Paul McCartney Interview

There's a great interview with Paul McCartney in the newest Sam Ash Gear Guide on page 83.

Paul discusses his greatest acoustic songs, his influences, his fingerpicking technique and his signature model Epiphone Texan acoustic guitar.

A used Epiphone Texan FT-79 acoustic guitar signed by Paul McCartney is currently on sale in the Sam Ash store in Canoga Park, California. Serial number: 03364006. Limited edition #105 of 250. Made in Nashville, Tennessee. It's a beauty!

On page 82 of the new December catalog, the Sam Ash Music Institute Guitar Lesson of the Month features the chords and strumming pattern in the style of Paul McCartney's "Yesterday."

Fans of The Beatles can also learn about the John Lennon Epiphone EJ160E jumbo acoustic/electric guitar on page 12.

To check out the new Sam Ash Gear Guide, sign up for the mailing list, download it at samashmusic.com or visit any Sam Ash Music store.

Ableton Live 7

Ableton is now shipping Live 7, new add-on instruments and Ableton Suite.Live 7 is full of enhancements to the audio engine including 64-bit mix summing, new and improved devices with side-chaining capability, better MIDI timing and hardware integration. Most-requested features, such as time signature changes, video export and multiple automation lanes have been added. The brand new "Drum Rack" streamlines beat making with an easy drag-and-drop interface and offers native sliced audio and REX file support.
New add-on instruments include Tension (string synth), Electric (classic electric pianos) and Analog.
The new Ableton Suite bundle includes Ableton Live 7, Sampler, Operator, Electric, Analog, Tension, Drum Machines, Essential Instrument Collection 2 and Session Drums all in one box.

For more on these new releases, visit ableton.com or any Sam Ash Music store.

Stage Ninja Retractable Cables

Are your guitar and mic cables a tangled mess? Does it seem to take forever to strike the stage after every show? We hear you.

Stage Ninja helps solve these problems with their new INS-26S and XLR-26S retractable cable systems.

A high-end braided cable with quality Neutrik® connectors, Stage Ninja® cable systems offer players and techs instant cable retraction with one tug of the cable after performance. Stage Ninja® cable systems eliminate cord-tangles while providing a damage resistant storage housing. Units also stack on top of each other for stage and studio space efficiency.

For more info, visit stageninja.net or any SoCal Sam Ash Music store.

PreSonus New Gear

PreSonus has announced three new recording solutions:
MegaStudio Producer gives you everything you need to record your music, create your videos and distribute and sell your music worldwide. MegaStudio Producer features the award-winning PreSonus FP10 (formerly FirePod) FireWire recording interface, more than $2,000 worth of music and video production software, 5 free uploads to iTunes from TuneCore, as well as free BroadJam.com membership and a complete “Go Pro” guide with tons of information on sharing, distributing and selling your music and videos. More than four hours of included tutorial videos provide step-by-step instructions on how to produce professional-quality recordings and videos.

The FireStudio Project is a complete 24-bit/96K professional recording system combining eight Class A XMAX microphone preamplifiers, 24-bit/96k sample rate conversion, zero-latency matrix router mixer and the PreSonus ProPak Software Suite featuring Steinberg's Cubase LE 4 48-track recording and production software, over 25 real-time plug-in effects and more than 2 GB of drum loops and samples.

Based on the award-winning Central Station, Monitor Station is a new desktop monitoring and communications system that provides talkback, speaker switching, input source switching and four ultra loud and clear headphone amplifiers.

For more info on these new PreSonus releases, visit any Sam Ash Music store.

Steinberg Nuendo 4

Steinberg has announced next month's release of Nuendo 4.Nuendo 4 offers a state-of-the-art automation system along with new recording functionality and Track Preset management features to speed up audio production workflows. A next-generation VST3 effect plug-in suite, the innovative MediaBay database, new editing commands and Track Quick Controls raise production efficiency and quality to new heights.

For more on Nuendo 4, visit steinberg.net or any Sam Ash Music store.

Antares Harmony Engine Clinics

From Antares, the company that revolutionized professional vocal production with Auto-Tune pitch correction technology, Harmony Engine is a real-time harmony generating plug-in that puts professional-quality vocal harmony arrangements within reach of any songwriter, producer, musician or engineer.

With four independent harmony voices, a variety of powerful harmony generating modes, humanization features for natural sounding performances and a flexible real-time preset system for harmony and vocal type, Harmony Engine provides incredibly easy-to-use tools to quickly and easily produce virtually any vocal arrangement you can imagine.

Whether you're an experienced vocal arranger, a songwriter looking for that perfect backup vocal or a composer experimenting with unique vocal effects, Harmony Engine gives you entirely new ways to create the harmony parts you hear in your head.

