January MSM Staff Gear Picks 2015

January’s picks are a mixed bag of new and used gear, but each item is a current favorite of a Mass Street Music staff member!

Josh BaldridgeGrosh P4 Bass & J4 Bass
When Don told me that he was going to do a run of basses after a few years without seeing any, I ordered two and began anticipating their arrival. Well, it has been about seven months and they’re both here now! Picking up the P4, I knew immediately that it was the best feeling and most comfortable P-style Bass that I have played. Its lightweight ash body and perfect balance are shocking…I still can’t believe just how great it feels.

The J4 has an 18 volt active preamp to help you shape the tone precisely to your liking…J-Bass players can attest to how much tone tweaking is a part of playing these instruments.

Both of these basses are prime examples of the meticulous approach to building that Don and his crew posses. I really feel that they build some of the finest instruments in production today.

The Grosh P4 Bass in Black and the J4 in classic Sunburst – Josh’s picks!


Jim BaggettChuck Lee Tubaphone 12” Open Back Banjo (used)
This is a beautifully constructed banjo with a Walnut rim and neck. Very nice.

Chuck Lee Tubaphone banjo 12 open back

Even boss Jim appreciates a great banjo like this used Chuck Lee Tubaphone 12″

Eric MardisAnderson Classic S Shorty Electric
Love this one. Looks fantastic and plays effortlessly.

Tom Anderson Classic S Shorty guitar black on black
Eric ordered this Gilmour-inspired beauty for the store.

Eric PutnamKlon Centaur Pedal (used & vintage)
Klon Centaur- Awesome pedal! Its great to get to spend some time with such a legendary pedal. Amazing clean boost and has great smooth sustain when you crank up the overdrive. Very amp like drive, and as a boost it makes any amp sound more alive and responsive. 

Klon Centaur Pedal GoldAlas, this vintage Klon pedal was here and gone – SOLD!


Ted Kritikos
Catalinbread Heliotrope Harmonic Pixelator Pedal
This is a crazy cool pedal that digitizes your signal and you control whether it’s a slight ‘pixelation’ or a full on techno-fest. At the mildest, it’s like Iggy and the Stooges in 1970 – at the most it’s like you’re inside a Super Mario Brothers game. Slight sonic waves to jarring angled tones – it’s a Pandora’s box of fun.

Ted’s favorite is this insanely fun Catalinbread Heliotrope Pixelator Pedal.


Mike Horan
Repair LuthierD1 Collings Acoustic (S/N 22137)
Great guitar and reminds me of my first Collings. In 1994, I bought my first Collings guitar from Jim Baggett at Mass St Music, before I started working here. It was a straight up D1, nothing fancy, but what a sound and perfectly crafted. I had been saving my money for quite a while, and in fact, I bought the guitar instead of a used car. As a result, I continued to ride my bike to the Co-op for groceries and endured interminable Greyhound bus rides home to Springfield to visit my parents. But I had that guitar, worth more than all of my other possessions put together, and I was totally satiated. Those were simpler times.

Collings D1 acoustic guitar
Mike scrimped to be able to score his first Collings, which was a lot like this D1.

Susan WillitsRitter Gig Bags
These are high quality, well padded bags and they’re on sale. You can protect your guitar without hurting your wallet, or your back!

Ritter padded gig bag for electric guitar
Susan’s a bargain hunter – our Ritter Gig Bags are on sale right now!


Thomas Hamm
Don Grosh ElectraJet Custom Metallic Black (used)
Awesome Jazzmaster vibed electric with one of the coolest finishes – kind of a dream guitar, right here.

Don Grosh ElectraJet Custom black metallic with P90s
Thomas is favoring this used, custom Grosh EJ with P90s right now.


Anne Tangeman
Don Grosh Retro Classic Hollow T
A few months back I was thoroughly enamored of the used Grosh RC – it’s still here by the way, someone snatch that one up, it’s amazing! But this RC Hollow T is spectacular – it sings, it’s got a mini humbucker in the neck position, making it uber versatile and it’s red! Grain fill! With an F hole! How cool is that? I think it’s the coolest guitar in the store.

Grosh Retro Classic Hollow T red f hole electric guitar
Coolest guitar in the store, according to Anne.

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