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Favorite Modern Band Gear (Rock Band/Rhythm Section)

Here are suggestions for some of our favorite and essential MODERN BAND GEAR!

I am a geek when it comes to gear, and I have had a few people ask me about products to buy for their modern band program (modern band is basically rock band.) I created a “What Would Bob Buy?” list of items to kick start your Little Kids Rock Band. I hope this list helps!
 
To buy all of this, my favorite company is Sweetwater, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. They carry only good quality products. You can contact my friend Mark Magdich (Mag-ditch) and he will give you the best prices you can find. In addition to the regular school discount, he will also add the “I know Bob Wilson” discount. You can reach him at Mark_Magdich@sweetwater.com, or call 800-222-4700, extension 1265. Make sure you tell him that I sent you!

Ukulele
Cordoba and Kala are the most popular and reliable brands of ukulele for schools. I tend to lean toward Cordoba because they have a nicer sound, and better quality control.
Cordoba 15SM Soprano Ukulele
Cordoba 15CM Concert Ukulele
Cordoba 15TM Tenor Ukulele

Kala are probably second best ukuleles for schools behind Cordoba. They are great, and I would recommend these. 
Kala KA-15 Satin Mahogany Soprano - Natural Mahogany
Kala Makala Classic Ukulele - Soprano
 
For a bit less, this ukulele comes with a case and tuner, which works for me right now because I don't have any kind of rack to hold them at the moment.
Kohala KPP-S Soprano Ukulele Player Pack

Teacher Tenor – You will surely want your own! I would suggest buying one that comes with electronic pickups so that you can plug into an amp so you can be heard over the rest of the kids. These Lanikai ukuleles are terrific! They are the only ones that have strap buttons, which is important to me so I can walk around the room hands free. This is the one I own and I absolutely love it!
Lanikai FM-CET Natural . This is the one I own and I absolutely love it!
Lanikai GM-NACET Natural Stain.  My wife is getting this one!
Cordoba 20TM-CE Tenor Cutaway Electric Ukulele. If the Lanikai are too much money, this is a good alternative.

Acoustic Guitar
Steel String
Washburn Harvest DS7 Natural
Washburn Apprentice G-Mini 5 Natural
Yamaha JR1 3/4 Size Dreadnought

Classical Nylon String
Yamaha C4011 Full Scale Classical
Washburn Classical C40
Cordoba CP100 Guitar Pack
Cordoba C5-CE Canadian Cedar Top

Electric Guitar
Short lesson on electric guitars: There are essentially three main types, Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster, and Gibson Les Paul. As much as I love Telecasters, or “Tele” guitars, it is commonly known as a country guitar. A “Strat” or “Les Paul” will be the most versatile for your kids. All three have their very own distinct sound. If you can afford it, I would get a Strat first, then a Les Paul, and down the line I would also get a Tele. You could go very cheap on all of these but will have problems eventually, and repairs and upgrades would need to be made. There is a marked difference in quality, sound, and playability by bumping up a hundred bucks. Here’s what I would get. There are many colors of these models.
 
Squires are the lower brand of Fender. You can find good models, but I tend to stay away from Squire Bullet and Squire Affinity, as standard replacement parts do not always work with these lines.
Fender Squier Strat SSMCAR Standard Stratocaster
Fender Squier Tele SSIBLND Standard Telecaster

Epiphone is the lower brand of Gibson.
Epiphone Les Paul 100 

This may be too much for most of your younger kids, but if you have the money, this is a great guitar! It has a special push/pull feature with the knobs that allows you to get several more different sounds.
Epiphone ENLPHBNH Les Paul Standard Plustop Pro

Electric Bass
You have a number of options for bass.

Short Scale Bass - These are great for smaller kids with smaller hands, but still has the Ibanez punch.

Ibanez GSRM20TR Mikro

Medium Scale Bass - Ibanez recently came out with a “medium-scale” bass, which I don’t know much about, but looks intriguing. I may have bought this for my middle school students instead if it was out.
Ibanez SRMD200SBM Mezzo
 
Full Scale Bass - Fender, Ibanez, and Yamaha make the best ones, and you can’t go wrong with any of these. Fenders have a little bit wider neck, Yamaha and Ibanez have a thinner neck making it easier for younger kids to play. Guitar players tend to like Ibanez more because it is closer to a guitar neck size. Fenders have a very specific sound that many bass players swear by, but are more expensive. You do NOT need a 5 string, no matter what any kid tells you. There are many colors of these models.
Yamaha TRBX304MGR
Ibanez GSR200TR GIO
Fender Squier JBass CLDMR Contemporary Jazz Bass
Fender JBass PMTP Player Series Jazz Bass

Keyboards
I will do some more research on this topic. This is a difficult category because keyboard technology changes so quickly. However, I can tell you that depending on what you’re looking for, you can go a few of ways. These are the questions to ask yourself:
  • Full 88 or partial 64 keys?
  • Weighted keys? Touch sensitive?
  • Piano keyboard, synthesizer, or controller?

