger Strength With The Gripmaster Exercise Tool

The Gripmaster finger exerciser will help build your finger strength and stamina.

Gripmaster - Extra Light Tension
Gripmaster - Extra Light Tension

   As any guitarist will tell you, playing in a live band will definitely test your stamina in ways you never would expect.  It’s really hard to build the type of endurance you will need to be able to play an entire live gig when you don’t play out a lot. You can practice on your instrument of course but it’s hard to practice for 3 hours to simulate the live show experience. Even if you do play regularly it’s a good idea to have some tools to help you build your finger strength and stamina. Years ago I bought a Gripmaster Exercise Tool finger exerciser and I have used it to help stay in playing shape over the years. I have recommended this product to many of my students as well to help them build up their finger muscles.

Continue reading “Build Finger Strength With The Gripmaster Exercise Tool”

Get Ready For Christmas With Black Friday Deals

   Here are some of the best deals for the live musician on your shopping list this Christmas. You can save a lot of money by using the following list of links to do your shopping. You can save 15%, 20% or even 89% on music equipment and accessories with some of these deals. There’s also a lot of chances to get free shipping on your orders, regardless of the weight and you know how heavy speakers and amps can be. You could save hundreds of dollars on shipping costs alone. There’s also a link to excellent equipment rebates and gift guides as well. Amazon’s Black Friday deals are huge this year too and they have a great selection of music and music equipment. Continue reading “Get Ready For Christmas With Black Friday Deals”

Fender Standard Jazz Bass Guitar Review

This is an incredible bargain on a great bass for beginners and professionals alike.

Fender Standard Jazz Bass - Midnight Wine

   I recently helped one of my students purchase a Fender Standard Jazz Bass guitar. He is going to be using it in his live band. Even though the Standard Jazz Bass is made in Mexico I was very impressed with the quality of the build of the Bass that he purchased. The Standard Jazz Bass has all the components that made the Fender Jazz Bass famous. It has two single coil pickups each with their own volume control and a single master tone control. This gives you the ability to mix the sound of the two pickups together in a multitude of different ways. It gives the Jazz Bass a lot of tonal options that you wouldn’t get with the Fender Precision Bass

Continue reading “Fender Standard Jazz Bass Guitar Review”

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