Antares Product Specialist Brian English will demo the new Harmony Engine plug-in at three SoCal Sam Ash Music locations:

• Canoga Park on Tuesday Sept. 25
• Hollywood on Wednesday Sept. 26
• Westminster on Thursday Sept. 27

Enter to win a free copy of Harmony Engine at each clinic courtesy of Antares. Clinics start at 7pm.

Access Virus Software Update

Access has released OS 2.5.1 for Virus TI, TI Keyboard and Polar. This new version is especially exciting as it adds Virus TI and Virus Control Plug-in support for Logic 8 and Pro Tools as well as beta support for Sonar 7, Nuendo and Microsoft Vista 32. Visit the Access website or any SoCal Sam Ash for more info.

Cakewalk Sonar 7 Now Shipping

Cakewalk Sonar 7 is now available in Producer and Studio versions.
New to Sonar 7 Producer Edition:

• A complete MIDI overhaul with Smart MIDI Tools and dozens of other new features
• Introduction of the most powerful Step Sequencer found in any DAW
• True linear phase mastering plug-ins
• Internal sidechaining
• Delay compensation for external hardware
• Pitch to MIDI functionality with Roland V-Vocal 1.5
• Numerous workflow, mixing and delivery enhancements throughout the application

For more info, visit cakewalk.com or any Sam Ash Music store.

ESP Announces New LTD Guitar Models

ESP Guitars has announced the addition of ten exciting new LTD models to their line. The new models for Fall 2007 will be available through Sam Ash Music later this year.
Perhaps the most unique new model of the group, the KH-JR joins the company’s other Kirk Hammett Signature Series models. It is ESP’s first foray into a smaller size instrument that’s perfect for younger players as well as other guitarists who’d like a travel/practice instrument. Resembling a smaller version of the popular ESP KH-2, the KH-JR (Junior) implements a 20.5” 3/4 scale design, with a basswood body and a maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard. A black finish, skull & bones inlays, and the same ESP-EMG LH-300 pickups used on the LTD KH-202 make this guitar perfect for any Metallica fan, young or not-so-young. A gig bag is included with the KH-JR.

LTD’s EC Series single-cutaway guitars expended with four new models. The affordable and popular EC-50 is now available in two new finishes (Black Satin and 2-Tone Burst). Similarly, the EC-100QM offers its high playability and sumptuous quilted maple top in a brand new Faded Cherry Sunburst finish.

Two more EC Series models were added to the LTD Deluxe group. The EC-1000 is now available in two stunning new finishes: See-Thru Blue and See-Thru Green. These high-performance models implement a set-neck design at a comfortable 24.75” scale. Both offer a mahogany body with a flamed maple top, and use a three-piece mahogany neck with a 24-fret rosewood fingerboard. The guitars’ neck, body, and headstock are treated with white binding and abalone purfling. The Earvana compensated nut allows for precise intonation, and the Schaller locking tuners and Tonepros bridge/tailpiece ensure the instruments stay in tune even during the most hardcore playing. EMG 81 (Bridge) and EMG 60 (Neck) active pickups help give these guitars the powerful tone that ESP has made famous.
ESP’s M and MH Series guitars also received a facelift with four new models: the M-53, the M-103FM, the MH-53 and MH-103QM. These affordable guitars offer a high-quality alternative to the standard inexpensive choices in rock guitars, with designs that are based on some of ESP’s most respected models. All four of the new models add a great-feeling (and great-looking) maple fingerboard to the M and MH Series, which previously was comprised only of rosewood fingerboard models. The M-53 is offered in a black finish, while the M-103FM (See-Thru Black finish) adds a licensed Floyd Rose tremolo system. The MH-53’s maple fingerboard provides a cool contrast to its black finish, while the MH-100QM highlights its quilted maple top in a See-Thru Blue color scheme.

For more info, visit any Sam Ash store or espguitars.com.

Ampeg Bass Amps & Cabinets at Sam Ash

Sam Ash has Ampeg bass and guitar gear.

Some of the Ampeg amps and cabs at Sam Ash:

• SVT410HE Classic Series 4x10 Bass Speaker Cabinet
• SVT410HLF Classic Series Ported Horn 4x10
• SVT450H Classic Series Bass Amplifier Head
• J20 Jet Tube 1x12" Guitar Combo Amplifier
• SVT810E Classic Series 8x10
• SVT4PRO Pro Series Bass Head
• SVTCL Classic Series Bass Amp Head

More Ampeg gear is on the way to all Los Angeles-area Sam Ash Music stores.

Who's on Ampeg's Artist List?

