EliasMooseblaster

UPDATE: my Behringer SF300 has arrived. Does the job just nicely! Really useful having the three modes, too: I can see myself using the more "vintage" sound of Fuzz 1 the most, but the scuzzier tone from Fuzz 2 has been quite fun to play with so far. Popping the guitar into drop D with Fuzz 2 certainly gives a nice All Them Witches-type vibe! Thanks again for the recommendation!

Just watched a good demo video of the SF300 - really solid recommendation, thank you! No snobbery around the ABS housings in this gaff, I'm glad to say - I've owned a couple of Behringer bass pedals in the past, and only moved them on because the tone wasn't doing it for me. The other contender I was eyeing up was the TC Electronics Honeypot. Also sounded good from the demos, though I'm tempted to try the Behringer first as it's so cheap!

No problem at all; happy to help where I can! The preamp in my signal chain is really just for tone, to make it sound a bit less sterile - level-wise it's comparable to the Fishman I pop in and out of my normal acoustic.

So I think the magnetic pickups are more like the soundhole pickups you can buy for acoustic guitars - mine has had no issues with bronze strings (other than wanting a preamp in the signal chain). Never tried putting electric string on it - though I imagine that would make it much quieter unplugged, so kind of defeating the point of it! I don't think there's a way to adjust the action at the bridge or tailpiece (a clever guitar tech might beg to differ). However you can always take it down at the nut end - depends how much you need to use the upper frets, I guess! Might be worth asking if you can talk to a tech in Andertons or GG - I use mine almost exclusively for slide, so I'm not the best person to ask.

It's quite a long time since I bought my resonator, so I don't have a very clear memory of which types I tried out on the day! My Ozark is definitely a single cone / biscuit bridge type; I remember also trying a couple of Stagg resonators which I believe were spider bridge. I seem to recall the Staggs sounding a bit mellower, but fundamentally still like a resonator - definitely some difference, but probably not enough that you'd mistake it for a "normal" acoustic guitar. If you are able to get to a shop to try a couple, it might be worthwhile to. But if not, I don't think the type would make too much difference - a biscuit, spider or tricone are probably all equally capable of making their presence felt against the accordion!

Mine - and a few others other I've seen - has a magnetic pickup, which definitely benefits from a pre-amp on its way to the desk. On the plus side, I have found it plays very nicely with a Joyo American Sound in that role!

A resonator could be just the ticket! My two acoustics are an Epi dreadnought and an Ozark resonator - and the latter is a lot louder! For context: when I play acoustic gigs, I pop both guitars into the PA for a bit of support, but in smaller venues I hardly need to bring up the fader at all on the resonator. (And I also play fingerstyle on these gigs.) It is a much more "boxy" tone, but it sounds like that might be a better fit with the accordion. And if you're playing Americana, it fits a similar space sonically to a banjo. If it's at all useful, this is the guitar I have: https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/04112612521018--ozark-3515e-resonator-black-electro-cutaway

Thank you! Sounds really good from a couple of demo videos - being small is a plus as well. I might have to go searching for a second-hand one.

I'm in the mood to start experimenting with some heavier sounds - think stoner rock, Kyuss, Samsara Blues Experiment, Moon Wizard. And I think a fuzz pedal might be the way to go. I'm also a cheap Ess-Oh-Bee, so I've been eyeing up what Andertons and GAK have south of £50. Anyone got any recommendations from the budget end of the fuzzbox species? (Bonus points if it can also be dialled back for a Hendrix-y Fuzz Face type sound - but by no means essential, as I'm well set for bluesy overdrive tones from my existing gear.)

I didn't actually use it on a great many recordings, but the best example I've got is probably this one: https://youtu.be/-6DjBos-Yys?si=omBOz1zfFGcrvvef - this is my MIM Tele going straight to the amp's OD channel, no pedals in between.

You mentioned the Blackstar HT5R - they also do a 1W model! I had an HT1R for a few years myself, and was a good little bit of kit for something so tiny. Played quite nicely with pedals, as I recall, and could get surprisingly loud when running flat out. Worth noting that both HT amps are technically hybrids - think it's a tube in the preamp, and a SS power stage. Not sure how important it is for your amp to be all tube!

I can vouch for Focusrite - used a Scarlett 2i2 for years, and it was wonderfully simple to set up and use. @randythoades raises a very good point about your recording environment, though: if you're buying monitors, you could make your life harder if you don't also treat your room - ironically enough. A decent pair of headphones might be a better starting point...and when I say "decent," I don't necessarily mean "expensive." A pair of Sony MDR-ZX100 are cheap as chips, and they're surprisingly good while you're getting set up. (Studiospares also have some decent, flatter-response cans for when you're ready to upgrade.) To second randy's point about your amp: mic placement - not to mention mic quality - can be a real minefield. If you have lots of time to experiment, don't let me stop you, but if you're happy with Katana's USB output then you'll get better results, faster, that way. That said, if you're struggling with the tone, there are plenty of affordable amp sim pedals out there - Joyo do American Sound (Fender-like), British Sound (Marshall-like), AC Tone (Vox) and California Sound (Mesa), which are all knock-offs of the Tech21 Character pedals. Companies like Caline and Donner are making their own versions as well. Fun fact - I don't even own a "normal" guitar amp these days: I just plug one of those in when I want to lay down any electric guitar tracks.

Aerosmith Greatest Hits guitar tab book, published by Hal Leonard. Song list can be seen in the photos, book is in pretty good nick. Any question, just fire away. £5 plus postage (I'll get an estimate for that presently), or collect from KT1.

I guess it's the same approach most Blues players take with Tube Screamer-style ODs: dial the Drive right down on the pedal itself, set the amp close to break-up point, then control the level of clipping with your guitar's volume pot.

See also: Vox Pathfinder. They don't have any explicit valve emulation, but they do break up quite smoothly for a SS amp, especially if you've got a good, subtle overdrive pedal to push them with. (Also chuffing loud for a 15W SS!)