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James Thain Music - SX SST62+ demo and review video!

October 29, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: SST62 strat SSt62+ SX Guitar review SX Guitar UK SX guitars for sale UK SX Guitars review SX guitars UK SX SST62+ SX strat SX Strat demo SX Strat review SX Stratocaster SX Stratocaster demo

James is a player I greatly admire, and an all round good human which I've been grateful to get to know over my time of running the Home of Tone. I approached him about whether he'd be interested in filming some stuff with the new SX Guitars 'SST62+' models that I have recently begun representing and here we are! He has kindly taken the time to film this review and demo video of his own work, alongside some clips for me in an upcoming video I'm putting together which is great! Appreciate his work and honesty here in the video, hope you do too!

International postage/shipping options - tracked services only going forward

October 23, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Hi all! Just wanted to share a quick update for my international customers, that I have taken the decision to remove all Royal Mail International Standard service options from the...

Tom DeLonge Style Stratocaster, Starcaster and ES-333 pre-wired volume wiring now available!

October 18, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: Delonge ES-333 wiring Delonge ES333 wiring Delonge ES333 wiring kit Delonge Starcaster Delonge Starcaster harness Delonge starcaster loom Delonge Starcaster wiring Fender Tom DeLonge strat wiring Fender Tom DeLonge Stratocaster wiring Squier FSR Affinity Series Stratocaster H HT Tom Delonge ES-333 Tom Delonge ES-333 wiring Tom Delonge ES333 wiring Tom DeLonge guitar kit Tom DeLonge guitar wiring Tom DeLonge partscaster Tom Delonge Starcaster Tom Delonge Starcaster wiring Tom DeLonge Strat Tom DeLonge Strat harness Tom DeLonge Strat parts Tom DeLonge strat wiring Tom DeLonge Stratocaster Tom DeLonge Stratocaster wiring Tom DeLonge wiring Tom DeLonge wiring kit

This kit is as simple as they can come, but it is a tip of the 'Atticus angled cap' to one of my most favourite signature Fender guitar models and is incredibly nostalgic for me, the Tom DeLonge Signature Stratocaster! I spent countless hours staring at the Fender Frontline catalog back in the day wishing I had one of these guitars, super back to basics design but nonetheless wicked guitars. With the originals increasing in value, I know a lot of us are making partscaster replicas instead, so I wanted to offer a pre-wired volume pot kit to help with those projects! After having the privilege of working and inspecting an all original 2001 TD Strat thanks to one of my great customers, I was able to have a quick peek under the hood of an early example.

Inspection & Set-Up options when purchasing a SX Guitars 'SST62+' guitar from James' Home of Tone

September 26, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: best beginner electric guitar best beginner guitar Best beginners electric guitar Good beginner electric guitar Good beginner guitar SST62+ SX Guitar SX Guitar Strat SX Guitars SX Guitars SST62 SX Guitars strat SX GuitarsSST62+ SX SST62+ SX Strat SX Stratocaster

I have zero intention to just be a 'box shifting' supplier. Guitars of this price point are usually just shipped out upon order, but here at James' Home of Tone, regardless of price point, each and every guitar sold is inspected by me personally. At the end of the day, SX quality control is of a good standard, but it would have traveled by container, stored in a warehouse then shipped to me since that point of final inspection at the factory. So I take each out of the packaging and provide a full inspection, ensuring this guitar will play nicely out of the box for you.

'Reverse' Logarithmic pots - As a left handed player are they 'right' for me?

September 10, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: Cts reverse logarthimic pot CTS reverse taper pot how to wire up left handed guitar pot how to wire up reverse taper guitar pots left handed audio taper pots left handed guitar left handed guitar pot left handed guitar pots Left handed guitar wiring lefty guitar pot lefty guitar pots reverse audio taper pot reverse audio taper pot for guitar

Since first making my wiring kits, as well as stocking individual parts for replacement, I knew I wanted to offer options for left handed instruments and customers too.

After speaking with a number of left handed players to get a feel for their requirements and preferences, it became quickly apparent that there really is no 'standard' spec when it comes to what manufacturers use in new left handed instruments, nor was there a preferred choice by players either when it comes to which pots to use aftermarket. It's easy for right handed players like myself to take it for granted, that if we head to a shop and pick up a guitar, we know how the pots will function in terms of their turn direction, there is an industry standard that seldom deviates. But something as simple as which way the pots work just isn't the same for left handed players, and I think these manufacturer inconsistencies are perhaps in part to blame for the vague nature of the information out there.

Introducing the Very Good Amp Co, and their EP Drive V3 pedal to the Home of Tone!

August 26, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: boutique overdrive pedal UK Boutique overdrive pedals UK EP Drive EP Drive pedal EP Drive pedal UK Ep Drive V3 EP Drive V3 pedal EP-3 preamp pedal EP-3 preamp pedal UK EP3 preamp Guitar pedal shop UK Guitar pedal shops UK The Very Good Amp Co UK guitar pedal dealers UK guitar pedal shops UK guitar shop UK pedal dealers Very Good Amp Co Very Good Amp Co EP Drive UK Very Good Amp Co UK dealer Very good amp company Very Good Amp Company UK dealer Very Good Amplification Company

Handbuilt and designed by Jon Armellino in Denver, CO USA, the EP Drive offers the classic EP3 style pre-amp tone, in a versatile drive pedal. Jon is passionate about amp and pedal circuits, starting the Very Good Amp Co in 2020 and gaining a good following quickly due to this fantastic first pedal in his range. I'm really pleased to be stocking this great sounding, versatile drive and pre-amp pedal, considering this is an early release for a new company, things look incredibly bright and it's great to be on board!

