Edge of Breakup
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The Most Unique Guitar in my Collection | Mule Resophonic Mulecaster | Feat. Jules Leyhe
The Most Unique Guitar in My Collection... A hollow steel body tuned to B Standard. A four-person shop in Saginaw, Michigan. And Jules Leyhe playing slide and fingerstyle blues through a 5-watt tweed. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode, the Mule Resophonic Mulecaster T-Style is the story — running into a 1957 Fender Tweed Princeton 5F2-A with a Weber CVA-8 pre-broken-in 8" alnico speaker, with the Effectrode Tube Vibe along for the ride. Played by Oakland blues guitarist Jules Leyhe.
Matt Eich founded Mule Resophonic in 2012 out of a garage closet in Saginaw, Michigan — a man who had trained at the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery and spent years building instruments for Huss & Dalton in Virginia before a single concert changed everything. Watching Kelly Joe Phelps play slide on a metal resonator and send a crowd into a frenzy, Eich left the venue with one question: could he build a resonator that looked more like the raw material it was made from, and sounded warmer and more acoustic than anything the format had historically produced? He had never cut or welded a piece of metal in his life. He figured it out anyway. Mule is now a four-person shop with a waiting list that keeps growing and a roster of players that speaks for itself — Dan Auerbach, Billy Gibbons, Ben Harper, Ariel Posen, Joey Landreth, Jeffrey Foucault, Jason Momoa, Celisse Henderson, Rebecca Lovell, and Kristian Matsson of The Tallest Man on Earth.
The Mulecaster is Mule's bridge between the resonator and the electric guitar worlds. Single and double-cutaway variations on Strat and Tele-inspired outlines — this one is the T-Style single-cut — with hollow steel bodies, a 25" scale length, and availability in both standard and baritone tuning in a range of powder coat finishes. The Mulecaster featured here is tuned to B Standard baritone — a full step-and-a-half below standard E — and fitted with Mule's own Tom Thumbucker mini-humbuckers, hand-wound in-house. The hollow steel body creates what Mule players consistently describe as a 3D quality to the sound — a resonant, acoustic bloom beneath the electric signal that no solid or semi-hollow wood body can replicate. Eich himself has said these instruments wake up his ear like nothing else, and when he goes back to other guitars he hears them in a new way. That's exactly right. Put one in your hands and your playing changes.
At B Standard baritone pitch, the Mulecaster's deep fundamentals interact with the hollow steel body's natural compression in a way that rewards both slide and fingerstyle playing with an expressive, vocal quality that sits in its own sonic universe. Into a 5-watt, single 6V6, Class A tweed Princeton and the warm alnico character of the pre-broken-in Weber CVA-8 8" speaker, the Mulecaster finds a platform intimate enough to let every nuance of Jules's playing breathe at full volume.
Jules Leyhe is a Berklee-trained Oakland blues guitarist who has shared stages with Buddy Guy, Jimmie Vaughan, Charlie Musselwhite, and Taj Mahal. Premier Guitar called his playing the best blues slide since Derek Trucks — maybe even Duane Allman. The Effectrode Tube Vibe adds its all-tube photocell-and-bulb univibe swirl — triode tubes at real amp plate voltages, Classic and Smooth LFO modes, Chorus/Vibrato switching.
This is the Mulecaster doing what it was built to do.
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🎸 Mule Resophonic Mulecaster T-Style | B Standard Baritone | Mule Tom Thumbucker Mini-Humbuckers
🎛️ Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 1957 Fender Tweed Princeton 5F2-A | Weber CVA-8 Pre-Broken-In 8" Alnico Speaker
🎵 Guest Artist: Jules Leyhe
🎙️ Recording Rig: Absolutely no virtual / IR / direct sounds. 4 mics on a real cab. Royer R-121, Lauten Audio LS-208, Ohma Ribbon on front of cab, Royer R10 on back of cab. All mics sent through Universal Audio Apollo x4 with default preamps and no digital preamp emulation plugins, mixed in Ableton Live 12.
The Perfect Single Pickup Junior Guitar | Grez Guitars Mendocino Jr. | Feat. Jules Leyhe
The Perfect Single Pickup Guitar | Grez Guitars Mendocino Jr. | Feat. Jules Leyhe
A tree for a thousand years. A structure for a hundred. Now a guitar. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode, the Grez Guitars Mendocino Junior takes center stage — played by Oakland blues guitarist Jules Leyhe, running into a 1957 Fender Tweed Princeton 5F2-A with a Weber CVA-8 pre-broken-in 8" alnico speaker. The Effectrode Tube Vibe is along for the ride.
Barry Grzebik builds guitars in Petaluma, California — just up the coast in Northern California wine country, between Armstrong Woods State Preserve and Muir Woods National Monument — and his defining material is reclaimed old growth Redwood. Not recently harvested timber. Not farmed wood. Old growth Redwood sourced from deconstructed structures: train tunnels, wine barrels, water vessels, vinegar tanks, barns, and factories. Trees that were 800 to 1,000 years old when they were felled, seasoned for decades or centuries inside the structures they built, and now given a third life as a musical instrument.
Barry plants a tree for every guitar he sells, in partnership with the Redwood Forest Foundation. The wood he uses has already lived two extraordinary lives before it reaches his workshop.
The Mendocino Junior is Grez's take on the classic Junior-style solidbody — an homage to the stripped-down 50s electric guitars that prioritized feel, resonance, and tone above everything else. The body is a single piece of reclaimed old growth Redwood, 13.25" wide and just 1.45" deep, weighing in at an astonishing 5.75 lbs. The neck is one-piece Honduran mahogany with an ebony fretboard, 24.75" scale, and 22 nickel silver jumbo frets. The single pickup is a Wolftone Meaner Dog Ear P-90 — a pickup chosen specifically for its ability to translate the natural acoustic voice of the Redwood body into an electric signal without filtering or compressing that character. Electronics are Emerson 500k volume and 250k tone with a .022 PIO capacitor — exactly the right wiring for a P-90 circuit at this weight and resonance. Music City Compensated Wrap Tailpiece. Matte nitro finish. This is a guitar built to disappear in your hands and let the wood do the talking.
"Building with first growth reclaimed wood originally harvested 100 years ago gave us a head start," Barry has said. "This wood is super well-seasoned and has a liveliness that is hard to get from younger recently harvested trees." That liveliness is not a marketing claim — it is immediately and physically apparent the moment you pick one up. The Mendocino Junior is acoustically vibrant in a way that almost no electric guitar is, and that acoustic resonance translates directly into a singing, three-dimensional electric tone that rewards both the player and the microphone.
Into a 5-watt, single 6V6, Class A tweed Princeton and the warm alnico character of the Weber CVA-8, the Mendocino Junior finds a home that feels entirely natural. Jules Leyhe — Berklee-trained, Bay Area-based, Premier Guitar's best blues slide since Derek Trucks — brings his full vocabulary of slide, fingerpicking, and flat-picking to an instrument that meets him note for note.