Ampeg Artists include Les Claypool, Victor Wooten, Michael Anthony, Josh Homme, Billy Sheehan, John McVie, Geezer Butler, Gene Simmons, Sting and Bootsy Collins.

Reason 4 Arrives on Sept. 26

Reason 4 will be released to the world on Wednesday September 26. The masterminds at Propellerheads have done it again.

Reason has come full circle. Rebuilt from the ground up and equipped with a brand new sequencer, a revolutionary groove tool, a stunning arpeggiator and an incredible new synth named Thor, Reason 4 is set to change how you make your music.

If you own a previous version of Reason, you will be able to upgrade at a discounted upgrade price. Upgrade versions will be sold at all Sam Ash Music stores. If you have purchased Reason new after June 1, 2007, hold on to your receipt and contact Propellerheads when Reason 4 is out, and they will supply you with a free upgrade. Detailed info about this process will be published on the Propellerheads website when the upgrade is available.

Reserve your copy of Reason 4 today by preordering at any Sam Ash store. Want to learn more about Reason 4? Click here.

Native Instruments GUITAR RIG 3, KONTAKT 3 & New KOMPLETE Bundles at Sam Ash on Oct. 1

Native Instruments has announced 5 New Products that will be released on October 1:

GUITAR RIG 3

• Twelve supreme-sounding guitar and bass amps
• New matched cabinet module provides tried and true classic sounds in seconds
• 44 perfectly emulated guitar effects
• 17 guitar and six bass cabinets, four rotary speakers and nine microphones
• Includes Rig Kontrol 3 foot controller with Audio/MIDI interface - Now in BLACK
  
• Intelligent preset management for fast access to a huge selection of sounds for all styles
• Essential tools: Integrated tuner, metronome and two tapedeck modules for easy recording
• Premium special features include a loop machine and powerful modifiers
• Dedicated "Live View" for performing on stage
• Dynamic Tube Response Technology® delivers a profound sonic quality

While Supplies Last: The price of the old Guitar Rig 2 has been lowered to $299.99 at Sam Ash. Customers who purchase Guitar Rig 2 after 9/1/07 will qualify for a free software upgrade to Guitar Rig 3.

KONTAKT 3

• Six Instrument Collections – over 33 GB of sounds
• Ready-to-rock "Performance View" for each of the 1000 instruments
• Reworked Wave Editor with tools for intuitive looping, slicing and editing
• Freely drawable envelopes per sample
• Improved navigation: Modulation Quick-Jumps, Instrument Navigator
• Over 18 high-end effects
• Enhanced workflow for Scripts with tabbed views
• Universal Import of virtually any sample format
• MIDI loop drag & drop into host application
• New Info Pane in the GUI, seven tutorial videos

KOMPLETE 5

Includes ALL the following instruments:

• KONTAKT 3 - the industry-standard sampler with a 33 GB library
• GUITAR RIG 3 Software Edition - the ultimate guitar and bass studio
• MASSIVE - the formidable sound monster for fat basses and more
• REAKTOR 5 - the extremely versatile, modular instrument studio
• ABSYNTH 4 - the legendary synthesizer for vivid soundscapes
• BATTERY 3 - the dedicated drum sampler providing premium drum kits
• AKOUSTIK PIANO - three famous grands and one upright
• ELEKTRIK PIANO - the sounds of four renowned electric pianos
• B4 II - perfectly recreates the sound of the legendary B3 organ
• FM8 - FM synth for crystal-clear, airy, and razor-sharp digital sounds
• PRO-53 - the faithful reproduction of a synth legend

KOMPLETE SYNTHS

• MASSIVE - the formidable sound monster for fat basses and more
• ABSYNTH 4 - the legendary synthesizer for vivid soundscapes
• FM8 - FM synth for crystal-clear, airy, and razor-sharp digital sounds
• PRO-53 - the faithful reproduction of a synth legend

KOMPLETE CLASSICS

• AKOUSTIK PIANO - three famous grands and one upright
• ELEKTRIK PIANO - the sounds of four renowned electric pianos
• B4 II - perfectly recreates the sound of the legendary B3 organ
• PRO-53 - the faithful reproduction of a synth legend

For more info on these new releases from Native Instruments, visit any Sam Ash Music store.

Hartke AC150 Acoustic Amp Rave Reviews

Looking for a great amp for your acoustic/electric guitar?

The Hartke AC150 Acoustic Ribbon Amplifier received glowing reviews in Guitar World, Acoustic Guitar and 20th Century Guitar Magazine this month.

