Any guitar strap that has made it and lasted 40+ years is worth mentioning. Anyone who has played guitar regularly for an extended period of time would know that even the highest quality of materials are still prone to wear and tear. It only takes the guitar to fall to the ground once for one to realize the importance of quality and design and making sure it is the right fit for you.

I can’t really find any conclusive history about guitar straps or how they originated or what the first guitar ever manufactured with one included is, but its open to speculation that the need for it rose out of the introduction of solid body electric guitars. Solid body electric guitars can be quite heavy – and when standing up to play a strap seems like a necessity. Who invented the guitar strap would be some interesting trivia to know!

There are many different materials that have been used over the years. Leather has been a long time favorite for many. It’s comfortable and smooth feeling to wear is no doubt part of its popularity. Many manufacturers of the time would stamp their logo onto the leather, which can help some in determining the age of a strap. Leather for the most part is durable and reliable material. However, as mentioned above, after excessive use it is prone to stretching and normal wear and tear. Weaved cloth was quite popular for awhile – in fact I still have the original one that came with my 70’s Yamaha acoustic.

While the value of a vintage guitar strap isn’t a whole lot on its own, unless perhaps it has been associated with a rock and roll piece of history, it is worth looking into if it is included in the sale of the guitar when buying “new” vintage equipment.

As always, you can usually snag a good deal on a guitar strap on sites like ebay. Here’s a look at what is currently available:

Have any thoughts about vintage guitar straps? Share them with us in the comments below.

Pro-Tools can be a little confusing to understand at first, and we bet it will take you several weeks of using it to understand all the features jammed packed into the software. Our favorite thing about pro-tools is the ease of editing vocals – the quality makes it notably better in this area than others. One thing you’ll want to make sure is that your computer can handle – at least 1 gig of ram is recommended, more if you can so it does not run too slowly.

Learn More About M-Audio Pro Tools M-Powered 7.4

CakeWalk: Cakewalk is another big name in audio recording software, and the company recently has catered not only to professionals but also to those with their own home studios releasing several different versions of their software in all budget ranges. Cakewalk Sonar 8 Producer Edition is their current top of the line software, and features everything you could want in recording software, including the ability to record and create your own drum loops or midi files. The good news is, if you don’t mind sacrificing a few features, you can get many of the Cakewalk Home Studio older version software for less than $100.

Propellerhead Reason 4.0: If you’re aspirations as a musician include playing with midi files, creating loops, and digital sound effects, Reason is the software for you. It allows you to create drum loops, music loops, and offers over 2000 possible instruments to play with.

There’s really very little you can’t create with this software – from piano and guitar loops to adding awesome effects through their numerous phasers and amps. You can set tempos, change audio levels, and play with all of their virtual mixers. You could easily be a one man band with Reason.

At $400 the price is a little steep, but if you love making synthesized sounds and drum loops, many people would say it is well worth it. The interface is a little tricky to understand – you can expect it to take a solid week of reading manuals, tips online, and playing around with it. You’ll also need a separate software for editing the music, since Reason pretty much is designed for making loops and midi-files and doesn’t allow you to add vocals or live instrument recordings.

Learn More About Propellerhead Reason 4.0

There’s also a few 100% free audio recording software programs available to download worth mentioning:

Audacity: If you’re running Windows, audacity is the best you can get for free. Simply plug-in your mic and start recording tracks. You can then add numerous effects such as reverb, phasers, and others. The main drawbacks of Audacity is that fine-tune editing can be tricky, as it can be tough to make sure your edits are staying in time with the music. For the beginner though, it can be a great way to finally record your music, convert to mp3 and share with the world. Download here.

Garage Band: If you’re a Mac User, you probably already have GarageBand pre-installed, though if not you can get it directly for free from C-Net or Apple. It features the ability to record as well as a few pre-set synths and voices you can play around with. Editing is slightly better in GarageBand compared to Audacity, mainly because it has guides you can use to make sure you stay in time.