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🎸 Grez Guitars Mendocino Junior | Reclaimed Old Growth Redwood | Ron Ellis Pickups P90 | Emerson 500k/500k Bumblebee PIO Wiring
🎛️ Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 1957 Fender Tweed Princeton 5F2-A | Weber CVA-8 Pre-Broken-In 8" Alnico Speaker 🎵 Guest Artist: Jules Leyhe
🎙️ Recording Rig: Absolutely no virtual / IR / direct sounds. 4 mics on a real cab. Royer R-121, Lauten Audio LS-208, Ohma Ribbon on front of cab, Royer R10 on back of cab. All mics sent through Universal Audio Apollo x4 with default preamps and no digital preamp emulation plugins, mixed in Ableton Live 12.
Kauer Guitars Electroliner: The Stratocaster, Perfected
What if someone took everything great about a vintage Stratocaster — and actually fixed the things Leo left on the table? That's the Kauer Guitars Electroliner. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Kauer Guitars Electroliner — Lollar Sixty-Four Strat Pickup Set — runs through a vintage 1966 Fender Princeton Reverb via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander Core. The JAM Pedals RetroVibe MK.4, JAM Pedals Fuzz Phrase Black OC44, and JAM Pedals Double Dreamer all feature.
Doug Kauer built the Electroliner for one reason: the world didn't need another Strat copy, but it absolutely needed a better S-type. Born out of Doug's own admitted obsession with the format, the Electroliner takes the 25.5" scale and single-coil DNA of the classic '50s and '60s Stratocaster and surrounds it with a genuinely modern platform — offset body contours for superior playing comfort, a roasted maple neck with a wenge fretboard at a 12" radius that blows past Fender's vintage 7.25" compound curve, 1.65" nut width, and universal pickup routing that opens the guitar up to near-infinite configuration possibilities with great boutique pickup makers like Lollar, TV Jones, and Wolfetone. The tremolo is a Wilkinson unit upgraded with Highwood saddles. Every Kauer is Plek'd in-house, built by hand in Elk Grove, California.
In Doug Kauer's own words: "Don't tell anyone but Doug is secretly a S-Type fan at heart. To be fair, aren't we all? Here's the thing, no hate from us but the last thing the world needs is just another S style copy out there claiming the best the best. Yawn. That's where Electroliner comes in. Offset vibes? Check. Modern playing neck? You know it! Universal routing for near infinite pickup options? Absolutely."
This particular Electroliner (Serial #159) is one of the most visually arresting guitars to ever appear on this channel — a heavily distressed white relic over a black undercoat revealing bits of stunning sunburst, with the underlying wood grain fully exposed through the wear. The black pickguard against that weathered finish is a perfect contrast.
Full specs: Old growth pine body. Weathered White over Black finish, pine revealed through the wear. 25.5" scale roasted maple neck with wenge fretboard. Standard C neck profile, black neck binding. Satin finished neck with matching headstock. 12" radius, 1.65" nut width. Jescar 47095NS medium/jumbo frets. Neck: 0.88" at first fret, 0.93" at 12th. Hipshot open gear tuners. 6-point Wilkinson trem upgraded with Highwood saddles. Volume/Tone/5-way switch. 7 lbs 8 oz. Plek'd in-house.
Onboard are Lollar Sixty-Four Strat pickups — Jason Lollar's definitive take on the pre-CBS 1964 Strat sound. Scatter-wound, wax-potted coils, Alnico 5 magnets degaussed to vintage '60s specs. Prominent midrange, clear treble, full bass response with a defined, piano-like attack. Middle pickup is RWRP for hum-cancelling in positions 2 and 4.
Explored across clean tones from 00:54, boosted tones from 05:27, overdriven tones from 09:34 (JAM Pedals Double Dreamer), cranked overdrive with the RetroVibe MK.4 from 13:04, and the JAM Pedals Fuzz Phrase Black OC44 with the RetroVibe from 17:15.
This is what it sounds like when an obsessive craftsman improves on a legend.
🎸 Kauer Guitars: https://www.kauerguitars.com 🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups 🎛️ JAM Pedals: https://www.jampedals.com
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🎸 Kauer Guitars Electroliner (Serial #159) | Old Growth Pine | Weathered White/Black Relic | Lollar Sixty-Four Strat Set | Wilkinson Trem + Highwood Saddles | 25.5" | Hand-Built in Elk Grove, CA 🎛️ JAM Pedals RetroVibe MK.4 | JAM Pedals Fuzz Phrase Black OC44 | JAM Pedals Double Dreamer 🔊 Vintage 1966 Fender Princeton Reverb | Boss Waza TAE Core
Nash Guitars S63 | Feat. R2R Electric Time-O-Lite Fuzz & ‘66 Fender Princeton Reverb
Warm. Blooming. Alive. The R2R Electric x Waterslide Time-O-Lite Fuzz meets a Nash Guitars S63 and a vintage 1966 Fender Princeton Reverb. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Nash Guitars S63 — Lollar Vintage Blonde (Neck + Middle), Lollar Special Strat (Bridge) — pairs with the R2R Electric x Waterslide Guitars Time-O-Lite Fuzz into a vintage 1966 Fender Princeton Reverb sourced from LA Vintage Gear in Los Angeles. The Effectrode Tube Vibe joins from 04:20.
This is the same rig used for the Keeley-Modded Ibanez TS-9 video — same guitar, same amp, same mics. Two completely different conversations.
The Nash S63 came home from Vision Guitar in the Bay Area — one of the great independent guitar shops in California. Nash's pairing of Vintage Blonde neck and middle pickups with the Special Strat bridge is exactly right — warm and glassy where you need it, with enough push in the bridge to thicken things up once the fuzz hits.
The R2R Electric x Waterslide Time-O-Lite Fuzz is Chris Vincent's collaboration with Waterslide Guitars — NOS OC44 black glass germanium transistors from the 1950s and '60s, housed in a genuine antique darkroom timer enclosure, a run of just 25 units. Rich harmonic bloom, touch-sensitive cleanup, and complex midrange grind. Explored near-cranked on the bridge pickup from 00:00, with the Effectrode Tube Vibe joining from 04:20 for classic post-fuzz modulation placement, and extensive volume knob cleanup with the Vibe engaged from 05:34.
The '66 Princeton Reverb, sourced from LA Vintage Gear in Los Angeles, is smaller and more intimate than a Deluxe Reverb — it pushes into breakup faster and blooms differently, giving this NOS germanium circuit a genuinely different conversation than a bigger blackface platform would.
If you love vintage Strat tones, NOS germanium fuzz, and amps on the edge of breakup, this one is for you.
