Mesa/Boogie Subway D-800 Bass Head
Here’s an aptly named product: Boasting 800 watts and weighing only 5.5 pounds, this supremely versatile Class D head is ideal for the apartment-dwelling downtown bassist. Dial in your perfect tone via four-band EQ (Bass, Low Mid, High Mid and Treble), a Voicing knob for sounds from flat to vintage scoop, and a Deep switch for even more low end. An Impedance control allows for a smooth hookup with whatever wacky cabinet the venue is offering, and Headphones and Aux capabilities turn the Subway into an excellent rehearsal tool. $699 online. mesaboogie.com
Phaeton PHT-2060 Trumpet
Phaeton’s latest trumpet, the PHT-2060, features the company’s patented Triple Play adjustable weighted mouthpiece receiver. The Triple Play concept includes three screw-in inserts, each of a different weight, in bronze, aluminum and stainless steel. Veteran trumpeters will appreciate the Triple Play’s easy adjustability, and the 2060 comes standard in Phaeton’s distinctive black/copper antique finish. Other specs include a .462-inch bore, 128-mm one-piece Rose Brass bell and Phaeton’s advanced fast-taper lead pipe. Advertised selling price is $2,785. phaetontrumpet.com
ddrum Reflex Rally Sport Drum Kit
The ingenuity behind the compact, highly portable Reflex Rally Sport kit from ddrum begins with the drums’ shells, made of alder. Guitar heads know alder as a tonewood of robust mids and lows with less sustain than, say, ash or walnut. That stout sound and immediate attack transfer to the Reflex Rally Sport’s 14-by-22-inch bass drum, 5.5-by-14-inch snare, 8-by-12-inch rack tom and 14-by-16-inch floor tom-a setup of cocktail-kit convenience but studio-kit power. $799 online. ddrum.com
Dafnis Prieto’s A World of Rhythmic Possibilities
Cuban-born drummer-composer Dafnis Prieto strives to represent his entire lifetime of study and reflection in A World of Rhythmic Possibilities, and the result is a resource that’s part method book, part master class, part memoir and part musical-philosophical treatise-a genuine magnum opus within the field of music-ed books. In its 275 pages, 338 tracks and 33 video clips-the audio/visual is downloadable at Prieto’s website via an included code-he covers everything from technique to clave to songo to the very idea of tradition. The prose, illustrations and notation are lucid, so much so that even non-musicians with a deep interest in Afro-Cuban music will learn something. $30. dafnisonmusic.com
Fender Tune App
Electronic tuning doesn’t get easier or clearer than the new Fender Tune app. Choose electric or acoustic guitar or bass, auto or chromatic, and one of 22 available tunings, from standard through all of the requisite alternates. Tune by ear or with the app guiding you toward the correct pitch à la a conventional electronic tuner. If you’re brand-new to the whole guitar thing, illustrated tips are there when you need them. Free. fender.com
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