Amplifiers
Some things to think about:
  • Like guitars, there are so many choices for guitar amps, every company has their own certain sound, each person has their own taste.
  • In general, I would get an amp that works for rock and jazz. You don’t need a heavy metal amp (like Marshall.)
  • You should get a “solid state” amp, not a tube amp. Most guitarists would agree (myself included) that tube amps are better and have a warmer sound, but they are more expensive and kids drop amps and you’ll need to replace the tubes often.
 
Guitar Amplifiers These are some that I’ve owned or bought that worked great for me. This Orange Amp is the one I own, nice and small, won’t blow the doors off.
Orange Crush 35RT

This Fender is an all-around work horse! Great sound.
Fender Champion 100

Bass Amp – I swear by this bass amp! Even though it’s small and light, it has a great bass sound!
Gallien Krueger MB108

Acoustic Amp – This is a terrific amp that I use for my ukulele and my acoustic guitar. I originally was going to buy the smaller amp, but accidentally bought this one instead. Turned out to be a better choice, sounds great! This amp has two separate channels so you can plug a guitar AND a vocal mic. Built in effects too!
Fender Acoustasonic 90
Fender Acoustasonic 40. This is the smaller version

Keyboard Amp
Roland KC400
Roland KC80

Accessories
Cables – I like ProCo because they are guaranteed for life. You trip over and break it, Sweetwater will still replace it. I would avoid Monster Cables, as almost every one that I have bought has died.
 
You’ll need a long enough patch cable for your ukulele, this one has one end that is angled.
ProCo EGL20 Excellines Instrument Cable 20' Right Angle/Straight
 
These will work great for all your other guitars.
ProCo EG20 Excellines Instrument Cable 20' Straight/Straight

Wireless Guitar System - I started with a 15' patch cable connected to an amp, but then quickly switched to a 25' patch cable. I have my students sit in a U shape, so I'm able to get to all of them easily. I am always worried someone will trip and hurt themselves or destroy the cable. So yes, it would very cool to go wireless!
​Xvive Audio U2 Digital Wireless Guitar System - Blue
Line 6 Relay G10 Digital Wireless Guitar System

Strings – In general, string are very personal depending on the skill and style of the player. I have listed these strings based on their reputation, cost, and quality.
 
     Ukulele Strings
     D'Addario Nyltech Natural Nylon Ukulele Strings - Soprano
     D'Addario Nyltech Natural Nylon Ukulele Strings - Concert
​     D'Addario Nyltech Natural Nylon Ukulele Strings - Tenor
​
     Acoustic Guitar Strings
​     Elixir Strings Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze Acoustic Guitar Strings -.012-.053 Light
 
     Classical Nylon Strings
     D'Addario Pro-Arte Classical Guitar Strings - Normal Tension

     Electric Guitar Strings
     Ernie Ball 2221 Regular Slinky Nickel Wound Electric Guitar Strings - .010-.046
     Curt Mangan Fusion Matched Nickel Wound Electric Guitar Strings 11046 Light 10-46

     Bass Strings
     Short Scale 
     La Bella 760FHB2 Beatle Bass Flatwound Bass Strings - Light
     Full Scale 
     D'Addario EXL170 Regular Light Nickel Wound Long Scale Bass Strings - .045-.100
     Ernie Ball 2834 Super Slinky Nickel Wound Electric Bass Strings - .045-.100
     Curt Mangan Fusion Matched Nickel Wound Electric Bass Strings Light 45-105

Capo - Everyone should have a capo.
Kyser Quick Change Capo

Tuners - Snark tuners are the easiest to work, just clamp it on the headstock, turn it on, tune it!
Snark ST-8 Clip-on Super Tight Chromatic Tuner
 
Straps - I like these straps because they are comfy and they don’t slip like nylon straps.
Levys Cotton Guitar Strap

Ukulele hanger - Handy to have. I will often hang my ukulele from a music stand.
String Swing CC04UK Mic/Music Stand Ukulele or Mandolin Hanger

Picks - Again, so many choices depending on experience and style. For middle school kids, pretty much any medium pick will do, but these are my favorites
Dunlop 418P.73 Tortex Standard .73mm Yellow Guitar Picks 12-Pack
Dunlop 418P.88 Tortex Standard .88mm Green Guitar Picks 12-Pack

Guitar Pedals
Here is a great list of guitar pedals types that every guitarist should own. Under each category you will find several of my favorite, and/or the most popular models of each kind. 