Join the R2R Electric email list for your best chance at a Time-O-Lite — they sell out in seconds: https://www.r2relectric.com/ Check out Vision Guitar for more Nash Guitars: https://www.visionguitar.com/collections/nash
🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🎸 Nash Guitars: https://www.nashguitars.com 🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups
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🎸 Nash Guitars S63 | Lollar Vintage Blonde (Neck + Middle) + Lollar Special Strat (Bridge) 🎛️ R2R Electric x Waterslide Guitars Time-O-Lite Fuzz | NOS OC44 Black Glass Ge | Antique Darkroom Timer | 25 Units Only | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Vintage 1966 Fender Princeton Reverb
Does a resonator sound good through a guitar amp? | Mule Resophonic Tri-Cone Resonator
Some guitars find you. This one found Jules Leyhe at NAMM 2026 — a stunning Mule Resophonic Tri-Cone Resonator, debuting for the first time on camera. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
Jules Leyhe's Mule Resophonic Tri-Cone Resonator runs straight into a vintage 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3 — the real thing, not a reissue. The Effectrode Tube Vibe makes a guest appearance from 04:31.
Blues guitarist Jules Leyhe spent time with Mule Resophonic founder and owner Matt Eich at NAMM 2026 — and couldn't walk away without this instrument. Built by hand in Saginaw, Michigan, Mule's resonators are designed for players who want warmth, depth, and nuance from raw steel — not built for the wall or exclusively for slide. Matt Eich builds them to be equally comfortable flat-picked and fretted in standard tuning, fingerpicked as baritones, and everything in between, with string gauge and tuning chosen to suit the player's ear.
Jules runs the Tri-Cone into the 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3 across a genuine gain sweep — low gain from 01:54, medium gain from 03:27, and high gain from 05:45 — with the Effectrode Tube Vibe adding slow, liquid movement behind the resonator's natural shimmer from 04:31. Sag, bloom, and harmonic swirl fully intact from the original, untouched 5E3 circuit.
This is working class. The new sound is steel.
🎸 Mule Resophonic: https://www.muleresophonic.com
Follow Jules Leyhe: https://www.instagram.com/julesleyhe/
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🎸 Mule Resophonic Tri-Cone Resonator | Hand-Built in Saginaw, Michigan
🎛️ Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 Vintage 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3 (Original)
He Torched My Guitar Top!!! | Grez Guitars Shou Sugi Ban Grand Tour Build
An inside look at Grez Guitars building the Grand Tour — Barry Grzebik's take on the boutique archtop, and one of the most interesting hollowbodies being built right now. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
Barry Grzebik torches the top of a soon-to-be-finished Grez Guitars Grand Tour using the shou sugi ban technique — the traditional Japanese method of charring wood for both visual character and surface protection.
The Grand Tour is a 15" carved-top hollowbody that blends old-world luthiery with modern resonance engineering — a guitar that feels vintage but plays like a modern boutique instrument. At roughly 5.8 lbs with a shallow 2" body depth, it delivers a surprisingly big, woody voice thanks to Grez's Sprung Mass Tuning — an approach that preserves the low-end resonance many compact archtops lose when they're built thin and light. Carved Sitka spruce top over a one-piece Honduran mahogany body and neck, balancing warmth, clarity, and responsiveness somewhere between a vintage archtop and a modern boutique hollowbody.
Unplugged, this is genuinely the loudest electric guitar to ever come through the studio — louder even than a fully hollow vintage 1960s Gibson ES-330. Barry lives at the intersection of engineering and artistry, and watching the shou sugi ban process applied to an instrument this acoustically alive is a rare thing to see up close.
More on this Grand Tour once it's finished and strung up.
🎸 Grez Guitars: https://www.grezguitars.com
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🎸 Grez Guitars Grand Tour | 15" Carved Sitka Spruce Top | Honduran Mahogany Body + Neck (One-Piece) | ~5.8 lbs | 2" Body Depth | Sprung Mass Tuning | Shou Sugi Ban Finish
I Brought This Guitar Home From NAMM 2026... | Shock the Fox TGF feat. Jules Leyhe | Guitar Demo
This one is special. A guitar brought home straight from NAMM 2026 — the Shock the Fox DeeCee model with TGF features, built by Tye Tyler, loaded with a single Righteous Sound Pickups King Street P90. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Shock the Fox DeeCee (TGF Features) — Righteous Sound King Street P90 with matching pecky cypress insert — runs into a vintage original 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3. The R2R Electric Ge Boost (Wood Wire Volts 2026) and Effectrode Tube Vibe both feature, with a guest appearance from blues artist Jules Leyhe.
Tye Tyler at Shock the Fox has built a reputation in the boutique guitar world for genuinely one-of-a-kind instruments — innovative luthiery techniques combined with thoughtfully selected, often reclaimed or exotic tonewoods. This build is entirely pecky cypress from Blue Ox Reclaimed Lumber, every piece cut from the same board. Special thanks to Righteous Sound Pickups and Blue Ox Reclaimed Lumber for the materials, and to Tye himself for the instrument.
Full specs: 25.5" scale. Dual carbon fiber plus truss rod neck. Halon 1/2 Tele-style bridge, aged in Greece. King Street RSP P90 with a matching pecky cypress insert. Recessed STF logo in the headstock. Frenched/inlaid bone nut. Hipshot open-gear tuners. Emerson Premier Pro pots and caps, custom Treble Bleed from Caroline Guitar Company, Analysis Plus output jack. .048-.092 fretwire with semi-hemispherical ends. Neck profile .825" at first fret, .901" at 12th. Purfling block inlays and an inlaid body pinstripe. Aged flush mount neck plate and control cavity insert. FoxLock neck pocket for a strong bolt-on connection with no future neck wiggle — notably, Tye's first DeeCee model with a bolt-on neck. Finished with Walrus Oil Furniture Butter.
This runs straight into the 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3 — the real thing, no clones or recreations, sag, bloom, and harmonic swirl fully intact. Pushing the front end is the brand new R2R Electric Ge Boost, the Wood Wire Volts 2026 edition — adding weight, dimension, and unmistakable vintage chew without masking the guitar's own character. The Effectrode Tube Vibe layers in true tube-driven modulation and a subtle Uni-Vibe pulse.
Jules Leyhe joins for this session, and his phrasing and feel elevate the whole thing — if you know, you know.
This is a pure, dynamic guitar demo focused on touch, harmonics, and real amp interaction — no heavy post-processing, no overproduction. Just boutique gear pushed into its natural sweet spot.
🎸 Shock the Fox: https://www.instagram.com/shockthefox 🎸 Righteous Sound Pickups: https://www.righteoussoundpickups.com 🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🎛️ Emerson Custom: https://emersoncustom.com
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🎸 Shock the Fox DeeCee (TGF Features) | Pecky Cypress (Blue Ox Reclaimed Lumber) | Halon 1/2 Tele Bridge (Aged in Greece) | Righteous Sound King Street P90 | FoxLock Bolt-On Neck | Emerson Premier Pro Pots + Caroline Treble Bleed | Walrus Oil Finish 🎛️ R2R Electric Ge Boost (Wood Wire Volts 2026) | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Vintage 1955 Fender Tweed Deluxe 5E3 (Original)
What a Tele SHOULD be in 2026 | Gronlund Guitars | 5 R2R Electric NOS Fuzzes & a Vintage Deluxe
Five of R2R Electric's rarest vintage-correct fuzz circuits, one Gronlund T-Style, and a 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb. This is a genuine deep dive into Chris Vincent's catalog. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Gronlund Guitars T-Style — McNelly A5 Telecaster Pickups — runs through five R2R Electric fuzzes into a vintage 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb upgraded with a Fat Jimmy 1225 speaker.
