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Hey all...it's that time of year and I'm looking for gift ideas for my son. He's really been wanting an acoustic guitar and we've been putting that off for a while now so this year we are getting him one....nothing fancy or pricey, but hopefully a good first acoustic that will serve him well.

Since he's all set with guitars, amps, cables, strings, etc., I'm looking for opinions on your must have gear. What is the one or two things you can't live without when it comes to gear?

Pedals are always popular it seems and he has the following on his board:

Hardwire HT-2 Chromatic Tuner
Barber Direct Drive OD pedal (great OD pedal with great range of versatility)
Big Muff Pi (classic but takes a lot of room)
MXR EVH 117 Flanger (doesn't get a lot of use but hey he's a 17yr old EVH fan)
EH Holy Grail Nano Reverb pedal (again not a lot of use at this time)
Vox Wah pedal (lots of use especially when he's in his Clapton/Cream mood)

There are a few that haven't made the board based on his preference:

Hardwire CM-2 Tube Overdrive (not even close to being considered)
Boss DS-1 Distortion (not even close to being considered)
Jonesy Blues Red Russian Germanium Fuzz (this one is one the bubble and gets a fair amount of playtime)

LOL..looks like we should have a sale maybe.

So what say Ye Hiwatt guys? What gear is essential to you?

Good evening, jrsdws...

Indispensable..? Depends a lot on the style one plays (I'm not at all 'metal', for instance...). I almost always have an echo in the chain, with a minimum of 'slapback', sometimes more (or even much more..!). I have a lot of fun with a looper, too (I tend to play alone, but can be used in a group context...).
I've not tried one yet, but am very interested in the Catalinbread WIIO pedal (anyone got one spare..?); I have a DR203 (KT88...) which cannot be relied upon for crunch; quite normal, as I bought it to have an ultra-clean bass amp..! The WIIO pedal should, in theory, allow Hiwatt overdrive at domestic volume (OK, not quite like the real thing, but I don't know how else to get it...).
A compressor is very useful too, to me. Not to everyone's taste, but, as I said, I play alone mostly.
Just my tuppence worth; early Christmas greetings to you and yours...

I should add that his musical tastes range greatly....mostly classic rock, though. Been getting into alot of Zepplin lately...but always plays alot of Clapton/Cream.....Bonamassa....Black Keys....White Stripes...and most everything in between....absolutely no interest in metal or anything close. Most recently he's starting to get into some Pink Floyd....go figure...a 17yr old with a Hiwatt getting into Gilmour. The DR504 handles all of this well.

Perhaps he's doing ok on pedals for what he is playing? Maybe there is something that can take the place of that huge Big Muff pedal? (although he loves it). Maybe an attenuator would be a good thing?

I'm just looking for ideas. It certainly doesn't have to be a pedal.

If he is into the Floyd, a Delay pedal would be nice.

if you want to help him scratch the Gilmour itch i would recommend:
a Throbak Overdrive Boost http://www.ebay.com/itm/Throbak-Overdri ... 2a162a8e55
an El Capistan Delay from Strymon http://www.strymon.net/
and a boutique fuzz. Either a silicon BC108 with Sundial and on/off switch from Analogman; or just about any fuzz from Stomp Under Foot http://www.stompunderfoot.com/ tho there are long wait times for a new build. Alternatly you can find a used Skreddy Lunar Module Deluxe pretty easily right now as Skreddy is moving to a more popular style enclosure. Folks are dumping their old ones in favor of the new enclosure. Same innards in both styles, so tonally they should be the same.

If I could only use two pedals with a Hiwatt, they'd be an OCD and a Boss Stereo Chorus (mine's an old made-in-Japan model which are "supposed" to be better than modern production).

I've been kinda jonesing for a DejaVibe (or similar) lately. Also worth considering.

Dave

My ideas for stocking fillers...

Does he have a guitar slide?
How about a mixed selection of preamp tubes to experiment with
Concert tickets
A bar stool to sit on while he plays
Guitar lessons are always enlightening..
A good phaser... Empress anyone?
A flight case for his Hiwatt!

Great ideas guys, thanks. He's got the slide...done the whole pre-amp tube thing....got a flight case with the Hiwatt...and a couple of OD pedals that suit his fancy right now....I know there are dozens to come yet, but hopefully when he can finance his own fun!!!

I do like the bar stool idea and he has mentioned a phaser....I have no idea what for...but he mentioned it.

Lessons would be great but tough to pull off during school year where we live...nothing close.

He wants a "Vox Satriani Big Bad Wah". Of course, he already has a wah that doesn't get alot of use.

Oh what an expensive hobby!!

jrsdws wrote:...Oh what an expensive hobby!!

Could be worse (Show jumping..? Formula 3 racing..? Collection of steam locomotives..?).

Amen to that!! It's a good thing for him..he loves music, especially guitar...and there could be alot worse things that have his interest so we continue to try to encourage his growth.