-
Super PickupGiveaway 2025
Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…
Dennis Kager
Techy’s Brain, Musician’s Heart
Amplifiers became a passion for Dennis Kager 45 years ago. And through the years, he has witnessed the zeitgeist surrounding…
Fender ’68 Custom Vibro Champ Reverb
Small Wonder
Fender’s ’68 Custom amp series has become popular among pickers who love old-school looks and sounds but prefer contemporary modifications…
Eric Lindberg
“I’m always trying to do things I haven’t done before,” says guitarist/banjoist Eric Lindberg, who has toured and recorded for…
Fretprints: Toy Caldwell
Southern-Rock Eclectic
Marshall Tucker Band was arguably the most unusual Southern-rock group of the ’70s. Its namesake wasn’t the leader, a member,…
1964 Fender Bassman
1964 Fender 6G6-B Bassman Preamp tubes: four 7025 (12AX7 types) Output tubes: two 5881 (a more-rugged 6L6 type), fixed-bias Rectifier:…
Joe Ely
Driven to Drive
From the start of his solo career, Joe Ely’s west Texas audacity and unpredictability has been an asset – an…
-
Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings
Double-bound for Glory
George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…
NOW AVAILABLE!
CURRENT ISSUE
Join 25,700+ subscribers & be notified when new articles & more becomes available!
ARTISTS
Billy Squier
Recollections, Guitar Collection
Much has been written and said about Billy Squier and how his 1981 album, Don’t Say No, provided the spark…
George Cotsirilos – Jazz Sans Cliché
Deft work on an L-5 for “The Three Doves” George Cotsirilos grew up listening to Bloomfield, Hendrix, and Clapton, then…
Steve Cropper
Looking Back at Stax
The gloriously soulful music recorded by Stax Records is still entertaining listeners six decades after its release, and the label…
Randy Rhoads
Diary of an Axeman, 30 years Later
(RIGHT) Rhoads’ polka-dot guitar was built in 1979 by Karl Sandoval, with a mahogany body, modified ’60s Danelectro non-adjustable maple…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Kustom’s The Bag
A New Dimension in Electro-Thoracity
When Steppenwolf’s John Kay took the stage, it was easy to believe he was performing a suitably ’60s ceremony celebrating…
Gibson’s Depression-Era Exports
Many aren’t aware that some of the archtop guitars Gibson produced during the Depression were marketed under different brand names,…
MIM Hosts Stephen Stills and Ushers in Dragons and Vines Exhibition
On November 5th, Phoenix, Arizona’s Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) celebrated the opening of their newest exhibition, “Dragons and Vines: Inlaid…
Carvin DN640K
Doubleneck instruments have always been a unique niche in the guitar market, for good reason. They’ve also carried an air…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
-
Live Wire
-
Narrow(field) Win
-
Take Flight
Heritage Guitars’ H-155M
Best-Kept Secret
Heritage Guitars still builds instruments by hand… in Kalamazoo. Like its veteran brethren in the industry, it focuses on craftsmanship,…
Keeley Electronics Loomer
Tone Weaver
As effects pedals proliferate, so do multifunction boxes. Case in point: Keeley Electronics’ Loomer, combining three reverbs with a raging…
The Supro Delta King 10
Down To The Crossroads
With the increasing popularity of compact, low-wattage combo amps has come an overwhelming variety of choices. Supro has entered the…
Fishman’s Aura Spectrum DI, ToneDEQ
Potent Preamps
Unlike most electric guitarists, acoustic-electric pickers tend to worry about preamps. A lot. This front stage is critical because acoustic…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
-
More Personal
-
Rare Pioneer
Mojo Hand Swim Team Chorus Flanger
Double Duty
Michigan-based Mojo Hand Effects has been building a variety of hand-assembled pedals since 2010. Their latest, the Swim Team, pulls…
Gibson Les Paul Spotlight Special
Unlocking the Mystery
It was 1983, and Gibson was in the throes of its darkest days. Norlin Industries had incurred excessive debt, sales…
Dominic Miller’s Tasty “Mi Viejo”
Sting Guitarist’s Serene Harmonic Expressionism Using his new artist tribute model classical (the label says “1/1”!) made by K. Yairi,…
Xaviere XV-950
Jazzy Looks, Multi-Purpose
Gibsonguildgretsch! Cumbersome as it may be in word form, Xaviere’s XV-950 gracefully combines attributes from the “big trio.” The XV-950…