Have any thoughts on the Audio Recording Software we’ve mentioned above? Do you use something different you’d like to share your review on? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below!

The Neve 1272 was never designed to be used a pre mic, however, it was discovered that it could be used as one, since all of the parts necessary where there to rewire it to be used as one. It is not uncommon when looking for an original Neve 1272 to stumble across one that has been rewired to be used as a pre mic or has had various features added and changed to it. It is thought that by rewiring the Neve 1272 you can have the same effects as the Neve 1073 when done properly – however the biggest difference is the Neve 1073 has an additional amp card that can help if the user is seeking to get more than 50 db of gain. Some have also built custom kits that provide a switch so you can change from the Neve 1272 as a pre amp to the pre mic capabilities if desired.

Below is our custom search on eBay for the Neve 1272 – these listings are updated live, so if you don’t see what you want today, check back in a few days to see what’s new.

Nuemann microphones were one of the first microphones to be commercially produced, originally for radio broadcasting before moving into other areas as technology advanced. Nuemann’s CMV3 was the first microphone to be mass produced, which was introduced in 1928. The CMv3a was introduced in 1932 and featured removable interchangeable heads.

In 1947, Nuemann began creating the U47 micriphone, which was a switchable-pattern condenser mic. It featured a VF14 tube and dual diaohragm M7 capsule. The U48 was introduced in 1957 which was a cardioid figure-8 switchable microphone.

Additional “famous” microphones include the M49 and the M50 released in 1951. The first stereo microphone, the Neumann SM2 was introduced in 1956. Also is the Nuemann U87, which is one of the most popular Neumann models (and the one pictured above). Original models were built between 1967 and 1987; The U87 has continued to be innovated electrically to produce a high quality sound.

Nuemann, a company based in Germany, continues to be an innovator in the microphone and recording industry. Vintage Nuemann microphones, especially the U47 and U48 are often sought after today because of their “harsh” effect when used for recording vocals in close range. Other vintage Nuemann microphones have a strong appeal to collectors as well as vocalists looking for a unique sound. Their current models are used in recording studios worldwide.

To locate a dealer, you can visit Nuemann.com for new microphones or if you would like more information on the history and specs of discontinued models.

You can also often find Nuemann microphones on trading sites such as eBay – their most current listings for vintage microphones are below for you to check out:

The Neve 1073 preamp and equalizer was launched in 1970 and still remains a popular choice today amongst recording artists. It’s well known for its “louder than life” and “big, punchy” sound that continues to make the Neve 1073 an icon.

Finding an original handcrafted and handwired Neve 1073 ’s is no easy task, though most reviews have suggested that the current models are manufactured to the exact same specifications of the original Neve 1073 modules. Obviously with advances in technology they are not be identical, but the high quality they produce still makes them popular today. Recording artists can use just one single unit, or purchase multiple units to further expand the capabilities of the Neve 1073.

If you’re a statistics person, here are some of the features of the current (modern) classic version of the Neve 1073:

• Classic transformer microphone preamp amp (Class A design)
• 3 EQ bands
• Hand-built and hand-wired to original 1970s design
• HP filter
• Neve designed hand-wound transformers
• Both inputs are transformer balanced and earth free
• Microphone Input: Gain +80db to +20dB in 5dB steps.
• Line Input: Input impedance 10k ohms, gain +20dB to -10dB in 5dB steps.
• Output: Maximum output is >+26dBu into 600 ohms.
• Output is transformer balanced and earth free
• Distortion: Not more than 0.07% from 50Hz to 10kHz at +20dBu output
• (80kHz bandwidth) into 600 ohms.
• Freq Response: +/-0.5dB 20Hz to 20kHz, -3dB at 40kHz. EQ Out.

Finding Neve Equipment in the U.S. is especially difficult, with there only being 3 authorized AMS-Neve dealers. Fortunately, sites like ebay make it easy to shop all around the world. See some of their current listings for the Neve 1073 and accessories below.

Have something to say about the Neve 1073 preamp & Equalizer? Share it in the comments below.