Introducing my new Home of Tone exclusive Loaded For Bear cables!

August 14, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: G&H guitar cable plugs guitar cables guitar lead guitar leads handmade guitar cable handmade guitar cables handmade guitar lead handmade guitar leads Instrument lead Instrument leads James' Home of Tone Loaded for bear loaded for bear audio loaded for bear audio cable loaded for bear audio UK Loaded for bear cable loaded for bear cables loaded for bear guitar lead loaded for bear guitar leads loaded for bear instrument cables loaded for bear instrument leads

I've been stocking Loaded For Bear Audio instrument cables for some time now, the customer response is always great, I've been really happy with the consistent quality and unique visual design aspects of the cable range. But I must admit, I did always wonder what we could do for a Home of Tone edition/exclusive and thankfully, Jon at Loaded For Bear Audio has been kind enough to work with me on this idea too!

A fantastic, budget friendly guitar range lands at the Home of Tone; Introducing 'SX Guitars'!

August 12, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: SST62 SST62 guitar SST62 strat SST62 Strat guitar SX 8665 SX Guitar SX Guitar for sale UK SX Guitar UK SX Guitars SX Guitars for sale UK SX Guitars UK SX SST62 SX Strat SX Strat copy SX Strat guitar SX Tele guitar

For long time followers of the Home of Tone, this particular brand, or price point of guitar may be somewhat of a surprise to see on my site and roster. But rest assured, SX joins the Home of Tone after a lot of researching, trial time and planning so I'm equally as proud to represent this more budget friendly guitar brand alongside the top of the range handmade instruments you've come to know me for.

Wiring kits now available for Fender Jaguars!

July 27, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

It is very long overdue, but my Signature Series Jaguar re wire kits have just hit the site! To start with anyway, this one is a humble recreation of the traditional specs/style and is available as sections, or a full kit. Which might help for repairs, as well as full re wires. The various cavities/routes and wire channels on these short scale offsets mean some of the final connections need to be made in situ, but the traditional colour coded wires, my labelling and accompanying wiring diagram will assist with that. Really enjoyed finally getting around to making these an available item instead of some kind of secret handshake, the Jag deserved better than that and needed to be up there alongside my JM and Mustang kits.

ThorpyFX arrive at James' Home of Tone!

July 27, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: Thorpey FX ThorpeyFX ThorpeyFX pedals Thorpy pedals Thorpy pedals dealer ThorpyFX ThorpyFX Birmingham ThorpyFX Camoflange ThorpyFX chorus ThorpyFX compressor ThorpyFX Dane ThorpyFX dealer ThorpyFX dealer UK ThorpyFX dealers UK ThorpyFX Dudley ThorpyFX field general ThorpyFX field Marshall ThorpyFX flange ThorpyFX for sale ThorpyFX fuzz ThorpyFX Gunshot ThorpyFX overdrive ThorpyFX pedals ThorpyFX pedals UK ThorpyFX Pulse Doppler ThorpyFX Stourbridge ThorpyFX West Midlands ThorpyFX West Midlands dealer ThoryFX The Dane

I have been a fan of ThorpyFX pedals for a number of years, and have very much dreamt of stocking them here which I'm very proud to say is now possible! If you're in the West Midlands/Dudley Borough and have wanted to try out a ThorpyFX pedal in person, then hopefully this will help as I'm more than happy to have visits at my office here in Stourbridge! Or of course, due to being a well established online retailer too, I can ship across the UK and Europe as well!

Dependent and independent volume controls and your Gibson!

July 21, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: Decoupled wiring Independent les paul volume Independent les paul wiring

If you've played Gibson style guitars such as a Les Paul, SG or 335 for any period of time, you'll likely be familiar with how their volume controls work. Despite having two volume controls, one for each pickup, they don't work completely independently to one another. There is still some interaction between each control/pickup but perhaps most notable is when in the middle position and you roll down one volume control, it cuts the entire signal. This is because the volume controls are dependant of one another, rather than fully independent. They've been wired this way for decades, and whilst most players are either simply used to it that way or actively prefer it (even making the most of it and using the controls as a form of kill switch too for example!), there are players that really don't like it and desire independent controls in their guitars.

An interesting Hofner I couldn't help but get involved with!

July 14, 2021 — James P Gascoigne

Tagged: 510 Diamond pickups wiring diagram Hofner 510 Diamond pickups Hofner Diamond pickups wiring diagram Hofner Verithin wiring diagram Vintage Hofner Verithin wiring diagram

Although I'm not overly knowledgeable on them, I do find vintage Hofner guitars beautiful designs to admire. They were certainly very well built and capable instruments in their own right, but at times were unapologetically inspired by the exotic, and somewhat more exclusive USA guitar brands pioneering guitar design at the time. I've only had the chance to get my hands on a small number of 50s and 60s Hofner and similar brand guitars, and there is a certain magic to them. Knowing that a lot of these guitars would have been absolute prized possessions when new and likely for the majority of their lives. I think that carries as much value as their monetary estimations, or exceeds it perhaps too.

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