The Gronlund T-Style is explored straight into the clean amp first, across neck, middle parallel, and bridge McNelly A5 positions from 01:32 — establishing the guitar's own vintage-correct Telecaster character before any fuzz enters the chain.
Fuzz #1: R2R Electric Time-O-Lite Fuzz (04:20) — the collaboration between Chris Vincent and Waterslide Guitars, built into genuine vintage darkroom light timer enclosures with NOS 1950s and 1960s OC44 or AC107 germanium transistors, a run of just 25 units.
Fuzz #2: R2R Electric PKIII Fuzz (08:54) — Chris's homage to a specific vintage variant of the Tone Bender MKIII, based on a unit on loan from @themadcap1. Volume, Tone, and Gain, with Tone and Gain running counterclockwise for brightness and gain respectively.
Fuzz #3: R2R Electric Replica Series MK1.5 Fuzz (15:15) — a part-for-part recreation using Mullard branded OC75 "British Made" germanium transistors, the exact type found in original MK1.5 units. Two-transistor design that bridges the Fuzz Face and Tone Bender MKI.
Fuzz #4: R2R Electric Replica Series MKII Fuzz (20:28) — Chris's exacting recreation of the 1966-1969 Sola Sound Tone Bender MKII, the two-transistor germanium circuit that defined the late-1960s British fuzz sound used by Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and the early Rolling Stones.
Fuzz #5: R2R Electric Supa MKI Fuzz (24:57) — a limited build of just 12 units, Chris's take on the Marshall Supa Fuzz MKI circuit, loaded with NOS 1960s Philips OC75 germanium transistors, hand-selected and matched.
The 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb needs no introduction — one of the most recorded and revered tube amps in history. This unit's Fat Jimmy 1225 speaker upgrade preserves the classic American blackface chime while handling the saturation of five very different fuzz circuits with authority and clarity, letting each pedal's specific character come through distinctly rather than being smeared together by the speaker.
Which fuzz spoke to you most? Drop your pick in the comments.
🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🎸 Gronlund Guitars: https://www.gronlundguitars.com 🎸 McNelly Pickups: https://mcnellypickups.com
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🎸 Gronlund Guitars T-Style | McNelly A5 Telecaster Pickups 🎛️ R2R Electric Time-O-Lite Fuzz | PKIII Fuzz | Replica Series MK1.5 | Replica Series MKII | Supa MKI Fuzz — 5 Vintage-Correct NOS Germanium Circuits 🔊 Vintage 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb | Fat Jimmy 1225 Speaker
Kauer Guitars Korona | Wolfetone Kauerbucker Humbuckers | Guitar Demo
The Kauer Guitars Korona gets a classic humbucker treatment — Wolfetone KauerBucker pickups, exclusive to Kauer, running into the R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe and Cunningham Amps Custom 35. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Kauer Guitars Korona — Wolfetone KauerBucker Humbuckers — runs into the Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers, with the R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe and Effectrode Tube Vibe both featuring.
The Wolfetone KauerBucker is Wolfe Macleod's pickup made exclusively for Kauer Guitars — based on the Wolfetone Legend but re-imagined with a slightly hotter bridge and slightly underwound neck. Fully-charged Alnico II magnets give it vintage-at-heart PAF character with just enough punch, especially noticeable in the bridge. Bridge ~8.7-8.9K, Neck ~7.5-7.8K. Explored across neck, middle, and bridge clean tones from 00:52 through 02:51, and the Tweed channel stacked into Plexi from 04:11.
The R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe — Chris Vincent's recreation of the rare 1950s Höfner Preamp circuit with NOS germanium AC107 transistors — enters from 07:40 in a dedicated treble booster-tones section, returning later at 11:17 into the cranked Plexi channel and again at 15:10 for a low gain Plexi channel pass. The Effectrode Tube Vibe pairs with the volume knob cleanup from 10:14, showing the KauerBucker's response through both amp channels and the pedal chain.
Volume knob cleanup from 06:39 shows the natural dynamic range the KauerBuckers bring to the Korona's offset body before any drive enters the signal.
What's your dream guitar + pickup + fuzz + amp combo? Drop it in the comments.
🎸 Kauer Guitars: https://www.kauerguitars.com 🎸 Wolfetone: https://www.wolfetone.com 🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🔊 Cunningham Amps: https://www.cunninghamamps.co.nz
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🎸 Kauer Guitars Korona | Wolfetone KauerBucker Humbuckers (Bridge ~8.7-8.9K / Neck ~7.5-7.8K) 🎛️ R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe | NOS AC107 Ge | Höfner Preamp Circuit | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Tweed + Plexi Channels
Kauer Guitars Korona | Lollar Pickups Melody Maker 90 & J St. Tele Bridge | Guitar Demo
The Kauer Guitars Korona gets a genuinely unusual pickup pairing — Lollar Melody Maker 90 in the neck and J St. Telecaster bridge — for a fusion of P90 punch and Tele snap. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Kauer Guitars Korona — Lollar Melody Maker 90 (neck) and J St. Tele Bridge — runs through the R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe and Effectrode Tube Vibe into the Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers.
The Korona is Kauer's California classic reimagined — Doug Kauer's take on offset design built with a universal pickguard routing that accommodates near-limitless pickup options from Lollar, Wolfetone, and TV Jones. Swamp Ash or Thermo Pine body, Roasted Maple neck, bound Wenge fretboard, 25.5" scale, 22 medium/jumbo frets, 12" radius. Twang, jazz, full rock and roll — the Korona is built to do all of it.
The pairing on this build is genuinely distinctive: the Lollar Melody Maker 90 in the neck brings raw, open P90 punch and harmonic bloom, while the J St. Telecaster bridge pickup adds that unmistakable Tele snap and twang in the bridge position. Two fundamentally different single coil voicings in one guitar, giving a tonal range that neither a straight P90 guitar nor a straight Tele could offer on its own. Explored across Tweed clean tones from 00:32 through all three positions, then into high gain Tweed from 03:55 and the Plexi channel from 06:53.
The R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe — Chris Vincent's recreation of the rare 1950s Höfner Preamp circuit with NOS germanium AC107 transistors — enters from 09:02 in Low Gain mode on the Plexi channel, with the Effectrode Tube Vibe layered in from 09:36. Medium Gain mode on the Tweed channel follows from 10:43, and the demo closes with both Tweed and Plexi channels running in parallel from 12:27, fully cranked from 13:19.
Would you rather have a P90 in the neck or a Tele bridge in your main guitar? Drop your answer in the comments.