Tuner
     Peterson StroboStomp HD Pedal Tuner
     TC Electronic PolyTune 3 Guitar Tuner Pedal
     Boss TU-3 

Volume
     Ernie Ball VP Jr. 
     Ernie Ball MVP
     Morley PVO+ Optical Volume Plus Pedal 

Wah
     Dunlop GCB95 The Original Cry Baby 
     Dunlop CBM95 Cry Baby Mini 
     Dunlop 535Q Cry Baby
     Vox V846-HW Wah 

Distortion
     Boss DS1 – Distortion 
     Boss OS-2 - Overdrive/Distortion 
     Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi Nano 
     Electro-Harmonix Metal Muff
     Boss MT2 – Metal Zone Distortion 

Overdrive
     Ibanez Tube Screamer TS808 Overdrive 
     Boss Blues Driver BD-2 
     Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive
     Earthquaker Palisades
     Electro-Hamonix Crayon Overdrive 

Fuzz/Effects/Phase
     EVH90 Phase 90 
     MXR Phase 90 

Chorus
     TC Electronic Corona 
     Boss CH-1 Super Chorus 
     MXR M234 Analog Chorus
     TC Electronic Vortex Flanger 

Delay
     MXR M169 Carbon Copy Analog Delay 
     EarthQuaker Devices Dispatch Master 
     Boss DD-7 Digital Delay 
     MXR Carbon Copy Bright
     Boss DD-3 Digital Delay
     TC Electronics Flashback
     TC Electronics Flashback X4

Reverb
     TC Electronics Hall of Fame Reverb 
     Strymon Blue Sky 
     Boss RV-6 Digital Reverb
     DigiTech RV-7 HardWire Stereo Reverb        

Looper
     Boss RC-3 
     DigiTech JamMan Solo XT 
     TC Electronic Guitar Ditto 
     DigiTech JML2 JamMan 

Tremolo
     Boss TR-2 Tremolo            
     Voodoo Lab Tremolo                                  

Compressor/EQ
     Wampler Ego Compresson 
     Boss CS-3 Compression Sustainer
     MXR Dyna Comp Compressor
     Xotic SP Compressor 

Multi Effects
     Line 6 M9 Stompbox Modeler multi effects 

Acoustic Guitar Effects
     Fishman Aura Spectrum

Drum Set
For anything having to do with percussion, you can call Jeff Phipps at Steve Weiss Music at 215-659-0100, or go to Steveweissmusic.com. Again, great guy, great prices, and you’ll get it pretty quick.
 
Drums
There are so, so many options for drum set, but I would recommend a “Fusion” kit which is good for jazz and rock. It comes with a 20” bass drum, 10” and 12” tom toms, 14” floor tom, and 14”x5.5” snare drum. I personally like Pearl Drums the best, but Yamaha and Gretsch are great too.

 
This is a shell pack and hardware set. It comes with cymbal stands, high hat stand, snare stand, and bass pedal. It DOES NOT come with a drum throne (seat) or cymbals.
Pearl Export EXX 5 Piece Drum Set with Hardware - 20″ Bass Drum
​
If you’re looking for a set that is easy to move, or need a second set that stays in the classroom, this is a great little drum set! Does not include hardware or cymbals.
Pearl Midtown 4 Piece Shell Pack - 16" Bass Drum
​

This is the hardware pack that goes along with it.
Pearl Flat Base Hardware Pack
 
If money is tight, you could get a drum set that comes with everything you need. Shells, hardware (including throne), and cymbals. I will warn you that the cymbals are very basic, but they will get you by.
Pearl Roadshow 4 Piece Bop Drum Set with Hardware and Cymbals - 18" Bass Drum

Hardware
This is my favorite drum throne! Comfy and it’s hydraulic.

Roc N Soc Drum Throne - Nitro With Orignal Seat - Grey (NR-O-G)

This would be a good budget drum throne.
​Gibraltar 6608 Moto Style Vinyl Drum Throne

Cymbals
Cymbals are the most personal of anything. There are just so many choices in styles, sizes, and timbres that the combinations are endless. I personally have picked out and test played every one of my own personal cymbals. This is not realistic for the average teacher, and the cost would be much higher. Buying a cymbal pack from a reputable company will assure you good quality sounding products. These are a few cymbal packs I would recommend.

 
My first choice $$$. Ziljian and Sabian cymbals are the best, in most drummer’s opinions.
Zildjian K Cymbal Pack with Free 18" Dark Thin Crash
​
My second choice $$. Still Zildjian cymbals, but these are stamped, not hand hammered.
Zildjian ZBT 5 Box Cymbal Pack
​
My third choice $. This is Steve Weiss’s cymbal brand. I have a set of these at my school and I was quite impressed by their quality and sound! Comes with a free 10” splash and a cymbal bag! I wish they had an option for a 22” ride though.
Weiss Traditional Cast Cymbal Pack 1 With Free Splash & Bag

Add this for a second 18” crash cymbal
Weiss 18" Traditional Cast Crash Cymbal
​

Need a quiet set for practice? Here ya go! These feel like real cymbals, but play at 80% less sound.
Zildjian L80 Low Volume Cymbal Set - LV348
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