The AC150 features a 150 watt tri-amped design, with 50 watts powering the left and right full range speakers and 50 watts powering the high frequency ribbon tweeter. To reduce feedback, there is a phase switch on channel 1 as well as a variable notch filter with depth control. On the rear panel of the amplifier there is an effects loop with stereo return, and stereo XLR direct outputs.

The Hartke AC150 is now on sale at all Sam Ash Music stores.

Gretsch Drums at Sam Ash

That Great Gretsch Sound is back at Sam Ash Music.

Gretsch drum sets, including the Catalina, Renown and New Classic kits, are available now at Sam Ash.

Taylor Solid Body Electric Guitars Are Coming

Taylor Guitars has announced a new line of solid body electric guitars.

Bob Taylor: "About a year ago, we were working on some humbuckers for a new T5. These pickups sounded so great, we looked up and said, 'Hey, we're in the electric guitar business now!'... We literally designed every part of this guitar ourselves, right down to the knobs!"

Choose from three models (Classic, Standard and Custom) in full or 3/4-size. The major launch for these guitars is scheduled for January 2008 with a limited pre-production run on sale this fall. Visit any Sam Ash Music store or the Taylor Guitars website for more info. Check out the teaser video with Bob Taylor here.

Apple Unveils Logic Studio

Apple has announced Logic Studio which includes the majorly upgraded Logic Pro 8, a new live performance application called Main Stage, SoundTrack Pro 2 for audio post production, 40 Studio Instruments, 80 Studio Effects pro plug-ins, a vast Studio Sound Library and a powerful set of production utilities. Available now for only $499 at all Sam Ash Music stores.

Michael Wilton, George Lynch & Stephen Carpenter Hollywood Meet & Greet Presented by ESP Guitars and Sam Ash

MICHAEL WILTON (Queensrÿche)
GEORGE LYNCH (Dokken/Lynch Mob)
STEPHEN CARPENTER (Deftones)

Meet & Greet
Q&A Session

Sam Ash Music
7360 Sunset Blvd.
Hollywood, California

Wednesday October 3 at 3pm


Enter to win an H-51 guitar autographed by all three guitarists courtesy of ESP.

ESP will be unveiling new one-of-a-kind autographed and Custom Shop guitars at the free event. Do you have a custom ESP guitar? Bring it with you. We'd love to see it. Want to design your own ESP guitar? You can. Just fill out the Custom Shop Order Form and bring it to any Sam Ash store or use the online version. ESP will build it for you.

Design the guitar of your dreams.

Presented by ESP Guitars and Sam Ash.


UPDATE: Thanks to Stef Carpenter, Michael Wilton, George Lynch and the guys at ESP for making this happen. The Q&A session was great!
Thanks also to Bren Alesch at Angelwing Photography for the photos.

Epiphone Guitars at Sam Ash

Epiphone guitars are back at Sam Ash.

Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus-Top, LP Custom, Zakk Wylde LP Custom, John Lennon EJ-160E Acoustic, EJ-200CE, Thunderbird IV Bass... and many more Epiphone guitars are arriving at all Sam Ash Music stores in SoCal.

Open Labs NeKo and MiKo at Sam Ash Hollywood

Open Labs instruments are the most powerful and elegant integration of keyboard, controllers and software available today. The NeKo LX and MiKo LX come standard with over 60 VST instruments and effects. The PC-based architecture and Windows OS allow users to purchase and install virtually any music or audio application or plug-in developed for PC.

Open Labs keyboards are the only instruments available today that can play native PC VSTs live, clone patches from any midi keyboard or module and offer an Ethernet internet connection for Open Labs online remote shadowing and diagnostics - right in your own studio.

Artists using Open Labs workstations include Jonathan Davis and Munky with Korn, Scott Spock with The Matrix, Jesse Carmichael with Maroon 5, Teddy Riley, Lil Jon, Sheila E. and film composer Richard Gibbs. Morris Hayes played the MiKo with Prince on Saturday Night Live and the NeKo during the Halftime Show of Super Bowl XLI in Miami earlier this year.

Check out the Open Labs NeKo LX and MiKo LX in the Recording Room at Sam Ash Music in Hollywood.

Sam Ash TV

Sam Ash TV (samash.tv) is a collaboration between Sam Ash and Music Player Network's Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, and EQ. Exclusive video content showcases new gear, instructional lessons, interviews and performance footage. Featured artists include Flea, Joe Satriani, Victor Wooten, Dweezil Zappa, Thomas Dolby and Zakk Wylde.

“Sam Ash is excited to give our online customers informative features from the respected and knowledgeable editors at Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, and EQ. Helping our customers know more about the products we offer is part of the Sam Ash customer experience,” says David Ash, Co-CEO of Sam Ash Music.