🎸 Kauer Guitars: https://www.kauerguitars.com 🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups 🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🔊 Cunningham Amps: https://www.cunninghamamps.co.nz
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🎸 Kauer Guitars Korona | Lollar Melody Maker 90 (Neck) + Lollar J St. Tele Bridge 🎛️ R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe | NOS AC107 Ge | Höfner Preamp Circuit | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Tweed + Plexi Channels
Giordano Guitars Tributo Goldtop | Sunbear '56 SB-90 Pickups
Giordano Guitars returns with the Tribute Goldtop — a modern classic loaded with Sunbear '56 SB-90 P90s, running into the Cunningham Amps Dual Range Fuzz. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Giordano Guitars Tribute Goldtop — Sunbear Pickups '56 SB-90 P90s — runs into the Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers, across Tweed and Plexi channels. The Cunningham Amps Dual Range Fuzz (NOS Telefunken BC108 Silicon) and Effectrode Tube Vibe both feature.
The Sunbear '56 SB-90 is Stuart Robson's distillation of everything he loves about the P90 design — AWG42 plain enamel wire, low-carbon pole screws and keeper bar, and traditionally made rough-cast Alnico magnets in each pickup. Bridge Alnico IV (~8.2K), Neck Alnico III (~7.4K). Pure, clear, and forthright with all the midrange girth and harmonic complexity that made the P90 the birth of classic set-neck solid body tone. Explored across neck (00:29), middle (02:45), and bridge (04:04) at cleaner Tweed settings, then through medium and higher Tweed gain from 05:35 through 08:00, with volume knob cleanup from 09:11.
The Cunningham Amps Dual Range Fuzz is Tim Cunningham's hand-crafted take on his own MK 1.6 Fuzz circuit — taken a step further with an additional boosted fuzz mode that can be fine-tuned for extra gain and volume. This build is loaded with NOS Telefunken BC108 silicon transistors, hand-selected and tested per build. Attack dials up the fuzz character; Level sets overall output, ranging from soft breakup to full sonic destruction. The Boost controls interact with Attack and Level to open up an extremely diverse tonal palette — from boosted cleans to searing fuzzed-out mayhem. Explored from 20:12, with the Boost engaged from 25:30.
The Plexi channel gets its own extensive treatment from 11:22 onward — medium gain, volume knob cleanup, middle position cleanup, and higher gain with the Effectrode Tube Vibe layered in from 16:09 through full guitar volume at 18:21.
🎸 Giordano Guitars: https://www.instagram.com/giordanoguitars/ 🎸 Sunbear Pickups: https://www.sunbearpickups.com 🎛️ Cunningham Amps: https://www.cunninghamamps.co.nz
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🎸 Giordano Guitars Tribute Goldtop | Sunbear '56 SB-90 P90s (AIV Bridge ~8.2K / AIII Neck ~7.4K) 🎛️ Cunningham Amps Dual Range Fuzz | NOS Telefunken BC108 Silicon | MK 1.6 Circuit + Boost Mode | Attack / Level / Boost | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Tweed + Plexi Channels
I Helped Design This Guitar! | Losch Guitars feat. Built-In R2R Electric Treble Booster!
A very special guitar makes its channel debut — a co-designed collaboration with Chicago/Highland Park luthier Gabby Losch of Losch Guitars, born from a chance meeting at Fretboard Summit 2024 and debuting at Fretboard Summit 2025. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
This Losch Guitars co-design — semi-hollow, no f-holes, Mastery Bridge and Tremolo, Emerson Custom pots, caps, and Treble Bleeds, Sunbear Humbuckers with a Sunbear Sunbird (Firebird) middle pickup on a blender knob, and a built-in R2R Electric germanium Treble Booster with discreet switch placement — runs into the Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers. The R2R Electric Ge Distorter Deluxe and Effectrode Tube Vibe both feature.
Gabby Losch builds by hand in Chicago/Highland Park, Illinois — known for incredible craftsmanship, unique designs, and inspiring tones that blend modern innovation with classic guitar tradition. After meeting at Fretboard Summit 2024, ideas traded over Instagram and text turned into this co-designed instrument, debuting a year later at Fretboard Summit 2025.
The build itself is packed with thoughtful detail: semi-hollow construction without f-holes for a cleaner look and different acoustic character than a traditional f-hole design. Mastery Bridge and Tremolo for tuning stability and intonation accuracy. Emerson Custom pots, caps, and Treble Bleeds throughout — explored in the volume knob cleanup from 08:27.
The pickup configuration is genuinely unusual: Sunbear Humbuckers in neck and bridge, with a Sunbear Sunbird — Sunbear's Firebird-voiced pickup — wired to a blender knob in the middle position, giving single-coil-esque tonal shading blended in on top of the humbucker voicing. Explored from 10:29, with the blend and volume knob interaction from 11:29.
The built-in R2R Electric germanium Treble Booster — with a discreet switch placement built directly into the guitar — gets extensive coverage from 12:44 through 22:36, including direct volume knob cleanup, tone knob interaction, gain reduction, and stacking with the Effectrode Tube Vibe from 20:14.
The R2R Electric Ge Distorter Deluxe closes out the demo from 23:59 — Chris Vincent's take on the same circuit as his Ge Distorter NKT, now with an added external Q2 Bias control and loaded with a set of Philips/Mullard AC107 black glass germanium transistors. Level, Attack, and the external Bias knob for dialing in the exact sweet spot of the Q2 transistor stage. Stacked with the guitar's built-in Treble Booster from 26:59 for a genuinely unique combination only possible with this specific instrument.
🎸 Losch Guitars: https://www.loschguitars.com
🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com
🎸 Sunbear Pickups: https://www.sunbearpickups.com
🔊 Cunningham Amps: https://www.cunninghamamps.co.nz
Subscribe for more boutique tone explorations.
🎸 Losch Guitars Co-Design | Semi-Hollow (No F-Holes) | Mastery Bridge + Tremolo | Sunbear Humbuckers + Sunbear Sunbird Middle (Blender) | Built-In R2R Electric Treble Booster | Emerson Custom Wiring + Treble Bleeds
🎛️ R2R Electric Ge Distorter Deluxe | Philips/Mullard AC107 Black Glass Ge | External Q2 Bias | Level / Attack / Bias | Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live
The Best Stratocaster Upgrade! | Lollar Special Blonde Stratocaster Pickup Set
Lollar Pickups returns to the channel with the Special Blonde Stratocaster Pickup Set — Blonde neck and middle paired with the hotter Special bridge. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Lollar Special Blonde Stratocaster Pickup Set is installed in the Giordano Guitars '60s S-Model, into the Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers. The Keeley-modded Ibanez TS9 Tubescreamer and Effectrode Tube Vibe join for the second half.
Check out the Lollar Special Blonde Pickup Set: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-stratocaster-pickups/strat-blonde
The Special Blonde is a considered hybrid within Lollar's Stratocaster lineup — the Blonde neck and middle deliver the vintage-voiced clarity and chime that Lollar's Blonde series is known for, while the bridge swaps in the hotter-output Special Stratocaster pickup rather than a matching Blonde bridge. The result addresses a common Strat complaint directly: a vintage-voiced bridge pickup can sound thin and brittle when pushed, while the Special bridge brings more body and output to that position without sacrificing the neck and middle's classic character. Explored across clean-ish tones from 00:47, showing the balance between the three positions.
