Why is it every time I write about a Glockenklang head I’m tempted to trot out the tired German clichés; something about their precision, strength, and cleanliness—am I really that predictable? [Ed. Note: I knew you were going to ask that.] At least this temptation is based in fact, and not mere rhetorical laziness. Each Glockenklang I’ve encountered does in fact have all these qualities, a list to which I’ll add high cost. But the latest, the Soul II, is a comparative bargain at $1,639 street. The solid-state head cranks 440 watts into a 4Ω load and includes a full-featured set of EQ and signal-routing options. Plus, the preamp has been re-voiced for additional warmth and character, or “fun” as the press release puts it. I’m keeping my comically xenophobic mouth shut.

I count basses and whisky among my very favorite things, so forgive me that I was struck with a compulsion to drop an ice cube into my favorite crystal tumbler when I learned about the collaboration between Italian builder Manne and legendary Scotch distiller Lagavulin. The revered distiller donated a cask used to age Lagavulin’s potent, peaty water-of-life to Manne’s Andrea Ballarin, a whisky lover (bless his heart), for a limited edition of instruments. Ballarin shaped the smoky oak cask into one bass and two guitars, and inspired by the oxidation and rust marks typical of a barrel from Scotland’s coastline, complimented the stained, scented wood with aged hardware. Price is not available, but you can expect that it’ll cost more than a few bottles of 16-year-old single malt.

If you want more than just “basic cable,” Solid Cables wants to hook you up. The Pasadena, California-based company designed its Dynamic Arc Ultra to have supreme clarity across the entire spectrum, while it spec’d its Dynamic Arc Beta cable to cut the harsh high-end sibilance that’s the bane of many a bassist. One’s clean-and-clear (think Disney Channel), while the other’s wooly-and-warm (think Animal Planet). So which one makes you sound like those Seinfeld reruns?