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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…
Carl Martin’s Red Repeat Delay Echo, Greg Howe’s Lick Box
Boxes of Rock
After hearing – and taking to heart – feedback from players, Carl Martin recently upgraded its Red Repeat Delay Echo…
Babicz Octave Blue Flame
Flaming Glory
When a vintage-minded guitarist recollects cracking open the case of a big ol’ hollowbody and catching a glimpse of flame,…
Vox’s AC30CH and V212C Cabinet
Get Back
The Beatles helped popularize Vox amps, and Sir Paul tours with them today because they still have that sound –…
Vinnie Moore
Perpetually Exceptional
Shred architect Vinnie Moore’s latest solo record, Double Exposure, holds the distinction of being both an instrumental solo album and…
Looks Aren’t Everything
Ugly Amps Big Ugly 50 and 100
Steve O’Boyle got his start converting old tube PA heads into guitar amps. Flash forward nearly 17 years and O’Boyle…
Xotic ProVintage 5-String
Over the last few years Xotic has grown its rep thanks to top players who have endorsed its Leo-inspired guitars…
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Reverend Sensei H90
Live Wire
So you want a Gibson-style solidbody that can cover humbucker-powered rock, yet also twangier/glassier tones using a P-90 pickup. Check. You also want to grab high frets via double-cutaway and…
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ARTISTS
Dave Davies
Personal Songs and Power Chords
For more than a half-century, the world has known of guitarist Dave Davies and his raucous electric sound, thanks to…
Michael Angelo Batio
The Fine Art of Face Melting
Michael Angelo Batio is one of the most prodigious guitarists on Earth. Since his stint with the rock band Holland…
Dave Specter
Chicago Deep Dish
There are many styles of blues guitar, from haunting Delta acoustic to volcanic blues-rock. Hailing from the mecca of Chicago,…
Fretprints: Kim Simmonds
Ode to the British Blues Icon
Leader and guiding spirit of Savoy Brown, Kim Simmonds was an architect of the ’60s British Blues movement. A powerful…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Freddie King’s ’73 ES-355
Thinline Crown
Influenced by Robert Johnson, T-Bone Walker, Lightnin’ Hopkins, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, and others including jump-blues…
Gibson’s Style O Artist Guitar and K-4 Mandocello
Two For the Scroll
The mandolin originated in the Middle East as a bowl-back instrument. Crusaders brought it back to Europe and early Italian…
In Detail: Gibson’s 1954-’58 Les Paul Junior
In 1952, Gibson’s Les Paul model guitar was brand spanking new. But it wasn’t cutting-edge. True, it was the company’s…
Marshall Super Tremolo Model 1961
The often-told story of Marshall’s birth as a re-creation of the tweed Fender Bassman rarely includes mention of this rendition…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight
Guild’s Orpheum Slope Shoulder 14-Fret Rosewood Dreadnought
Reviving the ’30s
Guild’s Orpheum Slope Shoulder 14-Fret Rosewood Dreadnought Price: $4,999 (list); $3,799 (street) Info: www.guildguitars.com. Compared to Martin’s longstanding factory location…
Effectrode Tube-Vibe and Goran Fat Boy
Premium Pedalin’
Effectrode Tube-Vibe Price: $429 (Tube-Vibe) Contact: www.effectrode.com Goran Fat Boy Price: $429 Contact: www.goranguitars.com In the annals of guitar stompboxes,…
Harmony Comet
Michigan Meteor
Whoever coined the phrase “Everything old is new again” knew what they were talking about. The resurrected Harmony brand, associated…
The Walrus Audio ACS1
Simple Simulation
From worship services and home-recording where volume is an issue to fly-in shows where a full rig is impossible, amp…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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Consentrik Quartet
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Lookout Highway
David Allen Bazooka Overdrive
Ka-Boom!
David Allen Bazooka Overdrive Price: $250 (list) Contact: www.dallenpickups.com An Internet search for “overdrive pedals” yields 1,610,000 hits, indicating a…
Hilary Gardner
On The Trail with The Lonesome Pines
Vocalist Gardner explores the association between jazz and country, the Great American Songbook, and cowboy movie stars. Similar territory was…
Epiphone Crestwood
’60s Un-Gibson Solidbody
Gibson’s acquisition of Epiphone in 1957 presented a tremendous challenge to guitar designers and marketers at the company. One challenge…
The Dr. Z CAZ-45
Prescription Filled
When word got out in early 2020 that Mike Zaite and Alan Phillips (founder of Carol-Ann Amplifiers) were collaborating on…