The Benson Vincent Clean Channel cranked with added treble from 04:40 pushes the Special bridge into its own natural breakup territory before any pedal enters the chain. The Keeley-modded Ibanez TS9 — Robert Keeley's famous modification opening up the tone-coloring caps and op-amp circuit for greater headroom — joins from 06:49, with volume knob cleanup explored from 08:27 and the Effectrode Tube Vibe stacking in from 09:32.
🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-stratocaster-pickups/strat-blonde 🎸 Giordano Guitars: https://www.instagram.com/giordanoguitars/ 🔊 Benson Amps: https://www.bensonamps.com/guitar-amplifiers
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🎸 Giordano Guitars '60s S-Model | Lollar Special Blonde Set (Blonde Neck + Middle / Special Bridge) 🎛️ Ibanez TS9 Tubescreamer (Keeley Mod) | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R10 & R121 | Ableton Live
The Best Telecaster?! | Tone Ranger Guitars Desert Star | Feat. Lollar Regal Wide Range Humbuckers
Tone Ranger Guitars returns with another Desert Star — this one loaded with custom Lollar Regal Wide Range Humbuckers and wired with 1 Meg pots and dual Treble Bleeds. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
This Desert Star is loaded with Lollar Pickups Regal Wide Range Humbuckers, customized with pickguard die-cut toppers from Decoboom, wired with 1 Meg potentiometers and Treble Bleeds on both volume pots, into the Greer Amps Mini Chief with Scumback S75-PVC 12" speaker. The R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature from 19:13 onward.
Explore the Desert Star and other Tone Ranger creations at Malibu Music: https://malibumusic.com/search?q=tone+ranger Follow Tone Ranger Guitars: https://www.instagram.com/tonerangerguitars/ Also watch: the full 6-model Tone Ranger Guitars showcase: https://youtu.be/p8X-BwI4pdw
Jeff Mark Leavitt's Desert Star is his take on the T-style, built with features uncommon to Telecaster designs — set neck construction and 24.75" scale rather than the standard bolt-on 25.5". This particular build features the Lollar Regal Wide Range Humbucker set — Fender's original Seth Lover-designed Wide Range voicing, known for a fuller, rounder character than a standard PAF while retaining significant single-coil-like clarity and articulation. The pickup covers use custom die-cut toppers from Decoboom, adding a distinctive visual detail on top of the tonal foundation. Wired with 1 Meg pots rather than the more common 250K or 500K values, keeping the full high-frequency detail of the Wide Range humbuckers intact, and Treble Bleeds on both volume pots for full-range cleanup no matter where the volume knob sits.
The R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe is Chris Vincent's take on the rare 1950s Höfner Preamp circuit — a genuinely obscure vintage reference that few builders have tackled. NOS germanium AC107 transistors. A very natural, amp-like sounding pedal with substantial gain on tap — explored in Low Gain mode from 19:13 and High Gain mode from 24:02, with the Effectrode Tube Vibe stacking in from 27:12.
Explored across the full range on the Greer Mini Chief: clean tones with amp gain at 9 o'clock from 02:25, through amp gain at noon from 07:28, cranked amp tones from 13:53, and extensive volume knob cleanup from 17:48.
🎸 Tone Ranger Guitars: https://www.tonerangerguitars.com 🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups 🎛️ R2R Electric: https://www.r2relectric.com 🔊 Greer Amps: https://www.greeramps.com
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🎸 Tone Ranger Guitars Desert Star | Lollar Regal Wide Range Humbuckers (Decoboom Die-Cut Toppers) | 1 Meg Pots | Dual Treble Bleeds | Set Neck | 24.75" 🎛️ R2R Electric Preamp Super Deluxe | NOS AC107 Ge | Höfner Preamp Circuit | Low/High Gain Modes | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Greer Amps Mini Chief | Scumback S75-PVC 12"
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12
The BEST Mod for your Les Paul - Emerson Custom x Edge of Breakup Les Paul Prewired Kit
The story behind the Edge of Breakup x Emerson Custom Les Paul Prewired Kit — years of chasing the perfect Les Paul tone led here. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
Get the EoB x Emerson Custom Les Paul Kit: https://emersoncustom.com/products/eob-les-paul-prewired-kit-premier-pro?sca_ref=6282128.5O9h8BhMpG
Years spent documenting boutique guitar amplifiers, pickups, and every category of pedal from fuzz to Uni-Vibe to delay led to a genuine discovery: Emerson Custom's Les Paul Prewired Kit, built to '50s wiring spec with meticulously crafted wiring and top-tier components, was already exceptional on its own. But combining it with Emerson's Treble Bleed mod on both volume pots — rather than one or neither, which is how most players approach it — opened up something new entirely.
'50s wiring keeps the tone cap connected directly to the output lug rather than the volume pot wiper, which is what gives a properly wired vintage-spec Les Paul its open, resonant character even at lower volume settings. The Treble Bleed mod adds a frequency-specific network on the volume pot itself that preserves high-frequency content as the volume is rolled back. Combining both — on both the neck and bridge volume pots independently — means the guitar cleans up fuzz, overdrive, and amp gain all the way down to 1 on the volume knob without losing top-end definition or turning to mud.
The kit uses Emerson's new Premier Pro Pots — three years in development, fiberglass substrate for durability and rigidity, a proprietary 20% audio taper designed to feel and respond consistently in both volume and tone positions. Paired with the Treble Bleed mods, the resulting knob taper and top-end retention is the best Emerson has ever offered in a Les Paul-specific kit.
This is the exact specification now available as the Edge of Breakup x Emerson Custom Les Paul Prewired Kit — everything that changed how tone gets dialed in on a Les Paul, packaged as one order.
🎛️ Emerson Custom: https://emersoncustom.com
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🎛️ Emerson Custom x Edge of Breakup Les Paul Prewired Kit | '50s Wiring | Premier Pro Pots (20% Proprietary Audio Taper) | 2x Independent Treble Bleed
Single Pickup Guitars Rule! | Grez Guitars Mendocino Jr.
Grez Guitars returns to the channel — this time featuring Barry's Mendocino Junior with a Ron Ellis P90 in the bridge. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
The Grez Guitars Mendocino Junior — Ron Ellis P90 bridge pickup, Emerson Custom Prewired Kit with 500K pots and Treble Bleed on the volume pot — pairs with the Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander. The Expresso FX Beige Dual Ge/Si Fuzz and Ge Boost and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature throughout.
The Ron Ellis P90 in the bridge position brings Ron's molecular-level materials research to the soapbar format — the same engineering approach he applies to his humbuckers, delivering clarity and dynamic touch response rather than the raw, uncontrolled midrange some P90s are known for. Paired with the Mendocino Junior's compact offset body, the result is articulate and expressive across the demo's full range of clean, pushed, and cranked amp tones.
The Expresso FX Beige Dual Ge/Si Fuzz and Ge Boost is a two-circuit pedal from Sof, built in the UK with zero compromise on components. The Fuzz Face-style side is switchable between three transistors — NOS CV7005 germanium, NOS AC128 germanium, and NOS OC202 silicon — giving three distinct fuzz voicings from a single circuit, explored starting at 08:09 through the volume knob cleanup at 08:52 and into the Effectrode Tube Vibe at 09:58. The Ge Boost side uses an NOS OC45 germanium transistor — the same transistor found in the earliest Dallas Rangemaster units — delivering classic treble booster character, explored from 04:34 with volume knob cleanup at 05:42 and slamming the Benson Vinny Dirt Channel at 13:02.
The Benson Amps Vincent's cascading architecture — a 1-watt Vinny Dirt Channel feeding into the 30-watt Clean Channel — is explored throughout, from clean-ish tones at 01:37 through the cranked Clean Channel at 03:15 and the Vinny Dirt Channel activated at 10:52.
🎸 Grez Guitars: https://www.grezguitars.com
🎸 Ron Ellis Pickups: https://www.ronellispickups.com
🎛️ Expresso FX: https://expressofx.com
🔊 Benson Amps: https://www.bensonamps.com/guitar-amplifiers
Subscribe for more boutique tone explorations.
🎸 Grez Guitars Mendocino Junior | Ron Ellis P90 (Bridge) | Emerson Custom Prewired Kit | 500K Pots | Treble Bleed
🎛️ Expresso FX Beige Dual Ge/Si Fuzz & Ge Boost | CV7005 + AC128 Ge / OC202 Si (Fuzz) | OC45 Ge (Boost) | Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Boss Waza TAE
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12
Absolutely Killer Semi-Hollow | Josh Williams Guitars Mockingbird
Josh Williams Guitars returns to the channel — this time with the Mockingbird in '59 Burst, and Reeves Electro makes their third channel appearance with the ZO Professional Fuzz. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode the Josh Williams Guitars Mockingbird takes center stage — '59 Burst finish, Tone Specific Bloombucker Humbuckers, trapeze tailpiece — into the Benson Amps Vincent head and Benson 2x12" cab via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander. The Reeves Electro ZO Professional Fuzz and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature throughout.
Also on the channel: Josh Williams Guitars Mockingbird in Pelham Blue. Also on the channel: Reeves Electro Facet IZ Fuzz and Darlington Flyer.
Josh Williams builds in Vista, Southern California — a small dedicated team, every guitar a custom order built individually to the player's specifications. The Mockingbird is Josh's refined take on the classic 1960s ES-style semi-hollow: pressed maple top, back, and sides around a carefully selected centerblock. 16" lower bout. Mahogany neck. Rosewood fingerboard with MOP split parallelogram inlays. 24.75" scale. Bone nut. Kluson tuners with pearl buttons. Cream binding throughout. 2 Volume / 2 Tone / 3-way Toggle. This build has a trapeze tailpiece and '59 Burst finish — a different animal aesthetically and tonally from the Pelham Blue stop tail build on the channel.
The Tone Specific Bloombucker is a PAF-voiced humbucker built around the specific quality found in vintage 1950s PAFs — the "bloom." Notes swell slightly rather than decay linearly, giving chords a three-dimensional quality. Warm but not muddy, dynamic but not harsh.
The Reeves Electro ZO Professional is Markus Reeves' Zonk Machine MKII homage in the Professional Wedge format — his own tweaked version of the original two-transistor silicon Zonk circuit. NOS TO98 Sprague 2N2926 Green Dot silicon transistors from the late 1960s, matched pair. Mid-gain, super textured fuzz with heavy octave overtones and that distinctly angular, percussive Zonk MKII character.
Three controls: Volume, Drift (mimics how original component values drift over decades — acts like a cross between a fuzz and a bias control, with a wide range of usable settings — max is not the only option), Texture (adds graininess and affects the decay character, making notes crumble more aggressively as they die). Hand-sprayed hammer finish, point-to-point construction, acid-etched enclosure. The Professional Wedge format is the same footprint as the Facet IZ from the previous Reeves Electro demo.
🎸 Josh Williams Guitars: https://joshwilliamsguitars.com 🎸 Tone Specific: https://www.tonespecific.com 🎛️ Reeves Electro: https://reeveselectro.co.uk 🔊 Benson Amps: https://www.bensonamps.com/guitar-amplifiers
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🎸 Josh Williams Guitars Mockingbird | '59 Burst | Pressed Maple Semi-Hollow | Tone Specific Bloombuckers | Trapeze Tailpiece | 24.75" 🎛️ Reeves Electro ZO Professional | NOS Sprague 2N2926 Green Dot Si | Zonk Machine MKII Topology | Volume / Drift / Texture | Point-to-Point 🎛️ Also: Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Benson Amps Vincent Head + Benson 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Boss Waza TAE
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12
Get that Sparkle and Sizzle Back in Your Tone! | Emerson Custom 1 Meg Premier Pro Pots
Emerson Custom returns to the channel with their brand new 1 Meg Premier Pro Potentiometers — and they are a game changer for Jazzmaster-style guitars. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode the Emerson Custom 1 Meg Premier Pro Pots take center stage — installed in the Black Bobbin Chicago Phantone with Lollar '63 Jazzmaster Pickups and Emerson Custom Treble Bleeds, into the Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander. The Keeley-modded Ibanez TS9 Tubescreamer and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature throughout.
Get the Emerson Premier Pro 1 Meg Pots: https://emersoncustom.com/products/emerson-premier-pro-potentiometers?sca_ref=6282128.5O9h8BhMpG
Check out the Black Bobbin Phantone: https://blackbobbin.com/collections/black-bobbin-phantone
Lollar '63 Jazzmaster Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/63-jazzmaster
The Emerson Custom Premier Pro Potentiometers were three years in development — born out of frustration with COVID-era supply chain failures and Mitch's refusal to settle for the industry norm that CTS pots are "good enough." The result: a completely in-house designed and manufactured pot built from the ground up to Emerson's own specifications. Fiberglass substrate instead of the phenolic used in most guitar pots — significantly stronger, more rigid, won't bend or snap. Proprietary 20% audio taper — 20% output at half rotation — designed to feel and respond the same way in both volume and tone positions, with an unusually musical and smooth sweep across the full travel. 8% tolerance (920K–1080K Ω on the 1 Meg version). Oversized solder lugs for clean wiring.
The 1 Meg value is the correct resistance for Jazzmaster and Jaguar circuits — the original Fender offset designs were spec'd at 1 Meg throughout, which gives the pickups a different loading characteristic than the 250K or 500K pots used in most other guitar wiring. Lower pot resistance bleeds off more high frequency content from the pickup; the 1 Meg value keeps the full frequency response of the pickup intact. Combined with the Emerson Treble Bleed and the proprietary 20% audio taper, the volume knob cleanup explored from 10:51 is one of the most responsive and musical cleanup sweeps on the channel.
The Keeley-modded Ibanez TS9 is Robert Keeley's famous modification to the classic Ibanez Tubescreamer — one of the most well-known and sought-after boutique modifications in pedal history. Keeley's TS9 mod targets the tone-coloring capacitors and op-amp circuit within the TS9, opening up the frequency response and increasing the headroom and clarity of the overdrive character. Used here as both an overdrive and a clean boost to slam the Benson Vincent's clean channel from 07:09 onward.
🎛️ Emerson Custom: https://emersoncustom.com
🎸 Black Bobbin Chicago: https://blackbobbin.com
🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups
🔊 Benson Amps: https://www.bensonamps.com/guitar-amplifiers
Subscribe for more boutique tone explorations.
🎸 Black Bobbin Chicago Phantone | Lollar '63 Jazzmaster Pickups | Emerson Custom 1 Meg Premier Pro Pots | Emerson Custom Treble Bleeds
🎛️ Emerson Custom 1 Meg Premier Pro Pots | 20% Proprietary Audio Taper | Fiberglass Substrate | 8% Tolerance | Ibanez TS9 Keeley Mod | Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Boss Waza TAE
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12
The Boutique Guitar Maker You NEED to Know About! | Gronlund Guitars SC18
Gronlund Guitars makes its channel debut — and you'll be seeing a lot of the SC18 in upcoming demos. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode the Gronlund Guitars SC18 takes center stage — TV Jones TV Classic Filter'Tron pickups, into the Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander. The Expresso FX Ge Boost (Philips OC141) and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature from 04:59 onward.
Follow Gronlund Guitars: https://www.instagram.com/gronlundguitars/
Buy a Gronlund Guitar: https://www.gronlundguitars.com/
James Greene builds Gronlund Guitars in his small shop on the coast of Maine — every guitar rough cut from kiln dried hardwood, handcrafted from scratch. James combined his love for music and craftsmanship to design a unique line of instruments that prioritize tonal balance, playability, and individual character. Each build ships in a Mono Vertigo case.
The SC18 is a single-cut semi-hollow — part thinline, part semi-hollow, with one f-hole rather than two and the acoustic complexity that brings. One piece Honduran Mahogany body. Maine Hard Maple neck. African Ebony fretboard and headstock face cap. 59' C neck profile (.860" at first fret, tapering to .960" at 12th). Set neck. Satin nitrocellulose lacquer, hand rubbed with 0000 steel wool for a low luster brushed finish. 500k CTS audio pots with treble bleed. Orange Drop capacitors. Switchcraft output jack. TonePros wraparound bridge.
This build is fitted with TV Jones TV Classic Filter'Tron-style pickups in humbucker-sized rout — Tom Jones' flagship model, the one Brian Setzer chose in a blind test against vintage pickups during his Gretsch signature development. Warm, clear, and chimey with that unmistakable Filter'Tron character. The SC18's semi-hollow Mahogany construction gives the TV Classics more acoustic body to work with than a typical solid guitar, producing a particularly resonant and open result across all positions.
🎸 Gronlund Guitars: https://www.gronlundguitars.com 🎸 TV Jones: https://www.tvjones.com 🔊 Benson Amps: https://www.bensonamps.com/guitar-amplifiers
Subscribe for more boutique tone explorations.
🎸 Gronlund Guitars SC18 | Honduran Mahogany Body | Maine Hard Maple Neck | African Ebony Fretboard | TV Jones TV Classic Filter'Trons | One F-Hole | Set Neck | Satin Nitro | Hand-Built in Maine 🎛️ Expresso FX Ge Boost | Philips OC141 | NOS Ge | Effectrode Tube Vibe 🔊 Benson Amps Vincent 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Boss Waza TAE
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12
THE Indie Guitar Maker You NEED to Know About | Prisma Guitars Diavolo
Prisma Guitars returns to the channel with the Diavolo — all skateboard top, three Lollar pickups, and one very clever push/pull wiring trick. Welcome back to Edge of Breakup.
In this episode the Prisma Guitars Diavolo takes center stage — skateboard hard rock maple top, Lollar Gold Foil neck and bridge with Lollar Firebird middle activated via push/pull on the bridge tone pot, Emerson Custom wiring kit and Treble Bleeds, Schroeder Wrap Tail Bridge, into the Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" with Scumback H75-PVC speakers via the Boss Waza Tube Amp Expander. The Madsen Amplification Ge Boost and Effectrode Tube Vibe feature from 08:54 onward.
Learn more about Prisma Guitars: https://www.prismaguitars.com/
Follow Prisma Guitars: https://www.instagram.com/prismaguitars/
Lollar Gold Foil: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-gold-foil-pickups/gold-foil-soapbar
Lollar Firebird: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-humbucker-pickups/firebird
The Prisma Diavolo is Nick Pourfard's LP-style single-cut — built in California, every build one-of-a-kind. This Diavolo features a skateboard hard rock maple top: seven-ply compressed maple decks laminated together, each carrying its own color patterns and patina, making the visual result entirely unrepeatable. Maple C neck (87-97 profile). Reclaimed Brazilian Walnut fingerboard from the Coney Island Boardwalk. 25.5" scale. 1 5/8" bone nut. 6105 nickel frets. Emerson Custom wiring kit and Treble Bleeds. Schroeder Wraparound Bridge — lightweight aluminium body, stainless steel clips, brass saddles.
The pickup configuration is the highlight. Lollar Gold Foil neck and bridge are the primary two-pickup voices — chimey, articulate, complex midrange character that sits between single coil and humbucker without sounding like either. The Lollar Firebird middle is wired to a push/pull on the bridge tone pot, bringing it in as a third voice that can be blended with the neck, bridge, or both simultaneously. All three pickups activated together (06:32), neck + Firebird middle (07:01), and bridge + Firebird middle (05:52) are all explored — the Firebird's compressed, vocal mid-forward character adding a completely different dimension to the Gold Foils' naturally open sound.
The Madsen Amplification Ge Boost — Maynard Madsen's Dallas Rangemaster-style NOS germanium boost with 3-way cap selector, from Camdenton Missouri — slams the Cunningham Tweed channel from 08:54. Three-way cap positions explored: mid boost, treble boost, and full frequency.
🎸 Prisma Guitars: https://www.prismaguitars.com
🎸 Lollar Pickups: https://www.lollarguitars.com/lollar-pickups
🔊 Cunningham Amps: https://www.cunninghamamps.co.nz
Subscribe for more boutique tone explorations.
🎸 Prisma Guitars Diavolo | Skateboard Top | Brazilian Walnut Fretboard (Coney Island Boardwalk) | Lollar Gold Foil (N+B) + Lollar Firebird (M, Push/Pull Bridge Tone Pot) | Emerson Custom Wiring + Treble Bleeds | Schroeder Wrap Tail | 25.5"
🎛️ Madsen Amplification Ge Boost | NOS Ge | 3-Way Cap Selector | Effectrode Tube Vibe
🔊 Cunningham Amps Custom 35 2x12" | Scumback H75-PVC | Boss Waza TAE
Recording: Universal Audio Apollo x4 | Ohma Ribbon | Lauten Audio LS-208 | Royer R121 & R10 | Ableton Live 12